Next Great Baker (season 3)
| Next Great Baker (season 3) | |
|---|---|
| Country of origin | United States |
| No. of episodes | 12 (includes two special episodes) |
| Release | |
| Original network | TLC |
| Original release | November 26, 2012 – February 11, 2013 |
| Season chronology | |
The third season of Next Great Baker aired from November 26, 2012 to February 11, 2013.[1] Like the previous season, this season was set at the Carlo's Bake Shop facility at Lackawanna Center in Jersey City, New Jersey. Unlike the previous two seasons, the finale for this season took place outside of the greater New York City area – in this case, in Las Vegas, Nevada at The Venetian Las Vegas.
The winner of this season was Ashley Holt, who won $100,000 and a spread in Redbook magazine, and will work beside Buddy Valastro in the bakery.[2]
Contestants
Thirteen contestants competed during this season:[2][3][4]
| Contestant | Age | Occupation | Hometown |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alvarez, LettyLetty Alvarez | 41 | Owner/Operator of LA Sweets | Miami, Florida |
| Brown, JamesJames Brown | 41 | Owner of Brown's Bakery | Lexington, Kentucky |
| Conti, PaulPaul Conti | 30 | Bakery Management Consultant/Owner Cake Face Cakery | Staten Island, New York |
| Durkin, ChadChad Durkin | 29 | Owner of CAD Culinary Consulting and Wedding Cakes | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| Fischer, Gretel-AnnGretel-Ann Fischer | 36 | Owner of Cupp's Café & Bakery | Colchester, Vermont |
| Gray, PeterPeter Gray | 21 | Owner of Pete's Sweets | East Longmeadow, Massachusetts |
| Holt, AshleyAshley Holt | 25 | Country Club Pastry Chef/Owner of Sugar Monster Sweets | Louisville, Kentucky |
| Kwapinski, JenJen Kwapinski | 32 | Owner of Jen's Cakes | San Jose, California |
| Luna, ChrisChris Luna | 29 | Sales Executive | Roseville, California |
| Payne, MelissaMelissa Payne | 33 | Owner of Couture Cake Creations/Co-owner of Sweets Couture | Chesterfield, Virginia |
| Reyling, JessicaJessica Reyling | 30 | Stay-at-Home Mom | Peoria, Illinois |
| Tyler, EmmeEmme Tyler | 30 | Owner of Skinny Batches | Los Angeles, California |
| Wallace, GarrettGarrett Wallace | 36 | Cake Artist at Fabulous Baker Boy | Waverly, Tennessee |
Contestant progress
As episode 5 ("New Year's Eve, Hoboken Style!") and episode 11 ("Road to the Finale") were not competition episodes, there are no columns for those episodes in the following table.
| Place | Contestant | Episode 1 | Episode 2 | Episode 3 | Episode 4 | Episode 6 | Episode 7 | Episode 8 | Episode 9 | Episode 10 | Episode 12 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Baker's challenge winner(s) |
Chad | Gretel-Ann Jen Letty Melissa |
Ashley Garrett |
Ashley[n 1] Chad Gretel-Ann Paul Peter[5] |
Jen Letty |
Gretel-Ann | Ashley | Ashley | Ashley | Ashley | None | |
| 1 | Ashley | WIN[n 2] | IN | IN | WIN | IN | LOW | WIN | WIN | IN | WIN | WINNER |
| 2 | Gretel-Ann | LOW | LOW | HIGH | LOW | WIN[n 3] | WIN | WIN | LOW | LOW | LOW | SECOND |
| 3 | Jen | LOW | LOW | WIN | LOW | WIN | WIN[n 4] | WIN | WIN[n 5] | IN | THIRD | |
| 4 | Paul | WIN[6] | WIN | LOW | WIN | LOW | LOW | LOW | WIN | OUT | ||
| 5 | Chad | LOW | IN | LOW | WIN | WIN | LOW | LOW | OUT | |||
| 6 | Chris | HIGH | WIN | HIGH | LOW | LOW | WIN | OUT | ||||
| 7 | Letty | LOW | LOW | WIN | WIN | LOW | OUT | |||||
| 8 | Peter | HIGH | IN | WIN | WIN | OUT | ||||||
| 9 | Garrett | LOW | WIN | IN | WD[n 6] | |||||||
| 10 | Jessica | WIN[6] | WIN | HIGH | OUT | |||||||
| 11 | Melissa | HIGH | LOW | OUT | ||||||||
| 12 | James | LOW | WD | |||||||||
| 13 | Emme | OUT | ||||||||||
- (WIN) The baker(s) won the challenge.
- (WIN) The baker won individual immunity and the elimination challenge.
- (HIGH) The baker(s) had one of the best cakes for that challenge, but did not win.
- (IN) The baker(s) did not win nor lose and advanced to the next week.
