Ralph Pagano

 

“

This game ain't for everybody, man!

”

Hometown/Residence	Livingston, NJ
Occupation	Professional Chef
Culinary Education	Culinary Institute of America
Statistics
Blind Taste Test Score	0 out of 2
Challenges Won	2
Services Won	3
Times as BoW/Announcer	2
Times Nominated	1
Placement	Runner-up

Ralph Pagano was a contestant on Season 1 of Hell's Kitchen. He was the runner-up of that season.

History

• Contestant
• Guest

Season 1

Episode 1

Main article: Episode 101 - Day 1

The twelve contestants arrived in Hell's Kitchen and celebrated with a champagne glass and getting to know each other. After some time, Maître D' Jean-Philippe and Sous Chefs Scott and Mary-Ann greeted them, revealing that their first test began now.

During the Signature Dish Challenge, Ralph was the fifth contestant to have his dish judged by Ramsay. He served a seared tuna with hot and cold noodles. It was called shit by Ramsay. After he told him he was number one at his restaurant, Ramsay did not miss the opportunity to make fun of him in front of everybody. After the challenge, he was placed in the blue team, along with Mary Ellen, Wendy, Jessica, Michael, and Andrew.

During dinner service, Ralph was assigned as a waiter. He was not very happy about it, as he claimed that he would be a better help in the kitchen than in the dining room. After he waited on their first tables, he sent up his first ticket to Ramsay. After one hour, one of his tables, who did not receive any appetizers, was so angry that they got up and talk to Ramsay about the problem, only to get called "bimbos" and shut down by him. When these ladies returned, they were asked to get back to plastic surgery by Ramsay and left the restaurant. After many tables walked out, Ramsay shut down both kitchens, and while cleaning up, he called that night a disaster and ugly for both sides. Ramsay said that he did a great job in the dining room as a waiter, despite the tables walking out. The blue team won the service, but Ramsay told them that they did not win and that they were just safe.

Episode 2

Main article: Episode 102 - Day 2

Back at the dorms, Ralph asked Jeff what he was making for Elsie tomorrow for breakfast.

The next day, At 5:55 AM, Sous Chefs Scott and Mary-Ann went in the dorms with cookware and banged them together to wake up everybody, with Dewberry originally thinking it was somebody with a gun. During the Squid Cleaning Challenge, Ralph gave one of the best individual performances of his team and overall with two clean squids. Still, the blue team lost the challenge 5-6. They were punished by cleaning all the squids for the next dinner service and cooking with no air conditioning. After losing, he was not happy that the red team was getting face time with Ramsay while his team was stuck cleaning squid. When he asked Wendy what the Chinese translation of "we will never lose again" was, she said it out loud in the exact pronunciation, with him wanting it to be the blue team's battle cry as his teammates repeated it as well.

During dinner service, Ralph was at the garnish station. Because Wendy was struggling on the appetizer station, he wanted to get the job done and helped her out. The refire was accepted, to Ramsay and customers' relief. Ramsay praised him for his teamwork. After Ramsay shut down both kitchens because Jean-Philippe was physically assaulted, he declared the blue team winners as they managed to get a few main courses out.

Episode 3

Main article: Episode 103 - Day 3

Following Dewberry's elimination, Ralph stated that even though he already missed him, he did not feel sorry for him, explaining that he walked off the line and anybody who did that would get fired immediately in any restaurant. He even added that cooking as a chef was not a glamorous as everybody believed.

Before the Five Course Meal Challenge, Ralph said goodbye to Michael, as the latter transferred to the red team. He said how much it hurt to lose a strong chef like Michael as it meant the blue team would have to work twice as hard. When the blue team discussed their menu, Andrew suggested a light creamy soup for their hot starter, but he wanted it to be a heartier soup instead, annoying the former as his idea was shot down. At the grocery store, he thought about bacon with 30 seconds left, so he threw it in the shopping cart with less than a second to go. During the cooking, he became the leader of the team, much to Andrew's annoyance. He was the second person from the blue team to have his dish judged by Ramsay, made the hot appetizer, and went up against Jeff. He served a roasted corn chowder as a hot starter, it was deemed nice by Ramsay, and he tied that round with Jeff. Later, he was accused of having the idea of the disgusting rib-eye with white peaches that Andrew served, which was confirmed to be true in a flashback. The blue team lost the challenge after a tiebreaker at 3, and they were punished by cleaning the dorms. During the punishment, he admitted that he rather be drinking martinis instead of cleaning but knew that if he had to own a restaurant, they would have to clean the toilets.

