Mount Pleasant Magazine Nov/Dec 2016

102 / 146

Photo by Paul Cheney/Bravo Media. Unless you’ve
been staying
inside your
house, cooking
your own meals
and avoiding all
forms of media,
you probably know that Charleston is
on the international food map. Scores
of people from a variety of locations
– from tourists to chefs – come to the
Lowcountry to sample our cuisine,
open new restaurants and enjoy rubbing
elbows with the industry’s finest.
As of this winter, we’ve taken yet
another step to being the location
for amazing food; we’ve hosted
the television show Top Chef. A
sensation of the Bravo Network and
a favorite amongst foodies and chefs
alike, Top Chef has filmed in many
choice locations for the culinary arts.
They can now add Charleston to the
list, because, as Matt Reichman, vice
president of current production at
Bravo mentioned, “they know what’s
hot on the food scene.”
We caught up with Reichman for a
few questions pertaining to the show.
The season debuts Dec. 1 at 10 p.m.
on Bravo.
Mount Pleasant Magazine: How,
specifically, did the Lowcountry end
up on the Top Chef radar?
Reichman: One of the great things
about Top Chef is that the producers
of the show are a tight group. Doneen
Arquines, for example, executive
producer on Top Chef for the
production company Magical Elves,
started as a production assistant
during the first season. Other
producers are veterans of the show
as well. They all love food and food
culture and know what is hot on the
food scene. We’ve wanted to do the
show in Charleston for a few years.
Sean Brock has been on our show
before, and the city was definitely
on our radar. The city itself plays a
character in the show, not only the
food culture but the history. We
needed a place with an identity.
Mount Pleasant Magazine: Describe
how a restaurant is selected to be
IGT 6 |
Top Chef Judges Tom Colicchio and Padma Lakshmi at a
challenge that took place at The Wreck of the Richard &
Charlene in Mount Pleasant.
1440 BEN SAWYER BLVD. SUITE 1404
(BESIDE TRIANGLE) MT. PLEASANT
843-936-6940
OPEN AT 4PM DAILY
NOW OPEN
LIVE MUSIC ON
WEDNESDAY NIGHTS
MEDITERRANEAN
INSPIRED CUISINE
Appetizers, Salads,
Paninis & Charcuterie
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