21 Questions with…Top Chef’s Gail Simmons

July 3, 2013

Culinary expert, food writer, Top Chef judge, and our July guest editor, Gail Simmons, answers our 21 questions.

When I get up in the morning I think… I wish I was still sleeping.
The item of clothing I’m currently wearing the most is… a new Opening Ceremony bag I just got as a treat to myself.
If my days had one extra hour in them I’d… eat breakfast twice.
The best thing about being on Top Chef is… traveling.
My least favorite thing about being on Top Chef is… traveling — being away from home!
The best guest judge ever was… Foo Fighers, we had so much fun because it was such a departure from any of the judges we’ve had before.
I’d love to have this person be on the show… Drew Barrymore – she’s into food and wine and I think she’d be really fun to have on set.
My favorite restaurant is… can’t possibly say! But at this moment I’m eating a lot of Vietnamese.
The city with the best food is… New York, but it’s so cliche! Besides that, Tokyo.
The city with the worst food is… pretty hard to get bad food in a big city these days; you just have to look for it.
I never travel without… dark chocolate.
The last thing I Googled… a snow ball shop in New Orleans.
If I could have dinner with anyone it would be… Marie Antoinette because she ate well and loved dessert.
On a typical Saturday night… I have dinner with friends.
My guilty pleasure is… I try not to feel guilty about anything, but I have a weakness for really spicy chicken wings.
My beauty essentials include… La Prairie Caviar Eye Cream, YSL Touche Eclat, NARS lip gloss, Armani foundation when I do TV, and Armani mascara.
When I’m looking to de-stress I… get massage.
When I was first asked to be on Top Chef I thought… how am I going to explain this to my mother because it was 2005 and reality TV wasn’t what it is today.
People might be surprised to learn that… I tap dance.
The one luxury item I’m dying to splurge on is… the Big Green Egg; it’s a big outdoor grill.
The best piece of advice I ever got was… keep your mouth shut so you learn how to listen, but open it enough so you learn how to taste.

Gail Simmons is a trained culinary expert, food writer, and dynamic television personality. Since the show’s inception in 2006, she has lent her extensive expertise as a permanent judge on Bravo’s Emmy-winning series Top Chef. Now entering its eleventh successful season, Top Chef is rated the #1 food show on cable television. Gail is also the new head critic on Top Chef Masters, airing this summer, and was previously host of Top Chef Just Desserts, Bravo’s pastry-focused spin-off of the Top Chef franchise.

Born and raised in Toronto, Canada, Gail moved to New York City in 1999 to attend culinary school at what is now the Institute of Culinary Education. She then trained in the kitchens of legendary Le Cirque 2000 and groundbreaking Vong restaurants, and worked for esteemed food critic Jeffrey Steingarten at Vogue. Gail joined Food & Wine in 2004 and directs special projects for the magazine, acting as liaison between the marketing and editorial teams on magazine events and chef-related initiatives, working closely with the country’s top culinary talent.

| The best piece of advice I ever got was: keep your mouth shut so you learn how to listen, but open it enough so you learn how to taste.