| “ | No! You got me twisted, man. I'm fucking staying right here where I belong! | ” |
Giovanni Filippone was a contestant on Seasons 5 and 17 of Hell's Kitchen. In Season 5, he ranked in 6th place, and in Season 17, he ranked in 12th place.
Season 5[]
Episode 1[]
- Main article: Episode 501 - 16 Chefs Compete
Thousands of chefs auditioned for Hell's Kitchen in the series' biggest turnout. However, only three hundred arrived at Hell’s Kitchen and met Jean-Philippe and Ramsay. Out of the three hundred, sixteen were selected to compete. Jean-Philippe began calling out the chefs chosen to compete. While not seen, Giovanni was one of the sixteen called to compete.
During the Signature Dish Challenge, Giovanni said he got into cooking to get dates to his house. He called food an aphrodisiac. He was the seventh person to have his dish judged by Ramsay. He made a cheese-crusted filet, but Ramsay criticized him for improperly cooking the rice despite being an executive chef. After the challenge, Ramsay asked both teams to decide on a team name for the opening night. Per Robert's suggestion, the blue team went with Blues Brothers.
Giovanni called Seth useless during prep and told him to pay attention. Before service began, Ramsay named him a waiter for the blue team. Although he was not happy about it, he was ready to do it. During dinner service, he began his job as a waiter. However, he struggled with his role when he could not describe polenta. Jean-Philippe reminded him that he represented the blue team that night, so he should not panic. Twenty minutes into service, he finally got the men’s first tickets to his team. While serving appetizers, he forgot which customers ordered which appetizer in the dining room, much to Jean-Philippe's annoyance. While he admitted he was unorganized, he argued he was not a waiter. When customers left due to the lack of food, he informed Ramsay that his table had left.
The blue team lost the service because the customers rated Giovanni's performance below average by 90%. They were asked to nominate two people for elimination. During deliberation, Seth pointed out he and asked him what went wrong in the dining room, but he aggressively told him he was not a waiter. Still, Seth wondered what he said to make everyone turn against him and said he was why they lost. However, he refused to be eliminated for his performance as a waiter.
He was not nominated for elimination.[1]
Episode 2[]
- Main article: Episode 502 - 15 Chefs Compete
The following day at 5:49 AM, a marching band came into the dorms and played loudly, and the chefs woke up. Sous Chefs Scott and Gloria ordered the chefs to get downstairs, and they were led outside to find Ramsay. During the Scallop Cleaning Challenge, Giovanni scored an impressive thirteen out of fifteen scallops. Robert was impressed by his performance and saw the women's look of dread across the room. The blue team won the challenge 36-35, and they were rewarded with a helicopter ride to Catalina Island and a submarine ride. When Seth revealed more about Ramsay during the reward, such as the car his wife bought him, Giovanni found it odd and said Ramsay should be scared off by the former.
During dinner service, Giovanni was at the fish station. At one point, he sent up his salmon to the pass in the blue kitchen, but it turned out to be raw. Ramsay chewed him out for it, especially since Danny had been busting his butt off cooking perfect meat that night. None of the men wanted to eat the salmon, and Ramsay yelled at his face for the mistake. Still, he argued that Ramsay did not need to yell inches from his face. Near the end of service, he said he wanted to see a woman go home. The blue team won the service.
At elimination, Giovanni participated in the emotional standing ovation that was given to Ji's exit, along with his teammates and the red team.[2]
Episode 3[]
- Main article: Episode 503 - 14 Chefs Compete
The following morning, the Sous Chefs woke up the contestants at 6 AM with cowbells and told them to get dressed and out the front door to the SUVs. The barely awoke chefs were driven to an unknown place. They went to a meat processing plant and took a tour of the place, with Sous Chef Scott showing them where each cut of beef was on a cow. During the Meat & Cow Challenge, Giovanni was the second person from his team to attempt the meat part of the challenge. He wanted to go first as he worked in a steakhouse, but he had no say as Ben butted in before he had a chance to speak. He managed to get all the men’s cuts correct, getting them to move into part two. The blue team won the challenge and was rewarded with a private jet trip to Sunstone Winery in Santa Ynez, California. They had a wine tasting and a steak dinner with Ramsay. During the reward, he felt like a king on the private jet.
