18 Interesting Facts Every Top Chef Fan Should Know

Bravo's "Top Chef" has a way of turning little-known chefs into household names. Some of the most talented up-and-comers have walked away with thousands of dollars, a new buzzing career, and even better, the coveted cosign of seasoned hosts Padma Lakshmi, Gail Simmons, Tom Colicchio, and recent addition Kristen Kish. With 22 seasons under its belt, another on the way, and a franchise that includes "Last Chance Kitchen," "Top Chef Masters," "Top Chef Amateurs," "Top Chef Junior," and "Top Chef Just Desserts," the show has built an impressive legacy.

From celebrity appearances and contestant meltdowns to kitchens catching fire, the "Top Chef" archive is filled with countless classic moments. And that's just what the cameras have captured. The behind-the-scenes lore is even more fascinating, like what happens to the leftover food or wild rumors like contestants being basically held "hostage" during filming. Let's just say that there's a lot that goes into keeping this show entertaining from season to season. Here are some interesting facts every "Top Chef" fan should know.

"Top Chef" is edited for dramatic effect, which is why it takes the judges only a few minutes to evaluate dishes. What appears like rapid-fire deliberation, however, isn't actually what goes on behind the scenes. In reality, the judging process lasts much longer than its on-screen time. Think about it; if each dish were presented simultaneously, some would be cold by the time the judges were ready to try them. To prevent dishes from going cold before they can be tasted, the challenges are organized so that contestants finish rounds at staggered increments.

According to a Business Insider journalist who was invited to witness the filming of an episode, contestants were allotted 20-minute intervals to complete their dishes, which is enough time to ensure that the food arrived hot and could be properly judged. That said, per a 2017 Food & Wine interview with judge and executive producer Tom Colicchio, the time limits are strictly enforced, so we're assuming that the 20-minute intervals don't interfere with those.

"Top Chef" contestants have to deliver under pressure. No pre-planned recipes or cookbooks are allowed. Challenges are kept a secret until it's time to face off, so the chefs have to adapt on the spot. All of the anxiety, confusion, sweat, and tension that contestants experience is real, and those who can't take the heat are, ultimately, sent home empty-handed. Challenges can be so intense that some contestants have voluntarily quit.

In an interview with Delish, Gail Simmons revealed that the location of challenges varies from day to day, and oftentimes within the same day. To further ensure authentic reactions, the only time that the judges and contestants interact is when dishes are being judged. 

There have been many dominant chefs in the show's nearly 20-year existence. However, none have been as consistently dominant as Paul Qui, the highly awarded season 9 winner with a James Beard award. During season 9, he won 9 of the 17 total challenges. According to current stats, Qui not only holds the top spot for most overall wins, but he also has the most elimination wins.

Following his record-making "Top Chef" victory, he faced some personal and professional hurdles. However, after overcoming them, he went on to establish a successful Texas- and Denver-based restaurant empire that spans Filipino, Japanese, Spanish, and American cuisines, and even Norwegian-Texan fusion, among others.

Being a "Top Chef" contestant is a serious undertaking. Filming can last up to six weeks, and during that period, contestants are barred from going home, per Seattle Met. According to "Notes From a Young Black Chef," the memoir from season 13 contestant Kwame Onwuachi, even if a contestant is eliminated, they must quarantine in a house until the final episode is filmed (via  RadarOnline).

It's one of many ways the show prevents spoilers from leaking prematurely, due to there being a lengthy gap between when filming begins and when a season airs. Though unconfirmed, rumor has it that "Top Chef" confiscates luggage, cell phones, and other forms of communication during filming, which underscores the strict setting. It has been confirmed, however, that no one, besides their personal handler and members of the field team, is allowed to communicate with the chefs, which prevents crew members from buddying up with contestants.

In a 2007 interview with the New York Daily News, the former executive producer of "Top Chef," Shauna Minoprio, revealed behind-the-scenes secrets about the show. She said the production manager oversees the hectic schedule and overall production, which entails supervising the production design process and the construction of the main set and structure of each challenge.

They also manage the production equipment and maintain the kitchen inventory until filming is complete, ensuring that everything is clean and ready to use whenever needed. On top of that, they have to clean up the mess that contestants make after cooking.

It's rare for contestants to become permanent judges, but it isn't unprecedented. Of the 302 total chefs who have competed, only 12 have joined the judge's panel in a recurring role. The coveted list includes Melissa King, who appeared in seasons 12 and 17 and also has the best-ever win percentage of all contestants. There's Brook Williamson, the season 10 2nd-place winner and season 14 1st-place winner; Kwame Onwuachi from seasons 13 and 15; and Richard Blais, who, oddly enough, knows how to turn bugs into gourmet delights.

