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Melanie Finch was a contestant on Season 12 of Hell's Kitchen. She ranked in 3rd place.
Season 12[]
Episode 1[]
- Main article: Episode 1201 - 20 Chefs Compete
The twenty new chefs rode on a bus on route to Hell's Kitchen and during this time they had the opportunity to get to know each other. Upon arrival, they were greeted by Jean-Philippe who walked the chefs into Hell’s Kitchen, only to walk into a service already going on with the food receiving positive comments and Ramsay expressing that the chefs in the kitchen were doing a splendid job. That confused the chefs, and once the service ended, Ramsay approached them and welcomed them. Ramsay explained that he did a soft opening to showcase the chefs what his expectations were, and asked if they could perform a service like the one they saw. Everybody promised they would, and Ramsay revealed that the winner would become a Head Chef at one of his restaurants, but first, they had to survive Hell’s Kitchen in Los Angeles, a place he deemed the capital of entertainment. Shortly after, patrons of the restaurant began putting on a performance, and Melanie danced to the music in the confessional. Afterwards, Ramsay announced it was time for the Signature Dish Challenge.
During the Signature Dish Challenge, Melanie was the fifth person from the red team to have her dish judged by Ramsay, and went up against Richard. She made a scallop dish, it was cooked beautifully, and she won that round over Richard. The red team won the challenge 5-4, they were rewarded with dinner with Ramsay at one of his Los Angeles restaurants, and she could not wait to eat dinner with Ramsay, before proclaiming that boys drooled.
During dinner service, Melanie served Caesar salad tableside. She was not seen that night, but the red team were kicked out after multiple mistakes. Both teams were named joint losers, and they were asked to nominate two each.
She was not nominated for elimination.[1]
Episode 2[]
- Main article: Episode 1202 - 19 Chefs Compete
The next day, at 4:33 AM, the chefs awoke to the sounds of dirt bikes revving in the dorms, and Sous Chef Andi told the chefs to meet Ramsay outside. Before the Basics Relay Challenge, when Nicole not feeling confident about shucking oysters, Melanie claimed they were easy enough for her grandmother, and she was 90 years old. She was paired up with Simone, they were the third pair from the red team to compete, and they were tasked with shucking a dozen oysters. They were seen getting their first attempt accepted, but despite hoping that Gabriel and Ralph would fail on their omelets, it did not work. The red team lost the challenge 4-5, and they were punished by picking carrots at a local carrot farm, prep them for the following night’s service, and make both kitchen’s stock in addition. During the punishment, she was seen picking out a little carrot.
During prep, when the men came back from their reward, Melanie was not happy as the women were stuck putting chicken bones into soup while the men went to San Francisco. During dinner service, she was on the garnish station with Joy. She was not seen much, except for expressing concern about Nicole on appetizers due to her attitude and unwillingness to be a team player. The red team were eventually kicked out after multiple mistakes. Both teams were named joint losers, and they were asked to nominate two each. During deliberation, she said it would not be a personal decision before considering Beth for serving raw fish multiple times.
She was not nominated for elimination.[2]
Episode 3[]
- Main article: Episode 1203 - 18 Chefs Compete
The next day, at 5:45 AM, the chefs were woken to the sound of pigs squealing and a farmer yelling very loud. During the Potato Challenge, Melanie was not seen during part one, and the red team lost 90-100. During part two, she noticed Simone walking around the kitchen, and called the former the weirdest person in the world. She was part of the top five, was the fourth person from the red team to have her dish judged by Ramsay, and went up against Mike. She made an herb gnocchi with a wild mushroom gravy, and she scored 4 points. The red team won the challenge 18-16, and were rewarding with a day on the ocean in a sailboat. She ended up doing a victory dance in the confessionals.
During dinner service, Melanie was on the appetizer station with Joy. At one point, she mentioned that if she was being yelled at by Ramsay, she herself would speak up and call back to him or get the fuck out after seeing Simone not talk back. After Simone and Jessica were kicked out of the kitchen, she was reassigned to fish alongside Bev. However, the red team were eventually kicked out of the kitchen after they served undercooked and overcooked halibut, and they were asked to nominate three each. During deliberation, she considered both Bev and Rochelle for elimination, the latter as she felt Rochelle was not at 100%.
She was not nominated for elimination.[3]
Episode 4[]
- Main article: Episode 1204 - 17 Chefs Compete
Before the Lobster Ravioli Challenge, Melanie called it an honor to stand next to him as she used to watch videos of him cooking. She was paired up with Jessica, and hoped the women would win the challenge. At first, their first attempt was rejected for using the wrong plate, making her feel like an idiot. However, their next four attempts were accepted, with the final one being the winning point. The red team won the challenge 10-9, and they were rewarded with a day at a Beverly Hills mansion which included their very own butler.
