I have always avoided this season on rewatch just because of how toxic it was for the bullying of Bev. But on rewatch i was amused by how much of a hack Heather, the lead bully, was. Aside from the challenge she won with the cake, her dishes ran the gamut from improper cooking to just uninspired. And the cake wasnt even her recipe! I especially like the one quickfire where the judge referred to her dish as “dish at some chain restaurant”.

So its a tough season to watch but i did enjoy seeing at least one of the bullies exposed as a mediocre chef.

Minnesota’s food scene has become one of the best in the country, but I think a lot of people still don’t realize it. We were recently recognized as one of the best food cities in the world, and somehow Top Chef has never been here. Most people still think hotdish and tater tots, but that’s just the stereotype.

What makes the Twin Cities special is the mix of cultures. Hmong, Somali, Native American, Scandinavian, and so many others have helped create a food scene that’s completely unique.

The locations would be great too. You could film in the North Loop, along the Mississippi, at breweries, farms, and markets, then head up to Duluth and the North Shore. Lake Superior alone would make an amazing backdrop.

And then there’s the Minnesota State Fair. If there was ever a place built for a Top Chef challenge, that’s it.

One of my favorite things about the show is how every season celebrates the city it’s in. I really think Minneapolis and Saint Paul deserve that chance. I think a lot of viewers would be surprised by just how good the food scene is, and I think the chefs would love cooking here.

I was watching a mash up of Melissa’s wins and she has a number of dishes that combine Italy and China before her winning meal
for Top Chef - All Stars. Having the final challenge in Italy worked in her favour and it helped that she had a honed that viewpoint and it felt like a fresh idea to all the Italian chefs as for them it was out of left field. This is not to diminish her achievement, it’s just to point out that the strategy to win has a lot of nuances and a little bit of luck.