EXCLUSIVE: MasterChef’s Reynold Poernomo says learning from his past homophobic comments has given him hope
His name is synonymous with extravagant sweet treats, but Dessert King Reynold Poernomo just missed out on the MasterChef crown during Sunday night’s episode.
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The 26-year-old Sydney-based chef wowed with both his sweet and savoury dishes, but just missed out on the grand final when he didn’t quite perfect Martin Benn’s toffee apple extravaganza.
Reynold called Now To Love shortly after his elimination episode aired to discuss his emotional exit, how his family and girlfriend reacted to his time on the show and why he’s learned and grown so much since making those controversial homophobic comments online.
Now To Love: Congratulations on making it to third place, the bronze medal of MasterChef! How does it feel now everything’s done and dusted?
I do still feel a bit devastated, but it’s life and we all move on. Everything happens for a reason basically.
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MasterChef’s Dessert King Reynold Poernomo’s most incredible creations
EXCLUSIVE: MasterChef’s Brendan Pang defends Reynold Poernomo over his resurfaced homophobic comments
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That final pressure test looked intense, did it hurt to go out on a dessert and by a chef that you admire?
Not really, because I really enjoyed that cook. I learned a lot from that whole challenge – it was a marathon for sure and it was a rough one, but it was a really fun one too. I’ve been to Martin Benn’s restaurants many times, but having a chat and getting to know him up close in person was inspiring.
The other big talking point of your elimination was when you got emotional speaking about your and your family’s experience as immigrants in Australia. Do you think this season has reflected the diversity and various cultures in Australia?
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This season has definitely shown a lot of diversity. Not many people actually speak about this kind of story and it’s amazing to see how, growing up with other immigrants, we all kind of connect in the same way by growing up so humbly.
Whether you’re second generation or first generation coming to Australia, we’ve all come from humble beginnings and it’s all from hard work, determination and basically putting your name out there. I’m Indonesian but I’m also Australian, and I didn’t know much about my Indonesian heritage and my culture. It was a really mixed feeling – to grow up and find my identity with this country was kind of a long process.
What did your family and your girlfriend make of you going back on the show?
In general, I didn’t want to go back on – I was kind of confused whether I should or not because I had to take my time out of work and take months filming for MasterChef. My mum was more encouraging and my girlfriend was as well, but my friends weren’t really. But it was all a blessing because no one expected a pandemic and MasterChef has definitely helped our business a lot once again.