| “ | I just have to get my head out of my ass, Chef… | ” |
Kevin Argueta was a contestant on Season 20 of Hell's Kitchen. He ranked in 12th 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, Kevin was the fourth person from the blue team to have his dish judged by Ramsay. He went up against Megan. When Ramsay asked him about his food dream, he said he did all the cooking for the family as his parents came from El Salvador and his father wanted him to follow in his footsteps as a construction worker. However, Ramsay reminded him he was making his own footsteps. He made a ribeye with red wine sauce and potato fondants, but Ramsay was shocked that he was served the strips and not a whole ribeye. He said he did not want to give Ramsay an entire ribeye, but the latter reminded him that he did not ask before claiming it came from Skid Row. After accusing him of putting him on a diet, Ramsay gave him two points as it was disappointing. The blue team lost the challenge, and they were punished by taking in deliveries for ingredients to make stock.
The following day, the chefs saw a performance of Water on Mars' juggling act. Kevin called it intense as he could barely juggle.[1] During the Alcohol Challenge, he favored using Steve's pork chop dish in the Top Three as it was cooked perfectly. The rest of the men agreed with his claim. He lost the challenge as his dish was not called as part of the blue team's Top Three.
During the 300th dinner service, Kevin was on the appetizer station with Antonio. After seeing Mike Tyson enter the blue kitchen, he got amazed and announced the former as a boxing referee. He and Antonio were seen working on appetizers and got their first dish accepted. However, the blue team was kicked out later that night due to nobody having an idea of timings or what was going on. The blue team lost the service, and they were asked to nominate two people for elimination.
He was not nominated for elimination.[2]
Episode 3[]
- Main article: Episode 2003 - Young Guns: Come Hell or High Water!
During the Whole Squid Prep Challenge, Kevin was seen getting three of his attempts accepted. The blue team lost the challenge 14-16. They were punished by taking in seafood deliveries, breaking down 50 pounds of squid and shrimp, and eating calamari sandwiches. As both teams went back to the dorms, he was crestfallen about the men’s third loss in a row.
During dinner service, Kevin was at the fish station with Payton. He knew how crucial it was and decided to fire the scallops as soon as he heard them as the men began their first order. However, because Steve needed five minutes on tableside, Ramsay asked why he fired scallops when they usually took two minutes. Alex told him to communicate with appetizers for timings. He was not feeling great after jumping the gun. Despite that, he said he learned from his mistake from earlier and got his scallops accepted in the blue kitchen. Later, he told Jay that they had no salmon fired when the latter thought they did. Eventually, the blue team was kicked out after serving raw chicken. The blue team lost the service, and they were asked to nominate two people for elimination. During deliberation, he was not impressed by Antonio's attitude.
He was not nominated for elimination.[3]
Episode 4[]
- Main article: Episode 2004 - Young Guns: Young Guns Going Big
During the Paris Hotel Brunch Service Challenge, Kevin was at the fruit salad station. He was not seen at all, and the blue team lost the challenge. They were punished by preparing 600 boxes worth of pastries for different Caesar’s locations.
During dinner service, Kevin served a seafood chowder tableside. While he cooked tableside, he told his customers that he felt the men would bounce back that night. However, a fire erupted on his pan, and Marino warned him not to burn his dining room. Later, he told Antonio to walk the halibut after Sam walked the Wellington. Both teams were named joint losers, and they were asked to nominate two each. During deliberation, Alex told him that he got flustered on fish, but he felt he had more to give to the team. Trenton was skeptical as it was a close race between him and Alex.
Kevin was not nominated for elimination. After Alex's elimination, he welcomed Victoria, Emily, and Megan as new teammates while saying goodbye to Sam and Payton.[4]
Episode 5[]
- Main article: Episode 2005 - Young Guns: Stirring the Pot
While going back to the dorms, Kevin was ecstatic with his new teammates as he deemed Megan a badass and Victoria talented. With Emily rounding out the trio, he felt the blue team had the strongest three women and felt the blue team’s chances were high.