Before service, Melanie wanted to prove they could still kick the men’s ass despite having a relaxing day. After hearing that night would be Steak Night, she got excited as she was a master on the grill. During dinner service, she was on the meat station. At one point, she told Bev to bounce back after struggling on appetizers. On entrées, she was certain the women would make it to that service since she was on meat, and when Rochelle asked how long, she told her to begin slicing as she herself was bringing up the filets. As she did, Ramsay said they were cooked perfectly, and she was happy to finally get some praise for her strong suite. After the women completed their tickets, Ramsay praised her performance and told the women to help the men get their nine remaining tables out, leading her called it a gangster service. The red team won the service.[4]
Episode 5[]
- Main article: Episode 1205 - 16 Chefs Compete
Before the Creative Memory Challenge, Melanie got concerned about Ramsay's explanation about memory, who hoped the challenge was not a memory game as she was terrible at them. was paired up with Rochelle, and they were seen matching rice and carrots. During the cooking, Rochelle was nervous as she never made polenta, but she told her to match it to mashed potatoes. They cooked the chicken, were the first pair from the red team to have their dish judged by Ramsay, and went up against Anton and Richard. She presented their pan-seared crispy seared chicken breast on top of polenta, and Ramsay deemed the dish delicious. Although she compared Anton and Chris' dish to a diner, both pairs scored that round. The red team won the challenge 3-2, and they were rewarded with a day at Laguna Beach which included kayaking on the water, and lunch at the 5-star Studio at the Montage. During the reward, she called the view breath taking.
The next day, the chefs witnessed a wedding in the dinning room, but Melanie said she was not wearing wedding attire. During the Wedding brunch service, she was on the fruit salad station with Rochelle. When they got the main table, she claimed that making breakfast was easy, they had to coordinate with the men to get their food out at the same time. However, Beth’s egg burst due to cooking on high heat, and she also saw that the bread was burnt as well. The red team won the service.[5]
Episode 6[]
- Main article: Episode 1206 - 15 Chefs Compete
Back at the dorms, Joy told Melanie and Rochelle that she was more concerned about services than the challenges, which she agreed with as they were not doing challenges on the line. Later, she, Beth, and Kashia were in the bedroom as she looked towards the $21,000 monthly salary a month, but Beth was hoping for it every 6 months, before asking her what she would do with that money. She wanted to take care of her mother’s house as she was losing it, and told Beth there was nothing to worry about.
The next day, Ramsay asked both teams to name a leader for the following service. During deliberation, Melanie proclaimed that it was either herself or Joy that should lead the women, but when Bev nominated herself, she did not think the former was a strong cook and did not trust her enough to be left alone on a station. Then, she said she was confident enough to hop from station to station in order to help, but Kashia felt that the former was boasting. Back downstairs, she announced she was the women’s leader and was excited to show Ramsay her leadership qualities, before adding on she had the confidence and drive to be a successful leader, and placed herself on fish. However, Kashia felt that she was getting on her nerves every time the latter was on her high horse.
During prep, Ramsay pulled Anton and Melanie aside for a thirty second meeting, telling the two that their role as captains began now. She knew that Ramsay would get a good taste of her leadership as the women were stronger than the men, and told the women that there was nothing to worry about. However, Beth's inability to focus worried her as it was the key to a great service.
During dinner service, Melanie was on the fish station with Bev. She told Joy and Bev to communicate with fish on the lobster tail, before believing she herself was a great motivator. However, Joy did not respond to her question for a time, and Sandra’s unsure answer for six minutes made her nervous as she could only control her arms and voice. When Beth called out for a minute on the lobster tail despite having it in her hands, that frustrated her as she accused the former of locking up in her own shell when she had no idea what to do, but Ramsay told her to drive her team. However, she went quiet to Bev’s annoyance. Twenty-five minutes into service, the women have yet to send out a single appetizer, and Ramsay chewed her out for acting quiet so far. When Beth served an overcooked lobster tail, Ramsay informed her that the quality has dipped due to the pressure. Later, she tried to coordinate Beth and Joy for the refire, but the latter was lost as she discovered that Beth did not even put a lobster tail on. Then, she felt that Beth was so much of a dead weight, the women could not pull through with her, before doing the lobster tail herself. Thankfully, her attempt was a success as Elizabeth Perkins’ table was served, but Beth was lost to the point that she did not even know what happened until she told her. As she finally stepped up, the women were pushing out appetizers. Two hours into service, she stepped up to the leadership role as she and Kashia coordinated on timings. However, while Kashia’s Wellingtons were cooked perfectly, her halibut was raw to the point Ramsay could not pull it apart, and Sandra felt she was in over her head. Then, Ramsay accused her of giving up and threatened to send her home if she did not cut the crap.
The red team lost the service, and they were asked to nominate two people for elimination. During deliberation, Sandra said she did see Melanie step up as a leader, but only saw her mess up on fish. When Beth tried to defend herself that it was confusing to work in a kitchen with eight people, she reminded her that it was not hard to find her voice regardless. She was nominated by Sandra and Jessica as the latter felt she was all talk and no game that night, but she pushed for overall, before nominating Beth and Sandra for obvious reasons. Sandra tried to argue that she did nothing wrong in the past that warranted her nomination, but she reminded her about the missing capellini and poor communication.
