Kevin Gillespie

Padma gets a real rise out of the chefs when she tasks them with making a Quickfire dish using non-wheat flours; for the Elimination Challenge, the chefs serve Gustavo Dudamel and members of the LA Philharmonic at Otium restaurant.

Padma takes all the limitations off the table, as the chefs can make as much food as they want and shop wherever they choose; two chefs are given 48 hours to pick their teams and crate the restaurants.

Tom makes his final decision on who should return to the competition; the chefs take off in a Quickfire with Padma and Jonathan Waxman making a two-course business class dish for an airline.

The final three all stars face off in an epic Italian showdown. They have to cook the meal of their lives in an effort to take home the ultimate title and prize.

A challenge at the Griffith Observatory kicks off the fierce battle, where the chefs compare each other to see how everyone has progressed since last competing; the first elimination challenge brings them to the beach to cook a seafood meal.

The chefs are challenged to a taco throwdown for Danny Trejo; for the Quickfire, the only sharp tool they can use is a machete; the only way to make it to Restaurant Wars is to survive the qualifying challenge.