Dan Paustian

 

“

Just 'cause I'm a frat guy doesn't mean I can't cook.

”

Hometown	Charlotte, NC
Age	26
Occupation	Server
Statistics
Mystery Box(es) Won	0
Skills Test(s) Won	1
Elimination Test(s) Won	0
Team Challenge(s) Won	2
Pressure Test(s) Survived	2
Top Entries	2
Bottom Entries	3
Placement	5th
Episode Eliminated	Family Drama

Daniel "Dan" Paustian was a contestant on Season 7 of MasterChef. He ranked in 5th place.

Personality

Dan was one of the friendliest contestants of the season as he had a goofy and light-hearted personality who always cracked jokes, rarely got angry, and was easy-going. In the kitchen, he was generally strong when it came to individual and team challenges. Although he constantly stated that he was willing to prove that he was not a stereotypical frat guy, his personality would sometimes interfere with his cooking abilities, causing the judges (such as Ramsay) to believe he was not exactly taking the competition seriously. He got along with Eric, Tanorria, Brandi, Terry, Katie, Shaun, and was the only cook to get along with Nathan. However, he had a strong dislike towards David over the latter's disrespectful, hostile, and quitter attitude.

Competition History

Week 3	In/In
Week 4	Low
Week 5	In/In
Week 6	In/Immune
Week 7	Win
Week 8	In/In
Week 9	Pressure Test
Week 10	Win
Week 11	High/In
Week 12	In/In
Week 13	In/In
Week 14	In/In
Week 15	Low
Week 16	High/Eliminated

Season 9

Episode 8

Dan appeared as a guest at fellow Season 7 winner Shaun O'Neale's Wedding.

Season 10

Episode 4

Dan made a cameo appearance as a guest at the Season 10 Pool Party.

Post MasterChef

• After his appearance, Dan is Head Chef/Owner at Flavor City Catering. He is also an actor, TV writer, comedian and food vlogger.

Trivia

• Before his appearance, he was a part of the Kappa Sigma fraternity in the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he graduated from.
  • Coincidentally, Eric happened to be frat brothers with Dan in the same fraternity and university.
  • In 2010, Dan was arrested for the possession and sale of cocaine.

Quotes

• "The best way to turn your lady on is to turn your stove on. Guys like us know that."
• (About presenting his dish in an interview) "I've never cooked anything this complicated in my life, but I've got a college degree. I'm one of the best students here. I mean, I can't screw this up."
• "Chefs. I don't think I nailed it, but I do think I did a pretty good job."
• (After failing to impress the judges) "I'm looking at this as a life lesson. I want to show America that I'm serious. Just 'cause I'm a frat guy doesn't mean I can't cook."
• (About Katie's Fried Chicken) "Girl, your breasts are no bueno."
• (About the Offal Challenge) "It's just the balls and the save. I feel like I'm at the pearl of gates right now and I'm either going to Heaven or Hell and I'm freaking out."
• (After being given bull testicles) "I just got balls Chef; it's pretty self-explanatory."
• "We're in black aprons. Black aprons are never a good sign. They look badass, but it also means that serious shit is about to go down."
• (After the Cake Pressure Test) "I guess I took 'putting yourself on a plate' way too literally. I'm just hoping the anchor that I put on my plate doesn't sink me to the bottom of the competition."
• "Bibimbap? What? What is that? Pretty sure that's a Hanson song, maybe it's the Korean version that I've never heard of?"
• (About David getting his basket) "David man. My basket's not that bad and honestly, throwing a temper tantrum is not gonna help anything dude. I'm like 10 years younger than you bro. Get your shit together."
• (After being eliminated) "I know I'm supposed to feel sad right now, but dude, this has been awesome. I came in here as 'Dan the Frat Guy', then I was 'Dan the Testicle Man', didn't like that one, and now I'm 'Dan the Chef'. I learned so much and I made it into the Top 5. I'm like a totally different Dan and I'm just excited to go out in the world, get a new girlfriend, and cook her a 3 Michelin star dish. It's gonna be awesome."

Gallery

Season 7

Dan's Confessional

Dan's Audition Dish

Dan receiving his Apron

Dan's Halibut Replication Dish

Dan in the Blue Team

Dan in the Red Team

Dan in a Black Apron

Andrea, Barbara, Brittany, D'Andre, and Dan in the Wedding Team Challenge Bottom 5

Dan's Pie

Dan's Skills Test Lobster

Dan's Offal Dish

Dan's Pressure Test Birthday Cake

Dan's Nutella Breakfast Mystery Box Dish

Dan, Tanorria, and Terry in the Nutella Breakfast Mystery Box Top 3

Dan's Bibimbap Dish

Dan's Canned Salmon Dish

Dan's Pressure Skills Test French Fries

Dan's Pressure Skills Test Mashed Potatoes

Dan and Tanorria's Tag Team Picnic Platter

Dan's Pressure Test Milk Chocolate Cheesecake

Dan's Pressure Test White Chocolate Eclair

Dan's Pressure Test Dark Chocolate Molten Lava Cake

Katie and Dan in the Chocolate Dessert Pressure Test Bottom 2

Dan with his Mother

Dan's Loved Ones Mystery Box Dish

Dan, Tanorria, and Shaun in the Loved Ones Mystery Box Top 3

Dan's Basket Swap Dish (Tanorria's Basket)

David and Dan in the Basket Swap Bottom 2

Dan Eliminated

Season 9

Dan as a guest at Shaun O'Neale's Wedding

D'Andre, Dan, and Eric

Season 10

Dan, Brandi, and Katie at the Season 10 Pool Party

External links

• Dan Paustian on Instagram