In the season finale, Kevin Sbraga was declared the winner over runners-up Angelo Sosa and Ed Cotton.

Elimination Challenge: Each chef created a dish that represented where they were from for 300 guests at an event during the Cherry Blossom Festival.

James Beard Award-winning pastry chef and cookbook author Johnny Iuzzini appears as guest judge.

The two chefs of the winning team were also awarded separate trips, blindly selected, to either Italy or Spain.

Quickfire Challenge: The chefs attempted to create a dish using strange or exotic proteins, including yak, Cayman crocodile, ostrich, frog legs, emu egg, duck white kidneys (testicles), duck tongue, and foie gras.

Partway through the challenge, host Lakshmi ordered the contestants to trade their proteins with a neighboring chef.

The opposing group of chefs joined the panel of judges and the Quickfire winner to examine their competitors' dishes.

Elimination Challenge: The chefs took over the kitchen at the Washington branch of The Palm steakhouse for a lunch service.

Each chef was randomly assigned one of five classic proteins served at The Palm: salmon, porterhouse steak, swordfish, lamb chops, and lobster.

Guests include Mika Brzezinski, Savannah Guthrie, Joe Scarborough, Aaron Schock, Mark Warner, John Podesta, Kelly O'Donnell, Luke Russert and chef Art Smith.

Elimination Challenge: The chefs had to make a dish inspired by a foreign country they selected, to serve at the Meridian Center for thousands of diplomats.

Their dishes were served at CIA headquarters to an array of Agency officers and staff including then-director Leon Panetta.

Elimination Challenge: The chefs worked as a team to operate a concession stand, with a minimum of six dishes, for a baseball game at Nationals Park.

Washington Nationals players Matt Capps, John Lannan, and Adam Dunn are in attendance and chef Rick Moonen guest judges.

Chef Anthony Bourdain and Dana Cowin, Editor-in-Chief of Food & Wine, guest judge.

Elimination Challenge: Working as one team, all four chefs created a cohesive menu celebrating Singaporean cuisine for an event hosted by Food & Wine magazine.

Elimination Challenge: The final three chefs were told to cook the best four-course meal of their lives, incorporating a vegetable, red mullet (Rouget), duck, and dessert.