| “ | You will not break me, and I'm just gonna piss you off more, on purpose. | ” |
Anthony "Anton" Testino was a contestant on Season 12 of Hell's Kitchen. He ranked in 8th place.
Season 12[]
Episode 1[]
- Main article: Episode 1201 - 20 Chefs Compete
The twenty new chefs rode on a bus on route to Hell's Kitchen and during this time they had the opportunity to get to know each other. Upon arrival, they were greeted by Jean-Philippe who walked the chefs into Hell’s Kitchen only to walk into a service already going on with the food receiving positive comments and Ramsay expressing that the chefs in the kitchen were doing a splendid job. That confused the chefs, and once the service ended, Ramsay approached them and welcomed them. Ramsay explained that he did a soft opening to showcase the chefs what his expectations were, and asked if they could perform a service like the one they saw. Everybody promised they would, Anton claimed he and Ramsay were the same person, before believing the latter would love him like a father. Then, Ramsay revealed that the winner would become a Head Chef at one of his restaurants, but first, they had to survive Hell’s Kitchen in Los Angeles, a place he deemed the capital of entertainment. Shortly after, patrons of the restaurant began putting on a performance. Afterwards, Ramsay announced it was time for the Signature Dish Challenge.
During the Signature Dish Challenge, Anton was the first person from the blue team to have his dish judged by Ramsay, and went up against Simone. He made a seared pork chop with a crabmeat crust, and while Ramsay jokingly asked if his pig got crabs, the dish was delicious. While he scored that round over Simone, the blue team eventually lost the challenge 4-5. They were punished by resetting the dining room ahead of the opening service. During the punishment, he took notice of Mike vacuuming instead of helping them with the tables.
During dinner service, Anton was on the meat station with Jason. After seeing DeMarco's overcooked lobster tail, he deemed it nasty, and later, got dismayed when the former sent up another overcooked lobster tail. Eventually, the blue team was kicked out of the kitchen after multiple mistakes. Both teams were named joint losers, and they were asked to nominate two each. During deliberation, he nominated Gaurav for the finger incident alone which Richard called a disaster.
He was not nominated for elimination.[1]
Episode 2[]
- Main article: Episode 1202 - 19 Chefs Compete
The next day, at 4:33 AM, the chefs awoke to the sounds of dirt bikes revving in the dorms, and Sous Chef Andi told the chefs to meet Ramsay outside. Before the Basics Relay Challenge, Anton deemed the tasks cooking 101, and they would either know it or need to get the hell out. He was paired up with Chris, they were the second pair from the blue team to compete, and their task was breaking down two whole chickens. When Chris accidentally cut himself while breaking down his chicken, he was forced to break both chickens by himself. Their first attempt was rejected for still having the wings on the thighs, but they got their second attempt accepted. When Ralph rode the tricycle, he found humor in the former riding the tricycle as they were both the same size. The blue team won the challenge 5-4, and they were rewarded with a trip to San Francisco, ate lunch with Ramsay at Epic Roasthouse, and went on a VIP trip around San Francisco on Segway’s.
During dinner service, Anton was on the garnish station with Chris. After Jason failed to give Ramsay proper timings for his food, he claimed that appetizers were the key for a successful service, and hoped that Jason would step it up. When DeMarco was caught trying to sear tuna on a cold pan, he deemed the former pathetic as a three-year-old knew that. Eventually, the blue team was kicked out after multiple mistakes. Both teams were named joint losers, and they were asked to nominate two each. During deliberation, even though he knew that some people had a bad day, he deemed that night ridiculous as he did not blame Ramsay for being pissed at them, and felt if he was in the latter’s place, he would tell them to get the fuck out. Then, he immediately deemed DeMarco as one of the men’s weakest links, but while the latter argued he did not serve pink chicken that night, he reminded him how simple searing a tuna should have been.
He was not nominated for elimination.[2]
Episode 3[]
- Main article: Episode 1203 - 18 Chefs Compete
The next day, at 5:45 AM, the chefs were woken to the sound of pigs squealing and a farmer yelling very loud. During the Potato Challenge, Anton was not seen during part one, but the blue team won 100-90. During part two, he felt his dish was both deep and flavorable and hoped Ramsay would love it. He was not chosen for the top five, and was not happy his dish was not chosen. The blue team lost the challenge 16-18, and they were punished by cleaning the livestock out in the pen. During the punishment, he knew Mike fucked them big time as the latter’s dish was horrible.
