Top Chef Winner Gabe Erales: Ego, Redemption & Life Beyond the Kitchen

Chef Gabe Erales, winner of Top Chef Season 18, joins the Painful Lessons Podcast with Tyler Ramsey to share his raw story of success, failure, and redemption.

Gabe opens up about growing up with Mexican culinary traditions, competing on Top Chef during COVID, the pressures of Michelin-star cooking, and the painful public scandal that reshaped his career and marriage. He also discusses mentorship, nonprofit work in Mexico, and what it really takes to find balance as a chef.

This episode isn’t just about food—it’s about humility, resilience, and the lessons learned when ego collides with reality.