When Ramsay announced the Steakhouse double dinner service, it sparked confidence in Giovanni since he was working in a steakhouse. During prep, he said it would be embarrassing if they lost and wanted to dedicate the men's service to Robert and his fiancé as that night would have been his wedding day. He was at the meat and grill station with Robert during the first seating. When it took the red team twenty minutes to hand in their first ticket, he accused them of doing it on purpose. He got the steaks out quickly, but the customers soon found out that they were still raw. Carol brought back a raw steak, and Ramsay showed it to him and Robert. That angered Danny as he was an Executive Chef at a steakhouse, and Ramsay thanked God for having never visited his steakhouse. More of his steaks were sent back for being raw, and Ramsay angrily told him what was happening. Ramsay called it a joke, and he dismayingly said it sucked to struggle on meat when he had experience. Later, he revealed that they only had one filet left, and Ramsay ordered Seth to prep another one. However, Seth poorly butchered it, and he accused the former of molesting it and said people have gone to prison for lesser crimes. Two minutes left, he said he was four minutes away on his New York Striploin. Ramsay had enough and decided to close service as time was up. Then, Ramsay criticized him for his poor performance at the meat station. During the second seating, where he was a waiter, he tried to speak French at one table but stopped when he saw Jean-Philippe glare at him.
The blue team lost the dinner service, and they were asked to nominate two people for elimination. During deliberation, Giovanni thought they should have done better. He and Ben revealed that they would put up Charlie and Seth. Still, Charlie argued that he should go up based on his poor performance at the meat station despite working at a steakhouse. Seth agreed with Charlie, but only because the former felt he was stronger than him. Danny and Robert agreed with Seth. He argued against it and chewed Seth out for targeting him like that. Still, Danny said he would not mind seeing him eliminated as the former deemed him a hothead.
Giovanni was not nominated for elimination. While being dismissed, he thought Seth should have left instead of Charlie and had no respect for the latter for cheating.[3]
Episode 4[]
- Main article: Episode 504 - 13 Chefs Compete
Back at the dorms, Giovanni told Seth point-blank that he did not respect him after trying to put him up for elimination. Seth argued that he would not dictate the way he competed, but he said he would only talk to him in the kitchen from now on. Seth was okay with that, as he would not want to spend a weekend with him, especially after his miserable performance on steaks.
During the Football Team & Cheerleaders Breakfast Service Challenge, Giovanni reluctantly put Seth on the egg station with him after the latter claimed he could do a Ramsay recipe. The blue team lost the challenge, and he was disappointed as he thought they were better than that. The blue team was punished by cleaning up the dining room, both kitchens and prepping them for that night’s service. He called horrible as they just had a service moments ago. Back at the dorms, he tried to defuse the argument Danny and Ben had over their skills as chefs. Robert told Giovanni about his plan to get rid of Ben during the punishment, and he agreed with the former.
Giovanni knew the men had to pull it out during prep and did not want to lose any men, including Seth. During dinner service, he was at the appetizer station with J. The men got their first ticket, but he said the water was not boiling yet. That frustrated Ramsay, and Ben asked how he could cook pasta without boiling water. Then, Ramsay informed him that the water was not seasoned, nor did it have olive oil. He admitted he did not check his equipment and refused to let it happen again. When J's Caesar salad came back due to having a butt in it, he could not believe the former missed the butt as it was a small salad. Both teams were named joint losers, and they were asked to nominate two each. During deliberation, he nominated Seth and Ben for elimination. Danny agreed with him. Then, he reminded J that the salad was small enough to see the butt.
Giovanni was not nominated for elimination. After Seth's elimination, he welcomed Lacey as a new teammate.[4]
Episode 5[]
- Main article: Episode 505 - 12 Chefs Compete
During the Asian Fusion Challenge, Giovanni was paired with J on the meat dish. They were the final pair from the blue team to have their dish judged and went up against the pair of Andrea and Colleen from the red team. They made a beef pizzaiola style, but J needed his help to describe the dish. While it was deemed a good concept, it had undercooked rice. They lost that round to the pair of Andrea and Colleen, and the blue team lost the challenge 1-2. They were punished by making fortune cookies and decorating the entire dining room with origami. Back at the patio, Lacey said she wanted to leave, but that angered him, and he went on a tangent on how Seth never threatened to quit. He hated the negativity as he hated losing and said he did not want to see anyone on the blue team go home. During the punishment, he was grateful to have Lacey help them with the origami folding.
