Hell's Kitchen (American season 16)

The sixteenth season of the American competitive reality television series Hell's Kitchen premiered on September 23, 2016 on Fox. Gordon Ramsay returned as host/head chef, Marino Monferrato and Aaron Mitrano returned as maitre d' and blue kitchen sous chef respectively while Andi van Willigan-Cutspec resumed her role as sous chef for the red team after Season 10 winner Christina Wilson filled in for her in the previous season while she got married. This was also the first season since Season 13 to take a hiatus due to Fox's coverage of the 2016 World Series in addition to the holiday breaks. The remaining episodes of the season were moved to Thursday nights on January 5, 2017 as part of the network's midseason schedule. This is the first season to have episode titles other than the usual "(Remaining number of) Chefs Compete" and "Winner Chosen". This season was filmed between November to December 2014, shortly after the completion of the previous season, about two years before the season aired.[1]

Hell's Kitchen
Season 16
Country of origin	United States
No. of episodes	16
Release
Original network	Fox
Original release	September 23, 2016 (2016-09-23) – February 2, 2017 (2017-02-02)
Season chronology

This season's team stage is the most one-sided in the show's history; the red team won a record eight dinner services, while the blue team was thrown out of service a record-worst seven times. This is the fourth time, after seasons 6, 7 and 14, that neither the winner nor runner-up was nominated once all season, as well as the first time that none of the top three were ever nominated.

Event Chef Kimberly-Ann Ryan from Traverse City, Michigan won the competition and a head chef position at Yardbird Southern Table & Bar at The Venetian Las Vegas.

Opening sequence

A slow motion sequence features the chefs causing many accidents in the kitchen, while Ramsay says a bunch of orders.

Chefs

Eighteen chefs compete in season 16.[2]

Contestant	Age[n 1]	Occupation	Hometown	Result
Kimberly-Ann Ryan[3]	29	Event Chef	Traverse City, Michigan	Winner
Heather Williams[lower-alpha 1]	26	Sous Chef	Easton, Pennsylvania	Runner-Up
Heidi Parent	33	Executive Chef	Auburn, Maine	Eliminated before Finals
Paul "Paulie" Giganti, Jr. † [n 2][4]	34	Executive Chef	Brooklyn, New York	Eliminated after 13th Service
Kimberly Roth	34	Sushi Chef	Ontario, New York
Andrew Pearce	27	Sous Chef	Prospect Park, Pennsylvania	Eliminated before Black Jackets
Devin Simpson	33	Assistant Restaurant Manager	Mount Pleasant, South Carolina	Eliminated after 12th Service
Wendy Mendez	32	Line Cook/Pastry Chef	Bronx, New York	Eliminated after 11th Service
Matthew "Matt" Hearn	27	Sauté Chef	Los Angeles, California	Eliminated after 10th Service
Shaina Hayden	28	Banquet Chef	Long Island, New York
William "Koop" Wynkoop	28	Kitchen Manager	Carey, Ohio	Eliminated after 9th Service
Johnny McDevitt	29	Burger Chef	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania	Eliminated after 8th Service
Aziza Young	34	Kitchen Manager	Harrisburg, Pennsylvania	Eliminated after 6th Service
Aaron Smock	22	Culinary Student	Frankenmuth, Michigan	Eliminated after 5th Service
Rajeeyah "Gia" Young	31	Catering Chef	Queens, New York	Eliminated after 4th Service
Jessica Boynton	32	University Chef	Raleigh, North Carolina	Eliminated after 3rd Service
Genaro Delillo	26	Sous Chef	Lebanon, Pennsylvania	Eliminated after 2nd Service
Pat Tortorello	47	Culinary Instructor	Belleville, New Jersey	Eliminated after 1st Service

Notes

1. Chef returned to Hells Kitchen again on Season 18.

On April 20, 2017, Paulie Giganti passed away after an accidental overdose on an unknown drug.

Notes

1. Age at the time of filming
2. Contestant died after filming ended.

Contestant progress

						Original teams							First Switch		Second Switch			Individual			Final
No.	Chef					1601	1602	1603	1604	1605	1606	1607	1608	1609	1610	1611	1612	1613	1614	1615	1616
1					Ryan	WIN	WIN	LOSE	WIN	WIN	LOSE	LOSE	WIN	WIN	LOSE	LOSE	NOM	IN	IN	IN	WINNER
2					Heather	WIN	WIN	LOSE	WIN	WIN	LOSE	LOSE	WIN	WIN	LOSE	WIN	WIN	IN	IN	IN	RUNNER-UP
3				Heidi		WIN	WIN	LOSE	WIN	WIN	LOSE	LOSE	WIN	WIN	LOSE	WIN	WIN	IN	IN	OUT
4				Paulie		LOSE	LOSE	WIN	LOSE	LOSE	NOM	WIN	NOM	NOM	LOSE	NOM	NOM	IN	OUT
5				Kimberly		WIN	WIN	LOSE	WIN	WIN	LOSE	LOSE	WIN	WIN	NOM	WIN	WIN	IN	OUT
6			Andrew			LOSE	LOSE	WIN	LOSE	LOSE	LOSE	WIN	WIN	WIN	LOSE	WIN	WIN	OUT
7			Devin			LOSE	LOSE	WIN	LOSE	NOM	NOM	WIN	LOSE	LOSE	LOSE	LOSE	OUT
8			Wendy			WIN	WIN	LOSE	WIN	WIN	NOM	NOM	NOM	LOSE	NOM	OUT
9			Matt			NOM	LOSE	WIN	LOSE	LOSE	LOSE	WIN	WIN	WIN	OUT
10			Shaina			WIN	WIN	LOSE	WIN	WIN	LOSE	NOM	LOSE	LOSE	OUT
11		Koop				LOSE	LOSE	WIN	NOM	LOSE	LOSE	WIN	LOSE	OUT
12		Johnny				LOSE	LOSE	WIN	LOSE	NOM[n 1]	LOSE	WIN	OUT
13	Aziza					WIN	WIN	LOSE	WIN	WIN	OUT
14	Aaron					LOSE	NOM	WIN	NOM	OUT
15	Gia					WIN	WIN	NOM	OUT[n 2]
16	Jessica					WIN	WIN	OUT
17	Genaro					LOSE	OUT
18	Pat					OUT