During prep, DeMarco accidentally sliced his finger, and Anton informed the men to their shock. During dinner service, he was on the appetizer station with Gabriel. He was seen working on his first order, and after bringing it up, Ramsay brought him and Joy to the front, and showed them their perfect risottos before telling them to keep the bar up or god help them. He felt he rose to the occasion and did what most others did not, and on the next order, he sent up his risottos. However, the blue team were kicked out of the kitchen after multiple mistakes. Both teams were named joint losers, and they were asked to nominate three each. During deliberation, he, DeMarco, and Scott were seen getting in-between Jason and Mike before their argument got physical.
He was not nominated for elimination.[3]
Episode 4[]
- Main article: Episode 1204 - 17 Chefs Compete
Back at the dorms, Anton declared that what happened happened, but he hoped the animosity towards Mike would go as it would fuck them up, and tomorrow was another day in the kitchen and forget what happened last night. Chris agreed, saying it was water under the bridge.
During the Lobster Ravioli Challenge, Anton was concerned about the trio of Mike, DeMarco, and Gabriel as he considered them the weak links. He was paired up with Chris, and they were seen getting three of their attempts accepted. The blue team eventually lost the challenge 9-10, and they were punished by cleaning up the pennies worth $200,000, as well as clean and prep both kitchens for that night’s service. After hearing the red team's reward, he was pissed the men kept loosing because the weak links weren't stepping up, but he and Gabriel felt the men were closer than the women. While on break, he grumbled about picking up pennies, and as they were cleaning up, he asked Mike and DeMarco what was missing from them. When Mike responded rudely, he said he was asking everyone's opinion.
During the Steak Night dinner service, he was on the meat station with Chris. Due to Ralph misremembering the order, he asked if they were waiting on crab cakes, but Jason said they were not on order. Later, he told Richard to pierce the crab cake with his knife, and when the latter and Ralph were briefly kicked out, Ramsay had him get appetizers out. However, he suddenly had to make risotto from scratch because Mike did not step up, making him believe the latter had enough. He brought up the risotto and Ramsay approved, allowing the men to finally send out appetizers to the dining room. On entrées, he asked Chris how the filet was, and the latter replied it looked fucking good. Then, he brought the filet with sauce, but Jason said he had to acknowledge him and was told not to run up like a jackass. After, Ramsay said that the filet was still cold, angrily ranting that the easiest steak to cook was dragging the kitchen down, and he clearly saw how bad the situation was. Eventually, the men received help from the red team, but while he had nothing against the women, he said that having them help them was extremely embarrassing.
The blue team lost the service, and they were asked to nominate two people for elimination. During deliberation, Richard reminded Anton about the raw steaks as Jason felt he was rushing a little bit. He said they were out of their fucking minds if he was going up for elimination as he felt he had not screwed up once since the beginning, before reminding Chris about having two bad services in a row, and DeMarco about having three bad services in a row.
He was not nominated for elimination.[4]
Episode 5[]
- Main article: Episode 1205 - 16 Chefs Compete
Back at the dorms, Anton said they now must become one as there was no more excuses.
During the Creative Memory Challenge, Anton accused accused Ramsay of making the memory game even harder for them due to the five minute time limit. He was paired up with Richard, and they were seen matching potatoes and fingerling potatoes. However, they were given most of the starches for their chicken dish, which he deemed very hard. They were the first pair from the blue team to have their dish judged by Ramsay, and went up against the pair of Melanie and Rochelle. He presented their seared and baked chicken with capellini and cherry wine vinaigrette sauce, but Melanie compared it to diner quality. Even though Ramsay said the dish did not look pleasant, he felt it had great flavor, and so both pairs scored that round.
The blue team eventually lost the challenge 2-3, and they were punished by harvesting fresh honey, making 100 pounds of honey taffy, and drinking sardine shakes for lunch. During the punishment, Anton asked if the bees could get into his suit due to the holes on them, but after seeing a truck waiting for them with the honeycomb waiting for them, he felt they dodged a bullet because of that, although the beekeeper warned him the dead bees could still sting him. Then, he called making taffy boring, stupid, tedious work. After the punishment, he wanted to know why they were all there.
