Navy cook goes on leave to compete on Bravo’s new 'Chef Academy’

By Joy Vann
Correspondent

Hungry for success, Kyle Kupiszewski is cooking up his future.

The Norfolk-based Navy cook is starring in Bravo television's "Chef Academy," a reality show that follows nine students as they make their way through a test culinary program run by award-winning chef Jean Christophe Novelli.

The show, which debuted Nov. 16, airs on Mondays.

The reality show's state-of-the-art kitchen is a far cry from the mess hall aboard the submarine Scranton, where Kupiszewski practices his culinary skills on a regular basis.

"We don't use standard techniques," the petty officer said of life on a sub. "We use grills and steam kettles instead of pans on burners."

The show's premise sounds simple - "to turn ordinary cooks into extraordinary chefs" - and cast members face a series of tests to graduate from the eight-week course at the Los Angeles academy. Students who fail three tests are dismissed.

Kupiszewski, 30, is perhaps the least knowledgeable in traditional culinary techniques, but he is adept at turning out four, made-from-scratch meals for 140 crewmates daily, and the confines of a submarine require that he use minimal equipment and ingenuous solutions to do his job.

He's convinced that his military background set him apart from other candidates vying to get on the show.

"Our cooking methods are so bizarre," he said. "If it wasn't for being a sub cook, I wouldn't have had this opportunity."

Last year, he vied for a spot on the Fox cooking show "Hell's Kitchen" but wasn't selected. Six months later, he got a call to audition for a new show and headed to California.

He made the cut, and the Navy approved a three-month leave for him to participate. He's now back on active duty.

Kupiszewski - called "Kup" (sounds like "coop") by his Navy buddies and on the show to distinguish him from another student named Kyle - describes "Chef Academy" as a mix between "Hell's Kitchen" and Bravo's "Top Chef."

"There is no winner per se," he said. "Graduating is winning, and some people didn't get through."

Kupiszewski said the intensity picked up after the first two episodes.

"People start crying," he said, "and there's a lot of drama."

The show reveals Kupis-zewski as anything but timid. He displays a penchant for salty language - a portrayal he said is mostly accurate.

"I did everything I would've done if working on a submarine. Underwater, you grow accustomed to cursing," he said. "I didn't hold back, for sure."

Kupiszewski said that studying at Novelli's academy was a life-changing experience.

"Once I did the show, I knew I was in the wrong line of work," he said. "The Navy was a good steppingstone for me, but I want to open my own restaurant."

After 11 years of service in the Navy, his last day will be Dec. 15. In mid-February, he will start classes at the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, N.Y. Nothing if not ambitious, he's also in negotiations with investors to start his own restaurant, which he plans to open while still in school.

"The show opened a lot of doors for me," he said. "I've always been told that I'm the best cook in the Navy, and I believe it because I've always taken pride in what I've done."

So did he make the grade?

It looked dicey for Kup when he failed to replicate a classic dessert in his first challenge, but he endured and said his lack of formal experience hasn't deterred him.

"I started from the bottom and started climbing to the top gradually. Once I got the hang of it, I started smoking everybody."