During dinner service, Giovanni was at the appetizer station with Ben. He began firing appetizers, and despite Ramsay calling him out for lifting the pan in the middle of the air, the latter praised the risotto he sent to the pass. Then, he saw that Lacey was very vocal and believed she wanted to beat the red team that night. He and Ben were happy about this. Both teams were named joint losers, but Ramsay named him the "Best of the Worst" for the blue team because of his great start on appetizers. He was asked to nominate one person from his team for elimination. He knew he could not nominate Lacey during deliberation as she kicked ass that night.
Giovanni nominated J. While he admitted that Robert had a bad night of his own, the latter was able to rebound quicker than J, even by a fraction.[5]
Episode 6[]
- Main article: Episode 506 - 11 Chefs Compete
In the dorms, Giovanni reassured a tearful J, saying that he would do good in future services.
During the Bar Mitzvah Planning Challenge, Giovanni presented the blue team's chicken noodle soup. He was the first person from the blue team to have his dish judged and went up against Andrea. He presented their traditional chicken soup with pasta and rice balls for the blue team. It was well-received as Sally deemed it excellent. He won that round over Andrea. When Robert presented the burger, he knew the former could make a mean burger. The blue team won the challenge 2-1, and they were rewarded with a trip to Skin Haven spa for a day of relaxation. During the reward, he said he looked twenty-one again.
During the Bar Mitzvah dinner service, Giovanni was at the dessert station. At one point, he noted there was great teamwork from the blue team when sending out the desserts. The blue team won the service.[6]
Episode 7[]
- Main article: Episode 507 - 10 Chefs Compete
Back at the dorms, Giovanni reminded Andrea and Paula that it was still a team effort and they must put aside their differences.
Before the Leftovers Challenge, Giovanni was transferred to the red team by Ramsay to even the numbers. He was not upset as he was with the girls, and Ramsay told them they now had a strong chef on the red team. During the challenge, he quickly integrated himself into his new team. He told a few of his teammates some of his suggestions. He said he would lead no matter what team he was on and hoped that the red team would finally get together as a team. He was the final person from the red team to have his dish judged by Ramsay and went up against Ben. He made a surf and turf with beef and lobster claw, and they were deemed very good. He called it nerve-wracking for Ramsay to praise both dishes and did not know which way the latter would go. He won that round, and the red team won the challenge 3-2. While he was happy to carry his new team to victory, Andrea was delighted to have him on the red team as the Spice Rack needed more testosterone.
The red team was rewarded with a trip to Hollywood Parks to see a horse race with Ramsay. As the red team went up to change, Carol congratulated Giovanni for clinching their victory and welcomed him to the team. Still, he told the four women that they must put their animosity aside so that they could win services. While Andrea thought they were strong now that they had him on the red team, he retorted that they were only strong together. Carol agreed with his comments.
Five minutes before service, a positive Giovanni led the red team through the rest of the prep. Andrea said that his presence balanced the hormones and thought it was well needed. During dinner service, he was at the garnish station. He took the leadership role and called out orders and times, saying he wanted to be a leader. LA was grateful for his leadership as it made them a real kitchen, and Ramsay was happy that they finally sounded like a team. The red team won the dinner service.[7]
Episode 8[]
- Main article: Episode 508 - 9 Chefs Compete
On their way back to the dorms, Giovanni tried to calm Carol down, telling her to let go of the pasta incident. However, Carol was still angry at Andrea for the pasta incident from that night. However, he reminded Carol that their goal right now was to beat the blue team, knowing that her poor attitude was bringing down morale.
During the Blind Taste Test, Giovanni was the second person on his team to participate and went up against Robert. He failed to get a single point. Despite that, the red team won 8-7. They were rewarded with a photo shoot for TV Guide in the restaurant and received makeovers. During the reward, he complimented Carol's outfit.
During dinner service, Giovanni was at the dessert station. At one point, he saw that LA was getting a lot of heat from Ramsay and commented that she did not have a good day. The red team lost the service, and they were asked to nominate two people for elimination. During deliberation, he reminded Carol that Ramsay told them they lacked teamwork before considering the latter and LA for elimination. He told Andrea that she could run a kitchen better than LA, but he realized they were divided when the votes were split.