During prep, Ralph felt there was some great synergy in the blue kitchen as everybody was helping each other out and wanted to leave service 3-0. During dinner service, he was at the dessert station. He showed great teamwork when he gave help to Jessica, who was asking for some. After witnessing this, Ramsay praised his efforts and his teamwork. Hours later, he offered support to Wendy when she was lost at the meat station. She gave ten minutes for the lamb to be cooked, but he corrected her by giving five minutes, much to Ramsay's relief. He helped her to get the lamb ready for the critics, who gave mixed reviews. Moments later, he slipped and fell to the ground. After tables walked out, Ramsay shut down both kitchens and declared the blue team losers. However, Ramsay praised his work ethic and named him "Best of the Worst." He was asked to nominate two members of his team for elimination. During deliberation, he thought over that night's service. He noted that Andrew, Wendy, and Jessica had miserable performances, making his decision tough on which of the three he would choose.

Ralph named Wendy as his first nominee and Andrew as his second.

Episode 4

Main article: Episode 104 - Day 4

Following elimination, most of the chefs went to bed, but Ralph and Andrew spent time alone at the patio, asking the latter if he was trying to achieve the role of a smartass. Andrew admitted he was a smartass, but while he argued, he stood up for himself, he told the former that he had to shut his mouth when entering the kitchen under Ramsay unless he wanted to be under the guillotine again.

Before the Perfect Table Challenge, Jean-Philippe's speech about the table bored Ralph as he felt the former was going on and on. The blue team managed to make only one mistake, compared to the red team's four, and they won the challenge. They were rewarded with a day of relaxation and spa treatment in the dorms. During the reward, he felt the blue team had an advantage for the following service for having a good high and being both physically and mentally prepared as they toasted to a future victory.

Later that evening, the chefs gathered at the patio for some downtime as Mary-Ann and Jessica called Jean-Philippe a character, while Andrew asked if the latter had gas sometimes. Then, Elsie discovered a huge billboard outside the dorms showing Ramsay's face and the show's title. She made everybody else look at it, all laughing when they saw it saying they could not believe it. During prep, Ralph helped Andrew remember the garnishes by writing them on pieces of white tape, which the latter appreciated.

During dinner service, Ralph was at the fish station. The first Wellingtons Jessica brought up were accepted by Ramsay after she asked for his approval. Later, he got his desserts accepted, completing the blue team's first three tickets. After a lot of struggle by the blue team, they could not complete their tickets before the red team did, which made them the losing team. Jessica was named "Best of the Worst."

He was not nominated for elimination.

Episode 5

Main article: Episode 105 - Day 5

Back at the dorms, Ralph noticed that Andrew was not around but knew that there was only so much he could do for the latter before stating that Andrew had to work hard by himself. The next day, Ramsay asked him who he thought is the strongest link on the blue team. He named himself in that position and named Andrew as the weakest.

During the Pasta Making Challenge, Ralph was rolling the machine to make the dough to the correct thickness and put the pasta on Andrew's arms. The blue team lost the challenge, managing to get only 2,41 lbs. of pasta acceptable, compared to the red team's 2,45. They were punished by making all the remaining pasta for the following evening's pasta-themed service. He tried to protest their defeat as he felt the red team's pasta looked unappealing, and that his grandmother. However, Ramsay told the blue team to act like good losers, but he was very upset as he still had not to get out of the restaurant since the beginning of the competition. When the red team left for their reward, he and Jessica felt they were getting the shaft every time. During the punishment, he was very aggravated by their loss, how they lost multiple challenges, and felt they could be working until 3 AM.

