Donya Taylor was a contestant on Season 22 of Hell's Kitchen. She ranked in 8th place.
Season 22[]
Episode 1/2[]
- Main article: Episode 2201 - The Dream Begins
- Main article: Episode 2202 - Tad Overwhelming
The eighteen new chefs arrived at Hell's Kitchen, where Marino awaited them. The chefs entered Hell's Kitchen and noticed the past winners from each season before entering the dining room. To give the chefs some inspiration, Ramsay decided to have them walk through the famous doors and have a taste of what it felt like to win. Afterwards, the chefs got to know each other before the Sous Chefs arrived, explaining how their time in the competition helped their careers. Afterwards, a guitar player appeared and played the national anthem as four other doors appeared behind the curtain, each figure explaining their journey for the American Dream. After Ramsay stepped out, he welcomed the chefs to the twenty-second season, where they were celebrating the American Dream. Ramsay said the three celebrities the chefs saw were proof of the American Dream and that Hell's Kitchen was part of the American Dream. Ramsay said the winner of that season would become his Head Chef at Hell's Kitchen in Caesars Las Vegas with a salary of $250,000. Then, Ramsay told the chefs that their Signature Dish Challenge was about to begin.
During the Signature Dish Challenge, Donya was the final person from the red team to have her dish judged by Ramsay, and she went up against Mattias. As she went up, she felt the pressure of going last as she felt Ramsay was staring into her soul. She revealed that she was born addicted to drugs but wanted to prove that her urban fusion could be global. Ramsay saw that she could bounce back from adversity, and she presented her take on catfish and grits. While Ramsay liked the catfish, he felt the grits needed work and gave her four points. Still, she was okay with a four, as she compared it to getting a 90% on a math test. The red team won the challenge after a 29-point tie. They were rewarded with a day at the Beverly Hills. Later that evening, she was in awe over seeing Tad show off his Quidditch skills, as she did not know it was a real sport.[1]
Donya lost the Creative Scallops Challenge as her dish did not make it to the top three. This was due to Carmen claiming that it lacked salt.
During dinner service, Donya was at the appetizer station with Sammi. At one point, she was seen getting her appetizers accepted for Martina McBride's table. Both teams were named joint losers, and they were asked to nominate two each.
She was not nominated for elimination.[2]
Episode 3[]
- Main article: Episode 2203 - Citizens of Hell's Kitchen
During the American Citizen Brunch Service Challenge, Donya was at the meat station with Claudia. She was not seen during the challenge, and the red team lost. They were punished by cleaning up all the confetti in the dining room by hand.
During dinner service, Donya was at the fish station with Claudia. At one point, she walked up Claudia's lobster tail, only for it to be raw. On Bobby Berk's order, she asked Carmen for a time on proteins, and the latter said seven minutes. Still, she said she wanted it done in six minutes as she got annoyed by the former slow performance. Later, Ramsay discovered raw halibut and angrily told her to baste it. Then, Ramsay had everyone but her stand at the pass with him to show how painful it was to wait for a refire when most of the dishes were ready. After she served a burnt refire, Ramsay told Sous Chef Christina to work on the third attempt while he was forced to send out an incomplete order. As the women finally got Ramsay’s pain, they worked on the following order.
Both teams were named joint losers, and they were asked to nominate two each. During deliberation, Carmen told Sammi about Donya's problems with the halibut. While she argued that she owned up to those mistakes, she refused to leave over stupidity. Then, she brought up the communication problems between stations. Carmen argued that she tried her best, but she felt the former should have been more direct and did not like how Carmen was not taking responsibility.
Donya was the red team's first nominee for elimination, with Claudia as the second. They joined Mattias and Brad from the blue team. During her plea, she said she was not the weakest chef for the women and told Ramsay she considered Carmen as her nominee due to the latter second-guessing herself and not communicating well. She survived elimination after Ramsay sent her back in line.[3]
Episode 4[]
- Main article: Episode 2204 - Gimme an H!
