Maybe they should just call it Top Chef Texa$.

Back in July news leaked that Bravo was finally bringing its hit cooking competition show to the Lone Star State — as did the allegation that Houston was being passed over in part because the Greater Houston Convention and Visitors Bureau declined to pay the price asked to film here.

According to documents published by the Dallas Observer, the state didn't have similar concerns, agreeing to pay $400,000 for what governor Rick Perry's spokeswoman Lucy Nashed described as an "integrated marketing agreement." Speaking to the Austin American-Statesman, Nashed said the funds come from the tourism marketing budget and that the exposure generated from Top Chef will be worth an estimated $15 million to the state.

What is Top Chef Texas doing with all that money? That's what the Observer wanted to know, filing an open records request which was approved by the state and the attorney general's office.

But now Magical Elves, the production company behind Top Chef and other reality hits, is suing the attorney general to keep "contracts, proposals, email communications, ... proposals, correspondence, and related documents exchanged in the course of confidential negotiations," from being publicly disclosed, claiming the documents contain confidential and proprietary information.

"The Confidential Information includes details about the number of episodes and creative elements of Top Chef Texas, the public disclosure of which would reduce viewers' and advertisers' interest in the upcoming season and allow competitors to copy creative elements of the program and schedule counter-programming," the suit alleges.

Like Houston, Dallas and Austin also reportedly declined to pay for filming but were selected as locations anyway, though the Dallas Film Commission did offer its services and help in selecting locations. Officials from San Antonio, which hosted the majority of the episodes, declined to comment on its contract with Magical Elves when contacted by the Statesman.

Speaking to CultureMap in July, Holly Clapham at the Greater Houston Convention and Visitors Bureau said that the city isn't opposed to what she termed "cost with opportunity" but that the figure was determined to be too high for a single episode of Top Chef Texas.

Are you excited to watch Top Chef Texas or is the money and the drama convincing you to change the channel? Do you think this was a good use of $400,000 for the state?