S12.E20: Winner Chosen

[seacliffsal]

Okay, when Scott 'fired' Jessica (rightfully so), I thought I heard her say "but my contract..." and then it was cut off.  Did anyone else hear this?  If she did say that, then I think it's a different contract for the finale and there could be a clause about finishing the service, or being on the winning team.  Anyone?

[Jersey Guy 87]

 

The first guy Scott chose for his team? I swear that was so long ago I don't even remember him.

 

I'm not entirely convinced the guy was ever actually on this season.

 

 

Then after all that cooking the only advantage was to pick first which only means you are picking one person ahead of the other.

 

Actually, I think the biggest advantage of winning the final challenge is being able to stick your competitor with the worst returning chef (Sandra in this case).  Jason blew any chance he had (admittedly slim) with his handling of Sandra.  He didn't want her and he was unable to handle her. Contrast that with how Scott handled Jessica.  Of course, Jessica appears to be just incompetent while Sandra appears to be incompetent and spiteful, but Jason completely blew it in dealing with her.  Of course, Jason also picked Gabriel so his judgement is pretty suspect anyway.

 

I would have been more surprised if Joy was one of the returning cheftestants.  You quit, you're out.  No questions asked, no chance of redemption.  I'm surprised Joy's picture is still up on the Fox website.

[cooksdelight]

I don't remember the guy's name, but I remember him being on the show. I think he continually screwed up meat or fish one night and that got him canned. At one point I thought he might last till the end, so that shows what I know. :)

[OlfinBedwere]

He got kicked out after screwing up something like three dozen pizzas. And the weirdest part of it is, the other person up for elimination that night... was Scott.

[Mama No Life]

I heard Jessica say "don't do this". Didn't hear anything about her contract and my CC didn't show that, but that doesn't mean anything. Also, when Jason entered the hotel room he said "This is interesting" when he saw GR behind the paper. Or at least that's what my CC and I heard. :)

I was never on the Scott fanwagon b/c I think he's so dramatic but he was clearly the better of the two. Stupid Joy...that could have been her. Jason might have been stuck with Sandra but he chose Gabrielle so clearly he's not so good at picking talent either. Plus, his continuous "BOOM" when sharing the menu was annoying.

I assumed the crab cakes were premade by Jason's instructions because how else could you do them in a timely manner?

Anton was curiously quiet. Good editing or has he learned his big-mouthed lesson?

[cooksdelight]

Oh, right, the pizzas!! I forgot, thanks! I am always suspicious of that pizza oven being sabotaged by the crew to make the temps go crazy.

[Kip Hackman]

Kudos for not stretching this out over two episodes. This season has been long enough.

 

September? Way too soon.

[Rambler]

What an appropriate end to a pathetic season. Where was the part where the chefs put up sample dishes for Ramsey to critique? You realize the editors don't care about food anymore when you have no idea what the final menus were. Even before Joy left, this was the worst group of chefs they ever had - so congratulations I guess Scott, you were the one eyed king this season.

[kikismom]

Would anyone else be interested in a tv HK version of the old Glamour magazine "Do's and Don't" (Sorry if that sounds crazy but it's the best analogy I can think of!)

A show with dishes featured on the HK seasons, with clips of the stunning result being made and the dog's dinner result being made, with what makes the difference?
It isn't the ingredients obviously, so point out how to make it right, say, risotto or a fish entree---and what makes it go wrong?

Maybe Andi could host, or winners from previous seasons doing guest spots sharing their tips on making the filet mignon come out perfectly etc.

It could even be on daytime, as an alternative to Rachael Ray throwing canned beans together with the remains of a jar of jelly .

[BogoGog24]

The guy that Scott chose first is named Chris. Yes I actually remembered that.

[fishcakes]

I had one moment of empathy with Jason, when in the middle of service he was looking at the hapless squad in his kitchen and muttered under his breath, "I swear to God, I'll kill you all." Not that I condone murder or anything, but having worked in more than my share of group projects, I get it.

