Lovie

Curtis Stone is now the main judge. I didn't even know that there was a season 1 and 2. They started it off with Restuarant Wars. It was great! They pullled me in even to text to try and win to meet the chefs.

article below recapping

'Top Chef Masters' premiere: Does a rebooted 'Masters' pack the same punch?
by Hillary Busis


Image Credit: Nicole Wilder/Bravo
Top Chef Masters is serving up something new this season — actually, several new things. In last night’s premiere, we learned that Australian chef and Celebrity Apprentice contestant Curtis Stone has replaced pretty charisma vacuum Kelly Choi as the show’s host, while judges Gael Greene and Jay Raynor have been succeeded by former Gourmet editrix Ruth Reichl. Perhaps most importantly, the series has also traded its old, tournament-style format for a more conventional reality show scheme — all of the contestants started competing at the same time, and one of them will be eliminated each episode. That’s a lot of change to stomach, especially since the series never seemed like it was in desperate need of a reboot. So how did Episode One of Masters 2.0 fare?
Surprisingly well, at least in this blogger’s opinion. I’m pretty sure nobody will shed any tears over Kelly Choi’s departure; Curtis Stone appears on TV so often that he’s teetering on the edge of overexposure, but at least he knows enough about food to contribute something interesting to the panel. Though we haven’t seen much of Reichl yet, I’m also confident that she’ll prove herself to be an ace judge — even the woman’s tweets are poetic.

I was initially less enthused by the format swap, though. Sure, it used to be difficult to get invested in Masters because we couldn’t get to know any of the cheftestants until halfway through the season; the starring system was also kind of confusing. Still, I worried that running Masters like a regular season of Top Chef might mean that this season’s talent crop wouldn’t be as strong as that of years past. After all, only chefs who could afford to spend a hefty chunk of time filming a reality show could sign up to compete this year.

Thankfully, it looks like I shouldn’t have been concerned. Traci Des Jardins managed to make something delicious out of black licorice and peanut butter, while George Mendes’s salmon and smoky potato puree and Naomi Pomeroy’s rich chocolate torte actually made my mouth water. Clearly, these guys know what they’re doing. And as an added bonus, since the same group will be on air all season, Suvir Saran will hopefully get plenty of screen time. With his adorable accent, healthy confidence, and inherent quotability, Suvir seems like he’ll end up being this season’s Fabio — and every iteration of Top Chef could use a Fabio.

and EW's

Things got a little salty last night.

Salt proved to be the downfall of the first eliminated contestant on last night's season premiere of Top Chef Masters.

Who was given the boot? Read on to learn about what it's like to not see the bad news coming and more...



Read more: Top Chef Masters: "There Are a Lot of Jackass Chefs Out There" - E! Online

Atlanta-based (and Colin Egglesfield look-a-like) Hugh Acheson was the first to go after judges decided his oversalted scallops in the Restaurant War challenge were worse than Mary Sue Milliken's Hostess Cupcake-looking chocolate dessert.

What did you think of last night's episode? Didn't you want to beg the judges to give you one more chance?
It was a surprise, I think. I thought our food was really good. I didn't see the salt quotient problem coming. Maybe I shouldn't have put on the little finishing salt or maybe they just ate the top of the scallop. You never know. But I think overall our food was better than the other restaurants...But I could take it.

It's not the first time salt has caused the downfall for a chef on Top Chef.
Salt is a flavor enhancer. It shouldn't be used as a spice. It should open the palate. But evidently I opened the palate a little more than I wanted to. It's the first time so it's hard to figure out [the judges'] palates and how to cook for them.

You said in your exit interview you were "overjoyed" just to be invited to be on the show. Come on, weren't you there to just win?
Everyone says that. But for me, it's for charity. There are so many jackass chefs out there. I don't want to be the jackass chef or that ego guy. ...At the end of the day, sure, I'd like to win. I have that bug in me, too. But I think the priority was having fun and raising money.

You also said that as long as your 8-year-old and 6-year-old got a laugh out of it, you'd be happy. So were they giggling?
They giggled. They thought it was funny. They enjoyed it immensely but stayed up a little too late.

Now, I have to ask: Has anyone ever told you that you look like Colin Egglesfield?
Not him, but I hear other people. I think it's the eyebrows.

He's not a bad guy to look like. He was on Melrose Place.
[Laughs] I thought I looked like Heather Locklear.


HUGH first chef that was asked to pack his knives
Read more: Top Chef Masters: "There Are a Lot of Jackass Chefs Out There" - E! Online