In a sea of unscripted shows that prioritize conflict and drama, Kristen Kish knows that Top Chef stands apart. Serving as the longest-running series in Bravo’s repertoire, the show has outrun franchise staples like The Real Housewives of Orange County and Below Deck. Kish, who won the reality cooking competition in 2013 and joined as host just two years ago, knows exactly what to attribute Top Chef’s longevity to.

“When we look at Bravo as a whole, there are a lot of different kinds of reality television. This is the one that is a career-driven culinary competition,” she says. “The one thing we all have in common is, on every show, there is eating, there’s food. I like being the anchor and defining another space on Bravo and reality television. I think that has translated outward, not only in the Bravo universe, but in the reality television competition scope.” 

Another unique aspect of Top Chef’s piece in the larger unscripted puzzle is its continuous cycle of new contestants and filming locations across the U.S. (and even a few international locales). 

“Our culinary landscape is being defined by different people every single season. These people come on [Top Chef], we’re introduced to them, we learn different things about what other cuisines are, and that completely translates back into the real world,” Kish says. “When you look at competition reality television, there is no greater [format], to me, that translates from on camera to off camera, and the integrity of the show remains intact.” 

Kish, who has received Emmy nominations for each of the two seasons she has hosted, notes that her past participation as a contestant plays a large factor in how she guides episodes.

“I know what [Top Chef] means for someone’s career, what it could do for you and how life-changing it can be. It changed my life even before hosting. Immediately after I got spit out from competing on season 10, my life started to shift in really wonderful, beautiful ways,” she says. “I understand that, of course, you want to be the last person standing, but I also understand, every step of the way, how that pressure builds upon each [competitor].”

This year, as a hopeful reality competition host nominee and proponent of Top Chef earning another reality competition series nom, Kish finds herself in a unique position as a participant on season four of fellow Emmys juggernaut The Traitors. She’s the only person who’s competed on the murder mystery show who’s also been nominated alongside Alan Cumming in the Emmy reality competition host category (which he’s won the past two years, ending RuPaul’s eight-year streak as host of RuPaul’s Drag Race, in 2024 ­— see page 28 for more). She and Cumming didn’t discuss this tidbit while filming in Scotland, but “it was an unspoken recognition,” she says.

“I don’t look at Traitors and them being nominated as a win for me,” she admits of the Peacock series. “I will be happy for them if they win. I will be happier for us if we win.”

Top Chef was recently renewed for a 24th season, and Kish is looking forward to continuing her tenure as the show’s leading woman. After taking over hosting duties from Padma Lakshmi in season 21, Kish is now the undeniable face of the series, one that represents the continuously evolving future of its programming, which prioritizes culinary skillfulness.

“Having been someone that has competed, judged and now hosted, I’ve seen the full 360, and I can confidently tell you [Top Chef] is everything that I expected it to be. Being a competitor, hoping that what we do as the chef is taken as seriously as it is behind the scenes,” Kish says. “The chefs come first, and the food always comes first.”