Tournament of Champions - Season 6 Discussion Thread

[mlp]

I was happy with this round because all four of the people I wanted to win did win.  

I know Wolfgang Puck's reputation as a chef of course but, every time I've seen him on a show, I've thought "egotistical little twerp."   Last night wasn't much different.  At least he didn't make any off color comments.

[dewelar]

On 3/2/2025 at 11:18 PM, Maverick said:

 I like Alex in general, but I get bugged when she judges on this show.  She competed exactly one time as a top seed, got beat by an 8 seed but comes back introduced as an awesome judge the contestants ooh and aah over.

Eh, Alex has bugged me (and Mrs. Dew) for a while now, at least since the early days of Chopped, when she was our favorite judge for at least the first few seasons. Anyway, given the circumstances of said loss, I expect the powers that be would prefer it was flushed down the memory hole, so we may never see her in the tournament proper again.

[MerBearHou]

Alex seemed like she was too “on”, trying to come up with a number of humorous-to-her metaphors and clichés when she was describing the food. It really bugged me as well.  

Edited March 5 by MerBearHou

[dleighg]

On 2/18/2025 at 6:35 PM, HyeChaps said:

I wonder if the chefs stuck with Hunter describing their dishes were at a disadvantage.

(I've been out of the country so late to the party) I had exactly the same thought when I saw Hunter in that role. Stop trying to make Hunter happen!!!

[dleighg]

On 2/24/2025 at 12:18 AM, Ancaster said:

we haven't all heard of the Botoxed pastry chef whose name I've already forgotten

The ONLY reason I know her is that she's a judge on the Halloween Baking Championship (and lets herself be heavily made up and costumed, along with the other judges, which is part of. the fun of that show)

[chessiegal]

Since Guy is one of the executive producers of this show, I don't think Hunter is going anywhere. Hunter is listed as a cast member on the show's IMDb page.

[dleighg]

I just watched the Casey Thompson battle. Man, does that woman bathe in the tears of virgins, or what? When they said she was on Top Chef season 3 (which was nearly 20 years ago) I was shocked. The woman has not aged. I kind of hoped she'd win, but I think her mushrooms-like-a-sponge did her in.

[Stardancer Supreme]

601:

The judges: Maneet Chauhan, Alex Guarnaschelli, Wolfgang Puck.

Randa was especially gregarious this season opener! I have always said that the key to winning TOC is to beat the Randomizer into submission.  For tonight's matchups, I got 3 of the chef wins I was rooting for.

Rocco Dispirito vs. Tim Love - Rocco wins!  It was funny that Tim expected Alex to be the "warm and fuzzy" judge. Has he met her? LOL. Rocco scored higher on Randa and Presentation.

Kevin Lee vs. Casey Thompson - Kevin wins! Kevin scored higher with Randa.

Adriana Urbina vs. Adam Sobel - Adam wins. He scored higher on all three points. Here's hoping that Kevin Lee takes him out in the second round.

Antonia Lofaso vs. Maria Mazon - Antonia wins!  Listen, I love the Princess Warrior (eye rolls on that nickname), I really do. But is she going to stress us and herself all the way to the end to lose by one point again?  She took the longest to agree to go back to TOC. While 4 heavy hitters are out of contention, there is still Jet Tila to get past... If TOC wishes to extend the trend of women winners, that's fine. However, Antonia has a hard way to go with all the women in this year's bracket who may be just as deserving as her.  I did laugh when Maria said she would "go Mexican" on Antonia if she loses TOC 6. No pressure, right? 

 

[DEL901]

Last week, three men and a woman won. Hoping for the opposite happens this week.  I’m routing for Shota, but I prefer the w9men 8n the other matches. 

[MerBearHou]

In the Simon portion where he’s talking to the judges tonight, did you see Jonathan’s little dog in his arms?  So cute.

[Grizzly]

In Stef v Michael, as soon as Guy said it came down to the randomizer, I knew Stef had lost. Darn vanilla.  Poor Stef looked so sad. Hope Michael can beat Britt. Was very pleased for Kaleena. It was so helpful that they mentioned all the shows she had been on. I had watched them but didn't put 2 and 2 together. Shota continues to be adorable and can really cook. I want him to win this part of the draw.

[MerBearHou]

I really like all 4 of the losing chefs tonight so that was tough to see.  On the other hand, I do like most of the winning chefs.  High, high level of cooking going on — wow.  