During prep, Ralph was determined to see a red chef go home. During the Pasta Night dinner service, the blue team served during the first seating and cooked during the second. He charmed his first table during the first seating by noticing how they had no menus and called the Maître D' lousy, much to Jean-Philippe's annoyance. He said he liked making people smile and was seen handing tickets to Ramsay. When he got back in the kitchen for the second seating, his confidence level was high, but he was concerned about being down a man compared to the red team. He and Andrew had a heated argument before service because he accused Andrew of not paying attention and not listening to people. When the second seating started, many lasagna orders kept coming in, which made him realize the red team was trying to sabotage the blue team. At one point, his tortellini were rejected for having splashes of tomato sauce on the plate, and Ramsay told him not to fry the pasta. Despite that hiccup, his appetizers were being sent out. The blue team was declared winners because of their good service in the dining room and their food of better quality than the red team's.

After elimination, Ralph knew that Michael's nomination choice for Chris was strategic and knew he had to do what he could to survive.

Episode 6

Main article: Episode 106 - Day 6

After Chris' elimination, Ralph and Michael were still surprised and amazed by that decision. He said that he learned a lesson: he and Michael had to be more focused if they want to win because anything could happen. The next day, Ramsay told him that he was not happy with his previous night's service performance. He promised to do the best he could, but Ramsay told him that he had to understand that it could happen to him with Chris' elimination.

During the Blind Taste Test, Ralph was the final person from the blue team to compete and went up against Michael. He did not manage to score a single point after missing veal sweetbreads and spinach. Missing the last ingredient caused the challenge to end prematurely, with the blue team losing 1-4. Andrew was disappointed in his poor performance, and Ramsay deemed his performance another disappointment.

The blue team was punished by washing the entire restaurant's dishes and had their storage room locked for the following service. Ralph lamented that he drank coffee, smoked cigarettes, and took a cough drop earlier, before wishing he skipped all three before the challenge. He wanted to kick somebody's ass during the punishment, and he and Jessica made death threats towards Elsie. However, he said it could have been worse.

The night before the next service, Ramsay announced that both teams would create their own menus. When the blue team created their menu, Ralph took full control of the menu, shooting down Jessica's chocolate cheesecake, and instead added a flourless cake. Andrew had a great idea for a braised salmon, but he shut down that idea, who said he preferred poached halibut.

During prep, Ralph was trying to tell Andrew how to poach a halibut as they cannot afford mistakes. After learning about their second punishment, he compared it to having one arm tied behind his back before hoping the customers did not order a lot of baby chickens. Although they got it on the first attempt, Sous Chef Scott took the baby chickens back into the storage room after Andrew tried to cheat out of it, just when he was about to break them down.

During dinner service, Ralph was at the dessert station. Many of his ideas were featured on the menu, including mushroom agnolotti, grilled New York steak, lemongrass poached halibut, and flourless chocolate cake. After Andrew struggled on the halibut dish, he told Jessica to lend help to the former. When those dishes came back, Jean-Philippe told him and Andrew that the fish was overcooked and tasteless. When some female customers waved at him because they found him cute, he waved back. However, Ramsay gave him a piece of his mind saying he was not in a mood for smiling, and autographs could be taken care of after service. After that incident, Ramsay shut down both kitchens because too many orders came back.

The blue team lost the service, and Ramsay reminded Ralph was not there to flirt. When Ramsay asked who had input on the halibut dish, he did not answer, much to Andrew's annoyance since it was his dish in the first place, and he answered for him. However, he argued that the dish was a combined effort. Jessica was named "Best of the Worst." During deliberation, Jessica met with him and reassured him that she would not nominate him. Still, she warned him that she needed to stand on her own feet and not look like an idiot.