 

Best part of the show by far was when Jason and Scott thought they were going to be watching boxing. The ring announcer is naming the two ham-and-eggers who supposedly fought the last match, and Jason and Scott are cheering as if they're at an Ali-Frazier fight. Ramsay's so evil, you know he was saying things like, "so you know a lot about boxing, do you?" and then laughing into his hand.

 

Otherwise, a pretty boring episode. I'm glad that Scott won, that Kashia made a good showing, that Anton didn't speak. Otherwise, meh.

[Uncle Benzene]

I must have low standards, because I still enjoy the Hell (heh) out of this show, as terrible as it can be most of the time, and I'm stoked that it's coming back so soon. Hell, I'll cop to the fact that occasionally I'll even watch reruns of past seasons on HULU. (I NEED Amanda Davenport back in my life. My original Ramsayverse Girlfriend.) If there were a 24/7 Ramsay Network, I suspect I'd rarely change the channel. I mean, I'm not proud of it, but I suppose there's no sense in denying it. Until then, the rest of MC and then Junior, plus Hotel Hell? Yes please. FOX should continue to air as much content as Gordo cares to spew forth.

 

My favorite parts of the post-reveal celebration are ALWAYS the shots of JP. That stuck up Belgian sure can cut loose when the situation warrants. It's endlessly amusing.

[ProfCrash]

Like everyone else, I was no surprised that Scott won. I think if Joy had been there it would have been different but none of the other finalists had a chance. Jason was depicted as a loud, over bearing, oaf the entire season. Rochelle was the person with great potential but not enough confidence. Melanie was the younger, has potential, too cocky but will do well in a few years. Joy and Scott were the only two who seemed to have the leadership, skill, drive and temperament to win.

 

Scott struggled at service because he was too distracted but he did really well on most of the individual challenges. He showed vision, finesse and a desire to challenge himself. He did a great job running the pass in his practice run and last night. He knew what he was cooking and how he was plating it.

 

Jason struggled in some services, yelled at people and was not a useful teammate. His individuals dishes were not horrible but were not great. He did a poor job at the pass in practice and last night. He had no clue about garnishes and the like when he was presenting his dish to his team.

 

The only way Scott lost this is if he chopped off a limb and allowed the food to be sent out.

[aliya]

Regarding "canned tamAHtoes," I've been watching Ramsay's channel on YouTube (all Ramsay all the time, I love it) and he uses canned tomatoes, which he says are perfectly fine....at home.  Ramsay's got a ton of stuff on YT, all kinds of shows that aren't aired here  in the States. I must like the sound of his voice because I can play them all day while I work.  I don't know where they get them, but a few people have put up uncensored versions of the shows. Just stunning. A whole 'nother show.

 

Some up thread said s/he still thinks about Joy. Me too. Why she would walk away from an almost sure chance at being a finalist, I don't know. It's like watching season 11 again. I keep thinking of Ja'nel's mom, who must have been so proud of her, only to see her daughter eff up the whole thing by using drugs. The mom didn't do anything wrong, but she must be awfully embarrassed anyway.

 

Anybody catch Ramsay's surprised (and not in a good way) look at Gabriel and Jason's stomach bump?  That's class right there, I tell ya.

[ProfCrash]

ohhhh I get You Tube at work. A new thing to listen to as I work. I need the background noise to block out the loud people who are not me. They need the background noise to block out me.

[mertensia]

Calling Sandra dumbass during the dinner was instant death even if he'd been the clear frontrunner.

Jason seemed honestly surprised he'd lost. I hope someone hits him with a clue by four.

[DropTheSoap]

In the post celebration, Andi seemed to be enjoying the opportunity to spray everyone w/champagne. If I was in her place I'd probably be whacking them with the knives.

A friend on mine met Scott. Said he was a nice normal guy.

