Pack Your Knives

Sandwiched between two bottle episodes, “The Legacy” puts Sydney on the spot — will she take Shapiro’s offer to become Chef de Cuisine at his new joint, or will she finally sign the partnership agreement and fully commit to the Bear. Tom and Kevin debate what Sydney will — and should — do. They also lament that the show’s shot selection, opting for more scenes of the Fak brothers esoteric and unfunny shtick over more dramatic beats that heighten conflict and deepen characters. Tom enjoyed “Ice Chips” and the interplay between Natalie and Donna on the verge of delivering her firstborn into the world. Kevin appreciated the stage play, but wonders how much the series can devote to deep dives between supporting characters before losing the central thread. Subscribe to the new PYK Substack! https://www.packyourknives.com/ Rate PYK 5 Stars on Apple or Spotify Follow PYK on Twitter: @packknives & Instagram: @packyourknives COUNT THE DINGS MERCH STORE - Check it out here: https://bit.ly/CTDMERCH Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Bottle episodes can be risky business for a series, but “The Bear” has shined with its one-off productions, from Season’s 2 family stage play “Fishes” to this season’s mood poem of a premier. This episode, “Napkins,” marks the directorial debut of series regular Ayo Edebiri (Sydney) and focuses almost entirely on how Tina (played remarkably by Liza Colón-Zayas) found her way to The Beef/The Bear. Friend of PYK C.J. Krawczyk stops in to share with Tom and Kevin his conflicting thoughts about the episode. On one hand, the half hour is an affecting portrayal of the heartbreak and frustration of job insecurity. On the other, it also takes us away from the central dynamics of “The Bear" in the middle of a season that has spent precious little time in the kitchen — and virtually no time in the dining room. Whatever misgivings the guys have about the trajectory of Season 3, they agree that the music has been pitch perfect. Subscribe to the new PYK Substack! https://www.packyourknives.com/ Rate PYK 5 Stars on Apple or Spotify Follow PYK on Twitter: @packknives & Instagram: @packyourknives COUNT THE DINGS MERCH STORE - Check it out here: https://bit.ly/CTDMERCH Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Richie’s character is starting to cultivate grace away from the restaurant, even as he and Carmy persist in their sometimes-hot-sometimes-cold war. Tom shares his love of the scene between Richie and his daughter, Evie, and why the two-handed scenes represent The Bear at its best. The two episodes are at their strongest when Carmy and Sydney occupy the kitchen, honing their collective vision. Sydney is learning how to carefully check Carmy’s worst instincts, even as she struggles to sign the partnership agreement and codify her relationship with the Berzatto clan. Episodes 4 and 5 are also marked by two big cameos — Josh Hartnett and John Cena respectively. The first works a lot better than the second, as Kevin kvetches that there are few things he cares less about than the Fak brothers’ ‘haunts,’ and the fate of Sammy’s SD cards. Subscribe to the new PYK Substack! https://www.packyourknives.com/ Rate PYK 5 Stars on Apple or Spotify Follow PYK on Twitter: @packknives & Instagram: @packyourknives COUNT THE DINGS MERCH STORE - Check it out here: https://bit.ly/CTDMERCH Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Kevin and Tom examine the moments when the show performs at its best: is it the introspective, brooding Carmine scenes at The Bear or when the show “goes home” with secondary characters? Kevin draws a spot-on parallel of Syd/Carmy as Peggy/Don in Mad Men while Tom campaigns for more Richie exploration. The Bear can’t be discussed without a dive into the show’s musical choices. With the Gen X sounds of Eddie Vedder and R.E.M taking center stage, the topic of needle drops surfaces and Tom and Kevin analyze whether the FX show becomes too navel-gazey (the PYK stance: it doesn’t). A central question of the show: what does joy for Carmy look like? For Tom and Kevin, joy looks a lot like Oliver Platt on the television screen. Say it with us now: God Bless Oliver Platt. Subscribe to the new PYK Substack! https://www.packyourknives.com/ Rate PYK 5 Stars on Apple or Spotify Follow PYK on Twitter: @packknives & Instagram: @packyourknives COUNT THE DINGS MERCH STORE - Check it out here: https://bit.ly/CTDMERCH Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As one season ends, another begins. With Top Chef off the air, PYK’s Kevin Arnovitz and Tom Haberstroh have taken a seat at the table of The Bear, the hit TV show on FX. Kevin and Tom explain why they love the scripted series about a family restaurant in Chicago and unpack the unconventional Season 3 premiere. Plus, a discussion about musical choices and which character is the true star of the show. If you’d like to catch up, all episodes of The Bear (Seasons 1-3) can be found on Hulu. PYK will be posting Season 3 recaps on a weekly basis. Stay tuned for Top Chef alums to join us along the ride… (Yes, Chef, the audio this week isn’t our best work. It’s the summer. We’re on the road. Apologies. *rubs chest in circular motion*) Subscribe to the new PYK Substack! https://www.packyourknives.com/ Rate PYK 5 Stars on Apple or Spotify Follow PYK on Twitter: @packknives & Instagram: @packyourknives COUNT THE DINGS MERCH STORE - Check it out here: https://bit.ly/CTDMERCH Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tom Colicchio is Top Chef’s ranking authority, a lifer who has been with the show since its inception. Less than a week after Season 21’s finale riled some longtime fans of the show, Colicchio visits with Tom and Kevin to discuss what went wrong with the finale edit. He explains the various roles of producers, editors and professionals who create a season of Top Chef, shares his candid thoughts about Quickfires, and explores how this season’s cheftestants measured up to previous fields. 👇Hear the full episode right now on the Pack Your Knives Substack👇 Subscribe to the new PYK Substack! https://www.packyourknives.com/ Rate PYK 5 Stars on Apple or Spotify Follow PYK on Twitter: @packknives & Instagram: @packyourknives COUNT THE DINGS MERCH STORE - Check it out here: https://bit.ly/CTDMERCH Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Top Chef judges table shocked audiences with a surprise verdict in the finale. Tom H. sounds off against the decision, as he and Kevin debate what the outcome says about what the show values most in a Top Chef contestant. Also, an interview with chefs Dan Jacobs, Savannah Miller and Danny Garcia about how this season changed their lives. Subscribe to the new PYK Substack! https://www.packyourknives.com/ Rate PYK 5 Stars on Apple or Spotify Follow PYK on Twitter: @packknives & Instagram: @packyourknives COUNT THE DINGS MERCH STORE - Check it out here: https://bit.ly/CTDMERCH Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

There are inspired challenges in magical destinations on the eve of the finale that bring out the best in our aspirational cheftestants. With the title of Top Chef only two cooks away, they reach deep into their imaginations and execute the meals of their lives! This week aboard a cruise ship in Curacao was decidedly … not that episode. Tom and Kevin break down what went wrong in an elimination challenge where only two of eight dishes were successful, and look ahead at who might be able to pull it together to claim the crown. Subscribe to the new PYK Substack! https://www.packyourknives.com/ Rate PYK 5 Stars on Apple or Spotify Follow PYK on Twitter: @packknives & Instagram: @packyourknives COUNT THE DINGS MERCH STORE - Check it out here: https://bit.ly/CTDMERCH Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

From the very outset of Season 21, Michelle Wallace distinguished herself as one of the most authentic chefs to grace the Top Chef kitchen. Not only does she bake the best biscuits in the business, she can execute an elevated homey dish of stuffed lobster pasta with charred corn sauce and crispy chorizo. Two Elimination wins. An additional four top finishes. (The only thing Michelle can’t abide is “chaos cooking”). Michelle stops by to chat about her Top Chef journey, what is and isn’t a sandwich, St. Louis’ greatest BBQ delicacy (pig snoot), the funniest Season 21 contestant, the secret to the perfect biscuit, and the wizardry of Ozzie Smith. 