[GiandujaPie]

I haven't been able to watch this for more than few minutes at a time because they have a bell that dings every few minutes and it drives my dog nuts. Her ears perk up and then she either starts to howl or bark. It's pretty funny but annoying so I always end up turning it off or having to watch it on mute. 

[Stardancer Supreme]

602:

The judges:  Alex Guarnaschelli, Mei Lin, Jonathan Waxman (and Katsu!).

Stephanie Izard vs. Michael Reed - Michael Reed wins! He scored higher on Randa.

Brittanny Anderson vs. Shota Nakajima - Shota wins! Shota is my cooking bias, so I was happy for his win. Shota also had the highest score thus far.

Kaleena Bliss vs. Chris Consentino - Kaleena wins! She is new and pretty awesome to watch. I did notice that Guy would call her by her first name and refer to CC by his last name.  Not too buddy buddy with Chef Consentino, huh?

Britt Rescigno vs. Chris Oh - Britt wins!  Chris was hella cocky, and it bit him in the end. Better luck in TOC 7, OMG. I have to stop watching this show before dinner; now I want tempura and Asian food! I wanted to eat everyone's dishes.

[Bastet]

Stephanie vs. Michael - I'm bummed about this one.  I've had both their food, and I like hers more, plus she remains one of my favorite Top Chef winners, so I pretty much always root for her.  I hate potatoes, so I didn't want that component of either dish, but they both looked so good I would have loved to taste the rest.  It all came down to him using the vanilla better.

Brittany vs. Shota - I like both of them, and was hella impressed by her win against the Titans, but have "known" Shota longer, so I started out torn.  The way he was dripping sweat everywhere again grossed me out, though (sweat is one of the few things I find gross, and only when dripping like that; he'd worn a sweat band the last time after dripping like mad at first, so I don't know why it was missing this time), so I became Team Brittany.  Mackerel is not a favorite, but they both made enticing dishes and the way he got that perfect skin was impressive.

Kaleena vs. Chris (Cosentino) - I have liked her since she won Beachside Brawl, and like her more with each show I see her on.  I like how serious she is while cooking, I like how she talks about living with anxiety, and I appreciate what I've read about her commitment to running kitchens without the toxic attitudes that have so long been a staple of the industry.  I liked every ingredient in both dishes this time, so I'd have cleaned my plate, but hers appealed to me more -- that loin was perfectly cooked, and I think it was smart to stuff the pepper rather than the pork.

Britt vs. Chris (Oh) - I've had his food and it's delicious, and his dish was more to my taste (in addition to hating potatoes, I also hate coffee), but I'm still blown away by her previous performances on this show and that plate was visually perfect, so I was rooting for her and am glad to see her get the win.

[Quilt Fairy]

On 3/3/2025 at 2:33 PM, Ancaster said:

I just know Hunter Fieri will note this on his resume as a career highlight:

Silent* Bingo Tumbler Turner

(*Because apparently he can't even be trusted to call out the numbers correctly.)

 

This appears to be the extent of his job on GGG as well:  in charge of bringing out miscellaneous props. 

[mlp]

I was happy with the first two matches because I like both Michael Reed and Shota and I thought their dishes looked better than the opposing ones.  I wasn't very invested in match 3.  Both dishes looked good to me.  I didn't care for Kaleena on TC and I've never been a big fan of Chris mostly because I have no interest in offal which he's known for.  However, he has a good reputation as a chef and he did win TC Masters so I was leaning his way.

I wanted Chris Oh to win the last match because I like him but his dish wasn't "elevated" and didn't even look good to me.  Britt deserved her win.  She's obviously a very good cook and a creative chef but her ego is turning me off.  She seemed pleasant and grateful for praise after her first win but now she's all braggadocio.  I don't know if success has gone to her head or what but now she's like listening to Carlos Anthony talk himself up.  Not appealing.

Edited March 12 by mlp
Correct typo

[jcbrown]

I have a soft spot for Chris Cosentino because he's a Bay Area guy and very talented, even though I am also not a huge fan of offal (but I'd eat it if he made it). Also, he made the decision for his own mental health to walk away from FN for a while after he was pretty prominent (he was on that show with Aaron Sanchez about spicy food where we learned that Aaron is a huge spice wimp, e,g,) and I respect that. I assume he is back here on his own terms. 