Keywords WIN = Won the dinner service LOSE = Lost the dinner service BoB = Best of the Best, usually exempt from nomination BoW = Best of the Worst, sometimes exempt from nomination IN = not nominated for elimination NOM = nominated for elimination OUT = eliminated LEFT = withdrew from competition

Color key      Chef was eliminated after nomination      Chef was eliminated without nomination      Chef was eliminated during service      Chef withdrew from the competition      Chef was retained after nomination      The winner of Hell's Kitchen      The runner-up of Hell's Kitchen

Notes

1. Chef was nominated by Ramsay
2. Chef was eliminated despite being on the winning team

Episodes

No. overall	No. in season	Title	Original air date	US viewers (millions)
235	1	"When The Wall Comes Tumbling Down"	September 23, 2016 (2016-09-23)	3.37[5]
The 18 chefs arrive in Los Angeles to begin the season. The chefs are excited to see Hell's Kitchen, but Chef Ramsay surprised the chefs by telling them they are not heading into Hell's Kitchen... at least, not yet. The chefs' first destination is the U.S. Army's training facility. Upon arriving, Ramsay pops out of a military tank and reveals why they are not in the kitchen. "Before you can enter Hell's Kitchen, I need to make sure that all of you have the discipline needed to survive," Ramsay explained. The sergeants directed the chefs to get into their military uniforms and begin the obstacle course. Ramsay originally tasked them to climb a 45' wall before entering, but the wall fell on top of him that revealed Hell's Kitchen and a group of people which then leads to the chefs' very first challenge. Team challenge/signature dish: Once inside Hell's Kitchen, the chefs had 45 minutes to create their signature dish and present it to Ramsay in front of a live audience where he scores each dish on a scale of 1–5. Pat scores a 3 with his bass in the first round, while Gia scores a 4 with her shrimp and grits. Aaron scores a 4 with his pork schnitzel, while Wendy disappoints with a 2. Both Paulie and Heather amaze Ramsay with their scallops and polenta cake and ribeye, respectfully, each garnering a full 5. Both Devin and Kimberly disappoint, with Kimberly using premade pasta and canned clams. Matt's dove breast also garners a disappointing 1, compared to Aziza's 2. Genaro also scores a 1 with his duck, while Ryan's scallops impress Ramsay with another perfect 5. Koop gets a 4 for his surf and turf, while Shaina gets a 3 for her salmon. Andrew scores a 2 with his poorly executed mushrooms, while Jessica garners a 1 with her risotto. Lastly, a strong effort by Johnny with his ribeye, which scored a 4, gives the men a 25–23 lead, but Heidi clinches the challenge for the women with a 4 on her homemade gnocchi, winning the challenge 27–25. Reward/punishment: The women rode a hummer to Takami Restaurant in downtown Los Angeles for a special dinner with Ramsay and spend time with previous winners Christina Machamer and Scott Commings from Seasons 4 and 12, respectively. The men cleaned the kitchens, prepped the dining room for the opening night and transport the rises out of Hell's Kitchen, under the direction of maitre d' Marino. While Pat sits out of the punishment, the guys made fun of Matt's signature dish that cost them their chance at winning. Service: In attendance for opening night were Nolan Gould and Erica Ash. Ryan and Kimberly and Aaron and Koop served tableside linguine and clams. The women got off to a strong start on appetizers, while the men struggled as Pat sent up a deep-fried risotto, followed by one with too much salt, leading to Paulie taking over the station. Matt sent up raw scallops, blaming Andrew for pushing him to bring it up and suggesting that Ramsay check the camera footage to verify this, only for Ramsay to threaten to "stick a Go-Pro up his ass" if he made another excuse for unacceptable scallops. Matt and Genaro then get kicked out for sending up an overcooked and an undercooked sea bass. Paulie moves to fish, but also serves raw bass, causing Ramsay to kick the rest of the men out, while the women finish a solid opening night dinner service thanks to Jessica cooking perfect fish and Heather doing well on the meat station. Elimination: Though Paulie was willing to nominate himself, his friend Johnny saved him and argued that Matt should go up for his disrespectful attitude towards Ramsay. Matt and Pat were ultimately nominated for elimination. Ramsay eliminated Pat for his poor performance on the appetizer station and surrendering full control to Paulie. Ramsay's comment: "Pat is Italian and he couldn't even cook risotto. What a meatball. Ciao, Pat."
236	2	"Crepe Grand Prix"	September 30, 2016 (2016-09-30)	3.28[6]
Team challenge: The chefs head into the SUVs and arrive at a raceway. Ramsay informs them that for this competition, they would be partaking in the first-ever Crepe Grand Prix. The teams must cook the perfect chicken and mushroom-stuffed crepes and race in golf carts to deliver the crepes to him. Whichever team delivered 10 perfect crepes to Ramsay first would be the winners of this challenge. The men won their first challenge after the women's last crepe was rejected. Reward/punishment: The men spent the day heading out to Santa Barbara on a 73' yacht for dinner with Marino and riding the jet skis. The women had to unload a delivery of fish where they have to descale them, remove their insides and properly prepare them. In addition, Andi served them a special milkshake made up of raw scallops, fish guts, and fish eyes, causing Wendy and Aziza to vomit, though the former took it harder than Aziza did. Shaina received an actual milkshake, but didn't tell her team until she was called out by Ramsay before dinner service, irritating Heidi. Service: Noureen DeWulf and Dash Mihok were in attendance. Johnny, Paul, Heidi, and Shaina handled the Dover sole appetizer. In the red kitchen, Jessica served soupy carbonara and was confused on appetizers, but rebounded. On the fish station, Gia shocked Ramsay by asking if she should work dessert, despite still being on entrees. Kimberly sent up raw lamb, but recovered and the women got through the rest of the night without further incidents. However, in the blue kitchen, Aaron overdressed a kale salad, while Andrew forgot an order of scallops, setting his team back. Aaron made another mistake by not rolling his pizzas properly and trying to cook two of them on the same paddle. During the entrees, Genaro sent up raw New York strip twice, causing Ramsay to take drastic measures and called the women to take over service in the blue kitchen, while kicking the men out of their second dinner service in a row. Elimination: Genaro and Aaron were nominated. While Aaron was called out for his inexperience, Ramsay eliminated Genaro for his lack of passion and second poor service performance. Ramsay's comment: "When a chef shows me he has no passion, I show him the door. Goodbye, Genaro."
237	3	"The Yolks on Them"	October 7, 2016 (2016-10-07)	3.13[7]
