Bethenny Frankel spent the past year rating deli chicken salads on social media. Now she is dragging the biggest names in food into it. The RHONY alum kicked off the “Chicken Salad Olympics: Professional Chef Edition” in an Instagram video on Wednesday. They challenged Bobby Flay, Martha Stewart, Giada De Laurentiis, Cat Cora, Michael Symon, and others to vie for the unofficial Chicken Salad Gold Trophy.
“Breaking chicken salad news: The Chicken Salad Olympics Professional Chef Edition,” Frankel announced. “Iron chefs who have vowed never to compete again are coming out of retirement for this very important global event. May the best chef win!!”
The Call-Outs Were Personal
Frankel, 55, adjusted her challenges for each chef. The one with Bobby Flay hits the hardest due to their history.
“Bobby Flay, I’ve come on your show, ‘Throwdown!’ Now it’s time to really throw down,” she said. Giada got a simpler pitch: “Giada, you can say chicken in Italian.”
She named Scott Conant, Sam Talbot, and Billy Durney from Sag Harbor Tavern. Also, she mentioned Martha Stewart as a wildcard entry. A Bethenny and Martha chicken salad showdown would be the biggest draw for both in years. They both know it.
𝗣𝗮𝗹𝗲-𝗗𝗲𝘁𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲-𝟳𝟰𝟰𝟬: 🍵 ☕️ Bethenny Frankel – Just Revealed Someone From Blake Lively’s Team Called Her Multiple Times to Plead Their Case and…https://t.co/aY6ZRa87a6 pic.twitter.com/xQEWm8lABz
— Brightly (@BrightlyAgain) July 10, 2026
Chefs Are Actually Saying Yes
The whole thing could have died as a bit. Within hours of the post, Cat Cora, Sam Talbot, Rocco DiSpirito, and Billy Durney all jumped into the comments to accept.
It turns a social media joke into a real competition. Now, real Iron Chefs battle over the least glamorous dish in the deli case. Only Frankel could pull that off.
Why She’s Doing This
Frankel explained the appeal to Page Six, and her reasoning is oddly perfect.
“In a time of so much stress and sensitivity, placing the utmost importance and severity on something with absolutely no stakes is my sense of humor,” she said.
She also took a victory lap over what her food content has done for the dish itself.
“Chicken salad was a dying delicacy when I first talked about it,” she said. “Now it’s a modernized popular gourmet market and deli staple. Heavy is the Chicken Salad Queen title… but someone has to wear it.”
The timing adds a layer. Frankel left her iHeartRadio podcast. She found scripted formats boring. She prefers to work “in the wild.” A week later, she has celebrity chefs volunteering for a fake Olympics she invented in a caption.
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