Top Chef Power Rankings: Season 22, Week 1

"Elevated Hospital Food." Or: A Very Juicy Tartare.

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Waiter, You Forgot My Verbal Abuse

What’s in the cloche? C’mon, what’s in the cloooooooche… (David Moir/Bravo)

We are so back. Or at least, Top Chef is. It seems like it’s been forever, though research tells me that the last episode of the previous season aired in June, which is only like nine months ago. If you conceived a child during last season’s finale (and who could blame you???) you’d only just now be giving birth. Passage of time, how does it work??

Top Chef’s 22nd season now takes us to Canada. Not to be confused, of course, with Top Chef Canada, which is an entirely different show that has been on for 11 different seasons. Its existence may help explain why host Kristen Kish said in her first introduction, “Welcome to Top Chef, destination Canada!”

The Twilight Saga: Top Chef, Destination Canada — A Star Wars Story.

What a mouthful, eh? Ah, who are we kidding, they’re going to become the 51st state anyway now, right? (*mouth full of blood laugh*). (Whispers: Seriously, Canadians, if any of you are reading this, on some kind of moose-powered internet that you get inside your ice fishing sheds, the time to invade us is now. The entire federal government is in disarray and the national security apparatus is currently being run by ex-podcasters. You could just waltz right in and immediately confiscate our entire strategic reserves of high-fructose corn syrup! Free soda for all!)

Anyway, season 22. Let’s get into it.

First off, the good. This batch of competitors seems, at first blush, arguably more interesting than the last group. Almost every single chef reminded me of some actor or cartoon character I couldn’t quite put my finger on — which is infuriating on the one hand, but on the other they seem they’ll be memorable. This is a big departure from the last season, or possibly it just seems that way given that the memory of last season is inevitably colored by its winner, Danny Garcia, who was sort of like if you asked Chat GPT to build you a “fastidious zoomer.” Let’s goooo…

Now for the bad.

Uh, what the hell happened to the rest of the Judge’s Table tape? No calling the disappointing chefs to account? No taking them to task? No reading them the riot act or calling them to the carpet? NOT EVEN A FUCKING SOUPÇON OF HOLDING THEIR FEET TO THE FIRE???

That’s right, this episode gave us scads of classic Top Chef drama, from a contentious plating decision (soup served inside a cored apple!) to a disastrous risotto, to a dish compared unfavorably to institutional cuisine (“it was like elevated hospital food”). And then, just when it seemed like it was ramping up to that most classic of all Top Chef scenes, in which Tom Colicchio brings a handful of unfortunate chefs before his throne and angrily emasculates them over a fallen soufflé… it… just sort of ended.

WHAT?! NO DRESSING DOWN? I COME HERE TO SEE CULINARY PRODIGIES WEEP BITTER TEARS OVER OPAQUE CONSOMME!

In the place where that scene normally goes, Kristen merely asked the judges, “are we in agreement?” They said yes, and she told the eliminated competitor to pack their knives and go. That’s not how things usually happen. Usually there’s a little back and forth, a chef standing by their dish or promising to be better, some built-up drama about which chef will be sent home. Not this time.

It’s hard to say at this point whether this was an anomaly, that the losing chef was so obvious that it didn’t require the normal deliberations. Or, if this is an entirely new format choice in which they’ve deliberately done away with the verbal abuse portion of the program. I hope it’s not the second! I love my dressings down! Do not make me throw an impotent hissy fit over this!

The Challenges

Classic Top Chef stuff. For the quickfire, the 15 chef were split into five groups of three. They all chose an ingredient from the kitchen, and then had to work in teams to incorporate those ingredients into a single dish. PLUS they had to incorporate one additional ingredient chosen by the judges — Tomatoes (Kristen), Chives (Gail), or Clams (Tom). Almost all of them made soup.

For the elimination challenge, the contestants stayed in their groups, were assigned a basket of six ingredients based on the five regions of Canada, from which they would have to incorporate three ingredients, while competing against the other two people on their teams.

Jesus, does anyone else suddenly have number fatigue? The good news is, you didn’t really have to pay attention.

The Results

QUICKFIRE TOP: Yellow Team (Mimi, Cesar, Katianna)*, Green Team (Massimo, Tristen, Shuai), Red Team (Lana, Paula, Vincenzo).

QUICKFIRE BOTTOM (implied): Blue Team (Zubair, Anya, Bailey), Purple Team (Henry, Kat, Corwin)

Elimination Top: Vinny*, Cesar, Anya, Henry, Shuai.

Elimination Bottom: Paola, Kat, Mimi**, Massimo, Bailey

(*Winner. **Eliminated).

