“ | I feel super fancy. So, hopefully I look fancy. | ” |
Keona "Keanu" Hogan was a contestant on Season 20 of Hell's Kitchen. She ranked in 11th place.
Season 20[]
Episode 1/2[]
- Main article: Episode 2001 - Young Guns: Young Guns Come Out Shooting
- Main article: Episode 2002 - Young Guns: Temping the Meat
The eighteen Young Guns arrive at Las Vegas on a bus heading to Hell's Kitchen, and they drove past the real Hell's Kitchen restaurant. The bus arrived at Hell's Kitchen, where Marino greeted the chefs. Marino explained that Ramsay created a museum to celebrate the past nineteen seasons in honor of the twentieth season. Giving the tour were Shakala and Sean, who led the chefs into the museum. As the chefs toured the museum, they saw photos of past contestants, hung jackets, the Hell's Kitchen Wall of Fame, and lines said from the past seasons. Then, they see video clips of moments from the show. The last stop was an exhibit of the doors used to reveal the winner of each season. Sean said that the final part of the tour was a documentary film about the show's history. However, the curtain pulled back to reveal an audience waiting for them and Ramsay on a stage behind them. Once on stage, Ramsay explained that the museum was meant to showcase the past, while the eighteen of them were the future. Ramsay added that the desire to become a chef was a dream for many young people, and food has evolved over the years since the show began. So, Ramsay announced that the winner of that season would become his protégé and become the new Head Chef at Gordon Ramsay Steak at the Paris Hotel in Las Vegas. Afterwards, Ramsay announced the Signature Dish Challenge and gave the chefs 45 minutes to cook their dishes.
During the Signature Dish Challenge, Keanu was the second person from the red team to have her dish judged by Ramsay and went up against Matthew. When it was revealed that Matthew failed to clean his shrimp properly, she reminded him to clean the poop out. She explained that she had a tough upbringing in Baltimore, but she fought hard before presenting her Cajun alfredo pasta with scallops, grilled blackened shrimp, and crab. She told Ramsay that the inspiration for the dish came because she loved alfredo and spice. While Ramsay liked the seasoning and the cook on the shrimp, he told her to cut down on the serving. Despite that, she scored four points, and Emily was happy to have her on the team. The red team won the challenge 30-28, and they were rewarded with dinner at Gordon Ramsay Steak 2.0 and had three previous winners joining them: Season 17 Michelle, Season 18 Ariel, and Sous Chef Christina.[1]
During the Alcohol Challenge, Keanu lost the challenge as her dish was not in the red team's Top Three. Brynn called her one of the people in the bottom three, and she was the second person from the red team to have her dish judged by Ramsay. Ramsay was surprised because she came in strong with her signature dish. She presented her grilled pork chop with crispy sweet potatoes and bourbon sauce, but it was dry due to the lack of fat. After her review, she got upset because she did not want to go home and refused to stop fighting. Ramsay did not nominate her.
During the 300th dinner service, Keanu was on the garnish station. She was not seen much, except for calling it amazing that the red team served their entrées with no mistakes. The red team won the service.[2]
Episode 3[]
- Main article: Episode 2003 - Young Guns: Come Hell or High Water!
Back at the dorms, Keanu said she heard of a man pouring maple syrup over one woman’s body, leading her and Emily to comment on how weird men were.
Before the Whole Squid Prep Challenge, Keanu was stunned at how fast Ramsay did the cleaning and was not confident about matching his speed. She got two attempts accepted. The red team won the challenge 16-14, and they were rewarded with an off-road racing experience at Speed Vegas and eating lunch provided by BLT Steak. During the reward, she swore she would make her car her bitch and thanked Ramsay for the reward. During lunch, she and Victoria loved their steaks.
During dinner service, Keanu was on the appetizer station with Kiya. She was not seen that night, and the red team won the service.[3]
Episode 4[]
- Main article: Episode 2004 - Young Guns: Young Guns Going Big
Back at the dorms, Keanu asked the men to show some strength as she wanted an actual competition.
During the Paris Hotel Brunch Service Challenge, Keanu was at the eggs Benedict station with Kiya. She was not seen at all, and the red team won the challenge. They were rewarded with a Caesars Entertainment’s Private Jet ride to see locales such as the Paris Strip, Hoover Dam, and the Grand Canyon. They also won a staycation at Planet Hollywood’s mega-suite. During the reward, she felt fancy as the women and Steve looked outside to see the locations Ramsay mentioned. At Planet Hollywood, she and Emily danced in robes and were joined by Steve.
