| “ | I definitely feel that I'm the Rolls-Royce of cooking. | ” |
Royce Wagner was a contestant on Season 10 of Hell's Kitchen. He ranked in 10th place.
Season 10[]
Episode 1[]
- Main article: Episode 1001 - 18 Chefs Compete
The eighteen chefs arrived at Hell's Kitchen via SUVs and police escort, and as they walked in, Sous Chef Scott told the chefs he shaved his head to prove his commitment to Ramsay and showed a picture of him with a full head of hair, before deciding to shave the chefs' heads. After two chefs got their heads shaved, really Sous Chef Scott's friends, the latter was about to shave Danielle's head until Ramsay stopped him and told her to get back in line. He told the chefs to get in the kitchens to cook their signature dishes.
During the Signature Dish Challenge, Royce was the third person from the blue team to have his dish judged by Ramsay and went up against Roshni. Before having his dish judged, he said anything he cooked was delicious, revealed that he cooked at SDK at South Beach and his executive chef was Season 1 runner-up Ralph Pagano. He made a pan-seared grouper, and after tasting his dish, Ramsay said that Ralph obviously passed on very good techniques. So, he tied that round with Roshni. The blue team eventually lost the challenge 3-5, and they were punished by cleaning up both kitchens.
Before service began, Royce felt confident the men would knock that service out of the park. During dinner service, he was on the appetizer station with Guy and Tavon. At the start of service, he asked where the anchovies for the Caesar salads were, irritating Guy who told him to get his bitch ass up and find them himself. However, Royce blamed Guy for prepping the salad station improperly, but found the anchovies in the back back-room fridge. After Tavon sent up raw pigeon, he called him a fucking moron, and when Tavon was kicked out, Ramsay tried to urge him to lead, but did not respond despite feeling that he had it. However, despite feeling confident in his spaghetti, Clemenza, who worked in a pasta company years ago, knew it was raw. To Clemenza’s horror, he sent up crunchy spaghetti, and despite claiming he could bounce back, a fed-up Ramsay kicked him out of the kitchen and told him to join Tavon. As he left for the dorms, he called himself the best chef of the competition and felt he did not deserve to be kicked out.
The blue team lost the service, and they were asked to nominate two people for elimination. During deliberation, Royce was considered for elimination by Patrick for screwing the men up from the start with Tavon but argued his salad station was not set up right. When Chris asked who prepped it, Guy said he did but also argued that he should have grabbed them from the fridge.
Royce was not nominated for elimination, but he was called up with Tavon in the place of Don. During his plea, he argued that he showed his strengths in the Signature Dish Challenge, but stammered through the rest of his plea before accusing Guy of sabotaging him, even though the latter argued that forgetting the anchovies did not count as sabotage. He survived elimination.[1]
Episode 2[]
- Main article: Episode 1002 - 17 Chefs Compete
While going back to the dorms, Royce claimed to be the happiest man in the world as he was still there and flaunted it in the dorms.
During the Scallop Challenge, Royce’s face was bleeding and claimed that Guy hit him in the face with a scallop, before he went to see medical attention. He was paired up with Guy, and they were seen only having one attempt plated, which was accepted. The blue team eventually lost the challenge 2-6, and they were punished by cleaning up the ice from the front entrance, prepping prawns for the following night’s service, and drinking a scallop shake. During the punishment, he was not amused by Brian's antics and told the latter to start acting like a man and not like a boy, annoying him.
During dinner service, Royce was on the garnish station. At one point, he tried to interject on Don's work, and when Brian got a scallop refire accepted, he felt the men had their swagger back. However, he was struggling with garnish and growing nervous, with Guy comparing him to a little girl, and then, Ramsay rejected his mashed potatoes for being bland and stuck to the pan as there was no butter or cream in it. After he apologized in the confession, Ramsay said he did not know how to wake him up anymore, and that he made Don look good. When the men got kicked out of the kitchen after a string of mistakes that night, he defeatedly wanted another chance at redemption.