Power Rankings

15. Mimi Weissenborn

AKA: Peppermint Pat. Coach.

Random Tidbit from Official Bio: “…executive chef at Sur Lie, a James Beard Award semi-finalist and 2023 nominee for Outstanding Hospitality.”

Seems like two seasons in a row now Top Chef is eliminating the biggest character first. In fairness, Coach didn’t seem to have quite as contrived a shtick as David Murphy, aka Hopalong Howie the Hawaiian Shirted Cowboy from last season. She also didn’t immediately alienate the judges by trash talking Tom’s hat game or saying she didn’t like pasta during a pasta challenge like David did. It also sounds like she’ll be getting a shot at Last Chance Kitchen, unlike Murphy, though there’s still no clear answer as to whether that was his decision or the show’s last time around.

Aaaaanyway, Coach seemed like a breath of jocular air, reminiscent of Melissa McCarthy’s character in Bridesmaids (“Megan Price,” sadly not great nickname material). Coach talked about how her girlfriend recently left her, taking everything including the pots and pans, which were hers anyway, ha ha ha. (Why can’t America’s divorced dads like Elon Musk be this sanguine about things, instead of subjecting us to their bullshit?) Coach seems like the kind of person who would sock you in the shoulder and clarify that’s she’s just joshin’.

Things started off well enough for her, taking home $5,000 in the quickfire, on a team with Cesar and Katianna (enough to buy some more pots and pans, ha ha ha!). Then she beefed it big time in the elimination challenge. Choosing from Canada’s urbanized central region (Toronto, Montreal), she attempted some kind of pork loin with potato puree and peach somethingorother. Only she got the pork going late, only brined it for 10 minutes, and forgot her potatoes on the stove, leaving them overboiled and gummy. The judges called it “completely dry and overcooked,” “and elevated hospital food” (incidentally, both solid descriptions of your mom’s V).

We talk about the risotto curse and not doing duos, but someone check the stats because I’m pretty sure pork loin or tenderloin is just as cursed. It’s incredibly hard not to overcook (I’ve been able to do it justice via sous vide but that’s about it) and the ceiling seems pretty low. What’s the best pork loin you’ve had in your entire life? (And porchetta, schnitzel, or stuffed don’t count). Probably pretty mid.

Anyway, Hopefully it was just an off day. Coach seems cool.

Critiques: “Beige.” “Muddy.” “Reminded me of box potatoes.” “Completely dry and overcooked.” “It was like… elevated hospital food.”

14. Bailey Sullivan

AKA: Lisa Frank.

Bio Tidbit: “Known for embracing seasonal produce and global flavors with an Italian hand, Bailey has earned a reputation for embracing the ‘atipica’ side of Italian cuisine—blending tradition with bold whimsical twists."

I hesitate to give chef Bailey a nickname because she really is exactly what I picture when I hear the name “Bailey.” Tré atipica! She seems like the kind of person who moves to a new place as an adult and then talks about “keeping it weird.”

(PS, you never embrace “with an Italian hand.” That’s not what Italian hands are for! They’re for holding up to your enemies and going, ‘Ay, whatsamattaforyou??’).

Anyway, Bailey made a big show of how she was going to defy Top Chef’s famous Risotto Curse by making risotto in her very first challenge. It went… basically how that always goes. Tom bashed her for larding up with other ingredients like char and carrots, and she probably would’ve gone home if not for Coach’s dry hospital food. Send coach some new pots for that one.

Judges Critiques: “It's not the worst risotto we’ve ever had on Top Chef, but it's not a good risotto.”

13. Paula Endara

Marcus Nilsson/Bravo

AKA: The Cheetah. Charmander (because of all the charms).

Bio Tidbit: “James Beard Foundation Bootcamp alum Paula Endara began her culinary career in her home country of Ecuador at 18 years old.”

My podcast co-host Joey Devine has described Top Chef as having reached “peak James Beard.” Having a James Beard Bootcamp alum on the show does seem to support that description.

Anyway, not a ton to go off with Chef Paula just yet. She’s from Ecuador! The only Ecuadorian celebrity I know of is the UFC’s Marlon “Chito” Vera, which I have feminized as “Chita,” hence “The Cheetah.” Eh, we’ll workshop it a bit. Did you know Ecuador’s only Olympic gold medal is in race walking? Great work, Jefferson Pérez. That’s some good race walkin’.

The Cheetah cooked up some lamb chops with a mushroom mole (sounds weird but potentially cool), but she had some trouble with grill flares and ended up with inconsistent lamb (hate an inconsistent lamb, I require my lamb punctual and reliable, a lamb you can really set your clock to). To make matters worse, the judges didn’t seem that impressed with her mole either.

