‘Top Chef’ Season 5: Hosea Rosenberg

Current post: Executive chef at Jax Fish House in Boulder, Colo.

Pedigree: A self-taught chef, Rosenberg has worked for Wolfgang Puck and last year cooked at James Beard House in New York.

The dish: Jax Fish House is a relatively small place, seating 60 at a time, says general manager Aaron Derr, so Rosenberg is very hands-on. “He gets on the line, he’s putting out food. He’s not just there to do the menus and look good in front of the cameras.” One of Rosenberg’s biggest concerns about being on a reality TV show was how he might be portrayed, Derr adds.

The buzz: Rosenberg and fellow cheftestant Melissa Harrison both work for the same restaurant group in Colorado. The pair made a pact to watch “TC5” with their co-workers, including Derr, who has been Harrison’s roommate on a couple of occasions. “I’m ecstatic for both of them,” says Derr, although he knows only one of the two will be coming back to Boulder with bragging rights. “With them it’s not like, ‘I’m gonna kick your ass.’ It’s more like, ‘Hey man, you did really well, I just happened to do a bit better than you—ha ha!’”

Life love: Cream pies. On their last day, the staff at Jax Fish House give soon-to-be-ex employees the pie treatment. “It’s a sign of appreciation in kind of a weird way,” says Derr. Rosenberg may not have instituted the tradition, but “he instigates,” says Derr. “If you don’t get pied, you’re almost like, ‘Don’t they like me?’”

The verdict: Rosenberg is a formidable contestant, says Derr. He went undefeated in Denver mock–“Iron Chef” contests and competes in pork-offs and at the Denver International Wine Festival. “Whether he’s won the overall title or chef’s favorite, he always comes away with some sort of prize, and I think that shows he’s really adaptable at giving people what they want.”


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