Over 20 seasons, Bravo's "Top Chef" has become the "standard bearer" for cooking competitions, lead judge Tom Colicchio said on "Salon Talks." The chef explained the one requirement he had for producers before he signed on and why the judging process has made it a standout TV show. "It's a cooking competition and unless you're tasting that food, I'm sorry, you can't comment," he said on his belief that producers should not have sway in eliminations.