CT business owner back for third round on ‘Chopped’
A victorious Jillian Moskites took home a $10,000 prize after her first competition, which aired in early 2018. She kept the secret from her six children, who had encouraged her to apply, and waited for them to watch the episode.
Jillian Moskites, co-owner of the Whey Station grilled cheese food truck and Whey Station (ary) restaurant in Middletown, is becoming a familiar face on Food Network.
The chef, restaurateur and cheese expert will make her third “Chopped” competitive appearance on Tuesday at 9 p.m., as the network introduces its new “Grudge Match” series.
She is part of a group of past champions who will return for another round, battling to make it to a final round against “Chopped” judges.
The grand prize? $ 100,000. “No pressure, right?” Moskites said, laughing.
According to the episode description, “something stinky in the entree basket has the competitors nervous, and after both remaining champs cook their hearts out in dessert, the judges have a gut-wrenching decision to make.”
Moskites taped the episode in the fall, she said, undergoing multiple COVID tests during filming. The crew wore personal protective equipment.
Her third “Chopped” experience was otherwise similar to the first two, she said, but since her rivals were all seasoned past champions, “it was a higher level of competition,” she said. “That was pretty intimidating; definitely a mental game.”
But that shared experience also helped build camaraderie on the set, and “we all got along great,” she said. “There’s a lot of mutual respect, and the atmosphere in the kitchen was really wonderful.”
Even after three appearances, Moskites said it’s still challenging to compete, without any hints or inkling of what’s to come. “You open that basket [of ingredients] and you just don’t know...it’s always entertaining and scary.”
She said it’s actually helped to come in without any plans, and to just come up with ideas once she sees what ingredients the basket contains.
“People walk in with recipes in their head, and you really don’t want to do that,” she said. “You want to do it based on that basket and not with any preconceived notions.”
A victorious Moskites took home a $ 10,000 prize after her first competition, which aired in early 2018. She kept the secret from her six children, who had encouraged her to apply, and waited for them to watch the episode.
She and her husband, Josh, put the prize money toward the food truck business, which they launched in 2011. They opened the Middletown restaurant in early 2019.
In her appearance during the “Beat the Judge” season, which aired in May, she went up against judge Marc Murphy, and made it to the dessert round before Murphy was declared the winner.
The third “Chopped” opportunity came at a welcome time, she said. The Whey Station food truck business lost out on a full
slate of summer and fall events and catering, and hasn’t seen its usual late-night turnout by Wesleyan University’s campus.
The Whey Station(ary) restaurant, which remained closed for five months, reopened in mid
September. Revenues have also been down at least 60 percent there, Moskites said, with seating limited to 24 people. Takeout has been slow, and third-party delivery apps take a portion of any sales through those plat
forms.
The couple has received some Paycheck Protection Program funding, and Moskites is looking into other grants and aid options, but she said she’s reluctant to take out any loans because of the continued uncertainty of the pandemic.
While the restaurant was closed through much of the spring and summer, the couple continued their weekly outreach program, feeding Middletown people in need every Sunday. They also welcomed people for Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners.
Moskites said she’s seen the need intensifying throughout the pandemic, with sometimes as many as 60 people waiting in line for a meal on Sundays. Despite the restaurant’s own financial struggles, she sees it’s more important than ever to give back.
“I’ve had people cry over a hot meal,” she said. “People feel human, like someone cares for them.”
“Chopped: Grudge Match” airs at 9 p.m. EST on Food Network. foodnetwork.com/shows/chopped. The Whey Station(ary) is at 544 Main St. in Middletown. 860-740-2403, wheystationary.com.