Back at the dorms, Donya hated being on the bottom as she came to win and wanted to win the American Dream. She apologized for her poor performance that night and was comforted by Raneisha and Melissa, as they had no hard feelings. Raneisha hugged her as she released the tears, and the former knew she had to stop being hard on herself.
During the American Classics Challenge, Donya went up against Jermaine, and their dish was a lobster roll. During the cooking, she had a great recipe for her lobster roll and could not wait to battle Jermaine as they were both from New York. She wanted to show that she could win, and she was the final person from the red team to have her dish judged by Ramsay. She made an East Side lobster roll, and Ramsay loved the dish's simplicity. While she tied that round with Jermaine, the red team lost the challenge 6-7. They were punished by baking bread for the following service, which included grinding the wheat by hand. During the punishment, she got close to hitting Jason after getting annoyed by the latter's arrogant attitude.
During dinner service, Donya was at the meat station with Melissa. At one point, she felt the women were working like a choir, and she was the baritone. Atoye dropped fries before the order was ready, but she was not upset as she knew the former would eventually rise like Beyoncé. The order was accepted, and she called it beautiful. The red team won the service.[4]
Episode 5[]
- Main article: Episode 2205 - Just Bring the DARN Fish!
Back at the dorms, Donya did not want to back up Raneisha's rant towards Jason as the latter was the blue team's problem.
During the Protein Identification Challenge, Donya was paired up with Sandra, and they were the third pair from the red team to compete. Their dish was halibut and veal. Their first attempt, shrimp and pork, got a red light, and their second attempt, langoustine and veal, got a blue light. As she and Sandra struggled with a choice, they made their third attempt veal and swordfish. It was half right, and so was the branzino and veal, lobster and veal, and snapper and veal. Eventually, they got the right pairing after multiple attempts. The red team lost the challenge 13:14-6:39, and they were punished by taking in deliveries of Alaskan salmon and prepping them for the following service. She knew that some of them fell short in the challenge, and it would be a rough road to travel.
During prep, Melissa did not respond to Donya's question due to her poor attitude. She did not like that as she did not think Melissa was worth keeping around if the latter would jump ship. As it continued, she did not like that Melissa kept pouting and got frustrated with the latter's attitude. During dinner service, she was at the appetizer station with Carmen. She was not seen that night, and the red team lost the service. They were asked to nominate two people for elimination. During deliberation, she brought up Melissa's name as she did not think Sammi should have run garnish alone and did not think the latter was confident. Melissa argued that she brought positivity but did not want to bring her team down on a station she was not confident on. Still, she felt that Melissa was a Debby downer.
Donya was not nominated for elimination. While being dismissed, she felt that Melissa's elimination was the right call as it showed that anyone who stayed in the background would be left behind.[5]
Episode 6[]
- Main article: Episode 2206 - Fusion Confusion
Before the Fusion Cuisine Challenge, Donya was speechless seeing Alexi Lalas as everyone who played soccer knew him. She went up against Jermaine and hit Spanish, while the latter hit Mexican. She was the first person from the red team to have her dish judged and called herself an urban fusion chef. She made a ros contolies and enchilada, with Ramsay praising the dish for looking like a rustic Mexican city dish. While Tony Messina liked the seasoning, the beef was overcooked and leathery. She lost that round to Jermaine, and the red team lost the challenge 3-4. They were punished by prepping ingredients for the carbonara for service, including shucking peas, dicing pancetta, and shredding parmesan by hand.
During dinner service, Donya was at the meat station with Carmen. At one point, she got frustrated when she saw no leadership from the fish station. Later, Ramsay warned her and Carmen that it was all meat for the entrée order, but she was pumped as she worked with meat despite being a pescatarian. Both she and Carmen worked well on the meat and got their entrées accepted, much to Ramsay’s pleasure. As she felt excited, Ramsay urged her and Carmen to keep it up. After service, Ramsay praised her for her on-point temperatures. After Brad's exit, Ramsay asked both teams to nominate two each.