He was not nominated for elimination.[8]
Episode 9[]
- Main article: Episode 509 - 7 Chefs Compete
Back at the dorms, Giovanni got annoyed by Andrea and Carol constantly arguing and told the two women that they had to work their problems out. However, Andrea said it was impossible since they would never get along.
Before the Red King Crab Challenge, Giovanni listed off chicken cacciatore, chicken marsala, and chicken cordon bleu when Ramsay asked for examples of chicken dishes. He made an unknown dish, and it was not used for judging. The red team lost the challenge, and they were punished by cleaning both the dorms and kitchens and prepping all the king crab for the next night’s dinner service. He wanted to win the following service during the punishment after hearing the blue team talk about their reward.
Before dinner service, Ramsay announced that the teams would be creating their own menus. When conceptualizing the menu, Giovanni suggested using Paula's crab dish and carpaccio. During dinner service, he was at the appetizer station. He managed to get the red team off to a fast start with his beef carpaccio appetizers. Still, they were immediately sent back for being flavorless. He realized he did not season it, and Ramsay lectured him to slice the beef on a seasoned plate for flavor. Later, the same red diner who complained about her bland appetizer before said it was still under-seasoned again. She went to the hot plate to confront Ramsay about it, but Ramsay chewed her out for whistling at him, and he called the woman a dog. After the woman returned to her table, Ramsay told him to fire another carpaccio. After Carol's gratin dauphinoise disaster, he suggested sautéed fingerling potatoes after Ramsay asked for a replacement side. The red team was declared the winners for having a 54% above average rating from their customers, compared to the blue team's 39%. Back at the dorms, he said they were lucky to win.[9]
Episode 10[]
- Main article: Episode 510 - 6 Chefs Compete
The following morning, Ramsay gave black jackets to the remaining six contestants. During the 14 Ingredients Challenge, Giovanni was the second person to have his dish judged by Ramsay. He made pasta pumaduro with stuffed chicken murlo sauce. It was praised for the sweet and rich taste contrast, making him hope for a victory. He lost the challenge to Ben and was punished by participating in Delivery Day and prep for the following service. Back at the dorms, he saw how angry Danny looked, but the latter retorted that he was disappointed and left the patio,
During the punishment, Giovanni commented how weary his body was due to age and was seen carrying boxes of bottled water in a strange way. He accidentally dropped one of the boxes and had wine bottles come out of the bottom of another box. He got agitated and refused to run for the truck on the following order, but Danny called him an asshole in response. He stayed behind and snacked in the pantry room, but Sous Chef Scott found him and pulled him outside. Paula got annoyed by his attitude and warned him to run once she got angry. While picking up their last delivery, Paula noticed that they were two lobsters short of the thirty-six that were ordered, and he rushed to stop the truck as Danny was signing off on everything. The two men ran at the truck as Andrea found out they had the correct amount. Andrea ran off to tell him about it, but he said he was done after that. Once they returned to the kitchen, he complained that he was too old to run around, but that irritated Paula as she knew how to check on produce. When Ben told everyone about his reward, he said nobody wanted to hear that and told Ben to shut up.
During dinner service, Giovanni was at the meat station. As the final six received their first order, he knew they must complete the entire service out of one kitchen and that only the best would survive. However, he was caught opening and closing the convection oven a lot and was warned by Ramsay that it might lead to consequences later that night. Later, he sent up Ben's chicken special, but it had a raw drumstick on the plate. He said he needed one minute on the refire and admitted he had no idea how to make the dish. Still, Ben knew that as long as he cooked his dish correctly, everyone in the dining room would enjoy it. His next attempt at Ben's dish had a chewed-up drumstick on the plate, and Ramsay informed Ben that his special was being ruined because of him, who was called "dickface" by Ramsay. However, he argued he was not "dickface", which enraged Ramsay to the point that he screamed in his face and threatened to eliminate him if he sent up more poor chicken. Ben and Robert were shocked by Ramsay's screaming, but he said he was angrier at himself than at Ramsay. Then, Ramsay sent Ben over to the meat station to help Giovanni out on his own special. Two hours into dinner service, he did not have his meat ready, causing Ramsay to ask where their teamwork had gone. Andrea felt there was no communication from him, and when he did speak, his stuttering communication did not help matters for Robert and Andrea. Robert was forced to start over because of the stuttering and then start again when he called out four minutes. That caused Ramsay to pull all three of them aside as he called him out for not caring. Ramsay ordered the trio to work together, and Robert went to help him out on the Wellingtons. However, Robert accidentally burned his hand on an uncovered hot pan in the fridge and left to see a medic. That angered Robert as he did not tell anyone he had a hot pan in the fridge. When it turned out Robert sustained a second-degree burn, Ramsay chewed him out for his careless mistake. Still, he felt horrible as he burned Robert by accident. He tried to apologize when Robert returned, but the latter ignored him. Danny said that once he failed, everyone else failed.
