“ | Everybody who saw my fun muffins, you all owe me $20. | ” |
Mary Lou Davis was a contestant on Season 19 of Hell's Kitchen. She was the runner-up of that season.
Season 19[]
Episode 1/2[]
- Main article: Episode 1901 - Welcome To Vegas
- Main article: Episode 1902 - Shrimply Spectacular
The eighteen new chefs arrived at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas as Ramsay wanted them to see the first official Hell's Kitchen Restaurant. Mary Lou could not believe she was in Las Vegas, expressed a lot of mixed emotions, and revealed the last time she was in Las Vegas was when she turned twenty-one and saw the Chippendales. Marino greeted the chefs at the front doors and took them inside the restaurant. As the chefs drank champagne, they got to know each other. Eventually, Ramsay came in, starstrucking her as she wanted to touch Ramsay to make sure he was real. Ramsay explained that the Hell's Kitchen Restaurant was built on the show's eighteen-season legacy and revealed that it was one of the highest-grossing restaurants in America. Ramsay revealed that he brought them to the restaurant for inspiration because the winner of that season would become the Head Chef at the brand-new Hell's Kitchen Restaurant in Lake Tahoe. Ramsay admitted that they would not be competing in the real Hell's Kitchen restaurant due to the demand, so they would be going to Los Angeles to compete. The chefs returned to the bus to head to the airport, Marino handed out the tickets, and once arriving at the strip, they see a helicopter revving up with Ramsay taking it and flying off. After some time, the chefs were called in for boarding, but as the chefs walked through the doors, they found themselves standing inside the restaurant. Then, Ramsay appeared in his chef jacket, confusing her as she just saw him fly off in a helicopter. Ramsay revealed that Hell's Kitchen would take place in Las Vegas for the first time in the show's history and had some performers do some shows for the chefs. While the chefs could not do any of the tricks they saw, they reaffirmed that they could indeed cook to Ramsay.
During the Signature Dish Challenge, Mary Lou went up against Eliott, they were the first pair to play for their ingredients, and she said she was confident with anything except for rice. They received salmon, Brussel sprouts, and brown rice, upsetting her. During the cooking, she asked Fabiola if rice was a two to one ratio, said that she was terrible at cooking rice, and was distraught at receiving brown rice as it took 35–40 minutes to cook. She was the fifth person from the red team to have her dish judged by Ramsay, but before tasting the dish, he asked he about her purple hair. She revealed that she dyed her hair thanks to her mother, who was a hairstylist, before adding on that it was pink before. She made a blackened salmon with rice pilaf. While it was praised for on-point seasoning, it was criticized for having raw rice on the plate, with Ramsay forcing her to eat the rice much to her embarrassment. With that, she received two points, dismaying her as she did not want to be seen as the weak link.
The red team lost the challenge 27-28, and they were punished by cleaning the Caesars Palace's fountain. During the punishment, crowds of people came by and took pictures of them, causing Mary Lou to ask if she was an animal. Jordan made a bright spot of their situation that they got to clean the statues of hell, making her and Fabiola laugh. However, Amber was not happy that the three were not taking the punishment seriously, and Sous Chef Christina called them out for making light of their situation.[1]
During the Creative Shrimp Challenge, Mary Lou made an unknown dish and lost the challenge because she was not called as one of the top three chefs from the red team.
During prep, Mary Lou asked who was on fish, with Nikki saying that she was, and she said the best-case scenario was making the men their bitch, while the worst case was that she fuck up everything, go back home, everybody calls her a loser, and she cries. During dinner service, she was on the meat station with Fabiola. When the women were on entrées, she said that if she could not cook a steak, she could be kicked out of Texas, planning to go in guns a-blazing. However, her steak was boiled, and the women were forced to refire the order. While Amber offered to cook the refired steak, she wanted to redeem herself or take the blame. Despite having her heart pounding in her chest, her steak was cooked perfectly. The red team won the service.[2]
Episode 3[]
- Main article: Episode 1903 - Hell Caesar!
During the Caesar Salad Challenge, Mary Lou struggled to get her scooter to move, and Nikki told her to make sure she did not drop the salad. She was seen getting two attempts accepted by Ramsay, but after seeing Syann move slowly on her scooter, she complained that not only could she walk faster than her, but so could her grandma on her walker. The red team won the challenge 10-8, and they were rewarded with a dune buggy experience in the Nevada desert. During the reward, she and Kori saw Las Vegas from the horizon.
