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Hell's Kitchen Seasons
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Season 5 of Hell's Kitchen aired on Fox between January 29 and May 14, 2009. Executive Chef Danny Veltri, from Edgewater, Florida, was the winner of that season and was promised a Head Chef position at Italian restaurant Fornelletto, at the Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa in Atlantic City, with a $250,000 salary. However, it turned out he was awarded a Sous Chef position. At age 23, he is the youngest winner in the history of the show, later tied with the Season 20 winner.

Contestants[]

16 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
Coi Burruss 22 Cafe Chef Austin, TX
Ji-Hyun Cha 33 Private Caterer Palisades Park, NJ
Colleen Cleek 41 Culinary Instructor Papillion, NE
Lacey D'Angelo 24 Corporate Buffet Cook Charlotte, NC
Paula DaSilva 28 Executive Sous Chef Coconut Creek, FL
Giovanni Filippone 37 Executive Chef Destin, FL
Andrea Heinly 30 Line Cook Reading, PA
Robert Hesse 29 Sous Chef Quogue, NY
Wil Kocol 26 Quality Control Chef Elgin, IL
Seth Levine 27 Private Party Chef New York, NY
LA Limtiaco 22 Line Cook Las Vegas, NV
J Maxwell 32 Food Court Chef Clifton Park, NY
Charlie McKay 24 Prep Chef Las Vegas, NV
Carol Scott 30 Sous Chef Knoxville, TN
Danny Veltri 23 Executive Chef Edgewater, FL
Ben Walanka 26 Executive Sous Chef Chicago, IL

Contestant progress[]

At the end of each episode, one chef from the losing team is eliminated by Ramsay, sometimes after being picked by the "Best of the Worst", determined by Ramsay after the last dinner service. On that season, a large number of unusual eliminations occurred, with two chefs leaving for medical reasons, two chefs being eliminated during dinner service, and two chefs being eliminated without nomination. That season also marked the first time ever that a chef was eliminated despite being on the winning side of the service.

# Chef Original Teams First
Switch
Second
Switch
Black Jackets Finals
501 502 503 504 505 506 507 508 509 510 511 512 513 514/515
1 Danny BoW WINNER
2 Paula BoW NOM [1] RUNNER-UP
3 Andrea NOM BoW NOM[2] NOM NOM[2] NOM[2] OUT[3]
4 Ben NOM NOM[2] NOM NOM OUT[4]
5 Robert NOM[1] NOM[2] HOSP
6 Giovanni BoW OUT
7 Carol NOM OUT[3]
8 LA BoW NOM OUT
9 Lacey NOM NOM NOM EJEC
10 J NOM EJEC
11 Coi OUT
12 Colleen NOM NOM OUT[3]
13 Seth NOM NOM OUT
14 Charlie OUT
15 Ji LEFT
16 Wil OUT
  1. 1.0 1.1 Chef's nomination was voided
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 Chef was nominated by Ramsay.
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 Chef was eliminated without nomination
  4. Chef was nominated by Ramsay and was eliminated.
Final Service Brigades
Danny Paula
Ben Andrea
Giovanni LA
Carol Lacey
   
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 the episodes of that season, with links to detailed pages.

