24 in 24: Last Chef Standing has added a fun twist for season 2 called the “golden knife.” The description for the premiere episode teases, “Co-hosts Michael Symon and Esther Choi invite 24 of America’s most talented and fearless chefs to compete in an intense competition of 24 challenges in 24 nonstop hours.
“In the first shift, the chefs must endure three challenges testing speed. Whoever can impress judge Antonia Lofaso will survive, and whoever doesn’t will be forced to clock out. When Michael and Esther introduce the all-important golden knife, the chefs learn that this epic day of cooking will be full of twists and turns. The chefs that can adjust on the fly have a chance to be the last chef standing.”
So, just what is the golden knife?
Perhaps it’s something that gives the recipient a break for a while? We don’t yet know all the details, but host Symon told TVInsider that because the season 2 contestants had seen season 1, they had to invent some new surprises to keep the next batch of chefs on their toes.
“Everyone doing Season 2 had seen Season 1, so they felt they knew what would happen next. That wasn’t the case. We mixed things up,” said Symon. “We changed things up a bit for the competitions, just so they couldn’t walk in and go, ‘Now I do this. Now I do this.’ Predict what would happen. It made the show very unpredictable.”
What makes 24 in 24: Last Chef Standing so unique is that it truly is shot in 24 hours, which means the things that would normally be cut during a regular culinary competition show — the crew cleaning up, the production assistants restocking the pantry and refrigerators, anyone goofing up their lines or their critiques — they all make it to air because 24 in 24 doesn’t have time to waste re-shooting things, or keeping clean-up off-camera.
As host Choi recently told Foodsided, “24 is the craziest show ever, and it’s very real. I think that’s why the first season was so successful because we filmed the show in 24 hours, and every minute was real. I know we say reality, but it was actually real. For that 24 hours, we were all there cooking, hosting, filming, whatever we were doing, the challenges, it was all a very real game.”
Choi also said that the show gives viewers a little insight into what it’s like to open a restaurant.
“I think that’s what people see when they watch the season. Not only is it so cutthroat, but it also kind of represents what the food world or the restaurant world specifically is really like. When you’re opening a restaurant, it’s no different; you’re up 24, 36, 72 hours, it’s nonstop,” said Choi.
24 in 24: Last Chef Standing airs Sundays at 8 p.m. ET/PT on Food Network.
