Image Credit: The Food Network



We start the show with a recap of the season so far, ending with the explanation that our final two teams, Grill Em All and Nom Nom will compete for the 50k prize. The teams meet up with Tyler in Manhattan and the challenge is explained in full. Each team will compete in each of the five boroughs of New York. In each borough, they must make $500 dollars before moving on to the next borough. The sequence of the boroughs is Bronx, Queens, Brooklyn, Staten Island and finally Manhattan. In Manhattan they have to make $1000 dollars. Once they complete this, they race to the top of the Flatiron Building and check in with Tyler. The first team there wins.

Laurent of Spencer on the Go helped Grill Em All by hooking them up with a local chef in New York to get products from. Both trucks get selling fairly quickly but Grill Em All gets a quick start and a precious lead. Nom Nom has a rough time of it maybe because it’s not their crowd, it’s just too late or because people had eaten during the game. Grill Em All makes their money and moves on to Queens and finds a spot near a late night bar. Grill Em All clips a bumper and asks the police what they should do, the police say to open up and sell sandwiches. The make about 200 dollars before closing down for the night. Nom Nom is still in the Bronx. Next morning Nom Nom is still struggling but Grill Em All is in Queens near a food festival. Nom Nom is finally approached by a bouncer who got burgers from Grill Em All the night before and it gives Nom Nom the boost they need to get something going they finally make enough to move to Queens but Grill Em All is done and on to Brooklyn.

Nom Nom does better in Queens and finds the foot traffic to be heavier and more willing to try food. They make the quota and move on to Brooklyn. Grill Em All has done well also and is moving on to Staten Island. Nom Nom does well in Brooklyn and they partner with an Ice Cream truck. Grill Em All starts off slow in Staten Island but then people who have tried their food start tweeting and they get a good rush going after a bit. They get a boost from their brothers in metal and head off to Manhattan. Nom Nom seems to be falling further behind with every passing hour. Shortly after both trucks open in the new boroughs, Tyler calls and tells them to shut down for the night and to meet him in the morning in Brooklyn for the Truck Stop. They meet Tyler for the Truck Stop and they are told the judge for today will taste the burgers and banh mi for 500 dollars on the total. But they have to make each other’s food. They have one hour to shop, plan and cook.

Each team goes to local shops to get what they need; Grill Em All finds a Vietnamese restaurant that provides them with marinated meat. Nom Nom makes a burger with seasoned pork and beef to have extra moisture in the meat. Each team finishes their sandwich and presents them to Nate Appleman, the judge for today. Some might remember Nate Appleman from The Next Iron Chef season 2. He tries both and awards the win to Nom Nom. This allows Nom Nom to skip Staten Island altogether and head straight to Manhattan, but Grill Em All is still several hundred dollars ahead of them. They both end up selling near the same spot and when Grill Em All reaches the goal of 1000 dollars they notice Nom Nom is no longer in the spot where they saw them and have to consider that Nom Nom has already reached the top of the Flatiron building. They race to the top and are handed an envelope by Tyler who informs them it will contain a check for 50k if they are the winners or it will be empty if they are not. The check it there and Grill Em All has won the race. Sometime later, Nom Nom arrives but we are not sure how much later they were. They congratulate Grill Em All. I am not sure how they left before Grill Em All and lost… but maybe that is just sour grapes for this writer who was a big fan of Nom Nom all season. Grill Em All and Nom Nom are doing some joint appearances back in LA so those who live out there, try them both and let us know what you think. Be well and until next season, drive safe, eat well and have fun.