Top Chef

Top Chef is a Romanian reality competition show on the cable television network Antena 1, that first aired in 2012, in which chefs compete against each other in culinary challenges. They are judged by a panel of professional chefs and other notables from the food and wine industry with one or more contestants eliminated in each episode. The show is hosted by Alina Pușcaș. The judges are Joseph Hadad, Tudor Constantinescu and Nicolai Tand. Show Format Basic format Generally, each episode of Top Chef, other than the finale has had two challenges. The first is called the Quickfire challenge. Each chef must cook a dish that meets certain requirements (for example, using specific ingredients or to inspire a certain taste) or participate in a culinary-related challenge (for example, a mise en place relay or a taste test). They are usually given an hour or less to complete these tasks. A guest judge selects one or more chefs as the best in the challenge. Early in the season the winning chef(s) are granted immunity from the episode's Elimination Challenge. As the number of contestants dwindle immunity is withdrawn, and instead the winner receives an advantage (such as being team leader for a team challenge) or a prize. To emphasise the culture and environment of the sixth season's Las Vegas setting, the show introduced "high-stakes" Quickfires, which featured an extravagant prize (usually a large cash prize). High-stakes Quickfires would continue onward in further seasons. Occasionally, a Quickfire will also include the poorest performer being eliminated from the competition. Sometimes contestants have been dismissed for violations such as tasting a sauce with a finger.