👇Hear the full episode right now on the Pack Your Knives Substack👇 Subscribe to the new PYK Substack! https://www.packyourknives.com/ Rate PYK 5 Stars on Apple or Spotify Follow PYK on Twitter: @packknives & Instagram: @packyourknives COUNT THE DINGS MERCH STORE - Check it out here: https://bit.ly/CTDMERCH Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The five remaining cheftestants compete for only four tickets on a cruise ship to Curacao for the Season 21 finale in an elimination challenge that asks the to prepare a plate that express their maturation as chefs during their time in Wisconsin. But first, it’s the beloved Blind Taste Test Quickfire, with one of the chefs blowing away the competition (is daily tongue-scraping the secret weapon?). Finally, we have a blockbuster late-season trade between Team Tom and Team Kevin! Subscribe to the new PYK Substack! https://www.packyourknives.com/ Rate PYK 5 Stars on Apple or Spotify Follow PYK on Twitter: @packknives & Instagram: @packyourknives COUNT THE DINGS MERCH STORE - Check it out here: https://bit.ly/CTDMERCH Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tom Colicchio does work in the Top Chef kitchen, where the wok is king in the Quickfire challenge. Coming off her Last Chance Kitchen run, Laura re-enters the main competition and makes dessert for an elimination challenge that demands imagination. Tom H. feels that desserts are a market inefficiency that more cheftestants should opt for. Kevin shares how You Can Count on Me explains Michelle’s allergy to blue-sky Top Chef challenges without specific parameters. Subscribe to the new PYK Substack! https://www.packyourknives.com/ Rate PYK 5 Stars on Apple or Spotify Follow PYK on Twitter: @packknives & Instagram: @packyourknives COUNT THE DINGS MERCH STORE - Check it out here: https://bit.ly/CTDMERCH Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

With her sharp analysis, Mina Kimes can break down any NFL pass coverages or team-building strategy — and Top Chef field. She joins Tom and Kevin to discuss how Season 21 stands up to previous Top Chef seasons, to grouse about Soo’s controversial elimination at the fish boil, and to size up the remaining six contestants in the competition. 👇Hear the full episode right now on the Pack Your Knives Substack👇 Subscribe to the new PYK Substack! https://www.packyourknives.com/ Rate PYK 5 Stars on Apple or Spotify Follow PYK on Twitter: @packknives & Instagram: @packyourknives COUNT THE DINGS MERCH STORE - Check it out here: https://bit.ly/CTDMERCH Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

No chef has built confidence and momentum in recent weeks like Savannah Miller. She bagged a Quickfire win with canned corn beef (!), only to slice her hand open while filleting her fish for the Fish Boil. Though it looked like she prepared the worst of the six plates, she was spared elimination. Kevin was on hand in Milwaukee for the Fish Boil, and tasted three of the six fish boil dishes. He shares his impressions of the production, Soo’s beurre blanc, and Miguel’s winning boil. Tom argues that, even with the new “Quickfire factor” at the chopping block, the judges didn’t make the right call. Subscribe to the new PYK Substack! https://www.packyourknives.com/ Rate PYK 5 Stars on Apple or Spotify Follow PYK on Twitter: @packknives & Instagram: @packyourknives COUNT THE DINGS MERCH STORE - Check it out here: https://bit.ly/CTDMERCH Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For weeks, the judges have been threatening to send home not one — but two chefs — if circumstances demand it. This week, they did just that when they sent a quarter of the remaining field packing in a challenge that highlights the indigenous cuisine of the Northern Plains. Tom and Kevin note that Kristen is bored stiff by Manny’s generally successful (but tiresome) formula in the kitchen, and celebrate Savannah and Dan for a master class on how to endear yourself to the judges by “embracing the challenge.” Subscribe to the new PYK Substack! https://www.packyourknives.com/ Rate PYK 5 Stars on Apple or Spotify Follow PYK on Twitter: @packknives & Instagram: @packyourknives COUNT THE DINGS MERCH STORE - Check it out here: https://bit.ly/CTDMERCH Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Few chefs have demonstrated the talent to execute risk in the Top Chef kitchen like Rasika Venkatesa. Her pretzel-barley cake with honey mustard sabayon and her daal quenelle have been highlights of the season, during which she emerged as a fan favorite. Rasika stops by Pack Your Knives to talk about her desire to reinvent cooking from Tamil Nadu, which she recently visited on a months-long food tour. She recounts her trip, which included convincing village fishermen to take her back to their homes to cook snapper with their families. She also shares her experiences on Top Chef with little formal training, despite rising from station cook to Chef de Cuisine in three years. 