Gary Mehigan, George Calombaris and Matt Preston departed the show in 2019 and were replaced with new judges Andy Allen, Melissa Leong and Jock Zonfrillo.
[10] This includes the observance of social distancing, having individual plates for each judge during tasting, and the use of gloves when handling ingredients.
[13][14] Other past contestants such as Derek Lau, Sarah Todd, and Alvin Quah were later confirmed to have been invited to compete in the series, but refused for various reasons.
Most charges were dropped when Ungermann pleaded guilty to a single count of common law assault, avoiding a criminal conviction.
[19] Notes Future Appearances Despite the largely positive overall reception, the series has been met with some skepticism from viewers, mostly through social media, concerning the judges' apparent favouritism towards certain contestants.
[22] Other accusations have attacked the judges' apparent reluctance to eliminate contestants Poh Ling Yeow[23] and Reynold Poernomo,[24] both of whom are considered fan favourites, and, therefore, beneficial to the show's viewership.