‘Top Chef Masters’ review: The legend of David Burke, and the best season ever
Now that we are a mere week from the “Top Chef Masters” finale, we feel confident to say the following without trepidation: This was by far the greatest season in the show’s history. Everything this year clicked, from the challenges to Curtis Stone to most importantly the case. Everyone is just so likable this year, and while Bryan Voltaggio is understandably popular courtesy of his past run on the show, he’s not even among our favorites for the season.
First of all, it was nice this week to see the return of Sang Yoon following his exit last week to judge the burger challenge, especially since Sang is one our favorites ever. Him tormenting Douglas Keane’s shrimp burger (which he was apparently inspired to make thanks to a McDonald’s in Japan) was 120% hilarious. Plus, another likable chef in Jennifer Jasinski won, and Sang ironically helped her pass him in total earnings for charity this week with $35,000 total.
The reason we love this season is because the chefs are having fun, and while we appreciate and respect the hard work of some of the teachers showed here, the entire elimination challenge came across as heavy-handed on this end. We were fairly certain that Douglas cooked the most expensive dish of the entire season with all of his caviar, and in between him and Bryan, they really went outside the box. So hats off to Bryan for finally winning a challenge this season, and this helps to make the competition in the finale all the more competitive. We’d put Douglas as the favorite for now due to consistency, but Jennifer has won the most money and Bryan has only looked to be in serious danger of leaving once.
But, we must say goodbye to the man, the myth, and the legend that is David Burke, who seems like one of the most amazing guys out there in addition to being a great chef. We never thought he was going to win this season, but him trying to make a souffle 60 times over? Completely crazy. He’s a culinary mad scientist, and we could literally watch a weekly show starring him, Douglas, and Sang every day of the year and be happily fulfilled.
Overall, what do you think about the final three, and is there anyone in particular that you are pulling for? In addition to sharing your thoughts below, just be sure to click here to read some more scoop related to “Top Chef Masters.”
Photo: Bravo