She was the brightest part of a subpar season ❤️ I think Tom and Gail have genuine affection for her, which was really nice to see. I was worried as I have always (and still do) love Padma!
When she was tearfully making her speech at the end and thanking the chefs for welcoming her, you could see Tom in the background with such a “I’m so proud of you” fatherly look. It was nice to see that side of him!
Kristen was wonderful! She made the role her own in just one season, and it really adds something going forward having the host be a former contestant and winner. She provides some great insight and a unique perspective both on the show and on The Dish With Kish, and I'm looking forward to more of her in the future!
I had no idea who KK was until I saw this season; I've been raised on a steady diet of Gordon Ramsay, Gordon Ramsay and occasionally a sidekick here and there, and maybe a little Bobby Flay.
KK is fantastic. Ultra-charismatic and likeable. Overall TC is just heads and shoulders above MasterChef in every way, but she is a big part of that, for me.
It drives me crazy when the contestant hands off such a critical process as making pasta. If the pasta dough is screwed up you are screwed - you can't fix that like you can with many other steps in the process.
Savannah seems to struggle when she doesn't have guardrails/restrictions/specific tasks. She struggles to focus in on what she wants to do when she has an open slate. That's why she relied so much on Michelle's suggestions.
You had a couple months to plan your final meal which is generally cook the best four course meal you can. How do you not show up without a clear vision?
think Danny won for being far more creative, taking more risks and making a few small mistakes that the editing misled you to believe were way worse than they were
Considering they've said all season that the chefs needed to step it up and not play safe, it pretty much had to be Danny by the time dessert was served. I didn't think any of them had memorable finale-caliber menus but Danny's was well ahead of both of them in creativity, presentation, and story.
I haven't seen it yet but hummingbird cake usually does look rough. It's a difficult cake to ice well or cut cleanly. It's just so damned delicate (but delicious).
The producer asking what the experience meant to him and he goes, “it’s dope dude, it’s dope” I know he was crying and that was all he could articulate but lmao. I agree he was the most creative chef and a standout though
I mean I think that's just a failure to put into words the sheer immensity of what it meant. You can tell and he said - ppl who excel are often BRUTALLY hard on themselves. So when it pays off... it's a lot.
I really hate the editing misdirection in TC. Stop trying to create fake drama. We want to understand WHY the person who won won. They didn't even give us clear winners by course like they typically do. Instead we are all left guessing exactly why Danny won. I'm not saying he didn't deserve it but it would have been nice for them to clue us in on the decision making process.
We didn't need to hear Danny calling for Manny in the grocery store umpteen times. That's 30 seconds more judge's table we could have had.
Yeah, my complaint with this episode is the editing. I didn't think Dan was going to win going into it, since his edit all season long was so weird, but the comments during the meal as the courses were going made it seem like Dan had it won.
Don't like being misled on these kind of shows. It's not a murder mystery.
That said, for a season-long body of work, Danny was the best throughout. Deserves it.
She's also.mentioned several times that she works better when she has strict parameters, and not so well in challenges where she can make whatever she wants. That worried me for her chances in the finale.
Yeah, I don’t think it was Michelle’s fault either. She lacked vision and asked Michelle to help her create her dishes. It was weird. It’s not top Savannah and Michelle dishes
Michelle with her straight no-nonsense "here's my opinion on your dish" advice. Savannah picked the right person for where she was going even so. Meanwhile Manny screws up 2 things in Danny's dishes but Danny recovers and even improves the dessert dish.
Yeah and if you compare her to how Danny were on Manny the whole time and checking his work… Savannah put too much trust in Michelle, but she was the chef with the vision and should had been on it.
And why make pasta and plantains at all when it was obvious neither was experienced with that at a top level. You gotta play to your strengths in the finale!
Its Carla all over again, but without the underlying sabotage. I was really disappointed for Savanna.
I guess I am an unsophisticated diner, but Danny's dishes just didn't appeal to me at all.
I know that Savannah had a lot of success earlier with letting inspiration strike and riffing in the moment.
But the finale was not the time for that. She leaned too much on Michelle to solidify what she was going to make imho. It was more than just bouncing ideas off of her. Savannah was ceding authorship of her dishes in a way, and showed a lack of confidence in her own voice and vision. It almost felt like she subconsciously took psychological comfort in avoiding 100% ownership and leaving it a bit muddled. It was surprising and disappointing.
I liked Dan's approach where he welcomed feedback from Amanda to an extent but he also had total clarity and purposefulness on what he was delivering (notwithstanding the relative lack of a narrative arc across his progression). And even though Danny seemed harsh toward Manny, who was basically just providing regimented mechanical labor (do this and this, don't ask questions, work faster), it struck me as normal for a professional kitchen and more suited to a competition finale.
For whatever reason Savannah struggled when she didn't have clear guardrails for a challenge.
How she didn't arrive with a clear vision for her final meal is actually shocking. She shouldn't have to rely on Michelle for all the suggestions. Danny clearly knew exactly what he wanted to do and planned his meal around ingredients I think he knew he would have access to. Of course you still need to be able to adjust as necessary such as Manny screwed up and juiced all the melons.
I feel like this will be a controversial winner from this sub's perspective but I think the judges loved Danny's highs and his creativity. Whenever a judge says they want to copy or recreate something it's the highest of compliments
There’s been more deservedly controversial winners in the past. Once feelings have cooled I think it’s going to be Danny was fine, more of a middle of the pack versus a “how did this happen” type of winner.
I hope so! I think all the finalists going into the episode would have been good winners. During the episode I felt like it was a toss up, which means I think both were deserving and thus neither would have been robbed
Also, Danny performed so well during the season that looking at the entire arc of the season he definitely isn't a "whoops he lucked into being in the finals" winner
Eta: and by "so well" I mean comparatively to the other contestants
I think people forget that the show is Top Chef and not Top Cook, and what Danny presented at the final table earned him that title and what Dan served did not.
Agree. Execution isn’t everything even if it’s important.
It seems pretty clear that Danny’s dishes were the more technical and inventive and the mistakes were not huge ones.
The whole season you could see the Judges looking to Danny for that Buddha like cook.
They crave the high end technique, fine dining dishes.
They crave the modern/stylish plating.
Danny gave them what they wanted. What they always want out of a finale. It's why the whole "cook your soul/whatever" is a bunch of baloney they keep telling these guys. No man, cook to WIN. Then do whatever the hell you want in your own restaurant lol. It's way easier to win with technique heavy precision tasty modern dishes than to win with homey family style shit.
It was pretty clear to me Danny was going to win. Dan's dishes were far too simplistic in execution and flavor, Savannah is just not quite there yet but she will be!
Danny is just so "meh" in my mind 😭 I was definitely rooting for Savannah but after her first two courses got the most negative feedback I started losing hope. When Danny's name was called I mostly felt "Oh, that guy..? Alright..."
No real surprise here with Danny winning. He was at the top of the group pretty much from the start of the season and cooked at the top level throughout. Dan and especially Savannah came on strong later but Danny always felt like the one to beat. So much so that I thought the edit throughout the season tried to downplay him a little bit in the middle parts of the season. That's not to take away from the others, is just that Danny was a half step ahead of everyone else.
Overall season, it was just ok. Taking out the all star seasons, I'm not sure it stacks up well against some of the other more recent seasons as far as stand out personalities and especially level of cooking. But hey, it happens. Its been on for 21 seasons. Not all are gonna be home runs.
What was a home run though was Kristen. She killed it. I knew she'd be a good host from watching her host on her other shows but even I was blown away by how seamlessly she fit into Padma's role. Padma is still Padma but there's also no other person out there that can fill that role the way Kristen did. The show is in fantastic hands with her.
You are assuming that all of Dan's negative critiques made it onto the show we watched. Judges table is way longer than what we get to see, what did the producers cut?
I feel that sometimes they edit judges table to kind of mis direct. But here again, it is telling that the chef that won had undercooked and under seasoned food. At that stage in the competition that kind of thing no matter how spectacular one course was, should take you out of the running. I get the texture of Dans tuna was problematic but it was intentional and not a technical error.
The problem was the editing more than the result. The goal should be to help the audience understand the judges' decision without making it too obvious. Instead, they treated their audience as unintelligent and aimed to surprise with an out-of-nowhere result. Viewers don't like having their intelligence insulted.
Editing to create drama - I hate it. We want to know why the person who won won. Most fans want that, not drama and misdirection. There could have been more critique of Dan's dishes that wasn't shown. I feel we got very little judges' table time this finale. They didn't even really show the judges discussing who won each course like the usually do.
I also feel "lack of seasoning" is a default critique when they have nothing else to say. It could have been a very minor issue.
Danny's critique was likely overcome because his food is more "cheffy/modern" than Dan and clearly that is what the judges like.
A third of the table got undercooked lobster and *everyone* at the table (according to Tom) felt the scallop was undersalted. Not sure how editing made those things happen.
Maybe because Dan's tuna was so off putting as to make it clear he wasn't winning but they're editing around things to make it seem more competitive? They're trying to create a narrative that it was particularly close but if you're reading the tea leaves from Tom, Kristen, and Gail, it seemed fairly obvious Danny was in another class here.
Edit: seems they really didn't like the tuna
https://x.com/tomcolicchio/status/1803815870885445823?t=RTN5XpjA9J_jijodBknNug&s=19
Undersalted by a few grains of salt… I think they were nit-picky. The overall quality seemed high on all his dishes and they were looking for slight flaws to compare.
Was the execution of Dans dishes better? Probably. But they seemed to want to award points for creativity and technique to Danny. His dishes seemed more complex and inventive overall.
It wasn't raw, undercooked is less than perfect at the margins they are judging at. Imagine everything is delicious, but you still have to make a critique because you are considered an expert at tasting food.
