The fourteenth episode of Season 6 of Hell's Kitchen aired on FOX, on October 13, 2009. On that episode, one chef was not sure of their dish during the challenge, the final three ran the hot plate during service, and two of them made it to the finals of Hell's Kitchen.
Intro[]
The re-energized chefs went back to the dorms after seeing their loved ones, as Kevin felt that it motivated all of them. Meanwhile, Dave reminded himself that he wanted to win the competition for his family, and Ariel hoped that she could make it to the finals.
The next morning, at 6:35 AM, Ariel and Kevin were still sleeping, while Dave was up and admitted that he was nervous about taking down Ariel and Kevin. When they finally woke up, Ariel and Kevin were determined as well, as the finish line was very close.
Individual challenge[]
The final three went downstairs, where Ramsay greeted them, and reminded that after their next dinner service, only two of them would be in the finale, while adding that only one of them would become the Head Chef at the Araxi Restaurant. Then, Ramsay explained that while Whistler had become a hotspot for international destinations, the 2010 Winter Olympics would go crazy on that, before revealing three domes behind him. For the International Cuisine Challenge, each chef would pick a dome, and create a dish that would match the culture that was chosen. Ariel went first and got China, which excited her as it could be an easy cuisine to work with. Dave went next and got India, but was not happy about it, as he never worked with Indian food before, though Ramsay told him not to get too intimidated by it. That left Kevin with the last choice, which was Mexico, which he called an easy dish as almost everybody in the world has made Mexican food at one point. After, Ramsay revealed that there were ingredients from their country in the pantry room, and gave the chefs 45 minutes to cook their dish.
Dave decided to make a dish he knew already, and added an Indian flair on it, but admitted that he did not have any idea what he was doing, while Kevin and Ariel already figured out what their dishes would be. 15 minutes in, while Kevin and Ariel had their dishes prepped, Dave struggled to pick what protein to use as he did not want to use one that was sacrilegious in the Indian culture. In the end, Dave decided to use pork, but Kevin noticed that Dave was showing fear, and hoped that it would hinder his performance. Eventually, the chefs got their dishes cooked and plated in time.
Ramsay revealed that he invited some chefs to help him judge their dishes, all of which were experts in their respective country cuisine. The judges were Vikas Khanna, Thomas Ortega, and Eddie Won. Ariel went first, and presented her duck with lychee plum marinade and noodle broth, but nervously stumbled on describing her dish. The judges criticized the dish for not being balanced and having a watery sauce, disappointing her. Kevin served his Orange and Cumin pork tenderloin with molee Mexican chocolate sauce, but when he lifted the dome, Ramsay noticed that the sauce was not on the pork, and Kevin realized that he forgot to plate it. The dish got mixed results as, while it tasted good and had an interesting mango sauce, Ortega felt that it needed the missing sauce to put it to the next level. Dave was the last person to be judged, and revealed his seared pork tenderloin with ming bean purée, but Khanna revealed that pork was not a good choice of protein as there was a lot of Muslims that lived in India, and would have preferred either chicken or seafood instead. Despite that, the dish was praised for the spices working well together and having the lentils done creatively. In the end, the three judges chose Dave’s dish as the best, and he won the challenge.
Reward[]
Dave was rewarded with a special lunch made by the three judges, and received a complete set of Demeyere cookware, which was the same used in Hell’s Kitchen. When Dave came down, Jean-Philippe revealed that his fiancée and his sister would be joining him for lunch. Dave and his loved ones got to see the chefs cook their lunches and taste them, which Dave felt that it was an honor, and called it the best reward so far. After lunch, Dave went back to the dorms, and reminded himself that his next service would be his most important one yet.
Punishment[]
Kevin and Ariel were forced to prep for that night’s service, and polish the silverware in the dining room. A disappointed Kevin knew that if he had plated his sauce, he would have won the challenge. During the punishment, Jean-Philippe gave them the silverware to polish, before telling them to have fun. After seeing Dave reunite with his loved ones, Kevin was upset that he was so close to seeing his family again and felt hurt by that, as Ariel peaked over what was happening in the kitchen. However, that only fired up Kevin as he was determined to win the competition.
Before service[]
30 minutes before the opening, the final three began to prep their stations, with the goal of making it to the finale. When they were lined up, Ramsay reminded that only two chefs would make it to the finals, and wanted them to cook with their hearts. Ramsay also revealed that each of them would run the pass, told them to remember how he was running it during the earlier services, while reminding them that they have to run the kitchen and not the other way around. After, Ramsay asked Jean-Philippe to open Hell’s Kitchen.
Dinner service[]
Ramsay took the lead at the beginning, and called out the first order. Kevin and Dave got their appetizers accepted and going to the diners, with Ramsay noticing that it was the fastest start so far.