She was not nominated for elimination.[6]
Episode 7[]
- Main article: Episode 2207 - All Up in Your Grills
After returning to the dorms, Donya broke down upon seeing Raneisha go home as she considered the latter her second mom. As the women hugged it out, they recalled all their good moments with Raneisha.
During the Grilling Challenge, Donya went up against Jermaine, and their protein was the tri-tip steak. She said she used to work in a steakhouse and already knew what she wanted to make. She was the final person from the red team to have her dish judged, and she presented her chimichurri steak with smoked coleslaw and blistered tomatoes. The dish was cooked beautifully, and Aaron Franklin said it was all balanced. She scored over Jermaine, and Franklin deemed her dish the best of the day, pumping her up. The red team won the challenge 5-2, and they were rewarded with the right to keep the Vision brand grills used in the challenge, a day at Dave and Busters, and lunch cooked by Yamashiro.
During the Steak Night dinner service, Donya was at the appetizer station. She was not seen that night, and the red team won the service.[7]
Episode 8[]
- Main article: Episode 2208 - Cooking For Your Life
When Ramsay asked the chefs what the top five ethnic cuisines in America were, Donya answered Spanish-Latino, but it was not on the board. Before the Last Chef Standing Challenge, she decided to sit out to even the teams up, claiming she was not strong on any of the five dishes they had to cook. The red team lost the challenge 3-5 and they were punished by participating in trash sorting day, which included building compost boxes. Hearing that made her regret not stepping in for her team. Back at the dorms, she admitted that Atoye had every right to be mad as Carmen spoke over the latter, but Carmen argued that there was no other way to communicate in that challenge. Still, she knew they had no teamwork in that challenge and was worried that Atoye would leave. When Atoye decided to stay, she encouraged the former that she could do well. During the punishment, she and Leigh struggled to build the compost box and got frustrated, but she tried to pull it together despite having compost splashed on her after dumping the contents.
Later that day, Ramsay held private interviews with the chefs. Donya was the fourth chef to have her interview, with Ramsay telling her that she belonged in the competition, but she should not duck out of threats for long. When Ramsay announced the Cook For Your Life Challenge, she was worried her teammates would name her the weakest after sitting out of the previous challenge. However, she was not called one of the weakest chefs on the red team. While watching the live stream, she hoped Atoye strained her puree after seeing the latter blend her parsnip with no liquid.[8]
Episode 9[]
- Main article: Episode 2209 - More Bang For Your Buck
Before the Budget Challenge, Donya said goodbye to Atoye as the latter was reassigned to the blue team. During the shopping, she tried to look for parmesan when they had two minutes left. During the cooking, she was concerned about falling behind as she did not think her dish was a strong gourmet dish. After plating her dish, she was not pleased with her dish and wished she added something green to her dish. She was the first person from the red team to have her dish judged, and she presented her New York striploin with seared mushrooms and three kinds of peppercorn. Suzanne Goin thought the dish looked too plain and wished there was something green on the plate to pop it out. Also, Ramsay saw that the steak was cooked to medium, making Goin give her dish $39.
The red team lost the challenge $207-$208, and they were punished by making puff pastry for the beef Wellingtons and churning butter by hand. Back at the dorms, Donya felt disappointed in herself for her mediocre performance and felt emotionally tired, but Atoye tried to calm her down with a hug and give her reassurance. Still, she went to the bedroom to vent her frustrations in tears.
During dinner service, Donya was at the appetizer station with Sammi. When both teams were on their final order, she began to panic as it was becoming close. The red team lost the service, and they were asked to nominate two people for elimination. During deliberation, she wanted to bang her head on the wall as they lost on a beef Wellington. She was considered for elimination by Leigh.