👇Hear the full episode right now on the Pack Your Knives Substack👇 Subscribe to the new PYK Substack! https://www.packyourknives.com/ Rate PYK 5 Stars on Apple or Spotify Follow PYK on Twitter: @packknives & Instagram: @packyourknives COUNT THE DINGS MERCH STORE - Check it out here: https://bit.ly/CTDMERCH Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As Wimbledon is to the pro tennis calendar, and the Masters is to the PGA, Restaurant Wars is to Top Chef. It’s the signature event of the season, after which things start to get really serious as the field of chefs is whittled down on the last stretch to the finale. Tom and Kevin react to this season’s 5-on-4 imbalance (boo!) and the new twist with two judges tables so that both restaurants have to shine early and late (yay!). They also dive into the controversy that erupted over Danny’s winning scallop chou farci from a few weeks back. Subscribe to the new PYK Substack! https://www.packyourknives.com/ Rate PYK 5 Stars on Apple or Spotify Follow PYK on Twitter: @packknives & Instagram: @packyourknives COUNT THE DINGS MERCH STORE - Check it out here: https://bit.ly/CTDMERCH Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The great thing about chatting with Top Chef finalist Amar Santana is that you get a completely unvarnished take on everything. He stops by Pack Your Knives to tell Tom and Kevin who really had the best dish of the last week’s elimination challenge, why toilet paper should replace napkins at your next reservation, and the saltiest confrontation he’s ever had with a customer at one of his restaurants. 👇Hear the full episode right now on the Pack Your Knives Substack👇 Subscribe to the new PYK Substack! https://www.packyourknives.com/ Rate PYK 5 Stars on Apple or Spotify Follow PYK on Twitter: @packknives & Instagram: @packyourknives COUNT THE DINGS MERCH STORE - Check it out here: https://bit.ly/CTDMERCH Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Maybe you’ve seen the Arrested Development episode in which Tobias tells Lindsay that people who entertain open relationships are delusional to believe that the arrangement could work …. “But it might work for us.” This is the theory of mind of any Top Chef contestant who believes that even though seven cheftestants have been eliminated after preparing risotto, somehow he’ll be the one who will impress the judges and be named the winner of the challenge. Enter this week’s delusional chef … Exit this week’s delusional chef. Tom and Kevin break down how Amanda is building momentum in the kitchen, how Danny is the kind of technical chef who has an inside track to Top Chef, and how ketchup has no place on a hot dog. Subscribe to the new PYK Substack! https://www.packyourknives.com/ Rate PYK 5 Stars on Apple or Spotify Follow PYK on Twitter: @packknives & Instagram: @packyourknives COUNT THE DINGS MERCH STORE - Check it out here: https://bit.ly/CTDMERCH Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Top Chef superfans are likely familiar with the brilliant work of Vince Mancini. For the better part of the last decade, the always-funny Top Chef Power Rankings have been a staple of the culinary competition’s coverage. On this episode, Mancini of The #Content Report, By Vince Mancini Substack joins Tom Haberstroh to digest all things Season 21: Wisconsin. We take stock in the competition so far; evaluate the stylings of Kristen Kish vs. Padma Lakshmi; the stunning elimination of Episode 5; the literary process of assembling his Power Rankings; Fresno, CA.,’s food scene; the revelation that is Soo Ahn; Danny vs. Dan atop his leaderboard and so much more. 