Judges Critiques: “The mole lacked spice.”

12. Kat Turner

Marcus Nilsson/Bravo

AKA: Frau Farbissina. Sprockets. Karla Hungus.

Bio Tidbit(s): “While making a name in Hollywood as an actress and burlesque dancer, Kat realized she wanted to pursue cooking full-time and headed to New York City to jumpstart her culinary career.”

“Currently the executive chef and partner of the critically acclaimed Highly Likely in Los Angeles, where she showcases her unique cooking style that melds classic recipes with international flavors and techniques to create accessible dishes with a familiar but provocative quality.”

Oh, Kat. Why does she seem like the lost fourth member of Autobahn?

The great thing about this show is that just when you’re stumped trying to come up with nicknames for a highly-accessorized Ecuadorian, they’ll give you someone like Chef Kat here, a former burlesque dancer who used to be Billy Corgan’s private chef and looks exactly like both of those things.

Anyway, Kat, who is from Door County, Wisconsin (remember last season’s fish boil?!?) looked like she was well on her way to creating an accessible dish with a familiar yet provocative quality. Then her poor hands were shaking so badly during plating that she didn’t get all the components on a few plates. I genuinely felt for her. But hey, Harold Dieterle got thrown off the line for shaky hands in the very first episode of Top Chef and he went on to win. So we know shaky hands is no impediment to ultimate victory!

Other than that, Kat’s pan-fried walleye with wild rice and sour cherries actually looked really good. If nothing else, she looks like a record store clerk you’d try really hard to impress and never succeed.

Judges Critiques: “I grade this a big ‘I’ for incomplete.”

11. Massimo Piedimonte

AKA: Sylvio Celine-Dionnte. G-oui-do. Le Situation.

Speaking of great nickname fodder, there’s Massimo, a slick-haired, loud-talking Jersey Guido by way of Montreal, Quebec. Ay, wassamatta por vous! (I’ve never seen it before, but something tells me that this combination isn’t that uncommon).

Chef Massimo distinguished himself this episode mostly by being loud and French-Italian (“you get used to it,” as one fellow competitor said). He also manage to break a plastic cutting board in half on accident, which I didn’t even know was possible. Ayy, I’m choppin’ ici!

For his elimination challenge dish, Massimo did a fish with potato scales, a winking homage to Buddha Lo. The judges seemed to appreciate the idea, but the fish was mid. I’m hoping he sticks around longer, if only for entertainment purposes. I also feel like I could really nail some of these French-Canadian Guido puns if only I knew some more French. What’s French for “gabba gool?”

Judges Critiques: “I wish the cod was cooked a little nicer.”

10. Lana Lagomarsini

AKA: Breeze.

Bio Tidbit: "Lana was inducted into the Prestigious Dames d’ Escoffier International in 2023 as well as being honored by her peers by winning a culinarian award from Black Women in Food Awards by Dine Diaspora.”

I’m struggling a bit with nicknames for Lana, who is sort of like if Jessa from Girls was chill and Caribbean. She seems like human vocal fry, but more in the “I just smoked two joints and I’m really relaxed” way than in the obnoxious way.

Lana was on a team with Chef Vinny, who we’ll get to, and she really seemed to think that his idea of serving their soup in a hollow apple was a stupid idea. And honestly, can you blame her? She was chill enough that she just went with it, and the judges ended up loving the apple but I don’t think that means Lana was wrong. She served a fish with nuts on it in the final challenge and the judges mostly seemed to like it but weren’t over the moon either. She was solidly in the middle.

Judges Critiques: “It’s nice to have fish that has a little texture.”

9. Corwin Hemming

AKA: Tan Shaolin. Eric… Flan-dre?

Bio Tidbit: “An aviation aficionado, Corwin describes his cuisine as ‘contemporary Caribbean’ and is eager to bring the taste of the islands into the fine-dining space and open his own brick and mortar.”

(An aviation aficionado, you say? “Hey, kid. You like planes?”)

Corwin was one of two bald chefs with facial hair who both ended up in the same car together, and his nickname will make a lot more sense once we get to the other bald guy with facial hair. Other than that, there wasn’t a lot to distinguish him this week. He cooked a ribeye, and it looked beautiful, but Tom called it “really disjointed.” It was hard to reconcile how good it looked with how it was received.

8. Tristen Epps

AKA: Big Baby. Hot Dog. Steph No-Curry.

