MasterChef Episode 2.01 Audition 1

Season 2 of "MasterChef" begins with a booming voiceover from internally acclaimed chef and head judge Gordon Ramsay asking, "Is there anyone here who thinks they are the MasterChef?"

Michelin-starred chef Gordon Ramsay and his fellow judges - Graham Elliot, the youngest four-star chef in America, and restaurateur and wine maker Joe Bastianich - are about to embark on the latest nationwide search for the country's best amateur cooks. The hopefuls are all hungry for the coveted title of "MasterChef" and the $250,000 cash prize.

The judges enter a large room filled with eager contestants awaiting the opportunity to prepare one dish good enough to earn the "MasterChef" apron that symbolizes a spot in the next round. "Wanting it is not enough," Gordon warns them. "You've got to do more. You have to become culinary perfection."

Joe Bastianich, owner of some of the premier restaurants in the world, explains, "If we say your food is good or bad, we're right." Then Graham Elliot holds up one of the coveted aprons and declares, "You don't get one just for trying." He says that their dishes must be "equal parts delicious, creative, and have a lot of skill."