During dinner service, Mary Lou was on the fish station with Syann. When Jordan struggled to get in sync with times, she saw the former die inside and get overwhelmed. After Ramsay berated Jordan for screwing up her team's pacing, she knew Ramsay did not want to look like an asshole. Later, Lauren asked her for help on the duck, but she was not happy that the former was intimidated by the duck as she should have had it down earlier and received more questions from Lauren. When Ramsay asked for a time, he was not happy when Lauren said nine minutes and was more confused why she was on meat. A befuddled Ramsay asked Lauren and Jordan what was going on, but the former only responded with "yes chef" instead of a proper answer, while Jordan went silent yet again until she prompted the latter.
The red team lost the service, and they were asked to nominate two chefs for elimination. During deliberation, Lauren accused the women of being full of shit as her food has been perfect, but Mary Lou retorted that while the former could stay Flawless Lawless, she did not get dirty like everyone else. Then, she considered Nikki for elimination.
She was not nominated for elimination.[3]
Episode 4[]
- Main article: Episode 1904 - Wedding Bells In Hell
During the Wedding Brunch Service Challenge, Mary Lou was on the grilling station. At one point, she called it daunting to serve the married couples their first meal after getting married and wanted them to look back fondly on their steaks. Fortunately, she got the steaks accepted, with Ramsay praising the color of them, making her feel phenomenal. The red team won the service, and they were rewarded with an overnight trip to Lake Tahoe, where they would ride snowmobiles in the mountains and stay at the Harrah's Hotel and Casino. During the reward, she said she should buy a motorcycle after that day, and later, she drank her champagne fast but argued that there was no rule against drinking it fast.
Before dinner service, Mary Lou said goodbye to Amber as the latter was reassigned to the blue team. During dinner service, she was on tableside. She was not seen that night, both teams were named joint losers, and they were asked to nominate two each. During deliberation, she felt that the blue team ruined the red team's classy discussion after seeing Declan and Marc argue.
She was not nominated for elimination.[4]
Episode 5[]
- Main article: Episode 1905 - Hell Starts Taking Its Toll
During the Mexican Cuisine Challenge, Mary Lou immediately paired up with Kori due to the latter having the most experience cooking with Mexican food. They decided to cook the Chile Relleno and enchiladas. When gathering their ingredients, she grabbed a pig so her and Kori's enchilada would use pork, but Ramsay warned her not to put her face too close to the cow's butt. She and Kori completed their pork enchilada ingredients first, and later, they gathered their ingredients for their duck Chile Relleno. The red team won the first part, and they received 45 minutes of cooking. During the cooking, Kori showed her how to prep a cactus paddle. On their first dish, they were the first pair from the red team to have their dish judged and went up against Adam. They made an enchiladas de puerco with green mole, but to Aarón Sanchez's reluctance, he called the presentation problematic as the colors were muted, there was too much cheese on the plate, and the enchilada was breaking up. While Aarón praised the mole sauce, he found it the wrong type of filing for an enchilada, and they lost that round to Adam. On their second dish, they were the final pair to have their dish judged, and they went up against the pair of Cody and Declan. After seeing Cody and Declan's Chile Relleno, she said it looked like a fried avocado. They made a duck de pato Chile Relleno, but while Aarón liked the presentation, he found the filling to be a mess, and neither pair scored that round.
The red team lost the challenge after a two-point tie, and they were punished by cleaning the animals in the pen, scoop up the manure, and clean up the hay bales before that night's dinner service. Back at the dorms, Amber vented about Marc to Mary Lou and Jordan, and she expressed her distaste of the guy. Later, she watched the blue team's drama with glee. During the punishment, one of the cows pooped, and she said that shovelling shit was not on her top ten list of things to do in Las Vegas before wanting to go into the spa instead. As she and Cody cleaned the pigs, the latter managed to calm his down, leading her to comment that she was starting to like Cody more than the first time she saw him.
During dinner service, Mary Lou was on the appetizer station with Lauren. At one point, she noticed Lauren being nervous near the pizza oven and compared it to doggy paddling in the shallow end while wearing water wings. Later, she was seen communicating with Kori. Although both teams were named joint winners, Ramsay asked them to name one nominee each.