👇Hear the full episode right now on the Pack Your Knives Substack👇 Subscribe to the new PYK Substack! https://www.packyourknives.com/ Rate PYK 5 Stars on Apple or Spotify Follow PYK on Twitter: @packknives & Instagram: @packyourknives COUNT THE DINGS MERCH STORE - Check it out here: https://bit.ly/CTDMERCH Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After weeks of more restrictive team challenges and hyper-specific assignments, the chefs get a chance to stretch their legs in an open-ended elimination challenge whose directive was … Chaos! fter all the chaos settled, two of the leading chefs found themselves on the chopping block with the threat that both might be sent packing. Laura has emerged as a passive villain, while Savannah continues to build confidence, and Manny underwhelms after his strong start of the season, which seems like eons ago. Tom and Kevin also size up Soo’s Top Chef potential during his rookie outing in the main kitchen, then debate the virtues of dark chocolate. Subscribe to the new PYK Substack! https://www.packyourknives.com/ Rate PYK 5 Stars on Apple or Spotify Follow PYK on Twitter: @packknives & Instagram: @packyourknives COUNT THE DINGS MERCH STORE - Check it out here: https://bit.ly/CTDMERCH Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tom and Kevin discuss how much team competition is too much team competition on Top Chef, as the chefs again split up into two teams to come up with a progressive, 5-course meal befitting of a vintage supper club. The producers inject an edgy dose of conflict into the show when the the teams are restricted to just over $20 per diner, and chefs jockey over assignments. One chef emerges as an unwitting villain on the Green Team, while the Purple Team endures the Great Pineapple Shortage of Season 21. At the judges’ table, the chef with the worst dish of the night is spared, though there are no shortages of clunkers. Subscribe to the new PYK Substack! https://www.packyourknives.com/ Rate PYK 5 Stars on Apple or Spotify Follow PYK on Twitter: @packknives & Instagram: @packyourknives COUNT THE DINGS MERCH STORE - Check it out here: https://bit.ly/CTDMERCH Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Buddha dropped by to dish with Tom and Kevin about his time on set, who actually served the best dish of the week, getting to watch Kristen Kish at work in her rookie season, and whom he’d name White House chef should he ever occupy the Oval Office. 👇Hear the full episode right now on the Pack Your Knives Substack👇 Subscribe to the new PYK Substack! https://www.packyourknives.com/ Rate PYK 5 Stars on Apple or Spotify Follow PYK on Twitter: @packknives & Instagram: @packyourknives COUNT THE DINGS MERCH STORE - Check it out here: https://bit.ly/CTDMERCH Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For all Tom and Kevin know, Wisconsin native Frank Lloyd Wright’s career might have been fueled by Pop-Tarts and Spaghetti O’s. But some of the architectural luminary’s best work can be found just a couple of blocks from where the Top Chef 21 chefs scavenge the aisle of the Whole Foods for their ingredients. This week, those chefs were asked to pay homage to Wright in a team challenge that stumped more than a few of them. The upside is some heightened tension in the kitchen and some incisive analysis at the judges’ table, where Kristen Kish continues to shine in her first season hosting Top Chef. After four weeks, one contestant in the field continues to dominate — and it ain’t a Top 3 pick. A heads up that we will be hosting a LIVE chat during next week’s episode at 9 pm ET on April 17 on Substack. All Substack subscribers can join — free or paid. We will send out a notice in the coming days. Join us! Subscribe to the new PYK Substack! https://www.packyourknives.com/ Rate PYK 5 Stars on Apple or Spotify Follow PYK on Twitter: @packknives & Instagram: @packyourknives COUNT THE DINGS MERCH STORE - Check it out here: https://bit.ly/CTDMERCH Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week's PYK Premium guest is Carly Levitz, the delightful queen of Top Chef data science. Carly joins the show to talk about her (recent) obsession with Top Chef and how she watches every episode through the lens of a data nerd (we say this with utmost affection). Kevin and Tom ask her some burning questions about the value of immunity, the Top Chef GOAT debate and regional evolution in Top Chef history. The Seattleite shares her all-time favorite cooking hacks from Top Chef and gives us her assessment of Season 21 Wisconsin as we enter the fourth episode. Follow her work at carly.sue.bear on Instagram, @carlylevitz on X and her viz page on Tableau Public. 