Top Chef

Get ready for our biggest season ever.

Ah, Jesus..

Because this is all I've ever cooked.

29 chefs have come to Texas

to compete in America's most prestigious,

toughest, culinary competition--

Top Chef.

So relaxing.

Oh, you bitch.

Over eight seasons,

Top Chef has catapulted careers,

and the winners have gone on to achieve huge success.

You are Top Chef.

I am?

Best reaction ever.

Food and Wine's best new chef.

A James Beard nominee.

Ten new restaurants and countless accolades

in the press.

While hoping to continue that legacy,

this season's chefs must qualify to be one of 16 contestants

who will go on and compete across the state of Texas.

- Holy. - Ten seconds.

Cook, risotto.

Joining me at judge's table,

head judge, Tom Colicchio...

That's clever, but is it a good idea?

Food & Wine magazine's Gail Simmons...

It needs to be delicious.

Chef, Hugh Acheson...

You do this every day.

And culinary legend Emeril Lagasse.

And I don't even know what happened to the meat.

We'll narrow the field to the top contenders.

At stake for the winner,

a feature in Food & Wine magazine,

a showcase at the annual Food & Wine classic in Aspen,

$125,000 furnished by healthy choice

to bring their culinary dreams to life,

and the title of Top Chef.

== sync by elderman ==

We arrive at the Alamo.

The first thing I think of is, "damn, Padma looks hot."

I have to stay in this competition

just so I can look at her.

There's about 30 chefs around me,

and I'm thinking to myself,

"Top Chef usually has about 16 chefs."

So it starts to hit you, like, it's Texas.

They made it bigger.

This season's raising the level of intensity pretty fast.

Welcome to Top Chef,

and welcome to the historic Alamo

in San Antonio, Texas.

The Alamo is gorgeous, but I'm wondering

what's going to happen with all these people.

I'm standing right next to one of my colleagues,

Richie, who works in Chicago with me.

And I'm like, "are they going to do teams?"

You were chosen from over 1,000 chefs,

and now it's time to prove

that you're worthy of the Top Chef title.

Right now I'm a personal chef caterer,

and I'm kind of an entrepreneur.

The name's Stone... Chef Tyler Stone.

I know I'm good.

And, you know, a lot of people mistake

my confidence for arrogance,

but that's just 'cause they don't like the fact

that I'm as good as I am and half their age, you know.

We're going to put you in three groups.

Each group will compete in one challenge.

But the stakes are higher than ever before.

You have to excel in your test

to earn one of the 16 spots in the Top Chef house.

Oh,.

It's very hard to believe that I'm not already

in the top 16.

This is really up.

I don't want to have to be cooking for that spot.

This is your moment.

Good luck.

Holy crap.

Oh, wow.

Walking into the Top Chef kitchen for the first time,

my goal is to study what I'm seeing.

First thing I notice is the ingredient.

I see the whole pig.

I look up, and I'm like, "holy.

It's Emeril."

I'm like, "bam!" Oh, my God.

Hello, chefs. Welcome to the Top Chef kitchen.

Hello, thank you.

- Chefs. - Hi, Chef.

I'm pretty sure you know the gentleman next to me--

world-renowned chef and new judge for the season,

Emeril Lagasse.

- Hello. - Nice.

Chef Tom, I'm excited to be here.

I've heard a lot of great things about you guys.

And let me tell you,

we have quite a challenge for you.

So let's see what you can cook.

Chefs, we'd like to hear a little bit about you guys,

where you work, or how you got here.

Tyler, why don't we start with you?

I've cooked for many celebrities,

politicians, and media personalities

at a national level.

My name's Heather Terhune, and I'm the executive chef

at Sable Kitchen and Bar in Chicago--

best new bar, Food & Wine magazine, 2011.

Nyesha Arrington, I'm the executive chef

at Wilshire Restaurant.

I've worked for Joel Robuchon. I've heard of him.

I was nominated rising star chef, 2010.

Wow, Nyesha works for Chef Joel Robuchon?

That's really high pedigree.

She's definitely stiff competition.

Molly Brandt, and I'm the chef de cuisine

on board the Allure of the Seas for Royal Caribbean.

Simon-- I grew out of Seattle,

out of this little, uh, cocktail lounge

called 22 Doors.

Richie Farina,

I'm the sous chef at Moto Restaurant

in Chicago, Illinois.

Chris Jones, I'm the chef de cuisine

of Moto Restaurant, Chicago. Illinois.

Chris Jones-- he's my boss at Moto.

It's a little bit of mixed emotions.

I'm happy to have this opportunity

to compete against him.

I know how talented he is,

and I know he is one of my threats to stand

in my way to get the title.

Grayson Schmitz, New York City.

And I'm currently in between jobs.

Sarah Grueneberg, executive chef

at Spiaggia, in Chicago, Illinois.

I know of Sarah, the chef at Spiaggia,

which is one of the best Italian restaurants in the country.

She can cook her ass off.

Colin Patterson,

chef and owner of Sutra in Seattle.

I was rising star, 2009.

Hearing everybody's backgrounds--

it's very competitive.

So I am feeling anxious about holding my own.

There are a lot of great chefs at the Alamo,

but we're only giving out 16 of these.

I became an executive chef at 28.

I've really sacrificed a lot of my personal life

for my career.

I want that coat so bad--

more than I've ever, I think, wanted anything else

in my life.

We've broken down an entire pig to its primal cuts.

As a group, you'll be creating

a feast for us with this very pig.

There are ten cuts of meat, and there are ten of you.

Now it's up to you to decide who cooks which part of the pig.

Some of the pieces contain multiple cuts.

So you'll have to work out how you will separate your cuts.

Also, you're going to be serving in three groups.

And you will have an hour to cook your dish.

The kitchen is outfitted with the latest

G.E. Monogram equipment.

Emeril and I will be walking around while you cook,

looking at how you operate the kitchen,

your butchering skills, your cooking technique.

This is what will earn you a Top Chef coat

or a ticket home.

So stay on your toes.

You guys ready for the challenge?

- Yes. - Good luck.

Your time starts now.

- I got the-- - I'll go first.

- I got the cheeks. - Shoulder.

Tenderloin.

Working with random chefs can be very difficult.

We have to make quick decisions, because the clock is starting.

So I'm hopeful we'll all get along.

- I'll take belly. - I'll take the ribs.

I want baby back.

Is this okay? Tenderloin?

Pork tenderloin would be the quickest to cook,

so I'm zoning in on it.

Taking tenderloin. I got the chops.

Now that I got that tenderloin,

I'm thinking smooth sailing.

- Anyone grab cheeks yet? - I got cheeks.

- I guess I'll take ears. - Okay, now, butchering--

the tenderloin, baby back--

Yeah, the tenderloin, we got to pull it--

Pig primal cuts have multiple cuts inside of them

so you have to either butcher it yourself

or trust somebody to butcher it in that short amount of time.

Somebody can pull off the loin?

- Who? - I'll do loin.