Page 8 - February 2020final

THE CHAMP IS HERE cause I don’t do “I was excited the first two rounds,
but by time the dessert round came I
that. Pastry chefs

do things com-
was like ‘I’ve gotta win this.’ I didn’t
“CHOPPED” WINNER MAKES WAL HOME pletely different want to walk away with nothing after
all that hard work.”
from what I do,”
Mike states.
By Rashawnda Atkinson
It wasn’t until about 8 p.m. that night
How would you like to win $10,000? “The time [limits] you see on the that Bonk found out he was the
show are the actual times. You really “Chopped” Champion and winner of
Michael Bonk, Chef de Cuisine at have 20 minutes to cook the appetizer the $10,000, even though the blueber-
upscale steakhouse and raw bar BLT and 30 minutes to do the entrée and ry dessert he created wasn’t his
Steak and WAL resident, did strongest meal of the day.
just that.
So how did the champion get
Putting his culinary skills to his start as a chef?
the test, Bonk won the
“Entrée Basket Blues” epi- 2 a.m. Wake-up Call
sode on Season 31 of “I went to college for fi-
“Chopped”, a popular show nance, but it really wasn’t
on the Food Network. His exciting for me, although I
style of cooking is inspired was doing pretty well for
by his Polish heritage, farm- myself. One morning I woke
life roots and appreciation of up at 2 a.m. and saw one of
food in season and on hand. those culinary school com-
mercials come on TV…I was
The expert whole-animal 25 at the time...and I just
butcher loves to cook “food knew that’s what I wanted to
with soul” according to his do,” Mike shares.
restaurant’s website. He’s
intentional about where the Bonk went to the Art Insti-
food in his restaurant comes tute of Philadelphia for culi-
from, how it’s prepared and nary school in 2005, studied
the way it’s served to guests. in Paris for a while, and then
The chef life is more than a graduated in 2009.
job for Bonk. It’s what he
loves to do. “Although the food scene
back home [in Philly] is pret-
How Not to Get ty good, I wanted a change. I
Chopped happened to have a friend in
The Food Network reached D.C. I got on the bus and
out to Michael while he was Chef Michael Bonk at BLT Steak restaurant. Photo: BLT Steak came down here. I looked up
working as a corporate chef the top 10 restaurants in the
in D.C. and asked him to come on the dessert. The time gets stretched out city and then began knocking on the
show. because of all the set up in between.” doors of each one until I got a job.”

“It was a pretty lengthy process, but For example, Mike shared that it took And that’s how the finance guy be-
the money was a good motivator. about 20 minutes to reveal who was came a chef.
Where I was working at the time, the eliminated from each round because
menu changed daily. We only cooked of the different camera angles the Farm Guy at Heart
what we bought, and butchered the camera crew needed to take. This Don’t get it twisted though. Food has
whole animal right there that day. didn’t phase the DC chef much, as he always been an integral part of
Every day was like ‘Chopped,’” cruised through the appetizer and en- Mike’s life.
Bonk shares. trée rounds. “I was actually asking to
help others out because I finished Growing up just outside of Wilming-
A few friends predicted how he’d do early. I guess that made me a bad ton, D.E., Bonk’s mother raised him
on the show. competitor but that’s just how it is as a single parent and spent lots of
when you’re in the kitchen,” Bonk time on his grandma’s farm. He en-
“They said I’d kill the appetizer and says. joyed the benefit of having food with-
entrée rounds but bomb dessert be- in reach.

Page 8 Wheel February 2020