👇Hear the full episode right now on the Pack Your Knives Substack👇 Subscribe to the new PYK Substack! https://www.packyourknives.com/ Rate PYK 5 Stars on Apple or Spotify Follow PYK on Twitter: @packknives & Instagram: @packyourknives COUNT THE DINGS MERCH STORE - Check it out here: https://bit.ly/CTDMERCH Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tom & Kevin aren’t huge fans of hidden doors or cheese croquettes, but they love getting to the bottom of a good mystery -- like who’s to blame over the slippery floor this week in the Top Chef kitchen. This week’s Cheese Elimination Challenge didn’t produce any instant classics. One nice “nice fried ball” — as Gail Simmons artfully called the procession of croquettes — after another. Though the episode didn’t produce any or memorable dishes, it did what an early episode is supposed to do: Begin the separation of the contenders from the long-shots. Michelle, Rasika, and Dan are beginning to form an elite at the front of the pack. Subscribe to the new PYK Substack! https://www.packyourknives.com/ Rate PYK 5 Stars on Apple or Spotify Follow PYK on Twitter: @packknives & Instagram: @packyourknives COUNT THE DINGS MERCH STORE - Check it out here: https://bit.ly/CTDMERCH Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the annals of Top Chef lore, Joe Flamm is a legend. He clawed his way back through Last Chance Kitchen to win Season 15 with his combination of rustic Adriatic fare and technical savvy. If you find yourself anywhere in the vicinity of Chicago, treat yourself to the Croatian goodness that is Rose Mary in Fulton Market. Joe joins Tom and Kevin to chat about his experience sitting at the judges’ table in Episode 2. How good was Laura’s hops-infused rice pudding and Rasika’s pretzel-barley cake? Was Valentine’s soup bad enough to warrant elimination ? Has Tom Colicchio, after 21 years, entered the give-no-fucks stage of his Top Chef tenure, to the delight of all of us? 👇Hear the full episode right now on the Pack Your Knives Substack👇 Subscribe to the new PYK Substack! https://www.packyourknives.com/ Rate PYK 5 Stars on Apple or Spotify Follow PYK on Twitter: @packknives & Instagram: @packyourknives COUNT THE DINGS MERCH STORE - Check it out here: https://bit.ly/CTDMERCH Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It’s a Pack Your Knives’ tradition like no other: The annual Top Chef fantasy draft. Team Tom has deployed its scouting and data analytics departments to scour the field of cheftestants for the sure bets and hidden gems. Since Kevin got a glimpse of the field of remaining chefs at a mid-season challenge, Pack Your Knives’ Chef’s Table founding members aggregated their draft boards and chose on Team Kevin’s behalf. As always, producer Anthony Mayes is at the podium for the proceedings. Subscribe to the new PYK Substack! https://www.packyourknives.com/ Rate PYK 5 Stars on Apple or Spotify Follow PYK on Twitter: @packknives & Instagram: @packyourknives Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Brew City wastes no time throwing its first beer-focused challenge at the Season 21 field. Nobody seems excited about cooking with hops in the Quickfire challenge, but the chefs who go sweet win favor with guest judge, Top Chef champion, and Friend of PYK, Joe Flamm. The chefs then split into teams to prepare a progressive dinner in the historic Miller Caves of dishes inspired by salty bar snacks — which Tom and Kevin rank. The team with more fine-dining, tweezer-head chefs struggles against their opponents, whose sensibilities are more rustic. Tom takes issue with the judges’ final verdict, while Kevin celebrates the winning chef’s bold risk. Subscribe to the new PYK Substack! https://www.packyourknives.com/ Rate PYK 5 Stars on Apple or Spotify Follow PYK on Twitter: @packknives & Instagram: @packyourknives COUNT THE DINGS MERCH STORE - Check it out here: https://bit.ly/CTDMERCH Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Kristen Kish Era of Top Chef has arrived! Top Chef Season 21 is here, and Tom and Kevin like the new look. This 'inverted' premiere episode has immunity up for grabs in the Elimination Challenge at the beginning, while a Quickfire cook-off has the loser packing their knives. Tom digs the 5-chef divisional battles, each with their own judges' table. Kevin believes that soup is a 'high-floor, low-ceiling' challenge, while a stuffed pasta challenge is designed to kick a chef's ass. Tom and Kevin agree that Michelle Wallace has serious potential as both Top Chef and fan favorite, winning an 'away game' with her lobster ravioli. Subscribe to the new PYK Substack! https://www.packyourknives.com/ Rate PYK 5 Stars on Apple or Spotify