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Yes, Chef!, NBC's newest food competition series premiered on April 28, 2025, with 12 talented chefs. While the contestants were seasoned and skilled, they lacked important traits like composure, calmness, the will to collaborate, communication, and more. They were sent to the contest by their colleagues and dear ones, who hoped to see a positive change in their attitudes.
Not everyone could change their behavior or adapt quickly, and it ended up hurting their chances in the competition. One example was Chef Torrece "Chef T" Gregoire, owner of Union 41 in Bristol, Virginia. She had been on Hell's Kitchen twice before but was eliminated both times for her blunt attitude. Her line cook nominated her for Yes, Chef! hoping she’d improve her communication, but she didn’t.
In episode 2 of Yes, Chef!, Chef T got eliminated after she used more than the allotted time in a relay-type team challenge, depriving her teammates of a fair opportunity to cook their dishes. She intruded on the time slots of her teammates, eventually costing her team the victory.
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Her team leader, Michelle Francis, was not pleased with her demeanor, and rightfully so. Consequently, she nominated Chef T for elimination and ended her journey on Yes, Chef! I strongly believe Chef T deserved to go home after she selfishly used the time for herself and did not think about the bigger picture — the team's victory.
Not only that, she even argued to deflect blame, which painted a negative image of her. Thus, I agree with Michelle's decision, convinced Chef T deserved to be punished for her misdeed.
What led to Chef T's elimination in Yes, Chef!?
In episode 2 of Yes, Chef!, the contestants were split into two teams of five for a Trust Fall Relay challenge. Each team was given 90 minutes to prepare five appetizers with limited ingredients. Since only one chef could be in the kitchen at a time, it meant that each of them had 18 minutes to make their dish.
It was evident that to succeed in the challenge, the teams had to function like a well-oiled machine and adhere to the time limit, or they would leave the rest with insufficient preparation time.
"This challenge is going to require a lot of teamwork but also a lot of trust. There is plenty of time to make great dishes but only if they communicate throughout the entire challenge," co-Yes, Chef! host and judge José Andrés explained.
Chef T landed on the blue team alongside Chef Emily, Chef Michelle, Chef Chris, and Chef Lee. As the relay started, Chef Emily cooked first, serving the judges white bean and anchovy dip with chips. Both Martha and José praised the dish.
Then came Chef T, who took close to 30 minutes in the kitchen to prepare her dish, enraging her teammates who were due to cook next. However, her loaded baked potato puff garnered appreciation from the Yes, Chef! panelists. In my opinion, it was selfish and inconsiderate of Chef T to take up so much time without thinking about the ramifications of her actions.
Since the show focused on self-development and the challenge was about team spirit, Chef T could have utilized the opportunity to work on both. Better communication and thinking about the team instead of her personal victory would have reflected better on her performance.
However, the moment she decided to make the challenge about herself and her dish, I knew her intentions were not right.
Since she took longer to cook, Michelle, who followed suit, could only prepare a grilled cheese. As captain, she wanted to ensure her team had enough time to cook, so she prepared whatever she could in the time left. Her efforts were not appreciated by the experts.
Since Michelle had to pivot, she used the bread for the sandwich. Chef Chris, who had thought of making mushroom bruschetta, now had insufficient bread to cook with. Consequently, he also had to change his plan. It was due to Chef T's actions that the rest of her teammates had to compromise and present underwhelming dishes to the judges.
Naturally, they were furious with the Yes, Chef! star, but Chef T refused to take accountability.
"Michelle thinks that she's a perfectionist, but she's full of excuses, you know, that's line cook mentality. I thought you were a chef," Chef T said.
It was surprising to see how adamant Chef T was in her consistent refusal to understand the repercussions of her decision. Instead of realizing her mistake, she criticized Michelle for not wanting to cook in the final battle. Although everyone knows it is a cooking show, I am certain everyone wants to avoid landing in the bottom two. Thus, Chef T's logic seemed rather odd.
In the final cook-off between Michelle and Emily, Michelle emerged victorious and nominated Chef T for elimination. In my opinion, it was a just and wise decision, especially after the stunt she had pulled in the kitchen. The Yes, Chef! evictee deserved to get eliminated because she seemed individualistic rather than willing to embrace a teamwork ethos.
Stream Yes, Chef! episodes on Peacock.
