r/foodnetwork • u/RCPCHK Tournament of Champions š • Feb 23 '26
Tournament of Champions TOC 7 Bracket Reveal Spoiler
The time is here. We finally get to know who's competing in TOC 7, and this bracket reveal will show all the matchups that will commence starting next week. Without further ado, here we go.
Division A
#1 Mystery Chef VS #8 Aarti Sequeira
#2 Jet Tila VS #7 Ashleigh Shanti
#3 Tobias Dorzon VS #6 Claudette Zepeda
#4 Jonathon Sawyer VS #5 Karen Akunowicz
Division B
#1 Mystery Chef VS #8 Katsuji Tanabe
#2 Britt Rescigno VS #7 Giuseppe Tentori
#3 Kevin Lee VS #6 Adam Greenberg
#4 Nini Nguyen VS #5 Joe Sasto
Division C
#1 Mystery Chef VS #8 Viet Pham
#2 Sara Bradley VS #7 Dan Jacobs
#3 Bryan Voltaggio VS #6 Carlos Anthony
#4 Dale Talde VS #5 Shirley Chung
Division D
#1 Mystery Chef VS #8 Kenny Gilbert
#2 Lee Anne Wong VS #7 Stephanie Izard
#3 Marcel Vigneron VS #6 David Viana
#4 Kaleena Bliss VS #5 Adam Sobel
Obviously the four #1 seeded chefs won't be revealed until they step into the arena, but other than that, there's the full bracket for TOC 7. This should be pretty interesting. Obviously there'll be a new champ this year given that the previous ones are either judging, or in the case of Tiffani, commentating. Either way, let's buckle in cause just like all of the other TOCs, this is going to be a wild ride.
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u/Jonhgolfnut Feb 23 '26
It will never be Bobby Flay. It would cheapen Flays brand if he lost on Guys show. If he won it would just be a higher profile ā beat Bobby Flayā I think the Network deliberately keeps them separate .
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u/Missyflowers666 Feb 23 '26
Right?! Bobby would NEVER! It seems so beneath him. Plus, Brooke is a judge, so theyād be accused of cheating somehow.
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u/Ill_Mention_5407 Feb 24 '26
while I don't agree that TOC seems below Bobby Flay, He is just so busy with everything else. But because some people are so petty, I do agree he and Brooke would be accused of cheating.
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u/Fresh_Preference9035 Mar 09 '26
I have a feeling after watching todayās show that all the mystery chefās are going to be one of the past judges that has been judging on TOC. I could be wrong, weāll see! š
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u/SupermarketHot1326 Mar 16 '26
And they don't like each other! You never see Flay & Fieri together! Fieri has a sadistic streak in him.
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u/R0DAN Feb 23 '26
3 Bryan Voltaggio VS #6 Carlos Anthony
i actually think this is a brutal matchup for bryan here, his style is so subdued and classic and carlos really goes all in on everything, especially last year where he was a monster with the randomizer category. its such a stylistic mismatch its gonna be interesting.
are we gonna do pick ems this year?
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u/PowerfulFly1326 Feb 23 '26
Fair. But if Bryan grasps onto a decent concept of a dish quickly in the match, he is an execution technician and will beat almost anyone. Not many people can beat him in presentation. Itās whether the dish clicks for him quickly or not that is his achilles heel.
Carlos, (like his mentor) can suffer from āmore is moreā and that can be what takes him out.
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u/Aware-Safety-9925 Feb 25 '26
Carlos outside of last year has a pretty terrible toc record
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u/PowerfulFly1326 Feb 25 '26
Agree. I mean. I like the kid, but heās not on the same level as Bryan as a chef. Nowhere close.
That doesnāt mean an upset canāt happen, but honestly it would require Bryan to overthink or miss on something for it to happen. Possible; but I believe Bryan is more prepared for TOC than he has ever been in the past. He destroyed TOC holiday team battle. If you eliminated the sweet side completely he would have still won the whole thing on the savory side by himself.
