Pack Your Knives

Pack Your Knives

Last Chance Kitchen: Different rules, same result?

Will the rule change in Season 23 lead to missed opportunities?

Carly Levitz's avatar
Carly Levitz
Feb 13, 2026
∙ Paid

The new season of Top Chef has a rare setup for LCK (Last Chance Kitchen) in which the first two chefs eliminated will not compete in LCK. When I was talking with Tom, Sara, and Kendra after the cast was revealed, Sara posed a good question. She asked how well first and second eliminated chefs do in LCK anyway, and if any of them even make it back into the main competition.

Well, I have an answer!

History of LCK early eliminations

User's avatar

Continue reading this post for free, courtesy of Pack Your Knives.

Or purchase a paid subscription.
© 2026 Count The Dings · Privacy ∙ Terms ∙ Collection notice
Start your SubstackGet the app
Substack is the home for great culture