[Salacious Kitty]

Cosentino filmed a short series of GGG (which he won with Casey Thompson);before taping TOC. Guy referenced it when introducing him. 

[dleighg]

I did a "what the heck?" when Chris doing his thing with the Anaheim chilis, and said he was going to combine them with "dried guajillo" and "fresh ancho" where he clearly pulled out a dried ancho. And besides, a "fresh ancho" is otherwise known as a poblano.

[roughing it]

On 3/11/2025 at 3:30 PM, Quilt Fairy said:

This appears to be the extent of his job on GGG as well:  in charge of bringing out miscellaneous props.

Those college degrees are paying off!

It seems Guy has finally learned how to pronounce Britt's last name correctly (Res-sig-no).  He was pronouncing it (Res-see-nee-yo).  I don't see Britt as braggadocio though, just having more confidence in finding (and earning) her place with the big guns.

[Grizzly]

I went 4-0 tonight! Love this show so much and look forward to it. So I wish it wasn't on Sunday nights.

[MerBearHou]

I went 3-1 because I really love Chris Scott — always have since his Top Chef days.  Right after his TC season, I took a cab to Brooklyn to his Butterfunk Kitchen and met his wife and him and had his mouthwatering fried chicken and cinnamon biscuits — Chris is the nicest, most serene guy.  I like Karen A so much but wow, way too much salt was the consistent comment by all 3 judges.  I had no idea Fabio has opened over 50 restaurants — amazing.  I like both Joe Sasto and Fabio so that was a tough one, but I’m happy for Joe.  Very, very happy for Jonathon and sure enough, he mentioned that it had bugged him to have to be a qualifier.  I agree, Jonathon.  Thrilled for Jet, of course, and his high score of the tournament so far.  

[Ancaster]

.

 

Edited March 17 by Ancaster

[MerBearHou]

5 minutes ago, Ancaster said:

I know I've never heard of half the judges here, but who's Randa?

Haha the Randomizer’s nickname!

[Quilt Fairy]

It seems like Tiffani is quickly finding her feet as a commentator here. 

Edited March 17 by Quilt Fairy

[MerBearHou]

10 hours ago, Quilt Fairy said:

It seems like Tiffani is quickly finding her feet as a commentator here. 

Agreed.  She is doing a great job so far, both in her chef interactions while they're cooking and as a presenter to the judges.  

[Grizzly]

I'm wondering how much of a help Tiffani and Justin are allowed to be. For instance, Justin told us how spice blends can have a lot of salt but he didn't caution Karen. They can ask leading questions, like where is the whammy ingredient going, to remind chefs to use it.

[Quilt Fairy]

15 minutes ago, Grizzly said:

They can ask leading questions, like where is the whammy ingredient going, to remind chefs to use it.

I think that's the extent of their "help", and in any event that's necessary for them to describe the dish properly to the judges.  The "all of these mixed spices have salt in them" comment was strictly for Guy.

[Stardancer Supreme]

On 3/16/2025 at 10:38 PM, MerBearHou said:

I went 3-1 because I really love Chris Scott — always have since his Top Chef days.  Right after his TC season, I took a cab to Brooklyn to his Butterfunk Kitchen and met his wife and him and had his mouthwatering fried chicken and cinnamon biscuits — Chris is the nicest, most serene guy.  I like Karen A so much but wow, way too much salt was the consistent comment by all 3 judges.  I had no idea Fabio has opened over 50 restaurants — amazing.  I like both Joe Sasto and Fabio so that was a tough one, but I’m happy for Joe.  Very, very happy for Jonathon and sure enough, he mentioned that it had bugged him to have to be a qualifier.  I agree, Jonathon.  Thrilled for Jet, of course, and his high score of the tournament so far.  

603:

I went 3 for 1 as well; I'm not a fan of Joe Sasto, and very happy for Mama Wong, Jonathon Sawyer, and Chef Jet. Jet takes the highest score of this season thus far. 

I liked Fabio not being a sore loser for his first time in the TOC arena. I chuckled when the judges said that they can always tell when a chef is new to TOC. He even provoked Randa. I didn't know that Guy hated hard boiled eggs. LOL! TOC was even nice enough to boil the eggs for the contestants; I did notice the boiling water on Joe Sasto's side. I know he wasn't silly enough to do a pasta dish in 30 minutes.

Lee Ann Wong squeaked her win; time management is so key to these battles when you only have a limited amount of time! 