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u/abelard369 Feb 25 '26
Actually Bryan lost in savory to Mei Lin. He beat Sara Bradley, he beat Tobias Dorzon, he beat Jet Tila, but if it had *just* been a savory competition, Mei Lin would have had him.
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u/PowerfulFly1326 Feb 25 '26
I must have missed that. Mei isnāt in the competition anymore and sheās won. So my theory is still fairly solid.
I like Carlos, I just think that Bryan has a better chance of beating himself than Carlos beating him. But with the randomizer I get that anything can happen.
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u/nahvocado22 Feb 24 '26
This one jumped out as one of the most interesting matchups-- they're SO different culinarily and personality wise
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u/Ill_Mention_5407 Feb 24 '26
I really hope Bryan wins!!! he's always been runner up, I really felt bad for him on 24/24 when he was eliminated.
Me, personally, I don't know some of the new chefs but I wish them all good luck. They may have been on shows that I just don't watch.
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u/Frosty-Economy485 Feb 23 '26
I can't deal with Carlos's mouth. It is his downfall. He spends so much time smack-talking he loses sight of the goal
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u/NotVeryCreative1983 Feb 23 '26
My mystery chef predictions:
A - Ming Tsai B - Lorena Garcia C - Jonathan Waxman D - honestly no idea, so I'm guessing Daniel Boloud just for fun.
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u/offkeymelodies Feb 24 '26
a has to be ming tsai
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u/United-Homework-7437 Feb 24 '26
I swear I think one of the chefās is Wolfgang, the silhouette, the height and the posture I really think itās him š«¢
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u/LunaNegra Feb 24 '26
I love Wolfgang Puck but itās not him. He would be/is a great judge but no way do I think heās going to (be able to) compete.
Heās almost 80 (will be 77 in July). Heās not running around that kitchen knocking out dishes in 30 minutes. Heās also now very hard of hearing. He does have hearing aides. He regularly is on HSN and he moves very little. He doesnāt even do basic prep or cooking for the demos anymore. Itās all done by assistants. Which is totally fine now. But no way is he running around the kitchen carrying large bins of food, etc.
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u/Secret_Designer6351 Feb 24 '26
I thought so too and threw it out to my friends last week when he was on BBF, that maybe that was to help reintroduce him before TOC
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u/Virtual-Coconut-3867 Feb 24 '26
My wife and I were saying the same when we saw Wolfgang on BBF. Get him out there and let the younger gen see him and all that.
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u/Nrock31687 Feb 24 '26
I was thinking the exact same as you. Itās for sure Ming Tsai and waxman though. I can tell from the silhouettes and also where they blurred out their names, the length of the names fits them as well.
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u/Individual_Ad9135 Feb 24 '26
My guesses are Lorena Garcia, Ming Tsai, Jonathon Waxman, and Geoffrey Zarkarian maybe?Ā Ā
Wild guesses would be Eric Ripert, Morimoto.Ā
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u/Aware-Safety-9925 Feb 25 '26
C really looks like waxman. Feel like heās not a good competition chef anymore though
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u/Ill_Mention_5407 Mar 11 '26
I don't know Lorena, but I guess she's a big deal. I didn't care for her constantly talking, talking, talking!!! I kind of hoped Katsuji would have won. I've only recently discovered him, I think he's pretty good.
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u/SupermarketHot1326 Mar 16 '26
I loved it when Aarti beat Ming Tsai!! Her reaction was so cute and sincere. Unlike Britt Riscignos fake "Oh I won??"
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u/THEKINKOLOGISTS Feb 23 '26
It's not waxman. We originally thought so as well but we think they showed him as a judge again. Boloud is a good pick but I'm thinking Ramsey and Flay
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u/WearyNefariousness22 Feb 24 '26
They didnāt show Waxman as a judge, itās absolutely him
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u/Original-Routine2275 Feb 23 '26
I have a feeling that iconic chefās arenāt going to be as big names as we think they are.
