The eighth episode of Season 7 of Hell's Kitchen aired on FOX, on June 29, 2010, airing as a double feature alongside the seventh episode. In that episode, sandwiches were the main dish, one chef became extremely arrogant, and a fowl customer was put back in their place during service.
Intro[]
While going back to the dorms, Jason was worried about what they would do with only four people. In the red team, Benjamin told Siobhan that she needed to stop talking and work. But, Siobhan was annoyed by that comment and frustratingly reminded that she would not be there if she did not have passion while telling off Benjamin.
Benjamin said he did not want to hear them saying that services were easy on the patio, and Siobhan added that she was ready to put her balls on the line. Also, she was determined to show Benjamin that she could cook and told him to wait until the following challenge so she would cook his ass under the table. After she left the conversation, Benjamin became extremely negative by saying that Siobhan lacked technical skills and passion and talked too much. When he added that Siobhan was lucky to be there, Holli was annoyed by Benjamin's negative attitude, saying he did not have to be rude despite being a good cook. Finally, Benjamin noted that Siobhan would go down.
Field trip[]
The following day, Sous Chef Scott called in the dorms, and Benjamin answered. He was told to get everybody down to go to one of the oldest and most famous French restaurants in Los Angeles. Everybody got up, and while getting ready. Autumn was excited to get out of the restaurant while looking pretty, smelling good, and wearing something that would adapt to any situation she would be facing. The chefs entered the Hell's Kitchen SUV and rode to Philippe's restaurant in Los Angeles. Arrived there, they were greeted by Ramsay, who wondered why they were so well-dressed. Fran acknowledged the restaurant was old and rustic and understood why Ramsay was wondering that. After, he revealed to the chefs that the restaurant had been opened for more than one hundred years and invented the French dipped sandwich, which surprised Siobhan. Then, he introduced the chefs to Richard Binder, the owner of the restaurant, who explained how the French dipped sandwich was invented. After that, the chefs sat down with Ramsay to taste that sandwich. Fran was excited as she was sitting next to Ramsay, and the latter started to count to three but jokingly stopped at two to ask Jason what was wrong with him. Jason answered that he was waiting to take the bite, and Ramsay counted to three for real, with all of the chefs enjoying their sandwiches, and Nilka even stating that it was melting in her mouth.
After the tasting, Ramsay introduced the Gourmet Sandwich Challenge, where each chef had 30 minutes to create a unique gourmet sandwich. Before returning to Hell's Kitchen, they received the list of available ingredients. Ed was excited but was nervous because of the ingredient list, saying that it would be difficult to make a sandwich tasting as good as the French dipped. On their way back to Hell's Kitchen, Benjamin was psyched to cook his own food, was confident that his sandwich would be awesome, and Siobhan wanted her sandwich to represent her personality as she could enjoy a lot of different tastes.
Team challenge[]
At Hell's Kitchen, the countdown began, and the chefs ran into the kitchens to create their sandwiches. They picked their ingredients, and in the red kitchen, Benjamin asked if anybody was looking for the tuna. Siobhan responded that she had her tuna already. He reminded her to cut the bloodline off. Siobhan responded that her tuna did not have many bloodlines anyway and acknowledged that Benjamin was targeting her but did not care as she just wanted to prove to Ramsay she could cook. When Fran was looking for the challah bread, Siobhan had it all for herself, and Benjamin said that Siobhan was driving him nuts because of that. In the blue kitchen, Jay was confident about his Foie gras sandwich, and Ed knew the latter was his biggest competition as they were ready to work hard. After tasting, Siobhan was confident in her sandwich, and everybody plated their dishes in time.
Before the judging, Ramsay asked the red team to drop one of their sandwiches as they had one more member. They quickly agreed on Siobhan, with Benjamin adding that he would be pissed and would like his money back if he ordered it in a restaurant. Siobhan was furious because she was banged down one more time, and on the first round, Ed went up against Benjamin. The latter presented his pan-seared Ahi tuna sandwich with watercress and spicy olives, which was praised for the tuna being cooked perfectly. Afterward, Ed served an Ahi tuna sandwich with grilled sesame bread, wasabi mayonnaise, fresh mint and chives, which was deemed delicious. Both of them scored a point, tying the score at 1. In the second round, Holli served a smoked duck breast sandwich with pumpernickel bread, caramelized onions and prosciutto, which was labelled as ambitious by Ramsay but working well. She knew that she made a good sandwich and was glad that Ramsay enjoyed it. Then, Jason presented his lobster Cole-slaw Sloppy Joe sandwich, which was praised for having a nice seasoning. After deliberation, both of them scored a point, tying the score at 2, and Ramsay congratulated the chefs for having a great start. In the third round, Fran served a balsamic chicken sandwich with roasted peppers. Despite Jay not being impressed as those two ingredients reminded him of 1982, the chicken was deemed delicious by Ramsay. After, Jay served his country-pork pâté sandwich with Foie gras fat, Vietnamese influenced slaw and Romaine hearts, which was deemed delicious by Ramsay, and praised for standing up well. Jay won the round over Fran because of the latter's soggy bread, scoring 3-2 for the blue team. Fran acknowledged her mistake but added that it might be the way the Italians liked it. Nilka served her roasted pork sandwich with red onions and mayonnaise on the final round, which was deemed adventurous but delicious by Ramsay. After, Autumn presented a roasted pork loin sandwich with sautéed vegetables and balsamic reduction, but it was not cut properly, and when Ramsay asked if she had problems with her knife, she answered that she thought it was fine. Ramsay criticized the presentation for being shocking, added that it would be the kind of thing a first-year culinary student would make, and Nilka won the round, tying the score at 3. Autumn felt like a loser for not scoring a point while all of her teammates did, and Ramsay ordered her to unfold her arms as she did not have to take her frustration on her teammates.
