Top Chef (2006)
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Richard Blais as Self - Judge
Episodes 44
Sudden Death
The wicked-awesome supersized season premiere introduces the 16 chefs from across the country who will be battling it out in Boston. Richard Blais (“Top Chef All-Stars” winner) joins Tom, Padma and Gail at judges table. The chef’testants are immediately thrown into hot water with the series’ first ever Sudden Death Quickfire Challenge where one chef is forced to cook for their life to stay in the competition. For the Elimination Challenge, the chefs must cook and serve a re-imagined version of the first dish they ever remember making, but will this trip down memory lane be a dream come true or a nightmare for the chefs? The challenge plays out at the first ever “Top Chef Food Festival” alongside some of Boston’s most prominent culinary stars including Barbara Lynch, Ming Tsai, Lydia Shire, Jasper White, Todd English, Ken Oringer, Jamie Bissonnette, Kristen Kish and Tiffani Faison.
Read MoreBoston's Bravest and Finest
The chefs create a surf-and-turf dish for guest judge Todd English; teams prepare dishes to be served up to Boston police and firemen and judged by guest chef Dante de Magistris.
Read MoreThe Curse of the Bambino
In a nod to the Boston Tea Party, the contestants must use tea to enhance their dishes for guest judge Ming Tsai; Fenway Park hosts a competition in which the chefs must use ballpark snacks to create fine-dining dishes.
Read More12 Chefs Walk Into a Bar...
The chefs must create the ultimate bar snack for guest judge George Wendt ("Cheers"); the chefs must work in teams to write a create a 3-course Italian menu; actress Emmy Rossum ("Shameless") ruffles the chefs with her gluten-free diet.
Read MoreThe First Thanksgiving
The chefs trek through a bog to gather cranberries; the chefs cook a Thanksgiving feast using only ingredients and cooking methods found in the 1600s; descendants of the Mayflower colonists and Wampanoag tribe join the judges at the table.
Read MoreRestaurant Wars
The chefs are split into two teams and challenged to open their own pop-up restaurants, which includes creating menus, coming up with the decor and training the wait staff; acclaimed restaurateur Barbara Lynch serves as guest judge.
Read MoreClean Up in Aisle 2!
The chefs must cook chowder for chef Jasper White; eliminated chefs return; for the Elimination Challenge, the kitchen opens its doors for the first time ever for a tasting party with "Top Chef" super fans.
Read MoreBig Sausage
The chefs are challenged to concoct a tasty sausage dish for NFL player Rob Gronkowski; the chefs create dishes inspired by famous New England authors, such as Stephen King, Edgar Allen Poe and Emily Dickinson.
Read MoreFor Julia & Jacques
The chefs flash back to their college days when they must prepare a ramen noodle dish judged by Andy Cohen and his college roommate, Dave Ansel; chef Jacques Pepin challenges the chefs to create a dish inspired by Julia Child's cooking techniques.
Read MoreSous Your Daddy!
The chefs are thrown for a loop when their family members join them to serve as their sous chefs in an Elimination Challenge, putting their tickets to the finals on the line.
Read MoreThe Final Battle of Bean Town
In honor of their last quick-fire challenge in "Beantown," the chefs must prepare an innovative bean dish; the chefs compete for a spot in the finals by creating dishes that exemplify the future of cooking.
Read MoreGetting Prickly in Mexico
In the first of the three-part finale, the three finalists head to San Miguel de Allende in Mexico where they are greeted by head judge Tom Colicchio who invites them to watch the final cook-off of Last Chance Kitchen and learn which eliminated chef will rejoin the competition. Award-winning Mexican chef Enrique Olvera introduces the Quickfire Challenge where the chefs must create a dish highlighting the Mexican ingredient xoconostle, a special type of prickly pear. San Miguel de Allende is a mecca for artists all over the world, and the chefs' creativity is put to the test when they are challenged to create a unique dish inspired by a local artist’s work for the Elimination Challenge. Cooking at the famed Instituto Allende, the chefs will have four hours to prepare dishes for an event while their artists complete a new work of art that will be on display. The chef that doesn't translate the artist’s vision will have to say "adiós" to the title of Top Chef.
Read MoreHoly Escamoly!
The chefs have to make two dishes with chocolate with one being sweet and the other savory.
Read MoreMano a Mano
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Stop the Presses
Top chefs arrive in Los Angeles in the opener of Season 13, which will feature the foodies competing in six cities across California. Here, they try to wow food critics and reporters under the Hollywood sign.
Read MorePop Up Pandemonium
The foodies must open distinct pop-up restaurants in various Los Angeles neighborhoods. Appearing: chef and pop-up impresario Ludo Lefebvre.
Read MoreSpines and Vines
The chefs visit Santa Barbara, where they pick up fresh sea urchin for use in a challenge. Later, a surf-and-turf war erupts.
Read MoreIt's a Dry Heat
Palm Springs, Cal., is the destination for culinary competition. Here, the chefs use solar-powered stoves in the desert, then prepare dishes on a famed golf course. Appearing: John Besh and Mary Sue Milliken.
Read MoreBig Gay Wedding
Top dishes for dates are served up by the chefs in Palm Springs, Cal. Later, they cater a wedding for 25 gay couples. Appearing: model Chrissy Teigen and foodie Art Smith.
Read MoreBanannaise
The chefs head to San Diego and cook up high-end fish tacos. Then, they prepare dishes to complement handcrafted microbrews. Appearing: chef Javier Plascenia.
Read MoreBack in the Day
The chefs return to Los Angeles to celebrate the series' 10th anniversary. A restrictive challenge limits them to 10 ingredients, then they walk down memory lane by creating a dish that represents who they were 10 years ago. Appearing: Michael Voltaggio; Antonia Lofaso; Mei Lin Hua; and Nancy Silverton.