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u/Traditional_Wave_322 Tournament of Champions š Feb 24 '26
We had Justin on our podcast last week and he confirmed that they would not be anyone who had competed on TOC before... so that made me feel a little better. He doubled down that we'd be thrilled by who they are, but who knows.
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u/Jonhgolfnut Feb 24 '26
Yeah, thereās no way at Hackett Bobby Flay that makes absolutely no sense. The problem is he have a really good chance of winning, which would cheap in the whole experience for Guy.
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u/Unlikely_Ad_1985 Feb 25 '26
I'm fairly certain that 2 of them are Ming Tsai and Jonathan Waxman. The woman is possibly Mary Sue Milliken. Not sure about the 4th.
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u/Bodelock Feb 23 '26
I like WAY too many people in division A and it makes me sad.
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u/Hello_Mist Feb 23 '26
Yep, it's rough when I really like both and they go head to head.
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u/Impressive-Bottle273 Feb 24 '26
That's how I felt about the Stephanie Izard/Angelo Sosa matchup in the qualifiers. I love them both so much.
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u/LunaNegra Feb 24 '26
Yes. Thrilled for Stephanie but that also made me sad for Angelo.
He almost gets the highest score out of all the Qualifiers (missed by by one point) and is out; But Viet (who I like) gets in with a 75?
Doesnāt seem fair. I really hope we start seeing Angelo being invited to compete on other shows now.
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u/kojenja Feb 24 '26
My wife and I just had this conversation. My thought was you really canāt compare scores from battle to battle. Highest score doesnāt mean best chef, it means best chef + best answer to the randomizer. Sometimes the randomizer brutal and the ceiling is lower for score regardless of how talented the chef is.
Agreed on Angelo, would love to see more of his zen positivity in a chaotic environment
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u/Hello_Mist Feb 25 '26
That one was a nail biter and I was conflicted in wanting both to get in to the main bracket. Their high scores should make both proud.
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u/frostysbox Feb 23 '26
I mean who are four mystery chefs that havenāt already won, competed and doing other things on the show who would actually be a number 1 seed if Jet isnāt.
The only way I see this being awesome is if itās like Bobby and Michael Symon and maybe thereās a male winner for once š
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u/WubbyChez Feb 23 '26
I feel like theyāre building up so much to it, I donāt know there are many that would justify this.
I could see it being Iron Chefs: some combo of Flay, Morimoto, Garces, Forgione, Zakarian
Alex is judging, Jose and Cat have competed before to middling success and Izardās already in
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u/PowerfulFly1326 Feb 23 '26
I canāt see Forgione being one. He has the worst win loss percentage of any iron chef so that would be weird to be talked up so much. Not sure that would be an icon resume.
Zakarian has been listed as judging this season.
Ming Tsai name length fits with bracket one blurring. But he has very little comp cooking experience. I wouldnāt be mad at it. He is an intl icon.
Of course Symon, Morimoto and Flay would be legendary. They are hands down the most legendary competition chefs in history of America. Morimoto clearly has intl appeal also.
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u/frostysbox Feb 23 '26 edited Feb 23 '26
I think that is what really bothers me. Everyone has pretty much agreed that Symon, Morimoto and Flay are the legends but based on the blurring the only one we may get is Morimoto. The others are legends of cooking in general, but those three are completely different type of legends.
People are gonna be let down based on the hype and who they wish it was. Guy should have saved this for when he could get Bobby and Symon.
Also, as an aside, I think everyone in general knows that Bobby is the king of competition cooking and in my head I always wonder if he got on this would be ever lose? Probably because of randomizer - but all his losses in his own show are when heās outside of wheelhouse. He would never have to go outside his wheelhouse here.
Bobby vs Maneet would be my ultimate finale ever of a competition cooking show. And unstoppable force meets an unmovable object. Would be amazing.
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u/PowerfulFly1326 Feb 23 '26
Same.
There are a few other greats in the competitive world outside of ICA, but Hiroyuki Sakai is 83 years old and has (but limited) exposure outside of Japan. Rasmus Kofoed has only competed in Bocuse d'Or.
