P.E.I. chef Ilona Daniel brings Island flavours to Top Chef U.S. as guest judge [Video]

When P.E.I. chef Ilona Daniel was just starting out in the culinary world a number of years ago, she often tuned into the American reality competition series Top Chef.

She liked watching how the competitors handled the intense time pressure of television and learning from their techniques.

“I’ve always been a fan of telling stories. I’ve always loved doing media, whether it’s on the radio or whether it’s television. So just kind of it was almost like studying it. It was almost like it was a class for me,” Daniel told CBC’s Mainstreet P.E.I.

Fast forward to last year, Daniel, now a well-known Island chef and instructor at Holland College, was checking her email when she noticed a message from someone who introduced themselves as a producer with Top Chef U.S.

Season 22 of the popular Bravo series, called Top Chef: Destination Canada, was planning to explore Canada’s cuisine.