By Jacqueline Wasilczyk, ZAGAT.com Staff Editor
After five seasons of being involved with Top Chef, Lee Anne Wong shares some behind-the-scenes scoop.
Lee Anne Wong
Top Chef whips up drama on TV screens every Wednesday night, but there's plenty of action that happens off-camera too, something that the show’s current culinary supervisor, season one contestant Lee Anne Wong, knows all about. She spoke to us recently to shed light on former scandals, the appeal of the series and what it takes to survive life after the competition.
Zagat Buzz: With the show in its fifth season, how do you keep it fresh? Is it true that you try never to repeat a challenge?
Lee Anne Wong: In many ways, new contestants keep it fresh. We could put them through all of the same challenges we’ve put other seasons through and you’d get totally different results. We are always striving to think outside of the box while still paying homage to the simple beauty of food, [but] we’ve [also] managed to create some challenges that have become favorites season after season, like our relay race and restaurant wars.
ZB: What’s the most common behind-the-scenes difficulty in setting up and executing a challenge? And how do you decide on the task?
LAW: Most challenges are only mapped out a few days ahead of time, and you’d be amazed at how much last-minute swapping and decision-making is involved. Sometimes it has to do with the sponsor, or whether or not a certain guest judge is available; other times it’s as simple as getting a location secured. Usually the challenge team looks to me for guidelines on which ingredients should be made available, equipment restrictions, time limits and budgets. I also provide a realistic point of view of the contestants’ limitations, like if it’s possible to cook [a dish] in minutes or the time I filleted a fish blindfolded. It’s a big ballet really, and amazing to see how much stuff it takes us to get everything ready [only to] tear it all down and leave virtually no footprint in a matter of hours.
ZB: How much input do the show’s sponsors have on challenges?
LAW: The money to make television doesn’t grow on trees. I think that’s about all I’m allowed to say.
ZB: Scallops have been quite popular the past few seasons and have sparked a bit of scandal (à la Spike Mendelsohn’s decision to use Rick Tramonto's frozen ones). Do you expect them to continue to be a hot item (we did notice one pop up in the premiere), or have you tried to push the cheftestants toward other ingredients?
LAW: Hehehe. There was one Quickfire this season where we had staged them in the fridge in the Top Chef Kitchen. Angie (my right-hand woman on my culinary team) and I caught each other’s eye, and I just walked over to the fridge and took out both the bay scallops and diver scallops, tucked them under my arm and walked off the set. There were plenty of other seafood and meat choices in the fridge still. Lunch was delicious that day. And that Tramonto thing was all my fault, for the record.
ZB: Do you feel that by this season, the judges expect more from the contestants? How has the addition of Toby Young on the panel changed the judging dynamic?
LAW: Absolutely, the judges have already seen a wealth of talent in the four seasons past so these contestants have big shoes to fill. Toby Young has added a very new, very tongue-in-cheek element to the judges’ table. I would watch judges’ table and some of the things he would say would make you spit your soda out your nose. I know that Tom, while he didn’t always agree with Toby’s POV, certainly welcomed his presence and enjoyed his commentary, as we all did.
ZB: How has placing the show in New York changed the competition?
LAW: Location, location, location. It’s quite simply the food capital of the world. It sets the tone, the level of excitement and the intensity. Plus, the judges this season are some of the best chefs in the country.
ZB: You’ve managed to spin your Top Chef success into an established media-chef career. Any advice for current contestants who would like to do the same?
LAW: I always tell the smart ones to remember that the cameras are always rolling. Top Chef is a stepping-stone and an opportunity to find out the blood and guts of yourself as a cook, and also who you are as a person. The ones who listen to what the judges have to say and move forward usually have a better chance of keeping in the public’s good favor. Every now and then you get a contestant who believes too much in their own hype, and then they self-implode. It’s up to you to figure out who I’m talking about. So in other words, keep working. There is life after Chef.