The fifteenth episode of Season 18 of Hell's Kitchen aired on FOX on February 8, 2019, airing as a double feature alongside the sixteenth episode. In that episode, Ariel and Mia reunited with their families, competed in one final challenge, and picked their teams.
Elimination[]
Continuing from the previous episode, Ramsay announced that Mia would be the second finalist along with Ariel, exciting the former as she took so much crap from a lot of people. That meant Bret was eliminated, but before he left, Ramsay praised him for being the most passionate chef in the show's history, knew that his parents would be very proud of his accomplishments, and told him to keep his jacket. During his exit interview, Bret received a retrospective montage of his time in the competition.
Ramsay did not comment on Bret's elimination, and he did not receive the picture burning sequence.
Intro[]
After Bret's exit, Ramsay reminded Ariel and Mia that it was time for them to start working on their menus for their final service. He paired Ariel with Sous Chef Christina, and paired Mia with Sous Chef Jocky. Then, Ramsay urged the two to send a message out to a fully booked dining room.
Back at the dorms, Ariel was in ecstatic shock to be in the finale, while a stunned Mia called it crazy. Later that night, the two split off with the Sous Chefs to discuss their menu, with Ariel saying that her being paired up with Sous Chef Christina was a good match as she felt the latter had some good input. For her menu, Ariel thought about putting together dishes that contained Asian and Latin-inspired flavors, but when Sous Chef Christina expressed concern about the mackerel dish as that type of fish is not a popular one for people, Ariel stuck with it as she liked it. For Mia's menu, she had Latin-inspired dishes, and she found it funny to explain to Sous Chef Jocky what each of the dishes was as the latter was lost. Then, Sous Chef Jocky reminded Mia to have faith in her team to execute her dishes, but she told him how the other chefs hated her during the competition, remembering conflicts with Heather, Bret, and Kanae, before commenting that the only thing that she could do was lead her team.
Family visit[]
The next day, Ariel and Mia, not sporting Head Chef jackets, woke up early, as Ramsay called the dorms and ordered them to come downstairs. Once downstairs, the two told Ramsay that being in the finale has finally sunk into them, and he said he wanted to give the two some inspiration, showing them video messages from Mia's family and Ariel's parents. After, Ramsay announced that it was time for their final challenge, which included guest judges from different parts of the country with different backgrounds in cooking. However, while Ramsay said that he brought in some to meet up with the final two before cooking, it turned out that he invited both Ariel and Mia's parents, which excited the two as the former deemed it a cool surprise, and the latter said that it was the best reward she could have received. Ramsay admitted that the challenge would not happen until tomorrow and wanted to give the two some time with their loved ones. As they reunited with their parents, Ariel revealed that she was an only child growing up, how she was always independent, but also knew that she would always look for help from her parents and said that she was a product of her parent's upbringing. For Mia, she said that food and family were her biggest passions and that her parents were her biggest fans. After spending some time, the parents left, and Ramsay told Ariel and Mia that he wanted to treat them to brunch at Republique.
At the restaurant, Ramsay introduced the two to owner Walter Manzke, and Mia felt like a VIP due to eating in a private area. Ramsay commented how far the two have come during brunch, with him pointing out Ariel's journey since she competed twice. Ariel admitted that services have been better since Season 6, and while Ramsay remarked how she had embraced them a lot better than last time, he reminded her about the raw halibut to his daughter's table during the Sweet 16th service. That embarrassed Ariel as it was the worst night to screw up, and she admitted that it was a major low for her that season. Then, Mia said that her highs were getting feedback from the guest judges that season and getting high scores in the challenges. After, Ramsay asked the two what their menus were like, but when Mia mentioned that she had a pollo a la Brasa on her menu, Ariel commented that she also had that on her menu but refused to change up her menu. However, Mia felt that her menu would edge out Ariel's men as she was the better chef as the latter described her menu. After hearing about their menus, Ramsay told the two that he had given them a VIP day at Six Flags, and their parents would be joining them. After, Ramsay left, and Ariel and Mia toasted to being in the final two.
At Six Flags, Ariel and Mia, and their parents, met with Manager Sue Carpenter, who took them to different roller coasters throughout the park. After spending some time on the rides, Ariel felt relaxed with her parents, only for them to see Ramsay with his daughter Holly, as the latter revealed there was one more ride he wanted everybody to go on, the Full Throttle before it opened to the public. However, as they walked up, it turned out they were led to a stage in front of an audience as Ramsay announced it was time for their final challenge.
Final challenge[]
For the Final Menu Challenge, Ariel and Mia had 60 minutes to cook five items from their menu, which included a cold appetizer, a hot appetizer, and three entrée dishes that featured seafood, chicken, and steak. During the cooking, Mia said that she had a lot of stuff going on as she cooked and deemed it the cooking Olympics, while Ariel tried not to pay attention to her parents and focus. As they continued cooking, Mia said that she was focused on her badass menu as Ariel decided to stick with her guts on the mackerel and had to toss some salt over her shoulder after spilling some during the cooking. Eventually, the two got their dishes cooked and plated on time.
