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Season 15 of Hell's Kitchen aired on Fox between January 15, and April 29, 2016. Country Club chef Ariel Malone was the winner of that season, and was awarded a Head Chef position at BLT Steak at Bally's Las Vegas, with a $250,000 salary.
Contestants[]
18 contestants competed during this season. The teams were divided by gender, male contestants in the blue team and female contestants in the red team. The contestants were (in alphabetical order):
| Contestant | Age | Occupation | Hometown |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kristin Barone | 27 | Line Cook | Chicago, IL |
| Jared Bobkin | 28 | Oak Park, MI | |
| Sherkenna Buggs | 30 | Personal Chef | Grand Junction, TN |
| Frank Cala | 25 | Marine Chef | Brooklyn, NY |
| Meese Davis | College Chef | Upper Darby, PA | |
| Jackie Fuchs | 32 | Line Cook | Jersey City, NJ |
| Chad Gelso | 25 | Sous Chef | Philadelphia, PA |
| Dannie Harrison | 30 | Line Cook | |
| Eddie Jaskowiak | 27 | Sous Chef | |
| Ariel Malone | 26 | Country Club Chef | Hackensack, NJ |
| Hassan Musselmani | 24 | Catering Executive Chef | Detroit, MI |
| Ashley Nickell | 27 | Chef de Cuisine | Orlando, FL |
| Manda Palomino | 30 | Sous Chef | Atlantic City, NJ |
| Mark Paras | 27 | Line Cook | Anaheim, CA |
| Alan Parker | 42 | Sous Chef | Lancaster, PA |
| Joe Ricci | 31 | Philadelphia, PA | |
| Kevin Ridlon | 29 | Culinary Manager | Warwick, RI |
| Vanessa Soltero | 33 | Airport Chef | Los Angeles, CA |
Contestant progress[]
At the end of each episode, one chef is eliminated from the losing team by Ramsay. That season marked the first time ever that every single chef, without exception, were nominated at least once. It also marked the first time since Season 6 that only the final three competed during the last black jacket challenge and service, and is also the second consecutive season that featured an all-female final three (following Michelle, T, and Meghan from the previous season).
| # | Chef | Original Teams | First Switch |
Second Switch | Third Switch | Black Jackets |
Finals | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1501 | 1502 | 1503 | 1504 | 1505 | 1506 | 1507 | 1508 | 1509 | 1510 | 1511 | 1512 | 1513 | 1514 | 1515 | 1516 | |||||
| 1 | Ariel | NOM | BoW | NOM | NOM | WINNER | ||||||||||||||
| 2 | Kristin | NOM | NOM | RUNNER-UP | ||||||||||||||||
| 3 | Ashley | NOM | OUT[1] | |||||||||||||||||
| 4 | Jared | BoW | NOM | NOM | NOM | OUT | ||||||||||||||
| 5 | Manda | NOM | NOM | NOM | NOM | OUT[2] | ||||||||||||||
| 6 | Dannie | NOM | OUT | |||||||||||||||||
| 7 | Frank | NOM | OUT | |||||||||||||||||
| 8 | Jackie | NOM | NOM | NOM | OUT | |||||||||||||||
| 9 | Chad | NOM | OUT | |||||||||||||||||
| 10 | Joe | NOM | NOM | OUT[1] | ||||||||||||||||
| 11 | Hassan | OUT | ||||||||||||||||||
| 12 | Eddie | OUT | ||||||||||||||||||
| 13 | Alan | OUT | ||||||||||||||||||
| 14 | Kevin | NOM | EJEC | |||||||||||||||||
| 15 | Meese | NOM | NOM | OUT | ||||||||||||||||
| 16 | Vanessa | OUT | ||||||||||||||||||
| 17 | Sherkenna | OUT | ||||||||||||||||||
| 18 | Mark | OUT | ||||||||||||||||||
| Final Service Brigades | |
|---|---|
| Kristin | Ariel |
| Ashley | Jackie |
| Frank | Manda |
| Joe | Dannie |
| Chad | Jared |
| Color Legend | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NOM | Regular Nomination | Ramsay Nomination | Voided Nomination | |
| OUT | Regular Elimination | Ramsay Nomination | Without Nomination | |
| MISC | Ejected during service | Quit or Hospitalized | Best of the Best/Worst | |
Episodes[]
Here is the list of all the episodes of the season, with links to the detailed articles.
