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Chef Antonia Lofaso is currently starring in Tournament of Champions season 6 and has won a recent battle against Chef Rocco DiSpirito. By winning this round, she has secured her position in the Final 8, and it will be interesting to see her top off the dishes made thus far.
During her round on episode 6, the randomizer decided for her and the opponent to use sturgeon, Tuscan kale, mortar and pestle, and gastropub. Antonia was pretty ecstatic with the selection and knew exactly what she had to make to amaze the judges.
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As she went back to her cooking station, the Chef whipped up fish and chips, which the gastropub served with tartar sauce. And according to her plans, the judges were indeed impressed.
They appreciated the mushy peas served with kale, making use of the produce decision of the randomizer. Even though her opponent, Chef Rocco, also delivered a promising dish, it could not top what Antonia had prepared, securing her an ultimate win.
Tournament of Champions chef Antonia - How did she start her career?
Chef Antonia has been excited about cooking since she was just a kid of seven. Revealing in a Reddit AMA, she wrote how Jello Molds she came across at a neighbor's house "fascinated" her, and thus, she decided to learn how to make them.
As Antonia started to cook them every night, her interest expanded to other dishes, such as fajitas. It was then that she decided to cook "for the rest of her life."
As she grew up, Antonia attended the French Culinary Institute in New York City. Since then, the Tournament of Champions' Chef has served as a manager and cook at many restaurants across the country.
Right now, she owns and runs three restaurants in Los Angeles, California, called the Black Market Liquor Bar, DAMA, and Scopa Italian Roots.
She has also stepped into the world of television via culinary reality TV shows such as Top Chef, Chopped, Cutthroat Kitchen, and Restaurant Startup with Guy Fieri. Being a force to be reckoned with all these years in cooking challenges, it only made sense to see her in the Tournament of Champions.
Tournament of Champions Chef Antonia - Personal Life
Antonia was born on Long Island in New York. However, when she was just 8, her parents moved to Los Angeles, where she found various opportunities to explore her passion for the culinary arts.
Her mother and grandmother both worked as waitresses at Los Angeles diners. The family then decided to open their diner called Fred's of New York, which was located in Beverly Hills, bringing elements from New York to LA. Talking about the same, she said to The Kitchn,
“I was always in the atmosphere of food. When I was a teenager and my parents were like, ‘You guys got to get a job.’ The first initial thought was, ‘I got to get a job in food.’”
Given her Italian heritage, her restaurant, Scopa Italian Roots, offers a wide variety of cuisines from the country. However, her initial love for fajitas has led her to open DAMA, which serves Latin dishes.
Antonia was married to rapper Heavy D, who passed away in 2011 due to heart disease. He is survived by Antonia and their daughter, Xea Myers, who was born in 2000.
Tournament of Champions season 6 airs weekly on Sundays at 8:00 pm Eastern Time on the Food Network. Later, the episodes are available to stream online through MAX.
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