There's also Amar Santana, the season 13 2nd-place winner; Carrie Baird from season 15; repeat contestant Dale Talde; and Nina Compton, who competed in season 11. Gregory Gourdet and Kristen Kish (who later became a host) are also part of the list. Additionally, "Top Chef" sometimes features alumni as guest judges.

When watching the show, it typically takes less than 15 minutes for the judges to decide the winner. But, behind the scenes, the time it takes to deliberate is another story altogether. Competition is fierce, and since the final decision must be unanimous and is decided exclusively by the judges, debates over who wins can sometimes take eight to ten hours. In fact, during a 2017 public discussion about the show, Gail Simmons said that she dozed off one time because it took so long for everyone to agree.

Nevertheless, there is an exception to the rule. When the judges couldn't decide unanimously, they'd call in a man named T-Bone to be the tie-breaker. As the show's still-life photographer, T-Bone was usually the only other person who got to taste every dish.

When Danny Garcia walked away as the winner of season 21, he was awarded $303,000, the most prize money in the show's history. In the season finale's initial elimination challenge, the task was to create an eight-course fish tasting menu, with two courses per contestant. They weren't allowed to use the same fish, and were limited to a specific set of cooking methods. Garcia served two stunning dishes that won him the challenge, which came with $10,000 and a 10-day cruise. What won him season 21's "Top Chef" title, however, was the 4-course meal he served for the final challenge. 

The first course consisted of a scallop and habanero leche de tigre, a type of Peruvian citrus-based ceviche, served with breadfruit and nori tuile. Course number two included smoked mussels with plantains and cabbage, an inventive smoked mussel mayo, and fines herbes purée. The third course featured spiny lobster layered with salsa macha and flower-shaped squash and persimmon, and a Burmese curry called Chaaza sauce. The fourth and final course, called "Piragua con leche," was a melon sorbet made with avocado yogurt, and candied seaweed cryo-stamped with condensed milk. The rest, as they say, is "Top Chef" history.

Contestants typically compete on an equal playing field. However, one way to gain an upper hand is by knowing which foods judges like and which to avoid. Host Padma Lakshmi, for example, is obsessive about fried chicken. She even makes a unique fried chicken recipe with green mango powder. So while that might give you an advantage with her, if you decided to serve one of these black bean recipes to judge Gail Simmons, it'd likely put you in hot water.

Apparently, black beans made her so sick one time that she hasn't eaten them since. Simmons revealed her tumultuous relationship with the legume during a conversation hosted by The New York Times, unabashedly saying that they give her "the heebie-jeebies," per Entertainment Weekly.

Filming in lavish locations around the world isn't cheap, so to afford the show's massive budget, product placement keeps the bucks rolling in. "Top Chef" has partnered with lots of well-known cookware brands over the years, from Breville and Anolon to Viking and more. If you're a fan of the show, you're probably familiar with the sponsored challenges, which limit chefs to using products from specific brands.

It's sort of like if QVC featured demonstrations by some of the world's best up-and-coming chefs. That said, cookware brands aren't the only sponsors that "Top Chef" partners with for challenges. The list is extensive and includes Reynolds Wrap aluminum foil, Saratoga Water, San Pellegrino, Dawn, and many others.

"Top Chef" attempts to keep the competition fair and objective by prohibiting communication between contestants and judges/producers. Each chef is assigned a personal handler, and it's through them that all communication goes. Like watchdogs, their personal handler shadows them everywhere, making sure they stick to their schedule, assisting where necessary, and even preventing them from interacting with the general public. 

To underscore how tightly "Top Chef" runs its ship, personal handlers can only talk to chefs while on set, unless it's an emergency. Furthermore, if there's ever an issue with kitchen equipment during filming, it's up to the personal handlers to fix it.

Despite being a reality show, reshoots are required more often than you think. What we see is a mix of produced segments, which are pre-planned, and genuine unscripted moments. After the film crew captures authentic reactions, producers will ask chefs and judges to reenact those moments so that they can be captured from different angles. For example, when judges speak to chefs about their dishes, the camera crew will reshoot the judges repeating what they said at a close-up angle, per Nola. They also grab additional takes of the judges while the chefs cook.