Melanie was not nominated for elimination, but when Ramsay asked the red team which of the two nominees should go home, she said Sandra. While being dismissed, she felt she did well that night, but claimed she could only do so much as a leader.[6]
Episode 7[]
- Main article: Episode 1207 - 14 Chefs Compete
During the Gourmet Pizza Challenge, Melanie was paired up with Sandra, but while the latter was not sure of her idea for their pizza, she admitted that working with Sandra was a day she dreaded as the latter was inexperienced and a non-team player. When deciding on which dish was to be dropped, she and Sandra saw that Kashia and Bev’s pizza was burnt, but the latter felt the former turned her nose in a snooty way. They were the final pair from the red team to have their dish judged, and went up against Anton and Richard. They made a parmesan crispy prosciutto flatbread pizza with arugula, and she was confident that it would be great. However, while Wolfgang Puck liked the taste of the prosciutto, he noticed that the bottom was lightly colored, and the dough was nearly stretching on him. So, they scored a 3, and Kashia felt that its what they deserved.
The red team lost the challenge 12-15, and they were punished by prepping ravioli by hand, grating cheese, and prepping both kitchens for Italian Family Night. During the punishment, Kashia said that Melanie should really feel like shit after the challenge, even suggesting that she eat a super-sized piece of humble pie. During a break, she wanted the women to bounce back during service, but Kashia told her she was sick of her attitude, especially towards her and Bev’s pizza. She argued that she thought the figs were too big, but Kashia reminded her it was her decision on which pizzas would be judged, and that everybody went with that. However, she called that shit as Ramsay was pushing them to decide and Kashia should have argued for it more, and did not feel too bad about that.
During the Italian Family Night dinner service, Melanie was on the meat station. When Bev burned a pizza, she got upset as there were kids in the dinning room who were waiting. Later, she expressed relief when they got Ramsay's family order sent out. The red team won the service.[7]
Episode 8[]
- Main article: Episode 1208 - 13 Chefs Compete
During the 160th Sorority Anniversary Planning Challenge, Melanie was not seen much, except for deciding to back off when Kashia was leading. The red team won the challenge 2-1, and they were rewarded with a trip to Las Vegas which included staying at Caesars Palace, a $500 shopping spree at the shops in the hotel, meeting Season 10 winner Christina, and eating dinner cooked by Ramsay's mentor Guy Savoy. During the reward, she almost asked if Christina was a fake when they first saw her.
During prep, Melanie hoped the men were more pissed when the women won service. During the 160th Sorority Anniversary dinner service, she was on the appetizer station. When Bev struggled on crab cakes, she got annoyed as crab cakes were not hard, and accused Bev of working with no arms. When Kashia kept opening the oven door, Ramsay somebody to explain to her what would happen, and she explained that they would lose 10 degrees every second. The red team lost the service, and they were asked to nominate two people for elimination. During deliberation, she nominated Bev for elimination, and agreed with Jessica that she was the worse overall that night.
She was not nominated for elimination.[8]
Episode 9[]
- Main article: Episode 1209 - 12 Chefs Compete
Back at the dorms, Melanie was surprised by Jessica’s emotions, but suggest that the latter look at herself in a mirror and ask if she was a fuck up.
During the Dome Challenge, Melanie grabbed chicken breast and parsnip for her dish. She was the fourth person from the red team to have her dish judged, and went up against Gabriel. She made a chicken and glazed parsnips, it was praised for a nice balance, and she tied that round with Gabriel. After Jessica lost to Anton after mistaking tuna for swordfish, she called the former stupid as swordfish was white, not red. The red team won the challenge 4-3, and they were rewarded with a trip to the Terranea resort with lunch by the cliff side, and a private beach volleyball lesson with three-time Olympic gold medalist Kerri Walsh Jennings.
Later that day, Ramsay announced that he would do some individual evaluation reports. She was the ninth chef to do her evaluation, where Ramsay said that she still had some inconsistent moments and how she should express herself more. She was not deemed the weakest chef on the red team, and did not have to compete in the Cook For Your Life Challenge.[9]
Episode 10[]
- Main article: Episode 1210 - 11 Chefs Compete
The next day, the chef went to Ramsay's Gastropub to take a tour of the restaurant, and to look at the menu for Gastropub Night.
