In its 16th season, Bravo's hit series "Top Chef" has had a lot of years to build up its very loyal following. With digital streaming becoming a popular option for people who want to watch their favorite shows without unwanted channels or lengthy commercials, a lot of "Top Chef Kentucky" fiends wait to watch the show online a few hours after it airs on Thursday nights.
But last Thursday, Jan. 3, came and went. And the second half of the cliffhanger to the highly-anticipated "Restaurant Wars" episode took nearly four days to show up for those who paid to watch it on Amazon Prime.
From the site's comments and ratings (80 percent of the reviews for "Top Chef Kentucky" are now just 1-star), it appears that this isn't the first time there's been a delay in the show's content. According to a few reviewers, the days-long delay began with the third episode — but when the second part of the fan-favorite episode that features contestants creating makeshift restaurants was delayed, people got really, really fired up.
Suddenly, the "Top Chef Kentucky" comments box has blown up like it's "Hell's Kitchen" with Gordon Ramsay ... and there are rats in the soup.
"This is not the first time an episode of Top Chef has mysteriously been delayed. Why can’t purchasers of a season have contact info of the person responsible for getting each episode pushed out timely," one Prime user questioned with the delightful caption: "Someone's asleep at the controls."
"Love the show, hate the availability," another use wrote.
"Customers that pay for the season should be able to actually WATCH THE SHOW. Right," one reviewer commented.
Another person noted that they bought the entire season through Amazon for $22 because it wasn't available on demand via cable, and yet the delay caused nothing but "disappointment."
Late on Monday afternoon, around 3:30 p.m ET, Part 2 of "Restaurant Wars" became streamable — but the feisty comments are seared onto the series' page indefinitely.
Amazon could not be reached for comment about whether the supposed episode-release glitch has been fixed.
One can only hope that new episodes stream seamlessly from now on ... for the fans' sakes.