Vern Fitzgerald was the first contestant to bow out of the MasterChef Australia Top 10 tonight, after a breakfast service challenge at Gary Mehigan’s Boathouse restaurant. The five contestants up for elimination each had to design a breakfast menu item to serve to 100 hungry patrons, with Gary running the kitchen.
Vern designed a Japanese-inspired breakfast pizza, with smoked trout, asparagus, miso butter and sesame seeds. While the judges commended his creativity and enjoyed the flavours he put on the plate, Vern’s performance throughout service slowed the team down.
It was a close call between Vern and Christina, whose Portuguese baked eggs were also hit and miss throughout the service. In the end, however, Christina’s flavours wooed the judges and she was safe.
At the other end of the kitchen, Daniel won dish of the day, with sweet potato fritters that Matt tipped to become a café staple across the country, and that Gary loved so much he has now added to the Boathouse breakfast menu.
Vern leaves MasterChef Australia part of the Top 10. He takes priceless memories and renewed vigour in the realisation that life doesn’t have to be vanilla. “It’s given me the drive to go outside and just kill it,” he reflected.