During the Wedding brunch service, Anton was on the fruit salad station with Scott. He was not seen that day, the blue team lost the service, and they were asked to nominate two people for elimination. During deliberation, he and Jason did not want excuses as they were judging by overall.
He was not nominated for elimination.[5]
Episode 6[]
- Main article: Episode 1206 - 15 Chefs Compete
Back at the dorms, Anton was not happy as they just lost a chef, and was raging over the fact his teammates did not seem to care.
The next day, Ramsay asked both teams to name a leader for the following service. Anton agreed with Ramsay’s logic as they needed somebody in charge, and wanted the men to make him the leader. During deliberation, he immediately wanted it, but Jason felt he was too much of a dick head to take the leadership. While he acknowledged Jason as a strong cook, he has yet to see the latter’s leadership skills, and Gabriel announced he wanted the leadership role badly. However, he asked Gabriel if he was fucking crazy and laughed about, but despite Gabriel calling him out on his laughing, he argued he was confident in his abilities, and that he did it every day. Once back downstairs, he announced he was the men’s leader, but Gabriel felt he would lead with his mouth and put it in his dick. He explained that due to his great experience, which somewhat offended Richard, he would act as a floater.
During prep, Ramsay pulled Anton and Melanie aside for a thirty second meeting, telling the two that their role as captains began now. He overheard the women trash talk them, and believed they were too cocky before proclaiming he wanted to take Melanie down. During dinner service, he served as a floater. He directed Ralph and Gabriel on making the risottos, and hoped that if his team listened to him, they could have a strong service, but if they were not, he would kick them out. However, Gabriel felt he knew what he was doing, Richard sarcastically called him Super Chef, but despite all that, the first order of appetizers was accepted, making him wish he could go and toot his own horn. His leadership led to a strong string of dishes leaving the blue kitchen, but he accidentally talked over Ramsay’s callout on the next order, making the latter lecture him to wait and listen. On Holly Marie Combs' order, he walked Chris' scallops, but they turned out to be overcooked, and he blamed the latter for making him look bad. One hour into service, he went to Chris for the scallops, but told him to resear them on one side, even though Chris told him to shut the fuck up as he knew what to do. When Ramsay momentarily left the blue kitchen, he decided to skip the former’s approval and plate and serve the dishes for the Combs himself, but it turned out the scallops were undercooked. Later, he paid close attention to Chris' third attempt, and it was accepted. After, he was seen serving Comb's Wellingtons. The blue team won the service, and he was praised by Ramsay.
After elimination, Anton felt confident he would win.[6]
Episode 7[]
- Main article: Episode 1207 - 14 Chefs Compete
Before the Gourmet Pizza Challenge, Anton deemed it a personal challenge as making pizzas was how his family made a living. He was paired up with Richard, and when there were 15 minutes left, he reminded the men that a pizza took 10 minutes to cook. Then, he tried to help Jason and Chris on their pizza. When Wolfgang puck appeared as a guest judge, he never ever thought in a million years he would meet Puck. He and Richard were the final pair from the blue team to have their dish judged, and they went up against Melanie and Sandra. They made a Mediterranean pizza with sautéed hot pepper, smoked salmon, and a sweet balsamic topping, with him hoping that he succeeded. Puck was intrigued with the amount of ingredients, and after he and Ramsay tasted it, they scored 7 points, giving the men a 15-12 victory as Ramsay deemed it the only good pizza of the day, and he called it his moment.
The blue team won the challenge 15-12, and they were rewarded with a trip to the rooftop of the Andaz Hotel in Sunstet Strip and received yoga lessons. Before leaving, Anton left the group to have a moment to himself as their victory was an emotional one for himself, feeling he did his family proud as one of the greatest chefs in the world complimented his food. During the reward, he was infatuated with the instructor.
During prep, Anton felt the men were in good spirits and very confident. During the Italian Family Night dinner service, he was on the fish station with Richard. At one point, he walked up only one order of scallops despite Richard not being ready with his. Then, he noticed that their bottle of oil was on the flat top, and when he picked it up, the bottom fell out due to the plastic being melted, causing a fire to erupt. Ramsay went and smothered it with a few extra aprons, and dismayingly asked how it could get any worse. Later, he tried to give Scott some pointers on the pizzas, but the latter ignored him despite himself reminding him that he burned 15 already.