Donya was the red team's second nominee for elimination, with Sandra as the first. During her plea, she called herself a pusher and grew greatly in the competition. After listening to her plea, Ramsay asked her who the weakest chef on the red team was. She hesitated to answer Ramsay and claimed everyone worked hard, but Ramsay asked her the same question. Eventually, she said Sandra. After Sandra was eliminated, Ramsay told her that if she thought that question was hard to answer, she was not ready to be his head chef. Ramsay called her forward, making everyone think she was also going home. However, Ramsay told her to wake up and sent her back in line, therefore surviving elimination. While being dismissed, she counted her blessings after Ramsay spared her and knew she must work harder every day. Still, she refused to be seen as a line cook and promised to show that the following day.[9]
Episode 10[]
- Main article: Episode 2210 - The Pastabilities Are Endless
Back at the dorms, Donya said that while she did not want to be on the chopping block, she knew it meant it was time for her to step it up and grow stronger.
The following day, the chefs lined up to see Olympic Gymnast Jordan Chiles on a balance beam in the dining room. Donya wondered what was happening as Chiles did a balance beam routine in front of the chefs. She was not seen during part one of the Creative Pasta Challenge, but the red team failed to beat the blue team and had to cook five minutes after them. During the cooking, she worked on the tagliatelle dish. She knew forty minutes was not enough to make pasta dishes, but she had confidence in the red team to succeed. She was the first chef from the red team to have her dish judged, and she went up against Johnathan. Still, she felt nervous to compete against Johnathan and compared it to getting beat up by the biggest person in prison. She made a basil tagliatelle with shrimp and fresh burrata. It had great flavors and a good cook on the shrimp, but Ramsay felt the plating could have been cleaner. Still, she scored over Johnathan, and she felt pumped. The red team won the challenge 3-1, and they were rewarded with a goat yoga session and a brand new Oxo cooking set.
During dinner service, Donya was at the fish station. While working on Jordan Chiles' order, she tried to push out scallops, only to rip them as they were sticking to the pan. That shocked Leigh as the former knew she was better than out. After Ramsay ordered a refire, a small fire erupted in the fish station, but she put it out. She tried to keep herself composed, and she got her refire accepted. Later, she served her salmon for Alix Klineman's table. Near the end of service, she was focused on proving to Ramsay she could work any station she was on. However, she served raw halibut with burnt butter, and Ramsay reminded them about attention to detail. Then, Ramsay pulled her to the pantry and told her to ask for help and dig deep. She swore she would bounce back like she had in her past and got her refire accepted.
Both teams were named joint losers, and Leigh was named the "Best of the Worst" for the red team. During deliberation, Leigh told Donya that she was going up on the chopping block that night, and she knew she dropped the ball that night. Still, she thanked Leigh for being honest with her.
Donya was Leigh's nominee for elimination, with Carmen as the second. They joined Jason and Atoye from the blue team. During her plea, she said she bounced back with her fire burning so bright. She survived elimination. While being dismissed, she was determined to prove what she had left.[10]
Episode 11[]
- Main article: Episode 2211 - A Hellish Food Fight
During the Blind Taste Test, Donya was the second chef from the red team to compete and went up against Jason. She only got shrimp and tomatoes correct, which resulted in Carmen getting the milk punishment. During Leigh's turn, she received the milk punishment. The red team lost the challenge 5-7, and they were punished by cleaning up the dining room ahead of Charity Night. During the punishment, she went into the bowl to clean them and lamented missing out on another cool reward.
During the Charity Night dinner service, Donya helped Leigh plate the scallops during the latter's course. She was in charge of the filet mignon course, but she finished the search on the women’s filet, which concerned Ramsay. She promised she would oversee the women, but Leigh knew she had a hard time separating herself from a line cook to a leader. Then, Sammi basted the filet, making Ramsay confused over what system she was using. Later, she got her filets to the pass, but some of them were raw, and Ramsay was not pleased when she tried to jump in on meat for the refire. That caused Carmen to realize that she was not good with delegating roles, especially on a night like now. Still, she got her course out not long after Ryan did.
Both teams were named joint losers, and they were asked to nominate one each. During deliberation, Donya felt she delegated well, but Carmen disagreed as the latter felt she kept to herself that night. Still, she did not appreciate the comments as she thought she was more vocal than her teammates.
