They would sample a spoonful of the sauce, go Ahhh, blow a French chef's kiss, and make their suggestions as to what little touch would lift it to the airy regions of perfection.
2017 September 6, Matthew Schneier, “Rachel Comey Wants to Show You Her Clothes. But First, Dinner Is Served.”, in The New York Times[1]:
Some are, like the actress Tavi Gevinson, 21, who reviewed the experience by bringing her fingers to her lips and smacking a “chef’s kiss,” and some may soon be, like Ms. Bernhard, whom Ms. Comey had never met, but invited all the same. (She left with the words “We’ll be in touch,” Ms. Comey reported.)
2018 May 22, Erik Abriss, “The 5 Best Bits from Tig Notaro’s New Special Happy to Be Here”, in Vulture[2]:
Instead, Tig once again flips convention and reveals her clever burn back at the cashier to be a pretty lame Borscht Beltian dad joke, and it fucking lands. Also, the image of Tig, who is not known to have much of a physical shtick, doing self-satisfied leprechaun kicks down the street is truly a chef’s kiss of an act out.
2019, Amanda Push, "Chang Thai Durango is the latest gold-at-the-end-of-your-chopsticks heaven", DGO, 15 August 2019 - 28 August 2020, page 18:
The cheese Rangoon was worthy of a dramatic chef's kiss.
2020, Latonya Banton, "Aye And Latonya Presents: Top 5", Aye, Issue 3 (2020), page 30:
But the songs on this album makes me give it a chef's kiss.
This is one diet-friendly dish that deserves a big chef's kiss.
2020, Ella Guthrie, "The Growlers", Come Play With Me, March 2020, page 9:
A bedroom can be transformed into a high-quality studio, and the bands of today could spend a fortune recreating the lo-fi sound The Growlers can put a chef's kiss to with the flick of a wrist and a bottle.
2020, Amy Diaz, Valley Girl review, The Hippo, 21 May 2020 - 28 May 2020, page 24:
And having Alicia Silverstone, queen of a 1990s glossy California teenager movie, as the mom is just a chef's kiss touch of perfection.
2020, Aerin Spruill, "Southern Cuisine Fit For The Queen", Queen City Nerve, 23 September 2020 - 6 October 2020, page 20:
My top three favorites that led to a chef's kiss? The Dirty Grits (think dirty rice, but with grits), […]
2020 October 25, Adam Liaw, “'Getting burgers delivered generally sucks': Adam Liaw rates the best and worst food to order in”, in The Guardian[3]:
If I had to pick a favourite food to order in it would be dumplings. Dumplings are the *chef’s kiss* of home delivery foods, and they’ve been hiding in plain sight the whole time.
Interjection: used to express (sometimes sarcastically) that something is exquisite[edit]
2017 2018 2019 2020
1st c.
2nd c.
3rd c.
4th c.
5th c.
6th c.
7th c.
8th c.
9th c.
10th c.
11th c.
12th c.
13th c.
14th c.
15th c.
16th c.
17th c.
18th c.
19th c.
20th c.
21st c.
2017 August 7, Jaya Saxena, “Conway Says Trump's Approval Is Down, Then Trump Says He's More Popular Than Ever”, in Elle[4]:
It's not really news when Donald Trump tweets about "fake news," but when what he says contradicts his own staff, *chef's kiss* what a treat.
2018 April 18, Justin Kirkland, “Let Justin Trudeau show you how to hug”, in Esquire Middle East[5]:
Look at the hand placement there. *chef's kiss* Perfect shoulder grasp. Be careful not to place your hand too far up, as this is a sign of dominance and those with super fragile masculinity will feel attacked. A handshake pat is great for colleagues or mild acquaintances.
2018 May 18, Rachel Becker, “Verily’s ‘exploding micro-needles’ are a fix for a problem that doesn’t exist”, in The Verge[6]:
But Silicon Valley is infamous for its solutions in search of problems, and its fixation with blood tests is a *chef’s kiss* example. Take Theranos, which pledged to perform tons of tests on just a pinprick of blood.
2018 May 18, Josh Wolk, “‘Cheers’ Said Goodbye 25 Years Ago: Raise a Toast With These 9 Essential Episodes”, in The New York Times[7]:
With all the pieces set up in the first half, the second half is an ever-escalating, never-resting dance of mayhem; the longtime director James Burrows stages sequences that make you want to stand up and applaud, and the cast’s timing is [chef’s kiss].
2018, Melissa McGibbon, "Champagne Powder Wishes & Hot Spring Dreams", Outdoor Sports Guide Magazine, Winter 2018, page 20:
The chile relleno, fresh guacamole, and cauliflower hash with cashew salsa were *chef's kiss.*
2019, Derek Baker, in "The Gauntlet staff's best of 2018", The Gauntlet (University of Calgary), January 2019, page 22:
And when Jacobin tweeted that "Gritty is a worker." Ooohh boy. *chef's kiss*
2019 February 20, Laura Snapes, “Brit awards 2019: the live show and winners – as it happened: Best British single”, in The Guardian[8]:
Another worthy winner! Brits, are you sure you’re feeling okay? One Kiss is *chef’s kiss*, switching snappily between Dua’s inviting, warm-shore verses and the hall-of-mirrors heatwave vibe of the chorus.
