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.”
