Finalists Danny Garcia, Dan Jacobs and Savannah Miller faced off during the ‘Top Chef’ finale on Wednesday, June 19.
Warning: This article contains spoilers.
And the winner is …
Bravo’s The best chef aired the season 21 finale on Wednesday, June 19, and named a new champion: Danny Garcia!
The executive chef of New York’s Saga Hospitality Group, which includes nearly impossible-to-get-booked restaurants like Saga, Crown Shy and Overstory, founded by the late chef James Kent, beat out fellow finalists Dan Jacobs and Savannah Miller in a intense party at the end.
Season 21 was primarily filmed in Wisconsin, but the final two episodes took place on a Caribbean cruise. Former The best chef Champion Kristin Kish joined the judging panel as a new host (following Padma Lakshmi’s departure) alongside veterans Tom Colicchio and Gail Simmons.
In typical The best chef In its final form, the chefs were tasked with cooking “the best four-course meal of their lives,” as Kish explained. “The opportunity to cook whatever you want.”
But the finalists didn’t have to face the multi-course meal alone. Garcia, Jacobs and Miller were each able to choose a previously eliminated cheftestant and selected Manny Barella, Amanda Turner and Michelle Wallace, respectively.
Related: Kristen Kish Says Padma Lakshmi ‘Formed the Path’ for Her to Be The best chef Host (Exclusive)
Kish, Colicchio and Simmons were joined by guest judges, celebrity chef Emeril Lagasse, Canada’s best chef judge David Zilber, Bricia López of Guelaguetza restaurant, Justin Pichetrungsi of Anajak Thai and Carrie Nahabedian of Brindille.
García drew inspiration from her Dominican and Puerto Rican family by serving scallops and leche de tigre with habanero, smoked mussels with plantains and cabbage, lobster with matcha sauce and pumpkin, and her version of “piragua con leche” with melon sorbet and avocado yogurt. for dessert.
His dishes were praised, but not without some hiccups. “I was proud of the food I made and happy with how things were turning out,” Garcia told PEOPLE during 2024. Food and wine Classic in Aspen. He admitted that he didn’t believe he had “hit a home run.” There were mistakes, but I think he was able to pivot.”