In the first episode of Top Chef season 14, Dallas chef John Tesar could have been eliminated from the competition before it barely began.
"I bet the haters would love that," he told GuideLive.
Judges chose to keep Tesar, who was once called the "most hated chef in Dallas," and he's now, impressively, in the final four on the Bravo reality TV cooking competition. Not bad for the oldest contestant this season, Tesar points out.
On Thursday, Feb. 9's episode, the remaining contestants on the Charleston, South Carolina, show have to shepherd an unknown partner in the kitchen. What remaining chefs Tesar, Brooke Williamson, Sheldon Simeon and Shirley Chung don't know is that their mystery partners are their loved ones.
Here's an exclusive clip from Top Chef of Tesar unknowingly working alongside his wife:
Throughout Top Chef season 14, Tesar has kept his cool, rarely blaming other contestants or blowing up during competitions. The Dallas chef was first on Top Chef in season 10. (Tesar has one word to describe the circumstances around his departure from that season: "terrible.") For his return on season 14, Tesar seems to be aching for redemption, as if he's out to prove something.
This season, Tesar seems so ... nice?
"I am nice!" he told me. "I prepared myself mentally not to make the mistakes I made last time."
"I had no agenda except to be myself. I've grown up a lot and changed a lot," Tesar said.
See which contestants will make it to the finals when Top Chef airs on Bravo at 8 p.m. Feb. 9.
