Top Chef Boston wraps up its three-part finale tonight (at 9:00pm). Before you tune in to find out which of the final two cheftestants takes the title, see how some of Boston’s best chefs would’ve put them through their paces with their own Top Chef Boston challenges. Who knows? Maybe Bravo can incorporate some of these into a Top Chef Boston Part 2. Read more
The penultimate episode of Top Chef Boston airs tonight. Before you settle down in front of the TV to see which two cheftestants will be facing off in the final finale, have a little catch-up with Kristen Kish, former chestestant and Top Chef title-taker to see who she’s rooting for and what she’s got on her plate these days. Read more
Two years ago, chef Kristen Kish was running the show at Stir, Barbara Lynch’s diminutive demonstration kitchen in the South End. Then came Top Chef Seattle. Kish made it as far as the final seven before being eliminated and then fought her way back into the competition by beating every Last Chance Kitchen competitor she encountered, before ultimately taking home the title of Top Chef. She soon became one of Boston’s hottest young chefs – popping up on billboards around town, making TV appearances (including one on this season’s Restaurant Wars episode) and even taking over as Chef de Cuisine at Menton for a bit. We chatted with Kish about her time on Top Chef, her upcoming cookbook and what her timeframe is for opening her own spot. Read more
For folks who’ve been keeping up with Top Chef Boston, Katsuji Tanabe is no stranger. The LA-based, MexiKosher chef made it all the way to episode nine before being asked to pack his knives. Tanabe, known for his multi-ingredient dishes and a way with words (though not necessarily with clams), chatted with us from the West Coast about his time on the show and in Boston. See what he had to say before you tune in to the first part of the three-part finale which airs tonight. Read more
The last Hub-based episode of Top Chef Boston (before the three-part finale in Mexico) airs tonight at 9:00pm. Click through to get chef-owner William Kovel’s take on hosting the challenge at Catalyst and to hear what Top Chef Masters alum, Jody Adams, had to say about experiencing the competition from a different perspective. Read more
If you’ve been keeping up with Top Chef Boston then you’re likely familiar with Katsuji Tanabe, the former cheftestant behind Los Angeles’ first authentic Mexican-Kosher restaurant. After a rough start (roughest, probably, for the clams he was trying to open way back in that first episode) Tanabe became a fan favorite, winning challenges and making a few friends before being eliminated in the ninth episode. We caught up him back on the West Coast to get his perspective on Boston’s food scene, his former competitors and who he would want to work with if and when he comes east again. Read more
It seems like just yesterday that sixteen fresh-faced cheftestants came to town in pursuit of the title of Top Chef, yet here we are, down to the last Boston-based episode of season 12. For the occasion, Catalyst’s William Kovel threw open the doors to his Technology Square restaurant to give the contenders a chance to cook their way to the finale in Mexico. Kovel, who was thrilled when he was invited to host a challenge, shared some of his thoughts about the filming, cooking shows in general and having and Tom Colicchio in the house. Read more
Jody Adams has a lot of titles. She’s a James Beard Award winner, chef-owner of Rialto and Trade, cookbook author and one-time cheftestant on Top Chef Masters, where she made it as far as the Champions’ Round before being sent home. She finds herself in front of the cameras again this week for Top Chef Boston’s final stateside episode, only this time she’s in the dining room instead of the kitchen. What was it like for her to be on the other side of the swinging door? Click to read what she had to say about the filming, her advice for the remaining competitors and her take-aways from her time on Top Chef Masters. Read more
There’s only one Boston-based episode left before Top Chef bids adieu to the Hub for their three-part finale in Mexico – catch all the action at Catalyst, where the episode was filmed, at their viewing party on Wednesday, January 21st. Read more
It’s down to the final four for tonight’s Top Chef. The remaining cheftestants head out on the water (their family members in tow) to harvest Duxbury’s finest shellfish with the help of chef Jeremy Sewall and Island Creek Oysters’ Skip Bennett, both of whom chatted with us a little about the whole Top Chef experience. See what they had to say and then tune in at 10:00pm. Read more
It’s only appropriate that chef Mary Dumont would be at the table for Top Chef Boston’s Julia Child Tribute – Child, the mother of modern day cooking shows, was a regular at Harvard Square’s venerable Harvest restaurant, where Dumont is Chef. Dumont took a moment to talk to us about judging dishes, sitting down to dinner with Jacques Pepin and why Boston is such an awesome food town. Read more