Ralph was not nominated by Jessica but was eventually nominated by Ramsay and joined Andrew. During his plea, Andrew once again blamed him for the halibut dish, but he retorted that the former should have cared more about the dish before service instead of during service. When Andrew told Ramsay that he felt he was on the Ralph team instead of the blue team as he could not have put a dish on the menu, he argued that he never wanted the team to be all about him, and felt it was the burden of the work he was under. He survived elimination, but Ramsay warned him that he was not untouchable. While being dismissed, he refused to give up until he won.

Episode 7

Main article: Episode 107 - Day 7

Back at the dorms, Jessica was happy to see Ralph still around, and he knew that Andrew deserved to go home after being nominated three times consecutively. Jessica told him he deserved to be there. Afterward, he talked with Michael, feeling that helping his team was starting to bite him in the ass, while the latter would have preferred him being eliminated instead of Andrew because he was his biggest threat at this stage of the game.

The next day, Ramsay merged both teams into one black jackets team, and Ralph was the first to receive a black jacket. When he went up to change, he knew it was down to one final winner after the last couple of tests. During the Fruit Flambé Tableside Challenge, he was the second chef to have his dish judged by Ramsay. While Ramsay found his plate to be good, he forgot the dust his fruits with icing sugar. He lost the challenge to Jimmy and was punished by cleaning the entire dining room ahead of the next dinner service. He called it fucked up that Jimmy did not take Elsie during the punishment, especially since she has helped him in services, and she called him a punk. When Jimmy and Michael came back from the reward and told what they did, he became envious.

Before service, Ramsay gave Sous Chefs Scott and Mary-Ann would be taking the night off, although Ralph knew it would affect everybody without the extra help. During dinner service, Ralph was on the appetizer and plating stations. As service began, he knew that everybody had to stand out as individuals now, but he would still help whenever he could. He and Michael got the newly formed black team off to a good start by sending many appetizers out in record time. When food has made it to the pass faster than ever, Ramsay asked him to join him at the pass to plate the food. Hours later, he received praise from Ramsay for his work on the plating station, and after that, he was asked to help Jimmy, who was struggling on the fish station. After a heated argument between Jimmy and Ramsay, the kitchen was shut down.

During the post-mortem, Ramsay was impressed by Ralph's great work after being pushed around a lot during the last couple of weeks and named him "Best of the Worst." He was told to nominate two of his teammates for elimination. During deliberation, Elsie pulled him aside and asked him to nominate her as she was tired of being in the competition and was not as fast as the rest of the chefs. While alone, he knew he has gotten close to Jessica since their time on the blue team, but he also knew he had to change up his gameplay now that they were competing individually.

Ralph named Jimmy as his first nominee and Jessica as his second. While being dismissed, he was sad to see Jimmy go home, but he knew he had to get rid of him and the others to win.

Episode 8

Main article: Episode 108 - Day 8

Back at the dorms, Jessica told Ralph she did not hate him for nominating her, while he thought the game officially began for him as there were three people against him and felt highly of his hopes.

During the Leftovers Challenge, Ralph decided to utilize the flavors to their max, while Elsie noticed he had a lot of pans while she was throwing stuff in her pot. He was the third person to have his dish judged by Ramsay, presented his sautéed chicken drumstick, and felt he had it made a sauté of chicken drumsticks with thyme sauce. It was praised for a spot-on presentation as it looked like it came from a restaurant, but the fact that he had raw onions spoiled the dish. He lost the challenge to Elsie and was so jealous that he wanted to taste her chicken soup. He was frustrated as he knew his dish looked the best. Still, despite trying to calm down as nobody liked a sore loser, he ended up throwing dishes into the sink out of frustration. Later that night, when Elsie said that it was better than prepping, it caused a sore spot for him as he had yet to win a challenge since he's been there.

Ralph was punished by prepping the kitchen ahead of that night's service. He thought Elsie was cooking for the governor during the punishment, but Sous Chef Mary-Ann said that was not it, as they did not have a good schnitzel recipe. He got to see Elsie's appearance on "Good Day Live", which infuriated him even more. Afterward, he refused to carry Elsie for that night. When Elsie came back from her reward, Ralph gave a fake smile when he said they watched her. When Ramsay asked them what they learned, he and Michael smartly said not to lose challenges if they wanted television action.

