Bryan Voltaggio is so gonna bury bro Michael

The first thing I wanted to know from Bryan Voltaggio is why. Why did the former executive chef at Charlie Palmer Steak and the current chef/owner of his own restaurant, VOLT, in Frederick feel the need to appear on Season 6 of Top Chef? He, of all people, doesn’t seem to need the career bump that comes from allowing Bravo to manipulate the crap out of a chef’s public image. I mean, he’s not Carla Hall.

It seems Voltaggio has his motivations, and it concerns a certain younger brother, Michael Voltaggio, the chef de cuisine at the Bazaar by José Andrés.

“There’s always been a bit of sibling rivalry between us,” Bryan Voltaggio tells Y&H. “We wanted to prove who’s the best.”

Read More “The New Spin for Next Season’s ‘Top Chef’: Sibling Rivalry!” »

Mike Isabella from Zaytinya: Top Chef material

When Mike Isabella got the call to appear on Season 6 of Top Chef, the Zaytinya chef apparently didn’t want to do it. It took a little urging from THINKfoodGROUP’s big daddy, José Andrés, before the chef decided to pack his knives and go onto the show. So says Andrés, who has a little experience with food TV himself.

“I said, ‘You have to do it,’” Andrés told Y&H this afternoon. “I said, ‘I want you to do it.’”

And so Isabella is one of 17 contestants who will appear on Season 6, which debuts on Wednesday, Aug. 26, in Las Vegas. Isabella is not the only D.C. area toque to compete this season. VOLT chef/owner Bryan Voltaggio is also a contestant, as is Voltaggio’s brother, Michael, who’s chef de cuisine at the Bazaar by José Andrés in Los Angeles. Whew, it’s getting rather incestuous in here.

Read More “Jose Andres Thinks His Zaytinya Chef Will Stick Around After ‘Top Chef’ Appearance” »

At Sunday night’s RAMMY awards, I had the pleasure of sitting at the same table as Carla Hall, who may be the nicest person on earth, and Ariane Duarte, who was introduced to me as yet another former Top Chef contestant making the rounds. That’s when my embarrassment meter went into the red zone. I couldn’t remember Duarte — and couldn’t immediately cop to the minor embarrassment.

Finally, after sitting there for what seemed like an eternity, I turned to Duarte and asked some questions about her Top Chef experience in hopes of jump-starting my memory. She was kind enough to give me the hint I needed. “They called me the Cougar,” she said.

A light flipped on inside the dull fog of my brain. “I’m sitting next to The Coogs?” I said. “That’s awesome!”

Did I mention that I had a glass or two of wine in me?

Read More “There Is Life After ‘Top Chef’ for The Cougar” »

Heading into tomorrow night’s Top Chef finale, D.C.-based caterer Carla Hall tells ZagatBuzz that she has no interest in opening her own restaurant. That would put her in the minority of Top Chef finalists, winners or not. Ilan Hall, Sam Talbot, Harold Dieterle, Hung Huynh, and Stephanie Izard, among others, have all either opened or are planning to open their own restaurants.

Not Hall. She tells Olga Boikess:

Read More “If Carla Hall Becomes the Next ‘Top Chef,’ She Doesn’t Want Her Own Restaurant” »