During the Gastropub Night dinner service, Melanie was on the fish station. At one point, she reminded Joy that she had to toast the slider buns, but the latter did not know that she had to put them together in addition to cooking them. Ramsay told her to help Joy as the latter would not ask for it, but she slipped and fell while carrying the slider pan due to a grease spot. As the women pushed out orders, she felt their communication was fucking great. After completing their orders, Ramsay had the red team into the blue kitchen to help the men, only to complete their orders after they were kicked out. The red team won the service.[10]
Episode 11[]
- Main article: Episode 1211 - 10 Chefs Compete
During the Creative Pork Challenge, Melanie went up first for part one, and when the red team had two incorrect answers, she went up. However, the red team lost the first challenge, much to her frustration. She went up against Anton, and they cooked with the pork shoulder. During the cooking, she told Kashia to add salt to balance out the watery taste, before commenting that there was not much she could do with that. She was the first person from the red team to have her dish judged by Ramsay, and was ready to take Anton down. She made a braised shoulder in orange juice and stock with cranberry chutney, but despite never using that cut before, Ramsay liked the tenderness of the pork. After seeing Anton's dish, she snarked that it was missing a dog bowl. While she scored that round over Anton, the red team eventually lost the challenge 2-3. They were punished by prepping peanuts for peanut butter, and prep both kitchens for that night’s service. During the punishment, she did not want to touch the peanuts.
During dinner service, Melanie was on the meat station. When Sandra wanted to walk her salmon, neither she nor Joy had anything ready as the former did not communicate with them. She called Sandra a shit ass teammate, but the latter decided to walk up her salmon despite her asking for more time on the Wellingtons. When the two argued, Ramsay asked where the coordination went. When Sandra's salmon came out raw, she asked what the former was doing. Both teams were named joint losers, and they were asked to nominate two each.
Melanie was not nominated for elimination, and later, she said goodbye to Sandra and Rochelle as they were reassigned to the blue team, while welcoming Anton and Scott as new teammates.[11]
Episode 12[]
- Main article: Episode 1212 - 10 Chefs Again
Back at the dorms, as Anton cursed his situation, Melanie laughed and welcomed him to the red team.
During the King of the Hill Challenge, Melanie thought the dark room would be a piece of cake, but it proved more difficult than she thought as after a minute, she grabbed halibut when she thought it was filet mignon. During the cooking, she said there were only so much she could do with the chosen ingredients, but was confident she could pull out a dish with random ingredients. She was the final chef to have her dish judged by Ramsay, and made a pan seared halibut with white wine sauce, and duxelle. Ramsay said the halibut was cooked beautifully, and it had great flavors, but after a tough decision, she failed to dethrone Rochelle.
The red team lost the challenge, and they were punished by participating in delivery day. During the punishment, Melanie said that it sucked and refused to get a bag out of the truck without Anton’s help, but Joy say that was an excuse for incompetence, which is what she used every time, and Kashia asked her to make some effort instead of standing next to the truck. Then, she handed Scott her half of the delivery with Anton, claiming to be weak.
Later that day, Sous Chef Andi called the dorms and asked them to come downstairs, but nobody was happy as Melanie wanted that day to be over. During the Charity Night dinner service, she got dismayed when Anton's pan caught on fire. She was in charge of the tuna tataki course, Ramsay told her to coordinate with her team as she gave out positions to her teammates, and said it did not matter who was out in the dining room as everybody deserved a perfect meal. She got her course out on time, but on the third course, when Kashia's tortellini came out under cooked, the latter blamed her for trying to rush her. However, she had no idea why she was being blamed for Kashia’s rookie ass mistake, and the two continued to bicker during that course. During the fourth course, she got annoyed when Scott was caught saucing the lamb with a ladle, saying that they all did their part. While clearing down, she and Kashia continued to bicker, which she did not understand.
Both teams were named joint losers, and they were asked to nominate two each. During deliberation, Melanie knew by this stage, they had to steer away from the nominations being personal or else there would be meltdowns. Kashia once again accused her of sinking her course, but she reminded her that it was her course and it was her time to shine. That led to an argument between the two over Kashia accusing her of sinking her, and she did not give the latter a chance to voice her argument.
She was not nominated for elimination.[12]
Episode 13[]
- Main article: Episode 1213 - 9 Chefs Compete
Back at the dorms, Kashia apologized to Melanie for attacking her earlier that night, which she accepted as she was not like that in real life. Then, she said they each had to perform at 150% from now on, before admitting how happy she was to see the drama go away. Later that night, she and Anton sat in the living room, discussing how nobody was safe in the competition, but the latter was confident on how well he performed so far. When she asked Anton who his biggest threat was, he had no answer, while she said he was based on confidence and experience. Anton was not surprised by that, but he was not worried about her as she wanted them in the final two.
The next day, Sous Chef James entered the dorms with two delivery people and gathered both teams to the living room. After, the delivery people began to rap out a message from Ramsay, revealing that the packages they had were two blank menus, and that they had one hour to create their own menu for that night’s service. As the red team worked on the menu, Scott and Melanie agreed to write down four appetizers and four entrées, but she did not like Anton’s shrimp and bisc risotto and suggested split pea risotto instead. She was also the only person that did not like Anton suggestion of spinach for the risotto. Then, she liked Joy’s suggestion of cranberries, but Anton did not, saying that nutmeg would work better. She suggested clams and mussels with butter bean did not sit well with Anton as they already had butternut squash risotto, but when she suggested ahi tuna sliders, which Joy agreed, Kashia was pissed as it was her idea. Anton expressed concern about doing the menu close to what Ramsay was already having them do, and felt it was more her menu than the red team’s menu, even threatening to throw her under the bus If they lost. However, she did not see how the menu was like Ramsay’s.