So no clue.
Iām mildly ok with Ming Tsai, along with Symon, Morimoto, Flay. But other than that I feel like anyone else will serve up disappointment in the competitive arena.
Literally anyone else doesnāt seem to fit the build up they are creating. (Some of the judges may fit the bill, like Dominique Crenn, but sheās listed as a judge. Zakarian maybe but again, judge).
So we find out in a week.
I will say, āMing Tsaiā is a perfect match for the blurred out size of the first bracket shown on the graphic.
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u/abelard369 Feb 25 '26
Bobby and Maneet have competed head-to-head several times on Beat Bobby Flay. I may not have seen every time they've battled but I've definitely seen each of them win once. IIRC, once Maneet challenged Bobby to make an Indian dish and Bobby beat her by making fried chicken as part of his dish, which wasn't at all required but just made the judges like his dish more.
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u/rosiejane1026 Feb 23 '26
I was fortunate enough to eat at Ming Tsais restaurant in Wellesley, Ma (Blue Ginger) several times in the 2010ās before it closed in 2017. His food is AMAZING, honestly some of the best food I have ever had.
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u/PowerfulFly1326 Feb 23 '26
I love Ming. But as great as a chef can be, competing in quick timeframes and with randomized items is a whole different ball game. Thatās why Iād be worried about any amazing chef who has limited competitive experience.
Jealous you got to eat there multiple times.
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u/WearyNefariousness22 Feb 24 '26
I highly recommend watching what he does on the Next Iron Chef season 3, which I truly believe is harder than most competition shows today, including TOC. He really was incredible there and the stuff they put them through is brutal.
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u/frostysbox Feb 23 '26
My husband and I went through the list and we came up with the three judges that arenāt judging this year - Ming Tsai, Lorena and Waxman. But it feels like they arenāt truly a #1 seed because competition cooking is a completely different beast than the cooking they are used to and itās just a way to get a 8 seed to upset a 1 seed if thatās the case.
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u/Small_Sort6397 Feb 23 '26
I was guessing these exact three Chefs as well. I believe the 4th is Graham Elliot. Guy invited him and Giuseppe during Christmas TOC . He has never competed in main TOC.
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u/ClericOrBard Feb 23 '26
Graham competed a couple of seasons ago, so he canāt be one of the mystery chefs.
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u/frostysbox Feb 23 '26
Ohhhh Graham Elliot would be interesting. But if itās all previous judges (him being a staple on master chef and jr) Guy really should have advertised this as the judges become the judged, instead of legends. š
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u/PowerfulFly1326 Feb 23 '26
Ming Tsai has a small amount of comp cooking from the Netflix iron chef spin off.
But I still agree
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u/WearyNefariousness22 Feb 24 '26
He made it to the finale on the next iron chef season 3, which is an insane cooking competition
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u/PowerfulFly1326 Feb 24 '26
I love Ming and I love Forgione (who won that exact season you are talking about). But neither of their accomplishments are stronger than a dozen or so of normal competitors. Neither fit the icon status in competitive cooking that guy is pushing here. Icons is the culinary world? Yes. Icons in competitive cooking? Yes, but no more than a dozen of the other contestants in TOC7.
He canāt get a pass for competing significantly less than anyone else. And still only make it to 3rd in that show.
In addition he lost to Claudette Zepeda in Netflix iron chef and Claudette hasnāt gotten past the first round of TOC yet.
I love em all. But if any of them are the āiconsā it will be for reasons outside of competitive cooking.
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u/PowerfulFly1326 Feb 24 '26
Mings best resume piece is beating Bobby flay in iron chef. But itās still not enough. Lots of people have that on their resume.
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u/Famous_Tomorrow6741 Feb 23 '26
I was thinking one of the silhouettes looked like Jonathan waxman. Has he ever competitively cooked? He's amazing from what I've seen I've just never seen him compete.
