Over a decade later, the completely made-up title has become one of the most coveted among chefs and food lovers alike - but what has become of the Top Chef Season 1 contestants? We caught up with the chefs to see what they're up to (hint: Brand sponsorships).

'You have to have solid credentials before you can get your own kitchen.' While the credentials of Top Chef's inaugural cast ranged from self-taught cooking teacher who'd never set foot in a restaurant kitchen, to a 24-year-old sommelier from Las Vegas, to cooks who were actually known in their home cities, the cooking competition completely revolutionized how we recognize food talent across America. 'It's hard to get recognized,' Tom Colicchio answers, as B-roll from a restaurant kitchen with the flames glaring and line cooks chopping plays on screen - an image that's now all-too-familiar to diehard Top Chef fans.

'What does it take to make it as a chef?' narrator Katie Lee Joel asks in the opening scene of Top ChefSeason 1, circa 2006.

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