During prep, Anton taught Melanie how to cook the scallop dish as he knew anybody’s day in Hell’s Kitchen could be their last, and when Ramsay looked at the red team's demo dishes, she hoped they were well received as she contributed a lot to the menu. During dinner service, she was on the fish station. On entrées, she felt the scallops looked gangster, but Anton hoped they were cooking right. When she sent the dishes up, Ramsay saw how gloopy they were at the bottom, but when she revealed that was what Anton told her to do, Ramsay showed the two how soggy they were. Anton felt that she was trying to make him look bad, while Ramsay told her not to cook them like a diaper, even saying that it was not the same dish he saw two hours ago. Her refire was accepted, but unknown to her, it was served to Craig Strong from Studio during the women’s reward, and he found it to be raw. When Jean-Philippe sent it back to the red kitchen, she sarcastically thanked herself for serving raw scallops to Strong and confirmed to Ramsay that the latter did not serve her raw scallops during the reward. In addition, she found out that she had no more scallops as they did not prep enough, and Anton found it to be an interesting situation as she deemed him her biggest competition and thought about letting her sink for his own game. However, Anton went to the blue kitchen for more scallops and Rochelle gave him their supply. Getting herself refocused, her third attempt was accepted, and Strong liked it. The red team won the service, but Ramsay asked them to name one woman that would move to the blue team. During deliberation, she feared it would be a disaster going into the blue team and not solving anything.
After Richard's elimination, Ramsay asked the red team which woman was joining the blue team, Melanie said she was, and joined her new team. While being dismissed, she told her new teammates that she was coming with a vengeance.[13]
Episode 14[]
- Main article: Episode 1214 - 8 Chefs Compete
Back at the dorms, Melanie as excited to be on the blue team, while Jason and Rochelle were happy to have her on the team. She felt that since she was leader on the red team, she could be the leader for the blue team as well and prove that she could do it no matter where she was. When she suggested changing up the routine with the blue team, Jason asked if they were that much of a downer, but they laughed over it.
During the Blind Taste Test, Melanie was the final person from the blue team to compete, and went up against Kashia. She failed to correctly guess all of her ingredients, the blue team lost the challenge 4-6, and she apologized to the blue team for fucking up as Ramsay singled her and Jason for costing their team the challenge. They were punished by unloading shipments of ice and making ice cream by hand. During the punishment, her hand started to cramp as she was chopping the ice.
During prep, Melanie took notice of Gabriel's quiet mood, and wanted him to stop moping. During dinner service, she was on the appetizer station. She tried to communicate with Jason on timings, but the latter was late on cooking the lobster tail. Even though she never worked with Jason before that night, she hoped the latter knew what he was doing as Ramsay asked him for the lobster tail. After cleaning up from a strong night, she called it the best service yet and that she called it before, even feeling she could jump into the red kitchen and repeat that night. The blue team won the service, but when Anton tried to blame the oven for his poor night, she told him not to blame the oven.[14]
Episode 15/16[]
- Main article: Episode 1215 - 7 Chefs Compete
- Main article: Episode 1216 - 7 Chefs Again
Back at the dorms, Melanie was surprised about Anton’s elimination, but Jason was not.
During the Budget Challenge, Melanie felt they were all racing inside the grocery store, but Gabriel got concerned when he bought a whole Cornish hen. During the cooking, she took the leadership role for the blue team and told her team what to cook with, and after seeing the panel of guest judges, she called it an honor to have them taste her dish. She was the final person from the blue team to have her dish judged, and went up against Joy. She made seared lamb chops with lemon sage couscous, and while Krista Simmons found the amount of meat to be plentiful, Anita Lau felt the meat was a little rare, but despite that, the flavors were there. After, she scored an average of $28, and boasted that it was why she was there. The blue team lost the challenge $69.33-$73.01, and they were punished by participating in spring cleaning day in the dorms.
The next day, everybody came downstairs to see a lot of people from the press waiting for them as Ramsay led them to the stage. When Ramsay announced the Hell's Kitchen Calendar, Melanie aid that would be fucking awesome to have a dish on the calendar. Before the Black Jackets Challenge, she said that they were all waiting for that moment as she wanted one. During the cooking, she decided to do lamb, felt that the Christmas route was too cliché, and decided to try and thicken her mashed potatoes with flour. However, Rochelle instantly knew it was a bad move as you could not just add raw flour to cooked food. When Ramsay announced that three former chefs would help him judge the dishes, she was more focused about getting a black jacket. She was the fifth person to have her dish judged, felt everybody was getting beatdown, and that the judges were not fucking around. She made a red wine rosemary marinated rack of lamb with creamy basil infused mashed potatoes, the The was criticized for having gluey potatoes and an inedible purée, which Rochelle knew would happen when she added raw flour to them, and feared that it was not good for her. Then, a pissed Ramsay told her that there so many things he could tolerate, but that was embarrassing. She scored 5 points, she felt terrible, and knew they had to step it up.[15] She lost the challenge to Joy, and was punished by making lunch for her and the judges.
