Hung Wins Top Chef

Published on Thursday, October 4, 2007, by The CHOW Editorial Team / Edit Post


Listen now: Download Hung's podcast


Hung Huynh has been crowned the third Top Chef, joining the ranks of Harold “Perilla” Dieterle and Ilan Hall. In his victory podcast, we learn that he’s “kind of a smart guy”; an “exciting character on the show”; and always “in total control.”

We don’t begrudge the man his medal: He’s got heart, and if you’re not convinced, he’ll insist on it some more. As Hung says, “Soul is not something that flies around and lands in your food.” No, that’s bacteria. Or fruit flies.

Watch out, Wolfgang: Hung is watching, and learning.

Listen to all of this season’s Top Chef podcasts:
Season 3 Round Table
Dale Levitski
Casey Thompson
Brian Malarkey
Sara Mair
CJ Jacobsen
Howie Kleinberg
Tre Wilcox
Sara Nguyen
Joey Paulino
Lia Bardeen
Camille Becerra
Micah Edelstein
Sandee Birdsong
Clay Bowen

ALLTop Chef
POST A COMMENT |26 Comments

COMMENT

  • that interviewer was horrifying. it sounded like she had a list of questions & her bonus was based on asking every one of them & getting the interview done in record time. awful.

    i actually liked hung. i don't get the arrogance thing. sure he's not as personable as some of the others but he wasn't a jerk or flat out arrogant. he repeatedly phrased his comments in a way that left...+READ

    that interviewer was horrifying. it sounded like she had a list of questions & her bonus was based on asking every one of them & getting the interview done in record time. awful.

    i actually liked hung. i don't get the arrogance thing. sure he's not as personable as some of the others but he wasn't a jerk or flat out arrogant. he repeatedly phrased his comments in a way that left outcomes/judgements in question. he never said i will win or i'm going to win this challenge or my x is better than someone's y. i felt like bravo was trying to cast a villian & hung was the best fit. i feel like he was more socially immature than arrogant or mean.-COLLAPSE

  • Jeez people, lighten up a bit. It's Top Chef, a soap opera with food. Bravo Chow, best coverage of Top Chef onilne!

  • This interviewer sucks. She interrupts the interviewees mid-answer and doggedly proceeds to her next question and obviously doesn't listen to the answer to that either.
    Dale was way too inconsistent and Casey is sous-chef quality at best. Witness her horrible performance trying to chop an onion in one of the early competitions. In her podcast Casey can't even bring herself to give Howie props for...+READ

    This interviewer sucks. She interrupts the interviewees mid-answer and doggedly proceeds to her next question and obviously doesn't listen to the answer to that either.
    Dale was way too inconsistent and Casey is sous-chef quality at best. Witness her horrible performance trying to chop an onion in one of the early competitions. In her podcast Casey can't even bring herself to give Howie props for cooking what the judges considered her best dish in the final.
    Hung has more talent in the handle of his $6 cleaver than both of them combined. They were probably in the final 3 for other reasons than their questionable talent, it just made sexy tv to have the "gay one" and the "female one" up against the "arrogant one" who they probably would rather have called the "asian one" but didn't quite dare.
    If you want an honest commentary on the whole finale, read Anthony Bourdain's final blog on the subject.-COLLAPSE

  • Anyone who has a problem with the headline doesn't have any sense of humor whatsoever. To not see that the casting is so formulaic, down to the dramatic homosexual who is a little catty, is ridiculous.

  • Btw, if the interviewer ever reads this, you might do well to hide your noticeable disdain for the interviewee and refrain from bias for the sake of professionalism. I can't find much fault with him in this interview.

  • Thank you foodperv. And those of you just joining, while some of us are upset about the spoiler (not me- I agree anything aired is fair game), others are upset about the terrible article and headline that you just read...

  • Eat_Nopa,

    Hung is already executive sous-chef at Guy Savoy, one of the top-rated restaurants in the US, and was before the show aired. He runs a line of 35-40 cooks, far more than any of the other contestants have to deal with. Kind of why he was only concerned about Tre being his competition (sorry Dale and Casey).