Bio Tidbit(s): " ...earning his own Michelin recognition as the executive chef at Marcus Samuelsson’s Red Rooster in Miami and receiving Star Chef’s Rising Star Chef award. …James Beard Nomination for Best Chef of the South"
”He is currently laying the groundwork for two exciting concepts Buboy, a woodfired Afro-Caribbean tasting menu, as well as a casual hot dog bar that reimagines the beloved staple with bold flavors and unique toppings.”

Yes, recognized by Michelin, James Beard, and the rising star chef award, Chef Tristen is one of a few chefs this season who already seem close to winning the chef version of an EGOT. I am curious about his “casual hot dog bar” concept. Is that as opposed to a stuffy, formal hot dog bar? I do hate those. Always getting sauerkraut on my cravat and shit.

Anyway, Big Baby (I don’t entirely know why this nickname fits but it does) nearly made a big mess rushing to get his curry on the plate and ultimately failing. But the judges ended up raving about his dish anyway. His excuse for not getting the curry on the plate was also one of the best I’ve heard. Instead of saying “I ran out of time” or “I didn’t finish,” he went with “I liked the way it turned out, but I just wasn’t able to get it on the plate in the way I wanted.”

That is some shrewd messaging there, sir. By the way, do you think guys named “Tristen” hate guys like “Tristan,” the same way Bretts hate Brets and Marks hate Marcs? Discuss.

7. Zubair Mohajir

Wait, is he doing Run the Jewels hands?

AKA: Woolly Willy. Zubaz. Stonks.

Bio Tidbit: “Originally from Chennai, India, Chef Zubair Mohajir was a former financial analyst and began his career in the culinary field after getting laid off during the 2008 financial crisis. (…) Zubair has garnered industry acclaim as a 2022 Jean Banchet Rising Chef of the Year and a two-time James Beard semi-finalists—first in 2023 as Best Chef Great Lakes, and then in 2024, as Emerging Chef of the Year.”

Does ol’ Zubaz here not look like Woolly Willy, the toy where you change the hair and beard using a magnet? Not much to go on, but he made a fish curry that some of the judges thought was overly aggressive or overpowering, but Tom defended him, which always bodes well. I tend to give the Indian chefs more of the benefit of the doubt, I’d love to see an Indian Top Chef winner.

Judges Critique: “It was interesting.”

6. Katianna Hong

AKA: Backstory. Veep.

Bio Tidbit(s): "in 2014 was not only the restaurant’s first chef de cuisine but also the only woman in the nation holding that title in a three-starred Michelin kitchen."

"San Francisco magazine also named her Rising Star Chef"

"she and her team earned a James Beard Award nomination for Best New Restaurant, a spot on Bon Appétit’s Top 50 Best New Restaurants List and she was honored as one of Food & Wine’s Best New Chefs."

"Since its opening, the restaurant has garnered critical acclaim appearing on the 2022 best new restaurant lists of Bon Appetit, Esquire, and Condé Nast Traveler and was a 2023 James Beard semi-finalist for Best New Restaurant."

Notable Quotes: “I was adopted from Korea and grew up in the Midwest. My dad is Jewish, and mom is Irish Catholic. I call my style of cooking Korean-Americana.”

Good lord. I’m not sure what Katianna has to prove on this show with a list of accolades like that. But yo, did you just gloss over the fact that your brother is Reid Scott from Veep????

Bravo

You think I’m not going to notice a casual Veep drop? You can’t sneak a Veep castmember by me, not even Kevin Dunn.

Katianna made some kind of katsu with corn gravy, to reviews that were a little mixed. She’s also a Korean-adoptee (like Kristen Kish) with an insane pedigree and so while I can’t quite rank her above this week’s winners, I’m putting her as high as I can based on vibes alone.

5. Anya Al-Wattar

AKA: Cabbage.

Bio Tidbit: “Eater San Francisco's Chef of the Year, with Birch & Rye earning a coveted spot in the Michelin Guide and a James Beard Awards semi-finalist for Best New Restaurant.”

Russian emigre Anya (I think her husband is Middle Eastern, hence the last name) spent the entire first 20 minutes of the show talking about cabbage. Lady never shuts up about cabbage. She let one of her teammates introduce the dish, and then was like “Hey, you forgot to mention the cabbage!” I think she must get a nickel every time someone says “cabbage.” What are you, sponsored by Big Cabbage? Industry plant.

After that, Big Cabbage influenced her team to choose the Arctic basket to dovetail with her Russian cuisine. Which ended up being a great choice, because Big Cabbage made a soup so damn good that no one even minded that they almost broke their teeth on her adamantium rye cracker. That must’ve been some good soup! My friend Bobby pointed out that her smile looks like Jared Fogle’s and now I can’t unsee it.