During dinner service, Ralph began on the meat station because Elsie put him there thanks to her reward. After one hour, Ramsay made the whole team switch stations, and he was moved to the fish station. He found it a brilliant play on Ramsay as it would test them even further and had his first halibut dish accepted. At the second switch, he moved to the garnish station. Later, his steak was sent up upside down. When two tables walked out unfed, Ramsay shut the kitchen down, and nobody was safe. Ramsay declared he would come with his own decision.

Ralph was not nominated for elimination. While being dismissed, he was happy to see Elsie go home if he was still around.

Episode 9

Main article: Episode 109 - Day 9

After Elsie's elimination, Ralph, along with Jessica and Michael, celebrated in the dorms with some champagne. He toasted to the contestants who were eliminated. On the patio, he was glad to have Jessica still around as she poured her heart into work every day and never giving up. After a few drinks, Jessica went to bed inebriated, something he thought was due to her height.

At 4 AM, the phone rang in the dorms, Michael picked it up, and Ramsay told him to get his two teammates and himself in the blue kitchen immediately for an emergency. When Michael told them, Ralph and Jessica did not believe him and tried to convince him to go to bed. Eventually, an impatient Ramsay sent Sous Chef Scott to the dorms to get them, and his presence finally convinced him and Jessica that it was serious. They rushed to put their jackets on and went downstairs, with him not knowing what was in store for them. Ramsay asked the final three to make bread because the baker could not provide the restaurant with bread. He laid out a plan for them to work around, but Jessica was still a little drunk, so she did not know what was going on. While he and Michael organized the bread-making process and ran the ovens, Jessica stood around doing nothing but yawning and then laying down on the counter. Later, he informed them that it was getting close to ten to 6 AM, and they would not finish for another hour. Although he understood Jessica's exhaustion, he knew there was no rest in a restaurant. After the bread baking, he went back to sleep for two more hours before being woke up by Sous Chef Mary-Ann playing a triangle.

During the Perfect Soufflé Challenge, Ralph immediately thought of a chocolate hazelnut mint soufflé. He was the second chef to have his dish judged by Ramsay and presented his chocolate hazelnut mint soufflé. Ramsay enjoyed it for the taste but told him to put more egg whites to lift it better. Despite that, he was declared the winner of the challenge. Because of that, Ramsay said his reward was choosing the protein each chef would cook for their inspirational dish. The choices were beef, chicken, and tuna. He was disappointed in the reward as it seemed low-key after all the other rewards in the past, but he chose beef as his protein.

While working on his dish, Ralph finally realized the advantage he had for winning the challenge as filet mignon was the biggest seller in the restaurant since the beginning. During prep, He felt so much adrenaline in his body that sleep was not important now.

During dinner service, Ralph was on the garnish station and had his filet mignon dish featured on the menu. At one point, he had his filet ready, but it was sent back due to Jessica being late on the chicken, forcing Ramsay to start over. Despite that, his dish was well-liked by the customers and the final three's family's that were invited. He had a little communication problem with Michael as he did not know what the filet temperatures were on their next order. When Jessica struggled with desserts, she asked him for help, but he could not due to the flow of entrées. As ticket orders began to dwindle, he compared it to the New Year's Eve countdown of the next millennium. When he served the last main course, he joined Jessica and Michael on the dessert. At the end of service, his dish was the most popular with 42 orders.

At elimination, Ralph was visited by his fiancée, his mom, and his uncle. After each family member got to reveal the dish they enjoyed the most, he was shocked that all his loved ones liked Michael's tuna the best and them to take the knife out of his back. He finished in second place with three votes for his filet mignon. Therefore, he became one of the two finalists, along with Michael. After Jessica and her family left, Ramsay congratulated him and Michael for standing before him as the finalists in Hell's Kitchen and reminded them that they were one step closer to winning their own restaurant. After, Ramsay allowed them time with their family, and as they did so, he knew the only way he could beat Michael was to be stronger and perfect.

