Two years ago, chef Kristen Kish was running the show at Stir, Barbara Lynch’s diminutive demonstration kitchen in the South End. Then came Top Chef Seattle. Kish made it as far as the final seven before being eliminated and then fought her way back into the competition by beating every Last Chance Kitchen competitor she encountered, before ultimately taking home the title of Top Chef. She soon became one of Boston’s hottest young chefs – popping up on billboards around town, making TV appearances (including one on this season’s Restaurant Wars episode) and even taking over as Chef de Cuisine at Menton for a bit. We chatted with Kish about her time on Top Chef, her upcoming cookbook and what her timeframe is for opening her own spot.
Boston Chefs: Alright, give us a little background: You grew up in Michigan and went to school in Chicago. How did you end up in Boston?
Kristen Kish: In Chicago, after culinary school, I had a series of not-so-great jobs. At a certain point I had to completely quit the job that I was working and for about four months, due to my immaturity and my ego with no talent to back it up, I refused to take any other job. My parents were like “Ok, we’re going to stop paying for you and let you get your shit together and support yourself like a young adult.” And I was like, “Alright, that makes sense.” But I’m so stubborn, I didn’t get a job, my lease ended and my parents told me I had to move back home. I was in Michigan for about four months and Boston just came into mind. I set my sights on it and I wouldn’t let it go. It was just a combination of wanting to get away, wanting to go far enough, but not too far. I didn’t know anybody, I didn’t have a job lined up, I had nothing and my parents – God, I love them they are amazing – were like “We’re going to help you out for three months and if you don’t get it together you’ve got to come back home.” Luckily I got a job and it all worked out.
BC: Do you wish that your season of Top Chef had been filmed in Boston?
Kish: You know what? I kind of liked going somewhere else. I’m glad that I filmed in Seattle because at that part of my life I wanted to get away. I wanted to remove myself from home and then go somewhere else.
BC: After you won, you came back to Boston and to Stir. Was it hard not to tell people?
Kish: After the finale aired, which was shortly after we taped it, I went back to Stir and did exactly what I had been doing before. We had filmed the majority of the season over the summer and then we filmed the finale three weeks before it aired, so I didn’t have to keep a secret that long. Also at that point I had gone the entire season without saying anything and it was just my nature to be secretive so it was an easy one to keep.
BC: Do you keep in touch with any of your former competitors?
Kish: I do. Every time I’m in L.A. I see Brooke Williamson. I had dinner at one of her restaurants a month ago which was fantastic as always. She’s the one that I’m most in touch with. We kind of check-in with each other and see how things are going and our friendship has now gone beyond the Top Chef thing. We’re invested in each other’s lives and we want to keep up with each other.
BC: Do you feel like you learned a lot from your time on Top Chef? Are you a different cook now?
Kish: Oh, god! I learned an incredible amount that I would not have otherwise learned. It’s a unique position to be in. It’s not normal and it’s an interesting arena to be cooking in. It takes us completely out of our comfort zones and throws us into something else. You either have to learn and adjust or you’re going to fall on your face. It taught me confidence and whether I won or not it didn’t matter, just knowing that I could go through this process and be like, “alright, I can do this!” I learned how to not take myself too seriously and not to put too much pressure on myself because when I did that I didn’t do so well. And I learned that I’m a lot faster than I thought I was.
BC: What’s next? Are you looking to open a restaurant in Boston?
Kish: You know, I have a lot of things working and I feel like I’m a broken record at this point because I say all the time, “oh, I’ve got things working” but projects and things take a while. But I can say that I am working on my first cookbook. So, that whole process takes about a couple of years once papers get signed so that’ll be exciting. I’ve already begun the beginning stages of that. And then, from there, I’m going to see where all these little things land. I’m going to make sure to explore the world first, without a restaurant because once I have that restaurant I’m never going to leave it. I don’t want to be one of the chefs that opens something up and all of a sudden I’m gone all of the time. So, I’m going to go a little backwards, if that makes sense.
BC: What’s on your list of must-visit locations?
Kish: God, I just want to see every place I haven’t seen. I want to go to Greece; I want to go overseas as much as possible. In the US I want to go work on a ranch in Montana. I want to go explore the little, tiny places in Tennessee. It’ll be cool. I mean, the whole reason I left Menton was to explore all of my possibilities and I couldn’t do that and also run a restaurant and I knew that. I was wearing myself thin and I wasn’t doing justice to the restaurant if I were to keep leaving all of the time. So, the goal is to learn and see as much as possible and take in what’s out there before I decide to plant my roots.
BC: So, at this point in the season they’ve begun the finale and the Last Chance Kitchen winner has rejoined the competition. Do you root for the Last Chance Kitchen competitor?
Kish: I don’t know anything about who’s in it. I would say yeah but I haven’t been watching this season too closely.
BC: He’s very talented He’s fought his way back into the competition so he has the opportunity to take it all.
Kish: Wow. Go him!
BC: So, that sounds like a “yes.”