She was not nominated for elimination.[5]
Episode 6[]
- Main article: Episode 1906 - Metal & Marina
Before the Modern Italian Cuisine Challenge, Mary Lou rocked out with Spandex Nation. She went up against Declan, and she smashed a guitar to reveal chicken parmesan as their dish. During the cooking, Lauren needed her help to work the pasta machine. She was the final person from the red team to have her dish judged and needed a perfect 9 to give the red team the win. She explained that her chicken parmesan had a sauce made of grilled tomatoes with balsamic and sugar in it, hoping they would call it phenomenal, but the judges could only call it interesting. While she hoped she could win it, she only scored three guitars as, despite having a perfectly cooked chicken, the sugar ruined it for them. The red team lost the challenge 28-33, and they were punished by making hand-made pasta, prepping tomatoes, and making pesto.
During the Italian Night dinner service, Mary Lou was on the meat station with Syann. When she saw Jordan struggle on fish, she offered to help, but she could tell by the latter's raised eyebrow she was in no mood to talk. Later, she told Syann to make love to their lamb, causing the latter to start flirting with the protein. When they walked up their meat proteins, Ramsay sent it back as the lamb was raw, and she took the blame for it. Fortunately, she got the refire accepted, promised that it would not happen again, and Syann thanked god for the refire before trying to hug her. However, she told her not to do that in front of Ramsay. On their final ticket, she felt that her team deemed her a weak link on the red team but deemed herself a lioness. The red team won the service.[6]
Episode 7[]
- Main article: Episode 1907 - A Pair Of Aces
Back at the dorms, Mary Lou and Lauren decided to change for a hot tub session, and Syann jokingly flirted with the two when they walked went to the hot tub.
During the Protein Identification Challenge, Mary Lou was paired up with Lauren, they were the first pair from the red team to compete, and they did a dish that contained pork and mussels. Their first attempt, chicken and clams, was incorrect, and another taste had them grab pork and mussels. Their second attempt was correct, and she was happy they got it in 53 seconds. The red team won the challenge as the blue team failed to beat their time of 8 minutes and 46 seconds, and they were rewarded with a flow riding experience on top of the Planet Hollywood roof. During the reward, she held on before wiping out, and her bra came a bit undone. Then, she said that everybody who saw her fun muffins owed her twenty dollars.
When the red team came back from their reward, Amber talked with Mary Lou about how the red team was more supportive than the blue team and asked what she can do. She suggested that Amber try to survive for one more day because if the blue team lost another member, then a red chef would join them, and she wanted the latter to stay. During dinner service, she was on the appetizer station with Lauren. At one point, she communicated with Syann, and they got their appetizers accepted. Later, she told Syann not to sell her salmon as the skin looked burnt. The red team lost the service, and they were asked to nominate two people for elimination.
Mary Lou was not nominated for elimination, but after announcing Kori as their second nominee, Ramsay asked why. She explained that the red team had a miscommunication in the kitchen because of garnish, but Ramsay found Kori's nomination to be bullshit.[7]
Episode 8[]
- Main article: Episode 1908 - Crapping Out in Hell
During the Craps Challenge, Mary Lou said she was not a gambler, but she was a lucky person that people could feed off her. She rolled an M and picked monkfish despite never cooking before. She was the fourth person from the red team to have her dish judged by Ramsay and presented her sesame-crusted monkfish with crispy rice cakes. While Ramsay praised the cook of the monkfish, he did not think the rice was sticky enough, giving her 3 points. The red team lost the challenge after a 19 point tie, and they were punished by prepping Wellingtons for both the restaurant and for Gordon Ramsay Steak, which included preparing the mushrooms for the duxelle.
Later that day, Ramsay gave Nikki the responsibility of interviewing the red team and naming two nominees. Back at the dorms, Nikki tells Mary Lou that the red team sees her as a team member and not standing out with her voice, but she said she did not want to scream at people as everybody back home could hear her. She was not nominated by Nikki and did not have to participate in the Cook For Your Life Challenge.[8]
Episode 9[]
- Main article: Episode 1909 - Blind Taste Test
The next day, Mary Lou gave Declan one of her blonde wigs to wear and introduced him as Donna.
Before the Blind Taste Test, Mary Lou tasted her milkshake but incorrectly said pineapple when it was orange. She was the third person from the red team to compete and went up against Amber. She could only get spinach and peas correct, resulting in Kori getting the ice cream dunk. During Jordan's turn, she got the ice cream dunk and licked herself. The red team lost the challenge 8-10, and they were punished by taking in delivery of beef and prepping them for Steak Night.
During the Steak Night dinner service, Mary Lou was on the garnish station. She was not seen much, except for being excited to be on garnish as she started calling out orders to the red team. The red team won the service, much to her glee.[9]
Episode 10[]
- Main article: Episode 1910 - There's Something About Marc
When the red team returned to the dorms, they heard Marc and Cody's argument from the hallway, leading Mary Lou to wonder if they should open the doors.
