“Top Chef 2022”: Wilfried Romain reacts to his elimination

TELEVISION – Paul Pairet loses again one of his proteges. After being eliminated for the first time, then returning to the competition following the sudden departure of LilianWilfried Romain has left the kitchens of top Chief, this Wednesday, May 4.

During this twelfth bonus broadcast on M6, the candidates were divided into two groups. The first four had to offer a unique tasting to American chef Mike Bagale, pioneer of “floating food”. The others had to seduce the most starred woman chef in the world, Anne-Sophie Pic, with a simple vegetable. Mickaël, Arnaud and Wilfried finished on waivers and clashed during a last chance around the duck breast. Unfortunately for Wilfried, his duck meatballs and his plate with Asian notes did not allow him to qualify.

The candidate traveler from this thirteenth season has cooked all over the world. After beginnings in Luxembourg, he decided to go to Australia and then to South America, more precisely to Chile where he worked in one of the best restaurants in the world: Boragó. Back in France, he obtained positions in prestigious establishments such as the Mandarin Oriental or even L’Orangerie at the George V.

After his elimination, he agreed to answer a few questions posed by The HuffPost.

At the time of your elimination from Top chef, you said leaving without regret. Do you really have none?

Inevitably, I tell myself that I could have gone further, but I have no regrets. If I had left the first episode, yes I would have had. I did twelve weeks of contests and it’s already great. I showed things and took risks that I liked. Even this last chance on the duck breast, it still makes me laugh to think that I made duck meatballs. I was trying to take the test the wrong way and it didn’t work, too bad. I see it maybe as a game before being a competition and maybe that’s one of my faults.

On this last chance precisely, what did you miss?

Maybe success because I think those duck meatballs could have been great. When you do something like that, it has to be perfect and it wasn’t. So it does not forgive. And then maybe sometimes I take the tests too coolly.

Regarding your relaxed attitude, some Internet users have compared you to Adrien Cachot …

It’s funny because it’s the kind of stuff I’ve never been told, except on social media. Frankly, I don’t really care. I think we are still very different Adrien Cachot and me. We’re not going to lie to each other, he has a much better level of cuisine.

What were your motivations for participating in Top chef?

I thought it might be nice to do Top chef. My friend Thomas Chisholm, with whom I worked at the Mandarin Oriental, took part in it in 2021 and only good things came out of it. He advised me to pass the casting and I was taken. I went there to meet people, challenge myself and have great chefs taste my cuisine. It’s super interesting and educational because you learn things about yourself and your cooking.

We notice that many candidates like you have worked at the Mandarin Oriental alongside Thierry Marx. Can we talk about a stable Top chef?

Thierry Marx bets on good horses (laughs). Indeed I worked there with Thomas Chisholm, Mory Sacko and Martin Feragus from the tenth season. It was a few years ago and it’s funny to see that all four of us took part in Top chef. We were a crazy team there and I wouldn’t be surprised to see other guys who worked with us participate in season 14.

Let’s go back to your journey on the show. You were first with the reds before your first elimination, then you had the opportunity to replace Lilian in the purple brigade. How did you experience this return?

For once, I was a little disappointed that my career stopped after eight episodes. I wanted to go further but very sincerely, I had accepted the defeat against Louise. You should know that two hours passed between my elimination and my return. I had time to call my brother to tell him that it was over and a few hours later, I sent him a message to announce my return to the contest. He was lost (laughs). It was great to come back but we still wonder if we deserve it. I remember that Paul Pairet had very right words about this situation. I was like a phoenix rising from its ashes.

Several times in this episode, you talk about a chemistry with Paul Pairet. What did it bring you?

For the record, he is the chef with whom I absolutely wanted to be. So it was great to be in his squad. What I find very interesting with Paul Pairet is that he adapts perfectly to each candidate. He is always in the council to lead us to reflection. I remember very well that during the tests, I explained my idea to him and he took the time to think. He took a step back from what was going on in the kitchen and came back to see me a few minutes later. And that’s where he has that little extra something that will help us move forward in the events. Besides, it shows on the screen, we matched well.

Thanks to your victory with Mickaël and Arnaud in the restaurant war, you opened your ephemeral restaurant Philo Saucisse. Did you expect such enthusiasm?

It’s a delirium, we’re not going to lie. Shooting and winning the event is already great. But see the Philo Sausage concept come to life and display almost full every day, it’s crazy. I hadn’t necessarily thought about it because I was in a sort of bubble for the opening of the restaurant. After that there is still a menu around sausages, so we say to ourselves that maybe people will get bored, won’t understand or that on the contrary, they won’t be interested. But so far it’s going very well.

Do you have a shooting anecdote to share?

During Philippe Etchebest’s event in Bordeaux, the four of us left with Pascal, Thibaut and Sébastien. It was a very nice move between visiting the city and visiting the chef’s restaurant, which at the time was not yet open. I think he was very proud to share that with us and it was a very nice moment of which I have excellent memories.

What are your future plans?

I am looking to do a residency this summer. Then I’m going to open my restaurant in the Paris region by early 2023. There are little things that also happen, but I prefer not to say too much to maintain the element of surprise. In any case, I can tell you that I am very happy with the projects underway.

A little prediction for the final?

Without hesitation Mickaël and Louise. Mickaël, because he is a very complete cook, who refuses nothing and who is very solid. Louise, because having worked with her in the brigade, she is a great candidate who has a very good cooking philosophy. Besides, I would find it great if a girl went to the final, because there have only been two winners since the beginning of Top chef. For me, it’s not just the technical side that comes into play. I like to judge people on the human part and I find that humanly speaking, they both deserve to go far. Besides, I saw that Thibaut copied me for the prognosis (laughs).

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