  • Gees people, if you don't want to know who won even after the episode has aired, don't look at internet sites, tv, or print media until you have seen it. Easy as that.

  • ITA with Ruth

  • Sorry you're upset guys, but with a mass mediums like TV, once an episode has aired, its contents is not a spoiler. The rest of the world doesn't have to cater to the whims of your Tivo/VCR usage.

  • Hung will make a great Sous Chef some day. He seems to have won (despite lacking soul & creativity) because the rest of the contestants couldn't cook outside of their safe zone.

  • I didn't like Hung at first but he grew on me for some reason as the show progressed. When you think about it there is no pretense about him, he IS a good chief and what he lacks in personality he more than makes up for in the kitchen. Yeah, he's arrogant and annoying, he has zero people skills but I think he's young and has a lot to learn still about the restaurant business. He has potential.

  • boo - bad headline... boo
    i do think he deserved the win though...

  • i agree 200% with chew on that's statement

  • @Aengus

    I live in Germany and don't get the episode live. I avoid all food blogs until I have had the chance to watch it, except Chow, because Chow has, since their first goof and until now, been keeping the result out of the headlines, which is really nice. Was really nice.

    Of course we have been spoiled from various places such as World of Warcraft forums and even AfterEllen - nothing is...+READ

    @Aengus

    I live in Germany and don't get the episode live. I avoid all food blogs until I have had the chance to watch it, except Chow, because Chow has, since their first goof and until now, been keeping the result out of the headlines, which is really nice. Was really nice.

    Of course we have been spoiled from various places such as World of Warcraft forums and even AfterEllen - nothing is safe. But it's a disappointment that Chow chose to break its habit for the finale, when one really would like to have some suspense.-COLLAPSE

  • If I didn't want spoilers I'd definitely avoid visiting this site and bravotv.com. It's like someone not wanting to know the score of a football game and then logging on to ESPN.com.

  • Thanks for the effing spoiler.

  • I think that whoever wrote this spoiler headline should be fired. You just broke the number one rule of TV blogging.

  • My heart bleeds for all the people who endured the terrible suffering of reading the headline. We all have our crosses to bear but...this, it's just too much for any one person. ChowFun and Chester you are true martyrs, testaments to humanity's capacity to overcome hardship.

    I salute your stoic courage and quiet self-reliance.

  • I thought the headline was funny. It's just a takeoff on how people have been talking about the contestants, including here on the boards -- will there be the first woman Top Chef? The first gay one?

  • Really people? The episode aired 10/3 and this went up at night on 10/4. That Hung was the winner has been posted everywhere since the episode aired.

  • I agree with ChowFun....That is a TERRIBLE headline, and TERRIBLE journalism.

    "The arrogant one prevails over the female one and the gay one"

    For one thing, the sentence is nowhere near gramatically correct. But more importantly, I am completely appalled that you would even consider running a phrase that stereotypical. It is not only disrespectful but completely shows off your ignorance.

    I...+READ

    I agree with ChowFun....That is a TERRIBLE headline, and TERRIBLE journalism.

    "The arrogant one prevails over the female one and the gay one"

    For one thing, the sentence is nowhere near gramatically correct. But more importantly, I am completely appalled that you would even consider running a phrase that stereotypical. It is not only disrespectful but completely shows off your ignorance.

    I don't know how Chowhound thinks it can run stories like this, but take down comments from users that are not only much less offensive but actually useful.-COLLAPSE

  • Thanks for nothing!!! Now the episode is worthless.....this is NOT intelligent journalism!!!

  • Spoilers aside, I don't think I'd turn my back on Hung. Especially if knives are present.

  • Didn't we have a whole riot the last time someone wrote a stupid spoiler for Top Chef? Honestly, let's stop and think about this. You could STILL write the story, but give it a headline like "Top Chef Winner Chosen".

  • I'm really glad this was on the top page of Chow, now I don't need to watch the episode. Great spoiler.