The third course was chef's choice, so this is where they should really wow the judges, in my mind. Bryan made venison saddle, puree of sunchoke and orange-juniper sauce. Michael made fennel-scented squab, pistachio cassoulet, textures of mushrooms. Kevin made slow-cooked pork belly, roasted broccoli and Brussels sprouts, caramelized ham jus.

The judges love Bryan's dish; the meat is cooked perfectly and the vegetables add texture. Michael's squab is also cooked perfectly, but the judges aren't impressed by his mushroom mold; one of them says that it was a gimmick and he didn't need a gimmick. Kevin's pork belly is undercooked. You can see that most of the diners left it on their plates. I don't know what happened here; throughout the competition, Kevin has won praise for his pork-cooking ability. He just screwed up.

The dessert course is the fourth course. Bryan made sheep's milk and white chocolate "dulce de leche" cheesecake, dry caramel, fig sorbet, poached pear. Michael made chocolate caramel coulant, butternut squash brulee and butternut ice cream with candied pumpkin seeds. Kevin made roasted banana, toasted peanut with chocolate bacon mousse, and bacon brittle.

Michael realizes just before service that he cooked his cake too long and it's dried out. One of the diners doesn't understand why Kevin wanted bacon in the dessert, and Tom thought the flavors were off. They all immediately recognized that Michael's cake was dry, and Tom explains how that happens, and says that it was "almost a very good dessert." Some of the judges thought Bryan's dish was a little safe, but Gail especially loved the fig sorbet.

Now that service is over, the chefs all hug and congratulate one another. Kevin thinks he would have been happy to eat any of his own dishes. Bryan is confident that his food expressed who he is as a chef. Michael is worried that his worst dish was his last one, so that was his final impression.

So before they head into Judges' Table, the three finalists discuss their chances. Kevin and Bryan are confident about their chances while Michael is still worried about his dry cake. That should have been a tip off, no?