During dinner service, Keanu served a seafood chowder tableside. She was not seen that night. Both teams were named joint losers and were asked to nominate two each. During deliberation, she nominated Victoria and Brynn, the former for not communicating that night. Then, she recalled Josie’s burnt pizza and changed her vote from Victoria to the latter.
Keanu was not nominated for elimination. After Alex's elimination, she said goodbye to Victoria, Emily, and Megan as they were reassigned to the blue team and welcomed Sam and Payton as new teammates. While being dismissed, she was unsure with Sam and Payton and knew it would be challenging to whip them into shape.[4]
Episode 5[]
- Main article: Episode 2005 - Young Guns: Stirring the Pot
During the Emoji Jacket Challenge, Keanu told Kiya to make fish and chips, but she struggled to decipher Payton's dish. She made the eggplant parmesan. She was the fifth person from the red team to have her dish judged by Ramsay and went up against Megan. She won that round as she successfully followed the recipe. The red team won the challenge 4-2, and they were rewarded with a ride on the High Roller and lunch at Chayo. During the reward, she worked on the mechanical bull before falling off.
During dinner service, Keanu was at the meat station with Josie. When Payton sent the wrong garnishes, she was not happy with his poor performance as she yelled out the correct garnishes. Later, she tried to calm Morgana down when the latter struggled on fish. The red team was kicked out after multiple mistakes, and on their way back, she cried. The red team lost the service, and they were asked to nominate three people for elimination. During deliberation, Josie considered her due to shouting, but she disagreed. She felt they were nominating her out of intimidation and said they had no proof.
Keanu was named the red team's third nominee for elimination, with Payton as the first and Morgana as the second. Josie said she was nominated because she looked scrambled. However, she argued that she was not, and Ramsay agreed with her. So, Ramsay told her to stay in line, therefore surviving elimination. While being dismissed, she said she would not stop fighting and said karma would get to the people that threw her under the bus.[5]
Episode 6[]
- Main article: Episode 2006 - Young Guns: A Ramsay Birthday in Hell!
During the Megan 21st Planning Challenge, Keanu made one of the three entrées for the red team. She was the final person from the red team to have her dish judged and went up against Kevin. She made smoked shrimp and grits, and after Ramsay bugged Megan about smoking, they enjoyed the dish. She won that round. The red team lost the challenge after a three-point tie. They were punished by decorating the dining room for the party under the instructions of a strict party planner. She knew that it was not a day to make mistakes and called the punishment a serious one. During the punishment, she said she had ten paper cuts while folding the candy boxes.
During Megan's 21st dinner service, Keanu was at the appetizer station. After Payton's Pad Thai was sent back for being bland, she accused his brain of being noodles. Later, she was one of the five people responsible for the lamb as she put it into the oven. Unfortunately, it came out raw, and Ramsay kicked the red team out of the kitchen. The red team lost the service, and they were asked to nominate three people for elimination. During deliberation, she got frustrated by Payton's lack of answer about the Pad Thai because he was responsible for cooking the dish for Megan.
She was not nominated for elimination.[6]
Episode 7[]
During the International Cuisine Challenge, Keanu picked Greek cuisine. However, she struggled to make a Greek dish as she never made one before and decided to grill her lamb. She was the final person from the red team to have her dish judged and went up against Trenton. She made a grilled lamb chop with baba ghanoush purée but was concerned about the cook of the lamb. Fortunately, Michael Cimarusti praised the lamb for being right in the wheelhouse of Greek cuisine and having a perfect cook. Cimarusti gave her the win with no further thought, and the red team won the challenge 4-2. She was proud to the point of tearing up because that was why she came to Hell’s Kitchen. After Cimarusti left, Ramsay had her claim the trophy for the red team because she scored the winning point.
The red team was rewarded with a pool party at the Flamingo Hotel and Casino with a private performance poolside. As the red team went up to change, Keanu felt good and said winning felt better than sex. During the reward, she called it the best day of Hell’s Kitchen as she, Sam, and Brynn jumped into the pool with flamingo rings.
