Where Should They Go Next?

[FormerMod-a1]

This is where you can speculate on where you think they'll go/are likely to go to at some point, as well as your general wishlist of where they'd go.  

[FormerMod-a1]

2 hours ago, theajw said:

I won't hold my breath, but how about Top Chef: Rochester?  Garbage plates, white hots, etc.  Heck, Top Chef: Western New York could include sponge candy, beef on weck and speaking of clichés, wings.

 

1 hour ago, mlp said:

Now you've made me homesick.  They could take a side trip to Niagara Falls.  

I love this ideas.  I'd add Minneapolis/St Paul - lefse, wild rice, turkey wild rice soup, walleye, and of course... lutefisk.  

And Detroit or MI, in general - pasties, MI style Coney dogs, Buddie's Pizza, Sanders, Frankenmuth, Polish cuisine, Middle Eastern cuisine,...

[PhoneCop]

Don't forget Somali food in the Twin Cities!

First choice: Honolulu/Hawaii. Bring on the Quickfires where they have to elevate Spam and loco moco! And the inevitable luau challenge. Sheldon can sit in as a guest judge.

I'm surprised they haven't done Philadelphia or Portland. Or Atlanta. And I would've expected Nashville-Memphis at some point, but is this season morphing into that or are they returning to Kentucky later?

[cooksdelight]

Atlanta, with side trips to Savannah, Athens and the mountains in the north part of the state.

[The Solution]

3 hours ago, cooksdelight said:

Atlanta, with side trips to Savannah, Athens and the mountains in the north part of the state.

I was surprised that they didn't visit Savannah in the Charleston season.

Cleveland has a decent food scene, especially E. 4th Street, but the main light (Michael Symon) seems to have sold his soul to the Food Network.

Albuquerque/Santa Fe would also be cool.

Edited January 30, 2019 by The Solution
Added another loc

[Totale]

17 hours ago, theajw said:

I won't hold my breath, but how about Top Chef: Rochester?  Garbage plates, white hots, etc.  Heck, Top Chef: Western New York could include sponge candy, beef on weck and speaking of clichés, wings.

They can get a whole season out of upstate NY, I look forward to the Chicken Riggies challenge and each chef's take on Troy, NY mini dogs,

[Rai]

Portland and Atlanta both seem like natural fits. I would really love to see something southwestern though, especially since Texas was pretty terrible. Albuquerque or Santa Fe would definitely be excellent locations! 

I think there's also a large Vietnamese population in Minneapolis, so there's that to draw on as well.

...how about Kansas City?

[Fukui San]

Portland would be a great fit. Then they could have the finale in Portland, ME.

If they really want to make a statement, they could have a season in Puerto Rico.

[starriepie]

3 hours ago, Rai said:

Portland and Atlanta both seem like natural fits. I would really love to see something southwestern though, especially since Texas was pretty terrible. Albuquerque or Santa Fe would definitely be excellent locations! 

I think there's also a large Vietnamese population in Minneapolis, so there's that to draw on as well.

...how about Kansas City?

Speaking as a Kansas Citian, I agree they should come here and wondered why they haven't. Being literally in the middle of America we have a whole mish-mash of everything. We're more than just barbeque. (Although we have some damn fine BBQ). There's such an amalgamation of things here, they'd probably wouldn't run out of ideas.

[Fukui San]

I mean the real answer is probably that your city's office of tourism didn't pony up as much money and perks as the other places they've been to, yet.

[jmcd44]

I second Philly. I dated a guy there for awhile & I don’t miss him but I do miss the city & the food. 

[dewelar]

I would go along with the idea of going to regions of the country we haven't seen yet. Like the Southwest, the Midwest has seen minimal representation (Chicago doesn't really count), so I'll jump on the Twin Cities bandwagon. I lived in Minneapolis for four years and have a lot of family there, so it would be interesting to see what they decide are the important places to go there. Kansas City (or St. Louis) would also be a good choice. Portland, Philly and Atlanta (in that order) are good choices, too, but IMO they can get in line behind MSP/Missouri and New Mexico.

[hendersonrocks]

I would love Hawaii, especially if they air it in the winter while I'm sitting through the polar vortex of the upper Midwest. Lots of opportunity to island hop and do both high end and casual cuisine.

I am entirely biased but agree that Minneapolis in the summer or fall would be an amazing choice. Our food scene is fantastic, and we have an incredible range of cuisines that are all firing at a really high level (Scandinavian, Somali, Hmong, Tibetan, and so much more). 

[PhoneCop]

And Padma's vote goes to...

[prettybird]

Atlanta is such a no brainer. It has an amazing food scene, many of the TC contestants & some judges have come from there. It has great opportunities for unique, regional food challenges. There is a huge film infrastructure already in place. Unfortunately I don’t think it will happen. First, they just did a southern City so it wouldn’t be for a while, but the big reason is that Atlanta won’t pay for it. The host city is a major sponsor and that is how locations are chosen. I don’t think Atlanta feels that it needs the promotion that much. It’s really unfortunate. Atlanta would be a great location. 

