Season 13 of the Best Pastry Chef concluded on January 9, 2025, on M6, with a verdict that divided viewers. Timothée, the youngest contestant, won the final against Tsiory and José. Beyond the simple rankings, this 2024 edition crystallized questions about the judging criteria and the channel’s editorial strategy regarding its young contestants.
M6 and the Promotion of Young Pastry Talents
Since the start of the 2023-2024 school year, M6 has been increasing formats featuring young contestants still in training, whether in Top Chef or in variations aimed at a younger audience. Timothée’s victory fits into this direction. The production emphasized his dual project of “studies and pastry,” presented as a model path.
This editorial choice is not trivial. A 17-year-old still in high school generates a stronger identification narrative than an established pastry chef. The season’s storytelling gradually built this narrative, episode by episode, leading up to the finale. Finding the details of the winner of the best pastry chef 2024 allows us to measure how much the winner’s profile corresponded to this editorial line.
Final of the Best Pastry Chef 2024: Profiles of the Three Finalists
The final featured three very different profiles in terms of age, experience, and approach to pastry. This contrast fueled debates about the legitimacy of the verdict.
| Finalist | Profile | Season Journey | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Timothée | Youngest of the season, high school student | Consistent, supported by the production as a dual project of studies/pastry | Winner |
| Tsiory | Experienced finalist | Solid throughout the competition, considered by some as equally deserving | Finalist |
| José | Oldest of the season | Chaotic technical challenge in the final, acknowledges a poor performance | Finalist |
José stated to Télé-Loisirs that Timothée’s victory seemed predetermined. He added that Tsiory “also deserved” the title, while conceding that his own technical performance in the final did not allow him to claim the top spot.
Controversy Over Judging Transparency After the Final
José’s comments sparked an unusual wave of reactions after the broadcast. His insinuation about “things that cannot be said” was picked up by several media outlets, including Yahoo News and Voici, without the contestant specifying the exact nature of these elements.
The volume of viewer criticism regarding the transparency of the competition was notable in the days following the final. The comments focused on several recurring points:
- The feeling that the editing of the episodes skewed the narrative in favor of Timothée, with more screen time devoted to his personal journey
- The absence of a public and detailed scoring grid for the challenges, a complaint already made in previous seasons but amplified this year
- The perception of a disconnect between the technical performances visible on screen and the final ranking announced by the jury
These criticisms do not undermine Timothée’s talent. They highlight a lack of clarity in the evaluation criteria, a structural issue of the format for several seasons.
The Role of the Jury Under Laëtitia Milot
This season 13 was the first hosted by Laëtitia Milot, who succeeded the former presenter. The jury remained composed of Cyril Lignac and Mercotte, two historical figures of the program. Their complementarity (the starred chef and the technical specialist) has long constituted the identity of the Best Pastry Chef.
The question raised by viewers concerns not so much the judges as the decision-making process behind the scenes. José himself clarified that he considered his defeat “logical” given his poor performance, while suggesting that other factors were at play.
Best Pastry Chef Season 13: What the Verdict Reveals About the Competition
Timothée’s victory is not an isolated case. Regular observers of the program note that young contestants have often been crowned in recent seasons. José summed it up bluntly: “It has always been the case.”
This observation raises a fundamental question about the positioning of the Best Pastry Chef. The competition oscillates between two identities: a technical competition judged on cake mastery, and an entertainment program where the contestant’s narrative journey weighs in the balance.
Fanny, the winner of the previous season, embodied a different profile. The transition of her title to Timothée illustrates the format’s ability to renew its archetypes from year to year, while maintaining a core set of challenges (creative challenge, technical challenge, signature cake) that structure each episode.
The Best Pastry Chef remains one of the most-watched culinary programs in France. The post-final controversy did not dent the season’s viewership, but it opened a debate that the production will need to consider for future editions. The transparency of the scoring criteria could become an editorial issue as central as the casting of contestants or the choice of the host.
