Texas

Top Chef went on the road for the first time, splitting the season across Austin, San Antonio, Dallas and Houston before settling into a finale run. The cast doubled in the qualifying rounds, Last Chance Kitchen debuted as a parallel mechanic, and the challenges leaned into regional staples without flattening them into cliche. Padma Lakshmi hosted alongside Tom Colicchio, Hugh Acheson, Emeril Lagasse and Gail Simmons across a longer runway than the format usually permits.