Follow PYK on Twitter: @packknives & Instagram: @packyourknives Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Pack Your Knives is back. And better than ever. On the Season 21 preview, we discuss the new host, new rules and bring in PYK’s Wisconsin correspondent and Milwaukee-native C.J. Krawczyk to give the scouting report on the host city. Tom and Kevin also offer their 3 cheftestants to watch as we launch a new chapter in PYK. Subscribe to the new PYK Substack: https://www.packyourknives.com/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Pack Your Knives has big news for the upcoming season… Find out more at https://www.packyourknives.com/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Padma, Buddha and the f'ing liver. In a jam-packed episode of Pack Your Knives, Tom and Kevin recap the contentious Season 20 finale, bid farewell to Padma Lakshmi and launch a campaign for her replacement. Also joining the show are Buddha Lo and Sara Bradley taking us behind the scenes on the finale and this World All-Stars season. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Our love for this season continues to grow like mushrooms on cow dung. Tom and Kevin recap the infamous Wall Challenge and the mushroom elimination challenge ahead of next week's finale. While reeling from a cheftestant's elimination, Tom shocks the world with a blockbuster trade offer ahead of the final episode. Will Kevin accept? It could swing the entire fantasy season. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Breaking news: Tom and Kevin went to a Top Chef dinner in Los Angeles at Craft this week! The Pack Your Knives crew not only got to meet Tom Colicchio and Gail Simmons, but also the Restaurant Wars winning team and taste their five-course meal. We recap both the night, the Last Chance Kitchen finale and another banger of an episode of Top Chef as the contestants head off to Paris. Tom H also goes through the archives and researches whether any cheftestant has won four challenges in a row. The answer may surprise you. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

ESPN's Mina Kimes drops by Pack Your Knives for a recap of the Beef Wellington episode. Kevin, Mina and Tom wrap themselves up in the drama, investigate the mystical origins of the Beef Wellington and discuss the double-elimination choices by the judges. Plus, we gawk at a particular chef during a "candid" moment while Kevin offers a scouting report on the Kimpton hotels across the country. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

With Restaurant Wars in the rearview mirror, Tom and Kevin digest the smoked fish and thali challenges of this week's episode and interview Top Chef producer Thi Nguyen. As one of the brains behind the show, Nguyen shares what it's like to work on Top Chef over the years and why they call her the "police" of the competition. She debunks some myths and pulls back the curtain on the impact of Queen Elizabeth's passing on the production. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It's Restaurant Wars!!! Or is it? Tom and Kevin air their grievances about the unconventional Restaurant Wars episode and wonder what happened behind the scenes. They rank their favorite dishes and designate the roles that we never got to see. Kevin's squad has an up-and-down performance while Tom's team hums along. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

With Restaurant Wars around the corner, Tom and Kevin get their engines rev'd with the incredible Fast X mise en place elimination challenge. Then, Team Haberstroh and Team Arnovitz, each with four cheftestants remaining, fill in the roles of their hypothetical Resturant Wars team. Who's the No. 1 prospect for executive chef? Front of house? Tom and Kevin hash it out and recap LCK. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Kevin and Tom get their hands dirty with the Gaggan Anand episode of Top Chef: World All-Stars and take stock of the competition as we near ever closer to the Restaurant Wars mark. Cheftestant Dale Mackay of Saskatchewan fame joins the show to talk about his rollercoaster ride on Top Chef, daily life as a triathlete in reality-television isolation and the difference of this particular season vs. Top Chef Canada. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