| # | Image | Title | Airdate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | 
|
Episode 1501 - 18 Chefs Compete | January 15, 2016 | |
| Episode Rundown: The Signature Dish Challenge happened for the first time ever at the prize restaurant, and one chef made a very bad impact as he almost got eliminated before even entering Hell's Kitchen. | ||||
| 02 | 
|
Episode 1502 - 17 Chefs Compete | January 22, 2016 | |
| Episode Rundown: One challenge tested the chefs concentration, a bitter rivalry developed, and a last minute VIP guest caused one team to fall apart. | ||||
| 03 | 
|
Episode 1503 - 16 Chefs Compete | January 27, 2016 | |
| Episode Rundown: Ramsay tested the chefs communication, one team threw more food to the trash than they served at dinner service, and one chef went against their team's nominee choices. | ||||
| 04 | 
|
Episode 1504 - 15 Chefs Compete | February 3, 2016 | |
| Episode Rundown: Duck was the main ingredient, a loud mouth was put in their place at dinner service, one team continued to dominate the other at dinner service, and the first team switch occurred. | ||||
| 05 | 
|
Episode 1505 - 14 Chefs Compete | February 10, 2016 | |
| Episode Rundown: A Family Night dinner service took place, one chef was eliminated mid-service, and the second team switch occurred. | ||||
| 06 | 
|
Episode 1506 - 12 Chefs Compete | February 17, 2016 | |
| Episode Rundown: Both teams cooked by the alphabet, dinner service was rough on both teams, and a shocking elimination took place. | ||||
| 07 | 
|
Episode 1507 - 11 Chefs Compete | February 24, 2016 | |
| Episode Rundown: Ramsay hosted a wedding to one of his former staff members, a fierce rivalry began, one chef injured themselves, and an early front runner was sent home. | ||||
| 08 | 
|
Episode 1508 - 10 Chefs Compete | March 2, 2016 | |
| Episode Rundown : One chef's arrogance costed their team the challenge, dinner service turned into a therapy session for two chefs, and the third team switch occurred. | ||||
| 09 | 
|
Episode 1509 - 10 Chefs Again | March 9, 2016 | |
| Episode Rundown: Bison meat was the main ingredient, a Cowboy themed dinner service took place, and a shocking elimination occurred. | ||||
| 10 | 
|
Episode 1510 - 9 Chefs Compete | March 16, 2016 | |
| Episode Rundown: A feud reached it's boiling point, breakfast was the main theme, and a disastrous brunch service left Ramsay demanding explanations. | ||||
| 11 | 
|
Episode 1511 - 8 Chefs Compete | March 23, 2016 | |
| Episode Rundown: Both teams had internal arguments, dinner service came down to the wire, and one of the biggest loud mouths of that season was finally eliminated. | ||||
| 12 | 
|
Episode 1512 - 7 Chefs Compete | April 1, 2016 | |
| Episode Rundown: The annual Blind Taste Test occurred, one team made a comeback at dinner service, and a satisfying elimination of the most sexist chef of that season took place. | ||||
| 13 | 
|
Episode 1513 - 6 Chefs Compete | April 8, 2016 | |
| Episode Rundown: The chefs taught their loved ones how to cook Ramsay's dish, the lone male chef got into an argument over cleanliness, and all but one chef received black jackets. | ||||
| 14 | 
|
Episode 1514 - 5 Chefs Compete | April 15, 2016 | |
| Episode Rundown: The final five competed in their first black jackets challenge, a friendship was almost ruined due to one not upholding their promise, the chefs worked as Ramsay's Sous Chefs, and a shocking double elimination took place. | ||||
| 15 | 
|
Episode 1515 - 3 Chefs Compete | April 22, 2016 | |
| Episode Rundown: Steak was the main ingredient, the final three took turns running the pass, and Ramsay picked two of them for the finals. | ||||
| 16 | 
|
Episode 1516 - Winner Chosen | April 29, 2016 | |
| Episode Rundown: Ariel and Kristin competed in their final challenge, picked their brigades for the final dinner service, and one of them was named the winner of Hell's Kitchen. | ||||
Trivia[]
- This is the only season where the Signature Dish Challenge took place in the prize restaurant.
- Jason Thompson, the narrator of Seasons 1 through 12, returned after being absent for Seasons 13 and 14.
- Season 15 holds two unique distinctions:
- There was no Taste It Now Make It Challenge or a charity dinner service, both staples of Hell's Kitchen.
- It is the first season where every contestant was nominated at least once.
- This season holds the record for the most consecutive joint losses with three and is tied with Season 12.
- This is the final season to use the "Remaining Number of Chefs" as the title for each episode.
- This is the first season in which every contestant won at least one challenge and/or experienced and went on a reward.
- Along with Season 13, this season featured the longest streak of male contestants eliminated, with six.
- This season is tied with Season 7 and Season 21 for having the most team switches, with three.
- If you compare the blue teams in other seasons, this season's blue team set the record of second most dinner service wins in a season with five, excluding joint-victories. This record is shared with Seasons 6, 7, 17, and 18.
- This is the second consecutive season to feature an all-female final three and finale.
- This is the second season where only one male contestant made it to the black jackets.
- This season marked the first time in the show's history where the Blind Taste Test ingredients were infused with other foods rather than just the ingredients themselves. This continued until Season 19 onward where it switched back to regular ingredients.
- This is the second season where Chef Ramsay asked a team for three nominees.
- This is also the first season where Ramsay called forward three nominees from one team without any of them being his own.
- This is the first season where Christina Wilson was the red team's sous chef.
- Future reappearances: Manda, Jared, and Ashley would return in the All-Stars season.