Because the score was tied at 3, Ramsay called down Siobhan to taste her sandwich, which she appreciated. Still, Benjamin was angry because he had no fate she could pull it off. Then, she presented her Ahi tuna sandwich with challah bread, cheese, grilled pineapple, oranges and prosciutto, which was deemed better than Fran's by Ramsay. So, because the red team should have made Fran sit out instead of Siobhan, the blue team won the challenge. Siobhan was furious because all of her teammates thought she could not cook and was happy that it was their fault because they lost.
Scoring[]
| Red Team | Blue Team | ||||
| Chef | Score | Total | Chef | Score | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Benjamin | 1 | 1 | Ed | 1 | 1 |
| Holli | 1 | 2 | Jason | 1 | 2 |
| Fran | 0 | 2 | Jay | 1 | 3 |
| Nilka | 1 | 3 | Autumn | 0 | 3 |
| Results | 3*-3 | ||||
- * The Blue Team won the the challenge as Ramsay deemed Siobhan's sandwich better than Fran's.
Reward[]
The blue team was rewarded with a day at the California Central Wine Country for a wine tasting and being taken there in a private jet. Ed was excited because he accomplished his two goals: to go on the private jet and be told he was perfect by Ramsay. When they arrived at the private jet, Ramsay was waiting for them, and Jay said he could not wait to hang out with him as he was psyched about it. All of them toasted their victory. Ramsay jokingly reminded them not to get drunk before arriving at the Vineyard. After, Ramsay noticed that Jason was smiling for the third time, and the latter stated that the people who told him that winning was not everything were lying.
During the reward, the chefs taste many different wines with Matthew J. Lane, and Ramsay jokingly reminded Autumn to take small sips and not drink her entire glass. Jason noticed that Autumn was drunk as she was giggling about everything. In the end, Jay called it the best challenge reward in the history of Hell's Kitchen while admitting that Autumn was the one that had the most drinks. Autumn admitted that she was drunk but said it was the way it was, and everybody toasted to their victory one more time.
Punishment[]
The red team was punished by making peanut butter and jelly from scratch, by grinding 50,000 peanuts by hand, for an amuse-bouche that would be served during the next service. Siobhan was furious about being underestimated on the patio and said that her sandwich was better than Fran's. Nilka noticed that Siobhan lacked self-confidence but that her being pissed was what she needed. Siobhan told off her teammates and went to the dorms. There, Benjamin condescendingly told her to work as a team, that her sandwich was not good, and that he would not serve it in his restaurant. Siobhan responded that it was his personal opinion, but Benjamin corrected her by saying it was his professional opinion and added that she did not have the experience that he had and that she needed to ask for help if needed. Benjamin continued by saying that he did not regret his decision. Still, Siobhan said he needed to step off his podium and stop being a bossy bastard. Benjamin added that her ingredients were not going well together, despite her reminding that it went well on her sandwich. Siobhan started to leave and told off her teammates for thinking they were better than her. Benjamin concluded that he was brutally honest to her like Ramsay was, and she went downstairs.
In the kitchen, Sous Chef Andi brought the peanut bags on the counter, Siobhan was still pissed that she had to sit out, but Benjamin gave the excuse that she could not have beaten Jay anyway. Also, she was pissed that Benjamin was going after her sandwich despite Ramsay liking it, and he added that she still sucked. Later, Fran called it the worst punishment ever as she compared it to grinding rock and added that she did not want to see peanut butter and jelly sandwich for the rest of her life.
