Spoiler alert: This season of “Top Chef: Texas” is living up to its name.
Only two contestants are left heading into next week’s finale, and (spoiler alert: we really mean it this time) Austinite Paul Qui is one of them. Qui earned a place in the finale and won a trip to Costa Rica last night with his dish of king crab with sunchoke chips, lobster broth and lemon snow.
Austin American-Statesmanfood writers Annie Broyles and Nicole Villalpando say that Uchiko chef Qui “will either win “Top Chef Texas” or, in what would be the biggest upset in “Top Chef” history, come in second to Chicago chef Sarah Grueneberg.”
The episode recap at HitFlix also voices support for Qui, calling him “a very talented chef” who has “shown the most creativity in his dishes thus far.”
Qui seems an odds-on favorite to win: a tally of previous challenges shows he led the “cheftestants” this season with eight wins. Maybe time to get those Uchiko reservations while you still can?
The “Top Chef: Texas” finale is next Wednesday, Feb. 29.
