Paul Qui (born August 14, 1980) is a Texas-based Top Chef winner and James Beard award recipient.
[3] He attended high school in Springfield, Virginia[4] and completed his culinary training at Le Cordon Bleu in Austin, Texas.
[5] His initial forays into cooking professionally led to a job with Tyson Cole, chef/owner of Uchi and Uchiko restaurants in Austin.
[7] Following his win, he returned to Austin and opened his flagship restaurant, Qui, and a venture called East Side King, which showcases various Japanese-inspired dishes via food trucks with business partner Moto Utsunomiya.
However within a days of the announcement, Avanti owners opted to cut ties with Qui amid continued controversy over his 2016 assault arrest.