| “ | I have a lot more technique and passion and cooking techniques than any other person here. | ” |
Fernando Cruz was a contestant on Season 13 of Hell's Kitchen. He ranked in 8th place.
Season 13[]
Episode 1[]
- Main article: Episode 1301 - 18 Chefs Compete
While the chefs were on their way to Hell's Kitchen, the bus pulled over to Pacific’s Cinerama Theatre as Ramsay wanted to show them an inspirational video before going there. Fernando was one of the eight chefs shown receiving their acceptance invitation. After Ramsay revealed the grand prize of the season, he asked the chefs to cook their signature dish.
During the Signature Dish Challenge, Fernando was the fourth person from the blue team to have his dish judged by Ramsay and went up against La Tasha. Before judging, Ramsay asked him how old he was, which he answered 28, and a disbelieved Ramsay sarcastically said that Harry Potter looked older than him. After, his pan-seared pigeon with sweet potato purée was praised for having a perfectly cooked pigeon, and he scored four points out of five. Despite that, the blue team lost the challenge 23-24, and they were punished by setting up the dorms for both teams, and carrying the red team's luggage when they would come back from their reward. During the punishment, he knew that his wife would bug him for setting up the beds there, but not back home.
During dinner service, Fernando was on the appetizer station with Aaron. He sent Aaron's second attempt on the risotto, which was rejected for being overcooked. Later, he took the lead on appetizers, and that led to the men serving their first appetizer after 53 minutes. After JP and JR got kicked out of the kitchen, Ramsay relocated him to the fish station. However, he sent a raw halibut, and the rest of the team was kicked out by Ramsay. The blue team lost the service, and they were asked to nominate two people.
Fernando was not nominated for elimination despite being considered by JP and JR which Frank agreed with.[1]
Episode 2[]
- Main article: Episode 1302 - 17 Chefs Compete
The next morning, the chefs went outside and Fernando noticed the sand sculptures in front of them. During the Geoduck Challenge, he was not seen participating in the first part, but during the second part, he was paired with JR. Out of their two attempts, their second one was accepted as the first was five grams short. The blue team lost the challenge 14-15, and they were punished by cleaning all the sand outside the restaurant, prepping the remaining geoduck for the next service, and eating a salted cod dish for lunch.
During dinner service, Fernando was on the meat station with Sterling. They did not serve their lamb as it was raw, but when Ramsay ordered the lamb from him, he showed everybody how rare it was. Both teams were named joint-losers, and they were asked to nominate two people each. During deliberation, he was considered by Sterling, but he called it bullshit, and said that he was doing his best.
Fernando was the blue team's second nominee for elimination, with Sterling being the first, and they joined Janai and Denine from the red team. During his plea, Ramsay accused him of having the executive chef title gone to his head, and he was ordered to work smarter and harder. He survived elimination.[2]
Episode 3[]
- Main article: Episode 1303 - 16 Chefs Compete
During the Jacket Challenge, Fernando noticed that things in the blue kitchen were chaotic, but said it was because they were communicating a lot. He was the eighth and last person to have his dish judged by Ramsay and competed against Roe in the empanada round. He scored over Roe, and the blue team won the challenge 6-4. They were rewarded with a trip to the Venice Beach boardwalk, a zip line experience, and lunch on top of the Erwin Hotel.
During dinner service, Fernando served a coffee-rubbed Kobe steak appetizer tableside. At one point, Marino told him that he was at the wrong table, and he admitted that trying to keep up with the table numbers was getting confusing. The blue team won the service.[3]
Episode 4[]
- Main article: Episode 1304 - 15 Chefs Compete
During the Brunch Service Challenge, Fernando was not seen much, except when he led the blue team through the appetizers. The blue team eventually lost the challenge, and they were punished by grinding chorizo sausages for the next service.
During dinner service, Fernando was on the fish station with Santos. He was not seen much but ended up being kicked out along with JR, Frank, and Santos. The blue team lost the service, and they were asked to nominate two people.
He was not nominated for elimination.[4]
Episode 5[]
- Main article: Episode 1305 - 14 Chefs Compete
During the Protein Identification Challenge, Fernando was paired with Santos, and they competed twice. On their first turn, they landed on the turkey parmesan and got the correct protein on their third attempt. On their second turn, they got the duck potstickers and managed to get it on their seventh attempt. The blue team won the challenge 7:07-7:41, and they were rewarded with a trip to the Annenberg Beach House in Santa Monica.
