For dineLA.com
The prevalence of cooking shows and entire television networks dedicated to dining has changed the way we eat, the way we think about food, and how we relate to the people who cook it for us. Chefs have always enjoyed a cult following among gourmands and groupies, but not even Julia Child reached the celebrity status enjoyed by today’s top toques.
A successful stint on Bravo’s hit series Top Chef can elevate a relatively unknown chef into the rockstar stratosphere. Los Angeles is lucky enough to boast former contestants in the double digits—along with two winners, two runners-up and one fan favorite among their ranks.
Editor's note: there are several Los Angeles chefs who have been featured on Top Chef Masters. This article is specific to Top Chef. Stay tuned for a future roundup of LA's Top Chef Masters and other updates to this article.
Most recently, culinary boundary-pusher Michael Voltaggio left the stoves at the Dining Room at the Langham to embark on his own project. The sibling rivalry storyline became a big part of the season six drama, with the finale coming down to Michael and elder brother Bryan, with the younger ultimately proving victorious. At the end of the day, though, the two get along far better than the editors portrayed, to the point they might even open a restaurant together. Michael says, “Bryan and I have similar styles that complement each other very well. We will continue to work on potential restaurant concepts where we [can] collaborate. At the end of the day, two minds work better than one.”
Though Michael’s project plans are not finalized, expect to see his restaurant in the Los Angeles area in the future.
The winner of season two, which was coincidentally filmed in Los Angeles, Ilan Hall, has opened his own restaurant, The Gorbals, in Downtown Los Angeles. Hall moved to LA from the East Coast in March of 2008, and never looked back. He describes the city as having “more opportunity … more of a burgeoning scene.” He continues, “I felt that I could be part of that upswing. There are lots of inventive chefs doing creative things here.” Creative indeed. His menu has been coined as Scottish/Jewish fusion (bacon-wrapped matzo balls are a signature dish), though Hall himself prefers not to be pigeonholed. He says, “It’s a very loose description of what I do.”
Hall likens his experience on the show to “summer camp,” and his close relationship to other former contestants as similar to “a weird fraternity.” Looking ahead, he’s not yet ready for a second venture, but promises “there will be another one, and it will be in LA.”
The chef Hall bested for the title, Marcel Vigneron, has partnered with Diabolical Nightlife Associates (DNA) to debut the lounge-y bar210 at the Beverly Hilton. Vigneron is fresh off his year-and-a-half stint as the opening executive sous chef at The Bazaar by Jose Andres (where he worked with Michael Voltaggio), a position that solidified his bent for molecular gastronomy. So why would a Top Chef runner-up choose to cook in such a clubby setting? He explains, “I was ready to take the next step in my career. They gave me the opportunity to become my own chef … I have carte blanche over the food. I also have one of the largest, bad-ass kitchens in the L.A area—it’s the old Trader Vic’s, so there’s lots of toys to play with.”
And play he does, be it the whimsy inherent in a mostly “plate-to-mouth” menu of “communal modern tapas,” as highlighted by a Concord grape spherification with peanut butter powder on brioche, and tuna pizza with ponzu-fluid gel. Marcel is also moving into mixology, with liquid nitrogen cocktails like the “brain freeze,” and a tomato-water Negroni.
DNA is currently in expansion mode, with three other venues in the works, two of which will be restaurants—all of which will be in LA. He is also set to star in a new TV show on SyFy called “Marcel’s Quantum Kitchen." Meanwhile, Marcel is continuing to evolve the menu at bar210, and is in development for various TV pilots scrutinizing the scientific side of food prep.
Unlike her fellow season two alums, Betty Fraser already owned and operated thriving breakfast and lunch nook Grub (with business partner Denise DeCarlo) when she joined the cast. And it’s still going strong today, now offering brunch, happy hour and dinner service as well. It’s become a local favorite for comfort food staples like the Mount Olympus six-layer dip and drunken steak. Fraser looks back fondly at her time on Top Chef. “Five years later, it’s a lot easier to remove yourself from the experience and see the benefits—it’s been great for Grub. At the time, the competition was grueling …”
Still the camaraderie was compelling. Fraser keeps in touch with both Hall and Vigneron (among others), echoing the sentiments of the former, “it’s like we all went to the same college for a month.”
Season five runner up, Stefan Richter, brings his culinary talents, sometimes brash ego and often quick wit to the longstanding Santa Monica eatery that now bears his name, Stefan’s at L.A. Farm (he has also opened a newer, more casual Montana Avenue breakfast and lunch spot called Stefan’s on Montana).Like his big personality, Richter’s menu offers a little something for everyone— pork cheek and sauerkraut inspired by his childhood in Germany, oysters with absinthe jello for foodies, and “like a Big Mac” sliders for traditionalists and kids.