2019 July 1, deKay, “Re: Becker/Chambers -- the plot thickens”, in uk.games.video.misc[9] (Usenet):
This is bloody fantastic. It's Dawn of Sorrow only new. I think I'd have preferred pixelly graphics rather than what we got, but the gameplay is *chef's kiss*. It's a damn shame it isn't branded as Castlevania but that's not really important.
For some summer comfort food, we also ordered the cajun crab soup. Chef's kiss.
2019, Matt Waring, "It was 20 years ago today...", arc, October/November 2019, page 22:
We've had a great time in the office digging through the archives to take a closer lok through some of our back issues (some of the layouts: *chef's kiss*), […]
2020, Marty Weaver, "Toss a coin to Netflix's new series 'The Witcher'", The Penn (Indiana University of Pennsylvania), 21 January 2020, page 22:
The striga in Episode 3 was particularly upsetting, and the way her umbilical cord dragged on the ground while she was stalking her prey was *chef's kiss*.
2020, Ella Meyer, "Which buses are best to cry on? A ranking", The Ubyssey (University of British Columbia), 21 January 2020, page 11:
When it's raining just a little, you've got your head against a window and they shut the lights off while their[sic] driving? *Chef's kiss.*
2020, Mark Velazquez, quoted in Elizabeth Tovar, "Review: Grammy's continued despite chaos", Daily Titan (California State University, Fullerton), 3 February 2020, page 6:
“To have (Tyler) perform at the Grammys and win is just like ultimate chef's kiss perfect. It was amazing. It was phenomenal,” said Mark Velazquez, a sophomore at CSUF.
2020, "So, Mallorca needs to be on your bucket list STAT", Cosmopolitan (South Africa), March 2020, page 119:
Try the bluefin tuna, the crispy nori roll with wagyu steak tartare (so good), and the yuzu mousse (lemon, cream and thyme crumble disguised as a whole lemon) for dessert. *Chef's kiss*
2020, Erin Docherty, "Scents of Identity", Men's Health (Australia), April 2020, page 63:
While this has all the vibrant bergamot and zesty lemon you'd expect from a classic Mediterranean scent, the woody, leathery notes gives it an unexpected, contemporary twist – it's a true celebration of the brand's strong Italian roots *chef's kiss*.
2020, Lauren Karmo, "Stupid fights to instigate with your sibling in quarantine", The Oakland Post (Oakland University), 1 April 2020, page 14:
I use this fight during round two of the MMA smackdown, this is a killer line. It works best when a fight has just died down, Mom thinks the dust has settled, Brother is just starting to relax. A fool. I never relax until I win. That's when I come in with "you breathe too loud." It's just *chef's kiss*, you know?
2020, Jessy Thurston, "The Top Of The Bottom", Debate (Auckland University of Technology), June 2020, page 21:
This one is just *chef's kiss*. The song we all know was made famous by the GOAT himself, Shrek, is a feel-good tune of self-love.
2020 July 30, Freezer, “Re: People Who Say "ALL lives Matter" = People Bitching About And Refusing To Wear a Mask”, in rec.sport.pro-wrestling[10] (Usenet):
Bravo, sir. That is a masterful combination of projection and deflection. *chef's kiss* Nicely done!
2020, Fami, "'This Is The Year' Star Alyssa Jirrels", Jamo, September 2020, page 77:
In terms of inspiration, Rachel from Friends, and honestly anything Selena Gomez wears is *chef's kiss.*
2020, Aidan O'Malley, "'Mulan': Brings Honor To No One", The Observer (Notre Dame University), 11 September 2020, page 9:
The music, the animation, the humor, the heart — chef's kiss.
2020, Michael Aarenau, "The Definitive Ranking Of Every Fall Out Boy Album", Quid Novi (McGill University), 29 September 2020, page 16:
The most underrated track on the album is "Headfirst Slide into Cooperstown on a Bad Bet," a brash, cards-on-the-table track about infidelity ("does your husband know the way the sunshine gleams on your wedding band?") and contains Stump's greatest soul voice moment on the bridge. Chef's kiss!
2020 October 4, Jon Caramanica, “Mariah Carey, Elusive No More”, in The New York Times[11]:
Carey is rendered as much a spiritual force as a musical prodigy — resilient, self-aware, and also funny, in her regal way. The memoir’s first sentence — “I refuse to acknowledge time, famously so” — is *chef’s kiss*. There are plenty of dahlings sprinkled throughout.
2020, Anna Starkey, "Pulp horror", New Times, 8 October 2020 - 15 October 2020, page 21:
What a ride Lovecraft Country is, a chef's kiss blend of drama and horror.
2020, Gyee Gyee, The Art of Hearing Heartbeats review, Pulse (Yangon International School, Yangon, Myanmar), Issue 1 (2020), page 16:
This truly is a great piece of literature that is worth your time reading and was very well written. *chef's kiss*
2018 February 28, Mehera Bonner, “Chrissy Teigen Did a Salt Bae Impression at Dinner and We Are Living”, in Marie Claire[12]:
Chrissy Teigen is the gift to the internet we truly don't deserve, and in her latest brush with being *chef's kiss* amazing, she went ahead and did an impression of Salt Bae. You know, him?
2020, Callie Price, "My San Luis Obispo", Dining and Destinations, Summer/Fall/Winter 2020, page 74: