Tiffani Faison wins ‘Tournament of Champions’ Food Network competition

Boston restaurateur Tiffani Faison won the third year of the culinary level of competition exhibit “Tournament of Champions” Sunday night time, taking household $100,000 — the major money prize in the history of the Food stuff Community.

Faison took a break from helming her many Boston eateries — Italian restaurant Orfano and Sweet Cheeks barbecue, both of those in the Fenway, and Bubble Bathtub and many others in the new downtown High Road Place food stuff corridor, all below her Large Heart Hospitality restaurant group — to look on the clearly show, hosted by Guy Fieri.

The exhibit, which commenced with 32 contestants, is structured as a bracket-design opposition, with top rated East Coast and West Coastline cooks pitted against each and every other. They whip up meals established by a randomizer device that assigns a protein, yet another ingredient, a piece of tools, a fashion of cooking, and a time allotment. Initially, Faison — who also competed in the 2nd time of “Tournament of Champions” — was put in the 3rd seed for her location.

In the finale, Faison went head-to-head with the period one winner, Los Angeles chef Brooke Williamson. Their assignment? To cook dinner rabbit and nattō (a Japanese fermented soybean) on an anti-griddle, planning just one of the elements three distinctive methods in an hour. Faison emerged victorious with, amongst other dishes, a fried rabbit leg atop a puree of sweet potato and nattō.

“Tournament of Champions is the toughest, most hard cooking level of competition in the world,” mentioned Faison in a push launch. “It usually takes every ounce of understanding, encounter, grit, and fight you have to do well. I figured out much more about myself with each individual fight and I realized far more how deeply proficient the other warriors in this tournament are. Every single 7 days is a check that necessitates your complete heart to show up and then usually takes your breath absent.”

Faison, who was named a James Beard finalist for the Most effective Chef: Northeast award very last month, is no stranger to high-stakes cooking competitions. She was the runner-up in the to start with time of “Top Chef,” and is a typical decide on “Chopped,” also on the Foods Community.

The 3rd year of “Tournament of Champions,” the channel’s highest-rated sequence to date in 2022, is now streaming on discovery+.

“Winning has been a person of the most affirming and satisfying encounters of my lifestyle,” stated Faison. “It is the literal end result of the get the job done, commitment, and devotion I’ve invested in my occupation. I’m so deeply grateful for this possibility. This is magic.”

Dana Gerber can be reached at [email protected]