Donya was the red team's nominee for elimination and joined Jason from the blue team. During her plea, she said she had the loudest voice in the red kitchen and the strongest woman in the kitchen. She was eliminated for failing to delegate her team on the filet mignon and not stepping up as a leader. Still, Ramsay praised her for her passion for cooking, and he appreciated her dedication. During her exit interview, she felt she was not the weakest chef in the red kitchen and assumed Ramsay would see that soon after she left. However, she called the experience life-changing.
Ramsay's comment: "Donya had the drive, voice and was a great cook. But, I'm not looking for a great cook, I need a great chef."[11]
Episode 15/16[]
- Main article: Episode 2215 - And Then There Were Two
- Main article: Episode 2216 - One Hell of An American Dream
Donya was one of the seven returning chefs to return for the final dinner service. After seeing Sammi score high on the Final Menu Challenge, she hoped the former would win. She was Johnathan's second pick for his brigade, after Dahmere and she was followed by Leigh and Atoye.[12] As Johnathan went over the menu, she felt good to be on his team, though her concern was the simplistic menu.
During dinner service, Donya was at the garnish station. Due to Dahmere struggling on the meat station, Johnathan reassigned her to meat. She immediately got to work, and got her steaks accepted, comparing herself to Stephen Curry. Johnathan eventually lost the finale to Ryan.[13]
Nomination History[]
| Week 1 | Safe |
|---|---|
| Week 2 | Nominated |
| Week 3 | Win |
| Week 4 | Safe |
| Week 5 | Safe |
| Week 6 | Win |
| Week 7 | Safe |
| Week 8 | Nominated |
| Week 9 | Nominated |
| Week 10 | Nominated |
Post-Hell's Kitchen[]
- After her appearance on the show, Donya was in a bad car accident in Brazil and suffered a bad cervical spine fracture, but is starting to recover from it.
Trivia[]
Quotes[]
- (After being eliminated) "I was not the weakest chef in the Red Kitchen. Chef Ramsay is gonna find out very soon who is. This whole experience meant a lot to me. I first came here, trying to break a generational curse. And I learned that I didn't have to prove myself to nobody. I had to prove myself to me. So I'm more than a line cook, baby. I'm a chef now."
Gallery[]
,_and_Mattias_Nominated.png "Donya, Claudia, Brad (S22), and Mattias Nominated.png (1.64 MB)")
_and_Donya_Nominated.png "Sandra (S22) and Donya Nominated.png (962 KB)")
,_and_Atoye_Nominated.png "Carmen, Donya, Jason (S22), and Atoye Nominated.png (1.1 MB)")
_Nominated.png "Donya and Jason (S22) Nominated.png (1.1 MB)")
.png "Donya's Confessional (Returning Chef).png (1.14 MB)")
.png "Donya's Confessional (Blue Jacket).png (1.05 MB)")
.png "Donya's Scallops Dish (Not Judged).png (1.83 MB)")
.png "Donya's American Classic Dish (Lobster Roll).png (1.61 MB)")
.png "Donya's Fusion Dish (Spanish-Mexican).png (991 KB)")
.png "Donya's Grilled Dish (Tri-Tip).png (978 KB)")
.png "Donya's Budget Dish (New York Striploin).png (710 KB)")
.png "Donya's Pasta Dish (Tagliatelle).png (540 KB)")
External Links[]
Donya Taylor on Instagram
References[]
| Hell's Kitchen: The American Dream |
|---|
| Staff |
| Gordon Ramsay (Head Chef) • Jay Santos (Blue Team Sous Chef) • Christina Wilson (Red Team Sous Chef) • Marino Monferrato (Maître d'hôtel) |
| Contestants |
| Johnathan Benvenuti • Mattias Butts • Raneisha Conerly • Brad Delgado • Claudia Diawara • Sandra Gajovsky • Jason Hedin • Carmen Ibarra • Melissa Irons • Atoye Johnson • Dahmere Merriweather • Ryan O'Sullivan • Leigh Orleans • Devon Rosenblatt • Sammi Tarantino • Donya Taylor • Tad Walters • Jermaine Wright |