The blue team lost the service, and they were asked to nominate two people for elimination. During deliberation, Anton deemed that night a disaster as they were on top of the trash mountain, and said they were all garbage. Then, he said that anybody from the pizza station should be nominated that night, but while Chris argued that the pizzas were fucked from the start, they were not the only ones that made mistakes that night. Even though he knew Scott and Chris screwed them that night, he felt Ralph also deserved to be nominated.
He was not nominated for elimination.[7]
Episode 8[]
- Main article: Episode 1208 - 13 Chefs Compete
Before the 160th Sorority Anniversary Planning Challenge, Anton said the the sorority girls were those type of girls he looked for in a fraternity party during college. During the cooking, his seafood idea was rejected by Gabriel, and Ralph had him taste his mushroom gravy. While he agreed that it tasted gritty, they had to follow Gabriel’s direction. He did not present a dish, and the blue team lost the challenge 1-2. They were punished by decorating the dining room for the 160th Anniversary service. During the punishment, he was pissed as they kept losing challenges, and now he had to listen to 18-year-old girls for direction.
During the 160th Sorority Anniversary dinner service, Anton was on the fish station. He was not seen much, except for refusing to lose to the women again. The blue team won the service. After elimination, he knew the men dodged a bullet that night, before realizing that they had to take responsibility for their actions and stop being little bitches.[8]
Episode 9[]
- Main article: Episode 1209 - 12 Chefs Compete
During the Dome Challenge, Anton grabbed ahi tuna as part of his dish. He was the fifth person from the blue team to have his dish judged, and went up against Jessica. He made a seared tuna with pasta and red wine tangerine sauce, it was criticized for a messy presentation, but praised for a harmonious taste, and he scored that round against Jessica. The blue team eventually lost the challenge 3-4, and they were punished by doing the waiting staffs chores. During the punishment, he felt that Richard’s age was starting to show as the latter was moving slowly during the punishment.
Later that day, Ramsay announced that he would perform individual evaluation reports with the chefs. He was the final chef to do his evaluation, and when Ramsay asked him what he had that was not showing, he felt that it was to make himself famous by running Ramsay’s restaurant. He was not deemed the weakest chef by the blue team, and did not have to compete in the Cook For Your Life Challenge. During the cooking, he was concerned about Richard’s plating skills as his previous dishes looked terrible. During the judging, he took notice of Jessica's risotto being plated high.[9]
Episode 10[]
- Main article: Episode 1210 - 11 Chefs Compete
Back at the dorms, Rochelle asked a distressed Anton if he was okay, but he was pissed as he let the team down, to Gabriel’s confusion. He felt he let Richard down by not giving him enough knowledge, but Gabriel and Jason reminded him that he was not a babysitter, with the latter feeling that he was no longer the leader of the men. However, he reminded the men that they nominated him as the leader a few days ago and that he should have given Richard his knowledge back then, but Gabriel called that fucking stupid before leaving to get a honeybun.
The next day, the chefs went to Ramsay's gastropub as to see around the restaurant, and to take a look at the menu for Gastropub Night. While the rest of the chefs were touring around the restaurant, Anton decided to sit around and see if he felt the good vibe of the restaurant. During prep, Ralph went up to the dorms due to exhaustion, and he blamed Gabriel for keeping the former up.