Episode 10/11

Main article: Episode 110/111 - Day 10

Continuing from the previous episode, Ramsay told Ralph and Michael that the real work was about to begin as one of them would win their very own restaurant before giving the two some appreciated time with their respective. As he saw them, he had a great feeling to see his family again due to the lack of contact. Eventually, the loved ones left them. The next day, he and Michael met on the patio, discussing how they wanted to win. He felt like a million dollars and was really wanting a restaurant himself.

Afterward, the phone rang in the dorms, and Ralph answered, "Bonsoir!". Ramsay told him to get in the dining room with Michael in two minutes, and when they hung up, Ramsay mocked his "Bonsoir" by calling him a stupid idiot. Two minutes later, the finalists sat down at a table and had a chat with Ramsay. He congratulated them for making it to the final two after a long and hard journey, and their biggest test was about to begin. Then, Ramsay said he was very ballsy and gusty but felt he moved too quickly for his liking. When Ramsay asked the final two who was going to win, they each believed they would win. After the chat, Ramsay made them stand up, one on each side of the restaurant, and a huge white blanket came down from the ceiling, splitting the restaurant in half. Ramsay announced that this was their final test, as their respective halves would serve as their own restaurants for the final dinner service. The finalist had to design their dream restaurant, write and create their own menus, and run the kitchen like Ramsay would head to head. He felt he had an advantage over Michael as he would pull out all the stops to win. He was given the blue kitchen, and when discussing with John Janavs, he wanted a party-like theme for his restaurant as he wanted his customers to have a good time. He also wanted a mirror on the wall as a message for sharing and felt they would enjoy his décor. When talking with Jean-Philippe, he wanted a clear difference between the men and women servers in terms of uniforms, but the former asked him if he wanted the women in leggings. While working on his menu, he wanted to focus on traditional dishes but put them in an Italian theme. The next day, he saw that his restaurant design was starting to take shape but noticed that the curtains were missing, and he still had to get everything else ready. Then, Janavs told him that the wallpaper company made a mistake on order, and they have less than needed from them. The best Janavs could do was to order from Pennsylvania and try to get it in by midnight. When Ramsay saw the outline, he felt it was becoming a modern bistro steakhouse despite having a 1920's decor. Still, Janavs felt he was trying to balance out the old with the new.

Before the Final Signature Dish Challenge, Ramsay asked Ralph what his signature dish was. He said it was a Porterhouse steak for two people Italian style. Still, Ramsay told him to look on the practical side as there was the chance only one customer wanted the dish. During the cooking, he explained that a porterhouse steak was the Cadillac of beef cuts. When Ramsay looked, he felt the dish had a masculine steak but wanted something a little more inspiring. During the judging, Michael was racking up the first couple of points, but as he refused to lose another challenge, he became like a salesman, trying to sell his food and telling that his food was better than Michael's. However, Ramsay knew he only did that out of panic and told him to let the customers enjoy it without the pressure. However, his strategy worked as he was in the lead 6-5, but it did not last as the customers liked Michael's more. Even one customer said that he liked Michael's dish better despite liking him more as a person. He lost the challenge to Michael 6-12, but he felt the former had an unfair advantage as he compared the dish to street food, unlike his own dish that was supposed to be served in a dining room. However, he did not care as he was going to win the next day.

When Ralph came back to the dining room, he felt that the hurry would go away from his original design. Later that night, Ramsay told the final two that they would perform a practice service and give each of them a chance to run the pass. During Michael's turn, he believed he would have the edge over the former due to the lack of vocalness. He was the second person to run the pass, and on his first ticket, he already seemed very confident and charismatic, calling it second nature. Ramsay praised him for this, but Michael secretly sabotaged the risotto by deliberately forgetting to put the crab in, wanting to see what would slip past him. He failed to spot Michael's sabotage, and the latter was amused that he failed to see it. In addition, he was calling Jean-Philippe "Jean-Pierre," frustrating the latter to the point of wanting to murder him. Construction workers started to complain, and a risotto came back with Jean-Philippe telling him about the missing crab. Ramsay told him he had to taste everything, and he told Michael about his supposed mistake. Despite that, Ramsay reminded him that he should have noticed that mistake from the start. In addition, he was about to serve salmon that looked broken, but despite Ramsay's disapproval over the tactic, he sent it out anyways. After service, he was criticized for poor-quality control, acknowledged that it was his fault for not noticing the crab initially, and thanked Michael for the screw-up. Back at the dorms, he was amused by Michael's attempts to recite Ramsay's insults, as he knew the former was a soft-spoken person.