Too much salt vs. too much spice... Too much salt is the one that gets you booted. Did Karen taste her dish at all? Jonathon put so much Berbere spice in his food that he shocked the Dancing Spice Queen!

Pyet thought she was going to beat Jet Tila? I wanted his dish most of all! 

Edited March 18 by Stardancer Supreme

[Harry24]

I still think Tiffani can dial it back some more, a la Simon.  I think Justin’s found just the right balance between his natural look-at-me!! TV personality and being more self effacing in this role.  Hopefully Tiffani will get there too.  She just started in this gig after all.

[Rammchick]

On 3/14/2025 at 10:33 AM, roughing it said:

Those college degrees are paying off!

It seems Guy has finally learned how to pronounce Britt's last name correctly (Res-sig-no).  He was pronouncing it (Res-see-nee-yo). 

He still seems to pronounce it differently every time he says it.

Clearly Fabio learned nothing from being on Top Chef.  You never make anything "two ways" or "three ways" in a competition.

[Bastet]

It was cool having Susan Feniger and Mary Sue Milleken on the same judging panel; I love their restaurants and still miss the original Border Grill.  I also love the way the three, with Maneet, walked in arm-in-arm at the end.  What a powerhouse.

Mustache Joe vs. Fabio:  It was great to see Fabio again - he still cracks me up as he did repeatedly and I've had his food - and I wish he'd won; Mustache Joe is nothing approaching the worst, but he bugged me during his Top Chef season while I adored Fabio during all of his.  I got a good chuckle at his disgust with okra (Tom Colicchio famously hates it, too); I only like it in limited applications myself.  I'm not a huge fan of grits, either, but can love them when made well with things I do love mixed in, so I'd have been quite happy to try both dishes.  I'd have loved Fabio's shrimp crudo with okra mayo, I am sure; I thought that mayo was an absolutely inspired use of the okra and hardboiled eggs.  I figured Fabio had done himself in by being so far removed from competition he was foolish enough to do two dishes at this level of competition, and indeed that's what the judges pointed to in the interview with Simon, but I was not expecting such a wide margin of victory for Joe, or that he'd score six points higher on taste!  He also was up one point on presentation, but down two on randomizer, and so often it comes down to who best uses the randomizer.  They really didn't show six points worth of commentary on flavor. 

Chris vs. Lee Anne - I like both, but was was rooting for her and most wanted her dish so I'm happy with this one.  I love lamb loin chops, really like romanesco, and like marmalade so would have been all over these dishes but hers particularly appealed.  I didn't know what a halogen oven was until Justin explained (I mean, I know what an oven is, obviously, and I know the halogen group of elements and a halogen bulb, but I'd never heard of a halogen oven and why it exists -- it's a halogen bulb plus a fan and heats quickly) and don't want one, but now I know.  He, too, failed to heed the warning against creating two dishes that must first compete against each other before they can go on to competing against the competitor's.  He got one more presentation point, down to her last-second tossing of the salad rather than anything great he did, but she nailed him, three points each, on taste and randomizer.  Great job.

Karen vs. Jonathan - If handed this randomizer, I'd have just sat there chowing down on a sleeve of Ritz and letting my opponent win.  I've been a fan of Karen since her original TC appearance, and don't have any attachment to Jonathan, so was rooting for him.  Alas.  Cheftestants so often go home for "underseasoned" food that not only has more salt (because that's somehow what they exclusively mean by seasoned) than I cook with - yet to rave reviews - but even more than the average restaurant.  It's wild to imagine the salt level of a dish eliminated for excessive salinity.  But he got a whopping four more points on taste and either tied or lost on the rest, so that must have been it.

Jet vs. Pyet - I'll eat venison if served to me, but would never choose to make it or order it, but I liked the overall randomizer requirements (and I love oyster mushrooms), so just based on the visuals I might have licked both plates clean.  Great food, and great for his high score, but kudos for someone with fewer credentials also scoring high total despite losing to him on every element; in a lopsided battle, she can be proud.

With four of the most successful women hanging up their belts after their victories, maybe one of the most successful men might finally be good enough against the women's second string to win.  If so, I'm happy for it to be Jet; I like his food, he seems a good egg, and, as I've noted before, my mom knows his mother-in-law (not close enough that I've ever called in a favor, but close enough to give me a rooting interest).  But I'm still Team Antonia.