Both teams were named joint losers and they were asked to nominate two each. During deliberation, Royce challenged the men to nominate him as he would defend his honor as he did not waste either money time on Chris’ scallops and Don’s pizzas respectively, before asking how his mashed potatoes warranted a nomination as he did not know what they looked like. However, that irritated Clemenza as he, who was close to thirty, had to be shown how to make mashed potatoes, while Guy called him the weakest link for not manning up.
Royce was the blue team's second nominee for elimination, with Chris as the first, and they were joined by Barbie and Roshni from the red team. During his plea, Ramsay told him that he was gaining a bad reputation, but while he argued that he had dedication, Ramsay reminded him how he had to tell him to add cream and butter to his mashed potatoes. While he argued that his performance did not warrant a nomination, Ramsay felt that his teammates thought differently. He survived elimination after being sent back in line.[2]
Episode 3[]
- Main article: Episode 1003 - 16 Chefs Compete
During the Immigrants Lunch Service Challenge, Royce was on the salad station, though struggled early on. Despite feeling that he had it, he served a cobb salad with mushrooms, Ramsay said that they were not needed, and a frustrated Clemenza called him an idiot for struggling on something simple. When Clemenza tried to help him out, he was not appreciative, but Justin put a hold on the two arguing. The blue team lost the challenge, and they were punished with hard labor at Ballona Wetlands. After Patrick volunteered to be the leader, he felt that the former was way over his head, but was willing to see what the latter had if it would help the men win something.
During prep, Royce felt Patrick was not doing anything substantial, said that he sucked, and flipped him off. However, Patrick felt that he needed to calm down on his cockiness as the latter continued to show attitude. Before service began, Ramsay called up Ralph, making him nervous, and the former told him to stay confident and focused, reigniting his determination.
During dinner service, Royce was on the appetizer station with Justin. After the men received their first order, he was ready with his A++ game, he got his risotto accepted, and declared he was back in the game. While Ramsay wished he called Ralph earlier to inspire him, he urged the men to keep their momentum going. The blue team won the service, and Ramsay welcomed him back. After elimination, he felt the men were back in it, and that the women were going down the next day like they did that night.[3]
Episode 4[]
- Main article: Episode 1004 - 15 Chefs Compete
The next day, a group of dogs was let loose in the dorms, and their loud barking woke up the chefs, confusing Barbie. Once up, Sous Chef Scott gave them overalls to put on.
During the Creative Lamb Challenge, Royce was paired with Brian on the lamb steak, and during the cooking, he ignored Brian’s suggestion of salting their lamb steak as he felt he was better than his teammates. He and Brian were the final pair from the blue team to have their dish judged by Ramsay, and they went up against the pair of Dana and Christina. He said he had something that would blow Ramsay’s fucking mind, and revealed their marinated grilled lamb steak with avocado mousse and coleslaw. Ramsay praised the combination of the mousse and the steak, along with the seasoning, and after a tough decision, Ramsay gave him and Brian the point. The men won 3-2, they were rewarded with a VIP trip to the Hollywood Park racetrack, and when Clemenza asked for some cash to gamble, Ramsay gave them $100 to use, and asked them not to spend it on hot dogs.
During dinner service, Royce was on the meat station with Don. Despite showing concern when Don sent up his Wellingtons, they were deemed perfect. However, when Don sliced his steak, he announced that it was raw. However, Don ignored him and sent the steak up. When Don got kicked out of the kitchen, he took full control of meat. Two hours into dinner service, Ramsay ordered the men for two sea bass immediately, but for some reason, both he and Justin were cooking fish. Infuriated by that, Ramsay kicked both the two out of the kitchen. Both teams were named joint losers and they were asked to nominate two each. During deliberation, he asked Brian how a personal chef could not cook fish, feeling that five monkeys could have done a better job than the latter.
Royce was not nominated for elimination, and after Don's elimination, he welcomed Roshni as a new teammate.[4]
Episode 5[]
- Main article: Episode 1005 - 14 Chefs Compete
Before the Mexican Cuisine Challenge, Royce called the giant piñata a big donkey. He made the tacos, was the first person from the blue team to have his dish judged, and went up against Kimmie. He made traditional pork tacos with pimento potatoes, it was criticized for having a greasy tortilla shell, and he lost that round to Kimmie. The blue team lost the challenge 2-3, and they were punished by prepping for Mexican Night, which included making both the salsa and the tortilla by hand, and eating tripe for lunch. During the punishment, he was disgusted by his meal.
