When I learned that the first Top Chef Masters had the highest ratings ever for a new show on Bravo, I suspected there would be an encore round, but of course I didn’t know if I would be included till the phone call came. I tend to take a weavy path between annoying self-confidence and abject insecurity, so I never know till I know. Between thinking "Wasn’t I great?" I can be racked with doubts. Maybe I wasn’t mean enough as a judge. Maybe I was too easily wowed. Maybe I was a too obvious pushover for Chef Hubert Keller’s ponytail in Series 1. And maybe the producers were just tired of my hats. Actually I was getting a little tired of my hats too. I only wear them for photographs and televison because I feel a restaurant critic must try to stay anonymous. 

On the other hand, I had enjoyed playing judge. It was especially exciting and even more of a diplomatic challenge given the caliber of the chefs – most of them are truly masters by any definition — chef owners, television stars, prolific creators of cookbooks, some of them trained with the great chefs of the world from adolescence, most of them chosen by their peers as the Best of the Year in several categories.

In my 40 years as a restaurant critic, I’ve always made my critical judgements first in my mouth at lunch or dinner, again as I typed my notes each morning, and once again as I weighed the experience and wove it into a formal review. I was not used to arguing my case or being second-guessed on camera by conferes whose taste buds I didn’t really know. But I had enjoyed getting into the fray and sticking up for my opinions first time around. I looked forward to coming back as a veteran of the tussle.

I looked forward to seeing James Oseland again. He is adorable, funny, and smart, and I especially responded to his vulnerability (which I admit doesn’t reveal itself on camera). All our plans to get together in New York City after the first TCM fell through. Running Saveur magazine is a full-time job. James and I finally got together when we were invited to a fabulous food festival in Sao Paolo. Kelly was cool and her usual irreverent self when we met again in Los Angles. She and I could never find the right time or place for dinner in New York either…she is the most devoted daughter and her mother was ill. That was always her first priority.

So it was good to escape the clutter of my desk and focus on the new series, new chefs, new challenges, and the familiar faces from the production crew at Magical Elves. We could only be better the second time around, I figured.  

I arrived a day early and ran into Gail Simmons. A stalwart of Top Chef, Gail would be rotating at the judges table with we three pioneers – James Oseland, Jay Rayner, and I. I had never spent any significant time alone with Gail so I was delighted she had time for a quick lunch. She introduced me to Bottega Louie which became my stop for fabulous pastry. In five minutes, I felt like we’d known each other forever. She is amazing for her accessibility and easy intimacy and her fabulous background in food. 

Oh yes, the show. Like you the audience, we judges are really seeing the show for the first time. It’s always astonishing to me to see what was going on in the kitchen, at Whole Foods, and during the Quick Challenge: what the chefs are thinking, how they shop and make decisions, the mishaps the trip them up in the kitchen, how they improvise, and what finally seduces the Quickfire judges. We also get to see their attachment to the charity they have chosen to get their winnings.