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Business & Tech

Bed-Stuy's Justin Warner is Winning Chef on 'Food Network Star'

Self-taught chef's quirky style wins over TV audience and lands him his own show.

Justin Warner, owner of Bed-Stuy’s Restaurant, is the winner of this season's "Food Network Star" according to the NY Daily News.

The 28-year-old chef beat out fourteen other contestants to win his very own show. He will also be featured in Food Network’s magazine and have a spot in the October New York City Wine & Food Festival.

Warner is a self-taught chef who whips up creative cuisine at his Bed-Stuy restaurant. Menu items include "E666s" — an unusual take on deviled eggs which are stuffed with baby octopus and caper berries — and a Caesar salad called "Et Tu, Brute?".

Find out what's happening in Bed-Stuyfor free with the latest updates from Patch.

In an interview with Patch, Warner discussed his take on culinary classics:

"Chef-driven restaurants fall into this trap all the time where they feel that they have to be married to this kind of this farm-to-table concept in order to be taken seriously, he said. "And seriousness is not everything. We want to make people laugh and enjoy themselves."

Find out what's happening in Bed-Stuyfor free with the latest updates from Patch.

That sense of fun earned him a win on Food Network Star, which for the first time was decided by an online vote by fans rather than judges. In an interview on FoodNetwork.com, Chef Bobby Flay welcomed Justin to the network by applauding his "zany ideas and quirkiness. That’s something that the network needs."

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