Later that night in the hot tub, the blue team completed their punishment and went back upstairs to relax, but Royce complained that Mexicans did not use flour tortillas, before refusing to believe that Kimmie, a Memphis girl, did not make a better taco than himself. Unknown to him, a drunk Tiffany would tell Kimmie and Robyn what he said, only to say that Danielle, Dana, and Christina said it instead.
During the Mexican Night dinner service, Royce was on the meat station with Patrick. He was not seen much, but he sent up a chicken with burnt bits of skin and was kicked out of the kitchen before Ramsay said he was in over his head. Both teams were named joint losers, and they were asked to nominate two each. During deliberation, he considered Patrick and Guy for elimination as they screwed up on their stations and forced the others to try and rebound from their mistakes, and Brian agreed to that.
He was not nominated for elimination.[5]
Episode 6/7[]
- Main article: Episode 1006 - 13 Chefs Compete Part 1
- Main article: Episode 1007 - 13 Chefs Compete Part 2
Back at the dorms, Royce confronted Patrick of failing to step up as the blue team’s leader, and called him an old man for not thinking quicker, even volunteering to become the new leader. However, Guy felt he was all talk and did not see the latter as a leader. Then, Patrick argued that the blue team has become stronger since he became the leader, but while he acknowledged that, he felt Patrick was taking lefts when the rest of the team took rights. That led to Patrick cursing him out, felt that nobody trusted him and that the latter would betray them as nobody had faith in him. The next day, he tried to flirt with Kimmie by suggesting she use him as a loofah on her next shower, but the latter playfully flipped him off.[6]
During the Fashion Night Planning Challenge, Royce felt he knew the fashion scene more than the other chefs as he was from Miami. He was part of a trio with Clemenza and Guy, and suggested adding broccolini to their dish to which Clemenza agreed with. When Guy was slow on potatoes, he called it ridiculous as potatoes were so easy to cook. They cooked the seafood entrée, was the final trio to have their dish judged, and went up against the pair of Kimmie and Robyn. Guy presented the trios swordfish seasoned with chili, paprika, and saffron, and after mentioning that they represented Italy and Spain, it complimented Ina Soltani as the two countries were her biggest influences. Amanda Che herself liked the mussel and clam’s idea as it resonated with her as a swimwear designer, and after tasting the dish, the judges deemed it delicious despite wanting the presentation to be refined and leave out the sauce. They scored that round over the pair of Kimmie and Robyn, and the blue team won the challenge 2-1.
The blue team was rewarded with a $1000 shopping spree at the M. Fredric boutique along with a wine tasting excursion at the Rosenthal Estate, exciting Royce as it felt good to win a challenge. During the reward, he said it was great to spend time outside the restaurant as they have lost most of the time.
During the Fashion Night dinner service, Royce was on the plating station with Ramsay. After Guy served overcooked scallops, he accused the former of fumbling on the scallops and Clemenza going down like a body on the east river, and when the two men announced two minutes on the refire, Ramsay told him to inform the producer about a five-minute delay. When he came into the dressing room, he was taken aback by the models' appearance, before telling the producer and David Meister about the five-minute delay, and left back to the blue kitchen as he was focused on completing service, winning the $250,000, and taking one of the models on a hot date. Later, Clemenza asked him to double-check his swordfish count, which the latter said 17. When the final orders were ready, he was plating the food awkwardly as he felt intimidated by Ramsay’s presence. Then, Ramsay caught him cleaning the plates with a dirty cloth, showed him a clean one he could have used, and after putting him at the chef's table for a bit, he was threatened with elimination through the front doors if he ever did that again. Despite that, the blue team completed their entrées. When the blue team was cleaning up, Ramsay discovered a tray of eleven wasted swordfish, dismaying both Roshni and Brian, and asked him why Clemenza cooked that much. He claimed that he told Clemenza to cook 16 plus 1, but an angry Clemenza retorted that he told him 17 and asked what the fuck was wrong with his brain. After, an angry Ramsay ordered the two men to trash the swordfish with him holding the trash bin and Clemenza throwing the fish into the bin.
