MasterChef USA (2000)
MasterChef USA, on PBS, is the original US adaptation of the BBC's MasterChef, a cooking competition for amateur cooks. Grab your whisks and hang on to your toques, as the 27 regional MasterChef champs chop, purée, roast, braise, sauté, simmer and grill their way through the Olympics of amateur cooking to the title of MasterChef USA! Host Gary Rhodes, one of Great Britain’s best-loved chefs, guides us through 13 half-hour episodes and an hour long prime time special. A panel of celebrity judges preside as 27 winning amateur chefs, wielding their own mouthwatering menus, battle over Brulée and Beurre Blanc, wrangle over roasted peppers and risotto, and strive to create the most satisfying soup, salad and soufflé.
Seasons & Episode
Midwestern-A region; judges are comic Bobby Collins and Chef Susan Feniger.
Northwestern region; judges are editor Jerry Anne Divecchio and Chef Tom Douglas.
Northeastern-B; judges are CNN's Laurin Sydney and Chef Benjamin Ford.
Western-A region; judges are Jacklyn Zeman and Chef Mark Peel.
Southeastern region; judges are David Brenner and Chef Mary Sue Milliken.
The second set of Midwestern-B region; judges are actress Suzanne Rogers and Chef Damian Mandola.
Northeastern-A region; judges are Tom Bergeron and Chef Richard Kaupp.
Western-B region; judges are Bill Nye the Science Guy and Chef Michael Chiarello.
The last group of cooks from the Southwestern region; judges are Suzanne Sena and Chef Mark Miller.
Semifinal 1; Southwestern/Midwestern regions; judges are Barbara Fairchild and Piero Selvaggio.
Semifinal 2; Northeastern/ Southeastern region; judges are A.J. Benza and Rick Bayless.
The last semi-final round, Semifinal 3; Northwestern/ Western regions; judges are actress Donna Mills and Allyson Thurber.
The three winners of semifinals 1, 2 and 3 compete in a three-course meal challenge; judges are B. Smith and MasterChef 2000 winner, Nancy Vaziri.