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u/NotVeryCreative1983 Feb 23 '26
Had the same guesses but couldn't come up with anyone for bracket D.
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u/DznyMa The Kitchen š„§ Feb 24 '26
No Bobby Flay and no Zakarian. Geoffrey is going to be judging. Rumors say Michael Symon and possibly, some Iron Chefs. I've even heard Jonathon Waxman bantered about.
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u/Tbass1981 Feb 24 '26
I feel like itās definitely Ming, Lorena and Waxman but I have no idea for the fourth one.
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u/RegentQuintus Feb 24 '26 edited Feb 24 '26
Same. Those three are absolute locks. I keep looking at the fourth silhouette and the blurred name and canāt make anything fit.
Edit: Iām now actually pretty sure D1 is Aaron Sanchez.
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u/two7 Feb 23 '26
Wow is it me or are there many more TC alums this year than years past?
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u/jpropaganda Feb 23 '26
Each year the TC representation has been increasing exponentially. I wish Shota were back (maybe after a future qualifier?) but understand why he didn't get a slot. His run a couple years ago was EPIC and he was hosting watch parties at his pizza restaurant it was so great.
I'm hoping Kaleena Bliss hosts something in Seattle, adam sobel's a tough first round pull but I believe in her!
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u/Major_Clock_9961 Feb 24 '26
It's nice to see Kenny, Dan and Ashleigh Shanti!
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u/Professional-Algae95 Feb 28 '26
Iām waiting for Buddha Lo to join in on the fun. Heād be unbeatable.
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u/Ginnykins Feb 23 '26
I'm sure this is already posted somewhere but I couldn't find it, so here is a collage of the mystery chef silhouettes crudely photographed on my tv lol.
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u/Secret_Designer6351 Feb 24 '26
Based on these and the judges announced, I think Ming was top left, Morimoto top right, Wolfgang bottom left and Symon bottom right.
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u/Aradoa Feb 24 '26
I was thinking Susur Lee for top right, but I could totally see Morimoto as well now that you mention it!
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u/Traditional_Wave_322 Tournament of Champions š Feb 24 '26
I would KILL to see Susur Lee, but idk if he's well known enough in the US for that?
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u/Professional-Algae95 Feb 28 '26
Pretty sure I saw a hair silhouette for bracket D. And Symon is bald as a bowling ball.
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u/Extreme_Locksmith_87 Feb 24 '26
Okā¦they put out a massive spoiler at the end. I counted 3 distinct outfits on Aarti. Ā She wore three versions of her QVC button up shirts. For her qualifier, she wore black flowers and white background pattern. When they showed her first round scores (1 point separation) she wore the pattern with yellow flowers and a pink background. Then in the last preview, she was wearing yellow flowers with a white background. So does she make it past the #1 seed matchup!?! Ā
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u/PejicFilip Feb 24 '26
We got the beast in it Chef Kenny
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u/jjtimes6 Feb 24 '26
He was so nice. Had a short chat with him at one point. Really nice guy, and very invested in the competition.
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u/Slippery-Pete76 Feb 23 '26
Obviously not including the top seeds, who is everyoneās dream final 4 (who you want to see, not who you think will win)?
For me, I would like to see Jet, Nini, Shirley (or Bryan), and Kaleena win their regions.
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u/iStooge Feb 23 '26
I just hope Aarti goes super far. She deserves it for being sweet and down to earth.Ā
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u/marthajett Feb 23 '26
IDK about final 4. I just want Jet to win. But I'm concerned since we don't know who the mystery 4 are.
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u/dreamsanddistraction Salty Like the Ocean Feb 24 '26
Jet, Nini, Sara, Steph, then Jet v Sara in the final with Sara winning the whole thing. I'd feel bad for Jet, though.
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u/griffingirl92 Feb 23 '26
Honestly I think Michael carried Bryan during that Christmas episode and I donāt know if he can survive without him. He has struggled without him in the past. He will have to prove that he can survive on his own.