After service ended, Ramsay chewed Giovanni out for being mentally gone from the competition. Paula was named the "Best of the Worst". During deliberation, he apologized to Robert for his burn as he never meant to hurt someone in the kitchen. However, Robert chewed him out for leaving a hot pan in the fridge uncovered. Paula deemed his performance close to Lacey's and thought he and Andrea were close to how bad they were.
Giovanni was Paula's first nominee for elimination, with Andrea being the second. During his plea, he admitted he had a horrible performance that night and let his emotions get the best of him when he talked back to Ramsay. He was eliminated for his poor performance that night and for arguing back at Ramsay. He received a retrospective montage of his run during his exit interview. Ramsay did not comment on his elimination, and he did not receive the coat hanging and burning picture sequence.[10]
Episode 14/15[]
- Main article: Episode 514 - 2 Chefs Compete
- Main article: Episode 515 - Winner Announced
During the season recap, Giovanni received the coat hanging and burning picture sequence for the first time since his elimination.
Giovanni was one of the six contestants who returned for the final service. When he returned to the kitchen, Ramsay reminded him of the infamous "dickface" argument he had with him during the first black jacket service. He was picked second by Danny, following Ben and before Carol.[11] Back in the dorms, he secretly admitted he did not want to be there, and did not care who would win.
During dinner service, Giovanni was on the meat and fish stations. At one point, he sent up a sauce for the monkfish that was too salty. When Danny asked him for a time on the refire, he was unresponsive as he still did not care about who would win that night. Danny eventually won the finals over Paula.[12]
Nomination History[]
| Week 1 | Safe |
|---|---|
| Week 2 | Win |
| Week 3 | Safe |
| Week 4 | Safe |
| Week 5 | BoW |
| Week 6 | Win |
| Week 7 | Win |
| Week 8 | Safe |
| Week 9 | Win |
| Week 10 | Nominated |
Season 17[]
Episode 1/2[]
- Main article: Episode 1701 - All-Stars Arrive
- Main article: Episode 1702 - Raising the Bar
Giovanni was the third All-Star that entered Hell's Kitchen. He told Milly and Ashley that he was from Season 5 and remarked that he still had a lot of pep left despite being older before wondering how Ramsay knew his phone number. Later, he jokingly said that he was going to cradle everybody as he was from the earlier seasons and reunited with Ben when the latter came.
During the Signature Dish Challenge, Giovanni received lamb as his main protein. He was the third person from the blue team to have his dish judged by Ramsay and went up against Jennifer. Before tasting his dish, he and Ramsay recalled the infamous “Dickface” argument they had back in the first black jacket service in Season 5, and he revealed that his daughter was diagnosed with moderate autism and had frequent seizures before hoping that he could use the money for more hospital visits. He made a pistachio-crusted lamb with sweet mashed potatoes and grilled eggplant. While it was criticized for a clumsy presentation, it was praised for a spot on lamb, and he scored 3 points. The blue team won the challenge 28-27, and they were rewarded with a trip to the sky slide in downtown Los Angeles and dinner at Wolfgang Puck’s WP24 restaurant.[13]
Giovanni made an unknown dish during the Bar Menu Challenge, but he lost the challenge as he did not make the top four of the blue team.