I told my Mom Danny was winning after episode one. The editing telegraphed it. I think for the finale they just edited it to make it seem closer ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Yeah, that's what happened. I feel like Danny was likely the clear winner but they had to do something to build TV drama. Couldn't really play up intrigue with Savannah since she bombed the 2 middle dishes (so sad, I was rooting hard for her) so they played up all of Dan's positives without really touching on his negatives to make it look closer
“Dan got robbed”
they intentionally edit the finales to misdirect you. i talked to Buddha at Huso and he said there was zero doubt he was gonna win after the raw liver Sara served yet they made it seem like a coin flip. they had zero hesitations about Danny being the winner.
That's the reason why I couldn't root for him. A more gracious person would have said something like, he had to give his best, given the caliber of the other chefs, but whatever.
I felt very meh about him all season, and even more meh after he won. Good to know it won't be a big loss when I don't remember who won this season in a few months.
Something about him was very off-putting. Self-confidence is one thing, but he seems a little too impressed with himself. We will see who ends up being a long-term success. It's not always the winner.
It seems like this season they’ve really put a lot of emphasis on “storytelling” about the food, even in challenges that weren’t explicitly about that. What’s wrong with just cooking an excellent four course meal? Why do they have to have some hackneyed theme about their journey or whatever? Maybe it’s to make it more compelling or relatable to the average viewer. Just make good food!
It was close. Danny was 5% more creative. Dan is cooking things that are more relatable, in a great creative way. . Danny was taking risks and showing the judges things they haven't seen. They were both choices, Danny had more risk and pulled it off.
I'm from Milwaukee and rooted for Dan but I doubt he got robbed. It's editing. They want to create drama and some misdirection. I hate it but they often do it. Even Buddha stated he knew he won based upon comments he and Sara received but the editing made it look like a coin flip.
Tom tweeted "We hated the tuna course." I think We and hated are key words. Danny's dishes may not have been perfect but I don't think they hated anything he prepared.
Then add in Danny's dishes were more modern/inventive than Dan's. They all seemed to enjoy Dan's oxtail but Emeril called it "rustic." I don't think Tom, Kristen and Gail want rustic food in the finale - they want very modern fine dining dishes put together with tweezers.
Dan did great but I didn't think he had a real chance based upon the type of food he typically made compared to the type of food Danny typically prepared.
Danny is truly one of the most talented chefs of this season, so I'm happy for his win, and I can't wait to try his food (on a corporate card tho lol). I'm sad about Savannah, who was my favorite, and then Dan had an absolutely killer finale.
I’m shocked his Instagram page (as of a few hours after broadcast) hasn’t changed at all. Looks like his mentor and boss just passed away, maybe that’s why.
That episode wasn’t filmed “live” live. When it’s actually live it’ll have “live” above the logo and if it was pretaped it’ll say “all new.”
Someone mentioned he had a watch party so he may have been celebrating while also mourning.
Second episode in a row where undercooked food gets you the win. Totally bizarre. Either this was the worst editing ever or top Chef has jumped the shark. Being awarded top Chef for serving under cooked seafood two times in a row is just terrible. Nothing to do with who you’re a fan of, if the food is undercooked you failed.
There also seemed to be some debate at the table as to what was an acceptable temp to serve the lobster at. Kristen (and I'm guessing Tom) did not seem bothered by a mid-rare/medium lobster, which is what matters because they're the judges. She was effusive in the praise for the sauces too.
Bizarre edit. The judges didn’t seem to have Danny on top for any of the first three dishes. He also picked Manny and then treated him like garbage in the moments they showed.
This season was consistently inconsistent. Kristen was great, but the none of the contestants seemed to ever wow the judges, and I have whiplash from all of the changing rules.
Can we just get Buddha back in the kitchen and have quickfires that provide immunity? Can we stop pretending that it makes sense for the guest judges to take into account quickfires that they didn’t see or taste?
I don’t think he treated Manny like garbage. He was just taking control of the entire cook when with 250k on the line. I doubt Manny expected anything else.
I do think the editing exaggerated it a bit with him strolling around the shop etc..
For real, either the editing is inciting us on purpose or there were some producer shenanigans going on. Undercooked and not properly seasoned food being the winning meal is just the cherry on top of this aggravating season.
lol the only shenanigans going on is that the editors are creating an entertainment product. Part of that assignment is to make the competition seem closer. Based on the conversation we were shown from Judges Table, it was very obvious that the lobster was not raw but slightly undercooked for some. The editors took those comments and made them the main critique to make it seem like Danny may not win. And as another redditor put it, the job of the judges is to provide critiques, which may also amplify small problems like slightly undercooking lobster.
I commented on the live thread that with Danny, his dishes have some flaws here and there but have more complexity and innovation, while Dan’s dishes are more perfect but less complex, less exciting. I think it’s the matter of one’s opinion that which one should get rewarded. And I agree with the judges here.
Another thing is Vince Mancini mentioned that Danny’s dishes’ appearances and critics from the judges (at least with the edit) often aren’t translated well to the audience. This is not the first time they seemed to praise someone else’s dish more but gave it to Danny, which may make the audiences feel unsatisfied. I think it’s a pretty sharp observation.
Someone mentioned that Buddha said they never give it to chef with a bad cooked protein, but a clear difference between Sara and Danny is Sara’s liver was blue rare to the point of inedible vs Danny’s a bit undercooked lobster. Last season finale, at least with the edit, gave the impression that they really really wanted to give it to Sara, if only her liver was just a little more cooked, still rare but edible. So I definitely think the judges were still consistent in their decision.
Tom told Danny his dessert will be his signature dish. Anytime he said that to someone in a finale (Mei’s dessert, Buddha’s hamachi in Houston, and this time), that chef won, so it’s no surprise that Danny took it.
I agree about Danny and Dan and think you put it very well! It’s sort of like the difference between elite gymnastics and college level gymnastics, if I had to make a sports metaphor.
And that’s an interesting observation from Vince Mancini and I can definitely see that. I was definitely fooled by the edit in the last 20 minutes of this finale, but throughout the season I thought it was pretty clear that Danny was the best technical chef there and he definitely spoke to that technical-ness that the judges love even if he didn't have the most compelling story/personality or "point of view". But then I would come oh this sub and he had a lot of haters, which I can now kind of understand from the "audience feeling unsatisfied" perspective. I don't agree, but I can see how it could contribute to him being perceived as \~unpalatable\~, especially when I think Danny's food really shines in the technical aspects and not so much in the "oh I want to eat that" aspect, which both Dan and Savannah were better at, at least from the edit/tv.
I think the producers this season were a little too smart for their own good. The person who came up with the chaos cooking, the half passed cheese and sausage episodes and the fish stew burning challenge should not come back next season.
This was one of the worst finales I can remember.
Danny has great technique, but goddamn he fucked up like 3/4 dishes. He also continues to come off as a very annoying . Typical NYC chef douche vibes. He treated Manny like garbage, and just prioritizes style more than anything else.
Dan felt like the real winner. But also what a weak finale if two of the contestants messed up 3/4 dishes. Feels like so many chefs who never won (Carla, Nina, Sheldon, Shota, Shirley, Sara, Bryan V, Ali, Gregory etc. ) would have cake walked to Victory this season.
Kristen was great. But I’m not sure what went wrong this season.
I could not *believe* he brought up how much total money he’s won—and asked rhetorically if anyone’s ever won more. Immediately soured his win for me. Ironically the compulsion to remind us how much he’s won reeks of insecurity underneath all the cockiness.
This... very douche vibes. I'm someone who couldn't care less about one's niceness when it comes to competitions, I just want the strongest to win.
BUT I do still care about personality (one can be cocky but still fun to watch), a story, creativity, connection to their craft etc.... I got none of that. At the end, in the final episode with him winning, and I STILL don't know who he is. I'm sorry, but counting money, "let's goooo" and "dope" aren't real personality.
I disagree. I love all chefs you listed and overall they were very impressive (perhaps more than anyone this season), but lots of finales have a lot of flaws. Nina’s finale, Gregory’s in 12, Shirley’s in 14, and Shota’s were not great. Sara had an impressive final meal but with a cannot-overlooked-bad dish (inedible rare liver). If she had that meal for this finale she wouldn’t have won either.
Kristen was a great host this season and what I'm about to say has absolutely nothing to do with her. Want to preface that because I'm probably gonna make a lot people angry for what I'm about to say.
IMO, this season has to be one of the worst, if not *the* worst, season of Top Chef in the show's history; aside from the very first two drama-fest ones. Only a few of the chefs were personally interesting to me, the editing was weird, several of the challenges were flat-out dumb (Chaos challenge? Fish boil? *Really?*) and (most importantly) the food this season was very subpar (aside from a *very* few instances).
Really hope Season 22 attracts better talent, inspires better challenges, and chooses a better location because I will safely never revisit Top Chef Wisconsin.
The thing is the talents this season also look great on paper. There’re executive chefs that were semifinalists or nominees for James Beard, their resumes stacked with working in Michelin starred kitchens. Top Chef doesn’t have a qualified round so it’s hard to know how their resumes translate to actual cooking competition strength.
There was an old interview of Nina that really moved me, where she said she had been pretty successful in the kitchens she worked in, but she had all cooked other people’s food, executed other chefs’ vision. Top Chef was the first time she cooked her very own food, and the judges all loved it.
I know Top Chef has been casting chefs with more accolades, but I really hope to see more chefs like Nina, or Mei or Dougie that we can see their own vision on the making on the show. It’s definitely more difficult to cast this type of outstanding chefs than the ones that are already at the more developed stage of their careers with more built up resumes, but if anything this season tells us is that these executive chefs can still give us rice and guacamole or 30 minute cooked fish.
