Top Chef Duels 2014 Recap: Week 9 – Who Won The Duel Tonight?

It is the Battle of the Beard tonight on Top Chef Duels 2014, as Kevin Gillespie and Art Smith take each other on in the final battle of the season before the Top Chef Duels finale next week! These guys are going to be bringing the Southern charm, but which one will be winning over the Top Chef judges more with their dishes? Find out in our Top Chef Duels 2014 Recap and see who won The Duel on Top Chef Duels 2014 tonight!

Last week on Top Chef Duels Season 1, it was a battle between previous female winners as Kristen Kish and Stephanie Izard battled it out and had a pretty close matchup. They each won their own challenge, which meant they each walked away with $10,000! For The Duel, the chefs were inspired by the Garden of Eden and Adam & Eve for their three dishes. Despite it seeming like Kristen was getting the most praise for her dishes, the judges discussed both chefs and they picked Stephanie as the winner and she heads to the finale, but Kristen is not done and heads to The Knockout to fight for a spot in the finale, which she did the same thing during her victory season!

[PHOTOS: Click here to meet the chefs on Top Chef Duels!]

Who wins tonight on Top Chef Duels 2014? Find out in our Live Recap that follows!

WARNING: TOP CHEF DUELS 2014 SPOILERS AHEAD!

Don’t want to know what happened tonight on our Top Chef Duels 2014 Live Recap or find out who got eliminated on Top Chef Duels Season 1 tonight? Then don’t read ahead!

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Here we go…we have two Southern chefs here, so this should be a good one and they both say it should be a good competition. They draw knives and Kevin wins and picks to go first.

CHALLENGE #1: For Kevin’s challenge, they have to butcher a side of pork into 8 pieces. They will then cook a dish from the pork and all of this must be done in 30 minutes and they can’t cook until the pig is butchered! Kevin has his pig broken down in five minutes! He lets Art use his tools, but Art wants him to help break it down! Art gets his butchering done in 15 minutes and now has 15 minutes to cook a dish!

TASTING: I think Art is just happy to have a dish to serve. For Kevin, they said the flavor is good. They love the fresh herbs and the flavors are bright and modern. For Art, the flavors are great and classics are classics for a reason. Curtis said the pork chop gave him a hug and he cooked it tenderly. Gail wanted more acid and crunch in it, but knows this is how it was supposed to be.

RESULTS: In a 2-1 vote, Kevin wins and takes home $10,000 for a more refined dish.

CHALLENGE #2: For Art’s challenge, he is challenging him to a critter fry! They will have to fry a “critter” and then have a baked side item! Kevin gets distracted with his prep and puts his critter in the fryer late! He is hoping it gets done in time.

TASTING: For Art, Curtis said it is pretty damn good. The rabbit is in small pieces and a little dry. Hugh loved the ode to vegetables. Gail said the rabbit wasn’t dry, but right on the edge. For Kevin, Gail likes the spicy syrup. Curtis said he likes the quail, but Hugh said his was overcooked. Curtis wasn’t sure about the combination.

RESULTS: In a 2-1 vote, Art wins and takes home $10,000 and he is donating it to charity, which is cool.

THE DUEL: For dinner, they will be joined by the cast of Grey’s Anatomy. For the first course, they will serve a soothing dish to alleviate stress. For the second course, they will create a dish to cure homesickness. For the final course, they will create a dish to mend a broken heart. In come their sous chefs and let’s get this started!

The chefs are starting on their first dish and Art is talking some smack and asking lots of questions. Kevin said he talks when he is nervous, so Art must be super nervous tonight on Top Chef Duels 2014!

FIRST COURSE: For Kevin, they said it is delicious and have never had fish cooked this way and love it. Wolfgang Puck said it is a well-executed salmon. For Art, they said the biscuit is fabulous. Wolfgang said it is tasty and very good comfort food. Gail said it is comfort food, but it had a refined touch to it. They said it is definitely a stress relief dish.

Back in the kitchen and Art is nervous and knows he can’t make a mistake during this or it could be the end of him.

SECOND COURSE: For Art, they said what’s not to like? Fried chicken and it is so amazing. Wolfgang said it is like they had the same mother and it brings him back to home. Curtis wanted more of it. For Kevin, Curtis said he has never heard of a potsticker soup, but eating this made him miss home. They thought the soup was great. They were blown away and wanted to finish the plate.

They are back in the kitchen and Art is making a 12-layer cake, which is what his great-grandma used to make. He said it isn’t the prettiest, but it tastes great. Kevin is making a dish that his grandmother used to make at Thanksgiving every year, but never got the recipe! He is making it from memory since he ate the whole dish every holiday!

THIRD COURSE: They both look absolutely amazing. For Kevin, they said they kind of want to live inside of it because it is so delicious. For Art, they said there is something so succulent about the chocolate and that helps soothe a heart. Gail said that she loved how they both used their grandma as an inspiration.

The diners discuss the dishes and they are split on the dishes, but I am thinking Kevin will pull this one out. What do you think?

RESULTS: The chefs are back in front of the judges on Top Chef Duels 2014 and the winner of The Duel is Kevin and he moves on to the finale! Art is moving on to The Knockout for a chance to fight for a spot in the finale!

What do you think of the results on Top Chef Duels 2014 tonight?

Join us tonight on Reality Rewind for our Top Chef Duels 2014 Live Recap. Let’s watch together and see who was eliminated on Top Chef Duels tonight! Subscribe to our Email and RSS or like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter for all our latest updates.