Celina Tio

Top Chef Masters is back with a brand new host, new judge and a new format - so why not start the competition off with something familiar, the most notorious of all Top Chef challenges, Restaurant Wars.These master chefs have opened their share of award-winning restaurants, but nothing could have prepared them for the pressure that's on now. With their egos on the line, the knives come out right out of the gate.

In this week's quickfire challenge the chefs must use each of their five senses to identify mystery ingredients - however they can only use one of their senses at time. In the elimination challenge, the masters help a man propose to his unsuspecting girlfriend on her favorite show, "Top Chef Masters." In a six-course meal, the chefs must create dishes that reflect different stages of the couple's relationship, but could one bad dish ruin the whole plan?

Master chefs know how to work under pressure, but how well can they do fast food? This week's elimination challenge puts the cheftestants to the test in a traditional Southern California eatery, the Drive Thru. The cheftestants will have to operate a fast food drive thru, from the grill to serving up their best meals and all in less than two minutes.

The tables are turned in this week's quickfire when the cheftestants become the judges and have to critique their fellow chefs. Then in the elimination challenge, the remaining contestants are in for a double dose of surprises. Pop Rock group Maroon 5 drops by and challenges the chefs to create a feast fit for a rock star, but it's not that easy. Once again the tables are turned and the chefs are taken out of the kitchen and brought to a surprise location to prepare their meals.

In a test of HONOR, the Thanksgiving-themed final episode is a knife-to-knife battle between the remaining two chefs to win the title of NEXT IRON CHEF. Special judges include Bobby Flay and Morimoto.