Team challenge: The chefs entered to see Ramsay standing in front of them with countless eggs around him. The teams were instructed to prepare various platters of ostrich meat with the only ingredients they could use hidden inside of the ostrich eggs. Ramsay then told them that they would have four minutes, in which time to smash as many ostrich eggs as they can to reveal their ingredients. After the four minutes were up, the chefs had 40 minutes to prepare their ostrich dishes. The women won easily, because Johnny made two dishes that the judges called kids food and with Wendy's dish being proclaimed the best. Reward/punishment: Ramsay sent the women off for a day of zip lining at Big Bear in a private jet. The guys had to clean up the mess the ostrich eggs left behind from the challenge. While the rest of the team worked on the punishment, Matt angrily sulked in the dorm, even lashing out at Aaron and threatening to quit the competition. After Ramsay heard about Matt's outburst, he called him into his office for a pep-talk and Matt decided to stay, though was met with backlash from his teammates for ditching them on punishment. Service: Andrew and Jessica each served rock shrimp pesto tagliatelle appetizer. The men stumbled when Koop made too much risotto, despite being perfectly cooked, but he recovered. Paulie served Ramsay overcooked, then burnt scallops, much to Ramsay's anger. Recovering from his earlier meltdown, Matt stepped up and helped Paulie create a successful plate of scallops. Despite Aaron burning mashed potatoes on entrees, the men regrouped and successfully finished their first dinner service. In the red kitchen, Kimberly overcooked scallops but recovered. On meat, despite Gia's first lamb being perfectly cooked, she overcooked the next one and sliced her wellingtons poorly, which she claimed was due to cutting off part of her finger. However, the injury was hardly noticeable. Marino takes Jessica's overcooked tagliatelle and reports it to Ramsay while she attempts to start over. However, Ramsay calls her back to the kitchen and shows the team Kimberly's raw salmon and Gia's raw Wellington, before kicking them all out of service. Elimination: The women unanimously agreed on Gia as the first nominee, but Jessica nominated herself, even though the team had a strong case against Kimberly. Despite Gia's horrendous performance, she revealed that Jessica had packed her bags prior to the elimination. This led Ramsay eliminating Jessica for giving up and failing to demonstrate the confidence and fightback to become a head chef, making her the first contestant in the show's history to be eliminated after a service where they were on tableside. Ramsay's comment: "A chef who can't handle confrontation is like a boxer who doesn't want to get hit. Jessica just threw in the towel."
238	4	"Surf Riding & Turf Riding"	October 14, 2016 (2016-10-14)	3.38[8]
Team challenge: The chefs entered to see Ramsay standing in front of them a variety of proteins behind him. The teams were divided into groups of two. One at a time, each pair would taste one of the four surf-and-turf entrees in front of them, run over to the wide array of meats, select one meat and fish which they think the entree was made up of and place them on their platform. However, Ramsay cannot tell them which meats are wrong. The team to correctly guess the two meats in all four dishes in the shortest amount of time would win. The men decide to pair chefs with strong palates with those with weak ones, thereby ensuring that there was at least one chef with a good palate in each pair. The women take a slightly different track with Heidi and Ryan pairing up due to their friendship despite Shaina suggesting pairing up the way the men did. The women ended up taking over 13 minutes, mainly due to Shaina and Aziza (whose palates were the two weakest), while the men took eight, winning the challenge. Reward/punishment: The men rode the waves on a flowrider at The Wave House in San Diego. The women made sausage from scratch and chowed down on bizarre items no one would ever want to eat. Before the punishment, Shaina argued with Ryan about pairing up with Heidi instead of someone with a weak palate. Ryan insists the reason they lost was lack of hustle. In a deleted scene from this episode, despite being included in the opening video in the first episode, Wendy cut her fingernails after she stuck her hand in the grinder, unaware that Heidi was running it. This accident required Wendy to receive urgent care. Service: Ramsay raised the stakes when he announced that each team would be working half of a 12-top table, consisting of several pregnant women. In addition, Pooch Hall was also a guest in the dining room. The mussels and sausage tableside was handled by Wendy for the red kitchen and Devin for the blue kitchen. In the red kitchen, Aziza deep fried her scallops after adding too much oil to the pan. Later on, the red team managed to finish cooking their entrees for the 12-top, but were forced to wait on Gia's garnish, resulting in Ryan assisting. Meanwhile, in the blue kitchen, Koop sent up ice-cold lobster, but managed to recover. The men also grew frustrated with Aaron for not communicating, even though his meats were cooked perfectly. Despite almost finishing service, on the last ticket, Aaron sent up an undercooked Wellington, while Koop sent up an overcooked sea bass and the men were kicked out of the kitchen for the third time. Elimination: The men nominated Koop and Aaron. However, Ramsay spared them both and decided to eliminate Gia for her bad attitude, second consecutive poor performance, and losing the faith of her team, making her the seventh chef to be eliminated despite being on the winning team. Ramsay's comment: "I gave Gia a second chance, which proved to be two chances too many. See you, Gia."
239	5	"Walking The Plank"	October 21, 2016 (2016-10-21)	3.38[9]
Team challenge: The chefs choose an opponent on the opposite team, while the opponent chooses a body of water, with a fish written on the back of a scroll held by a sailor on a ship in the middle of the room. Heidi scored over Johnny, as his plate looked like "it had been attacked by a cat". Koop scored over Kimberly, due to her couscous being executed poorly. Shaina and Matt both scored with grouper, while Paulie won over Aziza with wahoo. Ryan scores over Aaron's watery plate, while both Devin and Heather score for their team. Finally, Andrew scored over Wendy with bass, giving the men the win. Reward/punishment: The men dined with Ramsay at Petty Cash and got to go bowling. The women broke down and diced up a large shipment of potatoes, carrots, and celery (mirepoix) for a seafood chowder in addition to cleaning the kitchens. The women were already fed up with Kimberly for not cooking her couscous properly and losing the challenge for them, but she made things even worse, by asking a lot of pointless questions, irritating her teammates. Service: Chef's tables took center stage with Joe Perry in the blue kitchen and Estelle in the red kitchen. Matt and Heather each handled the clam chowder tableside. Aziza and Paulie each led well on appetizers. However, in the blue kitchen, Devin served up cold asparagus while Johnny sent up raw salmon. In the red kitchen, Ryan and Heidi had control of meat and fish, respectively, delivering perfect dishes. They along with Kimberly's strong garnish performance gave the women a strong service, although Ramsay warned Ryan to speak up. The men, on the other hand, sunk as Andrew sent up raw New York Strips twice, while Johnny burned a salmon and Devin sent up bland creamed spinach, causing the men to get kicked out of service yet again. Elimination: Aaron, despite having a good performance, and Devin were nominated. Ramsay mentions one more but refuses to say that individual's name and instead wants his nominee to step forward. Johnny voluntarily steps forward. Ramsay sends Devin and Johnny back in line, and, to the disgust of the women, eliminates Aaron for his low confidence, inexperience, and failure to gain his team's respect, but praises him for his passion and skill. Ramsay's comment: "To be a great chef, you have to earn respect from your brigade. Being so young and inexperienced, Aaron was never going to do that with his team and that's why I took his jacket."
