Bravo announced today the line-up of its new Top Chef Masters show, which premieres June 10. The concept is simple: How would established chefs — some of them culinary celebrities of a sort — fare under the challenges of of the Top Chef-style competition?
There are some problems with the look of the new show, most glaring of which is the lack of gloriously scarred Padme Lakshmi and the beefy Tom Colicchio. Replacing Lakshmi as host is Kelly Choi, a former model and NY food show host. More interesting are the judges. Although the red-hat old lady Gael Green and Saveur editor james Oseland don't hold much promise, Bravo has brought Guardian restaurant critic Jay Rayner over from across the pond. Can he out-wit the rather sheepish Toby Young?
The biggest problem with the show, however, may be the successful competitors. Do any of them have anything to gain from the show, other than the potential of a tad more celebrity pull?
Check out the list of contestants — and the cool celebrity judges scheduled — after the break:
This article appears in Apr 1-7, 2009.