The first set of cheftestants on Top Chef Masters
Photo: courtesy of Bravo TV
Last night saw the return of Bravo's much-loved Top Chef, sort of. For the summer the show has spawned a pro-version, Top Chef Masters, in which real top toques compete to raise money for their charity of choice. Of course, the Internet is already abuzz with opinions on the premiere – here are a few choice cuts:
- – "The chefs seem to be having fun, and so it's hard to not have fun watching them." [Fork in the Road]
- – "It was difficult not to be charmed by the first group of four, especially good-natured chefs." [Show Tracker]
- – "Cooking for Girl Scouts, yawn. No more kiddie foodies!" [Grub Street]
- – "Masters redeemed the franchise." [Slate]
- – "There is something undeniably enjoyable about watching pro chefs work on their feet." [Eater]
- – "Masters is a little like watching ace chefs cook for fun while occasionally getting interrupted by the creepy looking host, Kelly Choi." [TOC Blog]
- – "Reality TV this is not." [The Feed]
- – "The biggest star of last night's Top Chef Masters was Gladware, for sure." [MP: SF]
- – "After complaining for several seasons about the unprofessional sniping and trash talking, can it be that we miss it? " [The Stew]
- – "Is Jay Rayner Marco Pierre White’s long lost twin?" [Hungry]
- – "I've always wondered what Top Chef would be like if the pool of contestants didn't always include a couple of homeless characters the producers picked up off the street for poops and giggles." [Gawker]
- – And in other Top Chef news, season four winner Stephanie Izard has a cookbook coming out. [EMD]