Each dish would be judged on a scale of 1-10, and the chef with the most points was the winner, although Ariel was getting nervous over who the guest judges would be. For the cold appetizer round, Mary Sue Milliken judged that round and Mia presented her Hamachi sashimi with black truffle and sturgeon caviar. While Milliken felt that the truffles were unneeded, she praised the dish for tasting delicious and a great start to a dinner. For Ariel, her shrimp ceviche with avocado espuma was praised for looking pretty, having a tasty shrimp and avocado, but criticized for not having the espuma taste strongly needed. In the end, Mia scored a nine while Ariel scored an eight, making the score 9-8 for Mia. Rick Moonen judged the hot appetizer round, and Mia admitted being a big fan of his restaurants. Ariel's wagyu tataki was deemed a party in Moonen's mouth with great flavors, while Mia's Mofongo fried balls with plantains and pork fat were deemed comfort food with good flavors, but Moonen felt that it needed more seasoning. In the end, Mia scored 8, Ariel scored 9, it was tied at 17 each, and while Mia said that she made her dish on the fly, she now knew how to fix them. For the seafood round, Josiah Citrin judged that round, and while Mia's cuttlefish, shrimp and prawns' dish was praised a good presentation, Citrin also deeming it dish he would like to have again. After, Ariel presented her Spanish mackerel with verracruise, and while Citrin deemed it risky, it was praised for great flavors. In the end, Ariel scored 9, Mia scored 8, the score was 26-25 for Ariel, and Mia knew that she had to step it up as she was used to being a front-runner in challenges. For the chicken round, Hubert Keller judged that round, and Ariel knew that the former was one of the biggest French chefs around America. Ariel presented her roasted chicken breast with crispy skin was praised for being a good dish and having the right amount of spiciness, while Mia's Peruvian roasted chicken was also praised for having the right spiciness as well and being perfectly cooked. In the end, Mia scored 9, Ariel scored 8, and the score was a 34 tie. On the final round, Michael Cimarusti came in to judge the steak round, and Ramsay told him that he would be the tiebreaker over Ariel and Mia in the challenge. Ariel's mole-rubbed rib cap with carrots and freshwater crest was praised for tender beef, and having a delicious mole sauce, while Mia's beef dish with plantains and roasted garlic aioli was praised for having her heritage out front. After a tough decision, Cimarusti gave the win to Mia, she deemed it proof that her menu was a winner, but Ariel knew that the real challenge came in the final dinner service.
Scoring[]
| Ariel | Mia | ||||
| Round | Score | Total | Round | Score | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| One | 8/10 | 8 | One | 9/10 | 9 |
| Two | 9/10 | 17 | Two | 8/10 | 17 |
| Three | 9/10 | 26 | Three | 8/10 | 25 |
| Four | 8/10 | 34 | Four | 9/10 | 34 |
| Five | Lose | 34 | Five | Win | 34 |
| Results | 34-34 | ||||
Team select[]
After the challenge, Ramsay invited back the returning chefs for the final dinner service which included Roe, Scotley, Jose, Trev, Kanae, Heather, Motto, and Bret. For winning the final challenge, Mia got the first pick of who she wanted on her team, but Kanae did not want to be on the former's team. Mia picked Roe as her first pick, and the latter said she was happy to work for the former as Mia surprised everybody in the competition. After, Ariel picked Kanae as her first pick, and when Mia picked Trev as her second choice, Scotley felt that she made the wrong decision. Then, Ariel picked Bret as her second choice, which he deemed a smart choice, Mia picked Jose as her third choice, and Ariel picked Motto as her third choice, which the latter deemed one last chance to shine. That left Heather and Scotley as the final choices, but while Mia picked the former as her final choice, Heather was not thrilled to be on Mia's team. That left Scotley as Ariel's final pick by default, and the latter felt she deserved the Executive Chef position more than Mia, while Mia said she never stopped doubting herself. Before going back to the dorms, Ramsay said to have the teams to bond, and had everybody ride on the Full Throttle. Everybody but Kanae enjoyed the ride as the latter felt her face would get messed up.
Goofs[]
- Ramsay claimed that Full Throttle has not been opened to the public yet, but the ride opened on June 22, 2013, four years prior to filming Season 18.
Trivia[]
- Title Reference: The title refers to the fact the Final Tasting Challenge took place at Six Flags.
- While not said aloud, Motto becomes the first chef to be invited back to the final dinner service despite withdrawing.
- This marks the only time in this season where a former runner-up involved in another final service as a brigade member.