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Gordon Ramsay's show Hell's Kitchen is set to be released on September 29 at 8 pm ET. Every season, the show features 18 contestants who compete against each other to emerge as the ultimate winner. These contestants are selected from different parts of the country and are passionate about making a name for themselves.
The cooking show first premiered on FOX on May 30, 2005. Since then, the show has been hosted by celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay, who also created and appeared in the British version of the competitive cooking show. Each season, the contestant chefs compete for a job as head chefs at one of his flagship restaurants.
The official synopsis of the show reads:
"The competition is bound to be fierce, as each team is put through rigorous culinary challenges, featuring high-stakes rewards and punishments, all with age-defying bragging rights on the line. But only those who possess the right combination of ingredients will continue in the competition until one is named the winner. At stake is a life-changing grand prize, including a Head Chef position, a cash prize of $250,000 and the coveted title of HELL’S KITCHEN winner."
Contestants list explored ahead of Hell's Kitchen premiere
Like its previous seasons, the upcoming installment of Hell's Kitchen will also feature 18 contestants. Like seasons 1 and 18, the contestant chefs appearing on season 21 will be divided into two teams based on their age. Season 21 has been dubbed Hell's Kitchen: Battle of the Ages.
The two teams are 20-somethings on the red team and 40-somethings on the blue team. Usually, the the chefs are divided into two groups based on gender at the start of the season.
1) Abe Sanchez
A native of Crowby, Texas, 42-year-old Abe is an executive chef at a restaurant called Kitchen Monster Creations. He enrolled at The Culinary Institute Lenotre in Houston when he was 30. During his free time, he loves to cook for his friends, wife and nine kids.
2) Alejandro Najar
29-year-old Najar is from Barberton, OH and is the head chef at UnHitched Brewing Company in Louisville. Apart from specializing in continental dishes, he is also a brand ambassador for Osmo Salt, which is a premium cooking and finishing salt.
Prior to working at unHitched, he was the head chef at the Wolf Creek Tavern in Norton and a sous chef at Mustard Seed Market & Café.
3) Alex Belew
Award-winning executive chef Alex is the owner of AB Hospitality and hosts a podcast, Cooking, Cocktails & Community. The 41-year-old studied at the Art Institute of Tennessee in Nashville.
He previously owned the restaurant Dallas and Jane in Murfreesboro, and had a meal prep company called Made South Meals.
4) Alyssa Osinga
Chicago-based chef Alyssa is an executive chef at the Althea Restaurant. The 23-year-old also promotes a shopping and retail, Yellow Jacket Chefwear Inc.
5) Billy Trudsoe
Melbourne-based Billy is the head chef at the restaurant B.Trues Mad Flava. The 40-year-old is originally from Chestertown, New York.
6) Brett Binninger-Schwartz
26-year-old Brett is an executive chef based in Dublin, Ohio.
7) Charlene Sherman
Worland, Wyoming-based chef Charlene has appeared on many shows like Killer Bites and Guy's Grocery Game show. The 40-year-old works as a private chef. She was previously the executive chef at Firenze Italian Steakhouse.
8) Cheyenne Nichols
21-year-old Cheyenne works at Fine Cravings in Louisville, KY.
9) Dafne Mejia
Los Angeles-based chef Dafne works at Spring Place Beverly Hills as an executive chef. The 29-year-old loves to travel and has visited many places around the world.
10) Ileana D’Silva
A Gloucester native, Ileana is a sous chef at a restaurant named Casa Pearl and has worked for the seafood and taco restaurant since 2018. The 23-year-old studied at the Culinary Institute of Virginia. According to her bio on Casa Pearl's website, she grew up in York River.
11) Mindy Livengood
Living in Liberty Township, OH, Mindy is a caterer by profession. The 42-year-old also runs an online platform called Chef Mindy's Kitchen that provides engaging and interesting learning opportunities to people around the world, guiding viewers to identify their strengths and fill in their learning gaps.
12) Nicole Gomez
Chef Nicole is a private chef who lives in Los Angeles. The Hell's Kitchen contestant shares a lot of her creations on her social media handle. She's part of the 40-somethings team.
13) O’Shay Lolley
Executive chef, Lolley is from New Castle, Delaware and is "many things at one time." Apart from being a restraunteur, the 42-year-old Hell's Kitchen contestant is also a food critic and a cookbook author.
14) Sakari Smithwick
New York-based chef Sakari is the founder and executive chef of Noble Promise restaurant. The 24-year-old finished second on Food Network's Chopped in 2019.
He began his career in the culinary world as a McDonald's grill cook before getting his degree in Restaurant Management. He then went on to work at Marea, Eleven Madison Park, and Ukiyo, where he earned his first Michelin star alongside Chef Marco Prins.
15) Sommer Sellers
24-year-old Sommer is a lead line cook at a restaurant in Brooklyn, NY. Sommer worked for Oceana NYC and Temple Court in the Beekman hotel, Spring Place.
She studied at the Institute of Culinary Education in New York. She was also a line cook at DIG, a farm-to-table food company.
16) Tara Ciannella
Tara is a private chef and caterer in Congers, New York. The 41-year-old Hell's Kitchen chef owns a restaurant called Tara's Italian Cucina. She has previously competed on CHOPPED and appeared on Good Day NY.
17) Vlad Briantsev
The 26-year-old Chicago-based chef is the co-founder of the Late Night With Chefs podcast. It is a platform that allows chefs to share stories from the culinary industry.
18) Zeus Gordiany
The Milford-based executive chef likes to keep his life private on social media. Although his age is not known, he's part of the 40-somethings team. He worked at Benvenuto Restaurant as the executive chef.
What is the format of Hell's Kitchen season 21?
The format of Hell's Kitchen features 18 contestants who are arranged in teams of two, as stated previously. These contestants have to work in the kitchen of a restaurant set up in a television studio.
Each episode typically includes a challenge and a dinner service, followed by the elimination of a chef, or, under rare circumstances, multiple. After several eliminations, when the competition reaches five to six contestants, they are brought into a single common team wearing black-panelled jackets.
From this point on, they compete individually during challenges and work together during services to be one of the final two.
The show is produced by ITV America’s ITV Entertainment in association with A. Smith & Co. Productions, Inc. Gordon Ramsay, Arthur Smith, Kent Weed, Kenny Rosen and Bernie Schaeffer serve as executive producers.
Viewers can watch the premiere of Hell's Kitchen on September 29 on Fox.
