Top Chef Masters (season 3)
The third season of the American reality competition show "Top Chef Masters" was announced on March 2, 2011. In addition to the announcement, it was announced that celebrity chef Curtis Stone would serve as the new host. Food critic and author Ruth Reichl also joined as a new series judge And Critic James Osland Also Returned. The season premiered on April 6, 2011, with 12 award-winning chefs competing against each other in weekly challenges. Unlike previous seasons, the chefs were not judged on a five-star rating system, but in elimination-style challenges similar  to the format of the original "Top Chef" series. Master Contestants. 12 chefs competed in this season of "Top Chef Masters". In the order eliminated: Episodes. In each episode, the chefs compete to win money for their charity. The Elimination Round winners are awarded cash donations ($10,000) for their charities. Each episode consists of a Quickfire and an Elimination challenge. The Quickfire is a short, simple challenge that can vary from cooking, tasting or a food-related task (e.g., peeling a certain amount of apples to certain quality standard in a limited amount of time). The winner(s) of the  Quickfire Challenge receive $5,000 for their charity. During the initial episodes of the season, the winner is usually guaranteed immunity from being sent home that week. The Elimination challenge is a more complex challenge which usually requires cooking a meal for many people with certain requirements. Unlike previous seasons of "Top Chef Masters", the dishes are no longer rated out of a possible five stars. The star scoring system is replaced with the elimination format of the original "Top Chef" series. Each week, one or more guest judges join the show to evaluate both the Quickfire and Elimination challenges . Each week's elimination is announced in a segment called the "Critics' Table." One or more contestants are eliminated in each episode until the finale where one chef is crowned Top Chef Master. The winning chef receives $100,000 for his or her designated charity.