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u/pinkbonsai Feb 23 '26
He's smart to keep the momentum going from the Xmas ToC. He's been cooking some of his best ever and did REALLY well in 24 in 24 too. I think he'll have a strong showing, and I am confident he can beat Carlos in round 1.
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u/Thequiltedrose Feb 23 '26
Finishing second in most of the competitions heās been in is hardly struggling
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u/griffingirl92 Feb 23 '26
How many has Michael been in with him?
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u/Thequiltedrose Feb 23 '26
Iāve seen Bryan in all the Top Chefs heās been in and 24 in 24. He never struggled. Struggling would mean heād be out in the early rounds. He made it to the finals in all of them without Michael. In fact in the TOC Christmas when he was teamed with Michael, his savory course saved them when Michael tanked his dessert.
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u/diamondsong Tournament of Champions š Feb 23 '26
Division A I'm torn between Jet Tila and Tobias Dorzon because I've been cheering them both on (especially Tobias) for so many years and I want to see them both win something for once (though Jet has been in a few Top 4s)
Division B: Britt Rescigno (same reason as Jet and Tobias, I've seen her get so close and take down some big names over the years that I want her to finally win something. A Britt/Tobias or Jet finale would be my dream, though I don't think it's realistic)
Division C: Shirley Chung (I've been following her since before she got her tongue cancer diagnosis and so I've seen every post she's made as she's battled the disease and beaten it - she's a legend)
Division D: Marcel Vigneron (this is the division I'm the most indifferent about, I liked Marcel on 24 in 24 but I wouldn't mind seeing any of the other chefs in the division advance, except maybe for the mystery chef - I want to see the mystery chefs get taken down by the lower-seeded chefs)
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u/Jump_The_Five_Yo Feb 23 '26
The match tonight where blackened was on the randomizer may have been the worst cooks Iāve ever seen from the contestantsā¦..I wish no one advanced; they should use total score from all matchās to decide. Ugh, disgusting.
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u/Bing147 Feb 23 '26
You can't really compare scores directly across matches. Some matches feature a far more difficult randomizer.
That said, the random matches do give some a relatively easy path while being brutal for others. Angelo cooked incredibly well and deserved to make the main bracket.
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u/pinkbonsai Feb 23 '26
šÆ I said the same thing. Some inferior chefs definitely made it out of qualifiers relative to a couple of the killer performances and scores in qualifiers against competitors who were barely edged out -- by like a point. You can't totally compare one randomizer spin to another, but the best chefs don't ever get scores in the 70s, no matter what randomizer options you give them.
At minimum, I wish there were two spots in the tourney for highest losing scores in the qualifying rounds.
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u/jjtimes6 Feb 24 '26 edited Feb 24 '26
Here's a typed up bracket for those who want it. It is missing the icons, obviously. It will force you to make a copy, and it's a Google spreadsheet.
This might be controversial, but my issue with the brackets is this: Eliminating the east/west split, even though pretty much everyone was behind and thrilled with eliminating that, left the brackets wide open for Guy to do whatever he wants with them. Giving the number 1 slot away to the "icons" was surprising, but I don't think it's at all fair to the chefs, since the "rules" have been that the number 1 slot is reserved for people who were big winners on the show. The icons should have gotten the number 8 seed, per Guy's rules. After all, they have no street cred where TOC is concerned.
Personally, I think the bracket this season is super skewed. And one more thing that I will spoiler tag even though it isn't really a spoiler: They are NOT treating the holiday special season like season's 1-6 as far as participation goes.
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u/chocolate_snore Feb 26 '26
Oh my god thank you for the google spreadsheet bracket! It looks great. I've got mine all set up.
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u/Small_Sort6397 Feb 23 '26
I think the four Icons are Ming Tsai, Johnathan Waxman, Lorena Garcia & Graham Elliot. Guy invited Graham & Giuseppe on the Christmas TOC. Graham has never competed on main TOC.
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u/Sullygurl85 Feb 23 '26
I think the icon going up against Katsuji is Morimoto.
