B.C.’s ‘Top Chef Canada’ Contestants: Where Are They Now?

Top Chef Canada has seen dozens of competitors from B.C. come through its famed kitchens in its 12 seasons on air and, while we might be a bit biased (okay, a lot biased), we think the abundance of fresh Pacific seafood and produce available on the West Coast might give these folks a distinct advantage over their land-locked competitors.

Mijune Pak, one of the show’s judges and a fellow Vancouverite, believes there’s also a correlation between the diversity of our city (“We’re so well known for our Asian food and Chinese food”) and the success of the coastal chefs. 

“They’re very well versed in a lot of different cuisines. They’ve also done a lot of stages and have worked in kitchens globally,” she says.

With two Vancouver competitors that absolutely slayed in the past season alone, Vancouver magazine decided to catch up with some of the most memorable B.C. chefs from the country’s favourite culinary competition to see what they’ve gotten up to after the cameras stopped rolling, and what they really thought of the experience.

Season 2

TREVOR BIRD

(Vancouver)

Runner-up on his season and then clinching third spot on Top Chef Canada All-Stars, Bird went on to open Fable Diner and start a family in 2016. After spending 25 years in the restaurant industry (“I wore the late nights and grind culture as a badge of honour,” he says), he has pivoted to running a business as a coach and educator—helping people “make sense of inner conflict.”  Though he hasn’t stayed in touch with his fellow competitors on Top Chef, he calls the show experience genuinely life-changing. “I wouldn’t be where I am today without it,” he says.

Season 3

MATT STOWE

(Vancouver)

Stowe won his season, returned as a judge on several subsequent seasons and guest judged on season 22 of the U.S. version of Top Chef. The executive chef of the Joey Restaurant Group for the past seven years, Stowe, who now lives in the Fraser Valley, is about to open the group’s 36th location, in San Diego. He creates all new menu items and steers the brand’s culinary trajectory as it expands across North America.

Stowe looks back fondly on the show, saying being completely cut off from the world (“No phones, no internet, no books, nothing”) felt freeing because it allowed him to fully focus on the creativity of his dishes. Would he go back on All-Stars? “I’d love to,” he says.

Season 6

Mark Singson

(Vancouver)

Singson was the runner-up on his season. “The one who didn’t take the cake,” he muses. He says it was a great experience, adding that he still keeps in touch with a few chefs in his cohort.

Since filming, he’s been doing pop-ups, private dinners, events, “personal cheffing abroad” and lots of eating. He credits travelling for work for re-inspiring his creativity and love of Filipino cuisine. As for what’s to come, Singson is re-launching his Filipino-inspired Mabuhay curated dinner series and some “cheeky collabs” in Vancouver and other cities, so stay tuned. “The work never stops,” he says.

Season 7

PAUL MORAN

(Tofino)

Season 7 saw a trio of talented B.C. chefs, with Moran, the king of foraging (he regularly trotted out foraged ingredients from Tofino throughout taping), clinching the title in a nailbiter finale.

Since his win, Moran says a highlight has been opening Sixty Forty in Saanich, a 47-acre organic farm, event space and catering hub where farm partners grow large swaths of fresh produce. This spring he’s opening phase one of a luxury beachfront accommodation, Ancient Dunes, in Haida Gwaii—a dream in the making for 12 years. Moran, who “used every penny” of his show winnings to help buy the land for the project, says he has no regrets about going on Top Chef Canada. “I would do it all again in a heartbeat,” he says. 

Season 7

PHIL SCARFONE

(Vancouver)

The runner-up to Paul Moran, Scarfone calls Top Chef Canada the toughest mental and physical competition he’s ever endured. But it also showed him what he was capable of “when fear of failure gets overridden by adrenaline.”

Since leaving his head chef role at Nightingale, Scarfone has been the culinary director for the Banda Volpi hospitality group for the past six years—crediting the opening of Elio Volpe in 2024 as a highlight (“It has been a massive success!”). He’s also currently starting a side hustle crafting a “beautiful” collagen-rich bone broth. Is he game for an All-Stars appearance? “Absolutely. I’m always up for a challenge.”

Season 7

DENNIS PECKHAM

(Port Moody)

Part of a trifecta of B.C. chefs on his season, Peckham made it through five episodes, a place he’s proud of given the “outstanding” competition. Like Moran, he’d do the show again “in a heartbeat”: “You get a break from the reality of daily restaurant life—sick calls, late deliveries, personality conflicts—and are able to focus solely on cooking delicious food,” he says.