During the Gastropub Night dinner service, Anton was on the grill station. When Jason tried to communicate times with him, he did not respond as he was in the zone with his food, and was going too fast for Jason’s liking. Jason called him a stupid idiot for not communicating with anybody, but he did not give a rat’s ass. Despite that, the order was accepted, and the men were pushing out appetizers. On entrées, Scott tried to tell him on what was on order next, but he said he was not an idiot as he could bang out any station without the former screwing it up for him. When Scott sent up soggy fries, he called it pure stupidity. One hour into service, Ramsay looked for his New York striploin, but while he said he was dropping them now, Ramsay saw they were not even on the pan. He said he did not hear the order earlier, forcing the men to switch tickets to keep momentum. However, Ralph was angry as he had no fish fried yet, and Jason called him a hotheaded idiot who could not remember an order. As Ramsay demanded for something, he was yelling at Ralph for the fish when he had no New York striploins ready. When an argument between him and Jason about the miscommunication was getting rough, Richard tried to calm them down until Ramsay got them under control, yelling at the men that there was more shouting than cooking. After Ralph served raw fish, he did not know how sick the former was if he could not serve perfect fish. When the red team came to help them out, he called Rochelle a twelve-year-old child. Eventually, the blue team got kicked out of the kitchen, and while going back to the dorms, he deemed the men a disaster and how hard it was for him to lead a team of Three Stooges. He lectured the men about the way he was calling out timings, but Jason said that he was not a leader, and if they let him do his own way, he would take the men down with him. Then, Jason claimed he could run the meat station with his eyes closed, but he yelled back that they asked him to lead, and wanted to see them all burn, while the men agreed that his behavior was not acceptable.
The blue team lost the service, and they were asked to nominate two people for elimination. During deliberation, Anton felt Ralph, Scott, and Gabriel were the weak links for the men.
He was not nominated for elimination.[10]
Episode 11[]
- Main article: Episode 1211 - 10 Chefs Compete
Back at the dorms, Anton agreed with Scott about Gabriel's stunt during elimination as they came to an unanimous decision.
During the Creative Pork Challenge, Anton was not seen during part one, and the blue team won the first challenge. He picked pork shoulder and wanted to bring down Melanie and kick her off her high horse. He was the first person from the blue team to have his dish judged by Ramsay, and presented his pork shoulder with port wine sauce. It was deemed a dog’s dinner based on the presentation, and while Melanie snarked that it was missing a dog bowl, Sandra called him a kiss ass when he explained how he tried to replicate Ramsay’s wine sauce. While it was deemed delicious, the presentation was a mess, and he lost that round to Melanie. However, he did not care about the presentation as he made dishes that tasted good. The blue team eventually won the challenge 3-2, and they were rewarded with an indoor skydiving experience, and brand new Vitamix blenders.
During dinner service, Anton was on the fish station. At one point, Scott checked on him for the scallops, but he refused to let him help as he would throw him off. However, he served only nine scallops for two portions, but while Scott told him that he was in over his head, he called the latter a hemorrhoid before pushing him away. While Scott tired to help him again, he refused it, saying he would ask only if he wanted it. Then, he served an overcooked halibut, and when Ramsay showed it, he claimed that Scott was confusing him. However, neither Jason and Richard believed that as the latter asked him how Scott fucked him up, and a fed-up Ramsay took the men into the pantry room in order to sort out their problems. After a quick discussion, it was decided that Scott would stay with Jason on the other side, although the latter called him a loser if he could not get fish out. Two hours into dinner service, Ramsay warned him not to send up an overcooked salmon, but he claimed he could bang it out when no one from his team was up his ass. However, he walked up an overcooked salmon, but even after Ramsay showed it to him, he refused to have someone help him. That led Scott to call him a douchebag with zero finesse, but when he complained that people were talking at him, Ramsay ordered him not to sear it off too early. He was disappointed in his performance, but then, Ramsay noticed that there was one salmon that was covered by a pan, and took over fish. He called it embarrassing and pathetic, before slipping down and blaming Scott for spilling oil, which the latter claimed to have seen it all now.
Both teams were named joint losers, and they were asked to nominate two each. During deliberation, Anton was nominated by Gabriel and Scott, but while he claimed he would only ask for help if he needed it, Scott told him to own up to his mistakes. He denied playing the blame game, but was confirmed to be the men’s first nominee.
Anton was the blue team's first nominee for elimination, with Scott as the second, and they joined Sandra and Rochelle from the red team. During his plea, Ramsay told him that he never seen somebody fall from grace the way he did, but he once again blamed his teammates for his problems, mainly Scott, while referring to his team as a bunch of little girls. He survived elimination as Ramsay reassigned him to the red team alongside Scott, being exchanged for Sandra and Rochelle. While being dismissed, he called it a nightmare to be sensitive towards his new teammates.[11]
Episode 12[]
- Main article: Episode 1212 - 10 Chefs Again
While going back to the dorms, Anton called the team switch a nightmare as it meant learning everything all over again, while Joy did not want hum on the red team as he would not be an asset to them, even feeling that he was not worthy of a red jacket. Then, Joy told him that his arrogant behavior would not sit with the red team, but while the latter simply agreed to follow her lead, Scott felt he would have a harder time in the red team than himself as his bull headiness would not fly. He revealed that it was ten years ago when he last worked with women in the kitchen, and felt they were more sensitive than men as they get more offended. As he cursed his situation, Melanie laughed and welcomed him to the red team.