Before the Five Protein Burger Challenge, Mary Lou was excited as she loved a good juicy burger. She cooked the lamb burger, and after seeing Amber introduce herself to Laurent Tourondel in French, she showed annoyance. She was the final person from the red team to have her dish judged and went up against the blue team's lamb burger, presented by Cody. She made a lamb burger with poblano peppers, poblano caramel, and feta cheese, and Tourondel praised it for the peppers being cooked inside the patty while Ramsay liked how the feta lifted the burger. Afterwards, she winked at Tourondel, claiming it was involuntary based on the praise she received. She scored over the blue team, and the red team won the challenge 3-2.
The red team was rewarded with a trip to Dig This, which included crushing cars in a construction site. As the red team went up to change, Mary Lou felt validated to give the red team the win and felt more confident. During the reward, she saw that a dummy wore a blue jacket, and Nikki jokingly compared it to Josh. As the red team smashed cars with the backhoes, she called it a metaphor for who she was.
Before dinner service, Mary Lou decided to go on the appetizer station. When working on the twelve-top table, she wanted to get the order out in seven minutes and wanted to win as she wanted to prove to Ramsay she was not just a purple-colored hair woman and wanted respect. Fortunately, her appetizers were accepted, and she called herself a Rockstar. The red team won the service.[10]
Episode 11[]
- Main article: Episode 1911 - Sink or Swim
Back at the dorms, Cody and Mary Lou were playing cards with her beating him. The two acted friendly throughout as Cody called her pretty, and she found him to be nice. As the two played their card game, Kori and Amber walked by, but while the former called it cute, she warned her not to let her feelings get in the way. Afterwards, she beat Cody and did a celebratory booty dance.
Before the Spells Kitchen Challenge, Mary Lou got excited as she loved game shows. During part one, she went up twice. During her first attempt, she got none of the ingredients, and during her second attempt, she got watercress, basmati rice, and tomato. She kept the basmati rice while sending the watercress and tomato to the blue team's ribeye and halibut, respectively. She worked on the halibut alongside Nikki, and during the cooking, she began plating as she felt confident by her presentation. Before the judging, her dish was chosen for the red team's representation. She was the final person from the red team to have her dish judged by Ramsay and went up against Cody. She made a pan-seared halibut with whipped guacamole and rice pilaf, and while Ramsay loved the cook of the halibut, he compared the smear of the guacamole to a smear on his grandad's underpants. That comment greatly embarrassed her but she felt that her flavors still gave her a chance to win.
The red team lost the challenge 2-3, and they were punished by baking 600 twill cookies. Mary Lou felt she was why they lost the challenge, which took a big hit to her confidence. When the red team went back to the dorms, she left to be alone as Nikki saw how upset she was over their loss as Kori and Jordan comforted her. However, she felt that she lost her confidence after that challenge, especially after seeing how close they were to getting Vitamix blenders. During the punishment, she found the task difficult as they had to be rolled while they were piping hot, but she and Kori managed to get a good system down.
During the Charity Night dinner service, Mary Lou could not believe that Nikki miscounted the scallop plates after Ramsay found out they served ten instead of twelve. She was in charge of the spring pea risotto course and wanted to bounce back after their shitty start. When the red team began to plate, she tried to tell Nikki to plate the salad garnish, but the latter got confused as Jordan and Kori were doing it as well, only for Sous Chef Christina sternly tell Nikki to listen to her. Despite that, the course was sent out. Both teams were named joint losers, and they were asked to nominate one each. During deliberation, she called that day a fail and asked what was worse, being sent back or being sent out late.
Mary Lou was not nominated for elimination, and while being dismissed, she felt the blue team's morale was low while she was looking to getting a black jacket.[11]
Episode 12[]
- Main article: Episode 1912 - There's Magic In Hell?
The next day, the Sous Chefs took the chefs out to see a VIP show of Criss Angel, but when they went into a service elevator, Mary Lou compared it to the movie Saw and wondered if Ramsay would make them duel to the death. The chefs saw Angel do his routine to their amazement, and afterwards, Ramsay said there was one more trick Angel had. Angel revealed a 360-spinning box and unveiled it to reveal four models in black jackets, confirming that it was time for the Black Jackets Challenge.
