A recent article about the reopening of the Malibu Inn had an interesting note for any fan of reality TV food shows. The new chef was none other than recent Top Chef All Stars contestant Angelo Sosa. If you live in Los Angeles, or visit here, the chances are you will end up eating at a restaurant run by someone you've seen compete on either the Food Network or Bravo TV.
Stefan RIchter from Top Chef Season 5 is the chef of the very successful LA Farm in Santa Monica. CJ Jacobson from Season 3 is the chef of The Yard, a "gastropub" also in Santa Monica. Sweetsalt Food Shop in Toluca Lake is a casual bistro run by Season 5 contestant Alex Eusebio. Betty Fraser from Season 2 was already owner of Grub when she went on the show and the favorite of the brunch crowd is still going strong.
Season 2 winner, and occasional head-shaver, Ilan Hall runs the Gorbals, a restaurant one hopes is tastier than its name. Meanwhile, fan favorite Fabio Viviani can be found at Cafe Firenze in Moorpark. Not surprisingly, it's Italian. Serial realty TV participant and LA-based chef Brian Hill not only had a brief stint on Top Chef, where he famously reminded us after his early departure "don't get it twisted," but also appears on Food Network's Private Chefs.
But it's not just reality TV restaurant chefs you can find in the greater LA area. If you have a sweet tooth, you can find championship deserts here as well. Food Network's Cupcake Wars "Hard Rock" winner Dorothy Tong runs Cupcake and Cookie in Thousand Oaks while Sweet Arleen's of Westlake Village won the Cupcake Wars "Film Festival Face-Off."
If you live in Los Angeles, what reality TV contestant's food have you had? Was it a winner?
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