Season 16, Episode 4
"Gyro We Go Again"
Chopped Champion Thomas McKenna
Episode theme: none
Original air date June 25, 2013
Image of "pigs in a blanket" (dough-wrapped hot dogs); dessert round ingredient.
Image by Sophia Martin from Pixabay
Meet the Chefs
Jaquy Yngvason
Chef Jaquy Yngvason suffered from severe food allergies growing up and was diagnosed with Celiac disease at age 24. After attending culinary school on the West Coast, she moved to New York City, NY, for an internship at The Food Network. It led to a full-time role as a food stylist and assistant producer. Around the time Chef Yngvason appeared on Chopped, she was hosting her own Tasty Freedom documentary web series on YouTube showcasing gluten-free recipes, the gluten-free community, and allergen-friendly restaurants. She also published a book on the same topics: Tasty Freedom: How We Mastered Fear, Illness and Foreign Travel with Severe Food Allergies. Her current whereabouts are unknown.
Tara Thomas
Chef Tara Thomas’s first restaurant opened in downtown Los Angeles, CA in 1992 and was open for four years. Her second endeavor, Traxx, was much longer lasting, opening in 1997 and staying in business until 2019. It offered travelers and locals fine dining in an art deco atmosphere and played a large role in helping to revitalize its landmark location in Union Station. Chef Thomas also had the opportunity to host and cater for many political events, including for former Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama. She was known in the community as an art lover who served on the boards of several organizations supporting the arts and a dog lover who bred and showed Lakeland Terriers. Sadly, Chef Tara Thomas died unexpectedly in 2022 at age 56.
Guillermo Perez
At the time of filming, Chef Guillermo Perez was the chef de cuisine at SushiSamba in New York City, NY. His current whereabouts are unknown.
Thomas McKenna
Chef Thomas McKenna attended the Culinary Institute of America, then went to work for the legendary Chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten. There, Chef McKenna rose from line cook and sous chef roles to being a culinary trainer across multiple restaurants. In 2017, he was named the opening executive chef at Public Kitchen at PUBLIC Hotel NYC, where he stayed for three years. More recently, he has moved into operations management and concept strategy roles. First as the culinary director at Creative Culinary Management, and currently as the vice president of culinary operations at West Coast-based Ten Five Hospitality.
Hungry for more?
Watch and learn how to make cinnamon brioche french toast from Chef McKenna!
