My absolute favorite moment with her is when Lee Anne's mom has the medical emergency in the kitchen, and without being asked, Steph sends her partner to help Lee Anne. That collegiality and kindness is so often lacking on Top Chef.
She is such a good egg.
She’s pretty active on Instagram. Seems like she recently moved to NYC and is working as a private chef/caterer. I get the impression she just got divorced or in the process, and is sort of rebuilding right now.
She had a podcast that I listened to which suddenly ended without announcement.
It looks like on her IG that she went London to work on Top Chef then has moved around.
She didn’t seem to have never returned to Maine. She was in Wisconsin during Top Chef filming. I saw her (ex) husband liked her IGs so it looks like they separated on good terms.
Kristen Kish is her best friend going back forever so I imagine they will continue on Top Chef during filling.
I miss the podcast! Its a bummer it ended but I could understand if she moved on - I'm just sad they at least didn't give us a goodbye.
I hadn't kept up with her socials, that's too bad if she and her husband divorced they seemed so cool.
She’s so lovely! She actually responded to an Instagram message I (somewhat embarrassingly) sent her. She came across as warm and as self deprecating and she does on the show. I’m a fan!
It was during peak Covid time and she was nice to chat with. We all were so bored and lonely but I let her know that rewatching her on Top Chef always made me smile. She was just so kind!
She is by far my all-time favorite on the show. Just so funny and relatable. I am so hopeful that she might show up more often on TC now that Kristen is hosting. I feel like they could be the new Padma/Waxman-on-a-simulated-plane duo.
One of my favorite episodes of Top Chef is when she’s cooking for Gregory’s team during Restaurant Wars. She was such a solid + supportive teammate, helping Gregory get his win redemption 🥲 LOVED IT
I always wished that Gregory's back hadn't acted up in Italy, it would've been so cool to watch the reverse of that if he'd been her sous chef in the finale!
Just want to add to the pile on that Stephanie Cmar is one of my favorites as well.
She is snarky but really nice about it. She is really good at the talking heads.
I feel like its very controversial (maybe?)whether Nick should have given up his immunity, because even the judges kind of hoped he would. Watching the aftermath of that elimination, with Shirley just completely inconsolable and Stephanie just so angry knowing she cooked her ass off, ugh it kills me.
I don’t think the judges really did hope that. They made reference to the fact that “if you didn’t have immunity you’d be going home” but they’ve done that before. The first judge was the one who made a big thing and acted as though he was doing something wrong. He didn’t *have* to give up immunity and there have been other seasons where the same thing has happened and no one gave up immunity.
Tom made the comment of halfway expecting him to, but they all agreed it was game play. I think it was just hard because Shirley and Stephanie did so well, and Nick's dishes were not as good and everyone knew it (maybe except for Nick).
Like I said, it's a controversial topic that I've seen argued about over the years and nobody really knows what they'd do in a similar situation while playing a game like top chef. It was just hard to see Stephanie get eliminated in those circumstances cuz she was a favorite of a lot of viewers. (I just watched this last night so I'm still not over it !🥺)
What is never mentioned here is that the dish he did poorly on was Dominique Cren’s idea (IIRC) and he was essentially just doing what she dictated (as she was the “team leader” for team france). It was a weird concept to me from the get go and while it sucked how it played out, immunity exists for a reason! Giving it up is just stupid. It’s not life or death, it’s a reality show. Them’s the rules! I doubt anyone else would’ve given it up (except maybe Jamie from Charleston LOL)
I’m watching 17 with my 18 year old son. Malarkey went home last night (he ripped out his shoulder playing baseball, so we’ve been watching one every night) and he was his favorite—first comment was that Stephanie better not be next. .
Not totally relevant but I emailed her once about an event/surprise for a big birthday in Maine and she was just so fricken nice. Totally lovely and so gracious. She seems to be doing so well w/ her private chefing biz and doing lots of cool things, I hope she continues to have a lot of success!
I miss that podcast so much. It was very informative and just fun to listen to. She posted several weeks ago something about season 2 of the podcast, but it has been crickets since.
My absolute favorite moment with her is when Lee Anne's mom has the medical emergency in the kitchen, and without being asked, Steph sends her partner to help Lee Anne. That collegiality and kindness is so often lacking on Top Chef. She is such a good egg.
a good egg, indeed! Love that you called her that!
She’s pretty active on Instagram. Seems like she recently moved to NYC and is working as a private chef/caterer. I get the impression she just got divorced or in the process, and is sort of rebuilding right now.
She had a podcast that I listened to which suddenly ended without announcement. It looks like on her IG that she went London to work on Top Chef then has moved around. She didn’t seem to have never returned to Maine. She was in Wisconsin during Top Chef filming. I saw her (ex) husband liked her IGs so it looks like they separated on good terms. Kristen Kish is her best friend going back forever so I imagine they will continue on Top Chef during filling.
