Michael O’Halloran, chef at Stella at New Hope, undertook a high-profile challenge that about two-thirds of his colleagues fail: emerging victorious on Beat Bobby Flay. Kate Fishman lifted the dome on O’Halloran’s Food Network episode in the Doylestown Patch.

The show, which has lasted 29 seasons and counting, pits two unknown culinarians against each other, with the survivor confronting Flay himself.

In round one, Flay picks an ingredient that must form the basis of the dishes. In round two, Flay faces the round-one victor in a cook-off surrounding a signature dish the challenger chooses, which is not revealed to Flay until that moment. A panel of judges, using blind tastings, determines the winner.

In O’Halloran’s episode, Flay’s curve-ball ingredient was ricotta cheese. O’Halloran knocked out his competition with a bisque accented with the creamy cheese flavored with rosemary.

In the head-to-head second round, O’Halloran made a smoked duck dish that is a favorite of diners at Stella’s.

The judges, finding Flay’s version undercooked and not smoky enough, awarded the win to the Bucks County chef.

The show’s pressure-cooker timeline allowed for little interaction between the challengers and the star. O’Halloran did, however, find Flay to be “a really nice guy. I feel like his TV persona is, at times, crass and harsh, but he’s really the opposite in person.”

The Food Network will rerun the episode March 31 at 3 p.m.

More on this defeat of Bobby Flay by a local talent is at the Doylestown Patch.