Since filming, he returned to Fairmont hotels for a spell and was the corporate executive chef for Glowbal Restaurant Group for the past five years (“I’ve been very fortunate”). This spring, Peckham is moving to Niagara on the Lake in Ontario as he embarks on a new journey: culinary director for several wineries and a hotel opening mid-2027.

Season 9

ANDREA ALRIDGE

(Vancouver)

Alridge, then chef de cuisine at CinCin in Vancouver, placed third in the finale of the 2021 season. She says filming during the pandemic brought a lot of the competitors together, and she calls her experience “enlightening, terrifying and positive all at once.”

Since the show, she became the head chef at Osteria Savio Volpe and is now the executive chef at stylish Janevca Kitchen and Lounge in the Rosemead House Hotel in Esquimalt, which recently re-opened after a $20M glow up. “This was a huge project and still a work in progress,” she says.

Season 10

VISH MAYEKAR

(Vancouver)

Mayekar, who made it into the top five, calls the competition one of the most challenging yet fulfilling things he has done in his life, and he still keeps in touch with most of the competitors, including Dez Lo. (“She’s still celebrating how she beat me!” he laughs.)

After the show, Mayekar led Caffè La Tana and Pepino’s Spaghetti House (the same year La Tana took gold for Best Italian at Vanmag’s Restaurant Awards). He was part of the opening team at Elio Volpe, and in 2024 opened his “dream project,” Elem on Main Street, landing a spot on the Canada’s 100 Best list and taking home Best New at the 2026 Vancouver Magazine Restaurant Awards. If the timing was right, he’d go back on Top Chef Canada All-Stars: “I would love to go back and try to give another shot at the big win.”

Season 10

DESEREE “DEZ” LO

(Vancouver)

The runner-up on her season and a fan favourite with her red lipstick and humour, Lo says she felt like a “headless chicken trying to keep my calm” during taping—but she’d do it again: “There are cameras in your face all the time, and [you are] duking it out with some of the best chefs in the country. I mean, no pressure!” She returned as a guest judge in season 11.

Lo says being on the show opened doors, including cooking spots on morning TV shows, media interviews, brand collabs and recipe development. She’s started a catering company, did a PechaKucha talk (where she got a standing ovation) and just filmed a travelling food documentary with Hudson Yang that will air later this year. “Going on was one of the best things I have ever done for my career,” she says.

Season 11

CHANTHY YEN

(Vancouver)

Yen, who blew away the judges with his Cambodian-style congee, took home the top prize on season 11. He calls the achievement life-changing and “a great win for B.C. and for 2SLGBTQ+ BIPOC communities.”

Since clinching the title, Yen (whose other claim to fame is having been the personal chef of former prime minister Justin Trudeau) has been busy. He is the culinary director of Kitchen Table Group, and just opened Touk, a stylish downtown Vancouver restaurant focused on contemporary Cambodian eats, as executive chef and co-owner. And this spring sees the opening of Mee Bar, a Cambodian noodle bar with charcoal-grilled proteins at the Time Out Market in Oakridge Mall.

Season 12

KATY CHEUNG

(Vancouver)

Standing out with her dishes from Canton and Hong Kong, Cheung finished in third place. She calls Top Chef Canada “one hell of a ride,” adding that all of the chefs were incredibly supportive and kind to each other. She keeps in touch with each of the chefs in her cohort. “I love them all!” she says.

Since wrapping, the sous chef at Burdock and Co has done a few solo pop-ups and chef collaboration dinners in Vancouver. This year she’s hoping to travel and do more collabs with chefs from different cities. “Keep your ears perked as I may be doing something with a fellow chef from my season,” she teases.

Season 12

ALEX KIM

(Vancouver)

Edged out in the finale by Toronto-based chef (and Matty Matheson’s right-hand man) Coulson Armstrong, Kim says being on the show was intense, humbling and incredibly rewarding. “Every challenge forced me to cook with instinct while staying true to who I am as a chef,” he says.

The culinary director at Five Sails, Kim been spending more time developing new dishes and collaborating with other chefs since filming, including a World Chef Exchange dinner with Taejun Eom, chef-owner of Michelin-starred Solbam in Seoul. He’s travelled in Peru and eaten in a few of the best restaurants on the world. Kim calls the show taping a bonding experience and still checks in with fellow competitors to cheer on their projects. “It’s a small culinary world, and that Top Chef connection definitely lasts,” he says.