During the Family Night dinner service, Fernando was at the pizza station with Santos. He was not seen much, and the blue team won the service.[5]
Episode 6[]
- Main article: Episode 1306 - 13 Chefs Compete
During the Farm Animal Challenge, Fernando was paired with Bryant during the first part, and they chose veal and yams. During the cooking, he put his veal chop with only 10 minutes left, and Santos and Frank were annoyed as the chop was too thick for searing in that amount of time, making it raw. He was the first person from the blue team to have his dish judged and presented his veal chop and yam purée. While it was praised for having a great sear and beautiful temperature, it was criticized for not having any personality, and he scored 10 points out of 15. The blue team eventually won the challenge 28-25, and they were rewarded with a trip to the Santa Barbara wine country to sample wine and eat lunch.
During dinner service, Fernando was at the dessert station. He was not seen much, but both teams were named joint-losers and were asked to nominate two people each.
He was not nominated for elimination.[6]
Episode 7[]
- Main article: Episode 1307 - 12 Chefs Compete
After Katie's elimination, Fernando said goodbye to Sterling, who was transferred to the red team.
During the Italian Cuisine Challenge, Fernando competed against Ashley in the saltimbocca round. He was the second person from the blue team to have his dish judged, and he presented his pan-seared saltimbocca with sage and black olive purée. It was praised for having the correct spice, and he scored over Ashley. The blue team won the challenge 3-2, and they were rewarded with a $3000 shopping spree at American Rag Cie for a new wardrobe, and lunch at Cecconi’s.
During the Italian Night dinner service, Fernando was on the garnish station. He was not seen much, except for reminding Steve what their first order was, and trying to help Aaron when the latter was struggling on fish. Both teams were named joint-losers, and they were asked to nominate two people each.
He was not nominated for elimination.[7]
Episode 8[]
- Main article: Episode 1308 - 11 Chefs Compete Part 1
After Ashley's elimination, Fernando said goodbye to Frank, who was transferred to the red team, and welcomed Sade as a new teammate.
During the Dog Show Planning Challenge, Fernando was the first person from the blue team to have his dish judged and presented his prawns alla planche with tomato and red pepper amochie. While it was criticized for having overcooked prawns as well as lacking any acidity, he won the round over La Tasha as it showed the most potential. The blue team eventually lost the challenge 2-3, and they were punished by setting up the dining room for the next service, and washing and grooming dogs that the American Kennel Club sent over.
During the Dog Show dinner service, Fernando was on the fish station. He was caught seasoning his scallops despite Ramsay telling that appetizers would not be fired until after the first round. So, Ramsay called him a fucking idiot, reminded him about the plan he told earlier, and was ordered to wake up. Later, he was struggling with cooking the scallops but refused to send raw food. Despite that, his scallops were approved, he and Bryant were finally synchronized, and food was heading out to the dining room. The blue team won the service.[8]
Episode 9[]
- Main article: Episode 1309 - 11 Chefs Compete Part 2
During the Craps Challenge, Fernando rolled a C and chose Chilean sea bass. His dish was not chosen to be judged, and the blue team eventually lost the challenge. They were punished by taking part in Double Delivery day, where they took in ice, wine, and a 650 pounds halibut.
During dinner service, Fernando served steak Diane tableside. He was not seen much, and the blue team won the service by a mile.[9]
Episode 10[]
- Main article: Episode 1310 - 9 Chefs Compete
During the Indian Cuisine Challenge, Fernando felt that Aaron had no idea what the fuck was going on after the latter boasted how he knew his Indian spices. He was the last person from the blue team to have his dish judged, and competed against Jennifer in the pork round. He presented his pan-roasted pork loin with turmeric, cumin, and garbanzo beans, and while it was praised for having a very nicely cooked pork, it was criticized for being too spicy for Ramsay to handle. He scored 7 points, and the blue team eventually lost the challenge after a tiebreaker at 22. They were punished by prepping for the next service and cleaning the front entrance of the restaurant.
During dinner service, Fernando was on the appetizer station. He was not seen much, but the blue team lost the service by a mile, and they were asked to nominate two people. During deliberation, he was considered by Bryant as he was nominated once before, but he felt that the latter could not figure out a proper argument, and said that his attitude sucked.
He was not nominated for elimination.[10]
Episode 11[]
- Main article: Episode 1311 - 8 Chefs Compete
Back in the dorms, Fernando knew that the next challenge could be the Blind Taste Test, and believed that they could take the red team down. The next day, his theory was correct as their next challenge was the Blind Taste Test. He was the second person from the blue team to compete and went up against Sterling. He did not score any points, resulting in Santos getting dunked twice. On Sade's turn, he was dunked once. The blue team lost the challenge after a tiebreaker at 4, and they were punished by cleaning the dorms.
