There’s going to be a whole lot of pride on the next season of Top Chef.
The Emmy-winning series is coming back in 2021 which is a sign that things are turning around for the restaurant business amid the worldwide Coronavirus pandemic.
They have hit up practically every major culinary hotspot over the past 14 years, domestically in The United States, including San Francisco, Los Angeles, Miami and New York City. Now Top Chef is heading to the Pacific Northwest as season 18 will take place in Portland, Oregon.
And what’s even better is the rotating judging panel will consist of many LGBTQ Top Chef alum outside of the usual group (bear icon Tom Colicchio, Padma Lakshmi & Gail Simmons). One in particular is the super cute & vastly talented Gregory Gourdet, who made it to the finale on Top Chef: Boston and did quite well earlier this year on Top Chef All-Stars: LA.
“Honored to be on the other side of the Judge’s Table with some very special friends for what will truly be a very special season of @bravotopchef,” he wrote on his Instagram. He’s not alone though as other openly gay alum, like Top Chef winners Kristen Kish & Melissa King, will also be part of the celebrated dining group.
Kristen took home the season 10 title and became only the second woman (after Stephanie Izard) to taste victory on the long-running Bravo series. Melissa, who first competed with Gregory on s12, returned with him for its second All-Stars season where she dominated throughout and won in the end.
Other familiar Top Chef alum that you will see in the mix include Dale Talde, Amar Santana, Brooke Williamson, Edward Lee, Tiffany Derry, Kwame Onwuachi, Richard Blais, Carrie Baird and Nina Compton.