Before service[]
When the blue team came back from their reward, Nilka noticed how drunk they were because Ed was dancing and Jay could not keep his head straight, and when Fran asked if they were happy, Jay answered that he could not talk. Fran said they could not even speak because of how drunk they were and wished they would get hangovers the following day as it would be an advantage for the red team. While going to the dorms, Jay banged his head on the wall. Autumn laid down on her bed in the bedroom, struggled to take her boots off, fell off her bed, and said that she would not take any more drinks even though it was a great bonding experience.
Moments later, Ed struggled to get inside the hot tub, he was joined by Holli, who encouraged him to drink even more, and he drank three more beers. Eventually, Siobhan joined them, thinking they were making out, and Ed started to dance, making the two women laugh. Siobhan said the normally quiet and reserved Ed turned into a wild animal. Jay and Benjamin went on the patio. Then, Holli ripped a part of Ed's bathing suit. Because of that, Ed was challenged by everybody to get naked, which he did, Holli found it awkward, and Siobhan was shocked that he did it.
The following day, because the red team was rested, they were ready to prep for the next service, while the blue team was still hungover, with Ed feeling like hell. Fran was confident to finally kick the blue team's ass during services in the red kitchen as the red team took more beating than anybody else. In the dorms, the blue team was still in bed. Ed wondered what he was thinking the previous night, declared that he was still tired, Jay said he could puke on command, which Jason acknowledged that he could as well, and Autumn knew she was still hungover after waking up. They went in the blue kitchen to prep for the next service while being helped by Sous Chef Scott, and Fran was excited about the fact that they were still hungover as it could go in their favor. During the day, Jason knew that prep was going slowly because some of his teammates had a bigger hangover than others. Siobhan was amused because the blue team struggled with prep, and Benjamin knew they had an advantage over the blue team while wanting to send the message that they were not untouchable. After the prep was done, Ramsay asked Jean-Philippe to open Hell's Kitchen.
Dinner service[]
When Ramsay called the first order in the red kitchen, Fran declared that she never made risotto but was fine with the rest of the station. Holli was worried as she knew they would be screwed if they did not have a good start. The first risotto Fran sent to the pass was deemed very nice, and Siobhan congratulated her on her good timing. In the blue kitchen, Jay gave four minutes for his appetizers. Still, Jason was worried because his scallops were ready at that moment. Jay hoped that they could come as a team, communicate well and not screw up, but he served an undercooked and under-seasoned risotto, while Jason served overcooked scallops, which Ramsay compared to ping pong balls. Ramsay was dismayed because they were making elementary mistakes, told them to set the tone for the evening on the first few tables, and Jason acknowledged his mistake with the scallops. Ramsay wondered if the blue team got rid of their weakest links and reminded them that their Vineyard reward was done. In the red kitchen, Fran served a raw risotto, she was schooled by Ramsay for forgetting many things while cooking it, and Siobhan was dismayed as well. After Fran said she was aggravated, Ramsay told her that she was as consistent as pigeon poop on Trafalgar Square. In the blue kitchen, Jay served his appetizers at a good pace. Customers were satisfied, but when Ramsay asked for the potatoes, Autumn was not ready yet, much to his dismay. Jay knew she still had a hangover, Ramsay told Autumn that she was slow after spending a day at the Vineyard, and Jason said she dropped the ball. When Autumn sent her mashed potatoes, they were too salty, but she was unsure if they were. Ramsay told Autumn to cut it out and taste her stuff as she might be in her last 90 minutes in Hell's Kitchen.
In the red kitchen, Siobhan said she had to refire an order of scallops. Then, Ramsay discovered an entire order of boiled scallops, but Siobhan talked back, saying that she thought they looked fine. Even Holli knew they were black, but after putting the scallops on a plate, Siobhan continued to think that they were fine, infuriating Ramsay. Nilka said that Siobhan should shut up as Ramsay would put his foot deeper in her ass. Ramsay told Siobhan precisely what was wrong with the scallops, called her a donkey, and kicked her out of the kitchen into the dining room to eat her mistakes. Meanwhile, Benjamin moved to the fish station for a few minutes. He declared that he just wanted to get the food out while Siobhan messed up the fish station. Siobhan came back in the kitchen and acknowledged she messed up the scallops. Benjamin was working on the scallops on the next order, but Siobhan wanted to get her station back. Benjamin ordered Siobhan to stay on desserts, which she reluctantly accepted. Then, Siobhan wanted to help, but Benjamin became rude, pushed her away while taking the scallops she had in her hand. After a few seconds, Benjamin aggressively told Siobhan to get off his station. Siobhan was furious as Benjamin did not have any heart or respect for anybody. In the dining room, a customer was not happy with his entrée because it was undercooked, so he went to the hot plate himself while bringing the plate. Arrived there, Ramsay asked him what the matter was, he pointed the plate without saying anything. Ramsay schooled him for acting like some little bunny to the hot plate and told him to go away as it was Jean-Philippe's job. Still, the man responded by asking if Ramsay was trying to poison him. Ramsay responded by calling him a dick and added that he could eat beef tartar, but the customer said it was low-grade dog food at best. When he was going back to his table, Ramsay told him to stand nice and strong as he looked like a quail. Nilka sliced her chicken in the red kitchen and brought it to the pass along with Holli's garnish. Still, the chicken was raw, and Nilka was berated by Ramsay, who smashed the chicken with his hand. Holli said she could see that it was raw as she sliced it and added they could not serve raw chicken no matter what. Ramsay berated Nilka for not telling it was raw, and the latter was mad at herself as she did not want to mess up.