During the Emoji Jacket Challenge, Kevin told Emily that she was making burgers and fries. He made the fried chicken sandwich, but he second-guessed his simple dish. Then, he double-checked Antonio's recipe. He was the sixth person from the blue team to have his dish judged by Ramsay and went up against Josie. He scored that round, but in Emily's turn, it was revealed that he told her to put the onions into the sauce. The blue team lost the challenge 2-4, and they were punished by cleaning the Eiffel Tower while wearing French maid outfits.
During dinner service, Kevin was at the meat station with Victoria. At one point, he asked for two more minutes for resting, but it did not falter the blue team's momentum. Megan thought he got overwhelmed when Ramsay shouted, but he took a calm approach on the order as he did not want to freak out and cause mistakes. Using his breathing techniques, he was able to go through the order at a calm pace. It worked as Ramsay pulled him to the front and praised him for his spot-on Wellingtons. The blue team won the service.[5]
Episode 6[]
- Main article: Episode 2006 - Young Guns: A Ramsay Birthday in Hell!
Before the Megan 21st Planning Challenge, a picture of Kevin kissing a pig head at work was shown. He cooked one of the three entrées for the blue team. He was the final person from the blue team to have his dish judged and went up against Keanu. He made a New York striploin with purple potato purée. While it was praised for having a perfect cook, he lost that round to Keanu. The blue team won the challenge after a tie at three each. They were rewarded with a flow riding experience on the roof of Planet Hollywood and lunch proved by Café Hollywood. During the reward, he said it was a dream come true.
During Megan's 21st Service, Kevin was at the garnish station. At one point, he wanted to bounce back after their rough start on appetizers and wanted to lead the pack. The blue team won the service.[6]
Episode 7[]
Before the International Cuisine Challenge, Kevin said goodbye to Antonio as the latter was reassigned to the red team. During part one, he was happy to see Mexico because he grew up on Mexican food, and it was the only one that he knew the most. He picked Mexican cuisine for his dish. He tried to help Megan out by kicking a couple of cheese-based soccer balls into her Italian net. Still, Megan was not thrilled about it because it ruined her plan. He found that his steak was raw during the cooking, and with ninety seconds left, he placed it back on the grill as everyone else started to plate. Fortunately, he managed to get the steak off the grill on time as he pushed himself. He was the second person from the blue team to have his dish judged by Ramsay and went up against Antonio. He made a flank steak with grilled corn, it was criticized for having no flavors or spices, and he lost that round to Antonio.
The blue team lost the challenge 2-4, and they were punished by prepping the dining room for that night’s service, including ironing the tablecloths, polishing the silverware, and polishing the glasses. During the punishment, Kevin felt they did not need Antonio when the latter walked past them with the red team. However, Trenton thought the blue team would be stronger without him. Then, he struggled to iron a shirt and Victoria deemed him a hindrance as she thought he did not care.
During dinner service, Kevin was at the fish station. He said he never worked a central station alone besides garnish and felt the spotlight was on him. He wanted to show Ramsay that he could work no matter where. He and Emily walked their appetizers, but Ramsay found the lobster tail to be raw. He admitted that he should have felt the first lobster tail and sent up his refire. Unfortunately, it was raw again, and Ramsay forced the blue team to start over. Trenton was pissed at him for driving them straight into the ground and called him a train wreck. He was confident the third attempt was ready, but it ended up being raw yet again. Ramsay reminded the blue team that it was first order as Emily tried to calm him down. Later, he was hesitant on the fourth attempt as he could not get the previous mistakes out of his head. He had Victoria feel the lobster tails before walking them down to the front. Fortunately, the fourth attempt was accepted, but Ramsay told him to bounce back. On entrées, he struggled to bounce back after getting yelled at by Ramsay and was late on the salmon. With entrées dragging on his salmon, Ramsay said he did not want an overcooked lamb. Trenton compared his communication to pulling teeth as he kept asking for one minute. Fed up with that, Ramsay brought the blue team to the pass and lectured them that they needed to push each other instead of dragging. The lamb came out overcooked, which was Ramsay’s concern earlier, and the blue team was ordered to wake up. Megan had no words about his poor performance and was ready to punch him in the throat. Then, he did not answer Steve’s questions for a time, further frustrating Ramsay as there was no teamwork in the blue kitchen. So, Ramsay pulled the blue team into the pantry and asked what was going on with him. He said he had to pull his head out of his ass, but Ramsay told him that he screwed up every table he touched that night. So, Ramsay eliminated him on the spot and asked the blue team if they wanted to join him. As he returned to the dorms to pack, he was frustrated that he could not bounce back. During his exit interview, he was devastated that he shut down and felt he let his family down as he left with his bags packed.[7]
Ramsay gave no comment on his elimination, and he did not receive the coat hanging and portrait burning sequence. However his jacket and burnt picture were briefly shown during Keanu and Josie's coat hanging sequence. He received the full portrait burning sequence during the recap on Episode 16.[8]
Nomination History[]
| Week 1 | Safe |
|---|---|
| Safe | |
| Week 2 | Safe |
| Week 3 | Safe |
| Week 4 | Win |
| Week 5 | Win |
| Week 6 | Ejected |
Post Hell's Kitchen[]
- After his appearance on the show, Kevin is Executive Sous Chef at Krispy Rice, which has mixed-to-negative reviews.
