Imagine, if you will, a young high school senior from a small school in Henry County, Georgia receiving the letter almost any parent would be happy to have their child receive, a letter of acceptance, with a full-ride scholarship to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.  Flash forward about 8 years and that student is about to, possibly win one the biggest prizes in his field…Bravo TV’s Top Chef competition.

Kevin Gillespie, one of this year’s final three contestants turned down the full-ride MIT scholarship to go culinary school instead.  With a smile on his face and simple, yet elegant meals, Kevin has become one of the fan favorites to win this competition.

As the Executive Chef and part owner of the Wood Fire Grill in Atlanta, Georgia,  Kevin has combined his love of southern culture with casual dining to create a menu that doesn’t quite fit the mold of most restaurants in the area.  “I believe food should be simple and approachable but still packed with surprises,” he said in explaining his philosophy for cooking.  “We change the menu every day. We don’t write a menu and then place an order for ingredients. It’s the other way around. Every day we tell the suppliers to bring us whatever is best and then we write the menu from there. It’s like a jigsaw puzzle,” continued.

“I hope they leave with the feeling that they dined at my house and not at a restaurant. I’d like them to be shocked that it was better than they expected,” he said when asked what he wants most for his customers.

“I’m a huge advocate of the preservation of traditional southern barbecue,” Kevin explained recently during a break in the taping of Top Chef.  “I use a lot of the old techniques in the restaurant.  A wood fire grill is similar to an open pit,” he continued.  “My favorite meat to prepare is pork,” he said.  “I use an open pit. I build a separate fire and shovel live coals under to minimize smoke and drip down,” continued to explain.

Kevin also has an active interest in sustainable foods and the “slow food” movement.  He only uses locally grown produce and proteins in his restaurant.  And takes pride in that achievement.

However, Kevin sees a disconnect between the traditional southern BBQ culture and his interest in slow foods.  “The BBQ culture is moving further away from tradition. It’s too convenient.  An electric machine that you push digits on and leave is not BBQ – that’s an oven that smokes,” Kevin explained.

When asked if he cooked “ribs” he said yes.  Although Kevin professes a love for Eastern Carolina type sauces he is quick to point out that  “if you cook ribs the right way, sauce is not necessary. But in moderation, sauce can benefit.”  When it comes to BBQ Kevin claims some of the greats in southern BBQ as his inspiration, the late Pete Jones, Wilbur Shirley and Ed Mitchell.

Kevin takes away a great deal from his Top Chef experience.  Win or lose he discovered that “people are really capable of doing more than they think. If you push yourself you can make yourself do anything. Failure is a temporary setback to success.”

For a southern BBQ fanatic Kevin enjoyed the “escargot challenge” on Top Chef the most.  The biggest challenge, during Top Chef, was the infamous “Restaurant Wars.”  Kevin’s team had the distinction of having the worst restaurant ever in six seasons of Top Chef.  He places the blame on this failure on “the fact that we made a critical error in judgment and didn’t appoint a leader. It was a bunch of chiefs and no Indians – or vice versa.”

Like many other chefs Kevin has many tattoos.  When asked why so many chefs have tattoos he explained, “We are in a field that allows us to express ourselves and not face the scrutiny of the business world. Chefs are very creative. My favorite tattoo is my pig.”

Where does Kevin see himself in the years to come?  He’d like to someday own a BBQ restaurant but in the mean time he, “wants to be busy by focusing on making the restaurant better every day. Being a mentor. Making a difference.”