We’re reaching the pointy end of MasterChef Australia, and on Sunday night, viewers said goodbye to frontrunner Tommy Pham in a heartbreaking elimination.
The episode was a wild ride from start to finish, but things really took a turn when the last two people left fighting for their spot in the competition were Alvin Quah and Pham.
“You could literally cut the tension with a butter knife,” Pham revealed to The Latch, after being asked what the energy was like in the kitchen.
“You could feel it from the people upstairs as well. After I finish a cook, I usually look up to the gantry and chat with them.
“But I couldn’t even look up. I just looked straight ahead and my mind was like, ‘don’t look up because you’re going to cry’.”
Both cooks naturally gravitate towards Asian food, with Pham being an expert in Vietnamese cooking and Quah leaning more towards Malaysian. It didn’t help that the pair are great friends both in and out of the kitchen, so the entire round felt like Sophie’s Choice.
“Alvin and I have a special connection. None of us wants to see the other person leave but we know that at the end of the day, someone’s going home,” said Pham.
“It makes the cook 10 times harder, just knowing that you’re up against somebody you really like.”
Related: Everyone Who’s Said Goodbye on MasterChef Australia: Fans & Favourites
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Pham was first introduced to MasterChef Australia viewers last year, and quickly won the hearts of everyone watching. His departure the second time around was even more devastating than the first and was something he did not expect.
“Just before this elimination I had been on an upwards trajectory,” he recalled. “Every single cook I had been doing the right thing and getting so much praise from the judges.
“I thought, ‘wow, I could go really far’ because I kept getting Dish of the Day over and over again.
“And then, it just happened so quickly, from so high, I went straight down and that’s what made it hurt a little bit more.”
Related: MasterChef Australia: Everything to Know About Guest Judge Rick Stein
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However, while Pham’s time in the MasterChef kitchen is over, his personal life is really starting to speed up. Last night, he revealed that he and his partner are expecting another child, and will soon become a family of six.
Pham and his partner are already parents to their two-year-old son, Miles, and two dogs.
“I’m terrified of having a family of six. So I don’t know how we’re going to survive, but I think we’ll get there somehow!”
As for what’s up next, Pham is currently focusing on his growing family but has plans on opening pop-up stalls in the near future.
“The biggest thing for me right now is figuring out how I’m going to work with this family situation, and making sure I get that all sorted,” he said.
“Then, I’d love to do a pop-up — I did one after last season but it was during lockdown and I could only do deliveries. So, doing a pop-up in a market when I can see people enjoying the food would be amazing.”
Want more MasterChef Australia? Read all of our MasterChef Australia content here, and check out the stories below.
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- Everything There Is to Know About MasterChef Guest Judge, Marco Pierre White
- Clare Smyth Returns to the MasterChef Australia Kitchen
- Can Coeliac Cook Melanie Persson Win MasterChef Australia?
- MasterChef Australia: Can Steph Woon Go All the Way?
- Meet Montana Hughes, the TikTok Star Hoping to Go All the Way on MasterChef Australia
- MasterChef Australia 2022: Matt Landmark is Ready to Take On the Favourites
- Get to Know MasterChef Australia’s Keyma Vasquez Montero
- MasterChef Australia 2022: Jenn Lee Is Ready to Wow the Judges
- MasterChef Australia: Can Ali Stoner Beat the Favourites?
- The Definitive Guide to Watching MasterChef Australia: Fans and Favourites
- MasterChef Australia 2022: Here’s Where to Follow the Contestants on Instagram
- Everything You Need to Know About Applying for MasterChef Australia 2023
- A Pressing Question: Is MasterChef Australia Still on Tonight?
- MasterChef Australia’s Harry Tomlinson Opens Up About Why She Changed Her Name
- MasterChef Australia: All the Fans and Favourites Who’ve Won an Immunity Pin
- MasterChef Australia Winner Sashi Cheliah Shares How COVID Has Affected His Restaurant
- Jock Zonfrillo Uses ‘Worry Beads’ While Filming MasterChef — Here’s How They Help Him
- Firefighter Daniel Lamble Is Ready to Take on the MasterChef Kitchen
- MasterChef Australia: Meet Harry Tomlinson, the First Fan to Win an Immunity Pin
- “Everything Has Changed”: Jock Zonfrillo On How Far ‘MasterChef Australia’ Has Come Since Season 1
- Step Inside the Historic Melbourne Space Where ‘MasterChef Australia’ is Filmed
- Christina Batista Is Back for the Win on MasterChef: Fans Vs Favourites
- Tommy Pham Is Back For More on MasterChef Australia: Fans & Favourites
- “I Struggled To Boil Water”: Andy Allen Opens Up About His Own ‘MasterChef Australia’ Journey
- MasterChef Australia: Aldo Ortado Is Back to Win Over the Judges
- MasterChef Australia’s Mindy Woods Is Back To Impress the Judges
- Third Time’s a Charm? Minoli De Silva Returns to MasterChef Australia
- MasterChef Australia: How Much Do the Contestants Make While On the Show?
- MasterChef Australia: Alvin Quah Is Back for the Win
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