Who was eliminated in 24 in 24: Last Chef Standing season 2 episodes 2 and 3? Details explored

24 in 24: Last Chef Standing season 2 returned with episodes 2 and 3 on Sunday, May 4, airing on Food Network. The competition picked up immediately with the head-to-head battle teased in the premiere.

Stephanie Izard and Lawrence “LT” Smith, who both chose the 'breakroom' option in episode 1 to avoid competing, were forced into a culinary face-off that resulted in Smith’s elimination. Later in the episode, another contestant, Laurence Louie, was sent home during the noodle dish challenge.

These two eliminations narrowed the field, intensifying the pressure on the remaining chefs. Hosted by Michael Symon and Esther Choi, 24 in 24: Last Chef Standing pits top culinary professionals against each other in consecutive challenges with no rest, pushing their skill, speed, and adaptability to the limits.

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24 in 24: Last Chef Standing: How the eliminations unfolded

The first elimination of the night on 24 in 24: Last Chef Standing came from a head-to-head match between Stephanie Izard and Lawrence “LT” Smith. In episode 2, these chefs were given peanut butter, jelly, and bread and tasked with making a refined PB&J lunch.

They were allowed to choose only three additional ingredients from the pantry. Izard selected apples, cheddar cheese, and onion to craft a soup and sandwich combo, while Smith chose miso, anchovies, and lettuce for a PB&J Caesar salad.

Their dishes were judged by Graham Elliot. Following the tasting, Smith was eliminated from 24 in 24: Last Chef Standing. After Smith’s exit, the remaining 12 chefs participated in a blind taste test challenge.

They had to identify seven out of twelve ingredients in a pasta dish, excluding basics like pasta, salt, pepper, butter, and olive oil. The identifiable ingredients included arugula, basil, garlic, sun-dried tomatoes, lemon juice, pistachios, and parmesan. The outcome of this challenge directly determined the number of ingredients each chef could use in the subsequent noodle-making round.

In this noodle challenge, Izard, having just defeated Smith, earned the Golden Knife from Kevin Lee. This gave her the ability to use one additional ingredient and remove one from a competitor.

She used her advantage to reduce Lee’s available ingredients by one. Most chefs identified three or four ingredients, while Kathleen O'Brien-Price, Nini Nguyen, and Kelsey Murphy correctly guessed five. Izard used her three ingredients, plus the essentials and homemade pasta exemption, to compete.

The winner of the noodle challenge was Jonathon Sawyer, who earned $2400 and the Golden Knife. Laurence Louie, one of the newer faces in the 24 in 24: Last Chef Standing competition, was eliminated after this round, reducing the contestant count to 11.

Sawyer then used his Golden Knife power to pick six difficult ingredients for the next challenge: pimento cheese, Carolina Reaper peppers, strawberry milk, dried scallops, carrot tops, and shell-on pistachios.

The final elimination challenge in episode 3 required the chefs to prepare a three-course black-tie meal — an appetizer, entree, and dessert — within a total of 60 minutes. Guest judge Jet Tila, a four-time Tournament of Champions finalist, oversaw this round.

The top four appetizer dishes, selected by Tila, allowed their chefs to skip the entree round. These were Jonathon Sawyer, Kathleen O'Brien-Price, Nini Nguyen, and Gabe Bertaccini. Tila reflected on the 20-minute appetizer, stating:

“That was insane! What just happened?!”

After the entree round, four more chefs advanced and were spared from the dessert challenge: Kelsey Murphy, Stephanie Izard, Elia Ambourad, and Bryan Voltaggio.

This left Kevin Lee, Damaris Phillips, and Brittany Anderson to battle it out in the dessert round. Ultimately, no further elimination was confirmed on-screen in episode 3 after Laurence Louie.

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24 in 24: Last Chef Standing airs Sundays at 8 pm ET/PT on Food Network, hosted by Michael Symon and Esther Choi.