240	6	"Let The Catfights Begin"	November 4, 2016 (2016-11-04)	3.38[10]
Team challenge: The teams have five minutes to use the books to spell out an ingredient on the cross board. They each then have 45 minutes to make a dish that consists any of the ingredients that were spelled out. Since the blue team is one man down, the red team chose Aziza's dish to sit out due to her chicken being under cooked. Ramsay scored each dish on a scale of 1–5, with 1 being a disaster, and 5 being a "truly outstanding dish". The men went first starting with Paulie earning 1 point, Devin got 4 points, Matt got 3, Johnny got 3 points, Koop got 4 points, while Andrew scored 2 points. The men's total came to 17 points, leaving the door open for the women. Next, the women went starting with Kimberly earning 4 points, Heidi got 4 points, Wendy got 2 points, but Heather and Shaina each scored only 1 point. The women needed Ryan to earn 5 points to force a tie. Although Ramsay deemed her dish the best on the team, he only gave her 4 points, which meant that the men won their third consecutive challenge, 17-16. Reward/punishment: While the women prep the dining room and bake cookies ahead of family night as well as organize the crayons after Marino spilled them on the floor, the guys spend their day riding ice bumper cars and enjoying a steak dinner. Service: Guests in attendance for family night were Lauren Lapkus and Ciara Hanna. Also in attendance that night, though not credited, were several current and former WWE Superstars including Mike "The Miz" Mizanin, Alicia Fox amongst others. Kimberly and Andrew handled the quesadilla station. Both teams had rocky services. In the red kitchen, Shaina served raw pizza despite Heidi's warning, Aziza cooked too much garnish ahead of order, Wendy served raw lamb, and Heather served raw salmon. In the blue kitchen, Paulie served a raw burger and undercooked sea bass, Johnny served a raw egg, and Devin undercooked grilled cheese. For the most part, both teams managed to bounce back from their various mistakes. However, despite both teams finishing service with no one ejected, Ramsay announced no winning team due to the numerous mistakes in both kitchens, and told both teams to come up with two nominees. Elimination: The women nominated Aziza and Wendy while the men nominated Devin and Paulie. Ramsay eliminated Aziza for being the worst performer of the night, but praised her for her big heart. Ramsay's comment: "Aziza has four kids at home. I think they need her more than I do, unless of course, they're hungry."
241	7	"Don't Tell My Fiance"	November 11, 2016 (2016-11-11)	3.30[11]
Team challenge: One chef from each team must make a southern dish with the protein that was revealed in their selected dome. Their dishes will then be judged head to head by Ramsay and guest judge Chris Hastings. Koop sliced his fingers during the challenge, but was starting to feel nauseated while he was being treated by the medic. Because of this, he did not participate. Shaina beat Johnny on hangar steak, Wendy and Paulie both scored on catfish, Ryan beat Matt on fried chicken, Heidi failed to score on shrimp despite Koop not being able to finish his dish, Andrew beat Heather on pork chop, and neither Devin nor Kimberly scored on trout, giving the women a 3-2 win. In addition, Wendy's dish was deemed the best of the day and featured on the menu in the next service. Reward/punishment: The women went horseback riding at Gibson Ranch and had their lunch delivered by Wings N' Waffles. The men ground the corn and shelled the shrimp for the shrimp and grits appetizer in addition to prepping both kitchens. Koop contemplates quitting after his injury, but decided against it. Service: Chef's tables featured Adrienne Maloof in the red kitchen and J.J. Redick in the blue kitchen. Also in attendance were Blake Lewis and Mircea Monroe. Devin and Ryan handled the shrimp and grits appetizer. The blue team had a decent performance, their only problems being Andrew serving soggy catfish and Koop serving a raw Wellington. The red team had a rocky service; Despite Kimberly's strong performance on appetizers, Shaina struggled on meat, serving overcooked then raw chicken for Maloof's table, while Wendy struggled with her own catfish dish. After Shaina served raw and overcooked wellingtons and Wendy served raw catfish twice, Ramsay kicked the women out. Team change: Shaina and Wendy were both nominated. Ramsay calls Wendy down first, but also tells Shaina to take off her jacket, and then switches both of them for Andrew and Matt. Ramsay's comment: "In Vegas, shuffling the deck gives a gambler a new chance for a better hand. I'm hoping this switch doesn't end up being a bust."
242	8	"Dancing with the Chefs"	November 18, 2016 (2016-11-18)	3.14[12]
Team challenge: Ramsay announced that the next dinner service will be the first ever Hell's Kitchen International Ballroom Invitational. Both teams have 40 minutes to work together to come up with a pair of chicken, beef and fish entrees that are packed with international flavor. Jonathan Roberts and Michelle Johnston will not only judge the dancing competition tomorrow night, but will also pick the dishes that will be on the menu. Wendy's chicken al pastor scored for the blue team, but Kimberly's miso sea bass with vegetables and Ryan's Indian-inspired pan-seared filet won it for the red team. Reward/punishment: The red team went kayaking in Santa Barbara and ate seafood at The Lark. The blue team preps the raw bar by hand-washing the oysters and clams as well as breaking down the lobsters. Service: The red team turned a near perfect service, their only error being Matt burning scallops, but Ryan and Kimberly put in strong performances on meat. The blue team had a very rocky service. Wendy forgot to cook carbonara and Paulie cooked too many risottos too early. Things got worse on the entrées as Johnny failed to sear the bass he was working on despite Shaina asking if they should, with Johnny not taking her advice prior to service, and also served raw bass while Devin served raw chicken while forgetting a portion. With the blue team 10 tables behind the red team including the judge's table, Ramsay lost his patience, threw the blue team out of the kitchen for the fifth time and sent the red team, except Heather who was on desserts, to finish their service for them. Elimination: The blue team failed to decide among Wendy, Johnny, and Paulie, so all three of them were called forward for nomination, though no reason is made for the nominations, making it the second time since Season 6 any nominees were called down with no explanation given. Johnny was eliminated for his second disastrous performance on fish, refusal to take responsibility for his mistakes, and for being the main reason for the blue team's defeat. Ramsay's comment: "Johnny's a burger chef from Philly. Unfortunately for him, the two words he'll never hear from me are 'well done.'"