The reason why producers capture a mix of real and acted shots is to ensure that they can portray the storyline more effectively, which involves backstories, character arcs, and conflicts. As filming progresses, the producers watch to see which chefs are more outgoing, which have leadership qualities, and so on and so forth, continually adapting the narrative around those nuances.

The dream of every home cook is to have access to the types of ingredients that celebrity chefs keep in their pantry, and on "Top Chef," contestants can have their pick of the culinary litter. Along with having access to rare and expensive ingredients, "Top Chef" supplies them for free. The culinary producers can get pretty much any ingredient that chefs request, and are known to spend thousands at grocers like Whole Foods.

"Top Chef" partnered with Whole Foods during season 4 in Chicago, and since then, it has filmed competitions on-site at different locations. Contestants must make two plates of their dishes for each challenge — one for the judges to try and the other for "food porn" photography – so having the right amount of ingredients is especially important.

There's a lot of unused food after challenges, but unfortunately, the contestants don't get to eat it. "Top Chef" has an unpredictable shoot schedule, which often leaves food sitting for weeks. Since the producers are in charge of the food, they're welcome to eat anything that might spoil and replace it when it's time to resume shooting. Considering the types of ingredients used on "Top Chef," we're talking pricey stuff like caviar, foie gras, and lobster, among others.

Funny enough, after taking the spoils of culinary war, the producers get to feast at their hotel. Meanwhile, the show's hectic schedule means that contestants barely have time to cook for themselves. Producers provide whatever they request, but aside from breakfast, contestants are often too busy filming and too tired at the end of the day to cook lavish meals.

It's hard to imagine "Top Chef" without Padma Lakshmi as the host, but when the show first aired in 2006, Katie Lee, who is now the co-host of Food Network's The Kitchen, was the original host. Barely anyone remembers that because her stint lasted for only a year. The reason for her replacement is unclear, but according to an excerpt from the 2012 memoir of Andy Cohen, the Emmy Award-winning producer and former top executive at Bravo, it was alleged that Lee had a hard time eliminating contestants — at least in a believable way.

During the filming of one episode, Cohen recalls Lee's microphone picking up a thumping sound. At first, the producers thought it was a technical issue, but after further investigation, they discovered that it was the sound of her heart, which would thump loudly whenever it was time to eliminate a contestant. It's safe to say that, while Lakshmi has proven herself to be kind and reasonable, she clearly has no problem telling it like it is.

As one of the most popular reality cooking competitions on television, the "Top Chef" brand now includes merchandise, cookware, and collectibles. And while it takes much more than a knife and a logo'd apron to be a Top Chef, there's an official video game that lets you unofficially participate in the competition. Released in 2008, "Top Chef: The Game" is a time management-based PC game modeled after the show.

With gameplay that spans 15 episodes, you have to overcome quickfire and elimination challenges by creating dishes and full meals on the spot. You have to do so under strict time constraints, while using specified ingredients, just like in real life. Luckily, you have access to the signature "Top Chef" pantry, which is fully stocked with everything you need. Points are given for how well you combine ingredients, which increases when you combine multiple ones. However, points are taken if the judges aren't pleased with the results. You can still purchase "Top Chef: The Game" on Amazon.

Two years after releasing the "Top Chef" video game, Bravo launched Top Chef University, an actual online cooking school open to anyone looking to hone their culinary skills. The curriculum consists of 12 courses that offer a total of 200 lessons, from basic kitchen skills and cooking techniques to global cuisine and advanced molecular-based cooking. Students who do well and complete the courses will receive a "Top Chef" certification. Some of the instructors include Carla Hall, a finalist from "Top Chef: New York," and "Top Chef: Chicago" finalist Richard Blais, among others.

In addition to virtual courses that are available 24/7, it includes webinars with actual "Top Chef" chefs and forums where students can interact with hand-picked culinary experts. More recently, the university has been converted into an app that's available for iOS, Android, and Samsung.

"Top Chef" selects some of the best chefs around, but no matter how skilled they are, no one survives a full season without making at least one dud. There have been many foodie fails, from pork-flavored ice cream and sweet scallops to the worst dish that Padma Lakshmi ever tasted: liver ganache. Served during episode 11 of season 2, it was an unappealing blend of sweet and savory that still haunts Lakshmi, who says that she recalls every detail.

After biting into a chewy surprise hidden inside the ganache, which she assumed was dried fruit, it only made things worse when Ilan Hall, the adventurous contestant who made it, revealed that it was liver. It also didn't help Hall's case to have the famed French chef Eric Ripert as a guest judge. The irony of it all is that Hall was later crowned the winner of the season.