Zach Laidlaw came up short in the “Next Level Chef” season finale.
Laidlaw, a professional chef who trained at Elgin Community College, and Christina Miros, a nurse and home chef from New Jersey, lost the final challenge to Gabi Chappel, a social media chef based in Brooklyn, who netted the $250,000 prize and a year-long internship with the three celebrity chefs.
The finale had the three remaining contestants receiving a surprise visit from family members before being asked to prepare appetizers in the basement kitchen, a seafood dish in the mid-level kitchen and a main course entree in the top-level kitchen in just 90 minutes.
Each course was judged by the three celebrity chefs, Gordon Ramsay, Richard Blais and Nyesha Arrington.
Because Chappel had used two minutes less than Laidlaw and three minutes less than Miros in the first two rounds, she was given a two-minute head start on Laidlaw in gathering the ingredients and starting on her final dish.
For his appetizer, Laidlaw prepared scallops with a ponzu beurre blanc sauce served with a fennel and corn succotash.
The judges found his dish to be colorful and flamboyant with a rich but slightly off sauce. Ramsay said the scallops were cooked beautifully.
For his seafood plate, Laidlaw chose sea bass, which he pan seared with the skin on and served it with a buttermilk froth and an oyster wreath.
Blais said the dish was artistic and had pop. Arrington found it to be an amazing feat.
For his main course, Laidlaw prepared a filet mignon with truffles, mashed potatoes and chanterelle mushrooms. However, he forgot to grab a wine and had to improvise a sauce made with bourbon.
Blais called it was a safe, classic dish with a mystery flavored sauce. Ramsay said Laidlaw should have used wine while Arrington found the filet to be rich and robust.
During their deliberations, the judges said that each contestant had the best dish for one of the courses, with Laidlaw’s being his sea bass.
Ramsay, however, mentioned Laidlaw’s tendency during the season to over labor his preparations.
Ultimately, they chose Chappel as the champion. She prepared pork meatballs in a broth for her appetizer, a sea bream with roasted grapes for the fish entree and a modern take on borscht with New York strip steak for her main course.
“What a performance — all of you,” Ramsay said before announcing the winner.
Of being on the show, Laidlaw said,”This journey has been one helluva a ride, an experience of a lifetime.”
A Burlington native, Laidlaw lost his condo and most of his possessions last August in the fires that devastated Maui. He works as executive chef and vice president of experiences at Hua Momona Farms on the island.
Laidlaw and Hua Momona Farms have been involved in providing food and other relief efforts related to the fires. He also oversees farm-to-table dining events for 12 or more people, where prices start at $700 for a six-course meal to $1,200 for an ultimate 12-course meal.
Mike Danahey is a freelance reporter for The Courier-News.
