Kelsey Clark was the winner of Top Chef, season 16, but after the evening of January 21, 2026, she found herself the center of new headlines after spending an evening in jail.

Clark was arrested in Dothan, Alabama, when local police charged her with allegedly driving under the influence (via WBRC). Officers at the scene stated that her car hit a mailbox on Selkirk Drive, only about five miles away from her restaurant, KBC. Read a statement from Dothan Police Public Information Officer Lieutenant Scott Owens below:

We received a call regarding a vehicle striking the mailbox in the 1300 block of Selkirk Drive. Our officers who responded to the scene determined that Ms. Clark was under the influence.

According to officers, the Bravo chef smelled like alcohol and showed several other signs of being under the influence. This drove police to administer field sobriety tests, including standing on one leg and walking in a straight line. Allegedly, she did not perform well during these tests.

It was also reported that Clark’s two children, son Monroe, 8, and daughter June, 5, were also in the vehicle. They were not injured in the crash and were able to go home with another family member (via People). Clark was not injured during the incident.

It’s not clear if Clark has retained an attorney, but she may be eligible for a court-assisted program that would keep the DUI off her record (via WTVY).

Clark’s A Dothan Native

After she won Top Chef in 2019, hundreds of Alabama locals held a celebration in downtown Dothan to honor her victory and southern-style recipes. Then, tourists started flocking to her restaurant, bringing more business to the area. In 2020, one of her sandwiches from KBC was added to the list of 100 Dishes to Eat in Alabama created by the Alabama Tourism Department.

Clark took her culinary career and transferred her skills into two cookbooks: Southern Grit, which was released in 2021, and Southern Get Togethers, which she released in 2024.

Her success didn’t end after Top Chef and her victory in season 16, as she appeared several times to guest judge on the Bravo show. Then, she had a spot on the show NFL Tailgate Takedown​​​​. She was connected to food-based television as recently as September 2025, when she appeared as a judge on Netflix’s Net Gen Chef.

The Netflix show puts 21 rising chefs against each other in a fight to be named the next big name in the culinary world. The cash prize of $500,000 adds an extra layer of competition.

The former Top Chef star’s third cookbook, The Flavor of Fire: Recipes for Grilling & Smoking with Southern Flare, being released on May 5, 2026.