The second episode of Season 12 of Hell's Kitchen aired on Fox on March 20, 2014. In that episode, the teams competed in a relay race on the basics, dinner service was another nightmare, and a satisfying elimination of an early bitch took place.
Intro[]
While going back to the dorms, DeMarco called his nomination the worst moment of his life. At the same time, Sandra was not happy her team did not have her back, even feeling that they would be happy if she went home that night. When Sandra had an outburst in front of her teammates, Joy asked if the former was always on her menstrual before gladly volunteering to take Sandra’s bags out as she wanted her gone. Later that night, Beth started flirting with Richard over a chicken breast as she called him cute. However, Gabriel laughed at Beth’s flirting, and while Richard said he liked the latter, he felt she was out of control.
Team challenge[]
The next day, at 4:33 AM, the chefs awoke to the sounds of dirt bikes revving in the dorms, with a confused Jessica yelling what was going on. Sous Chef Andi told the chefs to meet Ramsay outside, but Chris called it the most annoying wake-up call he ever had. Once outside, Ramsay revealed that he wanted to focus on teamwork that day, and to showcase that, he had three dirt bikers run in a steel ball. As the chefs watched in excitement, Jason could already feel his voice getting sore from screaming. After, Ramsay said it was their turn and had the Sous Chefs pass over colored helmets for the chefs, but Gabriel called Ramsay crazy as somebody would die if they rode bikes in the steel ball. However, Ramsay revealed they would not be riding the dirt bikes. Instead, they would ride tricycles as Jean-Philippe rode one with three others connected, and Bev called him cute and happy on them. Leading them to the challenge area, Ramsay introduced the Basics Relay Challenge. Each team was broken into pairs and had to ride their tricycles over to the cooking station before performing some basic prep work. These included peeling and deveining a dozen shrimp, breaking down two whole chickens, shucking a dozen oysters, filet four trouts, and prepare two perfect egg white omelets. The first team to complete all five tasks would win the challenge, and as Anton deemed it cooking 101, they would either know it or need to get the hell out. While the men quickly agree on which pairs were doing what, the women were slow to decide as Rochelle deemed it another communication breakdown, and Ramsay got impatient when they were not ready. Despite Nicole not feeling confident about shucking oysters, Melanie claimed they were easy enough for her grandmother, and she was 90 years old. Eventually, Ramsay got pissed about the long wait, but the women made their decision.
The first pairs were DeMarco and Richard, and Kashia and Bev. As Richard struggled to pedal his tricycle, Mike compared him to a Russian bear. As both pairs made it to their stations, DeMarco peeled while Richard deveined the men’s shrimp, while Kashia was about to devein her shrimp before peeling it until Ramsay stopped her, much to Sandra’s dismay. Richard and DeMarco got their first attempt up to Ramsay, and they got them all accepted, giving the men 1-0. However, Richard struggled to get his tricycle moving until DeMarco gave him a push. Kashia and Bev brought up their first attempt, and they were all accepted, tying the score one each as Chris and Anton began breaking down the men’s chickens. As Jessica and Beth left for the women, the former felt she was driving like a drunk driver before making it to their station. As Jason yelled crazily at Anton and Chris, Mike deemed him a funny guy. Still, Chris accidentally cut himself while breaking down his chicken. That forced Anton to break both chickens by himself, but both pairs brought up their first attempts simultaneously. While Anton and Chris still had the wings on the thighs, Beth and Jessica’s first attempt was approved, and the women led 2-1. Moments later, Anton and Chris got their second attempt accepted, tying the score two each as the pair of Melanie and Simone began working on the oysters. Soon, the pair of Jason and Gabriel made it to their station and quickly got their first attempt ready. After Ramsay approved all twelve of the oysters, the men led at 3-2. Still, Melanie and Simone quickly got their first attempt accepted as well, making it a 3-point tie. As the fourth round commenced, Mike and Scott quickly got their trouts fileted and sent up to Ramsay, but Nicole and Sandra came up as well. Ramsay approved both pairs' first attempts, and the score was tied at four each. Gabriel and Ralph raced Joy and Rochelle to their stations for the final round. However, Anton found humor in Ralph riding the tricycle as they were both the same size. As Ralph knew anybody could win due to how close both pairs were, he wished not to screw up as Rochelle refused to lose. The men chanted "azul" to pump Gabriel and Ralph up. Still, Joy was not impressed by that, even if they chanted "Feliz Navidad". At the same time, Rochelle struggled to separate her eggs due to shaky hands. Eventually, Gabriel and Ralph brought up their first attempts. Despite Melanie hoping they did poorly, Ramsay accepted them, and the men won 5-4. Jason felt good that the men kicked ass that day and even wanted to keep his helmet.