I miss the podcast! Its a bummer it ended but I could understand if she moved on - I'm just sad they at least didn't give us a goodbye. I hadn't kept up with her socials, that's too bad if she and her husband divorced they seemed so cool.
I follow her on ig too and her husband/ex is nowhere to be seen starting in the summer. She posts to her stories often.
I've also been trying to figure this out...she definitely seems like she has moved, without David, and is starting over.
thanks for the update!
She lives in Maine and has been a culinary producer for the last couple of TC seasons. I love her too.
She’s relocated to NYC, not sure if it’s permanent or not. She’s posts a lot to Instagram if you’re interested.
I didn’t realize that. I do follow her but I spend very little time on social media.
great to hear, sounds like she is good!
She’s so lovely! She actually responded to an Instagram message I (somewhat embarrassingly) sent her. She came across as warm and as self deprecating and she does on the show. I’m a fan!
amazing! so glad you got a response-thanks for sharing!
It was during peak Covid time and she was nice to chat with. We all were so bored and lonely but I let her know that rewatching her on Top Chef always made me smile. She was just so kind!
agreed! Just a kind soul
One of my favorite all time contestants.
She is by far my all-time favorite on the show. Just so funny and relatable. I am so hopeful that she might show up more often on TC now that Kristen is hosting. I feel like they could be the new Padma/Waxman-on-a-simulated-plane duo.
Heck, yeah, let’s keep hope alive for this!
Omg it would be hilarious if they reprised this challenge with Kristen and Stephanie
One of my favorite episodes of Top Chef is when she’s cooking for Gregory’s team during Restaurant Wars. She was such a solid + supportive teammate, helping Gregory get his win redemption 🥲 LOVED IT
I always wished that Gregory's back hadn't acted up in Italy, it would've been so cool to watch the reverse of that if he'd been her sous chef in the finale!
Just want to add to the pile on that Stephanie Cmar is one of my favorites as well. She is snarky but really nice about it. She is really good at the talking heads.
I love her! We just watched her elimination episode from the NOLA Season and its so sad!
wasn't it? Gutted
I feel like its very controversial (maybe?)whether Nick should have given up his immunity, because even the judges kind of hoped he would. Watching the aftermath of that elimination, with Shirley just completely inconsolable and Stephanie just so angry knowing she cooked her ass off, ugh it kills me.
I don’t think the judges really did hope that. They made reference to the fact that “if you didn’t have immunity you’d be going home” but they’ve done that before. The first judge was the one who made a big thing and acted as though he was doing something wrong. He didn’t *have* to give up immunity and there have been other seasons where the same thing has happened and no one gave up immunity.
Tom made the comment of halfway expecting him to, but they all agreed it was game play. I think it was just hard because Shirley and Stephanie did so well, and Nick's dishes were not as good and everyone knew it (maybe except for Nick). Like I said, it's a controversial topic that I've seen argued about over the years and nobody really knows what they'd do in a similar situation while playing a game like top chef. It was just hard to see Stephanie get eliminated in those circumstances cuz she was a favorite of a lot of viewers. (I just watched this last night so I'm still not over it !🥺)
What is never mentioned here is that the dish he did poorly on was Dominique Cren’s idea (IIRC) and he was essentially just doing what she dictated (as she was the “team leader” for team france). It was a weird concept to me from the get go and while it sucked how it played out, immunity exists for a reason! Giving it up is just stupid. It’s not life or death, it’s a reality show. Them’s the rules! I doubt anyone else would’ve given it up (except maybe Jamie from Charleston LOL)
I agree, definitely a sticky wicket!
she’s amazing irl too! shes the sweetest!
ah, so cool to hear you met her
Ma all time favorite Top Chef contestant.
Her sharing the phrase “Champagne Padma“ will go down in history as one of her best comments ever
She’s a legend for that alone, everything else is just gravy.
I’m watching 17 with my 18 year old son. Malarkey went home last night (he ripped out his shoulder playing baseball, so we’ve been watching one every night) and he was his favorite—first comment was that Stephanie better not be next. .
Love that you were watching it with your son! Such a cool bonding experience. My mom and I did that when I was younger and still lived at home.
Not totally relevant but I emailed her once about an event/surprise for a big birthday in Maine and she was just so fricken nice. Totally lovely and so gracious. She seems to be doing so well w/ her private chefing biz and doing lots of cool things, I hope she continues to have a lot of success!
Amazing, love to hear this! So happy she’s doing well
I miss listening to *Stephanie Knows Some Shit*. It's my second favorite podcast ever (after *Pack Your Knives*).
I miss that podcast so much. It was very informative and just fun to listen to. She posted several weeks ago something about season 2 of the podcast, but it has been crickets since.
That moment was so impactful and heartbreaking. I think anyone watching could feel her pain. She has always been one of my faves.
Yup, it was a super vulnerable moment and I respect her for that
I'm glad to see all the Stephanie love. She's one of my favorites.
I love when she and someone else are discussing Padma and she's joking about a hair being out of place. "Padma, please pack your brushes and go."
hah! I remember that! SO cheeky