Judges Critiques: “The sourness of the soup was really beautiful." "Cracker was tough." "Simple is hard to do, and you did that extremely well.”

4. Henry Lu

AKA: Shaolin.

Bio Tidbit: "Since opening, JŪN has been a 2024 James Beard Award semi-finalist for Best New Restaurant and named 2023 Best New Restaurant by Infatuation and the Robb Report. ...Henry and Evelyn work together on byKIN, a Southeast Asian-inspired catering, pop-up, and product line company and most recently they have been named 2025 James Beard Semi-finalists for Best Chef: Texas. "

Henry Lu has the pate and facial hair of a Kill Bill henchman and the personality of gentle indie rocker. This season seems chock full of chill guys who seem like a good hang. Shaolin took a beautiful ribeye and turned it into a “very juicy tartare,” which sounds like a critique but was apparently a compliment. Either that or his lentil cracker was so good that it single-handedly saved the day. Not many chefs can succeed solely on the basis of a crudo vessel. That has to bode well.

Judges Critiques: "Quite a juicy tartare." "It was in the end a great choice"

3. Cesar Murillo

AKA: Nerdy Eric Balfour. Eric Balfoureyes. Hispanic Patrick Fischler. Patrick Fisch.. Tacos. Tiny Papillote. Lil Papi.

I can’t decide whether Cesar looks more like a nerdy Eric Balfour or a cool Patrick Fischler. Either way, he made some fish and veg in a tiny papillote and the judges thought it was freakin’ adorkable! Either way I’ll be rooting hard for Lil’ Papi, which is short for “Lil Papillote.”

Judges Critiques: "Great bite." "The risk paid off." "It was just so adorable when it came to the table."

2. Shuai Wang

AKA: The Big Chill. Joe Regular Man. Shugaze.

Bio Tidbit(s): "Winner of the 2016 Eater Young Guns and Best New Chef awards and his food truck Short Grain was named one of the America’s Top 50 Best New Restaurants by Bon Appetit. In 2017 he was nominated for a James Beard Award for Rising Star Chef. Shuai is the owner and chef of Jackrabbit Filly, a heritage driven New Chinese American Restaurant in Park Circle, North Charleston, and King BBQ, a Chinese BBQ restaurant with southern smoke, which won Top 10 best new BBQ restaurant of 2024 by Southern Living Magazine and 2024 Top 20 Best New Restaurants by Bon Appetit. Shuai and his wife, Corrie, won StarChef Charleston Restauranteur of the Year 2024 and most recently, Shuai was named as a 2025 South Carolina Chef Ambassador."

Chef Shuai has an insane resume but mostly seems like another pretty chill dude who probably has a great record collection. He made some kind of cod with fried crab and an egg-drop sauce that looked amazing. Again, I think I give extra benefit of the doubt to the Asian chefs. They seem like they’re living in the future, culinarily.

Judges Critiques: "The cod is so beautifully cooked." "A really cohesive dish."

1. Vincenzo Loseto

AKA: Vinny Apple Soup. Buddha Loseto.

Bio Tidbit: “In 2016, he became involved with the Ment'Or organization, where he placed first in their Young Chef Competition. That honor allowed Vincenzo to join Matthew Peters and Team USA in the 2017 Bocuse d'Or, where they took home their first-ever gold medal.”

Vinny Apple Soup is a weird little guy who just wants to put soup inside of a hollow apple. I think there was actually smoke in there too? If you open up a hollow apple and smoke billows out to reveal a delicious soup, you think you’re not going to be impressed? That’s some real-life Keebler Elf shit. This dude has a team of woodland creatures doing his mise-en-place.

Vinny Apple Soup not only had the strangely-correct notion to serve a smoking soup inside of an apple, he had the courage to DEMAND that his team serve a smoking soup inside of an apple. That’s prodigy stuff. I bet he was already cooking his food at a high school level by the time he could walk. Skills, passion, possibly sorcery. It was an easy decision to rank him at number one this week.

After that, Vinny Apple Soup served a confit salmon with consomme, that he clarified partly with the help of liquid nitrogen. Salmon and consomme doesn’t sound that thrilling to my ears, but it had the judges raving like they’d never seen see-through broth before. This already feels like Vinny Apple Soup’s competition to lose. Could we be in for some Buddha Lo/Melissa King-style domination?

…Time will tell, folks. Time will tell.

Judges Critiques: “This is my kind of dish." "There wasn't a bad bite in it.”