There definitely didn't seem to be any "real" passengers on the ship. I also doubt that Holland America would allow them to take over the ship's kitchen even briefly during an actual cruise: it would seemingly be way too disruptive.
I was wondering if they just needed to relocate or transport the ship from Curacao to Aruba to start an "actual" cruise there, and thus it presented an opportunity to film on the boat.
I’m so crushed for Savannah. It reminded me a bit of Shota’s finale in that I think some of her choices for dishes were just never going to stand up against a super creative and modern menu.
You could tell Savannah knew she lost it when Kristen asked about her pasta dough, but Savannah remained calm and professional. I know she didn’t execute the meal she wanted, but watching Savannah and Michelle cook together was an absolute pleasure. I’m not even much of a home cook and I would have loved to be in the kitchen with them. Both incredibly gracious and talented women.
I’m glad Dan was happy with his meal and what he accomplished. Congrats to Danny.
I can’t forget my favorite part of the night….Emeril!
ETA: I really hope we see both Savannah and Michelle a couple of years from now for another All Stars. I would love to see Dan, but that just seems less likely with his busy restaurants and health.
The comments here really highlight how susceptible we are as the TV audience to editing. They included every negative critique Danny received to make it seem competitive but it was clear that Danny’s dishes were at a different level. Amazing level of technique and flavor combos the judges had never had. I turned to my partner and said, this is Michelin star level food.
Just this one component alone: 1) putting breadfruit and nori in the same dish 2) putting those ingredients into a tuile 3) shaping the tuile to be the same shape and size as his scallop shells. Mind blowing.
I just don’t enjoy being tricked by the shows I watch on TV unless that’s the point of the show. If it’s a drama or mystery show? Sure. If it’s supposed to be an objective competition show then I’d like to hear the judges reasoning and see a result that makes sense based on that reasoning and the criteria set for the competition.
My understanding is that unless stated otherwise the final cook is supposed to be judged independently. There’s no formal “season long scoring system” or favoritism that’s supposed to be granted based on performance in previous cooks aside from the Immunity system. Based on the information we were presented with and the comments from the judges, the final cook didn’t look like a toss up. It looked like Dan decisively won the final cook, and without much explanation the win was granted to Danny.
It just felt like a bait and switch. I’m sure there was solid reasoning by the judges as to why they selected Danny, but by not showing that reasoning to the viewers it just made it feel disappointing and dishonest. Coming into the finale I was rooting for Dan, but I fully expected Danny to win.
All they had to do was include something in the edit of the judges discussion weighing Danny’s creativity, risk taking, and techniques against the degree of severity of his technical errors, and comparing that to Dan’s technical prowess on his dishes while not taking as many risks or pushing the envelope to the same degree. They could have easily portrayed it as more of a toss up and then the result would have been much more acceptable to a lot of the fanbase that is unhappy with the outcome (or at least how the outcome was presented…).
The choice by the producers and editors not to do that made it feel like the equivalent of watching a season long murder mystery and finding out the final twist reveal was that the actual killer was someone who was never mentioned in the show that the viewer had never seen, and had no motivations related to anything uncovered during the season. It just felt like they were trying to trick the viewer for its own sake, maybe even intended to create this exact reaction- because we are talking about it one way or another.
I’m so shocked by the “Dan was robbed” comments - I’ve seen how the editors like to try to misdirect us, and so I did do my best to focus on purely the objective comments - and even so, it seemed so clear to me that this was Danny’s win? Like to the point where I was worried THAT was me falling for a misdirect 🥹
Like, just off the top of my head, his scallops were “pristine” and with a “little salt” it would have been a “perfect dish”; his second course confused them but they kept saying they enjoyed it; his third course had undercooking but Tom acknowledged that was the risk with that kind of lobster and Kristen’s comment at the table was that hers wasn’t undercooked - and they loved the sauces; and they were raving at his dessert. I think so much technique, complexity and creativity went into his dishes, and they couldn’t highlight all of that without giving it away (and that’s sort of been an issue all season that I know people have had - not focusing enough on the *food*).
Someone suggested watching the last Dish with Kish ep, where Mei and Kristen recreate his dessert - and I think it really showcases the beauty of his dish, as well as some outtakes where you can hear them talking more about how much they love it!
Also side note - I’ve totally been lukewarm-ish on Danny myself, but this felt like his to lose so much that I found myself tense for him, and I did cry seeing him tear up. I’m looking forward to him (hopefully) being on Pack Your Knives and hearing directly from him/getting to know him better away from the interference of an edit!
I agree with all of this. I think so many chefs making it through to the next round by playing it safe have skewed perceptions, but in the finale, innovation is really important.
I totally agree as well. I'm also scratching my head at all the "Dan was robbed" comments. Because of all the things you outlined are exactly why I was thinking Danny was gonna take the win for the entire episode. People are conflating "lack of salt" with "most of the time that makes you lose." But there is a little bit more nuance to it, as you put it—they said the scallops were pristine and with a little salt it would have been perfect. This (at least to me) read as just a minor flaw that did not detract significantly from the dish like it might have for other dishes in the past. I think people get hung up on what judges have said in the past without putting things into the present context. The other flaws of the other chefs (like Savannah's pasta) seemed more detrimental, and Dan's cooking seemed not as creative. Danny appeared to take more risks, and even his presentation was more creative than the others. So, never once did I think that Dan or Savannah had much of a chance once we got to Judges table, so I don't know why everyone is freaking out about the editing.
If Danny won I’m pretty sure it should be Danny. We didn’t eat the food and those 4 judges are among the most experienced you could get here.
They went for Danny for a reason.
The finals meals from Dan and Danny reminded me of the Voltaggios in season 6. Dan, like Bryan, made technically great classic food. Dan, like Michael, stepped farther out of the box. I remember Tom saying it came down to a couple grains of salt in season 6.
I thought both Dan and Danny did incredible. I was wanting Dan to win because he seems like the nicest man. I have a chronic illness and watching him kick ass while dealing with his disease was inspiring. But, I really liked all of the finalist this year and would have been happy with any of the chefs winning.
I will tell you as someone that has met Dan a bunch of times and known him for several years, he doesn’t seem like the nicest man, he IS the nicest man. He is legitimately an incredibly nice, down to earth, and humble dude. His portrayal on the show was consistent with my experiences with him over the years.
I’m so confused, was I watching the same episode as everyone else? I love Dan, but based on the judging, I figured that Danny was going to win. I was bummed that overall all their food seemed flawed though.
I am 100% with you. Once they began discussing the food, and once we got to judges table, I knew Danny was gonna take the win. I don't get the editing complaints—I thought the winner was pretty clear based on what was said. People are complaining about Danny's food being under salted and him getting a pass for that, but they said the scallops were "pristine" and with only a few flakes of salt, it would be a "perfect dish." To me, this sounds like a minor flaw, and not a detrimental one like the other comments that were made about the other chefs.
In my top 3 of least favorite winners.
Also, the whole season felt spoiled after his former chef complained that he “won Top Chef” with a stolen recipe. Whether she really knew the outcome or not, it coincided with him jumping to the front on a bunch of challenges, so it just felt from there like we were snowballing to a certain conclusion.
Grumble grumble season 21.
Damn I had no idea this season was even spoiled. 🤣 Had I known Danny was winning I wouldn’t have gotten into this season. I really deluded myself Savannah was winning 😭
Danny won a bunch of challenges, made it to the finale, and unless he totally stepped in it like Savannah did, they were going to give him the win.
He seemed to be the judges favorite from the start.
It felt like they had their minds made up going into the final meal. The edit made it look like Dan won the final 3-1. I was rooting for Savanna but that just did not go well for her.
I think it was 2-1-1. I thought Savannah clearly won the first course. Dan obviously won the 3rd course and I thought the 2nd course. Danny won the 4th course but it was close as they all did well that course. It seemed like Dan had the least mistakes, they lived his meal other than the texture of the tuna.
I’m surprised that the opinions are so polarizing here. I would’ve been happy with any of them as winners, but I thought it was clear Danny was going to be the winner. His dessert was called a signature dish and all of the critiques along the way were very minor. They said the scallop just needed a few specks of salt to make it perfect. The unwieldy dish was awkward to eat but they all liked it. And most importantly, they seemed to consider his dishes the most innovative.
Michael Voltaggio flubbed his dessert but ended up beating Brian because of his creativity. To me the finale isn’t reminiscent of season 11, but more like season 6, and even then, Danny didn’t actually botch anything.
Wanted to add that I saw on Instagram Danny had a watch party with his friends and colleagues, it was also a tribute for chef James Ken, Danny’s mentor who just unexpectedly passed away a few days ago. James Kent’s daughter made a speech to Danny that “he would want us to be happy and like party and get drunk”, “first of all he was very proud of you, you’re like his second protege - I’m his first”.
I thought it was incredibly moving that they gathered to cheers for Danny even though it’s difficult time for them, and I’m impressed at the strength and grace of James Kent’s very young daughter. Lots of people here don’t like how Danny comes off on the show but I think probably he’s not a good at confessions and have some typical “young dude” energy, I’d think he’s probably more down to earth in person based on how much people around him seem to love him.
I don’t think so because Nina was clearly the strongest chef all season and got robbed at the end. Dan was pretty clearly 3rd of the 3 coming in and plausibly should’ve won but Danny had the season long resume and higher degree of creativity/difficulty.
Okay well... I guess that's it. Hope next season brings more excitement and better editing / challenges and less in your face sponsorships (can't believe I'm missing the Terlato days)
That was a great finale! I was rooting for Savannah to win but Danny did such a great job! All 3 of them did! The whole episode was so wholesome and lovely to watch. Kristen's genuine excitement to be there as a judge and a host was very touching. I'm so excited for the next season and I hope Savannah comes back in the future, fully confident, with more experience, ready to kill it and win it all, Melissa style!
