‘Top Chef’ gets a taste of Chicago

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Richard Farina of "Top Chef: Texas" on Bravo.

Where Chicago’s chefs like to chow down

Richie Farina: Hot Doug’s, The Bristol and Rocks (Lake View) for the red eye burger.

Chuy Valencia: Publican, Longman & Eagle, Frontera Grill and “hole in the wall” La Unica food market in Edgewater.

Sarah Grueneberg: Arami, Gilt Bar, Publican, Purple Pig and Sun Wah BBQ.

Heather Terhune: Arami, Anteprima, MK and Purple Pig.

Beverly Kim: Lao Sze Chuan (Chinatown), Lula Cafe, and San Soo Gab San and Cho Sun Ok for Korean.

Chris Jones: Hot Doug’s and Burt’s Place in Morton Grove for pizza.

Photos: Past winners of 'Top Chef'

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Updated: December 3, 2011 8:14AM

The new season of “Top Chef” takes place in Texas, but it’s Chicago that’s forking over most of the talent.

Our Town has more contestants in the running for top toque than any city. A whopping half dozen of the “Top Chef” hopefuls hail from local restaurants, while New York, Los Angeles and Seattle each has four.

“We’re No. 1 for food, so I wasn’t surprised to see so many Chicago chefs represented,” said Chris Jones, chef de cuisine at Moto, the boundary-pushing, molecular gastronomy restaurant in the West Loop that has not one but two chefs battling it out on the Bravo show.

For season nine, “Top Chef” (9 p.m. Wednesdays) has spiced things up with a few new twists. Since everything’s bigger in Texas, an unprecedented 29 chefs — almost double the typical number — will start out as “hopefuls” and compete for 16 official contestant spots.

Those 16 will cook their way through Dallas, Austin and San Antonio to win over the taste buds of “Top Chef” judges, a panel that includes newcomers Emeril Lagasse and former “Top Chef Masters” contestant Hugh Acheson.

Bravo also is beefing up its use of non-TV platforms to tell the “Top Chef” story. Head judge Tom Colicchio will host weekly “webisodes” where two booted contestants face off for a chance to unpack their knives and qualify for the finale. Viewers can follow these “Top Chef: Last Chance Kitchen” challenges on Bravotv.com and BravoNow iPhone, iPad and Android apps.

“This marks the first time digital elements directly affect the on-air story,” said Bravo’s digital media expert Lisa Hsia, adding that this “transmedia campaign will deliver a new level of interactivity our fans have never seen before.”

Fans also have never seen this many Chicagoans vying for the “Top Chef” title, and that makes this season especially sweet, said contestant Heather Terhune.

“Some years there hasn’t been anybody who’s represented Chicago,” said Terhune, executive chef at Sable Kitchen and Bar in River North. “The fact that there’s six … It just goes to show you there’s a big pool of talent here in the city.”

Richie Farina, 29, Moto (postmodern cuisine)

“I moved to Chicago 31/2 years ago to work either at Moto or Alinea,” Farina said. “Alinea didn’t give me the time of day … so Moto got me.” The Wrigleyville resident is a sous chef at Moto, where fellow “Top Chef” contestant Chris Jones “is technically my boss … but I look at him more as a big brother.” Going against Jones was “more comforting than competitive,” said Farina, a Dallas Cowboys fan who can be found in the gym when he’s not in the kitchen. “It helps me deal with the stress of the industry.”

Sarah Grueneberg, 29, Spiaggia (Italian)

Six years ago, this Texas native moved to Chicago where she found a job — and her future fiance — at the Gold Coast’s fine-dining Italian eatery Spiaggia. (Grueneberg plans to marry Jaime Canete, now a sous chef at Purple Pig, next summer.) The only child of a single mom, Grueneberg spent summers with her grandparents, who still make just about everything from scratch. “They really taught me where food comes from,” she said. The Lakeview chef honed her pasta-making skills on trips to Italy and working under Spiaggia owner Tony Mantuano, a former contestant on “Top Chef Masters.” Mantuano’s advice to her: “Plate within three minutes and don’t stop being Sarah.”

Chris Jones, 30, Moto

Jones grew up in Grayslake and got his start washing dishes at Max & Erma’s in Gurnee. He never went to culinary school. Instead, he worked his way up through various kitchens, including the esteemed and now shuttered Le Francais in Wheeling, where Jones temporarily was demoted to dishwasher after being asked to chop tarragon — and he didn’t know what the herb looked like. Now, he’s working to get Moto a third Michelin star. The Lincoln Square dad has a daughter who turns 1 this week. “She’s the reason I’m trying so hard,” he said.

Heather Terhune, 39, Sable Kitchen and Bar (American)

Terhune has worked for Kimpton Hotels and Restaurants since moving to Chicago 13 years ago. She took up the head chef post at Sable when Kimpton opened Hotel Palomar last year. Most “Top Chef” contestants dread having to make dessert but not this former pastry chef, who says she’s not intimidated by much when it comes to cooking. She wants to open her own restaurant one day, serving New American small plates in her ’hood, Lincoln Square, “because there are a lot of foodies there.”

Chuy Valencia, 25, Chilam Balam (Mexican)

Valenica grew up eating food his Mexican-born parents plucked from their backyard in Sonoma County, Calif. At age 19, the culinary school student came to Chicago to intern at Frontera Grill and Topolobampo, where owner and “Top Chef Masters” winner Rick Bayless ended up hiring him. Valencia did a stint at Adobo Grill before opening his own Mexican place, Chilam Balam, a BYOB in Lake View. The self-proclaimed sports nut is a huge San Francisco Giants fan. “I’m hoping one of them will see me on TV and want me to be a personal chef for them.”

Beverly Kim, 31, Aria (modern Asian)

This Kendall College culinary school grad grew up in Downers Grove eating her mother’s Korean food. She worked her way through several high-end Chicago restaurants, including Charlie Trotter’s when she was 21. “I worked there for about a year and four months, which is kind of like dog years over there,” she said. “It’s very intense, in a good way.” She’s had more humble gigs, too, like working the hot bar at Whole Foods on Halsted — while pregnant. Kim lives in Uptown with her husband and toddler son. As of this year, she’s back in the restaurant biz, serving as head chef for Aria, the Fairmont Hotel’s modern Asian eatery. One of the ways she practiced for “Top Chef” was taking a class at Butcher & Larder to learn how to break down a cow — a skill that could come in handy for a cooking competition in Texas.