During prep, Melanie hoped that night would be a repeat of the previous one, pumped up the blue team with good vibes, and knew there was no excuses because they had an extra person. Then, she knew if she came in with fire, she would earn her black jacket. During dinner service, she was on the meat station. At one point, she walked up pink chicken, Ramsay warned her that she was disappearing, told her not to walk pink chicken if she knew about it earlier, and ordered a complete redo. She could not believe she did a rookie mistake, and got her refire accepted. When they began on the ten-top's entrées, Ramsay told her to wake up. When Gabriel was caught cooking salmon and halibut in the same pan, she called it a big fucking no no. Later, she struggled to recite the refired order, and Ramsay accused her of switching off, even asking her if she wanted to join Gabriel, as the latter was sent home mid service. She knew she had to bounce back, and she did, with both teams pushing out their final orders. While clearing down, she could not understand her off day and Ramsay asked her what was wrong. She called it an embarrassing chef as she knew she was better than that, and apologized to Ramsay as she did not want to disappoint him again. Both teams were named joint losers, and they were asked to nominate one each. During deliberation, she agreed with Rochelle to nominate Jason.
Melanie was not nominated for elimination, but Ramsay called her down before the nominees. Although Ramsay was disappointed in her for struggling in both the challenge and the service, he decided to give her the second black jacket.[16]
Episode 17[]
- Main article: Episode 1217 - 6 Chefs Compete
Back at the dorms, Melanie said she was now black instead of red and blue, and mentioned that it was the milestone she wanted to reach. However, when Ramsay called them downstairs, she feared that her jacket would be taken. The next day, the final six walked downstairs to a party bus, and she said that after all the things she has done in the competition, she was ready for anything. When they arrived at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, she asked if they were having a celebration barbecue.
During the 50 Tailgating Portions Challenge, Melanie made a grilled mahi mahi sandwich, but noticed that her buns were burning. When serving her dishes, some girls came for seconds, making her happy. She lost the challenge to both Scott and Jason, and was punished by sorting the garbage from both the tailgate party and Hell’s Kitchen. During the punishment, she hoped for no bugs or diapers, which were soon shown. Then, she saw a body of a lobster she thought was dead, only for it to move around in her hands, much to her horror. Later, she felt the original red team had to duke it out against the men.
During dinner service, Melanie was on the garnish station. At one point, she took notice of Scott not talking to Ramsay, and when she offered to walk Kashia's lobster tails for her, the latter rudely rejected her help as she had it. She got annoyed by that as Ramsay accused Kashia of not being a team player, but the latter lied by claiming that she asked her for help and was rejected. However, she argued against that, leading Ramsay to take the two women to the back pantry for a proper explanation, but that led to an argument. When Ramsay asked her what she had against working with Kashia, she argued she was trying to help, and had no idea why the latter threw her under the bus. Then, a pissed Ramsay ordered the two to sort it out together, but she knew it was hard to work with Kashia as the latter wanted to work alone. Fortunately, Kashia became more appreciative to her, allowing her to walk her lobster tails. When Kashia continued to struggle and show a poor attitude, she knew it was the former’s time to shine and get out of the weeds. After service, Ramsay asked the final six to name one person for elimination. During deliberation, she felt they were not the dream team with the fat on the edges, and struggled to pick either Kashia or Scott.
She was not nominated for elimination.[17]
Episode 18[]
- Main article: Episode 1218 - 5 Chefs Compete
Back at the dorms, Joy and Melanie realized that there was not a lot of people left as they were the final five out of the twenty that began. Then, she knew what was at stake, and that she could not fuck up for Ramsay.
The next day, the final five saw a performance of Street Drum Corp, which Melanie called awesome. During the Leftovers Challenge, she knew the hard part was to use random ingredients and the scraps of others, before grabbing the filet. However, she noticed that Jason grabbed a large amount of ingredients for his dish. When it was announced that the winner would be featured in Better Homes and Garden, she hoped she would be featured. When she saw Rochelle's dish, she compared the presentation to a teepee. She was the final person to have her dish judged, and made a macadamia and hazelnut crusted filet with Israeli couscous. It was deemed pretty, and having the wow factor to the taste, making her confident that she was going to win.
Melanie lost the challenge to Scott, and while she felt she should be picked for his reward based on being the runner up of the challenge, Scott picked Jason instead. She was punished by prepping pumpkin and acorn squash for that night’s service. After hearing that, she wanted to die, and complained about not being chosen for Scott’s reward, before hoping there was not a lot of pumpkin and squashes to prep. During the punishment, she called the pumpkins a nightmare to carry, and said she hated them now, before squealing over the chunk of thumb Rochelle sliced off. She and Joy would try to cover the chunk without looking at it.