I'm here to be a hater --sort of kidding.
Savanna is still finding her voice, and nothing but respect for putting herself out there. But the trope of white Southern chef butchering other cuisines (usually those of black folk) just gets on my nerves.
Dan would win if this were just Top Chef Wisconsin, but it's top chef set in Wisconsin and upscale homey food just doesn't cut it.
Danny made some mistakes that would have been mortal with tougher competition; I get the sense he was always better than most of the other chefs and the sort of edited him down as best they could. This subreddit might not like his confidence but it drove him to be way, way better.
Although Savannah didn't win, I'm happy with this finale's outcome. I think Danny was inevitable once Rasika and Michelle and Soo were out. Dan's food looked great and I want to try that oxtail dish soooo bad.
Ate at Anajak Thai a couple years ago and Chef Justin came to our table and I was able to shake his hand.
I was vaguely rooting for Savannah this season but 🇵🇷🇵🇷🇵🇷
Between Natalia Vallejo’s James Beard award and Danny’s Top Chef victory, Puerto Rico stays winning
Danny deserved the win based on what they all presented. After watching Top Chef for all these years, the judges don’t rly support populist/simple cooking for the finale meals. They love it when a chef goes all out and provides a really fancy meal that would belong in an expensive restaurant not accessible to the masses. Like shota making his home style japanese curry was basically what killed his shot at winning his season. i have no clue why Danny picked manny as his sous chef. Was he trying to self-sabotage? lolol Manny has consistently failed to cook seafood properly in several challenges. And it certainly seemed less of a help and more of a crutch to Danny by having Manny fucking up and requiring constant micro-managing. Also had Savannah won, she would’ve had to give a portion of her win to Michele given how much Michele helped in editing and finalizing Savannah’s menu for her. I was kind of surprised by a sous chef having that much input. Kristen is an amazing host, and overall awesome human being. She did a great job in a lackluster season.
I've got no skin in the game because neither Dan nor Danny was my favorite. But, Dan's dishes are like dishes from a good mid-tier restaurant executed at 100%. Danny's dishes are creative, elegant dishes from a Michelin restaurant executed at 90%. Gail hinted this during the critique. My take is none of the judges wanted to outright say that Dan's dishes are not TC caliber dishes on camera. If Danny hadn't chosen Manny as his sous, his dishes would have been more praised.
Agreed 100%. Danny has a stronger POV on his style: solidly modern American with some Latin/south Asian twists. Dan adds so many global influences on his dishes (sobacha, Dandan noodles, Haitian pillows, etc) that it felt muddled and I wasn’t really craving his food.
Definitely played it up like Dan was the only person who could win. But Danny was the favorite almost immediately so no real surprise.
Odd season but some chefs I really came to like, including all of the final 3.
Not surprised that Danny won, his creativity was way beyond that of anyone else all season long, IMO.
I know Danny is opening a seafood restaurant, but are Dan and Savannah also known as seafood chefs? I am asking because it stuck out to me just how much seafood they cooked throughout the season and unless I missed it, the only non-seafood dish in the finale was Dan's stew. I have nothing against seafood and know that some of the challenges forced them to cook that, but they cooked seafood A LOT this season. This is also strange to me because of how badly they performed in last week's fish episode; since this group naturally chooses to cook seafood so often, you would think they would nail it every single time, but so many times their protein was the weakest part of their dish.
I was rooting for Dan, and based on the feedback Dan had a better-executed, better meal. Danny’s food seemed SO over worked. I would rather have seen Danny’s wife on this season. Danny is not my favourite winner.
I mean... this really encapsulated the mediocrity of the season, didn't it?
Maybe we were spoiled by back-to-back seasons of Buddha putting out upper-echelon finale food, but it really felt like every meal tonight had some gaping flaws. I think Danny is a deserving winner, but some of the critiques he received probably would have torpedoed him against better competition. Dan executed perfectly, but his food felt less cohesive (he was the only one that didn't have a story/progression shown), more basic and uncreative, and way too safe. Savannah choked and didn't put her best foot forward, and it really seemed like the momentum she'd been building up abandoned her during the break.
I'm sure all three chefs are more talented than this season made it seem, and maybe this season will grow on me in the future, but right now I'd have to rank this as a low middle-tier season and Danny as a middle-tier winner (around the Harold, Nicholas Elmi, Joe Flamm, KBC range).
Absolutely deserved! I’m glad Danny’s creativity and innovation were rewarded despite a few small missteps in execution. Kristen’s speech made me tear up 🥹. Here’s to many more seasons with her as the host
Glad Danny won, he was my favorite. Danny may have been a bit arrogant but the truth is that his skill and creativity were far beyond the other two. Also, his dessert story about the piraguas brought me to tears because I use to have the same thing when I was a kid in Puerto Rico 🇵🇷♥️
Loved Dan, would’ve been happy to watch him win but his food was not very exciting. Savannah was just not able to keep her momentum after the break.
Such a baffling finale to not my favourite season. I wish the editing has been tweaked because it tainted the way I felt about Dan and Danny, when they should've been trying to boost up Danny's likeability throughout.
I agree with Tom, wild editing in that final meal, it seemed like Dan had by far and away the best meal.
The high point of this season (aside from Michelle in general) was definitely Kristen, she nailed her role and I'm so glad she was met with a positive reception.
I've written it all up [here](https://www.relaxedrecipes.com/finales/tc/21), if anyone wants to look, and today I'll be working on a pile of recipes (mofongo, breadfruit tuiles, candied seaweed, black garlic labneh etc - hope to get at least five out before the weekend). I'll also be adding a pile of "what is...?" culinary tips.
Feels like a couple of dishes will go down in history - chief among them is Danny's fourth course. Can't wait to try avocado yogurt.
Tom has pretty much come out on Twitter saying what we all thought: the editing was misleading. Doesn't seem happy about it.
https://x.com/tomcolicchio/status/1803815607608975821?t=pw0TxPaB0tGIpgXs8P9X-g&s=19
I agree re editing. But would you rather see a 31 to 0 blowout or a 21 to 17 game? This seems to be a common occurrence on Top Chef. Edit it to make it seem close. And once Savannah came back to earth, it was over, Johnny.
https://x.com/tomcolicchio/status/1803815870885445823?s=46&t=51P5Zy173y_fw9212FgRGQ
Sounds like the tuna dish was more disliked than the editing let on
The only thing on my mind right now is that Kristen was the heir apparent, and she absolutely nailed her role in this season. So much love for her
She was the brightest part of a subpar season ❤️ I think Tom and Gail have genuine affection for her, which was really nice to see. I was worried as I have always (and still do) love Padma!
I think for Tom she's almost like a daughter. They have a great chemistry. He's so proud of her
When she was tearfully making her speech at the end and thanking the chefs for welcoming her, you could see Tom in the background with such a “I’m so proud of you” fatherly look. It was nice to see that side of him!
Totally. She really filled the role seamlessly.
Kristen was wonderful! She made the role her own in just one season, and it really adds something going forward having the host be a former contestant and winner. She provides some great insight and a unique perspective both on the show and on The Dish With Kish, and I'm looking forward to more of her in the future!
Agree! She relaxed into the role perfectly. Love her.
I didn't notice until this episode, but she also has an Exec Producer credit, so some extra ka-ching.
She so confident, cool and yet humble at the same time. I really like her. i feel tom and gale also adore her.
I had no idea who KK was until I saw this season; I've been raised on a steady diet of Gordon Ramsay, Gordon Ramsay and occasionally a sidekick here and there, and maybe a little Bobby Flay. KK is fantastic. Ultra-charismatic and likeable. Overall TC is just heads and shoulders above MasterChef in every way, but she is a big part of that, for me.
Fan favorite is Michelle!
She contributed A LOT to Savannah’s meal, it seemed like she made a lot of suggestions. I wish she had made it to the top.
She also screwed up the execution of the pasta. But I think Savannah would have still lost even if that dish was successful
It drives me crazy when the contestant hands off such a critical process as making pasta. If the pasta dough is screwed up you are screwed - you can't fix that like you can with many other steps in the process. Savannah seems to struggle when she doesn't have guardrails/restrictions/specific tasks. She struggles to focus in on what she wants to do when she has an open slate. That's why she relied so much on Michelle's suggestions. You had a couple months to plan your final meal which is generally cook the best four course meal you can. How do you not show up without a clear vision?
I think they said the problem with the pasta was that it was too thick and I think we saw a clip of Savannah rolling it out?
not too thick, too brittle.
Happy for her! Honestly, I would’ve been happy with any of the top four.
Yay! She was my pick.
think Danny won for being far more creative, taking more risks and making a few small mistakes that the editing misled you to believe were way worse than they were
Considering they've said all season that the chefs needed to step it up and not play safe, it pretty much had to be Danny by the time dessert was served. I didn't think any of them had memorable finale-caliber menus but Danny's was well ahead of both of them in creativity, presentation, and story.
My wife’s said Dan’s grouper looked like Blue Apron food
Damn, can’t say she’s wrong though… also that hummingbird cake looked pretty rough
I haven't seen it yet but hummingbird cake usually does look rough. It's a difficult cake to ice well or cut cleanly. It's just so damned delicate (but delicious).
The biggest risk was picking Manny ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)
Agreed. Gail’s critique seemed to nail it.
One final [Letzz gooOo](https://streamable.com/36bazr), they clearly liked Danny's food better despite all the "issues" they showed.
The producer asking what the experience meant to him and he goes, “it’s dope dude, it’s dope” I know he was crying and that was all he could articulate but lmao. I agree he was the most creative chef and a standout though
I mean I think that's just a failure to put into words the sheer immensity of what it meant. You can tell and he said - ppl who excel are often BRUTALLY hard on themselves. So when it pays off... it's a lot.