243	9	"Spoon Fed"	December 9, 2016 (2016-12-09)	3.31[13]
Team challenge: The teams put their palates to the test where each chef must correctly identify the ingredient they are tasting in pureed baby food while being blind folded. Each pair took a turn before taking a seat in the high chair while the other pair goes next. The chef in the high chair will be splattered in baby food once if their teammate gets three wrong and twice for four wrong. Wendy went first and last due to the blue team being one chef down. Wendy scored 4 (becoming the third person to do so after Justin from Season 10 and Milly from Season 14) whilst Heidi scored 2. Devin only scored 1, resulting in Wendy getting splattered once, whilst Kimberly scored 3. Koop managed 2 whilst Ryan got 1, resulting in Kimberly getting splattered once. Paulie scored 3 and Matt scored 2. Heather scored 3 whilst Shaina scored 2. In the final round, Andrew scored 2 whilst Wendy scored 1, resulting in Shaina getting splattered once. With the score tied at 13, the taste test went into sudden death. After Wendy and Andrew both missed cabbage, resulting in Shaina and Heather getting splattered, Wendy won it for the blue team by identifying turnips. Reward/punishment: The blue team enjoyed a day of massages and lunch at a penthouse suite in Intercontinental. The red team hauled in the ice and wine in addition to prepping both kitchens. They unloaded 102 bags of ice instead of 52, forcing them to take back the extra ice, angering Heidi. The team accused Matt of not reading the invoice that tells them to unload 52 instead 102. Service: Guests in attendance for this service were Josh McDermitt and Jeannie Mai. The red team once again seemingly had a near perfect service (although Ramsay would later tell them it was 'far from perfect'). The only problem was Matt forgetting a portion of lamb, but he recovered. The blue team had a flawless performance on appetizers thanks to Devin and Shaina, but struggled on entrées. Paulie served raw lamb, and Koop was caught cooking salmon and sea bass in the same pan and argued with Paulie over cooking times. After Paulie sent up another raw lamb, Ramsay lost his temper and ejected the blue team, which was their series-record sixth time thrown out of the kitchen. When they returned to the dorms, Koop lost his temper and threw a chair at a wall, breaking it. Elimination: Koop and Paulie were nominated. Devin stated that one of the reasons Paulie was nominated was due to sending up raw lamb and cold Wellingtons (not shown during the episode). Upon learning from Paulie about Koop's earlier temper tantrum, Ramsay eliminated Koop for his inconsistent performances and feeling that he was not backing up all of his talk. Ramsay then dismisses the blue team and asks the red team decide by tomorrow morning on one member to go the blue team. Ramsay's comment: "Like many chefs, Koop can talk the talk. But after witnessing his cooking, I told him to walk the walk."
244	10	"Dancing in the Grotto"	December 16, 2016 (2016-12-16)	3.31[14]
Team change: The red team chose Ryan to join the blue team. Team challenge: After each member decided on the protein they'll be working with, they then had 40 minutes to create their own sliders. But they must slide into the ball pit first and pick an ingredient from their respective color balls before heading back into the kitchen to make their sliders out of their chosen protein and ingredients that will be judged by Adam Fleischman, Sang Yoo and previous Hell's Kitchen winner Christina Wilson. Paulie beat Matt on the seafood round, with Matt arguing with the judges when they criticized him for serving a shrimp roll, which was not technically a slider. Heather beat Shaina on beef, Heidi beat Devin on chicken, neither Wendy nor Kimberly scored on pork, and Ryan beat Andrew on lamb, tying the score at 3. The judges chose Heidi's chicken sliders as the overall best dish of the day, resulting in another victory for the Red Team. Reward/punishment: While the blue team cleaned the LA River, the red team were welcomed into the fabulous Playboy Mansion by Crystal Hefner and the Playboy Bunnies where they also got to hang out in the mansion's famous grotto. Service: Crystal Hefner was a guest in attendance. In addition, each kitchen featured a pair of VIP guests in the chef's table. Melissa Rivers and Drew Scott sat in the blue kitchen while the red kitchen had Drew's twin brother Jonathan Scott and Ashley Greene. The red team started off poorly by Matt's overcooked lobster for the chef's table and him giving Ramsay an attitude. Ramsay sent the red team to the storeroom where Matt angrily argued with Heather. When they returned, Heidi served a bland risotto that sat for a while when the team entered the storeroom. Ramsay issued that if one more mistake was made, he'd kick them out. They finished appetizers without further problems, but after Kimberly served dry garnish on the first table of entrées, Ramsay kicked the red team out. In the blue kitchen, Ryan served cold crab cakes, but recovered. Entrées went worse when Shaina sent watery garnish and Wendy struggled to communicate, ultimately serving raw chicken for the chef's table. However, it was her overcooked New York strip that caused Ramsay to kick the blue team out, as well. Elimination: The red team nominated Matt and Kimberly while the blue team nominated Wendy and Shaina. Shaina was first eliminated for her worsening performances despite a strong start. In a double elimination, Ramsay then sent Kimberly and Wendy back in line, and eliminated Matt for his arrogance, poor performance on fish as well as being on a downward spiral since being moved to the red team. Ramsay's comment: "Both kitchens performed horrendously tonight. I'm hoping that by eliminating Matt and Shaina, both teams will finally have a chance at success."
245	11	"Aerial Maneuvers"	January 5, 2017 (2017-01-05)	3.66[15]