During the King of the Hill Challenge, Anton was seen in the dark room, and described grocery shopping as love making. He was the fourth chef to have his dish judged by Ramsay, and presented a pork dish with fig and feta cheese spread. While it was compared to seagull shit, it was praised for being delicious, and he dethroned Sandra, although she said her dish was more complex than his. However, he was dethroned by Rochelle, and the red team lost the challenge. They were punished by participating in delivery, and during the punishment, he was seen helping Melanie and Scott carrying some stuff.
During the Charity Night dinner service, Anton was in charge of the lobster risotto course. He caused a fire by adding too much oil to his very hot pans, much to Melanie’s dismay as Ramsay reminded him that it was a kitchen, not a barbecue. Then, he was so focused on his risottos, he did not communicate with anybody on his team which Ramsay did not like, and Joy said that while he was the type of guy she hated working with due to his poor communication, she did admit that he can cook after his risottos were accepted. On the third course, he was about to walk Kashia's tortellini until Ramsay saw they were undercooked, and he tried to calm her down. Both teams were named joint losers, and they were asked to nominate two each. During deliberation, he asked Kashia if she was really nominating herself.
He was not nominated for elimination.[12]
Episode 13[]
- Main article: Episode 1213 - 9 Chefs Compete
Back at the dorms, Anton and Melanie sat in the living room, discussing how nobody was safe in the competition, but he was confident on how well he performed so far. When Melanie asked him who his biggest threat was, he had no answer, while she said he was based on confidence and experience. He was not surprised by that, but he was not worried about Melanie as the latter wanted them in the final two.
The next day, Sous Chef James entered the dorms with two delivery people and gathered both teams to the living room. After, the delivery people began to rap out a message from Ramsay, revealing that the packages they had were two blank menus, and that they had one hour to create their own menu for that night’s service. When the red team were working on their menu, Anton's shrimp and bisc risotto was not well liked by Melanie who suggested split pea risotto instead. When Joy asked what kind of garnish would suit that well, he suggested spinach which everybody, but Melanie, liked. Then, Melanie liked Joy’s suggestion of cranberries, but he did not, saying that nutmeg would work better. After, Melanie suggested clams and mussels with butter bean did not sit well with him as they already had butternut squash risotto. He expressed concern about doing the menu close to what Ramsay was already having them do, and felt it was more Melanie’s menu than the red team’s menu, even threatening to throw her under the bus If they lost. However, Melanie did not see how the menu was like Ramsay’s. Then, his scallops with a goat cheese pesto topping were accepted, making him happy that his item was finally on the menu.
During prep, Anton taught Melanie how to cook the scallop dish as he knew anybody’s day in Hell’s Kitchen could be their last, while Kashia showed him how to make the tuna sliders. When Ramsay looked at the demo dishes, he felt the scallop dish had too much garlic in the basil, which he took as if his girlfriend ate that, she would stink a little. Near the end of prep, he felt it should be easy as it was their own dishes, which Joy agreed with.
During dinner service, Anton was on the appetizer station with Scott. At one point, he sent up a risotto worth three servings instead of two, but it was delicious despite that mistake, which he believed that Ramsay respected him. On entrées, his scallop dish seemed the most popular, and while Melanie felt they looked gangster, he hoped they were cooking right. When Melanie sent the dishes up, Ramsay saw how gloopy they were at the bottom, but when the latter revealed that was what he told her to do, Ramsay showed him and Melanie how soggy they were. He felt that Melanie was trying to make him look bad, while Ramsay told her not to cook them like a diaper, even saying that it was not the same dish he saw two hours ago. When Melanie found out that she had no more scallops as they did not prep enough, he found it to be an interesting situation as the former deemed him her biggest competition and thought about letting her sink for his own game. However, he went to the blue kitchen for more scallops and Rochelle gave him their supply.