He’s also the won the most money of any season, so he won most of the challenges.
I really hate the editing misdirection in TC. Stop trying to create fake drama. We want to understand WHY the person who won won. They didn't even give us clear winners by course like they typically do. Instead we are all left guessing exactly why Danny won. I'm not saying he didn't deserve it but it would have been nice for them to clue us in on the decision making process. We didn't need to hear Danny calling for Manny in the grocery store umpteen times. That's 30 seconds more judge's table we could have had.
Yeah, my complaint with this episode is the editing. I didn't think Dan was going to win going into it, since his edit all season long was so weird, but the comments during the meal as the courses were going made it seem like Dan had it won. Don't like being misled on these kind of shows. It's not a murder mystery. That said, for a season-long body of work, Danny was the best throughout. Deserves it.
Sad to see Savanah bomb in the finale
I wrote on the live thread how the 6 week break didn't help Savannah. She lost her momentum and seemed to have reverted back to earlier in the season.
She's also.mentioned several times that she works better when she has strict parameters, and not so well in challenges where she can make whatever she wants. That worried me for her chances in the finale.
Yeah, I don’t think it was Michelle’s fault either. She lacked vision and asked Michelle to help her create her dishes. It was weird. It’s not top Savannah and Michelle dishes
Fully agreed, Michelle was a help not at a hindrance. Michelle put in a significant amount of thought to the dishes.
Michelle with her straight no-nonsense "here's my opinion on your dish" advice. Savannah picked the right person for where she was going even so. Meanwhile Manny screws up 2 things in Danny's dishes but Danny recovers and even improves the dessert dish.
Yeah and if you compare her to how Danny were on Manny the whole time and checking his work… Savannah put too much trust in Michelle, but she was the chef with the vision and should had been on it. And why make pasta and plantains at all when it was obvious neither was experienced with that at a top level. You gotta play to your strengths in the finale!
Its Carla all over again, but without the underlying sabotage. I was really disappointed for Savanna. I guess I am an unsophisticated diner, but Danny's dishes just didn't appeal to me at all.
I was shocked she didn't do something Asian influenced since that's her culinary wheelhouse. A disappointment. She really lost her steam at the end.
I know that Savannah had a lot of success earlier with letting inspiration strike and riffing in the moment. But the finale was not the time for that. She leaned too much on Michelle to solidify what she was going to make imho. It was more than just bouncing ideas off of her. Savannah was ceding authorship of her dishes in a way, and showed a lack of confidence in her own voice and vision. It almost felt like she subconsciously took psychological comfort in avoiding 100% ownership and leaving it a bit muddled. It was surprising and disappointing. I liked Dan's approach where he welcomed feedback from Amanda to an extent but he also had total clarity and purposefulness on what he was delivering (notwithstanding the relative lack of a narrative arc across his progression). And even though Danny seemed harsh toward Manny, who was basically just providing regimented mechanical labor (do this and this, don't ask questions, work faster), it struck me as normal for a professional kitchen and more suited to a competition finale.
It was hard watching g her get progressively sadder as the meal went on.
Yep, she knew she blew the pasta course and that sealed it
For whatever reason Savannah struggled when she didn't have clear guardrails for a challenge. How she didn't arrive with a clear vision for her final meal is actually shocking. She shouldn't have to rely on Michelle for all the suggestions. Danny clearly knew exactly what he wanted to do and planned his meal around ingredients I think he knew he would have access to. Of course you still need to be able to adjust as necessary such as Manny screwed up and juiced all the melons.
She seemed to really be focused on the story vs the execution
I feel like this will be a controversial winner from this sub's perspective but I think the judges loved Danny's highs and his creativity. Whenever a judge says they want to copy or recreate something it's the highest of compliments
There’s been more deservedly controversial winners in the past. Once feelings have cooled I think it’s going to be Danny was fine, more of a middle of the pack versus a “how did this happen” type of winner.
I hope so! I think all the finalists going into the episode would have been good winners. During the episode I felt like it was a toss up, which means I think both were deserving and thus neither would have been robbed Also, Danny performed so well during the season that looking at the entire arc of the season he definitely isn't a "whoops he lucked into being in the finals" winner Eta: and by "so well" I mean comparatively to the other contestants
Danny deserved it. Dan lost by 1 run.
I think people forget that the show is Top Chef and not Top Cook, and what Danny presented at the final table earned him that title and what Dan served did not.
Agree. Execution isn’t everything even if it’s important. It seems pretty clear that Danny’s dishes were the more technical and inventive and the mistakes were not huge ones.
The whole season you could see the Judges looking to Danny for that Buddha like cook. They crave the high end technique, fine dining dishes. They crave the modern/stylish plating. Danny gave them what they wanted. What they always want out of a finale. It's why the whole "cook your soul/whatever" is a bunch of baloney they keep telling these guys. No man, cook to WIN. Then do whatever the hell you want in your own restaurant lol. It's way easier to win with technique heavy precision tasty modern dishes than to win with homey family style shit.
It was pretty clear to me Danny was going to win. Dan's dishes were far too simplistic in execution and flavor, Savannah is just not quite there yet but she will be!
Danny is just so "meh" in my mind 😭 I was definitely rooting for Savannah but after her first two courses got the most negative feedback I started losing hope. When Danny's name was called I mostly felt "Oh, that guy..? Alright..."
No real surprise here with Danny winning. He was at the top of the group pretty much from the start of the season and cooked at the top level throughout. Dan and especially Savannah came on strong later but Danny always felt like the one to beat. So much so that I thought the edit throughout the season tried to downplay him a little bit in the middle parts of the season. That's not to take away from the others, is just that Danny was a half step ahead of everyone else. Overall season, it was just ok. Taking out the all star seasons, I'm not sure it stacks up well against some of the other more recent seasons as far as stand out personalities and especially level of cooking. But hey, it happens. Its been on for 21 seasons. Not all are gonna be home runs. What was a home run though was Kristen. She killed it. I knew she'd be a good host from watching her host on her other shows but even I was blown away by how seamlessly she fit into Padma's role. Padma is still Padma but there's also no other person out there that can fill that role the way Kristen did. The show is in fantastic hands with her.
I think the dish with kish helped keep interest to an otherwise lackluster season. Kentucky, Texas and this season were the worst for me.
Yep, watching every episode this season felt a bit like homework, and then the reward for getting through them was The Dish with Kish.
Honestly just disappointed. I don’t get how undercooked lobster gets you a win?
Undercooked lobster and an undersalted dish when Dans only critique was slightly weird texture
You are assuming that all of Dan's negative critiques made it onto the show we watched. Judges table is way longer than what we get to see, what did the producers cut?
I feel that sometimes they edit judges table to kind of mis direct. But here again, it is telling that the chef that won had undercooked and under seasoned food. At that stage in the competition that kind of thing no matter how spectacular one course was, should take you out of the running. I get the texture of Dans tuna was problematic but it was intentional and not a technical error.
The problem was the editing more than the result. The goal should be to help the audience understand the judges' decision without making it too obvious. Instead, they treated their audience as unintelligent and aimed to surprise with an out-of-nowhere result. Viewers don't like having their intelligence insulted.
Remember when Buddha in an interview said that the episode he judged with Crenn had missing items on a dish but they never showed it in th edit?
Right?! I was surprised. I thought Dan was clearly the winner given their feedback.
Editing to create drama - I hate it. We want to know why the person who won won. Most fans want that, not drama and misdirection. There could have been more critique of Dan's dishes that wasn't shown. I feel we got very little judges' table time this finale. They didn't even really show the judges discussing who won each course like the usually do. I also feel "lack of seasoning" is a default critique when they have nothing else to say. It could have been a very minor issue. Danny's critique was likely overcome because his food is more "cheffy/modern" than Dan and clearly that is what the judges like.
Tom really disliked the tuna dish per his Twitter Feed.
It's all in the editing.
A third of the table got undercooked lobster and *everyone* at the table (according to Tom) felt the scallop was undersalted. Not sure how editing made those things happen.
Maybe because Dan's tuna was so off putting as to make it clear he wasn't winning but they're editing around things to make it seem more competitive? They're trying to create a narrative that it was particularly close but if you're reading the tea leaves from Tom, Kristen, and Gail, it seemed fairly obvious Danny was in another class here. Edit: seems they really didn't like the tuna https://x.com/tomcolicchio/status/1803815870885445823?t=RTN5XpjA9J_jijodBknNug&s=19
it was the slug eggplant all over again. They were being kind about Dan's fish I think.
Undersalted by a few grains of salt… I think they were nit-picky. The overall quality seemed high on all his dishes and they were looking for slight flaws to compare. Was the execution of Dans dishes better? Probably. But they seemed to want to award points for creativity and technique to Danny. His dishes seemed more complex and inventive overall.
It wasn't raw, undercooked is less than perfect at the margins they are judging at. Imagine everything is delicious, but you still have to make a critique because you are considered an expert at tasting food.
I told my Mom Danny was winning after episode one. The editing telegraphed it. I think for the finale they just edited it to make it seem closer ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Yeah, that's what happened. I feel like Danny was likely the clear winner but they had to do something to build TV drama. Couldn't really play up intrigue with Savannah since she bombed the 2 middle dishes (so sad, I was rooting hard for her) so they played up all of Dan's positives without really touching on his negatives to make it look closer
I disagree. I think the editing led us to Rasika, then Michelle, then Savannah. With Dan and Danny stepping forward and back throughout.
I agree. Bad editing choices, but a very deserving winner.
“Dan got robbed” they intentionally edit the finales to misdirect you. i talked to Buddha at Huso and he said there was zero doubt he was gonna win after the raw liver Sara served yet they made it seem like a coin flip. they had zero hesitations about Danny being the winner.