During the Charity Night dinner service, Fernando was in charge of the scallop risotto course. After Sade announced that they were short a few portions, he announced that they were two plates short, and Ramsay lectured him that he was not going to send ten risottos as they had to be sent altogether.
Both teams were named joint-losers, and they were asked to nominate two people each. During deliberation, Fernando said that he did not feel the full support from his teammates on his course, but Sade was unapologetic. Then, he reminded Sade on her overcooked salmon and how Sous Chef James was the one who came up with a solution.
Fernando was the blue team's first nominee for elimination, with Santos being the second, and they joined Roe and Sterling from the red team. During his plea, he claimed to have been more consistent than his teammates, and while he argued that they were threatened by him, Sade and Bryant said that they were not. He was eliminated for his weak leadership during service, but before he left, Ramsay told him that while he plated food like a proper chef, he did not believe that he could lead just yet. During his exit interview, he called it surreal that people that haven’t shown as much potential as himself were still there, that Bryant has a rollercoaster of emotions going on in his head, Santos could not make the right judgment, and believed that he had more cooking technique and passion than anyone there.
Ramsay's comment: "Fernando's cooking was adequate, but his leadership was lacking. Being my next head chef requires both." [11]
Episode 16[]
- Main article: Episode 1316 - Winner Chosen
Fernando was one of the eight chefs who returned for the final dinner service. He was La Tasha's third pick, after Sade and Roe, and before Ashley. He caused some concern when he tripped while going on the stage.
During dinner service, Fernando was on the fish station. When he sent his scallops, La Tasha told him to flash cook one as it was raw, but he managed to bounce back despite his slow performance. When the team was working on entrées, he said that he needed six minutes on his sea bass, even though Ashley's pork was already cooked, and La Tasha saw that he already cooked the sea bass. That caused Ramsay to accuse him of sabotaging La Tasha, but despite arguing against it, he was still slow. Later, he sent a raw salmon and got demoted to appetizers. La Tasha eventually won the finals over Bryant.[12]
Nomination history[]
| Week 1 | Safe |
|---|---|
| Week 2 | Nominated |
| Week 3 | Win |
| Week 4 | Safe |
| Week 5 | Win |
| Week 6 | Safe |
| Week 7 | Safe |
| Week 8 | Win |
| Week 9 | Win |
| Week 10 | Safe |
| Week 11 | Nominated |
Post Hell's Kitchen[]
- After his appearance on the show, Fernando was an Executive Chef at Capella Hotel Group.
- He later became an Executive Chef at the 1 Hotels South Beach.
Trivia[]
- He is the first Puerto Rican contestant of Hell's Kitchen.
- He is the first contestant to score a 4 out of 5 on the new format of the Signature Dish Challenge.
Quotes[]
- (Looking for spices) "Cumin; cinnamon; paprika. Cumin; cinnamon; paprika. Cumin; cinnamon; paprika. Cumin; cinnamon; paprika."
- (After being put up by Bryant) "Bryant's throwing words. Bryant, you know, your attitude sucks. You will never be able to fucking manage a brigade with that fucking attitude."
- (After being eliminated) "It's surreal that I'm actually here and there's people in there that hasn't shown as much potential as I've shown. Bryant has a roller coaster of emotion going on in his head. Santos cannot make the right judgment. I have a lot more technique and passion and cooking techniques than any other person here."
Gallery[]
.png "Fernando's Confessional (Blue Jacket).png (327 KB)")
.png "Fernando's Confessional (Red Jacket).png (370 KB)")
.png "Fernando's Jacket Dish (Empanadas).png (161 KB)")
.png "Fernando's Barn Animal Dish (Veal Chop).png (170 KB)")
.png "Fernando's Italian Dish (Saltimbocca).png (332 KB)")
External links[]
Fernando Cruz on Instagram
References[]
| Hell's Kitchen Season 13 |
|---|
| Staff |
| Gordon Ramsay (Head Chef) • James Avery (Blue Team Sous Chef) • Andi Van Willigan-Cutspec (Red Team Sous Chef) • Marino Monferrato (Maître d'hôtel) |
| Contestants |
| Frank Bilotti • Fernando Cruz • Sade Dancy • JP DeDominicis • Roe DiLeo • Bryant Gallaher • Denine Giordano • Aaron Lhamon • La Tasha McCutchen • Katie McKeown • Kalen Morgenstern • JR Robinson • Steve Rosenthal • Jennifer Salhoff • Brian Santos • Ashley Sherman • Janai Simpson • Sterling Wright |