The theme this season is "American Cuisine" as 10 esteemed chefs arrive in Los Angeles ready to prove to the Chairman they have what it takes to become The Next Iron Chef. The Chairman's charge for this episode is ingenuity and for the Secret Ingredient Challenge, the secret ingredient is bread. The chefs must make a sandwich that represents their personality in 30 minutes. Ingenuity is vital in the Chairman's Challenge, because the threat of elimination looms as the chefs find themselves on a beach cooking with the one ingredient they said they would want if stranded on a desert island.