[bad things are bad]

Quote

 

And Detroit or MI, in general - pasties, MI style Coney dogs, Buddie's Pizza, Sanders, Frankenmuth, Polish cuisine, Middle Eastern cuisine,...

 

 

 

Totally agree. Northwest side of the state is gorgeous with vineyards, water views, and a food scene. Detroit has all of the above-mentioned things plus  trendy restaurants popping up by the minute.

Michigan is second only to California in number of crops grown commercially so there's a lot to work with (go to a farmer's market near Chicago and witness the many booths advertising "Michigan produce").

Too bad Mario Batali is such a skank as he was a huge NW Michigan booster. And  also too bad that Bourdain is gone as he did love Detroit. , RIP

Edited February 6, 2019 by bad things are bad

[Nancybeth]

I'm always surprised there hasn't been an Atlanta season yet, and think it's a natural choice.  That said, 3 of the last 6 seasons have been in the South so they may need to hold off another couple years.  Philly and Portland would be good picks and I would love to see them go back to the Midwest -- Detroit, Minneapolis or Kansas City could be interesting.  

For Michigan the logo could just be a giant oven mitt!  

Edited February 20, 2019 by Nancybeth

[Lamb18]

I'm still pulling for Minnesota. One advantage is that there is an excellent restaurant/catering equipment rental company here - my friend's wife is one of the managers and they provided equipment, dishes, etc. for all the Super Bowl parties last year.  They work on events all over the country. I bet there would be no equipment malfunctions and if there were, the company would be on it. 

There would be the obligatory football challenge, of course, and if it's not in the stadium, it would be in one of the parks across the street from where I work! Plus I think an "Up North" challenge would be fun. If it was winter, they could go ice fishing, but I know that filming is usually done in May and June.  Maybe they could have a challenge in the skyways - these are pretty unique to Minneapolis and St. Paul - not so much for just having them, but for how much territory they cover in each of the downtowns. It's fun to think about.

[FormerMod-a1]

Or in the Sculpture Garden, with our iconic spoon and cherry. 

[dewelar]

4 hours ago, Lamb18 said:

There would be the obligatory football challenge

It's Minnesota. Hockey or nothing.

[hendersonrocks]

Quote

Maybe they could have a challenge in the skyways - these are pretty unique to Minneapolis and St. Paul - not so much for just having them, but for how much territory they cover in each of the downtowns. It's fun to think about.

I loooooove this idea! The skyways during the work week are such a hub of activity - that would be really cool.

Got to get the chain of lakes in (and with such good casual restaurants at Harriet and Nokomis it would work nicely), an Up North getaway, and - sad but true - some Mall of America action. I hope a lot of good attention would be paid to our Somali, Hmong, and Tibetan communities along with our Scandinavian-ness. Make it happen, Magical Elves.

[pally]

Honolulu

Atlanta

Portland

Philadephia or Pittsburgh (or just Pennsylvania-a chocolate challenge in Hershey!)
Missouri to include both St Louis and Kansas City

Phoenix or Albuquerque

Cincinnati or Nashville but since they just did Kentucky those would have to wait
The Hudson Valley (not including NYC)

[Grundoon59]

Count me as another vote for Detroit.  The variety of locally grown products at farmers' markets plus so many restaurants (old and new) and great potential of backdrops would help make a compelling season. They could even do something in Canada if they wanted to go south to Windsor. 

[meep.meep]

They should come back to San Francisco.  Season 1 really didn't show off the food scene in the Bay Area.  They went to Napa for the finale of Season 6, but really the show has never explored what's going on with food throughout the area.  I believe there are now more Michellin starred restaurants in the Bay Area than anywhere else in the country, including New York.

[biakbiak]

3 minutes ago, meep.meep said:

They should come back to San Francisco.  Season 1 really didn't show off the food scene in the Bay Area.  They went to Napa for the finale of Season 6, but really the show has never explored what's going on with food throughout the area.  I believe there are now more Michellin starred restaurants in the Bay Area than anywhere else in the country, including New York.

There were also three episodes set in the Bay Area in the California season which was only 3 seasons ago so that seems unlikely.

[xaxat]

On 2/21/2019 at 10:13 PM, pally said:

Philadephia or Pittsburgh (or just Pennsylvania-a chocolate challenge in Hershey!)

All! Philadelphia and Pittsburgh (cheese steak/Primanti's) old school. Tons of options in both cities for 21st century cuisine. (Including my fave Superior Motors). 

In between, Hershey, Pennsylvania Dutch country. A stop at Kennet Square, where half the country's mushrooms are grown. Definitely doable.