Who is Gregory Gourdet? The 'Top Chef Amateurs' judge is a best-selling author

Gregory Gourdet is back on 'Top Chef Amateurs' to support the new chefs in their culinary journey on the show

BY AURELIA FERNANDES

PUBLISHED JUL 1, 2021

For 24 amateur cooks, the opportunity of a lifetime is here, seeing that they are all set to feature on 'Top Chef Amateurs'. Bravo's latest cooking show will see these chefs taking on some classic challenges, with a bit of help from the show's alumni, who will be cooking alongside them, providing them with the support they need.

If you're looking for other culinary shows to check out, you might want to consider 'MasterChef Legends', 'The Chef Show', 'Chopped Junior' and 'BBQ Brawl'.

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Who is Chef Gregory Gourdet?

Born in 1975 in New York City to Haitian parents, Gregory Gourdet was raised in Queens. He graduated from The Culinary Institute of America and was mentored by chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten.

He went on to compete in the 12th season of 'Top Chef' and returned for 'Top Chef: All-Stars' in 2020. He was also a part of the rotating judges' panel for Season 18 of the show.

He was the executive chef and culinary director of Departure at The Nines in Portland, Oregon, and at Departure in Denver. He is also the owner of Kann PDX, a restaurant that draws from flavours and cuisines worldwide while focusing on his Haitian heritage.

A published author

Apart from being a chef and a TV personality, Gourdet is also a published author, seeing that he co-wrote a book with J J Goode, titled 'Everyone's Table: Global Recipes for Modern Health' which was published earlier this year, in May.

In a conversation with KGW8, Gourdet spoke about how the book caters to everyone. "Everyone's Table is a health cookbook. It is a paleo-friendly cookbook. So it's, gluten-free, dairy-free, soy-free, it's refined sugar free, it's legume free, but it's really a book that's designed for everyone at the table," he explained. The book is currently listed as a bestseller list at Powell's and was named as one of Esquire's most anticipated cookbooks of 2021.

"So even if you're not any of those things, you can eat any of the recipes and you won't think something's missing," said Gourdet.

The book is rather extensive and covers a range of cuisines. "There are 200 recipes and they all feature global flavors, talking about incorporating different spice mixes into your pantry, working with fish sauce or with different types of chilies. And I also tap into my Haitian heritage. So there's a collection of Haitian recipes as well." Gourdet explained.

On 'Top Chef Amateurs', Gourdet makes a comeback as part of the 'Top Chef' alum to help the amateur cooks as they race against the clock while tackling challenges. He will also be a part of the judge's panel this season, alongside Eric Adjepong, Richard Blais, Shirley Chung, Stephanie Cmar, Jennifer Caroll, Tiffany Derry, Joe Flamm, Melissa King, Kwame Onwuachi, Dale Talde and Isaac Toups.

Catch Bravo's 'Top Chef Amatuers' on July 1, 2021, at 9/8c.