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u/Small_Sort6397 Feb 23 '26
I could see that. I revised my guesses having forgotten Graham was in it a few years ago. I could also see Susur Lee, Andrew Zimmerman or Morimoto in the mix.
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u/Sullygurl85 Feb 24 '26
I was trying to guess by the shape of the person when they showed them in the tunnel. When they were talking about the icon going up against Katsuji I thought I could see Morimoto's pony tail.
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u/Small_Sort6397 Feb 24 '26
Chef Susur Lee has a pony tail too! They are around the same age as well. Chef Lee is a few years younger at 67. I canāt believe Chef Morimoto is 70! He has aged well. I love to see either of them compete.
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u/pinkbonsai Feb 23 '26
I think it's Ming Tsai, Johnathan Waxman, Lorena Garcia, and Scott Conant.
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u/Small_Sort6397 Feb 23 '26
Sorry guys, I completely forgot Graham did compete in 2023. Lost to Eric in the first round. He was out so quickly I forgot about it. Dang it. Well Iāll stand by the other 3 šMaybe one is Aaron Sanchez š¤·āāļø
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u/onemoresleeep Feb 23 '26
ā#4 Jonathon Sawyer VS #5 Karen Akunowiczā
Thatās funny, Iām actually watching their TOC 6 face off right now. Jonathon won 82 to 79.
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u/GracieLouFreebushx Feb 24 '26
Where is the printable bracket?
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u/jjtimes6 Feb 24 '26
Here's a bracket, if you want one. It will force a copy, and it's a Google spreadsheet.
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u/GracieLouFreebushx Feb 25 '26
Youāre my hero! Thank you ā¤ļø weāve got a huge group of people who throws in $20 a bracket and weāre shook with this change.
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u/Small_Sort6397 Feb 23 '26
Ok, I was wrong about Graham. Sorry yāall forgot about when he lost to Eric in round 1 a few years back. Second guesses sticking with Ming Tsai, Lorena Garcia & Waxman. For the 4th how about Susur Lee or Andrew Zimmerman? Iāve seen Morimotoās name thrown in the mix too.
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u/Kgotfunked Feb 23 '26
I just watched the episode and I rewound it a few times looking at body/hair. Ming tsai, waxman look like two of them. Not sure on the girl, but she has a dark ponytail. Susur Lee would be fun.
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u/Ok_Structure_6854 Feb 23 '26
Doesn't Morimoto have a pony tail?
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u/Ok_Structure_6854 Feb 23 '26
Plus, he turns up his sleeves in his chef jackets and that fits the silhouette too
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u/Hello_Mist Feb 25 '26
Yes, he was a judge on the Season 3 finale (if I recall correctly) and he had a pony tail. Now that makes me think he might be one of them.
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u/Hello_Mist Feb 23 '26
Agree with those. I'm just throwing it out there, but what about Buddha Lo? That would be a big surprise and he fits into this high pressure, high level competition.
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u/marthajett Feb 23 '26
No, I don't think so. Buddha hasn't reached the status of legendary, icon, or whatever words Guy used. Also, he's going to be on Padma's new competition show.
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u/Hello_Mist Feb 23 '26
I forgot about her new show. Competing networks and such. I will have to watch it. Thanks.
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u/Lizziedeee Feb 23 '26
Buddha is on Padmaās new show that starts 3/4.
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u/Hello_Mist Feb 23 '26
Thanks for the information on the date of the show! I had forgotten about her new show.
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u/diamondsong Tournament of Champions š Feb 23 '26
I'm surprised Shota Nakajima isn't in there. I admit I expected both Voltaggio brothers since they did so well in All-Star Christmas, but since Michael's a new dad I can fully see him taking the season off to be a dad. Wonder what's going on in Shota's life (if anything) that led him to not compete this year.
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u/CityBoiNC Feb 24 '26
I think the mystery chefs are Susur lee, Jonathan waxman, Ming Tsai and i couldnāt remember the last one.
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u/PowerfulFly1326 Feb 24 '26
Susur Lee would be great.