Kevin was the first chef to run the pass, and he felt that he had to run it the same way he was running the line, but better. Kevin read his first ticket clearly, and got off to a strong start. However, his first quality test came as Sous Chef Scott sent up a halibut instead of sea bass. Fortunately, Kevin caught the mistake, and sent it back, much to Ramsay's praise. However, Ariel’s timings became inconsistent to Sous Chef Scott’s, and Kevin complained that she was slowing the team down. When Ariel sent her lamb to the pass, Kevin saw that it was overcooked, and asked her for a new mid rare, despite Ariel thinking that it was mid-rare. That forced Kevin to send an incomplete table of entrées to the dining room, but Ariel managed to send her refire, though told Ramsay that she could not cut a bone off one of the chops. However, Kevin forced Ariel to do it regardless, but it caused the lamb chops to fall apart as he ordered her to make other ones. Because of that, no food was leaving the kitchen, and Kevin was running out of time on the pass. Ramsay ordered Kevin to get a grip, and he pushed Ariel for the lamb. Despite being pissed off, Ariel brought her lamb, but was missing the lamb sauce. Kevin called Ariel nuts as he sent over his last table.
Dave was the second to run the pass, and not only called his first ticket with authority, but was very aggressive with his orders, much to the others' shock, until Sous Chef Scott warned him to watch it. Despite that, food was leaving the kitchen, and the diners were happy. However, Dave’s quality test came as Sous Chef Scott put asparagus purée into the risotto instead of the spinach purée. Dave failed to notice the mistake, but Ramsay stopped him and reminded him to taste everything. Then, Dave failed another quality test as Sous Chef Scott sent tuna that was not seared and had no sesame seeds on it. A frustrated Ramsay pulled Dave aside and told him that he was not focusing, before ordering to get a grip. Dave realized that he had to stay in control, and noticed that the tuna Sous Chef Scott sent was cold. After, Dave rejected Sous Chef Heather’s garnishes for not having salt, and Ramsay praised the improvement from him. Dave continued to rally as diners were enjoying their entrées.
Ariel was the last to run the pass, and knew that she had to do well or else she could be eliminated. While Ariel read her first ticket well, her first quality test came as Sous Chef Heather sent up parsnip purée instead of mashed potatoes. Ariel failed to notice it, and Ramsay told her that she did not taste it well. Despite that, entrées continued to leave, until Sous Chef Scott presented another quality test as he brought salmon instead of sea bass, but that time, she noticed it. Then, Ariel started to call out a lot of ticket orders much to Kevin’s dismay, as there was a lot to remember and he got confused. Ramsay reminded Ariel that she had to coordinate the line as Kevin was dragging the scallops, and then, Ramsay told her that the kitchen was running her. Ariel got her voice back, but noticed that Kevin was dragging his scallops and felt that he was sabotaging her. Then, Ariel noticed that Kevin missed a portion, but he managed to send it on time.
After, Ramsay ran the pass for the rest of the night, and desserts went without problems. Kevin knew that one mistake could send someone home, Dave called himself a fighter, and Ariel said that she really wanted to be in the final two and win.
Post-mortem[]
When the chefs were lined up, Ramsay said that despite the ups and downs, they had a good night on the pass. However, Ramsay said that it would be a hard decision to eliminate someone, and asked them each to think about who they thought should not be in the final two.
Back in the dorms, Dave was conflicted on who to choose, Ariel confronted Kevin on dragging the scallops on purpose. Kevin told Ariel that this is competition of skill and not cheating. Kevin said that Ariel’s communication skills were the main problem.
Elimination[]
Kevin said Ariel did not deserve to be in the finals due to being nominated a few times, while Ariel said Kevin should not be in the finals as he did not have her back when she ran the past. Dave said that he felt lost when Ariel was on the pass, and felt Ariel should not advance to the finals. However, Ramsay said that it still was not helping, and said that it was a very hard choice, before asking them why they deserved to be in the finals. Kevin said that he was a strong person and confident that he could run the Araxi, Ariel said that she grew a lot during the competition, and Dave said that he led himself through the competition and grew tenfold. After, Ramsay named Dave as the first finalist, and Kevin as the second, therefore eliminating Ariel. Before leaving, Ramsay praised Ariel for her ambition, drive, and passion, and told her to keep her jacket as a symbol of all of her accomplishments. During her exit interview, Ariel received a retrospective montage of her run.
After Ariel left, Ramsay congratulated Dave and Kevin for making it to the finals, and reminded them that there was one more challenge for them to face. Then, he revealed that there was a limousine waiting for them outside, and the episode ended in a cliffhanger.
Ramsay gave no comment on Ariel's elimination, and she did not receive the burning picture sequence.
Trivia[]
- This is the final episode to feature an active final three. It would not be until Season 15 when it occurred again.
- Vikas Khanna, one of the guest judges in the International Cuisine Challenge, also appears in the Kitchen Nightmares episode, “Dillon’s”.