Summary
- New Orleans Season 11 provided exciting challenges, fan-favorite drama, and a compelling villain in Nicholas Elmi.
- Season 3 in Miami introduced engaging and talented contestants like Tre Wilcox and Casey Thompson.
- California Season 13 showcased diverse dishes throughout the state but had an underwhelming winner.
The television show Top Chef is a long-standing player in the reality TV genre and one of the best reality TV shows. Hosts Padma Lakshmi and Tom Colicchio have seen some fantastic dishes created in this top-rated Bravo series. They have also seen intense competition between aspiring chefs and occasionally a few devastating missteps. These moments have created a long-lasting series, with Top Chef season 21 returning soon.
When it comes to the best of the best, these ten seasons of Top Chef are ranking right up there at the top. Whether they made the cut because of dishes, drama, or successful Top Chef contestants, there is no denying that they are some all-time favorites. Which seasons of Top Chef are best?
10 New Orleans
Top Chef Season 11
New Orleans is known for its foodie goodness, so it was only fair that it was home to Top Chef for at least one glorious season. This turned out to be an excellent choice in location. Season 11 not only offered up exciting challenges and meals, but it also gave fans the drama that everyone loves in a reality television show. Reality TV often needs a villain, and Nicholas Elmi filled that role. It was easier to pull for Nina Compton, who ended up in the number two spot. One major drawback to this season was the massive amount of competitors. With 19 chefs vying for the top spot, it was hard to connect with everyone.
9 Miami
Top Chef Season 3
The third season of the series kicked things up a notch from seasons one and two. The location worked out perfectly, giving the chefs so much culture and vibrancy to work with. It was also the first season where the contestants didn't fall short and were engaging, talented, and entertaining. Season 3 introduced viewers to show favorites like Tre Wilcox and Casey Thompson. Top Chef season 3 steered the show in the right direction.
8 California
Top Chef Season 13
When it comes to filming in sunny California, the third time is most certainly a charm. After taping the first two seasons in Los Angeles and San Francisco, the series returned to California in season 13. The primary reason for this is that the show made its way throughout the culturally diverse state, pairing dishes with regions. However, the winner of the season was underwhelming.
7 Boston
Top Chef Season 12
The chefs brought their A-game to Bean Town in Top Chef season 12. The competitions were not some of the best in the Boston season, but something else made it special. After so many seasons of male winners taking the top spot, season 12 saw a female winner. Mei Lin battled competitor after competitor to emerge as the top chef, making it one of the best seasons yet.
6 Texas
Top Chef Season 9
While some seasons of Top Chef are highly regarded because of their character backstories and interesting food challenges, this season makes the list for different reasons. It was a total trainwreck. Challenges were pretty predictable, and compared to other seasons, the chefs were mediocre and not very likable. There was bullying, boredom, and little to connect with on an emotional level. While it wasn't a top-notch season, sometimes chaos drives ratings through the roof.
5 Seattle
Top Chef Season 10
Seattle is a fantastic city, and when Top Chef landed there and put together a cast that also oozed cool, the results were reality television gold. Chefs like Brooke, Kristen, John Tesar, Sheldon, and Shirley were fan favorites, and everyone was thrilled to see Kristen Kish walk away with the win. Seattle also brought perfect balance and harmony between the two things that make this show enjoyable: drama and excellent dishes. Both were there, but neither aspect overpowered the other. In Seattle, everything simply came together. As one of the best Top Chefs, Kristen will come back as a host for season 21.
4 Chicago
Top Chef Season 4
The Chicago season is a favorite season, and it's an example of why Top Chef is one of the most significant reality competition shows ever. This particular installment had a great combination of drama, like the scheming by contestant Spike Mendelsohn and plenty of back-and-forth shouting. Tensions ran high, as did the competition between many talented chefs bent on winning the season. Ultimately, Chicago produced one of the all-time best winners, Stephanie Izard. She defeated show villain Blais, and everyone watching the show left the series nothing but satisfied.
3 All-Stars
Top Chef Season 8
Over the years, Top Chef has given fans many talented, creative, and ambitious chefs. Knowing this, there was no way that an all-stars series would be anything but spectacular. An unbeatable cast was the tip of the iceberg, though. The series was set in none other than Los Angeles, an epicenter of hustle, bustle, and cuisine culture. Every episode in the season was intense, from competitors and their dishes to their challenges. This season surely did not disappoint.
2 New York
Top Chef Season 5
This particular season of Top Chef made some great moves, mainly because it included something everyone seems to love regarding reality television: likable and hated characters. Season five also gave fans the wondrous Carla Hall. It was one of those times when the esteemed judges simply didn't choose the correct winner, and if any contestant deserved a second chance on Top Chef, it was Carla. Mediocre chef Hosea Rosenberg won the New York season. Hosea was better known for hooking up with another contestant (while both were in other relationships) than he was for being the last man standing in the kitchen.
1 Las Vegas
Top Chef Season 6
Las Vegas is a well-received and highly-ranked season because of the drama it brings with every single episode. With two brothers competing for the grand prize, it was bound to be dramatic, and the Las Vegas season of Top Chef highlighted intense battles between contestants and dishes that paired well with the glitz and glam of the city itself. Undoubtedly, Las Vegas was the best season.
Top Chef season 21 premieres on Wednesday, March 20, 2024, at 9 p.m. ET on Bravo.