The red team won the service, but Ramsay asked them to have one of the three women to move into the blue team. During deliberation, Anton sarcastically wished the three women on who was joining the blue team, and told the women about Jason’s anger.
After Richard's elimination, Anton said goodbye to Melanie as she was reassigned to the blue team.[13]
Episode 14[]
- Main article: Episode 1214 - 8 Chefs Compete
The next day, Ramsay had Anton taste the tuna tartare, but it turned out to be watermelon. During the Blind Taste Test, he was the second person from the blue team to compete, and went up against Gabriel. He could only get mozzarella, but thought he did not do so bad. The red team eventually won the challenge 6-4, and they were rewarded with skating lessons with former Olympic figure skater Rachael Flatt. During the reward, the red team was amazed by Flatt’s skating skills, although he was more focused on her ass, and wondered if Kashia even seen ice outside of a glass as she went off the rink. When Scott was trying some tricks, he called him a teacher’s pet like he was in the kitchen.
When the red team came back from their reward, Jason noticed Anton limping as the latter said he pulled something during the reward. As both teams began prepping for service, he and Joy discussed the timings for the convection oven, but the latter said they should know this by now as he asked about the oil for salads. That led Joy to comment that there were certain things money could not buy, like common sense, but he felt the red team was doing things differently than the blue team.
During dinner service, Anton was on the meat station. As the red team got their first order up, Scott allowed him to help him on appetizers, shocking him as that meant the former was learning to ask for help. With his help, Scott’s appetizers were accepted. Then, he got annoyed when Scott accidentally fired an entire order of scallops than a single scallop like Ramsay asked. On entrées, he was getting flustered on meat, leading Scott to offer his assistance by slicing the chicken. However, Scott ended up walking up pink chicken, and although the former blamed him for not cooking it properly, he called him a vindictive rat. As the red diners were getting restless, Kashia walked her salmon, but he said he needed 10 more minutes on the Wellingtons, leading Ramsay to ask the red team for some communication. When Scott sliced his Wellingtons, they were all overcooked, which Joy deemed a beef cemetery, even commenting how expensive that item was. Having enough, Ramsay chewed him out for overcooking his Wellingtons, but the claimed that the oven was different than the one the blue kitchen had, something Scott could not understand. Sous Chef Andi tried to tell him that she told the red chefs about proper temperatures and timings for the oven, but he claimed refused to let her rip him a new one just because she was a woman. When Sous Chef Andi started getting frustrated by his talk back, he said she would not break him, and deliberately decided to piss her off by claiming that he had it together. That caused Sous Chef Andi to scream at him for talking back to her, Joy told him to cut it out, and Kashia felt he crossed a line. During the commentary, he referred to Chef Andi as a "little girl" screaming in his face. Then, Ramsay pulled him to the back pantry as Scott said he was going down in flames, and Ramsay sternly ordered him to keep it together. While he claimed to have it together, Ramsay said that the Wellingtons were out of control, he was not communicating, and at that moment, he needed him to rise and bounce back.
The red team lost the service, and Ramsay told Anton that he sunk his team. He once again blamed the oven for being different than in the blue kitchen, but Ramsay told him that both kitchens had the same ovens, and Melanie told him not to blame the oven for his poor night. The red team was asked to nominate two people for elimination. During deliberation, he said he was a natural leader, but Joy called him out for his disrespectful attitude towards Sous Chef Andi. However, he did not care if the red team nominated him as he felt Ramsay saw him as a strong chef, and it would be a mistake to get rid of him. He was nominated by Joy and Kashia, but he nominated the latter.
Anton was the red team's first nominee for elimination, with Scott as the second. During his plea, he said he knew who he was, and that Ramsay should see it too, but the latter felt that he peaked a few services ago, and feared he was spiraling down. When asked why he did not talk when in the weeds, he felt it was not an issue for him, but said he could work on it. He was eliminated for his poor performance on meat, poor attitude, refusal to admit to his mistakes, and being on a downward spiral he was not coming out of. During his exit interview, he claimed that he knew his abilities, hoped for one day to open a restaurant next to Ramsay’s, and believed that he was the winner of the competition just for being the best of the eight despite being eliminated.
