Paul Qui facts for kids

Paul Qui (born August 14, 1980) is a talented chef based in Texas. He won the TV cooking show Top Chef and also received a special James Beard Award. He owns restaurants like East Side King and Thai Kun in Austin, and Pao in Miami.

In 2011, Paul Qui became famous for winning the ninth season of the reality television cooking competition Top Chef. This show features chefs competing against each other in various cooking challenges. His win showed everyone his amazing cooking skills.

Paul Qui's Journey to Becoming a Chef

Paul Qui was born in Manila, Philippines. He moved to the United States when he was a child. He went to high school in Springfield, Virginia. Later, he studied cooking at Le Cordon Bleu in Austin, Texas.

His first jobs in professional kitchens led him to work with Tyson Cole. Chef Cole owns popular restaurants called Uchi and Uchiko in Austin. Tyson Cole became a very important teacher and guide for Paul Qui. Qui worked hard and moved up to become the head chef at Uchiko.

Winning Top Chef

In 2011, Paul Qui was one of 29 chefs who competed on Top Chef Season 9. The show was filmed in different places across Texas. Paul Qui was incredibly successful on the show. He won eight of the 16 main cooking challenges. This helped him win the entire season.

Tom Colicchio, who was the main judge on Top Chef, praised Paul Qui. He said that Qui was one of the most skilled chefs in the first 12 seasons of the show.

Paul Qui's Restaurants

After winning Top Chef, Paul Qui returned to Austin. He opened his main restaurant, called Qui. He also started a new project called East Side King. This business uses food trucks to serve Japanese-inspired dishes. He created East Side King with his business partner, Moto Utsunomiya.

Another of Paul Qui's restaurants is Thai Kun. In 2014, Bon Appétit magazine recognized Thai Kun as one of the best restaurants in America. This was a big honor for the restaurant.

In 2016, Paul Qui opened Pao by Paul Qui. This restaurant is located at the Faena Hotel in Miami Beach, Florida. Later, in 2018, he opened a new restaurant in Houston called Aqui. It received a very good review from the Houston Chronicle. However, the restaurant closed at the end of that year.

Paul Qui also opened an Asian-fusion restaurant in Dallas called TacQui in May 2018. But it closed after only six months. In March 2019, Qui announced plans for a second East Side King location in Denver, Colorado. It was planned to be inside a food hall called Avanti Food & Beverage. However, the owners of Avanti decided not to work with Qui shortly after the announcement.

Awards and Special Recognitions

Besides winning Top Chef, Paul Qui has received many other important awards for his cooking:

• He was named Chef of the Year by Esquire Magazine in 2014.
• He won Best Chef, Southwest from the James Beard Foundation in 2012. This is a very respected award in the food world.
• Food & Wine magazine chose him as one of their best new chefs of 2014.
• He was the winner of the 2013 S. Pellegrino Cooking Cup Young Chef of the Year award.