‘Top Chef’ Winners List

Since debuting in 2006, chefs of various experience levels, approaches to cooking and cuisine specialties have competed for the coveted and now revered title of “Top Chef.” Over the years Bravo’s Emmy-winning food series has made household names of hosts Tom Colicchio, Gail Simmons and Padma Lakshmi as well as taught viewers what an amuse bouche is, that complicated dishes can be cooked in 30 minutes or less and why desserts are most chefs’ Achilles heel. Click through our gallery above that highlights all of the past “Top Chef” winners, from Harold Dieterle to the most recent.

-By John Benutty

Season 1: Harold Dieterle

Harold Dieterle won Season 1 (San Francisco) on May 24, 2006. Harold’s winning meal was a five-course tasting menu that included seared diver scallop with blood orange and fennel salad, olive oil poached sea bass, pan-roasted quail with herb spaetzli, cherries and foie gras, a beef duo of kobe beef and braised short ribs with white polenta, and a fig tart with cheeses. The runner-up was Tiffani Faison.

Season 2: Llan Hall

Ilan Hall won Season 2 (Los Angeles) on January 31, 2007. Ilan’s winning meal was a five-course menu that included pincho of pan con tomate with angulas, osetra caviar and tomatillos, macadamia nut gazpacho with pan-roasted moi, seared squab with foie gras, shrimp, braised leeks and lobster sauce, braised and grilled beef short rib with mushrooms and romesco sauce, and tangelo soup with Hawaiian fruit, Surinam cherry sorbet and bay leaf fritter. The runner-up was Marcel Vigneron.

Season 3: Hung Huynh

Hung Huyn won Season 3 (Miami) on October 3, 2007. Hung’s winning meal was a four-course menu that included fish & chips of hamachi, potatoes and an olive oil and tomato vinaigrette, shrimp with palm sugar, cucumber salad and coconut foam, sous-vide duck with mushroom ragout and truffle sauce, and molten chocolate cakes with raspberry coulis, vanilla creme fraiche and nougatine tuiles. The runners-up were Dale Levitski and Casey Thompson.

Season 4: Stephanie Izard

Stephanie Izard won Season 4 (Chicago) on June 11, 2008. Stephanie’s winning meal was a four-course menu that included red snapper, truffled clam and asparagus broth and asparagus salad, quail breast over lobster ravioli with mango-lobster sauce and quail egg, lamb with maitake mushrooms, braised pistachios, blackberry and olive tapenade, and ricotta poundcake with tropical fruit and banana creme. The runners-up were Richard Blais and Lisa Fernandes.

Season 5: Hosea Rosenberg

Hosea Rosenberg won Season 5 (New York) on February 25, 2009. Hosea’s winning meal was a three-course meal (plus appetizer) that included blackened redfish on corn cake with Creole remoulade and micro cilantro, tuna, hamachi and black bass sashimi with fennel oil, citrus and fried tempura bits, seared scallop with foie gras on pain perdu, apple preserves and foie gras foam, and pan-roasted venison, and chestnut and celery root puree with wild mushrooms. The runners-up were Carla Hall and Stefan Richter.

Season 6: Michael Voltaggio

Michael Voltaggio won Season 6 (Las Vegas) on December 9, 2009. Michael’s winning meal was a four-course tasting menu that included cream of dehydrated broccoli, fried broccoli and spot prawn, dashi-glazed rockfish and sweet and sour crab salad with squash and meyer lemon, fennel-scented squab breast with pistachio cassoulet and textures of mushrooms, and chocolate caramel coolant with butternut squash brulee and butternut ice cream. The runners-up were Bryan Voltaggio and Kevin Gillespie.

Season 7: Kevin Sbraga

Kevin Sbraga won Season 7 (D.C.) on September 15, 2010. Kevin’s winning meal was a four-course menu that included eggplant, zucchini and pepper terrine, tomatoes, jalapenos and black garcli puree, rouget, cuttlefish noodles, pork belly, cockles, slipper lobster and cigala, roasted duck breast with duck dumpling, caramelized bok choy and coriander sauce, and a frozen “Singapore Sling” with tropical fruits. The runners-up were Ed Cotton and Angelo Sosa.