Scoring[]
| Team | Score | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| Red Team | 4 | Blue Team | 5 |
| Results | 5-4 | ||
Reward[]
The men were rewarded with a trip to San Francisco, and as they left to get changed for their flight, Gabriel was psyched to spend time with Ramsay at San Francisco. During the reward, the men meet Ramsay at Epic Roasthouse for lunch, which DeMarco called unbelievable, especially with the Bay Bridge in the background. After Ramsay told the men to call him Gordon outside the kitchen, he asked why the women lost. The consensus was poor communication skills as Jason felt they worked better than the women. Mike felt the men were bouncing back as their victory was what they wanted to feel every day, and they toasted to the women’s punishment.
After lunch, Ramsay told the men they were going on a VIP trip around San Francisco on Segway’s, although Chris had no idea what to expect as he never rode one before. As the men travelled through San Francisco, Scott felt it was the perfect chance for them to let out some steam and congratulate themselves for winning the challenge for a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
Punishment[]
After hearing the men’s reward, Jessica got pissed off. The women were punished by picking carrots at a local carrot farm, prep them for the following night’s service, and make both kitchens stock in addition. After hearing their punishment, Rochelle was not happy they had to pick carrots for nine hours. When the women saw the school bus they had to ride on, a dismayed Joy called it fitting. During the punishment, Beth told the women to wiggle the carrots out of the ground, but Jessica struggled to get one out of the ground and deemed it not fun at all. Both Melanie and Beth pulled out little carrots, with the latter comparing it to Ralph’s size.
Before service[]
The next day, the women came downstairs to begin prepping for that night’s service by making the stock for both kitchens. Sous Chef Andi asked the women if they studied their recipe books last night and decided to quiz them on the menu items. When Nicole struggled to recite how to make duck tortellini, Kashia complained she could not hear the latter speak. However, Nicole accused Kashia of talking shit to her, while the latter only wanted her to speak up, leading the two to trade insults as Kashia did not believe Nicole was passionate enough for the competition. Joy had to break the argument up before things got serious, but Kashia told Nicole to stand down as she crossed the wrong bitch. Later, the men returned from their reward, but Melanie was not happy as the women were stuck putting chicken bones into the soup while the men went to San Francisco.
Later that night, Ramsay had both teams lined up and reminded them about the train wreck of their previous service before telling them that communication was the key to success. After, Ramsay asked Jean-Philippe to open Hell’s Kitchen.
Dinner service[]
A raw oyster appetizer was served tableside by Sandra and Mike. The women received their first order, and while Simone hoped she would shine that night, she sent up a risotto with little butter and stock. Ramsay ordered Simone to finish it instead of firing a new one. In the blue kitchen, Jason was not worried about being on appetizers as he wanted to be on there despite being the most backed-up station the previous service and wanted to show what he could do. However, Jason failed to give Ramsay proper timings for his food. After Anton claimed that appetizers were the key to a successful service, he hoped that Jason would step it up. Then, Jason sent up a salty risotto. In the dining room, Jean-Philippe told Mike he was serving his appetizers to a red table and not the blue table like he was supposed to, with the latter forced to apologize. In the red kitchen, Simone was shaking as she did not want to anger Ramsay again, but her refire came out bland with no richness, and Joy accused her of leaving the building. So, Ramsay ordered Nicole to cook the risottos instead, as the latter blamed Simone for not having her head in the game. Still, Melanie expressed concern about Nicole on appetizers due to her attitude and unwillingness to be a team player. Then, Nicole sent up a risotto with no lobster in it. While Nicole claimed to put only enough for one serving, Ramsay warned her and Simone to either cook with energy or get out. In the blue kitchen, Jason’s refire was accepted. Still, on the following order, DeMarco placed his tuna on a cold pan when it was supposed to be searing, and Anton deemed him pathetic as a three-year-old knew that. After, Ramsay threatened DeMarco with elimination if he could not sear a tuna properly. At the same time, in the dining room, Sandra apologized to her table about the slow appetizers from her team.
One hour into dinner service, Ramsay wanted things to speed up. Rochelle decided to act as a floater, only for Beth to ignore her suggestions, even telling Rochelle to give her a chance to make a mistake before she needed help. However, Rochelle told Beth not to get angry at her for trying to help, and then the latter sent up a raw lobster tail. After showing the women the raw lobster tail, a pissed Ramsay had no idea where to go as Nicole and Simone have given up, and Beth and Bev were fucking up, leading Rochelle to comment that she warned Beth about the temperatures. In the blue kitchen, DeMarco believed he knew how to sear tuna but claimed there was an incredible amount of pressure in Hell’s Kitchen as he served a decent serving to Ramsay’s approval. Still, Ramsay asked DeMarco if the pan was searing. While the men were getting appetizers out, the red tables were starting to get impatient over the long wait, forcing Ramsay to begin firing entrées at the same time. However, Beth did not answer Kashia’s request for a time, and to make matters worse, the former did not know where the fish was stored. While Kashia accused Beth of being in space, she felt she was caring for her Wellingtons like her babies and got her attempt accepted. However, Ramsay told Kashia not to celebrate as he took Beth and Bev to the front and had them feel their dry halibut. Still, while Kashia felt that Beth needed to pull it together if she wanted to survive, the latter claimed she knew how to cook fish. In the blue kitchen, Scott and Gabriel communicated on timings for their first entrée order, but the latter asked why the former dropped the halibut when the chicken took longer to cook. However, Scott wanted to get moving and walked his halibut before Gabriel was ready, and the latter walked pink chicken. In addition, Scott’s halibut was revealed to be raw, annoying Richard as the former rushed Gabriel for no reason. At the same time, Ramsay asked Gabriel if the customers deserved to eat raw chicken if he would not eat it. While Chris promised that they would get it together, Ramsay ordered the men to get a grip. In the red kitchen, Ramsay angrily yelled that the appetizer station was a disaster as Joy felt disappointed in both Nicole and Simone, especially as she felt the former was defeated and told Nicole to go home if she had no more to give. Nicole’s risotto had too much pepper to the point of decolorization, and Ramsay made good on his threat earlier by kicking both her and Simone out of the kitchen and reassigned both Rochelle and Joy on appetizers. As Nicole left, she was disappointed to have been kicked out yet again.