- (LOW) The baker(s) was/were a part of the team who lost, but was not the last to move on.
- (LOW) This baker was singled out as one of the worst teammates, and was/were the last to move on.
- (OUT) The baker(s) was/were eliminated.
- (IN) The baker(s) had immunity.
- (WD) The baker(s) voluntarily withdrew from the competition.
- Notes
- ↑ In "Cake Roast", Buddy declared that Ashley was the MVP of the winning baker's challenge team.
- ↑ In the episode 1 elimination challenge, Buddy declared that Ashley was the MVP of the winning team.
- ↑ In the episode 6 elimination challenge, Buddy declared that Gretel-Ann was the MVP of the winning team.
- ↑ In the episode 7 elimination challenge, Buddy declared that Jen was the MVP of the winning team.
- ↑ In the episode 9 elimination challenge, Buddy declared that Jen was the MVP of the winning team.
- ↑ Garret's departure was not shown until episode 6.
Episode guide
| No. in series |
No. in season |
Title | Original air date | Contestant eliminated |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20 | 1 | "Game On!" | November 26, 2012 | Emme |
|
Baker's Challenge: Each competitor must bake a dessert of their choice, and deliver it to Buddy in Manhattan on foot. Buddy will taste the first dessert to arrive and any other 4 desserts that look or sound appealing. Buddy will also disqualify the last dessert to arrive. Chad was the declared the winner of the Baker's Challenge. Elimination Challenge: Guest client Mario Lopez and Courtney Maza enter to receive a bachelor cake. | ||||
| 21 | 2 | "Cake Powers, Activate!" | December 3, 2012 | James (Quit) |
| 22 | 3 | "Bunny Suits and BB Guns" | December 10, 2012 | Melissa |
| 23 | 4 | "Cake Roast" | December 17, 2012 | Jessica & Garrett (Quit) |
| 24 | 5 | "New Year's Eve, Hoboken Style!" | December 31, 2012 | N/A |
| This special episode recaps the series up to this point, and gives a behind-the-scenes look at how the competition is put together. | ||||
| 25 | 6 | "Wedding Belles" | January 7, 2013 | Peter |
| 26 | 7 | "Cakes Al Dente" | January 14, 2013 | Letty |
| 27 | 8 | "Battle of the Sexes" | January 21, 2013 | Chris |
| 28 | 9 | "Happy Birthday Kelly" | January 28, 2013 | Chad |
| 29 | 10 | "Momma Knows Best" | February 4, 2013 | Paul |
| 30 | 11 | "Road to the Finale" | February 11, 2013 | Jen |
| 31 | 12 | "Vegas, Baby!" | February 11, 2013 | (1)Ashley , (2) Gretel-Ann |
Production notes
Contestant James Brown withdrew from the competition prior to the December 3, 2012 broadcast, after having been diagnosed with a benign brain tumor and being affected by the stress of his upcoming medical treatment. In a statement, Brown said, in part, "I have been focused on my health and am working with my doctors to prepare for surgery to remove the tumor, which will happen early next year."[7]
Following the competition, Buddy hired contestant Paul Conti to work at Carlo's Bakery alongside Ashley, after Paul lost his job and home due to Hurricane Sandy.[8]
Chad Durkin was also later hired by Buddy for his pastry skills, and can be seen in the 2015 season of Cake Boss.
References
- ↑ "Shows A-Z – next great baker, the on nbc". the Futon Critic. Retrieved November 28, 2012.
- 1 2 "Game On!". Next Great Baker. Season 3. Episode 1. November 26, 2012. 01:04 minutes in. TLC.
- ↑ "Next Great Baker (Season 3)". Discovery Press Web. Retrieved December 2, 2012.
- ↑ "Track the competition". TLC. Retrieved November 28, 2012. Last name are given in linked videos, not in website text.
- ↑ "Cake Roast". Next Great Baker. Season 3. Episode 4. December 17, 2012. Event occurs at 11:23–11:50. TLC.
Based on that, without a doubt, hands down, it's this team. Now I need to pick an MVP.
- 1 2 "Game On!". Next Great Baker. Season 3. Episode 1. November 26, 2012. Event occurs at 53:39–54:01. TLC.
- ↑ "A Statement From "Next Great Baker" Contestant James Brown". TLC. December 4, 2012. Retrieved December 9, 2012.
- ↑ "Cake Smash" and "Sugary Slopes", Cake Boss, TLC, June 3, 2013.
- General references
- "Cake Boss: Next Great Baker Season 3 episodes". TV Guide. Retrieved November 28, 2012.
- "Shows A-Z – next great baker, the on nbc". the Futon Critic. Retrieved November 28, 2012.
- "Cake Boss: Next Great Baker: Episode Guide". MSN TV. Retrieved November 28, 2012.