During dinner service, Keanu was at the garnish station. After Sam served undercooked scallops, she had to babysit him because she did not want to get kicked out again. On their first order of entrées, she wanted to step up as a leader and refused to go down. However, a communication breakdown occurred as she and Josie were not at the same timings for meat and garnish. Josie told her to be on time. As she cooked the garnish, she got frustrated by the constant questions for a time. Despite that, the red team got their order out, and she told Brynn she was fine after the latter asked. She said that the red team needed to listen to her because she had it. Both teams were named joint winners.[7]
Episode 8[]
- Main article: Episode 2008 - Young Guns: A Devilish Challenge
Before the Relay Challenge, Keanu hoped to see Ramsay dance, but he did not. She got some stretches in before the challenge began. In the third round, she found leftover couscous and lentils to save the red team’s garnishes after a mix-up in the previous round. In the sixth round, she was flustered due to the lack of time. When the red team's New York Striploin was praised for its cook, she was not surprised because Kiya always killed it. When it was revealed that the sauce for their salmon tasted salty, she told Josie that lobster butter was a salty product. She dismayingly compared the situation to the International Cuisine Challenge and thought Josie’s veganism was starting to hurt them.
The red team won the challenge 3-1 and were rewarded with a zip lining experience at High Link, going over the Vegas Strip, and having lunch at the Strip Bistro Bar. Keanu was excited to leave again. During the reward, she felt she was flying and saw all the buildings and people while going down.
Later that day, Ramsay held one on one meetings with the chefs. Because the chefs did not know it yet, Keanu and Megan joked that it could have been eliminations. She was the fifth person to have her meeting. Ramsay said she had skills but felt she was too reserved. She said she was judged a lot growing up and pulled away, but Ramsay told her not to use it in the second half because he knew she opened her own business.
Later that evening, Ramsay announced the Cook For Your Life Challenge and Keanu was named one of the five chefs deemed the weakest. She competed against Josie, Victoria, Emily, and Sam. During the cooking, she was mad that she was in the challenge because she knew what to do and decided to make a four-spice rub. Sous Chef Christina told her not to get inside her head, and she refused to go home without winning. Ten minutes left, the safe chefs saw a pork chop flame up on the grill. It turned out to be hers, which left one side charred. Still, she thought it brought out a rustic charm to her dish and hoped it was perfect in the middle. She was the fourth person to have her dish judged by Ramsay. She was confident in her flavors, deemed the dish home-worthy, and felt she would not go home. She made a grilled pork chop with blackened seasoning and apple bourbon spice sauce. While praised for the potatoes and sprouts, it was criticized for the charred side. Ramsay wished that she seared the pork chop less because the pork came out overcooked despite the flavors being good. Her dish was deemed weaker compared to Emily and Victoria's dishes, and she was eliminated. Still, Ramsay called her a firecracker with a tenacious mind and thought she did both her parents and Baltimore proud. She promised Ramsay she would keep her head up high. During her exit interview, she did not expect to go home now, but she refused to let it knock her down and was proud to make it far.
Ramsay's Comment: "Keanu has many of the important attributes required to be a great chef, but when her pork went up in flames, so did her chances of continuing in this competition."[8]
Nomination History[]
Week 1 | Nominated |
---|---|
Win | |
Week 2 | Win |
Week 3 | Safe |
Week 4 | Nominated |
Week 5 | Safe |
Week 6 | Win |
Week 7 | Nominated |
Post Hell's Kitchen[]
- After her appearance in the show, Keanu returned to Thee Perfect Bite, her dining services company.
Trivia[]
- She and Kiya (also from Season 20), are the second and third contestants from the state of Maryland, following Mieka (Season 14).
- She is the sixth contestant and fifth female contestant to be eliminated on the Cook For Your Life Challenge, following Jessica (Season 12), Christine (Season 14), Giovanni (Season 17), Gizzy (Season 18), and Lauren (Season 19).
Quotes[]
- (To Matthew about his dish) "Gotta get the poop out."
- (After winning a challenge for her team) "No one feels as good as I do right now, no one. This feels better than sex."
- "I feel super fancy. So, hopefully I look fancy."
- (After being eliminated) "I was not ready to go home, but I'm not gonna let this knock me down, for sure. If anything, it has awoken a fire in me. I'm just happy to had made it this far. I'm just so proud of myself. I'm, like, look, Mom I really made it.
Gallery[]
External links[]
Keanu Hogan on Instagram
References[]
Hell's Kitchen: Young Guns |
---|
Staff |
Gordon Ramsay (Head Chef) • Jay Santos (Blue Team Sous Chef) • Christina Wilson (Red Team Sous Chef) • Marino Monferrato (Maître d'hôtel) |
Contestants |
Kevin Argueta • Josie Clemens • Payton Cooper • Sam Garman • Trenton Garvey • Brynn Gibson • Megan Gill • Steve Glenn • Ava Harren • Emily Hersh • Keanu Hogan • Matthew Francis Johnson • Alex Lenik • Antonio Ruiz • Jay Smith • Victoria Sonora • Morgana Vesey • Kiya Wilhelm |