Team challenge: Each pair must remake Ramsay's signature dish while identifying an ingredient they're tasting with one chef tasting the dish and the other making it. Andrew and Heather were the only pair to correctly identify the greens as Swiss chard, and to mistake apricot puree for persimmon. Ryan and Wendy won for the blue team as they were the only pair to correctly identify the protein as veal; everyone else used pork. Reward/punishment: The blue team did trapeze training at the Santa Monica Pier. However, Wendy did not participate in the lessons due to her phobia of heights, being the only member of her team to do so. In addition, Ryan and Wendy were rewarded their very own Vitamix blenders. Prior to service, Ramsay revealed that each team will work a twelve top table. The red team were made to work decorating the dining room ahead of tonight's service in addition to making beet roses. Service: Both teams must bring their A game when Ramsay announced that this service will be hosting a very special private event for the contributors from Stand Up to Cancer. Each member worked on one of the four courses. Notable guests in attendance include Jacqueline Toboni, Marg Helgenberger, Danielle Campbell, Omar J. Dorsey and co-founder Pamela Oas Williams. Each chef took charge of a course, cooking twelve portions. On the lobster risotto course, Wendy made four differently colored portions and Kimberly plated different sized portions, but both recovered. Both Devin and Andrew led the scallops course without incident though Paulie tried to drop his course early. On the salmon course led by Heidi and Paulie, Paulie took Wendy's potatoes before she got to put capers in it which caused a delay on the blue table, while Ramsay called for Heidi to be more vocal. On the New York strip course led by Heather and Ryan, each led well and didn't face problems apart from Devin cutting himself while slicing the meat. The red team won due to the blue team committing more "mental errors". Elimination: Wendy and Paulie were nominated. Ramsay eliminated Wendy for her lack of confidence and inconsistent performances, but praised her for her palate. Ramsay's comment: "First, Wendy told me her capers took a walk. Then it was the potatoes. But, after watching her lack of consistency and confidence, I knew it was her turn to take a walk."
246	12	"Fusion Confusion"	January 5, 2017 (2017-01-05)	3.49[15]
Team challenge: One member from the blue team and one member from the red team spin the wheel that reveals which country they'll be working with. Heather and Ryan got Japanese and French (which were the two cuisines she did not want). Kimberly and Devin got French and Chinese. Finally, Paulie's wheel landed on Mexican while Andrew landed on the special "Chef's Choice" which he used to pick Indian. Because the Red team had an extra member, Heidi was allowed to choose which fusion cuisine she would cook, and she picked Ryan and Heather's combo. They then had 45 minutes to create a dish that combines the two countries. Roy Yamaguchi judged each pair head to head. Neither Paulie nor Andrew scored on Mexican-Indian, Ryan beat both Heidi and Heather on Japanese-French despite Paulie's skepticism, her unfamiliarity with this combo and her fears that her rack of lamb was undercooked. Kimberly beat Devin on French-Chinese to force a 1–1 tie, but Yamaguchi chose Ryan's dish as the best, giving the blue team the win. Reward/punishment: The blue team spent $2,000 at Surfas. They also enjoyed a seven-course meal at Providence. The red team broke down giant pieces of beef and prepped the potatoes for a tableside appetizer to be served at the next service. Service: Guests dining in attendance were Kellita Smith, Jasika Nicole, Patrick Renna and Tommy Savas. For the red team, one guest on Kellita Smith's table returned a salad for having hair in it, causing Heather and Heidi to argue over who was responsible while Kimberly prepared the scallops that the guest requested instead. Kimberly was then berated for not having her fish ready before Heidi's meat, but the red team successfully completed service after that. The blue team, however, had a rough service. Ryan misheard an order of appetizers and accidentally threw out a serving of risotto needed, Devin forgot an order on meat and undercooked veal chops twice, which caused Paulie to run out of sea bass, forcing him to get more from the red team. After completing service, Ramsay congratulated the red team on another win. Elimination: The blue team were instructed to pick only one nominee. They picked Devin, who wanted Ryan as his nominee. Ramsay called the entire team down to make their cases before eliminating Devin for his poor performance across all services and challenges, feeling he wasn't ready to lead a brigade, but praised him for his passion and big heart. Ramsay's comment: "Devin had a hard time remembering the tickets. Unfortunately, his performance tonight would be hard to forget."
247	13	"Black Jacket Lounge"	January 12, 2017 (2017-01-12)	3.97[16]
The chefs received a surprise visit from their loved ones: Kimberly's daughter and boyfriend, Paulie's parents, Andrew's grandmother and girlfriend, Ryan's daughter and mother, Heather's son, mother, and grandmother, and Heidi's daughter and husband. Unlike the previous seasons, Ramsay announces a Hell's Kitchen first where the chefs face a grueling three-part challenge that will determine who receives the prestigious black jacket. First challenge: In a test of adaptability, each chef had 30 minutes to create a dish out of the surprise ingredients they must retrieve from each dome right after Ramsay rings the bell. Heather's French chicken breast and Heidi's duck breast earned them the first two black jackets, and they also received passes to the Black Jacket Lounge. Second challenge: The remaining chefs were required to make a dish using the following ingredients in a locked briefcase: cauliflower, cherry tomatoes, shiitake mushrooms, white beans, baby eggplant, salmon. Ryan and Paulie came out on top after Kimberly ruined her puree by putting eggplant in it and Andrew's eggplant tasted bitter due to being undercooked. Third challenge: Kimberly and Andrew had three minutes to pick their own ingredients at a farmer's market outside of Hell's Kitchen. They then have thirty minutes to create two portions of a dish. After Ramsay tasted the dishes, he revealed that he would not be picking the chef to receive the final black jacket. He instead tested their peers by having the black jackets individually taste each dish, without knowing who made what. Elimination: Ramsay assembled everyone in the dining room, finally revealing which dish was made by Kimberly and Andrew. Ironically, Andrew's closest allies, Heather and Paulie, voted for Kimberly's filet, while Heidi and Ryan voted for Andrew's New York Strip, gridlocking the vote in a tie. Ramsay had to break the tie and picked Kimberly to advance, eliminating Andrew due to the texture of his potato puree, but encouraged him to continue his career. Ramsay's comment: "Andrew had three chances to save his life in Hell's Kitchen. Like they say, three strikes and you're out."
248	14	"Playing Your Cards Right"	January 19, 2017 (2017-01-19)	3.92[17]