During the first Black Jackets Challenge, which was Taste It Now Make It, Mary Lou used cauliflower and butternut squash for the purées and cod for the fish purée. For the salad, she saw a white component to it that had her use endive and green apples and believed she had a chance to win a black jacket. She won the first black jacket as she had all the components correct, and she spent the rest of the day in the Black Jacket Lounge. After feeling validated, she stepped into the lounge and was blown away by the amount of entertainment she had in store. Later, she welcomed Declan.
While waiting for the rest of the chefs, Declan asked Mary Lou who she thought would get a black jacket, and she felt that Kori was the most confident about her skills. Later, she was happy to see Cody arrive as she wanted him to get a black jacket.[12]
Episode 13[]
- Main article: Episode 1913 - It's Time!
Back at the dorms, Cody and Mary Lou met up for a hot tub trip as she wanted to relax after a hard day. Cody said he was proud of her for getting the first black jacket of the season and called her a light in the tunnel.
During the 5 Dome Challenge, Mary Lou grabbed veal chop, parsnip, corn, and feta cheese for her dish. She was the last person to grab her protein, which was veal chop, and it was a protein she never cooked before. Then, she quickly grabbed corn, upsetting Kori as she wanted that instead of the tomatillo. When she grabbed feta cheese, she wondered what she could do with that as it did not work with her ingredients. However, after mixing it with scallions and corn, she felt she had it. She was the third person to have her dish judged and presented her veal chop with parsnip purée, pickled corn, charred scallions, and feta cheese crème fraiche. It was deemed tasty and being a refined dish, and she was able to dethrone Declan, although Cody was not surprised as her dish turned things up. Then, she survived over Cody, but when it came down to her and Kori, Michael Cimarusti asked the two women to come up so they could traditionally raise one's arm. In the end, Cimarusti raised her arm, making her the winner, and she warned everyone to watch out for her.
Mary Lou was rewarded with driving luxury sports cars and lunch at the Palm Las Vegas with the Sous Chefs. Also, she could pick somebody to come on the reward with her, and she picked Kori, disappointing Cody as he thought she would have picked him. Then, Ramsay told her that there was a surprise waiting for her in the dorms, and when she and Kori went back upstairs, she found an All-Clad cooking set for her. During the reward, she and Kori drove their sports cars around the racetrack, with their instructors guiding them throughout the course. At lunch, she was ecstatic about her lunch but expressed concern about Amber due to her being emotional and having to calm her down after the men kept nominating her. Sous Chef Jason suggests that they communicate with the men as they could cook, but she did not know what the men would be like during dinner service.
When Mary Lou and Kori came back from their reward, she declared that she was going fast that night. During dinner service, she was on the garnish station. She got vocal with the team and had her dishes accepted. When Amber struggled, the former needed her help to watch her scallops, and she walked Amber's halibut, which was accepted. Later, she walked up a raw halibut Amber cooked, with her feeling bad about that.
After service, Ramsay asked the final five to name two people for elimination. During deliberation, Mary Lou asked about Declan's temper but agreed with the latter about nominating Amber as she did not know who she was getting from the latter. However, Amber accused her of having feelings for Cody, hence why she did not nominate him.
Mary Lou was not nominated, and while being dismissed, she was shocked that she was one of the four chefs left out of the initial eighteen and could not believe that she was close to winning.[13]
Episode 14[]
- Main article: Episode 1914 - Snuggling with the Enemy
Back at the dorms, Mary Lou and Cody joined up in the living room, saying she was scared about the latter going home. She said that Cody made her feel tingly and did not want him to go home yet as the two shared a shower.
During the 40 Nightclub Portions Challenge, Mary Lou decided to make a salmon croquette, a dish she with her grandmother who was her inspiration for cooking and cooked her salmon in the pan. Later on, she wanted to dance with everybody in the dining room. As she served her dish, she made jokes about the fact her plate was pink instead of purple, and as the chefs waited for the votes to be tallied, she said that no matter what, she was proud to have done her grandmother proud. She lost the challenge as her dish received a 15% approval, the lowest-ranked dish of that day.
Mary Lou was punished by participating in spring cleaning day in the dorms, and after hearing what the reward was, she was disappointed that she did not get to go on a shopping spree but knew it was all part of Kori's plan. During the punishment, she was disgusted that nobody deep cleaned the dorms since they have been here and remarked that it was telling how many people were living there. While she liked having Declan for company, she would have liked the shopping spree even more. After Cody and Kori came back from the reward, she received a Vitamix blender after missing out the first time, making her happy.
