Tournament of Champions II: Ted Allen reacts to Chauhan’s win

When Maneet Chauhan won Tournament of Champions II and took the belt from Brooke Williamson, it’s safe to say there was no one who wasn’t happy for her. It didn’t matter who you were rooting for (still proudly Team Antonia) or who you had winning each coast in your bracket.

Chauhan went through 15 other chefs to win the Tournament of Champions belt, bringing it to the East Coast for the very first time and handing Williamson her first loss ever on the series. It made for some amazing television and the ratings, which took a huge jump this year, proved it.

It doesn’t hurt that Chauhan is pretty much universally loved by foodies everywhere. Regarded as one of the nicest and most entertaining people on Food Network, it’s easy to forget just how ridiculously talented she really is.

But one group that likely didn’t forget was her family at Chopped, the Food Network mainstay where many foodies first discovered Chauhan and her engaging personality. Even though Tournament of Champions is a Guy Fieri show, her victory is a big reason to celebrate for Chopped and the entire crew there, including host Ted Allen.

Ted Allen congratulates his Chopped co-star on her Tournament of Champions win.

According to Mashed, Allen was one of the first to jump on social media and congratulate Chauhan on her much deserved win. It was a sweet gesture and showed just how close the team at Chopped really are.

While Chauhan has appeared on Guy’s Grocery Games numerous times, she is best known for being a judge on Chopped. This is where many people first saw her and it’s obvious why she became so popular and a key ingredient of the show’s long-term success.

Even though it was Chauhan who got the win, the people at Chopped probably look at it like they all got that win. Chauhan might disagree (I didn’t see Scott Conant or Chris Santos facing down the Randomizer) but it was till great to see a Chopped judge get the belt.

Now the huge questions become if Chauhan can repeat as champion and if any other Chopped judges will decide to jump into the fray now that she was won it all. I guess we’ll all find out next year.

What did you think of Ted Allen’s message to Maneet Chauhan? Do you think he should join Tournament of Champions next season? Leave a comment below and let us know or join the conversation on our Twitter or Facebook pages.