The next day, Ralph compared it to game 7 of the World Series, the Super Bowl, and the Kentucky Derby all rolled into one event. When he saw his restaurant, he was very satisfied and was told by Janavs that the wallpaper problem had been solved. Later, he reunited with his former teammates when they came back. Because he lost the previous service, he was forced to have the final pick. When Michael picked Jessica as his first pick, he was infuriated because he felt she was his closest friend, hence why the former picked her. He selected Andrew as his first pick, despite the times they butted heads in the competition, and Wendy as his second pick, explaining that while Elsie stayed longer and was good in challenges, he feared her head was not in the game, and it could hurt him. He was left with Dewberry as his final pick overall.

During prep, Ralph explained his game plan, showed them a list of rules they should follow and had them read them for inspiration. However, he did have some concern with his team as Andrew could get all over the place, Wendy could crumble under the line, and he still remembered how Dewberry nearly walked off the line at one point. Ralph needed them to be strong as it was his career on the line. Later, Jean-Philippe came to his kitchen, but when he called him "Jean-Pierre" again, he got fed up and warned him that he would kill him if he repeated it. Jean-Philippe told him to come to the dining room and meet his dining room staff. He named his restaurant "Frank & Lulu's," referring to his dog's name and his friend's dog's name, feeling they felt the name for his steakhouse. An hour and a half before service, Andrew cut his finger while prepping artichokes and had to go to the hospital. Sous Chef Scott informed him about the incident, much to his dismay as they were one man down now. When he went to see Ramsay in his office, he declared that being a man down, he would run the pass and the garnish station at the same time. Ramsay was not a fan of that idea, though, especially as they have not even begun service. After that, Ramsay changed the subject by looking at his restaurant to see the design and the staff. Ramsay felt that the atmosphere was warm and deemed the theme beautiful and rich. When he introduced his staff to him, Ramsay said the men were looking smart and dapper, but the women were looking like grannies, which they felt so as well. Fifteen minutes before the doors open, his team was trying to pick up the slack with Andrew missing, but the latter managed to return on time, and they high-fived each other.

During dinner service, Ralph's team responded to his first order, but Wendy realized she did not have enough pans on the appetizer station and got confused about his order. Seeing Wendy getting confused, he decided to help her out, but that meant spending more time on her station than the hot plate, which Ramsay noticed. Fortunately, he had a backup plan, which was an antipasto appetizer served tableside. The customers were enjoying the food, and he started to send out entrées. However, he caught Dewberry putting fish stock in the spaghetti when he was not supposed to. Then, Dewberry started to feel faint and warned him that he was about to pass out. Then, Jean-Philippe told him that despite the food being great, the service had to go faster on the entrées. Still feeling hot and weak, Dewberry left the kitchen to sit down, but he told Sous Chef Scott that he was not sure if the former would make it, especially as he did not want to see Dewberry die. When Dewberry returned to the kitchen, stating he would not leave, he held him the list of rules to follow. Dewberry knew he wanted him and managed to bounce back with a properly cooked sea bass. He called Dewberry his rock of Gibraltar, but the latter jokingly said he would rather be called Brad Pitt's wife. That joke made Ramsay and Sous Chef Scott laugh, but he felt Dewberry had some issues. Three hours into service, Ralph managed to get more than half of his entrées out successfully. Still, he got annoyed when Dewberry was late on the ravioli. After service ended, he gave Dewberry a big kiss.