Ramsay urged Ed to pick it up in the blue kitchen as Autumn was still slow and because nobody was sending their food to the pass despite being ready. When Ed tried to communicate with Autumn, she did not answer. Ramsay was angry because of the lack of teamwork, and Ed was upset because of Autumn's lack of communication. Then, Jason brought his salmon to the pass, but Ed was still slicing his duck, which Ramsay was furious about as the food was not coming together. However, the duck was raw, Ramsay was angry as it was not good enough, gave the entire order to Ed, and kicked the blue team out of the kitchen. Back in the dorms, Jason wondered why they were kicked out as he thought they were doing fine. Still, Jay reminded Jason that the communication and timing were off while adding that he was upset that his teammates did not understand that. Fran served a salad that was not dressed in the red kitchen, which Ramsay compared to rabbit food, and Benjamin thought that Fran was talking a lot despite being a poor cook. Ramsay told her to dress the salad properly, and when she sent her risotto, it was still raw. A frustrated Ramsay kicked the garbage bin to the side while kicking the red team out of the kitchen as well. Back in the dorms, Fran acknowledged it was ridiculous and a disaster, and on the patio, Holli asked the blue team why they were kicked out. Benjamin threw his apron in anger and was dismayed that they got kicked out because there were losers on his team. Fran thought they were communicating well, but Holli knew they were not doing as well as they thought.
Post-mortem[]
When both teams lined up, Ramsay asked what was going on, and in the red team, Siobhan, Nilka, and Fran acknowledged their mistakes and apologized. Ed admitted that he was not listening in the blue team, and Ramsay asked him if he drank too much white wine supposed to go in the risotto, to which he answered not. Both teams were declared joint-losers and were asked to nominate two people each.
While being dismissed, Jay said that the blue team losing did not happen very often, so they were taking twice as hard. On the patio, Jay considered Autumn and Ed, which Jason agreed with, but Autumn did not agree to be nominated because she made a few little mistakes. Ed acknowledged that he had a bad service but said that a bad service could mean everything at this stage, and Autumn declared that she would fight. In the red team, Benjamin quickly considered Siobhan as he would have thrown her out of the kitchen himself, but she was annoyed because he was classically French-trained while telling off the French. Nilka considered Siobhan and Fran, much to the latter's annoyance, while explaining that Fran was too slow. Still, Fran knew that Nilka also messed up and added that she would fight as she knew she deserved to be there. Then, Fran considered Siobhan and Nilka, but the latter retorted that she only had one raw chicken incident, and she was convinced that she did not have to be nominated because of that.
Elimination[]
Jay announced Autumn as the blue team's first nominee and Ed as the second. Benjamin announced Siobhan as the red team's first nominee and Fran as the second. During their pleas, Ed was asked why he could not cook a duck breast, and he acknowledged that he should have waited a little bit more and that he was rushing, but Ramsay reminded that only the feathers and the beak were missing because the duck was so raw. Then, Autumn convinced Ramsay that she could come back despite being labelled as the weakest on the blue team, but he told her that he did not have the time to wait any longer. Fran said she was taking everything Ramsay said to her despite being nominated many times, but Ramsay reminded her that she spent more time on the chopping block than she had on her station. Finally, Siobhan was reminded that she allowed somebody on her team to take control of her station. She responded that she thought it was for the good of the team but acknowledged that there was no excuse for doing that. However, Ramsay interrupted Siobhan by saying he could not take it anymore, and she was eliminated for lacking the experience to compete any further. During her exit interview, Siobhan was proud to have made it that far, declared that she was leaving with more confidence and that the experience she took from the competition was priceless.
After Siobhan left, Ramsay reminded the chefs that they were halfway through the competition, which meant that the best half remained. He urged the chiefs to prove that they were part of the best half before dismissing them. While going back to the dorms, Fran thought that she was fighting for her life every day at that moment but knew that she had what it took to stay in the competition. Then, Autumn wanted to show Ramsay that there was a fire in her and that she wanted to be there, and Ed was nervous as the competition turned up a notch but was ready to be more careful in his cooking.
Ramsay's comment: "Siobhan got pushed around a lot in Hell's Kitchen. So it was up to me to finally push her out."