[2] Numerous production changes were made in response to COVID-19, and the pandemic's impact on the food industry became a recurring theme for challenges and discussions throughout the season.

Due to the difficulty of bringing in guest judges and diners for individual episodes while observing pandemic safety protocols, in addition to series mainstays Tom Colicchio, Gail Simmons, and Padma Lakshmi, the season features a rotating judging and dining panel consisting of various Top Chef alumni.

[1] According to Magical Elves Productions co-CEO Casey Kriley, the company spent six months planning how to film during the pandemic.

[8] The cast and production crew, totaling around 150 people, were kept isolated in a bubble, similar to those used for sporting events, at the Kimpton Hotel Monaco Portland.

[9] Other production changes included curbside pickup and delivery from Whole Foods Market instead of in-store shopping; the exclusion of challenges involving large dinners, tasting events, and crowds; as well as a bigger kitchen set and judges' table to allow for more social distancing.

[10] The producers were committed to their decision to go with Portland, Oregon, as a host for Top Chef, despite ongoing civil unrest in the city including protests over the police killings of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor.

[9] While the show was able to avoid the protests, which were largely concentrated to downtown Portland, the producers did not anticipate the effects of the 2020 Oregon wildfires, which "[threw] a massive curveball" into the production schedule.

[9] At times, the producers were unable to shoot outdoors, or even indoors, due to the smoke caused by the wildfires, forcing them to shift the schedule and filming locations around.

Elimination Challenge: The chefs created dishes featuring one of five game birds found in Oregon: quail, duck, chukar, turkey, or squab.

Elimination Challenge: Initially, the chefs were asked to create individual dishes highlighting either beer or coffee; the brews were randomly assigned via knife draw.

However, upon their arrival at the challenge site just hours before service, Tom Colicchio requested that the contestants pair up and create new dishes featuring both beer and coffee, using the ingredients they had already purchased for themselves.

Quickfire Challenge: The chefs were given 30 minutes to create a dish evoking a food memory, using Campbell's soup products.

View Orchards in the Hood River Valley, where they were tasked with cooking savory dishes incorporating locally grown fruit.

Elimination Challenge: The chefs, split into two teams, competed head-to-head catering for patrons at a pop-up drive-in theater located at the Portland Expo Center.

Elimination Challenge: The chefs traveled to Cascade Locks and paired up to create surf and turf dishes featuring local fish, game proteins, and produce for members of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation.

Quickfire Challenge: The chefs were given the chance to redo a past failed dish, which could be drawn from mishaps in real life or a blunder made earlier in the competition.

The dishes had to incorporate ingredients from the "second chance pantry", which ranged from overripe produce to moldy cheese to scrapped proteins.

Each team was tasked with creating a chef's table concept for their pop-up restaurant and serving a seven-course tasting menu for the judges and all-star panel.

The teams were not provided a waitstaff, and were responsible for all aspects of customer service themselves, including interacting with the diners, refilling drinks, and clearing the table.

Quickfire Challenge: The chefs created dishes using ingredients with reputations for being hipster, such as hemp oil, almond flour, kombucha, and milk substitutes.

Quickfire Challenge: The chefs made custom dishes based on the judges' preferred flavor combinations using ingredients from Chipotle Mexican Grill.

After entering the black box, which covered the chefs in total darkness, the first team member had 15 minutes to taste, smell, and feel a mystery dish, prepared by guest judge Gabriel Rucker, and begin trying to recreate it.

In the final 5 minutes, both team members were allowed to enter the black box, with the lights on, to sample the mystery dish again and fix any mistakes with their recreation.

The contestants had to produce modern dishes using only ingredients the settlers would have had on their journey through the Oregon Trail, including flour, lard, coffee, molasses, dried fruits, meats, and herbs.

The meals were served at the Willamette Valley Vineyards to the judges, all-stars, and guest diners Naomi Pomeroy and Peter Cho.

They eventually settled for a 25-minute timer and five chicken parts (liver, oysters, skin, thighs, feet) to incorporate into their dishes.

The day after the finale aired, the Austin American-Statesman reported that Erales "admitted to having a consensual sexual relationship" with a female coworker at Comedor in the summer of 2020.

Philip Speer, his former business partner and chef at Comedor, confirmed that Erales was terminated due to "repeated violations of the company's ethics policy as it relates to harassment of women."

Host and fellow producer Padma Lakshmi eventually spoke on the matter and stated, "As someone who has been sexually harassed, this topic is a serious one and merits openness.

She added that "no one has alleged sexual harassment on the record or otherwise to Bravo/Top Chef and we judges didn't have any indication of inappropriate behavior from Gabe during his time on set.