[Quilt Fairy]

9 hours ago, Bastet said:

With four of the most successful women hanging up their belts after their victories, maybe one of the most successful men might finally be good enough against the women's second string to win. 

In the very first TOC it always seemed to me that Guy expected a man to win, thus the WWE-like winner's belt and the ghastly rings.  In fact, IIRC, one of the prizes the first year was a jacked-up Dodge Ram truck.  And then Brooke Williamson won, and then Maneet, and then Tiffani and then Mei Lin and finally Maneet again.  It's all kinds of ironic. 

[dleighg]

In the shrimp and okra battle, I swear I heard Justin say that file (as in the powder often used in gumbo) comes from the okra plant. No Justin, it does not. It comes from the Sassafras tree. And he was so confident in saying that!

[meep.meep]

9 hours ago, Bastet said:

It was cool having Susan Feniger and Mary Sue Milleken on the same judging panel; I love their restaurants and still miss the original Border Grill.  I also love the way the three, with Maneet, walked in arm-in-arm at the end.  What a powerhouse.

I enjoy having Feniger and Milleken on the judging panel but it always seems like they come as a pair.  Throw someone else in the mix occasionally.  That said, I cannot imagine having the balls to come to judge this, eating eight separate dishes standing up and on camera, and wearing a white sweater!

I feel sorry for Simon, he's obviously very sick.  Good for the producers for keeping his job.  Tiffany is trying but obviously is not as good at it as Justin.

[DEL901]

50 minutes ago, Quilt Fairy said:

In the very first TOC it always seemed to me that Guy expected a man to win, thus the WWE-like winner's belt and the ghastly rings.  In fact, IIRC, one of the prizes the first year was a jacked-up Dodge Ram truck.  And then Brooke Williamson won, and then Maneet, and then Tiffani and then Mei Lin and finally Maneet again.  It's all kinds of ironic. 

I think the brackets were set up to give the guys a hand up, like having more guy vs guy match ups guaranteeing a guy would at least make it out of the first round.  So far, 8/12 to make it to the last round are male.  

[jcbrown]

19 hours ago, Bastet said:

Karen vs. Jonathan - If handed this randomizer, I'd have just sat there chowing down on a sleeve of Ritz and letting my opponent win.  ...  But I'm still Team Antonia.

You comment about chowing down on a sleeve of Ritz made me laugh.
I am also Team Antonia but would be happy with Jet.

9 hours ago, dleighg said:

In the shrimp and okra battle, I swear I heard Justin say that file (as in the powder often used in gumbo) comes from the okra plant. No Justin, it does not. It comes from the Sassafras tree. And he was so confident in saying that!

I heard the same thing and was aghast. The interwebs inform me:

"While not botanically related, sassafras and okra are both significant ingredients in Creole and Cajun cuisine, with sassafras leaves (ground into filé powder) often used as a substitute for okra as a thickening agent in dishes like gumbo. "

So maybe that's where he was going with that?

[Mellowyellow]

Was happy with 3 of the wins. Dislike Leanne  Wong and like Chris Scott very much so that was a downer for me.

[ALittleShelfish]

I went 1-for-4 with this episode.  Jet was my only win.  I always want to see more of Chris Scott's food, so his loss was a bummer to me.  The other episodes went 3-for-4 for me. 

Jet and Pyet both made some incredible looking dishes.  That was a great cook!

[dleighg]

7 hours ago, jcbrown said:

While not botanically related

You're more generous than I am. They are both used as thickener. Not botanically related. Cornstarch is also used as a thickener.

[jcbrown]

15 hours ago, dleighg said:

You're more generous than I am. They are both used as thickener. Not botanically related. Cornstarch is also used as a thickener.

Didn't say I agree with him; I was just trying to figure out what the association was he was making.

[Infie]

Winner for messiest cook - Fabio Viviani!

[Stardancer Supreme]

On 3/20/2025 at 12:10 AM, Infie said:

Winner for messiest cook - Fabio Viviani!

I was aghast! I understand that you only had 30 minutes, but sloshing food everywhere was not that appealing. I kind of felt bad for the kitchen cleaner.

[Ohmo]

I've watched all previous TOC seasons.  I didn't watch this episode---only skimmed through it to see who won.

I'm bored and not feeling invested this season.  It's lost something for me.