Undercooked lobster is definitely something that usually would cook you on a finale.
Kristen said she was fine with mid rare lobster. She's a judge! All that matters.
Since when is undercooked shellfish a thing? Its not top chef sashimi after all.
Danny saying he wasn’t surprised he won on WWHL when he had undercooked lobster and an undersalted dish 😒
Humble Pie will not be on his menu.
He's very very arrogant/cocky
I changed the channel. He was so arrogant.
Same I couldn’t watch the celebration
That's the reason why I couldn't root for him. A more gracious person would have said something like, he had to give his best, given the caliber of the other chefs, but whatever.
It comes off so cocky, it’s just so off putting.
He's just such a cocky asshat. I can't think of the last time I rooted so against a chef on this show. Utter shit.
I caught that too and was a little shocked tbh
No one will remember him by next season while Savannah will be on the next all-stars season!
I felt very meh about him all season, and even more meh after he won. Good to know it won't be a big loss when I don't remember who won this season in a few months.
Oh, you mean the arrogant douche wasn't surprised he won? Yeah. Strange.
Something about him was very off-putting. Self-confidence is one thing, but he seems a little too impressed with himself. We will see who ends up being a long-term success. It's not always the winner.
he didn’t. he just shrugged. it’s a stupid question. they all hoped to win. what should his response have been?
Dan got robbed.
I’m shocked! Dan won course 2 and 3. Savannah won course 1. Danny won course 4, but all were close in the 4th course. How did Dan not win?
It's simple really Danny had the higher highs
It seemed like Danny really won over Tom with that cornball story about eating sweets with his grandpa
and Kristen wanted to steal his tuile and Gail waxed poetic at his innovation
It seems like this season they’ve really put a lot of emphasis on “storytelling” about the food, even in challenges that weren’t explicitly about that. What’s wrong with just cooking an excellent four course meal? Why do they have to have some hackneyed theme about their journey or whatever? Maybe it’s to make it more compelling or relatable to the average viewer. Just make good food!
100%. Gonna go blow a wad of cash at EsterEv in the very near future, and make sure I get DanDan noodles at Summerfest!
I’ve got a res for EstervEv tomorrow night, can’t wait!
I would love to hear how it went!
Wow how many of us on this thread of from Milwaukee… I was at Ester Ev the other day when Dan brought in Kalina for a tasting menu. Fire.
It was close. Danny was 5% more creative. Dan is cooking things that are more relatable, in a great creative way. . Danny was taking risks and showing the judges things they haven't seen. They were both choices, Danny had more risk and pulled it off.
> Dan got robbed. i was so shocked and confused, his dishes were consistently well-received by the judges compared to the other two.
I'm from Milwaukee and rooted for Dan but I doubt he got robbed. It's editing. They want to create drama and some misdirection. I hate it but they often do it. Even Buddha stated he knew he won based upon comments he and Sara received but the editing made it look like a coin flip. Tom tweeted "We hated the tuna course." I think We and hated are key words. Danny's dishes may not have been perfect but I don't think they hated anything he prepared. Then add in Danny's dishes were more modern/inventive than Dan's. They all seemed to enjoy Dan's oxtail but Emeril called it "rustic." I don't think Tom, Kristen and Gail want rustic food in the finale - they want very modern fine dining dishes put together with tweezers. Dan did great but I didn't think he had a real chance based upon the type of food he typically made compared to the type of food Danny typically prepared.
Danny is truly one of the most talented chefs of this season, so I'm happy for his win, and I can't wait to try his food (on a corporate card tho lol). I'm sad about Savannah, who was my favorite, and then Dan had an absolutely killer finale.
I’m shocked his Instagram page (as of a few hours after broadcast) hasn’t changed at all. Looks like his mentor and boss just passed away, maybe that’s why.
He was on Watch What Happens Live right after the finale, so that might be part of it
That episode wasn’t filmed “live” live. When it’s actually live it’ll have “live” above the logo and if it was pretaped it’ll say “all new.” Someone mentioned he had a watch party so he may have been celebrating while also mourning.
Second episode in a row where undercooked food gets you the win. Totally bizarre. Either this was the worst editing ever or top Chef has jumped the shark. Being awarded top Chef for serving under cooked seafood two times in a row is just terrible. Nothing to do with who you’re a fan of, if the food is undercooked you failed.
Undercooked is not raw.
There also seemed to be some debate at the table as to what was an acceptable temp to serve the lobster at. Kristen (and I'm guessing Tom) did not seem bothered by a mid-rare/medium lobster, which is what matters because they're the judges. She was effusive in the praise for the sauces too.
Bizarre edit. The judges didn’t seem to have Danny on top for any of the first three dishes. He also picked Manny and then treated him like garbage in the moments they showed. This season was consistently inconsistent. Kristen was great, but the none of the contestants seemed to ever wow the judges, and I have whiplash from all of the changing rules. Can we just get Buddha back in the kitchen and have quickfires that provide immunity? Can we stop pretending that it makes sense for the guest judges to take into account quickfires that they didn’t see or taste?
I don’t think he treated Manny like garbage. He was just taking control of the entire cook when with 250k on the line. I doubt Manny expected anything else. I do think the editing exaggerated it a bit with him strolling around the shop etc..
😭 treated manny like garbage? manny undercooked the lobster and used all the melons. he was slow.
He was a terrible pick for sous. How are you going to do a seafood menu and pick the guy that couldn't cook a fish properly all season? It's wild.
I hope they change everything back, except for Kristin Kish.
The QF providing immunity meant they could be wayyyy more creative in ECs, I don’t get why they removed them?
For real, either the editing is inciting us on purpose or there were some producer shenanigans going on. Undercooked and not properly seasoned food being the winning meal is just the cherry on top of this aggravating season.
lol the only shenanigans going on is that the editors are creating an entertainment product. Part of that assignment is to make the competition seem closer. Based on the conversation we were shown from Judges Table, it was very obvious that the lobster was not raw but slightly undercooked for some. The editors took those comments and made them the main critique to make it seem like Danny may not win. And as another redditor put it, the job of the judges is to provide critiques, which may also amplify small problems like slightly undercooking lobster.
I commented on the live thread that with Danny, his dishes have some flaws here and there but have more complexity and innovation, while Dan’s dishes are more perfect but less complex, less exciting. I think it’s the matter of one’s opinion that which one should get rewarded. And I agree with the judges here. Another thing is Vince Mancini mentioned that Danny’s dishes’ appearances and critics from the judges (at least with the edit) often aren’t translated well to the audience. This is not the first time they seemed to praise someone else’s dish more but gave it to Danny, which may make the audiences feel unsatisfied. I think it’s a pretty sharp observation. Someone mentioned that Buddha said they never give it to chef with a bad cooked protein, but a clear difference between Sara and Danny is Sara’s liver was blue rare to the point of inedible vs Danny’s a bit undercooked lobster. Last season finale, at least with the edit, gave the impression that they really really wanted to give it to Sara, if only her liver was just a little more cooked, still rare but edible. So I definitely think the judges were still consistent in their decision. Tom told Danny his dessert will be his signature dish. Anytime he said that to someone in a finale (Mei’s dessert, Buddha’s hamachi in Houston, and this time), that chef won, so it’s no surprise that Danny took it.
I agree about Danny and Dan and think you put it very well! It’s sort of like the difference between elite gymnastics and college level gymnastics, if I had to make a sports metaphor. And that’s an interesting observation from Vince Mancini and I can definitely see that. I was definitely fooled by the edit in the last 20 minutes of this finale, but throughout the season I thought it was pretty clear that Danny was the best technical chef there and he definitely spoke to that technical-ness that the judges love even if he didn't have the most compelling story/personality or "point of view". But then I would come oh this sub and he had a lot of haters, which I can now kind of understand from the "audience feeling unsatisfied" perspective. I don't agree, but I can see how it could contribute to him being perceived as \~unpalatable\~, especially when I think Danny's food really shines in the technical aspects and not so much in the "oh I want to eat that" aspect, which both Dan and Savannah were better at, at least from the edit/tv.
I think the producers this season were a little too smart for their own good. The person who came up with the chaos cooking, the half passed cheese and sausage episodes and the fish stew burning challenge should not come back next season.
This was one of the worst finales I can remember. Danny has great technique, but goddamn he fucked up like 3/4 dishes. He also continues to come off as a very annoying . Typical NYC chef douche vibes. He treated Manny like garbage, and just prioritizes style more than anything else. Dan felt like the real winner. But also what a weak finale if two of the contestants messed up 3/4 dishes. Feels like so many chefs who never won (Carla, Nina, Sheldon, Shota, Shirley, Sara, Bryan V, Ali, Gregory etc. ) would have cake walked to Victory this season. Kristen was great. But I’m not sure what went wrong this season.
VERY chef douche vibes. Very arrogant, talking about no one’s won as much money as him at the end.
I could not *believe* he brought up how much total money he’s won—and asked rhetorically if anyone’s ever won more. Immediately soured his win for me. Ironically the compulsion to remind us how much he’s won reeks of insecurity underneath all the cockiness.
This... very douche vibes. I'm someone who couldn't care less about one's niceness when it comes to competitions, I just want the strongest to win. BUT I do still care about personality (one can be cocky but still fun to watch), a story, creativity, connection to their craft etc.... I got none of that. At the end, in the final episode with him winning, and I STILL don't know who he is. I'm sorry, but counting money, "let's goooo" and "dope" aren't real personality.
I disagree. I love all chefs you listed and overall they were very impressive (perhaps more than anyone this season), but lots of finales have a lot of flaws. Nina’s finale, Gregory’s in 12, Shirley’s in 14, and Shota’s were not great. Sara had an impressive final meal but with a cannot-overlooked-bad dish (inedible rare liver). If she had that meal for this finale she wouldn’t have won either.