When the final five went to the black jacket lounge, Heidi comforted Paulie, who was upset his closest ally had been eliminated in part through his vote, though Paulie was in no mood for it. Challenge: The newly-minted final five face each other in a race to press the buzzer in order to grab cards containing three additional ingredients after the three required ingredients (chicken, potatoes, smoked bacon) were provided by Ramsay via cards. Heidi was the last chef to not yet have her three ingredients, so Ramsay handed her the last card, which turned out to reveal lemon. They also must impress Ramsay and guest judge Jenn Louis in order to sit on the high chair; where any chef could sit by beating the dish currently there. Kimberly impressed the judges with her dish, but Paulie quickly overtook her, and held off Heidi and Ryan, only for Heather to defeat him and secure victory. Reward/punishment: Heather got to enjoy the suite life in the Presidential Suite at the Venetian in Las Vegas and chose Heidi to go with her. The others recycled the trash during recycling day. Service: Each chef took a turn in assisting Ramsay while Andi and Aaron sat at the chef's table. Dining in attendance were Neil Everett, Pauly Shore and Erik Griffin. The service was very rocky. Kimberly undercooked risotto, overcooked carbonara, and also struggled to plate while as a sous chef. Paulie struggled on fish, serving undercooked scallops and raw lobster, then called out the wrong order during his turn as sous chef. Heather led well as a sous chef and took over for Paulie on fish, serving overcooked scallops and raw sea bass, but recovered. Paulie was transferred to garnish after his turn as sous chef, but his raw pancetta, along with Kimberly panicking on appetizers, caused everybody to get kicked out while the sous chefs step in to help Ramsay, leaving Heidi the only chef not to have a chance at being the sous chef. Elimination: Kimberly and Paulie were nominated. Kimberly admitted that this service had been rough for her, but felt like she had been improving as a chef under Ramsay's guidance and asked for another chance. Paulie, meanwhile, blamed his nomination on the fact that he was the only male left in the competition. Ramsay eliminated Kimberly for her poor performance as a sous chef and her lack of composure on the appetizer station, but praised her improvement throughout the competition. Ramsay then eliminated Paulie for his arrogance, inconsistent performances, and refusal to take responsibility for any of his mistakes, although he praised his determination in the face of adversity. With Paulie's elimination, this made the third-ever all-female final three (and the third in a row). Ramsay gave no comment on Kimberly and Paulie's eliminations, and they did not receive coat hook or burning picture sequences. Ryan, Heidi, and Heather immediately found out that their next challenge begins right now just as the episode ends in a cliffhanger.
249	15	"Tequila Shots?"	January 26, 2017 (2017-01-26)	3.98[18]
In the recap of the previous episode, Kimberly and Paulie's jackets were hung and their photos burned. Challenge: The final three created a unique dining experience for multiple chef judges and guest judges Bruce Kalman, Steve Samson, Mette Williams, and Alessio Biagini. Each chef was challenged to create a tableside entree and serving it on a trolley. Ryan won by a landslide vote. Reward/punishment: Ryan took a helicopter tour of Los Angeles with Andi in addition to dining with Ramsay at Firefly. Heather and Heidi worked on wrapping gifts for the Hell's Kitchen staff as well as steaming their clothes and polishing their shoes. Service: Tara Reid was a guest at the chef's table while Adrián González, Matt Letscher and Taylor Ann Hasselhoff were among the guests in attendance that night. Each chef took turns at running the pass while trying to correctly identify an error that the sous chefs made. Heidi began first at the hot plate, mistaking edamame for peas in a carbonara, but catching carrot puree in a risotto instead of butternut squash puree. However, Heather stalled with unseared scallops and a broken scallop. Heather at the pass mistook arctic char for salmon and also didn't notice Marino giving her a ticket for a snapper (which was not on the menu), but overall ran the pass well. Ryan ran the pass last, during which Heidi undercooked risotto and took too long to deliver the refire. Although Ryan had difficulty reading two two-tops tickets together and was fooled by black garlic puree as opposed to the black bean puree, she successfully caught a celery mash instead of potato puree. Elimination: At elimination, both Ryan and Heidi decided that Heather did not belong in the finale, with a lack of experience and inconsistent performances being their respective reasons. Heather nominated Ryan, due to her lack of strong communication. Ramsay revealed the first chef to move to the final is Heather, while the second chef is Ryan, eliminating Heidi. However, he praises her for her strength in the competition. He allows her to keep her jacket, though still gives her the picture burning elimination sequence. Ramsay's comment: “Heidi is a very talented chef with a bright future, but it will not be at Yardbird in Las Vegas.”
250	16	"Leaving It on the Line"	February 2, 2017 (2017-02-02)	3.67[19]
After the sous chefs delivered breakfast to the final two, Ryan worked on her menu with Aaron while Heather worked on hers with Andi. Andi also surprised Ryan and Heather with a makeover at the Ken Pavés Salon in addition to being VIP guests at the Saban Theatre. And what was thought to be a new musical starring Rob Morrow, who welcomed Ramsay, Heather and Ryan backstage, turns out to be the finalists' final challenge that will be held in front of a live audience including their families. Challenge: Each chef had one hour to create four dishes and present them to a panel of guest judges which includes Walter Manzke, Michael Cimarusti, Susan Feniger, and Yardbird CEO/founder John Kunel. At the beginning of the judging, Ramsay explained that for every round, the winning chef would immediately get to draft one of eight prior eliminated chefs.[lower-alpha 1] Heather won the appetizer round and selected Andrew, much to Ryan's disgust. Ryan won the fish entree round and selected Heidi. Heather then won the chicken and beef entrees and selected Kimberly and Shaina. Ryan chose Paulie, and Heather lastly picked Devin, leaving Ryan with Koop and Wendy. Service: It was a star-studded final dinner service that featured several notable guests in attendance including C.J. Wilson, Andrea Roth, Danny Trejo, Naomi Grossman and the finalists' families. The red kitchen, led by Heather, started out strong on appetizers despite Heather accidentally calling out 2 tables at once, causing Devin to forget the order and Andrew to bring up his scallops too early. In the blue kitchen, led by Ryan, Paulie was very bitter about having to work for Ryan despite having no material incentive to perform well and thus gave her little respect. He sent up cold meatballs, but Ryan forced him back in line and Ramsay accused him of sabotaging her service. During the entrees, Heather's leadership began to fall apart, being sent overcooked ribeye by Kimberly, under seasoned asparagus from Andrew, and raw bass from Shaina, forcing Ramsay to give her a pep talk. When Kimberly's refire was late and raw, Heather made the difficult decision to send the table incomplete, but regained control of her team afterwards. Another raw ribeye from Kimberly forced Heather to move Devin to the meat station and Kimberly to desserts. In the blue kitchen, Wendy served raw salmon twice, forcing Ryan to switch her to meat in exchange for Koop. Both services ended on a positive note. Winner: As per Hell's Kitchen tradition, Ryan and Heather stood in front of a pair of doors in Ramsay's office. Ryan's door opened, making her the sixteenth winner of Hell's Kitchen. Heather took her defeat graciously. Ryan gave a victory speech and hung her picture in the Hall of Fame. Ramsay's comment: “Early on, I challenged Ryan to find her voice. Once she proved to me she could command a kitchen, there was no stopping her. She has the tenacity, drive and skill that will make her a great head chef at Yardbird Southern Table and Bar at the Venetian Las Vegas.”

