Could This Be the Year a Latino Wins Top Chef ?
April 6, 2021
Season 18 of Top Chef premiered April 1 with 15 new chefs competing for $250,000 cash prize, a feature in FOOD & WINE magazine, and an appearance at the annual FOOD & WINE Classic in Aspen. Among the contestants are four Latinos.
In its 15- year history Top Chef has never had a Latino chef win the grand prize. Several like season 13’s Amar Santana and season 7’s Angelo Sosa (both of Dominican descent) have come close and made it to the finale only to fall short.
This season’s Latinos contestants reflect some of the diversity of nuestra gente with roots in Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic and Mexico.
It may be too early to tell if any of them can bring home the title, but with four Latinos — making up about 27 % of the cast of chefs— we can dream right?
Here’s a look at the four chefs:
Byron Gomez
Born in Costa Rica but raised in New York, Chef Byron Gomez is the Executive Chef of 7908, Aspen’s finest supper club.
Byron talks about his journey from Burger King cashier and DACA to Top Chef in a recent interview with Aspen Daily News.
Gabe Erales
Gabe, who is Mexican-American, most recently served as Executive Chef of Comedor Restaurant, a Mexican restaurant in Austin, TX, that was voted Best New Restaurant by Esquire Magazine (2019).
He also has an apparel brand called “ERA” that promotes the preservation and use of Mexican landrace heirloom corn benefiting the Fundacion Tortilla in Mexico. Read more
Maria Mazon
Mexicana Maria Mazon is the Executive Chef and Owner of BOCA Tacos y Tequila in Tucson, Arizona. In 2020, Maria became a James Beard Award semi-finalist for Best Chef in the Southwest Region.
Maria is making history as the first chef from Arizona to be a contestant on Top Chef. Read more
Nelson German
A Dominican-American hailing from Washington Heights, NY, Chef Nelson German is the Executive Chef/Owner of alaMar Kitchen and Sobre Mesa Afro-Latino cocktail lounge, both located in Oakland.
Read more about Nelson’s experience on Top Chef in The Mercury News.
New episodes of Top Chef air on Thursdays at 8 p.m. EST. on Bravo.
