When two-time finalist on Bravo’s Top Chef Brian Malarkey turned 50 last year, he paused to reflect on the mentors in his life.

Malarkey grew up on a ranch in Tumalo and over the course of his career, has created 15 restaurant concepts and routinely appears as a judge on Food Network’s Guy’s Grocery Games, according to his website.

Malarkey’s reflection led him to his sophomore and junior language arts teacher at Redmond High School, Dave Perdue. Malarkey describes himself as a “bad kid, a loud kid, a fun kid” in high school who participated in a lot of “shenanigans.” But he was inspired by Perdue.

“Mr. Perdue was one of those teachers that wasn’t just going for a paycheck. He cared about what he was doing, and he challenged people like me,” Malarkey said.

To express his appreciation, Malarkey emailed Perdue to thank him for the encouragement he received in high school. The email arrived in Perdue’s inbox 30 years after Malarkey graduated high school in 1990.

Perdue said he remembers Malarkey’s high energy and enthusiasm in the classroom.

“He’d just come into the classroom as a small little hurricane,” Perdue said. “He had a passion for life. I never predicted he would be this internationally known chef.”

But the exchange between the two didn’t end there.

”All-Star Teaching Teams”

Three years later, celebrity chef Guy Fieri approached Malarkey with a new concept for “Guy’s Grocery Games.” The ”All-Star Teaching Teams” episode, slated to air Wednesday, features three acclaimed chefs paired with an influential teacher in their lives.

Malarkey immediately thought of Perdue and invited him to compete on the show.

Perdue now lives in Utah after retiring from a 38-year career in education. He rarely cooks or grocery shops and worried he would be a liability on “Guy’s Grocery Games,” he said.

To which Malarkey said, “Don’t worry, Mr. Perdue. I will carry you.”

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A reversal of roles

“Guy’s Grocery Games” involves 30-minute challenges, filmed on a set designed as a supermarket in Santa Rosa, California. Contestants must shop, prepare and plate their dishes for the chance to win up to $20,000.

In the forthcoming episode, Fieri grants contestants with two school-related challenges. First, the chef and teacher duos must create an elevated children’s dinner using ingredients that can fit in a lunchbox. Second, the teams must cook a teacher appreciation dinner with the limitation of a $15 budget, according to the show description.

Malarkey donned his Redmond High School letterman jacket on the show, but the roles of 35 years earlier had been reversed — Malarkey was the teacher and Perdue was the student.

When asked to describe his experience competing on the show, Perdue said it could be described in one word: intimidating.

“In fact to even make you more nervous, there’s a big clock up on the wall that you can see the time ticking down,” he said.

Perdue said he followed Malarkey’s lead throughout the episode, which helped to put him at ease. Watching Malarkey’s culinary skills, Perdue said Malarkey’s culinary success comes as no surprise.

“His skills as a chef were jaw-dropping,” Perdue said.

Expressing gratitude

Malarkey hopes the Guy’s Grocery Games episode will inspire others to appreciate the teacher and role models in their own lives. He urges others to appreciate “the Mr. Perdues of the world.”

“It’s so easy to say, ‘Thank you,’’’ he said.

Perdue said receiving Malarkey’s email in his inbox was bigger than any prize he could potentially win on “Guys Grocery Games.”

“There is no greater compliment to a teacher than to know that you’re remembered and that back in the day you made a difference in someone’s life,” he said.

Malarkey’s new Bend restaurant

Malarkey, who has opened the majority of his restaurants in the San Diego area, is working on his latest culinary venture in Bend. Hawkeye and Huckleberry Lounge is scheduled to open in early 2024 in the former space of Walt Reilly’s on Century Drive.

Malarkey describes the new concept as a hipster cowboy steakhouse with live music. He said the name is inspired by Val Kilmore’s famous line as Doc Holliday in the 1993 western flick “Tombstone.”

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“Guy’s Grocery Games” is aired on the Food Network and available for streaming on Discovery+, fuboTV, Max, Philo or with premium subscriptions Hulu, Amazon Prime, YouTubeTV or Roku.

“There is no greater compliment to a teacher than to know that you’re remembered and that back in the day you made a difference in someone’s life.”