Ratings

U.S. Nielsen ratings

No.	Episode	Air date	Timeslot (ET)	Rating/Share (18–49)		Viewers (millions)	Nightly rank	DVR 18–49	DVR viewers (millions)	Total (18–49)	Total viewers (millions)
1	"When the Wall Comes Tumbling Down"	September 23, 2016	Friday 8:00 p.m.	1.1	5	3.37[5]	4	N/A	1.49	N/A	4.85[20]
2	"Crepe Grand Prix"	September 30, 2016		1.0	4	3.28[6]	6	0.6	TBA	1.6[21]	TBA
3	"The Yolks on Them"	October 7, 2016		1.0	4	3.13[7]	4	N/A	1.34	N/A	4.44[22]
4	"Surf Riding & Turf Riding"	October 14, 2016		1.0	4	3.38[8]	4	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
5	"Walking the Plank"	October 21, 2016		1.1	5	3.38[9]	3	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
6	"Let the Catfights Begin"	November 4, 2016		1.1	5	3.38[10]	3	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
7	"Don't Tell My Fiance"	November 11, 2016		1.1	4	3.30[11]	4	TBA	TBA	TBA	TBA
8	"Dancing with the Chefs"	November 18, 2016		1.0	4	3.14[12]	4	TBA	TBA	TBA	TBA
9	"Spoon Fed"	December 9, 2016		1.0	4	3.31[13]	3	TBA	TBA	TBA	TBA
10	"Dancing in the Grotto"	December 16, 2016		1.0	4	3.31[14]	3	TBA	TBA	TBA	TBA
11	"Aerial Maneuvers"	January 5, 2017	Thursday 8:00 p.m.	1.2	4	3.66[15]	6	TBA	TBA	TBA	TBA
12	"Fusion Confusion"		Thursday 9:00 p.m.	1.1	4	3.49[15]	7	TBA	TBA	TBA	TBA
13	"Black Jacket Lounge"	January 12, 2017	Thursday 8:00 p.m	1.2	4	3.97[16]	4	TBA	TBA	TBA	TBA
14	"Playing Your Cards Right"	January 19, 2017		1.3	5	3.92[17]	5	TBA	TBA	TBA	TBA
15	"Tequila Shots?"	January 26, 2017		1.2	4	3.98[18]	5	TBA	TBA	TBA	TBA
16	"Leaving It on the Line"	February 2, 2017		1.1	4	3.67[19]	8	TBA	TBA	TBA	TBA

Notes

1. Matt chose not to return, so Koop took his place as the last chef eliminated prior to the top ten.

References

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3. "The Future of Hell's Kitchen". YouTube. Retrieved 25 August 2016.
4. Tewfik, Alex (April 21, 2017). "Former Birra Chef and Hell's Kitchen Contestant Paul Giganti Dies at 36". Philadelphia. Retrieved March 30, 2018.
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