The blue team lost the service, with Ramsay telling Royce that if he could see Kimmie’s plating that night, it was brilliant and perfect, and they were asked to nominate two people for elimination. During deliberation, he considered Clemenza, feeling the latter was the kid who would be sent to the corner in kindergarten for coloring outside the line, and the rest of the blue team unanimously agreed. For the second nominee, he agreed with Guy to nominate Brian, but also agreed with Clemenza on Patrick as he felt the latter was not leading the blue team and did not like a leader who did not lead.
Royce was not nominated with elimination, and when Ramsay asked him who he thought should be eliminated, he said Clemenza. While being dismissed, he acknowledged Clemenza’s passion but said that finesse and organization skills were better.[7]
Episode 8[]
- Main article: Episode 1008 - 12 Chefs Compete
During the Dome Challenge, Royce grabbed lobster for his dish, and after tasting his dish, he felt his lobster tasted fucking delicious. He was the final person from the blue team to have his dish judged, went up against Christina, and was confident about his dish. He made a whole poached lobster in saffron and thyme, but Douglas Keane found a long hair in his dish, disgusting everybody as an irritated Clemenza asked why he would serve a dish with hair in it to a two Michelin star chef. When Ramsay asked him why there was a hair in the dish, and said the hair was bigger than Roshni, he claimed he had no idea how it got in there, and then, Michael Cimarusti revealed that the lobster still had it’s shit sack in there as well. He scored only 3 stars and an astonished Kimmie asked what the fuck he was doing. The blue team was punished by cleaning up the dorms and prepping for that night’s dinner service. Before Ramsay asked him what was up with the long hair, and while he still had no idea how it got there, Ramsay said it was not good enough.
During dinner service, Royce was on the garnish station. He was not seen much, except for accusing Patrick of acting like he never cooked before after the latter served cold lobster. The blue team was kicked out after multiple mistakes, they were named the losers, and they were asked to nominate two people for elimination.
Royce was not nominated for elimination, and when Ramsay asked him who should go home, he said Patrick.[8]
Episode 9/10[]
- Main article: Episode 1009 - 11 Chefs Compete Part 1
- Main article: Episode 1010 - 11 Chefs Compete Part 2
Back at the dorms, Patrick felt on bad terms with Royce, saying he was sneaky, leading to him reminding the former that he fucked up the lobster, until Patrick called him a prick and saying someone would fuck him up. The next day, he listened to Kimmie's rap, but afterwards, he said he wouldn't put a nickel into her rap investment.
During the Creative Steak Challenge, Royce yelled out for beef as he loved steak, went up against Christina, wanted to redeem himself after his poor performance against her during the previous challenge, and wanted to keep going against the latter until he beat her. Their ingredients were hanger steak, yams, eggplant, asparagus, and crab, leaving him more confident as he boasted he was not done with Christina yet. During the cooking, he boasted that he was bringing his A-game and that even his mother would tell them that none of them could cook like himself. He was the second person from the blue team to have his dish judged and presented his medium-rare hanger steak with a pan-seared crab cake in port wine Berblanc, demi glass sauce, and fresh grilled vegetable. While it was praised for looking fantastic, it was criticized for an undercooked eggplant which was both spongy and bitter to taste, he lost that round to Christina, and was pissed that he lost to her again. The blue team eventually won the challenge 3-2, and they were rewarded with a shopping spree at Sur la Table and lunch at Comme Ca.
The next day, Royce was one of the chefs Robyn vented to about her teammates.[9] During the Steak-Family Night dinner service, he was on the fish station. At one point, he did not respond to the next order, leading Ramsay to order the latter to call it out multiple times, three filets, and one hanger. Later, while he felt he was the best with meat, his hanger steak was raw. After a fed-up Ramsay said it was too good to be true, he was kicked out of the kitchen, frustrating him as he was perfect until that one mistake. Both teams were named joint losers, and they were asked to nominate two each. During deliberation, Brian and Clemenza considered him for elimination, but while he argued that he did not deserve to be nominated for only having one item sent back, he knew that his team would target him regardless.