Season 8: Richard Blais

Richard Blais won Season 8 (All-Stars) on March 30, 2011. This was Richard’s second appearance on the show following his runner-up placement on Season 4. Richard’s winning meal was a four-course tasting menu that included raw oysters with creme fraiche pearls and salsa verde, raw hamachi with fried veal sweetbreads and garlic mayonnaise and pickled celery, pork belly and black cod cutlet with bone marrow, beets, brussel sprouts and kumquat, beef short rib with mushrooms, red cabbage marmalade and celery root horseradish puree, and cornbread with foie gras ice cream and whipped mango. The runner-up was Mike Isabella.

Season 9: Paul Qui

Paul Qui won Season 9 (Texas) on February 29, 2012. Paul’s winning meal was a four-course tasting menu that included chawanmushi, edamame, pea shoots and spot prawns, grilled sea bass with clam dashi, pickled radishes and mushrooms, congee with scrambled eggs, uni, kale and smoked albacore, and coconut ice cream with puffed rice, kumquats, mangosteen, Thai chili foam and jasmin gelee. The runner-up was Sarah Grueneberg.

Season 10: Kristen Kish

Kristen Kish won Season 10 (Seattle) on February 27, 2013. Kristen’s winning meal consisted of four dishes presented to the judges in an “Iron Chef” format where the first chef to win three rounds would be named the champion. Her three winning dishes were chicken liver mousse with frisee, mustard, prune, hazelnuts and pumpernickel, celery root puree with bone marrow, mushrooms, bitter greens and radishes, and red snapper with leeks, little gem lettuce, tarragon, uni and shellfish nage. The runner-up was Brooke Williamson.

Season 11: Nicholas Elmi

Nicholas Elmi won Season 11 (New Orleans) on February 5, 2014. Nicholas’ winning meal was a four-course menu that included hamachi and tuna with green apple wasabi, celery and Maui-meyer lemon, sweet shrimp bisque, scallop and daikon noodles with Thai basil, kombu cured duck breast with kabocha squash, hijiki and ginger, and caramelized white chocolate panna cotta with almond cocoa crumble and tropical fruit. The runner-up was Nina Compton.

Season 12: Mei Lin

Mei Lin won Season 12 (Boston) on February 11, 2015. Mei’s winning meal was a four-course menu that included octopus with fish sauce vinaigrette, avocado-coconut puree and herbs, congee with carnitas, scallion puree, hot sauce, peanuts and egg yolk, duck with braised lettuce, kimchi jicama and huitlacoche, and strawbbery lime curd with toasted yogurt, milk crumble and yogurt-lime ice. The runner-up was Gregory Gourdet.

Season 13: Jeremy Ford

Jeremy Ford won Season 13 (California) on March 17, 2016. Jeremy’s winning meal was a four-course menu that included foie gras two ways with chili, passion fruit and marshmallows, slow-cooked branzini, herbal lime vinaigrette, squash and tomatoes, duck with roasted maitake mushrooms, smoked chilis, buttermilk and lemon, and ricotta and mozzarellas cheese cylinder with spiced fig jam, pumpernickel toast and honey. The runner-up was Amar Santana.

Season 14: Brooke Williamson

Brooke Williamson won Season 14 (Charleston) on March 2, 2017. Season 14’s cast consisted of half newbies and half all stars and was Brooke’s second appearance on the series following her runner-up placement on Season 10. Brooke’s winning meal was a four-course progressive meal that included warm oyster with grilled Swiss chard and bacon, charred octopus with orange annatto seafood broth, radish, garlic puree and garlic chips, braised pork belly and beans with charred onion and purslane, and aged rum and chamomile flan with candied cashews. The runner-up was Shirley Chung.

Season 15: Joseph Flamm

Joseph Flamm won Season 15 (Colorado) on March 8, 2018. He was the third contestant to win after being voted out and then getting a second shot thanks to Last Chance Kitchen, following Brooke Williamson in Season 14 and Kristen Kish in Season 10. The runner-up was Adrienne Cheatham.

Season 16: Kelsey Barnard Clark

Kelsey Barnard Clark won Season 16 (Kentucky) on March 14, 2019. The Alabama chef is the fifth female to claim the “Top Chef” title. The runner-up was Kentucky native Sara Bradley, making it just the third time that two women have gone head-to-head in the finale.