Edited July 25, 2014 by DropTheSoap

[backformore]

What an appropriate end to a pathetic season. Where was the part where the chefs put up sample dishes for Ramsey to critique? You realize the editors don't care about food anymore when you have no idea what the final menus were. Even before Joy left, this was the worst group of chefs they ever had - so congratulations I guess Scott, you were the one eyed king this season.

 

Yeah - I didn't get the menu options, they discussed them so quickly, and then what do you hear people ordering?  SCALLOPS!  I recall earlier seasons when building the menu was a huge part of the challenge - the balance between having an interesting menu with unique choices, and having items that your kitchen crew could prepare easily.

 

AND -  speaking of that, am i the only one who recalls that early seasons also had the top 2 design half of the dining room?  they'd bring in decorators and choose wall treatments, lighting, booths, etc, just for the one night.  Ramsey would choose the winner based on the over all feel of the dining room, the menu, and how the food turned out.  They even chose uniforms for the waitstaff. 

 

I always thought it was pretty wasteful -  who designs a dining room to be half one look or theme and half another?  And who the hell would put up wallpaper just for one event?   but I always liked seeing how the chefs envisioned their restaurant, putting the decor AND food together.  

(of course, that was also in the days that we, as viewers, thought that the winner actually got to RUN THEIR OWN RESTAURANT, so the decor, menu, etc, seemed to matter) 

[mlp]

 

AND -  speaking of that, am i the only one who recalls that early seasons also had the top 2 design half of the dining room?  they'd bring in decorators and choose wall treatments, lighting, booths, etc, just for the one night.  Ramsey would choose the winner based on the over all feel of the dining room, the menu, and how the food turned out.  They even chose uniforms for the waitstaff.

 

I didn't see the early seasons but that sounds a lot like Restaurant Wars.  I'm glad they don't have to do that any more.  Unless they give them a week or two to make those kinds of decisions and have them executed, the results are bound to be sub par.  The chefs will never need those skills to work in or manage a Ramsay restaurant anyway.

[OnceSane]

The best part of the finale was seeing Scott's children & how much he obviously adores them.  I'm not surprised he won, almost anyone is better than Jason.  Gabriel may have been the only one to lose to Jason if Gordon had a brain aneurysm & put him in the final.

[cooksdelight]

Oh, you mean, Gabrielle? LOL

[backformore]

I didn't see the early seasons but that sounds a lot like Restaurant Wars.  I'm glad they don't have to do that any more.  Unless they give them a week or two to make those kinds of decisions and have them executed, the results are bound to be sub par.  The chefs will never need those skills to work in or manage a Ramsay restaurant anyway.

 

Yeah, they used to do it on HK.  And there was always a "crisis"  due to table linens or wallpaper not being delivered until the last minute.  The finalists would make all ths choices, then GR would announce they were going somewhere with him, while the workers put everything together. 

The one I remember most vividly was a chef who designed the place to be a seafood restaurant, and put tacky boat and fish themed stuff on the walls, so it looked like a Long John Silver's. 

[aliya]

I don't know if we can post links to other stuff, but there is an interesting interview with Christina from Season 10, talking about her experience as well as her review of what happened this season. I had no idea that from the time service is over to when they open the door is about 2 hours. It must drive the contestants wild. See 'Hell's Kitchen w/ Christina Wilson After Show Season 12 Episode 20 "Winner Chosen" | AfterBuzz TV'  on YouTube.  She also mentioned she only had about 36 hours between winning and having to show up at work. It's an interesting interview.'

 

I think this guy has interviewed others from this season, so it may be worth looking around YT for them.

[mlp]

 

I had no idea that from the time service is over to when they open the door is about 2 hours. It must drive the contestants wild.

 

I don't understand what this means.  I looked for the video but it was about 58 minutes and I don't want to watch all that.  Thanks.

[aliya]

Apparently AfterbuzzTV, an online show interviews folks from TV shows. There appear to be shows following each episode of HK. Christina mentioned the 2 hour time period between closing the kitchen and finding out who's the winner. Obviously with the editing, there's no way to tell how long the finalists are hanging out in the dorm before they get that call from Ramsay.

