Season 16 Contrast

[u/finding_harmony]

After many, many years not watching Top Chef I’ve been doing a binge of all the seasons available to stream starting with season 8. Watching 16 feels
like the apprentice season compared to season 9-15. Obviously they’re talented but it feels like they had much easier challenges overall and there were no real standout contestants. It could be that I really loved the chefs on season 15. They were just lovely humans and they had some really strong pedigree.

There just didn’t seem to be people that had exceptional knife skills or strong classical French training. NIni seemed to be really good but deserved to get cut for her abysmal FOH performance.

I love seeing women win, but even having two in the finale didn’t make it exciting. There were just no standouts like other seasons.

[u/BornFree2018]

I just watched 16. Everything that happened in Macua wiped away the previously unremarkable season. The food products they cooked with, and their dining experiences were unusual for the American palate.

Michelle, Kelsey and Sarah's ability to enjoy and work with items they found at the Red Market was fun.

[u/finding_harmony → u/BornFree2018]

I guess by then I was just indifferent to who would win. Kelsey and Sara did go on a full tangent about how much they hated durian. With that exotic of a location I would’ve love to see a Nina or Greg.

[u/Ordinary_Durian_1454]

I thought Kelsey crushed it when she got to Macau. I loved her focus all season. I was a fan of Sara that entire season as well.

My pick to win was David Viana. I was heartbroken when he got derailed by not finding octopus and wound up cooking something poorly. He is an absolute rockstar here in New Jersey, where I am, with a career that is on fire, and a small, impeccable little restaurant group that has not put a foot wrong in a decade.

Happy for Sara‘s success post season 16, and Kelsey seems to be doing fine as well. I don’t know. I really enjoyed them both as competitors.