Royce was the blue team's second nominee for elimination, with Patrick as the first, and they joined Tiffany and Robyn from the red team. During his plea, Ramsay warned him that he was running out of patience, but while he said he had a lot of fight despite being kicked and stabbed, Ramsay said he was not feeling it. He survived elimination, and after Patrick's elimination, he welcomed Robyn as a new teammate.[10]
Episode 11[]
- Main article: Episode 1011 - 10 Chefs Compete
During the Craps Challenge, Royce rolled a C and picked chicken. Near the end of the cooking, he sliced the chicken despite Justin's concern that it was not rested enough. Justin presented the blue team's charred chicken roulade with dragon fruit vinaigrette, edamame purée, and daikon-dragon fruit sushi roll. Ramsay praised the sushi roll for tasting delicious, the purée for being nailed despite being a tough one to pull off but criticized the chicken for tasting dry due to his decision to slice the chicken too early, which he admitted to fucking up. The blue team won the challenge, they were rewarded with a day in Las Vegas, staying in the Paris Hotel in a high roller’s suite above the prized restaurant Gordon Ramsay Steak, and he was excited to go to Vegas. During the reward, he was excited at the spread of food and girls.
During prep, Royce did not give a fuck what Robyn told him about how the red team did things as she was on the blue team now. During dinner service, he was on the meat station. At one point, three of his Wellingtons had different temperatures, an angry Ramsay asked him if he expected him to send them out to the same table, and Robyn deemed it unacceptable. Now forced to flip a ticket, he called out four minutes on the order, and Robyn accused him of not knowing what the fuck he was doing, before comparing him to an ostrich with its head in the sand. Then, he revealed that he just put the New York striploins on, and they could take eight minutes to cook, leading Ramsay to call him out on his inconsistent timings, and Brian felt he was all over the place with no chance of bouncing back. After he called out five minutes, an angry Ramsay yelled that he said the same thing five minutes ago before calling everybody minus Robyn into the back-pantry room, order them to have a meeting, and if none of them did not get a grip and an attitude change, they could fuck off. Later, he sent up dry pork that Ramsay compared to door stops while claiming they would take a year for a customer to finish. When he said his refire could take ten minutes, that served to be the final straw as Ramsay showed them that they still had eleven tables left while the red team had zero before calling four of the red chefs into the blue kitchen to help.
The blue team lost the service, with Ramsay berating Royce on his poor pork, and they were asked to nominate two people for elimination. During deliberation, Brian and Clemenza considered him for elimination, but he argued he only had three mistakes that night compared to multiple scallops and flatbread mistakes the two made. Then, Robyn considered him for elimination.
Royce was named the blue team's first nominee for elimination, with Clemenza as the second. During his plea, he said he beated himself up for his mistakes, making the red team laugh at that comment, but said he walked back in prouder and trying to get better to Ramsay’s level of perfection. However, Ramsay reminded him that he was opening Gordon Ramsay Steak that year, not in 2025. After the pleas, Ramsay ordered both down to the front, told them to take off their jackets, and eliminated him for his poor performance on meat and failure to live up to Ralph’s legacy, with Ramsay telling him to give his regards to the latter. During his exit interview, he was not okay with leaving as he was better than everybody else, called himself driven, and strongly felt he did not deserve to leave.
Ramsay's comment: "Royce came in promising a Rolls-Royce service. But instead, his service was like a broken-down car. Time to send Royce to the junkyard." [11]
Episode 19/20[]
- Main article: Episode 1019 - 2 Chefs Compete
- Main article: Episode 1020 - Winner Chosen
Royce was one of the eight chefs that returned for the final dinner service. He was Justin's third pick as the latter felt his hunger as he was not smiling, and that he needed to prove something. He was after Barbie and Brian and was followed by Clemenza.