 

Since I posted, I've listened to a bunch of shows with interviews with Rock, Kashia, Anton, Jason (I stopped that one early), and Joy. Joy's interview was interesting as she discussed why she walked off, her growth since then (it's been 18 months!), etc. I think she was very adult about what she did and didn't blame her behavior on anyone else.

Edited July 26, 2014 by aliya

[Julia]

I'm interested - do you have a URL for whatever Joy had to say? 

[mlp]

 

Christina mentioned the 2 hour time period between closing the kitchen and finding out who's the winner.

 

Ah!  I thought "open the door" referred to JP letting the diners in which obviously wouldn't come after closing the kitchen.  Duh.  And thanks for the explanation.

[Calamity Jane]

I sense a great disturbance in the Force, as if millions of people picked Scott as the winner and suddenly cried out in amazement when they were right!  I NEVER get this right, always pulling for the wrong contestant, until this time.  Waiting to see if the poles will reverse.  

[blubld43]

So the winner here is now head Chef at Gordon Ramsay's Bar and Grill in Caesar's Palace?  My family and I ate there in April, had really looked forward to it.  And I have to say, the best thing about that meal was the server.  The food was absolutely nothing special at all.  Very disappointing.

[cooksdelight]

Maybe Scott will help improve things there. Sounds like they need some good leadership.

[OlfinBedwere]

Well, to be fair, after what happened with Ja'Nel last season they've probably been like a ship without a rudder for the past year.

[cooksdelight]

I'm pretty sure the winning chef doesn't get the job until after the finale is aired. Because if they were there before, people would spot them in the restaurant and blab it all over the Internet. Ja'Nel blew any chances she had of ever getting a high-profile job as a chef.

[Julia]

I was genuinely surprised to see her head shot on the winner's wall, although I suppose she did win.

[LIGuy]

This season - Yawn - what a stunning and most amazing bore. Much of the drama was predictable and I, for one, am tired of GR yelling about raw scallops, overdone fish and raw chicken and wellingtons. Enough already! Scott seems like a nice guy and deserving of the prize - yet he was up for elimination a number of times. I DVR the show and fast forward through it;  I may even stop doing that.

[cooksdelight]

 

I was genuinely surprised to see her head shot on the winner's wall, although I suppose she did win.

 

Julia, what surprised me even more is that they let her keep the $250,000. She never worked a day in his restaurant to earn that salary. Their contracts must be really hinky.

[Totale]

I was genuinely surprised to see her head shot on the winner's wall, although I suppose she did win.

 

Yeah, I thought they wished her into the cornfield.

 

This season - Yawn - what a stunning and most amazing bore. Much of the drama was predictable and I, for one, am tired of GR yelling about raw scallops, overdone fish and raw chicken and wellingtons. Enough already! Scott seems like a nice guy and deserving of the prize - yet he was up for elimination a number of times. I DVR the show and fast forward through it;  I may even stop doing that.

 

Me too.  Everything up to the end of the opening sequence kills about five minutes.  After the first challenge I skip to the beginning of that night's service because I don't care about the reward or the punishment or the contestant's personalities.  Then after service I skip through the deliberations because they're superfluous to Grrr deciding who is going home, anyway.  With commercials gone too I've usually got it down to 30-35 minutes.

[OlfinBedwere]

Didn't Joy say that this season was actually filmed a year-and-a-half ago? In that case, it's possible that the whole drug scandal with Ja'Nel hadn't yet happened when the season was being filmed.

 

Besides, they never tried to erase the memory of Danny from Season 5, even though he bailed out on the winners' job after a couple of weeks when he decided it wasn't to his liking.

