Is Ted Allen Gay?

While queer representation has grown in popularity across a wide array of television shows, the food industry still seems to be lagging behind in that regard. Even though a select group of people made significant strides from the late 2000s to the early 2010s, it appears that representation in the world of queer food TV stars took a decade-long pause.

This situation could arise for several reasons. Restaurant kitchens have historically been known for less-than-ideal working conditions, plagued by issues of harassment and assault. Considering the conditions in earlier decades were unfavorable for cisgender straight individuals, imagining what queer or gender-fluid individuals might have encountered is not difficult.

Due to recent media coverage of the many, many problems plaguing the hospitality sector, and with social media fostering greater accountability than ever before, there's considerably more opportunity for people of all kinds within restaurant kitchens. Similarly, culinary programming has put a strong emphasis on diversity in casting, with Top Chef being a prime example of this trend.

Each individual holds a slightly differing perspective on what defines a celebrity. While some might consider a TikToker or YouTuber with a couple million followers to be a celebrity, for the purpose of this compilation of queer food icons, we are focusing specifically on the realm of television.

Included in this list are iconic queer culinary personalities who have emerged from the world of food television, from the individual who broke ground as the Food Network's first openly queer show host to chefs who utilized their time on the popular reality competition series Top Chef as a jumping-off point to international recognition.

Ted Allen

When I was coming of age as a gay person, openly gay men were scarcely visible in the Food Network landscape. It's not to say that achieving celebrity status on the Food Network is the height of success for a food media professional (as it certainly is not), but it invariably provides motivation to observe what opportunities lie out there.

Ted Allen honed his skills as a lifestyle and food journalist in the middle to late 1990s. His enthusiasm for food and beverage led to his casting as a member of the ensemble cast of Queer Eye for the Straight Guy back in 2003.

When Chopped premiered in 2009, he created Food Network history by becoming the first openly queer host of a food television program. Chopped became a phenomenal hit, currently running its 53rd season—remarkable! This series eventually led to the creation of international franchises, such as Chopped Canada, as well as spin-offs like Chopped Junior.

Cat Cora

Even before she gained recognition for her identity as a queer individual, Cat Cora was shattering barriers as a member of Food Network's pioneering group of hosts and a powerful contender on Iron Chef America.

By the year 2009, she had taken on the role of executive chef for Bon Appétit magazine and had already written three cookbooks during the course of her career. In addition to these accomplishments, alongside a substantial number of television appearances, she has invested in numerous restaurant enterprises, most notably Cat Cora's Kitchen, which has locations in a variety of American airports.

Lynn Crawford

The only Canadian included in this list, we definitely do not possess an abundance of queer food celebrities within our region, aside from more recently emerging talents like Billy Nguyen from Top Chef Canada.

However, Crawford is undoubtedly a Canadian culinary icon. She initially entered the homes of Canadian residents through the well-received mid-2000s program Restaurant Makeover, but attained genuine fame with her series Pitchin' In, which featured the chef in a journey to deepen her insight on the manner in which Canadian ingredients are cultivated and processed. The series was equally entertaining and educational, solidifying Crawford's status as a true Food Network Canada personality.

Her now-closed Toronto establishment, Ruby Watchco, which she jointly owned with her wife, Lora Kirk, celebrated daily menu changes and intense focus on local ingredients far in advance of it becoming a common practice. This approach continues to influence her four published cookbooks, including Hearth & Home, which she co-authored with Kirk.

Elizabeth Falkner

Being both a pastry chef and a chef in general, there exist few tasks in the kitchen that this gifted celebrity is unable to achieve.

The James Beard Award-winning Elizabeth Falkner has accomplished a myriad of things throughout her decades-spanning career, which ranges from owning eateries in San Francisco and New York, to participating in shows like Top Chef Masters (in 2009), which aided in developing her celebrity chef status, and even secured the highest rank at the World Pizza Championships which took place in Naples, where she presented an exceptional pizza with fennel, fronds, flowers and pollen as toppings.

While Falkner is not a Canadian citizen, she does maintain plenty of connections to Canada through well-known female chefs from across the country such as Toronto's Suzanne Barr (Wall of Chefs) and Top Chef Canada All-Stars champion Nicole Gomes; furthermore, she can frequently be seen in urban centers like Toronto and Calgary. She most recently participated in Terroir Symposium, which is known as Canada's prestigious culinary gathering.

Her pair of cookbooks, Demolition Desserts and Cooking Off the Clock, came out in two thousand and seven and twenty twelve, respectively.

Gregory Gourdet

Having an active career which has spanned twenty-three years and remains ongoing, Gourdet, who is based in Portland, has been a culinary talent deserving attention for an extended period of time.

His achievement as the runner-up during the 12th season of Top Chef (in 2015) contributed to the creation of his household name throughout North America, while also landing him a guest role on the widely loved comedy series Portlandia the subsequent year. The chef made a return in order to compete on Top Chef: All-Stars L.A., and again he managed to make it as a finalist.

Even though he has yet to claim the TC crown, Gourdet presently holds a position as a resident judge for the widely-watched competition program.

His introductory cookbook, Everyone's Table, saw publication in 2021 courtesy of Harper Wave and was awarded with a James Beard Award the following year.

Melissa King

The family tree pertaining to Top Chef is quite expansive, but it is difficult not to observe Melissa King as being among the most highly successful chefs to have emerged from the program's twenty seasons (and this number is ever-growing).

Following their journey to the final round of Top Chef: Boston (back in 2015), despite not winning, King made a return filled with determination and was ultimately crowned the victor of Top Chef: All-Stars L.A. in the year 2020. In the aftermath, there was considerable excitement, a substantial social media following, as well as what would seem like a permanent position as a resident judge on Top Chef ever since their victory that season.

During the summer of 2022, they made history by becoming the first-ever Top Chef alum to be in attendance at the renowned Met Gala; they donned a stunning tuxedo complete with nail guards styled in the manner of Chinese empresses so as to complement the theme of gilded glamour. Absolutely stunning!

The inaugural season of King's own food travel series entitled Tasting Wild is available for streaming on Hulu currently.

Kristen Kish

There is a significant amount to find appealing about the charming Kristen Kish, who has achieved considerable fame ever since her victory in her season of Top Chef back in 2012.

Boasting more than 412,000 followers over on Instagram, Kish is the most followed queer chef from the show (though it is not in the nature of a contest!), has co-hosted different shows such as 36 Hours and Fast Foodies and she also held a position as co-presenter in conjunction with Alton Brown during the 2022 Netflix revitalization of Iron Chef.

From March twenty-second on Disney+, you have the opportunity to follow Kish on a journey to remote corners of the world as she explores intriguing dining experiences on her brand new series, Restaurants at the End of the World.

Her debut book, Kristen Kish Cooking, came out in 2017. The following year, the chef inaugurated her very first restaurant, known as Arlo Grey, and situated in Austin, Texas.

David Burtka

While he is a well-known actor in his own sphere, it may not be widely known that Neil Patrick Harris' spouse is a trained and engaged chef in addition. Burtka underwent training at the Pasadena site of the celebrated Le Cordon Bleu in 2009, following which he established his own private chef business as well as a catering enterprise located in L.A.
Before applying his passion for food and employment as a chef, he was the host of a short-running program featured on the Cooking Channel by the name of Celebrity Dish; on this show he toured celebrity-owned eating establishments throughout the United States. Following this, he has made multiple appearances on Food Network programs such as Beat Bobby Flay, and his cookbook debut, Life Is a Party, was made available in 2019.