Carl Dooley

A collection of the country’s best Chefs converge in Los Angeles for the toughest season of Top Chef yet, where they will hit the road and compete in six cities across the Golden State. To get their feet wet, the Chefs face off in a fan favorite Quickfire challenge – the Mise En Place race. Then, under the glamour of the Hollywood sign, the Chefs must make dishes that stand out for a group of top food critics and reporters in order to survive the first elimination. Legendary chef Emeril Lagasse rounds out the judging panel alongside Tom Colicchio, Padma Lakshmi and Gail Simmons.

After a busy day prepping and conducting a full lunch service, the Chefs must clean up and do it all over again for dinner. Never before have the Chefs taken on such a huge challenge, and the judges are looking at everything from concept and food, to service and consistency, so no one is safe in the most daunting Restaurant War to date.

The "Top Chef" California Road Trip embarks to its first destination: Santa Barbara. Stopping at the Harbor, the Chefs pick up fresh sea urchin to use in their first Sudden Death Quickfire Challenge. For the Elimination Challenge, the Chefs go from friends to enemies when "surf and turf" becomes "surf versus turf" as they serve to a daunting table of celebrated chefs and judges.

The iconic Restaurant Wars is back and bigger than ever. For the first time in Top Chef history, the Chefs are opening their restaurants for both lunch and dinner services. No one is safe as each chef must run front of house or act as the executive chef in one of the services. The pressure is on as two services means twice the drama.

After landing in the Bay Area, the Chefs head to Oakland to channel their inner rapper as they prepare a dish for Oakland native MC Hammer. He will decide which funky fresh dishes are too legit to quit. Then, Top Chef Master Jonathan Waxman enlightens the Cheftestants with a history lesson, asking them to step into a culinary time machine and cook from significant and influential international food eras.