Ramsay's comment: "Anton let the little success he had in Hell's Kitchen inflate his ego. It was time to let the air out of that balloon." [14]
Episode 20[]
- Main article: Episode 1220 - Winner Chosen
Anton was one of the ten chefs that returned for the final dinner service. He was Jason's first pick, and was followed by Melanie, Gabriel, Bev, and Sandra. Back at the dorms, he told Jason to relax when the latter was loud and boisterous when discussing the menu.
During dinner service, Anton was on the appetizer station with Bev. He was not seen that night, and Jason eventually lost the finals to Scott.[15]
Nomination History[]
| Week 1 | Safe |
|---|---|
| Week 2 | Safe |
| Week 3 | Safe |
| Week 4 | Safe |
| Week 5 | Safe |
| Week 6 | Win |
| Week 7 | Safe |
| Week 8 | Win |
| Week 9 | Safe |
| Week 10 | Safe |
| Week 11 | Nominated |
| Week 12 | Safe |
| Week 13 | Win |
| Week 14 | Nominated |
Post Hell's Kitchen[]
- After his appearance on the show, he opened restaurant Axtons, runs a catering company, and gives culinary demonstrations.
Trivia[]
- He is the tenth contestant who switched teams without making it to the black jackets, and the third male contestant, following Robert (Season 6) and Scott (Season 7). He is also the second contestant who switched from blue team to red team to do so, also following Scott (Season 7).
- He is the third contestant to get into a confrontation with Sous Chef Andi, following Elise (Season 9) and Tiffany (Season 10).
- He is the second contestant in the history of the show to argue with a Sous Chef, following Monterray (Season 9), who argued with Sous Chef Scott over broken sea bass. He is also the first contestant to argue with a female sous chef.
- He, Scott, Rochelle, and Sandra were all involved in the third instance of simultaneous team switch, following Scott and Autumn (Season 7) and Trev and Melissa (Season 8). This was also the first instance where more than one person from each team was involved.
Quotes[]
- "DeMarco, he's pathetic. Literally, searing tuna a three-year-old can do."
- "Are you serious, you guys didn't select my dish??"
- "We need to stop being little bitches, and be men!"
- "Scott, my little HEMORRHOID..."
- (After being switched over to the red team) "This whole is just a nightmare for me. Now I have to learn to be sensitive when I talk to people. Do I seem like a sensitive kind of guy?"
- (About Sous Chef Andi) "Don't think I'm gonna let some little girl get in my face, start ripping a new asshole because you had issues on being a woman in the kitchen. You will not break me, and I'm just gonna piss you off more, on purpose."
- "This oven here Chef is 14 minutes, the other side is 18 minutes Chef."
- (After being eliminated) "I think Chef Ramsay might have taken tonight as arrogance, but I know my abilities. One day Chef Ramsay and I will meet again, maybe next time it'll be his restaurant next door to mine. I didn't walk away with the crown, but I was the best out of everybody in there. So that makes me the winner of Hell's Kitchen, in my opinion."
Gallery[]
.png "Anton's Confessional (Blue Jacket).png (325 KB)")
.png "Anton's Confessional (Red Jacket).png (313 KB)")
.png "Anton's Potato Dish (Not Judged).png (234 KB)")
.png "Anton's Dome Dish (Ahi Tuna).png (243 KB)")
.png "Anton's Creative Pork Dish (Pork Shoulder).png (197 KB)")
References[]
External links[]
Anton Testino on Instagram
| Hell's Kitchen Season 12 |
|---|
| Staff |
| Gordon Ramsay (Head Chef) • James Avery (Blue Team Sous Chef) • Andi Van Willigan (Red Team Sous Chef) • Jean-Philippe Susilovic (Maître d'hôtel) |
| Contestants |
| Mike Aresta • Rochelle Bergman • Scott Commings • Michael DeMarco • Chris Eversole • Melanie Finch • Sandra Flores • Michael Gabriel • Bev Lazo-Gonzalez • Simone Hammond • Ralph Johnson • Richard Mancini • Gaurav Navin • Nicole Rutz • Beth Taylor • Anton Testino • Joy Parham-Thomas • Jessica Vogel • Jason Zepaltas • Kashia Zollicoffer |