Here’s why I think Chef Julia Chebotar deserved to be eliminated from Yes, Chef!

Yes, Chef! a new addition to the long list of fan-favorite cooking shows, premiered on April 28, 2025. It features Martha Stewart and the accomplished chef José Andrés as judges. Yes, Chef! is different from other cooking shows because it doesn't just judge its contestants by their cooking prowess but also by their temperament.

The contestants were sent to the show by their colleagues and friends because they thought these chefs needed to control their temper or their erratic behavior. Martha and José's job was to present the kind of challenges that would test their patience with people, leadership, and teamwork.

Chef Julia Chebotar was deemed one of the three people whose voices weren't being heard when it came to leading the group. This quality was something that Martha and José thought was paramount for a chef.

So they made her a leader of a team that consisted of Chef Zain Ismail and Chef Ronny Miranda. She had to guide them to compete against the other two teams. If they lost, the team members and the captain would have to compete against each other in the final elimination cook-off. Julia's team lost, so she faced off against her teammates and lost again, getting eliminated.

Disclaimer: This article contains the author's personal opinions.

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Why Julia's Yes, Chef! elimination was deserving

Julia Chebotar had two chances to avoid the elimination. She could have dodged the cook-off altogether if she had managed to make her team win in the first round. But one poor decision, made in good hope, ruined her chances.

In the first Yes, Chef! challenge, the team captain had to only guide the chefs and not make a dish themselves. So Julia didn't have to cook, but only had to guide Zain and Ronny to make their dishes. She then had to choose the best dish out of the two to present to the judges, while the other dish would run cold.

She first presented Zain's dish to the judges, which was an “Elote” Corn Dog, Pickled Red Chili, Lime & Chili Seasoning, made per the Elevated Hotdog theme. Her team didn't win this round, and the reason could've been bad luck or the fact that she judged those dishes poorly. Julia rejected Ronny's dish, solely because she considered it "too simple," and not because she believed Zain's would taste better.

She faltered in the second round of Elevated Nachos when she chose to present Ronny's dish, simply because she had presented Zain's dish in the first round. She didn't consider the fact that their whole team could go to the cook-off if Ronny's dish wasn't up to the mark. Julia didn't check if Zain's dish was better than Ronny's. Instead, she simply presented the latter's dish to be judged because she wanted to give him a chance.

On the other hand, the other team leaders, Chef Peter Richardson and Chef Jake Lawler, chose to present dishes from team members whose dishes had already been judged in the first round. They didn't think of playing a "fair" game by giving the other member a chance. Instead, they based their judgment on the better dish.

These Yes, Chef! captains got their team members mad because their dishes weren't presented for judging in either of the two rounds. However, their decision saved them from entering the final cook-off. Had Julia chosen Zain's dish again, she might have saved herself from getting eliminated.

Then, during the Yes, Chef! cook-off, Julia made Grilled Lettuce Salad with Grilled Oyster, Lemon Vinaigrette with Shallot & Vanilla. While she incorporated the vanilla given to her as a mandatory ingredient, Martha Stewart thought the lettuce was too delicate to be grilled. Zain also fumbled his gnocchi, but the grilled lettuce was clearly more bothersome to the judges, so they sent her home.

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New episodes of Yes, Chef! aires on Mondays at 10 pm ET on NBC.