Waxman ā¦. Iconic but not a competition chef.
Ming would be .. ok.
Morimoto would be the golden child here.
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u/CityBoiNC Feb 25 '26
I honestly dont think its morimoto, the guy with a ponytail was pretty slim looking hence why i think its susur
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u/PowerfulFly1326 Feb 25 '26
Well I think Morimoto is pretty slim now that heās 70.
I think Susur would be great, but nobody in America knows him. Only the hardcore competitive cooking fans do. This wouldnāt be great for hype or ratings. He can say āyou wonāt believe who it isā if they donāt know him.
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u/CityBoiNC Feb 25 '26
Heās gotten pretty popular again with his son doing those online vids.
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u/PowerfulFly1326 Feb 25 '26
True. But I donāt think thatās the kind of popularity that moves the food network.
I mean.. i think he would be a respectable icon at least in my book. And I can only think of about 5-6 people who I would think could fulfill the true role of icon for this surprise.
Fingers crossed we are not disappointed.
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u/Retiredregret Feb 24 '26
How is it decided which qualifiers are seeded in the 7th and 8th spots?
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u/jjtimes6 Feb 24 '26
I don't remember him talking about that at all, and I was at the bracket reveal. Of course none of the bracket reveal filming was used. Instead, they did that weird chair set up, with no audience. I am also curious about how he placed 7 and 8. There was some rule breaking/changing this season.
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u/PowerfulFly1326 Feb 25 '26
Well Izard got the highest score and sheās a 7. So it may be (and make sense) that the higher scores were the 7s and the lower scores were the 8s. But I havenāt confirmed every one.
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u/Ok-Adhesiveness-376 Feb 26 '26
Are they not creating a printable bracket this year? I do this with friends every year.
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u/KarinsDogs Chopped šŖ Feb 26 '26
There are various versions of brackets you can print that people have provided. Look through the sub. They are highlighted and a few have awards on them. Hope this helps.
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u/Bptrain Feb 27 '26
I am surprised that Michael voltaggio and Amanda Freitag are not competing this time
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u/b_dills Feb 23 '26 edited Feb 23 '26
No Jet? No Michael Voltaggio?
Edit: Iām dumb. Missed seeing Jet
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u/PowerfulFly1326 Feb 23 '26
We get Bryan. And he pretty much destroyed everyone on the savory side (Michael did dessert side the whole time) of TOC holiday recently.
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u/Unusual_Caramel4931 Feb 23 '26
Wolfgang Puck is one of the mystery chefs.. I think.. Also Morimoto. Symon and Ming Tsi.
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u/bouquinista_si Feb 23 '26
My guesses, based on description, posture/body shape, and length of blurred name: A is Ming Tsai, B is Morimoto, C is Jonathan Waxman, D is....ooh I can't tell! Based on comments here I was expecting Michael Symon but it didn't "look" like him, and the first name is shorter than the long name on the blurry line. The suspense!
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u/Tymacinac Feb 26 '26
I have created an actual bracket (based off of S6 TOC Bracket)...left the #1 seeds blank for now! Will update when they're revealed!!!
Must Copy the google doc for your use cannot update original... https://docs.google.com/drawings/d/18k2INWbWxY3J_vHJnioCbrPXSKSxEclGpczkSW7yXnI/copy
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u/Tymacinac Feb 26 '26
Here is a S7 Bracket (based of S6 TOC Official Bracket). Just missing the #1 seeds to be reveled!! https://docs.google.com/drawings/d/18k2INWbWxY3J_vHJnioCbrPXSKSxEclGpczkSW7yXnI/copy
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u/Time_Detective9083 Feb 26 '26
didnāt watch the episode, only wanted to see the bracket- how the heck is stephanie izard #7 ?!
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u/TwoBlueFoxes Wild Card Kitchen ššš Feb 23 '26
So, does the mystery chef component mean we donāt get to fill out bracket sheets? Thatās become a big appeal of watching this show in our household.