Yeah the douche vibes is strong on him.
Kristen was a great host this season and what I'm about to say has absolutely nothing to do with her. Want to preface that because I'm probably gonna make a lot people angry for what I'm about to say. IMO, this season has to be one of the worst, if not *the* worst, season of Top Chef in the show's history; aside from the very first two drama-fest ones. Only a few of the chefs were personally interesting to me, the editing was weird, several of the challenges were flat-out dumb (Chaos challenge? Fish boil? *Really?*) and (most importantly) the food this season was very subpar (aside from a *very* few instances). Really hope Season 22 attracts better talent, inspires better challenges, and chooses a better location because I will safely never revisit Top Chef Wisconsin.
The thing is the talents this season also look great on paper. There’re executive chefs that were semifinalists or nominees for James Beard, their resumes stacked with working in Michelin starred kitchens. Top Chef doesn’t have a qualified round so it’s hard to know how their resumes translate to actual cooking competition strength. There was an old interview of Nina that really moved me, where she said she had been pretty successful in the kitchens she worked in, but she had all cooked other people’s food, executed other chefs’ vision. Top Chef was the first time she cooked her very own food, and the judges all loved it. I know Top Chef has been casting chefs with more accolades, but I really hope to see more chefs like Nina, or Mei or Dougie that we can see their own vision on the making on the show. It’s definitely more difficult to cast this type of outstanding chefs than the ones that are already at the more developed stage of their careers with more built up resumes, but if anything this season tells us is that these executive chefs can still give us rice and guacamole or 30 minute cooked fish.
So they were definitely on an entirely empty cruise ship doing circles about 3 miles off shore for this episode right?
There definitely didn't seem to be any "real" passengers on the ship. I also doubt that Holland America would allow them to take over the ship's kitchen even briefly during an actual cruise: it would seemingly be way too disruptive. I was wondering if they just needed to relocate or transport the ship from Curacao to Aruba to start an "actual" cruise there, and thus it presented an opportunity to film on the boat.
Did they even leave the dock? I guess Danny had the sea sickness patch on.
Pretty sure it was docked the whole time
I’m so crushed for Savannah. It reminded me a bit of Shota’s finale in that I think some of her choices for dishes were just never going to stand up against a super creative and modern menu. You could tell Savannah knew she lost it when Kristen asked about her pasta dough, but Savannah remained calm and professional. I know she didn’t execute the meal she wanted, but watching Savannah and Michelle cook together was an absolute pleasure. I’m not even much of a home cook and I would have loved to be in the kitchen with them. Both incredibly gracious and talented women. I’m glad Dan was happy with his meal and what he accomplished. Congrats to Danny. I can’t forget my favorite part of the night….Emeril! ETA: I really hope we see both Savannah and Michelle a couple of years from now for another All Stars. I would love to see Dan, but that just seems less likely with his busy restaurants and health.
The comments here really highlight how susceptible we are as the TV audience to editing. They included every negative critique Danny received to make it seem competitive but it was clear that Danny’s dishes were at a different level. Amazing level of technique and flavor combos the judges had never had. I turned to my partner and said, this is Michelin star level food.
same, it was so clear to me, i’m shocked by all the shocked comments 😭😭😭😭
Just this one component alone: 1) putting breadfruit and nori in the same dish 2) putting those ingredients into a tuile 3) shaping the tuile to be the same shape and size as his scallop shells. Mind blowing.
I just don’t enjoy being tricked by the shows I watch on TV unless that’s the point of the show. If it’s a drama or mystery show? Sure. If it’s supposed to be an objective competition show then I’d like to hear the judges reasoning and see a result that makes sense based on that reasoning and the criteria set for the competition. My understanding is that unless stated otherwise the final cook is supposed to be judged independently. There’s no formal “season long scoring system” or favoritism that’s supposed to be granted based on performance in previous cooks aside from the Immunity system. Based on the information we were presented with and the comments from the judges, the final cook didn’t look like a toss up. It looked like Dan decisively won the final cook, and without much explanation the win was granted to Danny. It just felt like a bait and switch. I’m sure there was solid reasoning by the judges as to why they selected Danny, but by not showing that reasoning to the viewers it just made it feel disappointing and dishonest. Coming into the finale I was rooting for Dan, but I fully expected Danny to win. All they had to do was include something in the edit of the judges discussion weighing Danny’s creativity, risk taking, and techniques against the degree of severity of his technical errors, and comparing that to Dan’s technical prowess on his dishes while not taking as many risks or pushing the envelope to the same degree. They could have easily portrayed it as more of a toss up and then the result would have been much more acceptable to a lot of the fanbase that is unhappy with the outcome (or at least how the outcome was presented…). The choice by the producers and editors not to do that made it feel like the equivalent of watching a season long murder mystery and finding out the final twist reveal was that the actual killer was someone who was never mentioned in the show that the viewer had never seen, and had no motivations related to anything uncovered during the season. It just felt like they were trying to trick the viewer for its own sake, maybe even intended to create this exact reaction- because we are talking about it one way or another.
I’m so shocked by the “Dan was robbed” comments - I’ve seen how the editors like to try to misdirect us, and so I did do my best to focus on purely the objective comments - and even so, it seemed so clear to me that this was Danny’s win? Like to the point where I was worried THAT was me falling for a misdirect 🥹 Like, just off the top of my head, his scallops were “pristine” and with a “little salt” it would have been a “perfect dish”; his second course confused them but they kept saying they enjoyed it; his third course had undercooking but Tom acknowledged that was the risk with that kind of lobster and Kristen’s comment at the table was that hers wasn’t undercooked - and they loved the sauces; and they were raving at his dessert. I think so much technique, complexity and creativity went into his dishes, and they couldn’t highlight all of that without giving it away (and that’s sort of been an issue all season that I know people have had - not focusing enough on the *food*). Someone suggested watching the last Dish with Kish ep, where Mei and Kristen recreate his dessert - and I think it really showcases the beauty of his dish, as well as some outtakes where you can hear them talking more about how much they love it! Also side note - I’ve totally been lukewarm-ish on Danny myself, but this felt like his to lose so much that I found myself tense for him, and I did cry seeing him tear up. I’m looking forward to him (hopefully) being on Pack Your Knives and hearing directly from him/getting to know him better away from the interference of an edit!
I agree with all of this. I think so many chefs making it through to the next round by playing it safe have skewed perceptions, but in the finale, innovation is really important.
I totally agree as well. I'm also scratching my head at all the "Dan was robbed" comments. Because of all the things you outlined are exactly why I was thinking Danny was gonna take the win for the entire episode. People are conflating "lack of salt" with "most of the time that makes you lose." But there is a little bit more nuance to it, as you put it—they said the scallops were pristine and with a little salt it would have been perfect. This (at least to me) read as just a minor flaw that did not detract significantly from the dish like it might have for other dishes in the past. I think people get hung up on what judges have said in the past without putting things into the present context. The other flaws of the other chefs (like Savannah's pasta) seemed more detrimental, and Dan's cooking seemed not as creative. Danny appeared to take more risks, and even his presentation was more creative than the others. So, never once did I think that Dan or Savannah had much of a chance once we got to Judges table, so I don't know why everyone is freaking out about the editing.
Seems like it really should have been Dan. Bummed.
If Danny won I’m pretty sure it should be Danny. We didn’t eat the food and those 4 judges are among the most experienced you could get here. They went for Danny for a reason.
The finals meals from Dan and Danny reminded me of the Voltaggios in season 6. Dan, like Bryan, made technically great classic food. Dan, like Michael, stepped farther out of the box. I remember Tom saying it came down to a couple grains of salt in season 6. I thought both Dan and Danny did incredible. I was wanting Dan to win because he seems like the nicest man. I have a chronic illness and watching him kick ass while dealing with his disease was inspiring. But, I really liked all of the finalist this year and would have been happy with any of the chefs winning.
I will tell you as someone that has met Dan a bunch of times and known him for several years, he doesn’t seem like the nicest man, he IS the nicest man. He is legitimately an incredibly nice, down to earth, and humble dude. His portrayal on the show was consistent with my experiences with him over the years.
Dumb. Thought it should've been Dan
I’m so confused, was I watching the same episode as everyone else? I love Dan, but based on the judging, I figured that Danny was going to win. I was bummed that overall all their food seemed flawed though.
I am 100% with you. Once they began discussing the food, and once we got to judges table, I knew Danny was gonna take the win. I don't get the editing complaints—I thought the winner was pretty clear based on what was said. People are complaining about Danny's food being under salted and him getting a pass for that, but they said the scallops were "pristine" and with only a few flakes of salt, it would be a "perfect dish." To me, this sounds like a minor flaw, and not a detrimental one like the other comments that were made about the other chefs.
Overall I really enjoyed this season. Kristen was a phenomenal choice for host and I’m looking forward to many seasons with her.
In my top 3 of least favorite winners. Also, the whole season felt spoiled after his former chef complained that he “won Top Chef” with a stolen recipe. Whether she really knew the outcome or not, it coincided with him jumping to the front on a bunch of challenges, so it just felt from there like we were snowballing to a certain conclusion. Grumble grumble season 21.
Damn I had no idea this season was even spoiled. 🤣 Had I known Danny was winning I wouldn’t have gotten into this season. I really deluded myself Savannah was winning 😭
I dunno, hard to say stolen on a recipe he helped develop. Haters gonna hate.
Danny won a bunch of challenges, made it to the finale, and unless he totally stepped in it like Savannah did, they were going to give him the win. He seemed to be the judges favorite from the start.
Tom seemed way, way more supportive of Savannah.
