Season 2 of Next Level Chef will air on Fox on Sunday, February 12, at 10:30 p.m. ET, after the Super Bowl broadcast. The culinary competition series will feature 18 chefs from throughout the United States competing for a $250,000 grand prize by creating the greatest meals imaginable, including social-media chef Matt Groark. Matt Groark, 44, is a teacher and the proprietor of Groark Boys’ BBQ, which has over 3.2 million followers on Tik-Tok. He appears in Season 2 of Next Level Chef, directed by Richard Blais.
Matt Groark, a Next Level Chef finalist, founded Groark Boys BBQ in 2018.
Matt Groark graduated from Rowan University in 2003 with a Bachelor of Education in Health and Physical Education. He then earned his Master of Education in Educational Leadership and Administration from Wilmington University, where he graduated in 2008.
Groark began teaching health and physical education at Washington Township High School. He conducted a fundraising in 2018 to launch Groark Boys BBQ, his first restaurant. By 2020, Matt had donated $30,000 to charities and community groups from the revenues of his meat company, which includes pulled pork, brisket, mac & cheese, and other dishes.
In a 2020 interview, he stated:
“From the beginning, my purpose has been to give back because of the way others have supported and given back to my family. Any monetary advantage that results from this… My value is to provide people with not just food, but also hope and motivation. That is more essential to me than any money I could possibly get.”
He has participated in a variety of philanthropic events, including feeding people of Washington Township and Sam’s Club pandemic fundraising efforts. Matt and Kristin Leigh Groark, with whom he has two sons called Aidric and Nash, recently celebrated their tenth wedding anniversary.
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Season 2 of Next Level Chef
Next Level Chef’s second season is hosted by chef Gordon Ramsay. He and coaches Nyesha Arrington and Richard Blais will assess their teams of six members each in three distinct kitchens with varying scenarios and surroundings. There are numerous home cooks, high-level line cooks, professional chefs, and social media chefs among the 18 candidates.
To win the trophy, $250,000 grand prize, and one-year mentoring, the chefs must create “the most outstanding next-level cuisine” in front of their respective mentors.
According to Fox’s series description:
“The legendary epic gastronomic gauntlet returns to its famous stage. Each level of the three-story building has a breathtakingly diverse kitchen. The ingredients complement the atmosphere, from the gleaming top floor to the tough depths of the basement, since Gordon Ramsay thinks that the ultimate measure of great chefs is not just what they can achieve in the greatest of conditions, but what sort of magic their can produce in the worst!”
It also says:
“The stakes are high as the cooks try to make their initial impressions on their respective teams, with a one-year mentoring and $250,000 on the line. In the all-new “Premiere” season premiere episode of Next Level Chef, who will cook the most spectacular next-level meal, and who will not?”
Next Level Chef season 2 premieres on Sunday, February 12 at 10:30 p.m. ET to see whether Matt Groark can wow the mentors with his debut dish. Following the premiere episode, Next Level Chef will return to its normal Thursday night time slot of 8 p.m. ET.