Read MoreWhere's the Beef?
The chefs participate in a plating challenge by preparing visually appealing dishes using only snack food. Then, they cook for diners at a black-tie, finger-food event called Beefsteak. Appearing: Colin Hanks; Max Silvestri; Matt Selman; Jacques La Merde; and Neal Fraser.
Read MoreRestaurant Wars, Part 1
The iconic "Restaurant Wars" challenge ensues, with the chefs opening eateries for both lunch and dinner services.
Read MoreRestaurant Wars, Part 2
The "Restaurant Wars" challenge progresses with the chefs serving up dinner, during which everything from concept and food to service and consistency will be appraised.
Read MoreHammer Time
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Wok This Way
A showdown includes woks when the chefs visit San Francisco's Chinatown. Later, they must
Read MoreBack Where It All Started
San Francisco is the setting when the competing foodies cook for chef Traci Des Jardins. Later, they try to wow master chef Hubert Keller, the judges and San Francisco culinary elite with cuisine inspired by the restaurant Fleur de Lys.
Read MoreMagic Hour
The chefs land in Las Vegas and participate in a high-stakes challenge of cards and cuisine. Later, they must conjure culinary magic for illusionist David Copperfield.
Read MoreFinale
The top chef is crowned in the Season 13 finale. Before that, the final two culinarians must prepare the meal of their lives for their mentors and fallen colleagues. Appearing: Emeril Lagasse; Dominique Crenn; Jonathan Benno; Hubert Keller; Charlie Palmer; and Jean-Georges Vongerichten.
Read MoreSomething Old, Something New
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Southern Hospitality
The chefs join the judges for a traditional shrimp boil; the newcomers face off against the returning chefs to put a spin on a low-country family meal; after dining with chefs Carrie Morey and BJ Dennis, each team creates a family-style feast.
Read MoreChoke Holds and Clammy Hands
The chefs divide into teams to compete in a "mise en place" race. The foodies must also create a seven-course progressive meal featuring the humble radish in front of "Top Chef" superfans. The guest judges are Chris Cosentino and Richard Blais.
Read MoreThe Feast of Seven Trash Fishes
The chefs must create dishes using an odd mix of ingredients and tools found inside gift boxes. Later, they prepare a traditional Italian-American seafood-filled dinner, but they're forced to use a notoriously undesirable fish species. Appearing: editor Nilou Motamed and foodie Mike Lata.
Read MoreSmoke 'em If You Got 'em
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A Southern Legend
U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy enlists the chefs to create vegetarian versions of traditional comfort foods. Then, the chefs must prepare dishes that pay tribute to Edna Lewis, the matriarch of Southern cuisine. Appearing: Alexander Smalls; Art Smith; Hugh Acheson; Nathalie Dupree; and Mashama Bailey.
Read MoreBooty
Ingredients and the element of the chefs' zodiac sign must correspond. Later, the food fighters divide into teams to throw a pirate-themed bash, during which they must race through Charleston in a treasure hunt to collect their ingredients. Appearing: Michael Cimarusti and Graham Elliot.
Read MoreRestaurant Wars
The iconic Restaurant Wars challenge features the chefs dividing into teams to design a restaurant and create a cohesive menu, but the heat is on when egos collide and tempers flare. Appearing: chef Daniel Humm and restaurateur Will Guidara.
Read MoreFor the Kids
A blindfolded taste experiment tests the chefs. Later, the chefs draw inspiration from their own childhood memories to create meals for a charity gala for the MUSC Shawn Jenkins Children's Hospital. Appearing: Michael Voltaggio and Graham Elliot.
Read MoreShrimp Boats and Hat Ladies
The chefs are asked to prepare a decadent brunch for the famed Charleston Hat Ladies. However, it won't be a traditional southern brunch as they must create whimsical breakfast and lunch hybrid dishes inventive enough to impress the judges.
Read MoreAdios Charleston, Hello James Beard
The final four chefs cook impromptu dishes while simultaneously instructing mystery partners on how to create the same dish; when the judges compare dishes, the chefs are shocked to discover their secret partners are their visiting family members.
Read MoreCooking Away in Margaritaville
In Guadalajara, Mexico, the three remaining chefs face off against the winner of "Last Chance Kitchen'. The chefs must create a dish using goat, then they are tasked to pair their own cocktail with a dish that incorporates the notes of a margarita.
Read MoreTrial By Fire
The three remaining chefs head to the Yucatan Peninsula where Chef Roberto Muñoz Zurita challenges them to make a dish showcasing the flavor, complexity and heat of the legendary local habanero using ingredients from the local market. Culinary legend Jeremiah Tower gives the chefs a lesson on traditional Mayan cooking, before challenging them to create a dish using only ancient Maya ingredients and tools. The chefs will cook in an ancient cenote, or sinkhole, for a table of judges including local chefs Roberto Solis, Guillermo Beristain and Carlo Cardenas. The two chefs with the best dishes will move on to compete in the finale.
Read MoreComida Final
The final two chefs face-off to serve the best meal of their lives and earn the coveted title of Top Chef. The finalists will cook an epic four-course progressive meal with the help of three sous chefs, comprised of two eliminated chefs and one from their restaurants back home. The pressure is on as only one chef can win. The chefs must impress a dining room filled with their families, returning judges Graham Elliot and Gail Simmons, and distinguished chefs Joachim Splichal, Jonathan Waxman, Martha Ortiz, Jonathan Sawyer, Daniel Boulud and FOOD & WINE's Nilou Motamed.
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