During prep, Melanie was still shaken over Rochelle's accident, but when, Jason asked if the latter was gone for good, but she had no idea. Before service began, she and Scott noticed that Rochelle was still not around, and she hoped she would come back in time before they began.
During dinner service, Melanie was on the appetizer station with Scott. When Scott tried to fire two tables at once, she told him to slow down as he was not in a fighter jet anymore. After Stan Lee came into the chef's table, she called it an honor to cook for him. At one point, she called herself a part of the Fantastic Five, only to serve a capellini with little amount of crab in it, and Ramsay asked for some crab as he expected her to be perfect by now. On their next order, she had no excuses, and knew she had to bounce back, only to set her pan on fire by adding too much oil as Lee took notice to his amusement. Jason felt that she was losing her mind and had a screw loose, while Scott saw that the capellini was now burnt. Then, she walked up an unseasoned capellini, and Ramsay said he could not be anymore patient with her mistakes as he had everybody taste it. Joy said it tasted like shit due to missing the seasoning, and while she admitted that she forgot the cilantro, she claimed that she added the lime in earlier despite Ramsay saying otherwise. As she felt her mind was going quiet on her, she was able to get her refire accepted, and to Lee’s table. When Joy decided to quit, she and Rochelle begged her not to with not avail. While she and Rochelle hoped that Joy would come back with Ramsay, they were disappointed when only he came back. Ramsay reassigned her to fish, and when the four chefs served their orders, she called it the biggest bounce back night for them as she and Rochelle served Lee’s table.
After service, Ramsay announced that nobody else would be going home. While being dismissed, Melanie deemed it the battle of the sexes, hoping that it would be her and Rochelle left.[18]
Episode 19[]
- Main article: Episode 1219 - 4 Chefs Compete
The next day, the final four came downstairs to see Ramsay with two secret serviceman, and when he led them outside, Melanie wondered if they were seeing a celebrity. She reunited with her boyfriend and mother, and she called it cool to see her loved ones and did not eat the dish the waiting staff provided them.
Before the Taste It Now Make It Challenge, Melanie regretted not tasting the dish earlier when she learned it was the challenge dish. She used sole with a prosciutto wrapping, pumpkin, and arugula in order to recreate Ramsay's dish. When she presented her dish, Rochelle did not think that pumpkin was the garnish. Although she got the protein correct, she lost the challenge as she used the wrong garnish. She was punished by participating in moving day, and prepping the kitchen for that night’s service. After hearing that, she said she hated moving day as she never moved in her life. During the punishment, she deliberately did not help as she wanted Scott to get tired out.
Before service, Ramsay told the final four that they would run the pass, and Melanie called it both exciting and nerve wracking. During dinner service, she was on the garnish station. At one point, she got her appetizer station, and later, she was the second person to run the pass. She received an improperly written ticket from Jean-Philippe that called for a chefs Caesar salad special, something that was not on the menu, but Ramsay was confused why she called it out when it was not on the menu, and reminded her to read the ticket out in her head before calling it out. That led Scott to wonder if she could command respect in order to run a kitchen, and felt she needed a few more years. When she called out the correct order, nobody responded to her and Ramsay told her that they did not give a fuck about her. She was disappointed in her team, but Ramsay told her to control them as they were controlling her, and she knew she had to prove to him she had a voice. Once she became more vocal, everybody responded to her and food was being pushed out. During Scott's turn, he rejected her garnishes for lacking salt, but she felt that the former was being too picky and sending back too many things.
After service, Ramsay asked the final four to name one person they felt did not deserve to be in the finale. During deliberation, Melanie felt that although Scott has done a great job lately, she knew he was not in the first half of the competition, and wondered if his late blooming performances were good enough. Then, she felt that Jason should have been serious that night.
When the final four came downstairs, Ramsay asked them who they felt did not deserve to be in the finale. Melanie said Scott as she felt he disappeared in the first half, and that his recently strong performances were meaningless, while the latter named her. After Rochelle's elimination, Ramsay told the final three that he could see any one of them in the finale, but there could only be two. She was eliminated after Scott and Jason were named the finalist, but before leaving, Ramsay told her to keep her jacket as she had a great level of tenacious ability, and that cooking was in her blood. As she left, she received hugs from the men, and during her exit interview, she received a retrospective montage of her time on the show. Ramsay gave no comment on her elimination, and she did not receive the portrait burning sequence.[19]
Episode 20[]
- Main article: Episode 1220 - Winner Chosen
Melanie was one of the ten chefs that returned for the final dinner service. After Scott picked Chris as his first pick, she said the latter would have been her last pick if she had a choice. She was Jason's second pick, after Anton, and was followed by Gabriel, Bev, and Sandra. Back at the dorms, she called Jason loopy due to the lack of sleep.
