Jamaican chef Darian Bryan beat a talented field to walk away with top honours on hit American cooking TV show Next Level Chef on Thursday night.

Bryan entered the finals of the TV show, which airs on Fox, competing to be named top chef against fellow contestants Connor Caine and Nicole “Cole” Lawson.

The three were the finalists out of an initial field of 24, which under the show’s premise, consisted of eight home chefs, eight social media chefs and eight professional chefs, all competing for a mentorship with world renowned chef Gordon Ramsey among other prizes.

Bryan highlighted his Jamaican heritage throughout his time on the show.

In an exclusive interview with TV Insider he said he was especially grateful for people to see his journey.

“It’s just a blessing to show that. I’m coming from Jamaica with not much, and to come here and get crowned king on a stage like this — especially, it’s a Gordon Ramsay show, and he’s been my mentor for the last 15 years of watching him — it’s just a grace,” he told TV Insider.

All three chefs were pulled from the professional category with Bryan noting that he scoped out Cole and Caine as major competition early.

Some of the elements of Bryan’s dishes in the final were pulled straight out of Jamaica.

“Pepper lobster slash pepper shrimp, we have all throughout the Caribbean, all through Jamaica. You see all those folks on the side of the road selling pepper shrimp, and also the escovitch is something you see everywhere,” he explained.

Bryan told TV Insider he stuck with Jamaican cuisine because it was what he knew, stressing that he would not have forgiven himself had he gone in another direction and lost.

Next Level Chef streams on Hulu.

READ: Jamaican-born Chef Darian Bryan competes on Next Level Chef