Two hours into dinner service, Gabriel had Richard walk the refired chicken. Still, despite Gabriel praying it was good, Ramsay discovered that the chicken was raw yet again and frustratingly kicked the men out of the kitchen. As the men left, a frustrated Jason deemed some people on his team idiots, and they should go home if they could not work under the pressure of Ramsay’s expectations. Beth served up a raw halibut in the red kitchen, and a dismayed Melanie wondered why the former and Bev could not pull it out. That served to be the final straw as Ramsay kicked the remaining women out of the kitchen, to Rochelle’s dismay.
Post-mortem[]
Later that night, both teams were lined up as Ramsay deemed it an embarrassment and even accused them of forgetting how to cook. Both teams were named joint losers, and they were asked to nominate two each. While being dismissed, Ralph apologized to Ramsay for letting him down, but the latter retorted that he was not as sorry as the customers were.
Even though Anton knew that some people had a bad day during deliberation, he deemed that night ridiculous as he did not blame Ramsay for being pissed at them. Anton felt if he were in Ramsay’s place, he would tell them to get out. Then, Anton immediately deemed DeMarco as one of the men’s weakest links, but while the latter argued he did not serve pink chicken that night, the former reminded him how simple searing a tuna should have been. However, DeMarco argued that appetizers did not crash and burn over his tuna. While Gabriel took ownership of his raw chicken, he deemed Scott the weakest for the lack of communication. Scott argued that he did have good communication, but Gabriel reminded him about his raw halibut and felt the former was hindering before refusing to believe he was the weakest chef. However, Scott refused to believe he was the weakest chef as well and refused to be nominated.
Melanie said it would not be a personal decision on the red side as Sandra asked who messed up the most. Melanie considered Beth for serving raw fish multiple times, but the latter argued that she was fine until Rochelle tried to take over the fish, even warning her not to get in her way again. While Kashia agreed that fish was not there that night, she also believed appetizers were lackluster as well. Joy reminded Simone about the rejected risottos. However, Simone pointed out that Ramsay called everybody’s names at one point, while Kashia, looking ahead to when there would be four or five chefs in the red kitchen, nominate Nicole. That led to an argument between them over who was intimidating who, as Nicole was not scared of Kashia’s threats.
Elimination[]
Before asking for the nominees, Ramsay said that night should not have been disappointing as it was. Richard announced DeMarco as the men’s first nominee and Gabriel as their second. In contrast, Melanie announced Beth as the women’s first nominee and Simone as their second. During their pleas, Simone claimed she was a fighter and took responsibility for her mistakes, while Beth claimed she never gave up on her mistakes and promised Ramsay that she would never make them again if she stayed. However, Ramsay feared that Beth would get walked over like a doormat and asked Gabriel if he was color blind due to the raw chicken. Gabriel said he was not and promised Ramsay he would never do it again, but the latter was unsure if that was forgivable. Finally, Ramsay asked DeMarco if he was in over his head, but the latter disagreed as he knew he could deliver. After listening to their pleas, Ramsay announced that out of the four choices in front of him, there was one chef he felt had shown no passion, no fightback, and no leadership. That led him to eliminate Nicole for all those reasons. Still, on her way out, Nicole did not acknowledge Ramsay’s good night until he said it a second time, albeit rudely, and called him an asshole while flipping the camera off on her way out. Nicole refused to cry like a bitch during her exit interview and did not give two fucks what Ramsay thought about her as he could kiss her fat ass.
After Nicole left, Ramsay sent the four nominees back in line and hoped that the next day was when the comeback began because if not, he was getting rid of them at a faster rate. While being dismissed, Kashia was happy that Nicole was gone, while Beth deemed it the big leagues where she either swim or sink before refusing to give up. Then, Gabriel was not ready to go home as he was not done fighting and knew he had to redeem himself.
Ramsay's comment: "I'm not looking for a line cook, but if I were, I still wouldn't have hired Nicole. She was useless."