Food

DC Continues to Dominate the New Season of Top Chef

Plus get a taste of the action at a dinner from the local cheftestants.

Cheftestant Carl Dooley from Boston cooks alongside DC's Marjorie Meek-Bradley in the latest challenge. Photograph courtesy of NBCUniversal.

Spoiler alert for anyone who hasn’t caught up on the new season of Top Chef: DC’s Kwame Onwuachi is now the front-runner. Last night in episode five, the upcoming Shaw Bijou chef got his second win of the competition with a pickled shrimp and cucumber salad.

“I have to say, there is one chef that I will remember and maybe would like to hire,” said guest judge Art Smith (Art and Soul) of Onwuachi.

In this episode’s elimination challenge, cheftestants catered what Smith called “a big fat gay wedding.” Twenty-five sam-sex couples were married in a group ceremony officiated by – who else – Padma Lakshmi, who was ordained for the occasion. Smith himself took part, tearfully renewing vows with husband Jesus Salgueiro before resuming his role as judge.

“It feels so good to win for such an emotional challenge,” said Onwuachi, whose Shaw restaurant is set to open this winter. “The people that were part of this wedding are going to remember this day for the rest of their lives.”

Love was in the air all around. Earlier in the episode, Onwuachi was visibly smitten when supermodel Chrissy Teigen made a guest appearance. “Get it together, Kwame, you’re a serious person,” he reminded himself. He later posted a picture of Teigen on Instagram, writing “I mean can you blame me!” and thanking her for motivating him to go for his second win.

Anyone hungry for a taste of the action can purchase tickets for a collaborative dinner with Onwuachi and fellow DC cheftestant Marjorie Meek-Bradley at her Cleveland Park home base, Ripple. The seven-course meal will be hosted on Wednesday, January 27 ($80 to $153 per person).