During dinner service, Mary Lou was on the fish station. At one point, she served a slightly overcooked salmon but could not hear the power in Cody's voice. She was the second person to run the pass and knew that every service she was in all came down to that night. Her first test was to identify a Wellington that had tapenade instead of the duxelle, but she failed to figure out the mistake until Ramsay told her, making Declan ask how she could miss that. As the kitchen got backed up, Ramsay swapped out the carrots for beets, but she caught that mistake and finally found her rhythm. On the next order, Mary Lou called out a time but only got a response from Sous Chef Christina until she called everybody out. Then, Kori walked up a raw lamb, and she called her up to tell her that, but Ramsay called it embarrassing as he never expected that. Despite that, Kori got her refire accepted, and she sent out her order. At the end of Declan's turn, she noticed that he bounced back after his stumble.
After service, Ramsay asked the final four to name one person they wanted to be in the finale with. During deliberation, Kori asked how many mistakes they made up on the pass, but Mary Lou played dumb by saying "I don't know" because she knew they would use it against her. Then, she remarked that she saw no presence from Cody on the pass and felt he was not commanding.
At elimination, Mary Lou said she wanted to go up against Kori as the latter has been the leader for the red team since the beginning, and felt she was not the same person that began the competition by proving to Ramsay she could be a leader. After Cody left, Ramsay named her the third finalist after Declan and Kori. While being dismissed, she was shocked that she made it that far and was happy to know that Ramsay saw her potential.[14]
Episode 15/16[]
- Main article: Episode 1915 - What Happens in Vegas...
- Main article: Episode 1916 - Hitting the Jackpot
While going back to the dorms, Mary Lou was stunned to be in the final three as it was validating for herself as she doubted her own skills but was now a believer. When the final three entered the dorms, they saw cookware and champagne waiting for them, with her calling it the best day ever. Later that night, Ramsay called the final three downstairs to be paired up with a Sous Chef. She was partnered up with Sous Chef Jason as they both had the ace of spades, and Ramsay joked that the colored hair people were teaming up. While working on her menu, Sous Chef Jason suggested that she keep to her Southern roots for the menu, making her happy as he helped her visualize dishes that were true to her style.
The next day, Ramsay called the dorms and asked Mary Lou to come downstairs, hanging up without saying goodbye and racing to his office. In Ramsay's office, he reminded her that she had a one in three chance of winning the grand prize and because he was impressed with her performance, he invited two VIP guests to see her, which were her mother and her cousin. Hugging her mother, she called her a rock and felt more determined to win after seeing her, admitting that she wanted to call her after day one and cry that she was not good enough to stay. As she and her family went to the lounge, she had more inspiration and wanted to win for her mother. She also told them how stronger she has become. After the visit, Ramsay took the final three on a tour to see the five special locations he discovered in Las Vegas. The first stop was at Caesars Palace, and she felt stronger than when she began. The second stop in the tour was at the bottom of a garage where Ramsay was waiting for them. Ramsay explained that he was introduced to an underground tunnel to reach different restaurants and showed them the prop ship of the Titanic. After having the final three sit down, the platform below them began to rise, and they found themselves on a stage in front of a crowd of people. After introducing them to the crowd, Ramsay said this was their final challenge and the one that determined who would make it to the final two and compete in the final dinner service.
During the Final Menu Challenge, Mary Lou said her menu represented who she was, a Southern girl with a lot of flair, and with 13 minutes left, she knew she had to be on point with her dishes. As she took her meat off the grill, she was concerned about the cook, leading Sous Chef Jason to suggest putting them back on immediately. Before her dishes were judged, Ramsay asked the final three how they felt about their dishes, and she expressed confidence in her first dish. On the cold starter round, she made a watermelon salad with lemon vinaigrette and parmesan crumble, it was deemed a great beginning to a meal, and she scored a perfect 10. On the hot starter round, she made shrimp and grits, they were praised for having great flavors and a refreshing spice, and she scored a perfect 10, making her excited about getting two perfect scores in a row. On the seafood entrée round, she made a pan-seared Chilean sea bass with garlic compound butter, Susan Feniger found that the kale and the fennel mixed well, and she scored 9 points. On the chicken entrée round, she made a pan-seared heir-lined chicken with endue sausage pan gravy, but while Neal Fraser felt she should have pan-fried the Brussel sprouts to give it more texture, he felt it worked well together. So, she scored 8 points, and before the red meat entrée round, she was stunned to see Wolfgang Puck. She made a chilli encrusted ribeye with red wine demi, it was praised for being cooked well, and she scored 8 points. She won the challenge 45-45-42 and made it to the final two. She felt validated and saw her true potential.
