Top Chef Chicago - "Anything You Can Cook, I Can Cook Better"

Well, finally, Top Chef is back! After last season's dramatic finale, it's been a long wait. The first episode introduced a wide range of competitors with varied backgrounds.

Top Chefs From San Francisco:
· Ryan, who has been working in restaurants since he was 11 years old.
· Zoi, who suggested making pig's-head soup in her audition video.
· Jennifer, who is one of two competitors this season with a haircut very similar to Stephen from season one.
· Eric, who reminds me of a toned-down Howie (season three).

Top Chefs From Atlanta:
· Nimma, who makes it quite clear that she is here to compete, not make friends.
· Richard, with a Stephen-from-season-one haircut and a Marcel-from-season-two interest in molecular gastronomy

Top Chefs From New Zealand:
· Mark, who is living the American dream after arriving in the country with little to start off.

Top Chefs From New York:
· Andrew, who is very emotionally invested in his cooking.
· Dale, who exudes confidence.
· Manuel, who is classically French trained.
· Nikki, a co-owner of 24 Prince Restaurant in New York.
· Lisa, who loves to truly move people with her food.

Top Chefs From Chicago:
· Stephanie, a cheery girl who wore a Yoda back pack while cooking on her audition video
· Valerie, who has a fine-dining background

Top Chefs From Los Angeles:
· Antonia, who says her love of feeding people is "in my blood".

Top Chefs From Williamsburg, NY:
· Spike, who has a very loud and boisterous personality - fun but manic.

Introductions were made over (what else?) deep-dish pizza, along with a surprising announcement. Jennifer and Zoi are a couple. Well, that got some people talking! Will this prove to be an advantage?

I see how it could be, but I can also see it being a detriment. Imagine trying to stay on top of your game while watching someone you care about struggle... tough. I guess we'll just have to watch and see.

The relaxed atmosphere was broken quickly, and Top Chef Chicago got off to its true start when Tom and Padma arrived to announce the first Quick-Fire Challenge. Each chef would create their own version of deep dish pizza, and deliver it to an un-named judge. There's nothing quite like watching the chefs scatter through the Top Chef kitchen when the challenges begin.

The Top Chefs arrived at a beautiful Chicago house bearing pizza for... Rocco Dispirito! After testing all sixteen pizzas with Padma, Rocco separated the chefs into the top eight and bottom eight. Highlights were Richard's peach-topped pizza and Mark's pie; no over-all winner was announced. Least favorites included Nikki's more-dough-than toppings pie, Nimma's which Rocco thought needed salt, and Stephanie's whose prosciutto Rocco described as "gamey".

Next fun surprise - this is the Top Chef house! Most of the gang settled in with the expected getting-to-know-you festivities, with two notable absences. Dale spent time playing pool on his own, while Nimma went to bed. Both noted in voice-overs that they are here for the competition, not to make friends.

The Elimination Challenge was a head-to-head, pitting the best against the worst from the Quick-Fire. The Quick-Fire winners drew knives to determine order, then selected a Top Chef competitor. The Quick-Fire least favorites got to select from a list of eight classic dishes. Rocco and No Reservations's Anthony Bourdain joined Padma and Tom to judge the dishes, selecting a winner and loser from each pair.

Antonia, Nikki, Stephanie and Richard were the top four; Stephanie's Duck Breast with Duck Spring rolls was the winner. The bottom four were Ryan, Erik, Nimma, and Mark. Nimma's over-salty shrimp led her to be the first Top Chef sent home from Chicago.

Points of note: How odd that Nimma was on the bottom of both challenges - once for lacking salt, then for adding too much. Spike should provide some interesting moments this season. I kept waiting for him to flip out... maybe next week.