Frozen scallops are no laughing matter in the culinary world. On last week's Top Chef, contestant Spike Mendelsohn was sent home after using frozen scallops in the Elimination Challenge. Spike had the poor taste to blame guest judge Rick Tramonto for having the questionable items in his restaurant's walk-in freezer. This defense failed to save Spike, and now all of the parties involved are doing serious damage control. According to Colicchio and Tramonto, the scallops were provided by Top Chef's own supplier and did not come from Tramonto's Steak and Seafood.

In an interview with the Chicago Tribune, Rick Tramonto implied that the show's producers deliberately planted the scallops in the freezer "to see...who would use them or not." Spike was annoyed that the scallops were there at all, and called the situation "trickery at its best" in his exit interview.