After a long fall and early winter of mild panic, creepy Reddit threads, and ZERO CONTENT, Bravo has finally (officially) announced that Top Chef will be back for Season 17. And why have we had to wait this long? Because it's ALL-STARS!
Friends of The League know that I've been clamoring for All-Stars since a super dud of a season in California (Season 13). Ironically, Season 17 will be in Los Angeles, and after dabbling with returnees (via Last Chance Kitchen and a weird "half and half" cast in Season 14) the last several seasons, we will be getting a legitimate All-Stars season in earnest.
What's the best part of an All-Stars season? All our old friends (and enemies) are back, and I can provide you with instant, irresponsible analysis! It's a long ways away to the March 19th season premiere so in the meantime, check out my Way Too Early Power Rankings below and feel free to share your favorite memories of the returning Cheftestants in the comment section.
Need a TCFL refresher? Revisit the Season 16 Recap and the League Explainer. And if you haven't already, you can leave me feedback here. If you have any friends or family who want to join The League make sure to send them my way. Either send them my email or have them message me directly. We'll open up the league officially in late February. Until then... happy speculating!
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Tier 1: "Well we had to get to 15 somehow..."
Lisa Fernandes (Season 4: Chicago) -- Brooklyn, New York
When Last We Saw... Lisa beat out numerous favorites in Chicago -- including Antonia, Spike, and Dale -- to go on to compete in the finale.
Why She'll Win: She was a Season 4 finalist/runner-up, only being bested by two all-timers in Stephanie Izard and Richard Blais.
Why She'll Win: She was a Season 4 finalist/runner-up, only being bested by two all-timers in Stephanie Izard and Richard Blais.
Why She Won't: Lisa was in the bottom of Elimination Challenges seven times in a row leading up to Chicago's finale. Seven times means you are more lucky than good.
Jamie Lynch (Season 14: Charleston) -- Charlotte, North Carolina
When Last We Saw... Jamie was being Jedi mind-tricked by John Tesar and gave up his earned immunity in a team-based challenge, ultimately leading to his elimination.
Why He'll Win: Of all the Cheftestants returning, Jamie might have the best reason to have a chip on his shoulder.
Why He Won't: Dumb-dumbs don't win Top Chef.
When Last We Saw... Brian finished 4th in Miami, just missing out on the final challenge.
Why He'll Win: Ten restaurants across California gives him a pseudo-home field advantage. You can't be that successful IRL without being legitimately good.
Why He Won't: Brian was one of the oldest chefs on his season at 34. Season 3 aired in 2007. This is a young person's game.
Tier 2: "Really? Again?"
Jennifer Carroll (Season 6: Las Vegas, Season 8: All Stars, and Last Chance Kitchen Season 15) -- Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and Washington, D.C.
When Last We Saw... She was still being very much Jen in LCK. All the appearances are just running together at this point. But for me personally, I last saw her -- in person -- at her former DC restaurant at the expediting station. I was too nervous to try and meet her/get a picture.
Why She'll Win: Aside from (still) being a beast, she ended her (professional) relationship with the now-toxic Mike Isabella. That's gotta count in the karma department, right?
When Last We Saw... She was still being very much Jen in LCK. All the appearances are just running together at this point. But for me personally, I last saw her -- in person -- at her former DC restaurant at the expediting station. I was too nervous to try and meet her/get a picture.
Why She'll Win: Aside from (still) being a beast, she ended her (professional) relationship with the now-toxic Mike Isabella. That's gotta count in the karma department, right?
Why She Won't: The saying doesn't go "fourth time's a charm".
Angelo Sosa (Season 7: Washington D.C. and Season 8: All Stars New York) -- San Diego, California
When Last We Saw... Angelo was runner-up to one of the weakest champions in Top Chef history (Kevin), but followed up that performance with a disappointing 7th in the subsequent Season 8 All-Stars competition.
Why He'll Win: Angelo is, in my opinion, one of the most talented chefs that have come through the show, but...
Why He Won't: ...he's kind of a headcase, and headcases don't win Top Chef.
Tier 3: "Question Marks, For A Reason"
When Last We Saw... Karen finished a forgettable 7th in her season.
Why She'll Win: Since being on Top Chef, she has a Food & Wine Best New Restaurant and James Beard Best New Chef to her name.
Why She Won't: Remember when I called Season 13 a dud? Karen's the only one back from that season.
When Last We Saw... Stephanie was eliminated somewhat controversially in New Orleans (of course, it was a team challenge) after her teammate cooked the worst dishes but had immunity. That teammate? Eventual champion Nick Elmi.