Giovanni was at the meat station with Nick during dinner service. At one point, Ramsay told the two that their meat was the All-Star proteins he was looking for. After Elise continued to struggle on New York striploin, Ramsay called him over to the red kitchen and told him to cook six New York striploin for Elise. While he had to tell Elise to stop flipping her steaks and let them cook, he managed to help her get her refires accepted. The blue team won the service.[14]
Episode 3[]
- Main article: Episode 1703 - Tower of Terror
During the Seafood Tower Challenge, Giovanni was paired up with Van, and they were the first pair to compete. During the challenge, he felt good with shellfish as he worked in a seafood restaurant before hoping he could give the blue team a jump start. The two got their first attempt accepted, and the blue team won the challenge. They were rewarded with a seafood lunch at the Ocean Club in Malibu and got to play soccer with Alyssa Naeher and Julie Johnston. During the reward, he commented that they did not look like the running type.
During dinner service, Giovanni served a fresh seafood appetizer tableside. He was not seen much, but he did not go into the red kitchen with the rest of the blue team as he was working on desserts. The blue team won the service.[15]
Episode 4[]
- Main article: Episode 1704 - Just Letter Cook
During the Chance Challenge, Giovanni called out mayo during the M round and called out cantaloupe during the C round. He was the final person from the blue team to have his dish judged by Ramsay and presented his grilled rib cap with sautéed bacon. While it was praised for being cooked beautifully and being a good dish overall, he only scored 4 points, which was not enough to beat the red team. The blue team lost the challenge 25-16. They were punished by taking in deliveries of potatoes, sorting through garbage, and eating a smelly fish sandwich. During the punishment, he said that it sucked that they would get smelly and told Josh that they had to make sure it never happened again.
During dinner service, Giovanni was at the fish station with Milly. He sent up burnt pork along with a perfectly cooked pork, and his refire came out raw. Ramsay ordered him to put it back into the pan, and he refused to let that happen again, leading to his third attempt being accepted. The blue team lost the service, and they were asked to nominate two people for elimination. During deliberation, Josh reminded him that he purposefully served burnt pork, but he told the former that he got him twisted and argued that he was staying before reminding Josh of his risotto incident and how he served too many portions.
Giovanni was named the blue team's second nominee for elimination, with Josh as the first. During his plea, he said that he never made the same mistake twice, and while he admitted that he could have done better as he had the most experience on the blue team, he refused to quit. He survived elimination and later said goodbye to Josh as the latter was reassigned to the red team and welcomed Robyn as a new teammate.[16]
Episode 5[]
- Main article: Episode 1705 - Josh Josh Josh
During the Wood Plank Cooking Challenge, Giovanni was paired up with Milly on the salmon. They were the final pair from the blue team to have their dish judged and went up against Elise. They made a hickory-smoked salmon with brandy glaze, it was criticized for the glaze concept, and they lost that round to Elise. The blue team won the challenge after a tie at 3, and they were rewarded with a horseback ride at Apex Ranch.
During dinner service, Giovanni was at the dessert station. He was not seen that night, and both teams were named joint-winners.[17]
Episode 6[]
- Main article: Episode 1706 - A Little Slice of Hell
Giovanni got motivated during the Pizza Fusion Challenge as pizza was in his DNA. He was the only chef who was not paired up with anybody, and Ramsay allowed him to join any pairings. He picked France with Benjamin as he felt that Michelle disrespected him by not picking him. During the cooking, the blue team relied on him for help with their pizzas, though he felt that it was difficult because he was focused on his pizza. His dish was chosen over Benjamin's as it had a better presentation. He was the final person from the blue team to have his dish judged and presented his white pie pizza with shallots. It was immediately criticized for having a burnt underside, and Ramsay was more upset that the blue team failed to see that during their decision. While the pizza was praised for tasting delicious, it was criticized for poor execution. He lost that round to Michelle, but while he admitted that he should have checked the bottom, he also said that the blue team chose his dish, so they got a share of the blame.
The blue team lost the challenge 2-3, and they were punished by ironing the tablecloths ahead of night’s Italian Night dinner service and prepping the oils and Parmesan cheese for each table. Giovanni argued that it was not his fault that nobody else checked his pizza during the punishment.