Because Mary Lou scored two perfect 10's in the first two rounds, she got to make the first pick. She picked Cody first as he was incredibly talented, picked Nikki as her second, Amber as her third, and Lauren as her fourth.[15] Returning to Hell's Kitchen, she said she had to go in and hit her team hard by giving out what the menu would be. The only member she was nervous with was Lauren due to getting caught up in wanting attention, especially when the latter kept asking her questions. Cody was enamored with her taking charge, while Lauren expressed nervousness if she were on garnish. Afterward, she put Nikki on fish, Cody on garnish, Amber on meat, and Lauren on appetizers, making the latter happy as she nailed that station every time she ran it in the past.
During prep, Mary Lou began to grow nervous as they got closer to service, but talking with Cody started to make her stress less as she knew he had her back. Cody himself declared that he would do anything to make sure she won and checked with Nikki on the scoring of the redfish. As she and Cody began working together more, Nikki knew that her bonds would be the deciding factor, while Amber joked that she would make Cody sign a prenup if they ever got married. Later, she knew that Lauren was the weak link on her team but trusted her with her techniques and her palate. On the other hand, she was not confident about Amber as the latter kept asking her questions and did not want her to get nervous. Meeting up with Sous Chef Christina in the back pantry, she expressed concern about Amber, just as the latter asked her more questions. Forty-five minutes before service began, Ramsay pulled her and Kori into his office for a final meeting. He reminded the two women that this was their final test to prove that they were his next head chef at Hell's Kitchen at Lake Tahoe and gave them their head chef jackets. She felt great receiving hers as not many people received one and felt she was in charge while wearing it. Before leaving, Ramsay reminded them that it was their night to run the kitchen, and she felt she could do it and crush Kori. When the finalists exited the office, they saw the dining room already filled with diners, including their loved ones, and Ramsay asked them to give insight into their menus. She said she had a Southern-inspired menu that included her mother's favorite dishes, finally feeling she felt the confidence she could be. Ramsay told the diners that one of the finalists would become his next head chef at Hell's Kitchen at Lake Tahoe and sent them back to their kitchens. Right before service began, she gave her team a pep talk as Cody and Nikki were determined to see her win.
During dinner service, Mary Lou received her first ticket from Marino and called out a four-top order. However, Lauren could not remember the order she just told her, and Amber was worried about the former due to being in la-la land. When Lauren did not respond to Mary Lou's questions, Ramsay accused her of being asleep as her flat-top started to smoke up, annoying Mary Lou as she wanted the former to move. While Cody and Nikki were communicating times, Lauren was still silent, leading the former to accuse her of fucking them up. Despite all that, Lauren got her grits accepted, and she served her first table, leading the former to proclaim that she will not let her down despite not having a lot of experience on the line. Eventually, she was pushing out appetizers and moved onto entrées. However, while Amber served her entrées, Ramsay noticed that she forgot the chicken as she called her team down to the front. When she asked Amber how long for the chicken, the latter said seven minutes, with Cody pissed as it was making her look bad. So, she was forced to refire the entire table and struggled to keep her composure with Amber before micromanaging her brigade. Later, she was still waiting on the refired order while Amber felt like shit after missing the first chicken. Then, the chicken Amber cooked was raw in the center, and she showed it to the team. Angry that this was happening again, she told her team to be on the same page and stop making her look like an asshole. Ramsay reminded the team that this was her night and pulled her aside, telling her not to work with a problematic chef. With that, she ordered Cody and Amber to switch stations, much to the latter's annoyance as Cody got his chicken accepted. Once she served her order, Ramsay pulled her and Kori to the middle of the pass and told them that they were dead even with their mistakes. She bossed her team into getting the final order out, which Nikki noticed and felt she was killing it. Eventually, both teams got their final orders out with no problems, and the dining room gave both finalists a round of applause.
After service was over, Ramsay announced that he decided to forget the traditional door opening ceremony and said he would make the announcement right now. Ramsay announced that the winner that season would be a woman, but everybody knew he was just joking, even though she did not find that funny. Ramsay admitted it was a massive decision that could not be done so simply, told the finalists that night was a close one and he would be using the comment cards to help decide the winner before dismissing them back to the dorms. Back at the dorms, she hoped that Ramsay saw her face the adversity of the competition and how she ran her kitchen before telling Kori that it was an honor competing with her.