Why She'll Win: Prior to her elimination, Stephanie had won two challenges outright and was in top consideration for three more.
Why She Won't: This is actually her third appearance on the show, briefly showing up as (eventual champion) Kristen Kish's possibly lesbian roommate when Season 10 did that weird qualifying round. She's technically the chef that's been eliminated the earliest in this field.
When Last We Saw... Melissa was a bit of an afterthought, finishing 4th in a season dominated (competition-wise) by Gregory and Mei, and (personality-wise) by Katsuji.
Why She Won't: When the announcement was made, of all the Cheftestants, she was the only one where I went "who was that?".
Joe Sasto (Season 15: Colorado) -- Los Angeles, California
Why He'll Win: Third is 3rd. Joe was peaking at the right time, winning three out of five challenges before being eliminated.
Joe Sasto (Season 15: Colorado) -- Los Angeles, California
When Last We Saw... Joe just missed out on the finale, finishing 3rd to runner-up Adrienne and Champion fellow-Joe Flamm.
Why He Won't: Are we sure Season 15 was any good? I feel like we liked the personalities on that season more than their actual skill. We have the benefit of hindsight with most of the seasons, but with Colorado, I'm not so sure.
Tier 4: "The Contenders"
When Last We Saw... Nini won two out of the first three challenges in Kentucky before being eliminated and went on to be eliminated twice in LCK (the second time because Brother opted out of the main competition after winning the 1st half of LCK).
Why She'll Win: Like her fellow Season 16 competitor (see below), Nini is fresh and has both main competition and LCK reps to fall back on.
Why She'll Win: Like her fellow Season 16 competitor (see below), Nini is fresh and has both main competition and LCK reps to fall back on.
Why She Won't: I'm probably putting her here based off of too small a sample size and outrageous recency bias.
When Last We Saw... Along with Bryan, Kevin was a runner-up to Michael Voltaggio in Vegas. He also had hair then.
Why He'll Win: Season 6 was incredibly top heavy, (The Voltaggios, Jen, Kevin) but you could argue that Kevin could have won many other seasons that didn't have the Voltaggios in it.
Why He'll Win: Season 6 was incredibly top heavy, (The Voltaggios, Jen, Kevin) but you could argue that Kevin could have won many other seasons that didn't have the Voltaggios in it.
Why He Won't: There's a Voltaggio in this season.
When Last We Saw... Greg was runner-up to Mei in Boston in what was a toss-up going into the finale.
Why He Won't: While Gregory is a fantastic talent, of all the chefs in this tier, he's the one that seems to lack the "killer instinct" that I've always believed a Top Chef champ needs.
Bryan Voltaggio (Season 6: Las Vegas) -- Frederick, Maryland
When Last We Saw... Bryan has been in and around the franchise, competing on Masters and being a judge/guest on the main show. We haven't seen him in true Top Chef competition since the Vegas finale with Kevin and brother Michael.
Why He'll Win: Because Michael isn't around (to get in his way).
Why He Won't: Because Michael isn't around (to motivate him).
When Last We Saw... Lee Anne didn't pack up her knives and go. She withdrew due to altitude sickness while also being pregnant.
Why She'll Win: Lee Anne was poised for a run after beating three heavy hitters (Jen, Marcel, Kwame) in Season 15's LCK.
Why She'll Win: Lee Anne was poised for a run after beating three heavy hitters (Jen, Marcel, Kwame) in Season 15's LCK.
Why She Won't: The only returnee from Season 1, has it just been too long, and did she miss out on valuable reps in Season 15?
Tier 5: "The Favorite"
Eric Adjepong (Season 16: Kentucky) -- Washington, D.C.
When Last We Saw... Eric was being robbed of a spot in the Season 16 Finale after being eliminated right before the final challenge, leading to my one and only interaction with Tom Collichio.
Why He'll Win: There's something to be said for being "fresh" and being in Top Chef "shape". Eric is just coming off his season and was arguably the best chef to come out of Kentucky, actual results aside.
Why He'll Win: There's something to be said for being "fresh" and being in Top Chef "shape". Eric is just coming off his season and was arguably the best chef to come out of Kentucky, actual results aside.
Why He Won't: It's only been a few short months and many of the judges (Tom and Padma included) admittedly didn't have the palate or experience to properly judge West African flavors/food. Will an "All-Stars" level judging gauntlet change that?
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Agree? Disagree? Think I'm nuts? Let me know below in the comments. And be sure to send any fellow Top Chef friends our way. Looking forward to a great season, and hope to see you all in a couple of months!
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