The diversity was inspired partially by Richter’s Top Chef experience (“it changed the way I do business. As a chef, doing your own food seems so cool at the time, but people don’t want goat’s tongue and other [expletive]”), as well as by his love for America, of which he says, “You’d have to pay me $50 million bucks to walk away and never come back—I’d be devastated.”
Richter’s “Team Euro” cohort, Fabio Viviani made it as far as the final four, but captured the hearts of many female viewers—it was no surprise when he also walked away with the coveted fan favorite award. His North Hollywood eatery Firenze Osteria offers intriguing mix of traditional Florentine fare and more fusion-friendly dishes like slow-roasted balsamic baby back ribs. Looking back, Viviani says, “I was kind of scared to go on Top Chef. I had the opportunity to [do the show] in seasons two, three and four … [By season five], I was going through a lot of business changes, and thought a little exposure could help.”
Now in North Hollywood, his neighborhood clientele sometimes includes a few famous faces. “Coming from Italy, actors are so far away from your group—you go bananas and want to take pictures with them,” he muses. “Here, they walk in the house and they just want you to make them a plate of pasta!”
Not far away, in Toluca Lake, another fifth season vet has set up shop—in this case, a sandwich shop. Alex Eusebio, formerly of 15 in Echo Park, opened Sweetsalt with his wife, Sara Mann, whom he first met just across the street at Eight-18. A local, Eusebio rides his bike to work and pours his heart into his small business, working 16-hour days, seven days a week. And it’s paying off. Business is booming during the daily lunch rush, with many clamoring for his signature coffee-braised short rib roll.
When it comes to Top Chef, he reflects, “it’s no secret that I didn’t really enjoy my time on it … I’m not that competitive of a guy. But the fans are really cool. They seek you out. In a playful nod to the dish that took him out, there’s a daily “pack your knives” crème brulee special.
LA is soon to inherit another season five vet, Jamie Lauren. From her outsider’s perspective, “LA is starting to turn into a food city to be reckoned with. I think there are some really terrific old standbys, but also some great new spots that keep popping up, especially in places like Downtown that I really would like to be a part of.” Is that a hint? According to Lauren, “[I] Can't really say yet … I have met with some people—everything is super preliminary right now, but I won't be opening my own place ... It's never really been anything I desired to do.”
Season three alum Chris Jacobson, aka “CJ,” is manning the stoves at Santa Monica gastropub the Yard. Growing up in Orange County and schooled at Pepperdine, cooking in LA is a return to his roots, which have included stints at Axe and Campanile. Here, he oversees a regularly changing menu of popular dishes from fish tacos to fried pig ear.Of his time on the show, what stands out for CJ most is “getting feedback from some of the top chefs in the country,” the high points being winning best burger from Daniel Boulud, and a quickfire from Eric Ripert. The low? “Getting kicked off by Anthony Bourdain, who said, my broccolini was like ‘something from the back of Bob Marley’s closet!’”
Flashing all the way back to the inaugural season of the show, Brian Hill has literally rolled out a Comfort Truck, riding the wave of mobile food’s popularity and serving to promote Private Chefs of Beverly Hills. Specialties include “crack” tortilla chips; fried chicken sliders; and Mary J. Blige’s favorite, wingettes. “It’s comfort food done well, and priced to sell!” he constantly exclaims to curious passersby. 
Antonia Lofaso, from season four, spent seven years at Spago, and one at the short-lived Foxtail, SBE’s European bistro cum late-night lounge next to the Troubadour.For now, Lofaso is focusing on potential pilots (including one with Tyler Florence), as well as personal chef work, but she’s always wanted to have her own restaurant. She says, “People ask me my favorite food to eat and cook. I’m Italian. I like braised meats, breads, prosciutto … I am talking to investors.”
- bar210, 9876 Wilshire Blvd, Beverly Hills, 310.887.6060, livediabolical.com
- Comfort Truck, Multiple locations, comforttruck.com
- Dining Room at the Langham, 1401 South Oak Knoll Ave, Pasadena, 626.568.3900, pasadena.langhamhotels.com
- Firenze Osteria, 4212 Lankershim Blvd, North Hollywood, 818.760.7081, firenzeosteria.com
- Grub, 911 Seward St, Hollywood, 323.461.3663, grub-la.com
- Stefan’s at LA Farm, 3000 Olympic Blvd, Santa Monica, 310.449.4000, stefansatlafarm.com
- Sweetsalt, 10218 Riverside Dr, Toluca Lake, 818.509.7790, sweetsaltfood.com
- The Gorbals, 501 S Spring St, Downtown, 213.488.3408, thegorbalsla.com
- The Yard, 119 Broadway, Santa Monica, 310.395.6037, theyardsm.com