# Image Title Airdate
01 Episode 501 thumbnail Episode 501 - 16 Chefs Compete January 29, 2009
Episode Rundown: The sixteen new chefs were introduced, the signature dish challenge occurred, and the opening service became a train wreck.
02 Episode 502 thumbnail Episode 502 - 15 Chefs Compete February 5, 2009
Episode Rundown: The chefs competed in their first team challenge, dinner service came down to the wire, and one chef made an ultimate decision after getting injured, leading to an extremely emotional elimination.
03 Episode 503 thumbnail Episode 503 - 14 Chefs Compete February 19, 2009
Episode Rundown: Ramsay tested the chefs' knowledge on beef cuts, a Steakhouse double service occurred, and one team committed multiple embarrassing mistakes.
04 Episode 504 thumbnail Episode 504 - 13 Chefs Compete February 26, 2009
Episode Rundown: A breakfast challenge service took place, a new rivalry was born, dinner service was a disaster on both ends, and the first team switch occurred.
05 Episode 505 thumbnail Episode 505 - 12 Chefs Compete March 5, 2009
Episode Rundown: One chef tried to bond with their new teammates, Ramsay inexplicitly pressed one chef's personal button during dinner service, and a shocking elimination no one saw coming.
06 Episode 506 thumbnail Episode 506 - 11 Chefs Compete March 12, 2009
Episode Rundown: Hell’s Kitchen catered for a Bar Mitzvah party, a new rivalry was born, and one team tried to usurp the “Best of The Worst”'s nominees.
07 Episode 507 thumbnail Episode 507 - 10 Chefs Compete March 19, 2009
Episode Rundown: A blue chef was reassigned to the red team, one chef threatened to quit the competition, and another did not make it through dinner service.
08 Episode 508 thumbnail Episode 508 - 9 Chefs Compete March 26, 2009
Episode Rundown: The annual Blind Taste Test occurred, one chef did not make it through dinner service, and one team made a big comeback after a slow start.
09 Episode 509 thumbnail Episode 509 - 7 Chefs Compete April 2, 2009
Episode Rundown: The teams create their own menus, and when Ramsay accused one chef of sabotaging their team, it lead to one of the most shocking eliminations in Hell’s Kitchen history.
10 Episode 510 thumbnail Episode 510 - 6 Chefs Compete April 9, 2009
Episode Rundown Here: The final six earned their black jackets, one chef almost quit in the middle of service, and another made the biggest mistake by talking back to Ramsay.
11 Episode 511 thumbnail Episode 511 - 5 Chefs Compete April 16, 2009
Episode Rundown: The chefs took a trip to Atlantic City to visit the prize hotel, one chef was forced to withdraw because of their health, and another proved they did not deserve immunity during dinner service.
12 Episode 512 thumbnail Episode 512 - 4 Chefs Compete April 23, 2009
Episode Rundown: The Taste It Now Make It Challenge took place, dinner service featured an engagement, and gender lines were drawn once again during elimination.
13 Episode 513 thumbnail Episode 513 - 3 Chefs Compete April 30, 2009
Episode Rundown: The final three had their dishes judged by some of Los Angeles' top chefs, ran the hot plate one at a time, and Ramsay picked the final two.
14 Episode 514 thumbnail Episode 514 - 2 Chefs Compete May 7, 2009
Episode Rundown: Danny and Paula worked on their restaurants, competed in their final challenge, and reunited with their former teammates.
15 Episode 515 thumbnail Episode 515 - Winner Announced May 14, 2009
Episode Rundown: Danny and Paula led their teams during the final service, and one of them is declared the winner of Hell’s Kitchen.

Trivia[]

  • This is the only season where the 16 contestants were chosen right before the Signature Dish Challenge.
  • This season features several unusual eliminations scenarios:
    • It is the only season to date where two contestants got eliminated during service. Ironically, this happened two weeks in a row.
    • It is the first season to have a contestant voluntarily withdraw during elimination.
    • It is the first season to have a black jacket contestant withdraw.
    • It is the first season to have two contestants withdraw from the competition.
    • It is the first season to have two contestants withdraw due to medical reasons.
    • It is the first season where a contestant on the winning team was eliminated.
  • This is the final season to have the winning prize be the winner's own restaurant. Subsequently, this is also the final season to have the final two redecorate the dining room for the final dinner service.
  • This season holds the record for having the most contestants getting eliminated without nomination, with seven.
  • This is the first season where the black jackets choose who they think does not deserve to be in the finale. Since the nomination is an explanation of why the said contestant should not be in the finale, it is not a nomination in a traditional sense. Thus the explanation does not count as a nomination.
  • This marked the first season where the winner hung a portrait of themself on the Hell's Kitchen Wall of Fame.
  • This is the final season where the Signature Dish Challenge was an individual challenge.
  • This is the first season to have celebrity customers attend services.
  • This is the final season to be made by Granada America.
  • Future Reappearances:
    • Robert returned in the following season to compete again.
    • Colleen returned in following season as she made a cameo in Season 6 by giving the new chefs tips on what not to do.
    • Danny returned in Season 8 as a guest for the 100th dinner service.
    • Ben returned in Season 9 as part of a team of returning veterans. He and Giovanni would return in All-Stars.
    • Paula returned in Season 10 as part of a team of returning runner ups.
  • This is the third season when a contestant won without being nominated for elimination.
Hell's Kitchen (U.S. TV series)
Season 1Season 2Season 3Season 4Season 5Season 6Season 7Season 8Season 9Season 10Season 11Season 12Season 13Season 14Season 15Season 16Season 17: All-StarsSeason 18: Rookies vs. VeteransSeason 19: Las VegasSeason 20: Young GunsSeason 21: Battle of the AgesSeason 22: The American DreamSeason 23: Head Chefs OnlySeason 24: Battle of the States
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