After service, Ramsay revealed to Ralph that every one of his customers was from New York because he wanted a New York Steakhouse. Then, Ramsay sent the final two back to the dorms while he looked over the comment cards. The final two congratulated each other as they made their way back to the dorms, knowing that their fate was in Ramsay's hands. He believed he might win, given that he was a little stronger than Michael. After discussing their night on the patio, they split off to different rooms, each hoping that they would be the winners while talking to the photos of their loved ones. Later that night, he and Michael were led to Ramsay's office by the Sous Chefs. Once there, Ramsay asked both to stand in front of a door each and said that only the winner's door would open. After waiting nervously for Ramsay's countdown to end, both finalists turned their handles, but his door did not open. He was named the runner-up but he took his defeat graciously, saying he had no reservations against his performance and felt he did not entirely lose.

Nomination History

Week 1	Win
Week 2	Win
Week 3	BoW
Week 4	Safe
Week 5	Win
Week 6	Nominated
Week 7	BoW
Week 8	Safe
Week 9	Safe
Finale	Runner-Up

Season 10

Episode 3

Main article: Episode 1003 - 16 Chefs Compete

After Ramsay took note of Royce's poor performances, Ralph was called to give his employee some words of encouragement for the upcoming service.

Post Hell's Kitchen

• After his appearance on the show, Ralph became a celebrity chef and hosted many tv cooking shows.
• He opened many successful restaurants in Miami, Florida, such as Naked Taco, Naked Lunch, and Naked Tiki.
• He had competed on "Iron Chef America," where he lost to Iron Chef Bobby Flay, in the battle of barramundi.
• In June 2017, he was hospitalized due to life-threatening burns.
• He eventually recovered and returned to his restaurant in 2020.
• In October 2023, he was arrested for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon after allegedly attacking another driver with a baseball bat during a road rage incident. In March 2024, he sued the driver for filing a false police report against him regarding the confrontation.

Trivia

• He participated in the first-ever all-male finals of Hell's Kitchen.
• He is the first runner-up and first male runner-up of Hell's Kitchen.
• He is the first contestant ever to receive a black jacket.
• He is the first member of the blue team named the "Best of the Worst". He is also the first contestant to be named "Best of the Worst" during the Black Jackets.
• He is the first contestant to be nominated by Ramsay and the first contestant only to be nominated in that fashion.
• He and Jessica are tied for the most times announcing the nominees in Season 1, with 2, with both of them being "Best of the Worst" twice.
• He is the only member of that season's black jacket team to have never worn a red jacket at some point.
• Season 10 contestant Royce was one of his employees at one of his restaurants, the STK South Beach in Florida.

Quotes

• (After Jimmy accidentally said Jesus when asked who would serve Caesars salad tableside) "He (Jesus) didn't make it to the final five!"
• (To Jean-Philippe when called up by him) "Hey, Jean Pierre, how are you? Jean Pierre?"
• "Bonsoir!"
• "This game ain't for everybody, man!"
• (After being named the runner-up) "I've said it before, win, lose, or draw, I've got no reservations about how I performed and what I did here. I did exactly what I said I was gonna do. I did the best I could. There's no loser, ya know, Michael just happened to win."

Gallery

• Chef
• Dishes

Ralph's Intro Spot

Ralph's Signature Dish

Ralph in Blue Jacket

Ralph's Confessional (Blue Jacket)

Ralph in the Blind Taste Test

Andrew and Ralph Nominated

Ralph in a Black Jacket

Ralph's Confessional (Black Jacket)

Ralph in Head Chef Jacket

Ralph's Confessional (Head Chef Jacket)

Ralph after being named the Runner-Up

Ralph's Signature Dish

Ralph's Five-Course Meal Dish (Episode 3)

Ralph's Fruit Flambé Tableside Dish (Episode 7)

Ralph's Leftover Dish (Episode 8)

Jessica, Michael, and Ralph's Soufflés (Episode 9)

Ralph's Final Signature Dish (Episode 10)

External links

• Ralph Pagano on Instagram