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"Top Chef Duels," which premieres Wednesday, Aug. 6, on Bravo, presents an entertaining new slant on the network's Emmy-winning "Top Chef." "The show is sort of a hybrid of 'Top Chef ' ... crossed with a format we started a few years ago online for our 'Last Chance Kitchen,' which brings back eliminated chefs," explains Gail Simmons, who anchors the judges' table along with host Curtis Stone. "What we've done on 'Top Chef Duels' is, every episode stands alone. Each episode has two chefs facing off in three cooking segments." The first two segments are "mini-duels" between the two chefs, each of whom gets to pick the nature of one mini-duel, ideally designed to play up to his own strengths and exploit his opponent's weakness. The winner of each mini-duel wins $10,000 on the spot. In the main duel that follows, both chefs are required to cook a three-course meal for Simmons, Stone and the guest judges of that episode. The winner of that duel moves on to compete with 9 other winners in the season finale. But wait, there's more! The losing chef each week gets a chance to claim a spot in the finale via "The Knockout," an online competition hosted by Wolfgang Puck, similar in concept to "Last Chance Kitchen," the online component of "Top Chef." The ultimate winner of the season finale wins the $100,000 grand prize and a "culinary adventure" featured in Food and Wine Magazine. "That really depends on who the winner is," Simmons says of the culinary adventure. "The magazine is working out what that will be, but it will be a very exciting trip that then will become a story in the magazine." •Is there a logic behind how the chefs were paired up for "Top Chef Duels"? "Absolutely, all of them were matched up very specifically, either because they cook very similar styles or they had a rivalry when they were on the show together, or they could even be related. Our first episode has Richard Blais and Marcel Vigneron, both of whom were known in their individual seasons as the 'mad scientists.' They're both very modernist chefs and employ a lot of modern techniques." •How do you think you would fare in a cooking competition with your fellow judges? "That's kind of a ridiculous question, because I am not a professional chef. I haven't been working in a professional kitchen for 14 years. It would be senseless for me to go up against someone like Tom. I'm a trained cook, though, so I probably could go up against people who are in that same vein." •A few years ago you hosted a show called "Top Chef: Just Desserts." Was that fun? "It was an amazing show, and what I loved most about it was how totally cultish its following was. I don't think a week goes by, literally, when someone doesn't ask me about the show, and you realize it had a deep, dedicated fan base." 'TOP CHEF DUELS' a fun, quirky hybrid based on a culinary TV favorite BY JOHN CROOK Gail Simmons BEST TV SERIES TEAMS "I Love Lucy" (CBS, 1951-57) Lucille Ball, Desi Arnaz, William Frawley and Vivian Vance showed how great comedy teamwork works. "The Honeymooners" (CBS, 1955-56) This sitcom showcased the perfect melding of Jackie Gleason, Art Carney, Audrey Meadows and Joyce Randolph. "The Dick Van Dyke Show" (CBS, 1961-66) Carl Reiner's "workplace comedy" highlighted Rob Petrie's (Van Dyke) variety-show work plus his life with wife Laura (Mary Tyler Moore). "Star Trek" (NBC, 1966-69) The original crew of the starship Enterprise was solid enough to return years later in a series of successful feature films. "Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In" (NBC, 1968-73) You had to have a certain amount of "zany" in the blood to be a part of this cast, and this crew surely did. "The Mod Squad" (ABC, 1968-73) Michael Cole, Peggy Lipton and Clarence Williams III made an ideal trio as the youthful undercover police detectives. "The Mary Tyler Moore Show" (CBS, 1970- 77) Moore took many lessons from "The Dick Van Dyke Show" and wed them to her TV-newsroom hit. "M*A*S*H" (CBS, 1972-83) With Alan Alda in the lead, the cast that made up the 4077th Mobile Army Surgical Hospital is regarded as one of TV's best. "Saturday Night Live" (NBC, 1975-present) Some seasons' casts have worked better than others, but when this late-night program has fired on all cylinders, it's water-cooler conversation. "Taxi" (ABC, 1978-82; NBC, 1982-83) The Sunshine Cab Company was home base for surly dispatcher Louie De Palma (Danny DeVito) and others. "Hill Street Blues" (NBC, 1981-87) Ensemble drama reached a peak with the superb cast of this urban police drama. "Cheers" (NBC, 1982-93) Surely, the Boston bar "where everybody knows your name" had more great teamwork. "Seinfeld" (NBC, 1989-98) No list of great TV teams would be complete without Jerry Seinfeld and his merry crew of Jason Alexander, Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Michael Richards. "Mad Men" (AMC, 2007-present) Group drama has hit another high mark with the actors playing the staff of a 1960s ad agency and their personal connections. BY JAY BOBBIN "M*A*S*H" "Seinfeld" "I Love Lucy" 8 The Goshen News • TV Spotlight • August 4 - 10, 2014

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