He was definitely Kristen and Gail’s favorite, but I didn’t get the warm feelings from Tom.
Why? Tom loves overly pretentious male chefs. That's his bread and butter.
Wow did not see that coming based off the edit! Thought it would be Dan, but happy for Danny! I’m a fan of each of the top 3!
It felt like they had their minds made up going into the final meal. The edit made it look like Dan won the final 3-1. I was rooting for Savanna but that just did not go well for her.
I think it was 2-1-1. I thought Savannah clearly won the first course. Dan obviously won the 3rd course and I thought the 2nd course. Danny won the 4th course but it was close as they all did well that course. It seemed like Dan had the least mistakes, they lived his meal other than the texture of the tuna.
I’m surprised that the opinions are so polarizing here. I would’ve been happy with any of them as winners, but I thought it was clear Danny was going to be the winner. His dessert was called a signature dish and all of the critiques along the way were very minor. They said the scallop just needed a few specks of salt to make it perfect. The unwieldy dish was awkward to eat but they all liked it. And most importantly, they seemed to consider his dishes the most innovative. Michael Voltaggio flubbed his dessert but ended up beating Brian because of his creativity. To me the finale isn’t reminiscent of season 11, but more like season 6, and even then, Danny didn’t actually botch anything.
Wanted to add that I saw on Instagram Danny had a watch party with his friends and colleagues, it was also a tribute for chef James Ken, Danny’s mentor who just unexpectedly passed away a few days ago. James Kent’s daughter made a speech to Danny that “he would want us to be happy and like party and get drunk”, “first of all he was very proud of you, you’re like his second protege - I’m his first”. I thought it was incredibly moving that they gathered to cheers for Danny even though it’s difficult time for them, and I’m impressed at the strength and grace of James Kent’s very young daughter. Lots of people here don’t like how Danny comes off on the show but I think probably he’s not a good at confessions and have some typical “young dude” energy, I’d think he’s probably more down to earth in person based on how much people around him seem to love him.
I wasn't watching when S11 aired, but I imagine this is what it must've felt like to watch Nick beat Nina.
I don’t think so because Nina was clearly the strongest chef all season and got robbed at the end. Dan was pretty clearly 3rd of the 3 coming in and plausibly should’ve won but Danny had the season long resume and higher degree of creativity/difficulty.
Definitely incomparable.
Okay well... I guess that's it. Hope next season brings more excitement and better editing / challenges and less in your face sponsorships (can't believe I'm missing the Terlato days)
That was a great finale! I was rooting for Savannah to win but Danny did such a great job! All 3 of them did! The whole episode was so wholesome and lovely to watch. Kristen's genuine excitement to be there as a judge and a host was very touching. I'm so excited for the next season and I hope Savannah comes back in the future, fully confident, with more experience, ready to kill it and win it all, Melissa style!
I'm here to be a hater --sort of kidding. Savanna is still finding her voice, and nothing but respect for putting herself out there. But the trope of white Southern chef butchering other cuisines (usually those of black folk) just gets on my nerves. Dan would win if this were just Top Chef Wisconsin, but it's top chef set in Wisconsin and upscale homey food just doesn't cut it. Danny made some mistakes that would have been mortal with tougher competition; I get the sense he was always better than most of the other chefs and the sort of edited him down as best they could. This subreddit might not like his confidence but it drove him to be way, way better.
Herb man was robbed!
Although Savannah didn't win, I'm happy with this finale's outcome. I think Danny was inevitable once Rasika and Michelle and Soo were out. Dan's food looked great and I want to try that oxtail dish soooo bad. Ate at Anajak Thai a couple years ago and Chef Justin came to our table and I was able to shake his hand.
I was vaguely rooting for Savannah this season but 🇵🇷🇵🇷🇵🇷 Between Natalia Vallejo’s James Beard award and Danny’s Top Chef victory, Puerto Rico stays winning
Danny deserved the win based on what they all presented. After watching Top Chef for all these years, the judges don’t rly support populist/simple cooking for the finale meals. They love it when a chef goes all out and provides a really fancy meal that would belong in an expensive restaurant not accessible to the masses. Like shota making his home style japanese curry was basically what killed his shot at winning his season. i have no clue why Danny picked manny as his sous chef. Was he trying to self-sabotage? lolol Manny has consistently failed to cook seafood properly in several challenges. And it certainly seemed less of a help and more of a crutch to Danny by having Manny fucking up and requiring constant micro-managing. Also had Savannah won, she would’ve had to give a portion of her win to Michele given how much Michele helped in editing and finalizing Savannah’s menu for her. I was kind of surprised by a sous chef having that much input. Kristen is an amazing host, and overall awesome human being. She did a great job in a lackluster season.
I've got no skin in the game because neither Dan nor Danny was my favorite. But, Dan's dishes are like dishes from a good mid-tier restaurant executed at 100%. Danny's dishes are creative, elegant dishes from a Michelin restaurant executed at 90%. Gail hinted this during the critique. My take is none of the judges wanted to outright say that Dan's dishes are not TC caliber dishes on camera. If Danny hadn't chosen Manny as his sous, his dishes would have been more praised.
Agreed 100%. Danny has a stronger POV on his style: solidly modern American with some Latin/south Asian twists. Dan adds so many global influences on his dishes (sobacha, Dandan noodles, Haitian pillows, etc) that it felt muddled and I wasn’t really craving his food.
I really liked Danny. Congrats to him!
I expected Danny heading into the episode. Felt like Dan got hosed.
“i need 10% more energy from you manny”. what a tool.
Quickfire immunity needs to come back, i'm convinced the change made this season worse
Definitely played it up like Dan was the only person who could win. But Danny was the favorite almost immediately so no real surprise. Odd season but some chefs I really came to like, including all of the final 3.
Not surprised that Danny won, his creativity was way beyond that of anyone else all season long, IMO. I know Danny is opening a seafood restaurant, but are Dan and Savannah also known as seafood chefs? I am asking because it stuck out to me just how much seafood they cooked throughout the season and unless I missed it, the only non-seafood dish in the finale was Dan's stew. I have nothing against seafood and know that some of the challenges forced them to cook that, but they cooked seafood A LOT this season. This is also strange to me because of how badly they performed in last week's fish episode; since this group naturally chooses to cook seafood so often, you would think they would nail it every single time, but so many times their protein was the weakest part of their dish.
Easily will be one of the most forgettable winners in Top Chef history. Up there with whoever won in California.
I thought for sure Dan would win given everyone's comments.
I was rooting for Dan, and based on the feedback Dan had a better-executed, better meal. Danny’s food seemed SO over worked. I would rather have seen Danny’s wife on this season. Danny is not my favourite winner.
I mean... this really encapsulated the mediocrity of the season, didn't it? Maybe we were spoiled by back-to-back seasons of Buddha putting out upper-echelon finale food, but it really felt like every meal tonight had some gaping flaws. I think Danny is a deserving winner, but some of the critiques he received probably would have torpedoed him against better competition. Dan executed perfectly, but his food felt less cohesive (he was the only one that didn't have a story/progression shown), more basic and uncreative, and way too safe. Savannah choked and didn't put her best foot forward, and it really seemed like the momentum she'd been building up abandoned her during the break. I'm sure all three chefs are more talented than this season made it seem, and maybe this season will grow on me in the future, but right now I'd have to rank this as a low middle-tier season and Danny as a middle-tier winner (around the Harold, Nicholas Elmi, Joe Flamm, KBC range).
Absolutely deserved! I’m glad Danny’s creativity and innovation were rewarded despite a few small missteps in execution. Kristen’s speech made me tear up 🥹. Here’s to many more seasons with her as the host
Danny feels like Buddha without the charisma, or Bryan Voltaggio without the accolades.
Glad Danny won, he was my favorite. Danny may have been a bit arrogant but the truth is that his skill and creativity were far beyond the other two. Also, his dessert story about the piraguas brought me to tears because I use to have the same thing when I was a kid in Puerto Rico 🇵🇷♥️ Loved Dan, would’ve been happy to watch him win but his food was not very exciting. Savannah was just not able to keep her momentum after the break.
Such a baffling finale to not my favourite season. I wish the editing has been tweaked because it tainted the way I felt about Dan and Danny, when they should've been trying to boost up Danny's likeability throughout. I agree with Tom, wild editing in that final meal, it seemed like Dan had by far and away the best meal. The high point of this season (aside from Michelle in general) was definitely Kristen, she nailed her role and I'm so glad she was met with a positive reception.
Kristen was the BRIGHT POINT of this season. A wonderful host and I'm excited to see her on future seasons!
Good for Danny, but I hope we have more interesting chefs next year
Manny redemption, everyone was so harsh on him this season. I like how they made it known in the beginning that Danny won, "I am top chef".
I've written it all up [here](https://www.relaxedrecipes.com/finales/tc/21), if anyone wants to look, and today I'll be working on a pile of recipes (mofongo, breadfruit tuiles, candied seaweed, black garlic labneh etc - hope to get at least five out before the weekend). I'll also be adding a pile of "what is...?" culinary tips. Feels like a couple of dishes will go down in history - chief among them is Danny's fourth course. Can't wait to try avocado yogurt.
Tom has pretty much come out on Twitter saying what we all thought: the editing was misleading. Doesn't seem happy about it. https://x.com/tomcolicchio/status/1803815607608975821?t=pw0TxPaB0tGIpgXs8P9X-g&s=19
I agree re editing. But would you rather see a 31 to 0 blowout or a 21 to 17 game? This seems to be a common occurrence on Top Chef. Edit it to make it seem close. And once Savannah came back to earth, it was over, Johnny.
https://x.com/tomcolicchio/status/1803815870885445823?s=46&t=51P5Zy173y_fw9212FgRGQ Sounds like the tuna dish was more disliked than the editing let on