Giovanni was at the meat station with Van during the Italian Night dinner service. He wanted to redeem himself after his challenge failure, but while he and Van thought their lamb was good, Ramsay discovered that it was very raw and brought the blue team into the pantry room. There, Ramsay warned him to either get it together or he himself would take over. When the blue team came back into the kitchen, he announced that they needed three minutes to rest the meat, with a dismayed Ramsay calling it a joke. The blue team lost the service, and they were asked to nominate two people for elimination. During deliberation, Jared reminded him about the raw lamb, but he considered the former and Robyn for elimination.
Giovanni was not nominated for elimination. When Robyn requested to go back to the red team, he called her out on that. While being dismissed, he felt that Robyn’s plea to go back into the red team was disrespectful.[18]
Episode 7[]
- Main article: Episode 1707 - Trimming Fat
Back at the dorms, Giovanni chewed out Robyn for her request to move back into the red team before reminding her how they welcomed her with open arms.
Giovanni was the fourth chef from the blue team to leave the kitchen during the Last Chef Standing Challenge. On the rack of lamb round, he made it both raw and cooked on it, with Ramsay accusing him of bastardizing it. While neither team scored that round, the blue team eventually won the challenge 5-3. They were rewarded with a trip to a rock climbing gym and having lunch at Bourbon Steak at Americana with the Sous chefs. During the reward, he commented that he had never gone rock climbing before and wanted to see if his fat ass would let him do it, though he managed to do so. However, he got winded by the first climb and complained that he was too old for that.
Giovanni was Nick's second nominee to compete for the Cook For Your Life Challenge, as the latter felt that he was frazzled at some points, even though he disagreed with that notion. He was after Robyn, followed by Milly, and they were joined by Manda, Barbie, and Elise from the red team. During the cooking, he refused to go home that night and planned on beating anybody in his way. He was the final person to have his dish and declared that he was not ready to go home. While the dish was praised for looking beautiful, Ramsay noticed that he lacked the sauce component and that there was too much pasta on the dish. He lost to Robyn and was eliminated from the competition. Before leaving, Ramsay told him that he was glad he came back and urged him to look after his family. During his exit interview, he knew that he should have done better with his age and experience but was looking forward to seeing his family again and had no shame in leaving.
Ramsay's comment: "Giovanni may have age and experience, but his attention to detail in this critical challenge was a big disappointment. “Arrivederci”, Giovanni." [19]
Nomination History[]
| Week 1 | Win |
|---|---|
| Week 2 | Win |
| Week 3 | Nominated |
| Week 4 | Win |
| Week 5 | Safe |
| Week 6 | Nominated |
Post Hell's Kitchen[]
- After his first appearance on the show, Giovanni returned to work at the Tuscany Italian Bistro and has gotten married and had two daughters.
- After his second appearance on the show, Giovanni returned to his previous job at The Vue on 30A.
- In November 2019, he became Executive Chef at Mama Clemenzas.
Trivia[]
Season 5[]
- He is the third male contestant who switched teams and made it to the black jackets, following Michael (Season 1) and Matt (Season 4)
- He is the third contestant to have worn the red, blue, and black jackets, following Jen and Matt (both from Season 4). He is the second male contestant to do so.
- He and LA are the first pair of contestants to both be named "Best of the Worst" and be eliminated on two different nights.
- He is the second contestant to switch teams, receive a Black Jacket, and rank in 6th place, following Matt (Season 4).
Season 17[]
- He and Ben are the first two contestants to participate in both the individual and team format of the Signature Dish Challenge.
- He is the first male contestant to be eliminated on the Cook For Your Life Challenge.
- He is the second contestant that received more nominations during their second run on the show, following Jason (Season 12).
- He is the first member of the blue team to get eliminated after a challenge.
- He is the oldest of Season 17, at age 46.
Quotes[]
Season 5[]
- (About Seth butchering the filet) "He molested that poor thing! People have gone to jail for worse, but it looked like he went at it with a jackhammer.
- (To Seth) "Seth, man, you gotta listen a little better."
- (About Seth) "Seth's useless. He's done like two things since this morning."
- (After being chosen as waiter) "I wasn't too happy becoming a waiter. But I'm confident I can do this, and I'm ready to go!"
- (About his poor performance as waiter) "I was unorganized, I was flustered, I'm not a waiter. I'M NOT! It's as simple as that."
- "Pea tenders? What are those?"
- (About being put on the Red team) I'm on the Red team now - a lot more girls there!"
- (To Ramsay) "Yeah, but I'm not Dickface, chef."
- (About Ramsay chewing him out) "I'm an emotional person, but he can get on my face all he wants. He will not break me."
- (After being eliminated) "I wanted a challenge, and that's what I got. I got a challenge out of it. I learned some great things. I did some great things I've never managed doing. I worked in a kitchen with a bunch of great people. I'll take some things from everybody here. I've learned from every single one of them. So I'll take that and move on. And yeah, of course, I wanted to win. And I'm not going to lie and say, 'Hey, well, it was just a challenge.' I wanted to win it, but not that I could do better than what I did. I tried doing my best, it wasn't good enough. Simple as that."
Season 17[]
- "Might be an old dog, but I got a little pep left in me. Thank you for giving me a call, Chef Ramsay. I didn't know Chef Ramsay even knew my phone number."
- (Going down a slide during the reward) “YOU LEFT ME BY MYSELF? ALRIGHT, YA SONS OF BITCHES!”
- (When Ben and Jared were called for the mistake view) "Oooh! What’s gonna happen?"
- (To Josh) "No! You got me twisted, man. I'm fucking staying right here where I belong!"
- (To Elise) "No. No, no. Stop flipping 'em! Leave 'em on the side, get it seared. You're gonna get both of us in trouble, man. Stop flipping it. Just leave it."
- (After the blue team got kicked out) "FUCK! Yeah, I don't like getting kicked out of the fucking kitchen!"
- (After being eliminated) "Chef made his decision, that's final. I mean, maybe at my age and my experience, I shoulda done a better job, but I'm holding my head up high, and I'm gonna go home, and I get hugged by two beautiful kids. Nothing to be ashamed of. It's an opportunity of a lifetime. So yeah, I'm glad I came back. Glad I gave it a shot. Came up short."
Gallery[]
.png "Giovanni's Confessional (Blue Jacket).png (351 KB)")
.png "Giovanni's Confessional (Red Jacket).png (360 KB)")
.png "Giovanni's Confessional (Black Jacket).png (304 KB)")
_Eliminated.png "Giovanni (S5) Eliminated.png (210 KB)")
.png "Giovanni's Confessional (Returning Chef).png (496 KB)")
%27s_Signature_Dish.png "Giovanni (S5)'s Signature Dish.png (885 KB)")
%27s_Asian_Fusion_Dish.png "J and Giovanni (S5)'s Asian Fusion Dish.png (205 KB)")
%27s_Leftover_Dish.png "Giovanni (S5)'s Leftover Dish.png (317 KB)")
%27s_14_Ingredient_Dish.png "Giovanni (S5)'s 14 Ingredient Dish.png (222 KB)")
_in_Blue_Jacket.png "Giovanni (S17) in Blue Jacket.png (944 KB)")
%27s_Confessional.png "Giovanni (S17)'s Confessional.png (1.43 MB)")
_and_Giovanni_(S17)_Nominated.png "Josh (S17) and Giovanni (S17) Nominated.png (1.6 MB)")
,_Barbie_(S17),_Elise_(S17),_Milly_(S17),_Robyn_(S17),_and_Giovanni_(S17)_Nominated_in_Cook_For_Your_Life_Challenge.png "Manda (S17), Barbie (S17), Elise (S17), Milly (S17), Robyn (S17), and Giovanni (S17) Nominated in Cook For Your Life Challenge.png (1.16 MB)")
_Eliminated.png "Giovanni (S17) Eliminated.png (1,009 KB)")
%27s_Signature_Dish.png "Giovanni (S17)'s Signature Dish.png (1.44 MB)")
%27s_Chance_Dish.png "Giovanni (S17)'s Chance Dish.png (1.3 MB)")
_and_Giovanni_(S17)%27s_Wood_Plank_Cooking_Dish_(Salmon).png "Milly (S17) and Giovanni (S17)'s Wood Plank Cooking Dish (Salmon).png (1.22 MB)")
%27s_Pizza_Fusion_Dish_(France).png "Giovanni (S17)'s Pizza Fusion Dish (France).png (1.21 MB)")
%27s_Cook_For_Your_Life_Dish.png "Giovanni (17)'s Cook For Your Life Dish.png (1.06 MB)")
External links[]
Giovanni Filippone on Instagram
References[]
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