Longtime fan of Kristen’s. Her memoir is insightful and inspiring. Loved hearing her story and seeing her growth.
Thank you Little Brown for the opportunity to read this ARC.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an ARC for review.

I know Kristen Kish from her time on Top Chef as both a contestant and the host. This memoir is so well-written, and it flowed very easily. It was great to read about her upbringing, her different cooking jobs, and how she came into both roles on Top Chef. There's a lot of reflection here on being a queer Asian woman in a male-dominated profession. Towards the end, it was a bit strong on the how she sends out vibes and energy into the world, or I don't know, how she came into her own self, but this memoir still works.

More than just a celebrity chef memoir, Kristen Kish’s book is a deep dive into topics that will resonate with many women.

I can’t speak to Kristen’s experience as a closeted gay woman, but she expressed her journey through three decades of pain and confusion with an eloquence and vulnerability that helped me understand in an entirely new way what kinds of emotional trauma that can cause. I think that alone makes this a valuable read for anyone, queer or otherwise.

As an Asian immigrant who grew up entirely in the US, I did feel deeply her disconnect from her Asian culture, and loved her insight into her own particular experiences in being an adoptee and forging her own path in connecting with the country of her birth that subverted the expectations of others.

Other themes of the book I loved: The odes to female friendship. The struggle so many of us go through to find our voice and our confidence in our twenties and even thirties. The lessons on leadership and support.

If you’re a Top Chef fan, this memoir is a must read. Those parts are fun too. But it’s so much more than that!

Thank you to Little, Brown and Company for providing me with this ARC in exchange for my honest opinions.

4.5 Stars

Accidentally On Purpose follows the life of celebrity chef Kristen Kish, from her upbringing in the Midwest through her time in the restaurant industry and her current role as the host of Bravo’s Top Chef.

Kristen Kish delivers an immersive look into her life, in Accidentally On Purpose. I loved the straightforward way that she told her story, starting with the adoption by her family when she was four months old. She shares her struggles with fitting in with her peers in middle and high school, anxiety, coming to terms with her identity as queer, and the difficulties of working in the restaurant business.

I enjoyed seeing how Kish’s career progressed, starting with her love of working in food service at the local mall, to attending culinary school, and the focus and determination she put into her work once she had the opportunities to work in restaurants. Kish does a great job of sharing the unsavory aspects of the restaurant industry, while remaining professional and respectful.

Kish also shares about her time doing television series, and I loved reading a bit about the behind the scenes of Top Chef, and one of her other shows that I enjoyed, Fast Foodies.

If you are a fan of Kristen Kish or just love great memoirs, I would definitely recommend reading Accidentally On Purpose. She shares a compelling look into her life, and is open and honest about so many things we all go through as humans, and I loved reading about the real Kristen behind the TV personality.

Kish’s memoir will most likely be picked up by those who know her from her culinary TV career, first in Top Chef as a contestant, then on Netflix’s Iron Chef, and now as a Top Chef judge. However, I think this memoir would be of great interest to any queer individual. Kish’s writing is straightforward, calm, almost meditative, but that tone serves her well throughout the work. She acknowledges her positions and experiences, as well as how she balances multiple identities, and is able to guide readers through both her highs and lows while remaining true to her more reserved, introverted personality.

Three themes throughout the work stuck with me. First, Kish’s frankness in describing how anxiety affected her life, and how she has worked to overcome it, was all too familiar. Second, her agony over remaining in the closet, and her reasons for doing so – despite having supportive parents, despite her certainty in herself – are likely to touch a note in many. Finally, Kish’s positive focus, of embracing serendipity and joy, while acknowledging tough times kept this balanced and real, neither depressing nor saccharine.

This was an interesting read about a figure in food television that I've been aware of for many years. I can't say that I've followed Kish's career closely but I did watch her season of Top Chef which was fantastic. It was great to read about her journey to being comfortable in her skin and with her identity in all facets. The writing kept you engaged as you followed her path and the book made me want to go look for some of the travel shows she has hosted as I had not heard of any of them. Overall, it was a satisfying read and while I didn't think it went deep enough in some areas, I enjoyed it.

I’ve been following Kish since her win on Top Chef (also seen on Iron Chef and Fast Foodies), and she’s been a breath of fresh air as the new host of Top Chef. She appears so polished yet down-to-earth and level-headed that I never would’ve guessed the challenges she had with career, mental health, cultural identity, and sexual orientation until reading this memoir.Often times, we think that the winner of Top Chef is set for life, but Kish shows it takes a lot of hard work, determination, and optimism for good things to happen and that success is really a roller-coaster ride.

She does write briefly about her experience competing on Top Chef and there’s a lot of wonderful and thoughtful insight about her culinary journey before she participated in the competition. I also appreciate how she doesn’t repeat what you can already glean from watching the show.

At the heart of the story, she also gets personal about coming to terms with her queer identity and her perspective as a Korean child adopted into a white family and what representation means to an audience. Kish’s positive voice and outlook shine throughout the story - although she doesn’t hesitate to write about her shortcomings, she also demonstrates her growth and gratitude on her path to success. A win in my book.

Special thanks to Little, Brown and Company and NetGalley for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest, independent review.



I love getting to read more about people I've admired for years. I think it was so interesting how much heart was in this while also being so matter of fact.