[Canada]

My favourite part of the finale is always trying to pick out which chefs didn't return.  This year, I noticed that Joy, looks-really-old Richard, canned tomatoes guy, finger licker (was he on this season?  It seems so long ago), and eerily-quiet-but-probably-a-psycho-and-has-crazy-eyes woman weren't there.  Did I miss anyone?

[BogoGog24]

DeMarco, Simone, Nicole, and Beth also did not return.

[Julia]

Bev, too, of the inappropriate behavior with Richard.

[BogoGog24]

Bev, too, of the inappropriate behavior with Richard.

No Bev did return. Beth was the one flirting with Richard and neither of them returned.

[Canada]

So it looks like the first 6 to go out, plus Joy and Richard, didn't come back.  I don't even remember some of those early people who left.  This season was WAY too long.  I can't believe that finger licker went out this season... it felt so long ago, I was sure he was a part of last season!

[BogoGog24]

Yeah I hope the new season starts with maybe 16 chefs and not 20. Most of them are just fodder anyway, why do they have to start with so many that we know won't last? I guess maybe FOX orders a certain number of episodes per season so they must have enough contestants to fill up those slots or something.

[cooksdelight]

Yes, and they pre-sell the advertising based on number of episodes, so you know Gordon and his cohorts will milk Walmart for every last penny. Or whoever. :)

[aussieinsydney]

Congrats to Scott. A deserving winner in my opinion. I wish him and his family all the best.

 

Ha ha.  Did anyone else think those crab cakes looked prefabbed?  All the same shape and crusted already? Didn't they go into the deep fryer?  To me that screams frozen.

 

I did and they were for sure. Plus two of those for an appetiser was a massive amount of food. Blergh.

 

When was the last time a dude won when the girls were obviously the stronger team? A fair few seasons back I'll bet. I think if Joy was in the final two with Scott, it would have been close.

 

Also, Kashia was surprisingly likeable during service.

Edited July 28, 2014 by aussieinsydney

[OlfinBedwere]

When was the last time a dude won when the girls were obviously the stronger team? A fair few seasons back I'll bet.

 

Paul's victory back in Season 9. There were several girls who could and should have made the final that year (Jenny in particular), but Ramsay's obsession with the godawful Elise screwed them over.

 

In fact, I'd go so far as to say that the only time a guy won and the guy's team was clearly stronger was back with Dave's victory in Season 6.

[aliya]

I'm interested - do you have a URL for whatever Joy had to say? 

Julia  I sent you an PM.  I sent a link once and it was deleted. I don't know if it was because it was for a product (the calendar) or what, but anyway, look in your in box.

[mojoween]

My husband watched one show with me (the finale) and said if Scott didn't win he would throw his laptop. He haaaaated Jason. As did I, heh.

My all time fave will always be Michael and I don't see that changing ever.

I want them to stop unisex teams SO MUCH. There is no reason it has to be gender wars every season. I also miss the delish Chef Scott.

I didn't see any prior winners at this finale, did I miss them?

[jonesingjay]

I miss when they used to show bloopers and funny moments at the end of the season but I've noticed for the past couple seasons now they don't show bloopers anymore. It was always my favorite part of the whole season.

 

I enjoy watching the more laid-back and humorous side of Chef Ramsay. I think my favorite blooper or the one that tends to stick out in my mind the most is Ramsay saying, "I ain't not bitch." After he'd been threatened by a booted contestant who came at him and in a thick Boston accent stated, "I ain't no bitch, Chef Ramsay!". I liked Gordon having fun with that.  

[aliya]

Uncle Benzene - you know what's really great? To get the uncensored YouTube clips, usually running about 2 hours, and just let Ramsay and the contestants rip while you FaceBook, get your email, correct student papers, etc. : )   I love that man and cannot get enough.  Lately I've been watching his cooking instruction videos. It isn't all my kind of food, but you have to admit that he can make an interesting meal in minutes and make it seem like you can do it too. He shows there's no reason to go to the drive thru because you can make a good meal at home faster and better. The man's a genius, and when he adds his kids, he's just too cute for words (as are they).