So this morning I’m washing dishes after breakfast, right? And for some reason my brain suddenly goes: “Whatever happened to that Josh guy from MasterChef Season 3?” You know, the quiet guy with the beard who won? Yeah, him. Felt like forever since I saw him on TV. My kitchen faucet’s drip-dripping, and I’m just standing there with a soapy plate, staring into space thinking about roasted chickens.
Starting the Search
Dried my hands quick, grabbed the laptop from the couch—crumbs still on the keyboard, honestly—and plopped down at the dining table. First thing I did? Typed straight into the search bar: “Josh from MasterChef US season 3 now”. Hit enter. Saw a bunch of old news pieces popping up first, like announcements from back when he won. Scrolled past those fast. Needed the now stuff.
Digging Deeper
Okay, so I remember he opened a restaurant called “Graze” somewhere ages ago. Added that word to my search. Started wading through pages. Hit some outdated blogs, some food forum threads from like 2018. Annoying. Clicked on this one recent food magazine interview headline from maybe… last year? Got paywalled. Ugh. Closed that tab fast.
Switched tactics. Went over to Instagram next. Searched for him. Found his personal profile first—mostly family pics, hiking, kid stuff. Saw he’s still rocking that beard! Then I remembered his restaurant’s name again: Graze. Searched that instagram handle. Bingo! His restaurant’s page was right there.
- Their page showed recent photos – plates looked fancy, lots of seasonal stuff. Beet salad? Lamb chops?
- Location tagged was still in Oregon. Portland area, I think.
- Checked their tagged photos – saw customers posting from a week ago! So place is still open. Good sign.
Putting Pieces Together
Went back to regular web search results, cross-referencing the name “Josh Reis” and “Graze Portland”. Found a local newspaper article from maybe 4 months back. Talked about how he’s still running Graze, mentioned he shifted focus recently. Pandemic hit them hard—duh, obviously—but they pivoted. Did more takeout stuff, fancy meal kits, even some virtual cooking classes for a while. Article said he’s back to full service now.
Also, saw snippets about him doing some consulting work for other restaurants? Helping ’em refine their menus, apparently. Makes sense. Guy knows flavors.
Closing Thoughts
So here’s the deal, looking at all this: Josh is still cooking. Didn’t burn out, didn’t vanish. Dude stuck with his restaurant through the crazy times. Still in Portland. Still cooking farm-to-table, nose-to-tail kind of food from what the pics show. Running Graze, maybe helping others on the side. Has a family. Seems… solid. Stable. Honestly kinda inspiring, you know? Makes me think about that chicken in my freezer—maybe it’s time to finally try making that fancy stuffed ballotine recipe I bookmarked last month.
Funny how a drip from the faucet can send you down a rabbit hole about a chef from ten years ago.