When Justin gathered the team for a quick briefing, Royce noticed that Clemenza was not around.[12] During dinner service, he was on the fish station. Twenty-five minutes into service, he did not have the sauce for the crab cakes, and Justin discovered they were cold in the middle. Feeling that he was not moving fast enough, Justin tried to push his team, but his refire was dry, and a miffed Ramsay ordered him to wake up as it was their first ticket. So, Justin ordered Brian to help him out, but he did not like how Justin freaked out over one mistake as it was not helping anybody. As Justin kept ordering him to get it done, he mocked him in the confessional before getting his third attempt accepted, and called himself the Rolls Royce. One hour into service, one customer‘s cod entree was sent back for being cold. Justin ordered him to get the refire out immediately, but he argued that Justin should have checked it more carefully like an Executive Chef. Later on, Justin rejected his fish for taste factor. Two hours into dinner service, when Barbie announced that she didn’t have enough portions for two ribeyes, he told her to tell Justin. Justin eventually lost the finals to Christina, and during the celebration, Ramsay called him hard work and admitted he wanted to grill his head a couple of times.[13]
Nomination History[]
| Week 1 | Nominated |
|---|---|
| Week 2 | Nominated |
| Week 3 | Win |
| Week 4 | Safe |
| Week 5 | Safe |
| Week 6 | Safe |
| Week 7 | Safe |
| Week 8 | Nominated |
| Week 9 | Nominated |
Post Hell's Kitchen[]
- After his appearance on the show, Royce started his own company called Three Lions Corp.
Trivia[]
- Season 1 runner-up Ralph Pagano was his boss.
- He is the second contestant to be nominated by Ramsay on the opening night, following Chino (Season 9).
- He is the third contestant to get nominated on opening night after scoring a point during the Signature Dish Challenge, following Sabrina (Season 8) and Monterray (Season 9). He is the last contestant to do so and the only one to this date to be nominated by Ramsay.
Quotes[]
- "Chef Ramsay's gonna like me. Anything that I cook is delicious. It's what I do."
- "You like me now?"
- “I can’t make nothin’! Guy prepped the salad station. I guess he didn’t think that Caesar salad needed anchovies. I was ambushed 100%.”
- "Tavon couldn't cook a squab. Like, he's just a fucking moron."
- "Royce can make spaghetti. Royce can make squab. Royce can make everything. I've got this."
- (After being kicked out of the kitchen) "Fuck that shit! I'm the best chef in Hell's Kitchen. I don't deserve to get kicked out."
- "Chef Ramsay, I want to say that I'm sorry I uh, I'm sorry I disappointed you. I'd...I uh, I didn't know how you wanted your mashed potatoes."
- "I definitely feel that I'm the Rolls-Royce of cooking."
- "Justin is like "I'M FREAKING OUT RIGHT NOW, I CAN'T KEEP MY FACE ON! AAHH!!" Everything is dying and I can't get food to the window, why?"
- (After being eliminated) "Of course I'm not okay with leaving. I know I'm better than everybody else. I came here driven, focused, I pushed myself. I don't think I deserve to be standing here."
Gallery[]
,_Chris_(S10),_and_Royce_Nominated.png "Roshni, Barbie (S10), Chris (S10), and Royce Nominated.png (337 KB)")
.png "Brian and Royce's Creative Lamb Dish (Lamb Steak).png (203 KB)")
.png "Royce's Dome Dish (Lobster).png (287 KB)")
.png "Royce's Creative Steak Dish (Hanger Dish).png (254 KB)")
External links[]
Royce Wagner on Instagram- Royce Wagner on Twitter
References[]
| Hell's Kitchen Season 10 |
|---|
| Staff |
| Gordon Ramsay (Head Chef) • Scott Leibfried (Blue Team Sous Chef) • Andi Van Willigan-Cutspec (Red Team Sous Chef) • James Lukanik (Maître d'hôtel) |
| Contestants |
| Robyn Almodovar • Justin Antiorio • Chris Carrero • Clemenza Caserta • Patrick Cassata • Dana Cohen • Roshni Gurnani • Tavon Hubbard • Tiffany Johnson • Barbie Marshall • Brian Merel • Danielle Rimmer • Don Savage • Briana Swanson • Guy Vaknin • Royce Wagner • Kimmie Willis • Christina Wilson |