With the most confusing Top Chef episode of the season, Kevin and Tom fight off whiplash and vertigo as they recap the Downton Abbey episode. Tom bids farewell to one of his top picks but discovers a budding crush on another and rants about sandwich toppings. Meanwhile, Kevin does a victory lap on one of his picks who continues to deliver and gets wistful about one of his other cheftestants heading to LCK. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Top Chef heads to the Kent countryside, where a shocking ending sends a cheftestant home. Kevin takes issue with the cheftestant's fate while Tom defends his squad. Then, World All-Stars contestant and Season 16 finalist Sara Bradley of Freight House in Paducah, Kentucky joins the podcast! We discuss her stat-keeping, experiences on the show, favorite Jewish dishes, raw eggs and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Kevin and Tom put their green velvet blazers on and recap Episode 4 of Top Chef World All-Stars. We get introduced to the glory that is Paul A. Young and deliberate on the value of an English biscuit. After a scouting report on the Tottenham Hotspurs stadium experience, Kevin and Tom hash out the Elimination Challenge and remark about the parity of this season. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

With three episodes in the books, Kevin and Tom put it on the Ritz for Top Chef's pub crawl. With a double elimination on tap, Kevin and Tom scout the pairings and give their take on the dishes. Has any cheftestant separated themselves from the pack? Kevin and Tom get into it. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Kevin and Tom welcome in Top Chef South Africa's Lorna Maseko to help recap the show and share her experience of being the guest judge in the All Star Season's second episode. If you were planning a culinary trip to Africa, Kevin and Lorna give you the scouting report. If you weren't planning one, you will now. Finally, Kevin and Tom take stock of their fantasy rosters and bid farewell to a familiar face. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It's our favorite time of the year at PYK HQ: Draft Day! After watching the season premiere of Top Chef Season 20, Kevin and Tom partake in their annual PYK draft of cheftestants while recapping the episode. Who goes No. 1? Where will the elimination challenge winner go in the draft? Where will Buddha, Dawn, Amar and Sara land? Who has the best roster? It's all happening. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Top Chef is back! And so are Tom Haberstroh and Kevin Arnovitz. To get you ready for Season 20: London All-Stars, Tom and Kevin span the globe and preview the 16 cheftestants on the board. Which cheftestants are back? How do we feel about London as a food city? Wait, is there really a Top Chef Finland? All that and more on the PYK season preview. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Kevin and Tom are giddy at the much-anticipated arrival of the Top Chef Season 19 champion, Buddha Lo! They discuss Top Chef reality vs. fiction, where his performance ranks all-time and how to properly cook halibut. Plus, his recent interaction with TMZ at LAX, his Jurassic alligator and how he studied Top Chef. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Another season of Top Chef is in the books! Tom and Kevin recap the season and the final episode with the help of beloved cheftestant Sara Welch. We discuss her Jamaican roots, her bff Buddha, her restaurant Marrow in Detroit and the basics of churning butter. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As the show hits the road to Tucson, Kevin and Tom marvel at the city’s culinary offerings and welcome PYK favorite Chef Maria Mazon back to the Top Chef stage. A strong chef goes home, but in Kevin’s eyes, the playing field is more level than it seems. Who will be crowned Top Chef next week? Kevin and Tom call their shots as we arrive at the finale. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this week's episode, Tom hops on a boat and guides Kevin on the joys of fishing. With the competition whittles itself down to the final four cheftestants, we bid farewell to a poor time-management victim. Tom and Kevin rearrange their power rankings as we head into the surprise domestic location of the finale. And lastly, we run through some VRBO submissions from listeners and Kevin recaps some of his favorite restaurants on his recent road trip. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices