| “ | I got the Southern flavor, you know. I put a lotta flavor in the food: raw but real. So, if Chef Ramsay complains about it, well he's full o' shit, man. | ” |
Jonathon Plumley (March 28, 1976 - February 9, 2022) was a contestant on Season 9 of Hell's Kitchen. He ranked in 10th place. He unfortunately passed away on February 9, 2022.
Season 9[]
Episode 1[]
- Main article: Episode 901 - 18 Chefs Compete
When the chefs arrived in Los Angeles, they were greeted by James on the bus ride, and then, it pulled over to the Orpheum Theatre, where they would be given a standing ovation by a live audience. However, when the curtain was pulled up, they discovered that the room was completely empty, much to their disappointment, before Ramsay revealed himself applauding very slowly. After the latter revealed the grand prize of the season, Jonathon told that even though he was from the south, he was ready to go to the Big Apple, and the chefs were asked to get back to Hell's Kitchen and cook their signature dishes.
During the Signature Dish Challenge, Jonathon was the third person from the blue team to have his dish judged by Ramsay, and went up against Jennifer. He revealed his punch-drunk chicken, and told that while he put a lot of raw but real flavors on his dishes, Ramsay would be full of shit if he would not like it. However, Ramsay was shocked by the presentation and discovered that he used canned pineapples, which he admitted. Then, he blamed the 45-minute time limit, which disbelieved Ramsay, who told him he was so full of shit that his eyes were brown, and that he could leave on-the-spot for serving canned pineapple, therefore threatening him with elimination. He refused to leave, Ramsay called his dish a freaking mess, refused to taste it because of the canned pineapple, and he lost the round to Jennifer.
The blue team won the challenge 6-5, and they were rewarded with a dinner at the LA Market, in downtown Los Angeles, along with Season 8 winner Nona. Arrived there, they were greeted by Nona, and during the dinner, she gave them advice on how to compete. Jonathon was inspired by her speech, declared that he would use everything that she said to his advantage, and after she left, the men toasted to their victory. The next day, both teams went to the kitchens to begin prepping for the opening night, he knew that the nerves were up, but was confident that the blue team would dominate the red team, and everybody was given their ankle knives set.
During dinner service, Jonathon was on the meat station with Paul. At one point, he compared Chino's burned cod to being glazed with roof tar, and later, Ramsay went to his station to slice his Wellington, and while he apologized, the Wellington was cooked perfectly. After revealing that he never cooked a beef Wellington in his life, he declared that he would continue to rock it out, and moments later, because Monterray was not ready with his garnish, he told that all the latter had was a big old bag of what the fuck. Because of Monterray's mistake, he was not able to serve his Wellingtons to the dining room and had to start over, much to his dismay. Later, he sent another perfectly cooked Wellington, but could not send it once again because of Brendan's mistake, and he was dismayed because it was the first time in his life that he was stopped because of garnishes. After customers walked out, the service was shut down. The blue team lost the service, and they were asked to nominate two people.
He was not nominated for elimination.[1]
Episode 2[]
- Main article: Episode 902 - 16 Chefs Compete
Back in the dorms, Jonathon was extremely embarrassed about the blue team's performance at the previous service and reminded that he never had a side item stopping one of his entrées in his life, before rallying his teammates by saying that they should leave their egos at the door as it was a team competition.
The next morning, the chefs were woken up by a young guitarist and very loud amplifiers, and they were ordered to get outside. Arrived there, Jonathon was excited to see the women in short pants, even declaring that it was making his heart pounding faster, and Ramsay introduced the Meat & Grill Challenge, where each pair would have to cook a medium-rare New York strip, a medium rib-eye, a medium-well filet mignon, and a well-done burger. During the challenge, he was paired with Brendan, and they were completely relaxed and joking around. They were the first pair to compete for the blue team, and they only scored two points out of four, with their rib-eye and filet mignon.
The blue team won the challenge 11-10, and during the celebration, Jonathon was happy and proud to have bonded as a team. They were rewarded with a lunch on the top of Palm Springs with Ramsay, and being taken there in a private jet. During the reward, he was eager to go on the tram while being happier that the team bonded, and during the tram ride, he found the view amazing.
The next day, during prep, Jonathon was happy that Palm Springs brought the team together, before declaring that the wolf pack would bring the A-game, and mimicking a wolf scream. During dinner service, he was on the appetizer station with Chino. He was not seen much, except when Chino sent a burned risotto to the pass, which he compared as somebody shitting in it, and when Brendan failed to communicate, which he acknowledged he did because he was too busy not to fuck up. After a lot of mistakes and not being able to send one entrée out, the blue team was kicked out of the kitchen, and while going back to the dorms, he thought they were looking like a bunch of little sissy ass bitches, before slamming his water bottle on the patio floor. The blue team lost the service, and on his way to the dining room for elimination, he slammed a chair down the stairs.
Jonathon was not nominated for elimination, and after announcing that Chino should be eliminated, that led to an argument between both of them, where Chino accused him of clamming up after Ramsay left, and him to tell Chino to go fuck himself. Then, despite him and his teammates trying to convince Ramsay not to, the blue team learned that a woman would be joining them the following morning.[2]
Episode 3[]
- Main article: Episode 903 - 15 Chefs Compete
The next morning, the chefs were woken up by clowns, and when both teams were lined up in the dining room, Sous Chef Scott revealed that they were woken up by clowns because they were cooking like clowns. After taking a delivery of naan bread with the other chefs, which he revealed that he liked as he was a sandwich guy, Jonathon and the blue team welcomed Natalie as a new teammate, much to his annoyance.
When the customers for the Mommy & Me Lunch Service Challenge were introduced, Jonathon had a teary eye as it reminded him of his wife and four children, and during the challenge, he praised the good communication while acknowledging that it was Natalie who was making the difference. Later, he served a Panini sandwich that had chicken in it when not supposed to, but despite having to start again, they succeeded to send their last ticket before the red team and gave a warm welcome to Natalie by celebrating her arrival on the team.
When both teams were lined up, Jonathon jokingly told that he would have put a dress on Tommy if he knew earlier that it was easy to bring a beautiful woman to get everybody talking, which made everybody laugh. The blue team won the challenge, and they were rewarded with a day and lunch at Medieval Times, as well as sword fighting themselves, which he claimed that it could not have been better. When the blue team came back from their reward, they received some tips from Natalie to succeed during dinner service, and he wanted to listen to everything that she had to say because he acknowledged how strong her two first performances were with the red team.
During the Family Night dinner service, Jonathon was at the pizza station. He was not seen much but succeeded to serve all of his Margherita pizzas to the children. The blue team won the service by a mile.[3]
Episode 4[]
- Main article: Episode 904 - 14 Chefs Compete
The next morning, the chefs were woken up by Sous Chefs Scott and Andi, who brought them special farm outfits to wear and were told to get outside. Arrived there, Ramsay introduced the Chicken Creation Challenge, and during the first part, Jonathon said that he knew how to catch chicken as he was from the south, and chose almonds. During the second part, he was paired with Will, and they worked on the sautéed chicken course. They were the second pair from the blue team to have their dish judged, he presented their lemon-herbed sautéed chicken, which was deemed great looking by Jen Garcia, and they tied the round with Krupa and Jennifer. During the final deliberation, he was convinced that the blue team would win the challenge as they were on a streak.
The blue team lost the challenge 2-3, and they were punished by creating a chicken stock from scratch for the next service. During the punishment, Jonathon wished the red team to not wreck during the go-kart activity, and during their dinner service simulation, he expressed dismay when Chino struggled as there was not any cooking involved.
During dinner service, Jonathon was at the dessert station. Also, he was dedicated to host Mark Spitz and Janet Evans at the chef's table, he was honored about that as he was a Mark Spitz fan, and after declaring that it was awesome to serve them, he took their order. When Evans returned her Caesar salad because it was overdressed, he was dismayed as salads were not that hard, took the plate, and angrily tossed it in the bin. However, Ramsay called him out on his aggressive behavior, and he revealed the problem to Ramsay. After the argument between Sous Chef Scott and Monterray, he targeted the latter for being the next motherfucker who would be eliminated as he had too much pride to cuss at Sous Chef Scott. Then, he cut the Wellingtons for Chino, but when he was asked by Monterray for a favor, he aggressively told that he could not do everything for everybody and that he should man his station, and that led to an intense argument between both of them before Will and Natalie calmed them down. After a lot of mistakes, the blue team was kicked out of the kitchen, both teams were named joint-losers, and they were asked to nominate two people each.
He was not nominated for elimination.[4]
Episode 5[]
- Main article: Episode 905 - 13 Chefs Compete
Back at the dorms, Jonathon and Elise exchanged "I love yous" to each other. The next day, he was astounded that Chefs Ben Roche and Homaro Cantu used soundwaves on oranges.
During the Fire and Water Challenge, Jonathon grew a blank as he hoped to use the science stuff to create a dish. He cooked with the beef, was the first person from the blue team to have his dish judged, and went up against Jennifer. He made a meat, potato, and vegetable dish, it was criticized for having a train wreck presentation but praised for having a wonderfully cooked beef, leaving him to deem it the best fucking train wreck he could have presented. He lost that round to Jennifer, but the blue team eventually won the challenge after at 2 each. They were rewarded with a spa day at Beverly Hills’ Montage, and he said that he fucking loved massages. During the reward, he did not want the waxing as he did not want to lose his body hair.
During dinner service, Jonathon was on the garnish station. When the blue team began on entrées, he asked Paul what kind of mushrooms were needed for the sea bass as he had problems remembering the menu. Paul helped him out on garnish, but Ramsay was not happy that he forgot the menu items, and warned him to fuck off if the garnishes were not ready. Both teams were named joint-losers, and they were asked to nominate two each. During deliberation, he considered Tommy and Monterray for elimination as he felt the latter could not cook.
He was not nominated for elimination.[5]
Episode 6[]
- Main article: Episode 906 - 12 Chefs Compete
During the 20 Year Reunion Planning Challenge, Jonathon was not seen, the blue team won the challenge 3-0, and they were rewarded with a day aboard a superyacht. When they came back from their reward, he decided to rub it into the red team during their punishment. Back at the dorms, he took pictures of Natalie in the water pool.
During the 20 Year dinner service, Jonathon was on the appetizer station with Monterray. After seeing Paul struggle on fish, he accused the former of crashing like the titanic, and after, he and Monterray replaced Paul. However, he did not help Monterray, and when the blue team was kicked out of the kitchen, he if a few of them could stay and do something, which Ramsay ignored. The blue team lost the service and were asked to nominate two people for elimination. During deliberation, he was pissed and told Monterray that it was his time to go home, but the latter argued that he hid at desserts when Ramsay asked them to take over fish and did not even cook anything. The argument continued with him itching to hit Monterray.
Jonathon was not nominated for elimination, but Ramsay called him up to join Monterray and Paul. During his plea, Ramsay asked him if he was a better chef than Monterray, and he said that he was due to his strong communication skills. He survived elimination, and while being dismissed, he was happy to be saved over Monterray.[6]
Episode 7[]
- Main article: Episode 907 - 11 Chefs Compete
While going back to the dorms, Jonathon felt that Ramsay saw some of his weaknesses that had to be brought up and was ready to buckle up after being stressed out over his nomination.
Before the Creative Beer Challenge, Jonathon said that he would make a honey glazed pork tenderloin before the challenge was revealed. He sampled every beer flavor provided, but Ramsay told him to spend less time drinking and more time cooking. His dish was ranked fourth by the blue team, was the second person to have his dish judged, and went up against Elise. He made a pan-seared chicken breast with raspberry Lambic, but after revealing it, the presentation shocked Ramsay as it had pineapple on it, and was accused of being obsessed with fruit. The dish was deemed too sweet and having no balance, and lost that round to Elise. The blue team eventually won the challenge 3-2, and they were rewarded with a VIP day at the Long Beach Grand Prix Indy Car Racing. During the reward, he said that he would talk about it for the rest of his life.
During prep, Jonathon felt that it was time for redemption as the blue team’s services have sucked so far, and wanted to win. During dinner service, he was on the meat station. At one point, he tried counting Natalie's ruined scallops, but was interrupted by Ramsay. On entrées, he sent up Wellingtons with raw pastry but blamed Tommy for wrapping them improperly during prep. Then, he found out his Wellingtons were overcooked, before blaming Tommy for making them into balls of shit. After, he was forced to walk the overcooked Wellington, and not only was Ramsay angry about that, he was pissed about his nonchalant apology. He and Natalie were kicked out of the kitchen due to their mistakes, but while he expressed a desire to quit, Ramsay told that he would have respected him more if he told him about the overcooked Wellingtons before he sent them to the pass. After, he continued to blame Tommy for wrecking his station up.
Both teams were named joint-losers, and they were asked to nominate two each. During deliberation, Jonathon was considered for elimination by Paul, and Natalie reminded him about his overcooked Wellington he sent up. While he nominated Tommy for wrecking his initial Wellingtons, the latter argued that he did not know how to properly cook and rest meat.
Jonathon was named the blue team's second nominee for elimination, with Natalie as the first, and they joined Krupa and Jamie from the red team. During his plea, he said that he wished he did not leave the blue kitchen when ordered to when he still had to will to fight. He survived elimination.[7]
Episode 8[]
- Main article: Episode 908 - 10 Chefs Compete
After Krupa left, Ramsay asked both teams to name a leader. Back at the dorms, Jonathon nominated Will as the blue team's leader.
During the American Classics Challenge, Jonathon got pizza but got confused over Tommy's idea for the dish, and with 5 minutes left, he did not have his pizza in the oven due to Tommy’s lack of leadership, and the two hustled to try and get it ready. He was the final person from the blue team to have his dish judged, went up against Carrie, but was reluctant to come up until the blue team and Ramsay pushed him. He made a flatbread pizza, it was criticized for looking like an Italian crime, and having ingredients not needed for a pizza, but he argued that he had no input on the creative side. It was sent back without being tasted, and after returning to his team, he complained that he got fucked by Tommy again, and was made into an asshole. He did not score that round.
The blue team lost the challenge 1-2, and they were punished by cleaning and prepping both kitchens for that night’s service and clean up the dorms. Before heading back to the dorms, Ramsay warned Jonathon that he was disappearing, but he argued that he was still there. During the punishment, he complained about a neck problem, with Sous Chef Scott telling him to leave the heavy lifting to his teammates, but Paul found it too convenient for that to happen. He went back to the patio to self-care himself as he had children to look out for, and ended up sitting out the punishment and a majority of the prep work. Around 5:03 pm, he finally came downstairs but was met with a cold reception by his teammates, even though he still complained about a neck injury.
During dinner service, Jonathon was on the appetizer station with Natalie. On the U.S. Coast Guard table, Ramsay ordered him to wake up after he gave a halfhearted confirmation, and while he wanted not to look like a bitch despite his neck problems, Ramsay caught him putting in too much pasta needed. After, Ramsay lectured him to cook in separate baskets for an even cook. Then, his capellini was overcooked, and Natalie discovered that he did not put any more pasta into the pot. After, his refire tasted horrible, with Ramsay commenting that even canned pasta tasted better than that and reminded them that it was for the Coast Guard table. Despite Paul trying to get him and Natalie to talk more, he was still slow, leading Ramsay to pull him aside to the back-pantry room. While he explained about his neck problem and lack of mobility, Ramsay told him about Season 6’s Dave, who won that season despite breaking his left arm, and threatened to kick him out if he had given up. While he refused to quit, Ramsay ordered him to fight back and stop sending him shit food. Back in the kitchen, his third attempt was accepted, and their Coast Guard table was finally sent out. On entrées, he tried to help Tommy on meat but had no idea what the meat temperatures were due to the latter's lack of communication.
The blue team lost the service, and they were asked to nominate two people for elimination. During deliberation, Jonathon was considered for elimination by Will and Tommy, with Natalie accusing him of not helping her out that night, even reminding him about the capellini refires. However, he accused Natalie of pushing the blame on him, before considering her and Tommy for elimination, but while the latter argued that his only mistake was the cold steaks, he reminded him for the lack of communication again.
Jonathon was named the blue team's first nominee for elimination, with Natalie as the second. During his plea, said that he was not a quitter, and while he was not 100%, he still supported his team despite making mistakes in the past. When Ramsay asked him if he was over his head, he denied that. After, he denied being babysat by Natalie. He was eliminated for his poor performance on appetizers, being nominated three times in a row, and refusal to admit his mistakes. During his exit interview, he was disappointed in the decision and predicted that Natalie did not have much time left.
Ramsay's comment: "The only thing worse than the pain in Jonathon's neck was listening to him blame everyone else for all his mistakes. I was glad to put him out of his misery." [8]
Episode 16[]
- Main article: Episode 916 - 2 Chefs Compete
Jonathon was one of the eight returning chefs that came back for the final dinner service. He was Paul's third pick, after Elise and Elizabeth, and was followed by Carrie.
During dinner service, Jonathon was on the meat station. At one point, he sent up the steaks, but one of them was raw, and Elise discovered more raw steaks on his station. Paul ordered him to put the steaks inside the over, but he tossed a steak onto the counter in frustration, which Elise called him out on and called him a big crybaby. Then, he sent up raw steaks again and was relocated to garnish with Carrie. However, he and Elise argued over the station control, and he wanted to get back into the game. Paul eventually won the finals over Will.[9]
Nomination history[]
| Week 1 | Safe |
|---|---|
| Week 2 | Safe |
| Week 3 | Win |
| Week 4 | Safe |
| Week 5 | Safe |
| Week 6 | Nominated |
| Week 7 | Nominated |
| Week 8 | Nominated |
Post Hell's Kitchen[]
- After his appearance on the show, Jonathon became a Culinary Consultant.
- He was arrested for disorderly conduct and resisting arrest on February 22, 2018.
- On February 9, 2022, he had unfortunately passed away at 45 years old. The cause of his death was a heart attack.[10][11]
Trivia[]
- He and Dan (Season 11) are the only two Head Cooks to compete on the show.
- He is the third contestant who used pre-made food for his signature dish, following Rock (Season 3) and Salvatore (Season 7).
- He is the third contestant to be threatened with elimination at the Signature Dish Challenge, following Seth (Season 5), and Sabrina (Season 8).
Quotes[]
- "I got the Southern flavor, you know. I put a lotta flavor in the food: raw but real. So, if Chef Ramsay complains about it, well he's full o' shit, man."
- "Monterray; "I got this", yeah you just got a big old bag of what the fuck!"
- "You know, if I’d known it was that easy to bring a beautiful lady here and get everybody talking, I’d have Tommy put a dress on, man!"
- (To Chino) "You can go fuck yourself, Chino."
- "They look like a bit of a train wreck, but it was the best tastin' fuckin' train wreck you'll ever experience, man!"
- "For crying out man, I'm so sick of this, bullshit man. I'm done, I quit. He can kiss my ass."
- (After being eliminated) "This is pretty disappointing. You know, it should have been a different call. Natalie's not gonna be able to hide behind that bullshit too much longer. You know, it's just a matter of time, Chef Ramsay's gonna see through it and, you know, she'll be the next to go."
Gallery[]
%27s_Signature_Dish.png "Jonathon (S9)'s Signature Dish.png (208 KB)")
.png "Jonathon's Fire and Water Dish (Filet Mignon).png (284 KB)")
.png "Jonathon's American Classics Dish (Pizza).png (315 KB)")
References[]
| Hell's Kitchen Season 9 |
|---|
| Staff |
| Gordon Ramsay (Head Chef) • Scott Leibfried (Blue Team Sous Chef) • Andi Van Willigan-Cutspec (Red Team Sous Chef) • James Lukanik (Maître d'hôtel) |
| Contestants |
| Elizabeth Bianchi • Natalie Blake • Chino Chang • Amanda Colello • Jamie Gregorich • Brendan Heavey • Carrie Keep • Monterray Keys • Will Lustberg • Gina Melcher • Paul Niedermann • Jennifer Normant • Steven Paluba • Krupa Patel • Jonathon Plumley • Tommy Stevens • Elise Wims • Jason Zepaltas |