I can't contain my eyeroll over hearing Stephanie Izard is supposedly a fabulous chef, and that brings me to Alex G.  After seeing Stephanie lose again, I don't think Alex should judge unless she gets in there and competes like Rocco has done this year.

Taking all five champs out of the mix wasn't a great move, in my opinion.  Tiffani seemed to want out, and I've liked her a lot in this role.  However, taking all five champs out has made TOC feel like no one could beat those women, so the solution was to remove them from the playing field.  TOC VI: The Runner-Up Edition.

"Hey, we're going to take Tom Brady's Patriots and Patrick Mahomes' Chiefs out of the playoffs so someone else can win the Super Bowl."  The New York Giants and the Philadelphia Eagles actually had to beat those teams.

It's Jet, Antonia, and a slew of chefs who are above average, quite talented, and hard-working, but not quite elite.

[DEL901]

1 hour ago, Ohmo said:

I've watched all previous TOC seasons.  I didn't watch this episode---only skimmed through it to see who won.

I'm bored and not feeling invested this season.  It's lost something for me.

I can't contain my eyeroll over hearing Stephanie Izard is supposedly a fabulous chef, and that brings me to Alex G.  After seeing Stephanie lose again, I don't think Alex should judge unless she gets in there and competes like Rocco has done this year.

Taking all five champs out of the mix wasn't a great move, in my opinion.  Tiffani seemed to want out, and I've liked her a lot in this role.  However, taking all five champs out has made TOC feel like no one could beat those women, so the solution was to remove them from the playing field.  TOC VI: The Runner-Up Edition.

"Hey, we're going to take Tom Brady's Patriots and Patrick Mahomes' Chiefs out of the playoffs so someone else can win the Super Bowl."  The New York Giants and the Philadelphia Eagles actually had to beat those teams.

It's Jet, Antonia, and a slew of chefs who are above average, quite talented, and hard-working, but not quite elite.

Plus they really, really, really want a male winner this year.  And as much as I like Jet and Shota, I want Antonia (who I do love) to win and show them that even removing the previous 4 (female) winners isn’t enough to get a male winner. 

Edited Sunday at 10:13 PM by DEL901

[DEL901]

Guy has to stop saying “best in the world”.   It isn’t even best in the US.

[ILuvShibaInus]

7 hours ago, Ohmo said:

I've watched all previous TOC seasons.  I didn't watch this episode---only skimmed through it to see who won.

I'm bored and not feeling invested this season.  It's lost something for me.

I can't contain my eyeroll over hearing Stephanie Izard is supposedly a fabulous chef, and that brings me to Alex G.  After seeing Stephanie lose again, I don't think Alex should judge unless she gets in there and competes like Rocco has done this year.

Taking all five champs out of the mix wasn't a great move, in my opinion.  Tiffani seemed to want out, and I've liked her a lot in this role.  However, taking all five champs out has made TOC feel like no one could beat those women, so the solution was to remove them from the playing field.  TOC VI: The Runner-Up Edition.

"Hey, we're going to take Tom Brady's Patriots and Patrick Mahomes' Chiefs out of the playoffs so someone else can win the Super Bowl."  The New York Giants and the Philadelphia Eagles actually had to beat those teams.

It's Jet, Antonia, and a slew of chefs who are above average, quite talented, and hard-working, but not quite elite.

Stephanie is a great chef and I've eaten at one of her restaurants here in Chicago and the meal was excellent. But this is not Top Chef where you make a great plate of food - you have to embrace the randomizer and not just use one aspect of it a single time but multiple ways. Antonia understands this but several other chefs do not; embrace the randomizer not just make a token gesture. 

Getting rid of East and West brackets and past champions not competing does smack of producer manipulation. Whether that's for Jet, who knows but I suspect they will do whatever to make him a winner.

 

[Ohmo]

23 minutes ago, ILuvShibaInus said:

Stephanie is a great chef and I've eaten at one of her restaurants here in Chicago and the meal was excellent.

To be fair, Guy hypes up all the Iron Chefs.  However, none of them have done really well in the competition. Stephanie hasn't, but neither have Cat Cora and Jose Garces. Then Alex comes out as a judge.  I like Alex well enough, but Food Network personalities shouldn't get to judge unless they've competed in TOC.

Giada was a judge in a past season, and that irked me then, too.  With Rocco competing, it made Alex as a judge more glaring to me.

[Salacious Kitty]

Alex did compete. She was a 1 seed and was beaten by the 8 seed. She never competed again.