Trivia[]
- He is the second contestant of Central-American descent (El Salvador) of Hell's Kitchen, following Fabiola (Season 19), who was of Honduran descent.
- He is the eleventh contestant, last one to date, to be eliminated during dinner service, following Josh (Season 3), J, Lacey (both from Season 5), Louie (Season 6), Nilka (Season 7), Gabriel (Season 12), Kevin (Season 15), Josh (Season 17), Jen (Season 18), and Peter (Season 19). He is also the fifth contestant to have done so that was sent out the front entrance of the restaurant, following Gabriel (Season 12), Josh (Season 17), Jen (Season 18), and Peter (Season 19).
- He is the third contestant to this date to be eliminated mid-service without any nominations, following Louie (Season 6) and Jen (Season 18), and the first with this feat to have been eligible at any point.
- He is the fifth mid-service ejected contestant eliminated who was on the fish station, following J (Season 5), Nilka (Season 7), Gabriel (Season 12), and Kevin (Season 15).
- He is the eighth contestant, and fifth male contestant who was never nominated for elimination that did not made it to the black jackets throughout their run, following Jim (Season 6), Salvatore (Season 7), Gina (Season 9), Bret (Season 14), Andrew (Season 16), Jennifer (Season 17), and Kanae (Season 18).
- He is the only contestant to date who ranked in 12th place and had zero nominations.
Quotes[]
- "The first ticket is always very crucial, that's what sets the tone for the night."
- ”I just have to get my head out of my ass, Chef…”
- (After mid-service elimination) "I tried to bounce right back, but I just couldn't find it in myself, and I'm just very disappointed in everything that happened. It's very devastating. I mean, I did not expect it to turn this way. I've never been put up for elimination, and it's just one careless mistake. I think I just shut down today and took me down. It just sucks I didn't just let myself down, but my family back home, my friends, and it just really sucks."
Gallery[]
_in_Blue_Jacket.png "Kevin (S20) in Blue Jacket.png (910 KB)")
%27s_Confessional.png "Kevin (S20)'s Confessional.png (1.08 MB)")
_Eliminated_Mid-Service_(Part_1).png "Kevin (S20) Eliminated Mid-Service (Part 1).png (1.3 MB)")
_Eliminated_Mid-Service_(Part_2).png "Kevin (S20) Eliminated Mid-Service (Part 2).png (1.84 MB)")
_Eliminated_Mid-Service_(Part_3).png "Kevin (S20) Eliminated Mid-Service (Part 3).png (1.27 MB)")
%27s_Signature_Dish.png "Kevin (S20)'s Signature Dish.png (1.18 MB)")
%27s_Jacket_Dish_(Fried_Chicken_Sandwich).png "Kevin (S20)'s Jacket Dish (Fried Chicken Sandwich).png (1.26 MB)")
%27s_Megan_21st_Birthday_Entr%C3%A9e.png "Kevin (S20)'s Megan 21st Birthday Entrée.png (1.68 MB)")
%27s_International_Dish_(Mexican_Cuisine).png "Kevin (S20)'s International Dish (Mexican Cuisine).png (1.7 MB)")
External links[]
Kevin Argueta 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 |