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Season 1 winner Harold Dieterle was both a heck of a nice guy and pretty dominant in the kitchen throughout the first season. While the food in the finale from Harold and runner up Tiffani Faison sounded about equal, Harold came out on top when everyone remembered that they liked him more than her.
Since taking his $100,000 winnings, Harold has opened three restaurants in New York: Perilla, Kin Shop, and The Marrow. Unfortunately, they have since closed.
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Much of Ilan's season 2 food looked unbelievably delicious. Fideo with clams and saffron? Yes, please. However, his reputation was tarnished by his involvement in a physical altercation between Cliff, and season villain Marcel, that got Cliff booted from the show. Ilan went on to save face by defeating Marcel in the finale.
With his Top Chef winnings Ilan opened The Gorbals in downtown Los Angeles, as well as a Brooklyn location, Gorbals, which opened in 2014. Catch Ilan hosting Knife Fight on the Esquire Network.
Marcel Vigneron
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Marcel was not nice during his season. He did engender some sympathy when Cliff and Ilan tried to shave his head, but it also seemed like he brought it on himself with his disrespectful treatment of the other contestants. It was satisfying to see his silly frozen salad dressing tear drops literally dissolve in the humid weather, along with his chances to win.
After losing in the season 2 finale, Marcel has made a number of TV appearances. Besides returning to Top Chef in several different incarnations, he has appeared on Cutthroat Kitchen: Superstar Sabotage, Guy's Grocery Games, Food Fighters, and Iron Chef in addition to a six episode run of his own show, Marcel's Quantum Kitchen.
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Hung didn't exactly dominate season 3, but he was a strong competitor throughout. Although Hung cooked almost exclusively Asian cuisine, he might have benefited from a lack of serious competition in his season. Perhaps the most memorable thing about his time on Top Chef was the way he would run frantically through the kitchen, with many near collisions with other contestants.
Hung is one winner who did not subsequently open his own restaurant. However, he did work with the EMM Group to help them open three restaurants: Catch, The General, and Catch Miami (which later closed). Hung is known particularly for his seafood.
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Stephanie did very consistent work throughout her season, despite not demonstrating a whole lot of personality. By winning season 4 she became the first female Top Chef though many fans believed the title should have gone to Richard Blais. Blais's cooking dominated the season, but when he "choked" in the finale Stephanie was able to grab the title.
After her win Stephanie was able to open Girl and the Goat in Chicago. The restaurant was well received and led to her Girl In The Kitchen cookbook.
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Known as the least entertaining Top Chef winner, Hosea did stir up some controversy by canoodling with one of the female cheftestants. Hosea's season focused much more on the brash Europeans, Fabio and Stefan. Stefan had a decent chance to win in the finale, but lost to Hosea when the judges found Stefan's dessert uninspired.
After Top Chef Hosea founded the Blackbelly line of culinary businesses, catering weddings and farm to table food events.
Carla Hall
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Before she appeared on Top Chef Carla Hall had already been both an accountant and a model. She started at a food delivery service before becoming a restaurant chef, and then a caterer. On season 5 she was consistently upbeat and likable. She cooked unfussy food and claimed that love was the most important ingredient.
After her loss in season 5, Carla reappeared on Top Chef: All Stars in season 8, where she won fan favorite. Carla made appearances demonstrating her cooking and philosophy around the talk show circuit before landing a lucrative regular gig on the weekday talk show The Chew.
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Fabio Viviani showed clear cooking skills throughout season 5, at least when he was able to cook Italian food. Fabio brought Italian flair to the show not only with his cooking, but with the gregarious personality that won him fan favorite for the season and made his bromance with Stefan Richter one of Top Chef's more entertaining subplots.
Since appearing on the show, Fabio has built himself into quite a brand. He has made television appearances, opened numerous restaurants, penned cookbooks, and even sold cookware on QVC (the ladies love him). Fabio also runs the Mercato chain and Siena Tavern in Chicago.
Paul Qui
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Paul Qui powered through season 9 so hard that the producers actually edited the show to make him seem less dominant and preserve a bit of uncertainty. Head judge Tom Colicchio even called him the best chef in Top Chef history. He won half of the season's 16 challenges, picking up a nice chunk of bonus money on top of the finale winnings.
Paul opened Qui in Austin, Texas, and it was named 2014's best new restaurant in America by GQ. He's had some struggles with the law and his image since then.
Nina Compton
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Nina brought a positive, respectful attitude to the show. She stayed focused and calm under pressure, consistently squeezing the best notes out of her Caribbean style. One thing Top Chef shows is that no chef is 100 percent consistent. She had an off day at the wrong time and just barely lost the finale.
With family ties to the ruler of St. Lucia and a great Top Chef performance under her belt, Nina has become the Culinary Ambassador of St. Lucia. She's also become a beloved chef in her adopted hometown of New Orleans.
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