Later, Ramsay called the dorms and asked the finalists to come down to his office while the crowd was waiting for the results. At Ramsay's office, he said how proud he was of them, telling Mary Lou she grew a lot in the competition and was proud her self-confidence matched her skills. Afterwards, Ramsay had the two stand in front of their respective doors, with only one of them opening to reveal the winner. After a countdown from three, both turned their door handle, but her door did not open. She was named the runner-up, and while she called it bittersweet, she was happy to lose to Kori and knew she grew a lot to allow other doors to open. During the celebration, she hugged her mother, knowing she was proud of herself in the same way the latter was of her.[16]
Nomination History[]
Week 1 | Safe |
---|---|
Win | |
Week 2 | Safe |
Week 3 | Safe |
Week 4 | Win |
Week 5 | Win |
Week 6 | Safe |
Week 7 | Safe |
Week 8 | Win |
Week 9 | Win |
Week 10 | Safe |
Week 11 | Safe |
Week 12 | Safe |
Week 13 | Safe |
Week 14 | Safe |
Week 15 | Runner-up |
Season 21[]
Episode 6[]
- Main article: Episode 2106 - Til Chef Do Us Part
Mary Lou made a cameo appearance as one of Trenton and Macee's wedding guests, sitting at the same table with Cody and Kori.[17]
Post Hell's Kitchen[]
- After her appearance on the show, Mary Lou returned to Whiskey Cake Kitchen and Bar, where she is a Chef Partner, which has good reviews.
- In March 2020, she began her own YouTube cooking channel called Geeks & Grubs, where she cooks food from popular media while cosplaying as certain characters from the respective media.
Trivia[]
- She is the only contestant in her season to not get nominated.
- She is the seventh runner-up, and third female runner-up, who successfully avoided nomination during the entire season, following Kevin (Season 6), Jay (Season 7), Will (Season 9), T (Season 14), Heather (Season 16), and Benjamin (Season 17).
- She is the second African American runner-up, following T (Season 14).
Quotes[]
- "Woo-oooh!"
- (Before the first dinner service) "Best case scenario: we end up making the blue team our bitch. Worst case scenario: I fuck up everything completely, I get sent home and then I go back to my own kitchen, everybody calls me a loser and I cry."
- (About her refire on steak) "Let me figure it out, I'm gonna fix it and I'm gonna make it better, 'cause I bet if I give him (Ramsay) like some raw steak again, he'd throw it back at my face and be like: 'Bloody Hell! You purple-haired witch, why did you give me this steak?!' And I'd be like CHEF NO!"
- (About the Wedding Brunch Service challenge) "Knowing that I'm serving all of these married couples their first meal is very daunting. I want them to be like, 'I had a phenomenal time! This was a great start to my marriage! Baby, I love you! We're gonna be together forever! (smooches the air)
- "There's no rulebook on how fast you are allowed to drink champagne... Mary likes champagne."
- (After both teams are kicked out of service) "I feel like we're just like classy English ladies having tea, the red team is talking, and then all these hoodlums (the blue team) just show up."
- (About a punishment) "Never in my life would I think I would be outside of Hell's Kitchen shovelling shit. It's not on my 'Top 10 Things to Do While In Las Vegas'. I'd rather go to the spa, livin' it up and being bougie and rubbing elbows with everybody."
- "Everybody who saw my fun muffins, you all owe me $20."
- (About Amber) "Is this bitch over here speaking French? (attempts to speak French)"
- "I was supposed to double-check the halibut. My bad Amber I'm sorry."
- (After being named runner-up) "It's a bittersweet moment right now. I mean, if I'm gonna lose to anybody, it would definitely be Kori. I've grown so much, and I've learned so much. Yes, my door didn't open, but there are other doors that are gonna open for me. My mom, I mean, she's always been proud of me, but now it's like, now I can be proud of me."
Gallery[]
External links[]
Mary Lou Davis on Instagram
Geeks&Grubs on YouTube
References[]
Hell's Kitchen Season 19 |
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Staff |
Gordon Ramsay (Head Chef) • Jay Santos (Blue Team Sous Chef) • Christina Wilson (Red Team Sous Chef) • Marino Monferrato (Maître d'hôtel) |
Contestants |
Cody Candelario • Mary Lou Davis • Fabiola Fuentes • Nikki Hanna • Declan Horgan • Amber Lancaster • Lauren Lawless • Peter Martinez • Kenneth McDuffie • Josh Oakley • Adam Pawlak • Marc Quinones • Brittani Ratcliff • Eliott Sanchez • Jordan Savell • Kori Sutton • Drew Tingley • Syann Williams |