During dinner service, Melanie was on the fish station. After Gabriel served an overcooked steak, she told him not to get on Jason’s bad side as the latter was already fucking crazy. When Sandra served bland garnishes, she told her to get her shit together as if it was her running the red kitchen, she would have kicked the former out, before wondering why Jason was not doing that. Jason eventually lost the finals to Scott.[20]
Nomination History[]
| Week 1 | Safe |
|---|---|
| Week 2 | Safe |
| Week 3 | Safe |
| Week 4 | Win |
| Week 5 | Win |
| Week 6 | Safe |
| Week 7 | Win |
| Week 8 | Safe |
| Week 9 | Safe |
| Week 10 | Win |
| Week 11 | Safe |
| Week 12 | Safe |
| Week 13 | Win |
| Week 14 | Win |
| Week 15 | Safe |
| Week 16 | Safe |
| Week 17 | Safe |
| Week 18 | Eliminated |
Post Hell's Kitchen[]
- After her appearance on the show, Melanie was Sous Chef at Local Peasant before moving to The Front Yard restaurant in the Beverley Garland Hotel.
- She is currently working at The Ritz-Carlton, Marina del Rey, and is also an artist.
- She had an offer to return for All Stars, but declined.
Trivia[]
- She is the fourth contestant, third female, who finished in 3rd place that completely avoided nomination during the entire season, following Jillian (Season 8), Dana (Season 10), and Jon (Season 11).
- She is the seventh contestant who kept her jacket after being eliminated, following Ji (Season 5), Ariel (Season 6), Jillian (Season 8), Elise (Season 9), Dana (Season 10), and Jon (Season 11).
- She is the tenth contestant and last to this date to score a point on signature dish without being nominated, following Jim (Season 6), Mikey, Jay (both from Season 7), Jillian (Season 8), Jason, Will (both from Season 9), Dana, Christina (both from Season 10), and Jon (Season 11).
- She is the eighth female contestant who switched teams and made it to the black jackets, following Heather (Season 2), Jen (Season 4), Suzanne (Season 6), Autumn (Season 7), Robyn (Season 10), Ja'Nel (Season 11), and Rochelle (also from Season 12).
- She is the second contestant, and first female, to switch teams that ranked in third place, following Benjamin (Season 7).
- She and Jon (Season 11) are tied for the most consecutive services without being nominated, with 17.
Quotes[]
- (After winning the Signature Dish Challenge) "Oh, my God! First of all, cannot wait to eat… Second of all, with Chef Gordon Ramsay… Third of all, ladies rule, boys drool."
- "We are the bounce back kings... and queens!"'
- (After Bev struggles to make crab cakes) "It was almost like Bev was put in front of station and didn't have any arms."
- (During punishment) "This shit sucks! Imagine me trying to pick this shit up! (Shakes her head) Not happening!!!"
- (About Scott) "What the fuck are you doing, Scott? We all did our parts, like all you had to do is just plate it."
- "It's goin' to the point where literally I wake up and I'm like 'Okay, I could be picking up baby pigs, I could be shoveling shit, I could be carrying 70.000 pounds of ice' today it can be anything and I'm fucking ready for anything."
- (About Scott while running the pass) "Scott was being a little too picky. He was sending too many things back they didn't really need to get sent back, like garnishes. I'm like, "Really?"."
- (After being eliminated) "I came into this competition with a lot of confidence. I was one of the youngest ones here. And sometimes I got thrown on my ass. But I always gave 175 million percent of myself. And I learned being a head chef is more than just putting out good food. Getting this far in this crazy-ass competition, I'm so much stronger. And I know what I'm capable of. I can only grow from here. I can only get better as the years go on. So I mean, yeah, I lost tonight. But you'll see me in a couple of years somewhere else."
Gallery[]
.png "Melanie's Confessional (Red Jacket).png (364 KB)")
.png "Melanie's Confessional (Blue Jacket).png (256 KB)")
.png "Melanie's Confessional (Black Jacket).png (259 KB)")
.png "Melanie's Confessional (Returning Chef).png (390 KB)")
.png "Melanie's Dome Dish (Chicken Breast).png (213 KB)")
.png "Melanie's Creative Pork Dish (Pork Shoulder).png (220 KB)")
References[]
External links[]
Melanie Finch on Instagram
| Hell's Kitchen Season 12 |
|---|
| Staff |
| Gordon Ramsay (Head Chef) • James Avery (Blue Team Sous Chef) • Andi Van Willigan (Red Team Sous Chef) • Jean-Philippe Susilovic (Maître d'hôtel) |
| Contestants |
| Mike Aresta • Rochelle Bergman • Scott Commings • Michael DeMarco • Chris Eversole • Melanie Finch • Sandra Flores • Michael Gabriel • Bev Lazo-Gonzalez • Simone Hammond • Ralph Johnson • Richard Mancini • Gaurav Navin • Nicole Rutz • Beth Taylor • Anton Testino • Joy Parham-Thomas • Jessica Vogel • Jason Zepaltas • Kashia Zollicoffer |