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Fox's coveted competitive culinary series, Hell's Kitchen, debuted on May 30, 2005. Hosted by celebrity chef, Gordon Ramsay, the show grants blue-collar line chefs the opportunity to compete for a job as head chef at a restaurant selected by Gordon. In addition to the position, the winner walks away with a $250,000 cash prize.
Although renowned for Gordon's constructive criticism, the cooking reality show has helped launch the careers of many and established their positions in the culinary industry.
As season 23's winner is yet to be determined, fans of Hell's Kitchen recall the winners of previous seasons, most of whom achieved success after the cameras stopped rolling. Here is a list of chefs who walked away with the winner's title and cash prize.
Hell's Kitchen winners from season 1 to 22
1) Michael Wray (Season 1)
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Michael won the debut season of Hell's Kitchen in 2005. After emerging victorious, he was offered an opportunity to work for Gordon Ramsay at a restaurant in London. Despite initially accepting the offer, he had to decline due to family reasons. Later, he created his knife company Skull and Cleavers, and taught cooking classes.
In September 2018, Michael created a GoFundMe, Chef Michael Wray 2nd Chance Fund, to support himself while he struggled with addiction to painkillers. On July 2023, Michael posted a picture on his Instagram handle, captioned "Best chef job," which indicated he was working as a chef in the kitchen of the luxury Excel Sportsfishing boat based in San Diego.
As of 2024, Michael enjoys his job as a boat chef.
2) Heather West (Season 2)
Hell's Kitchen season 2 winner, Heather was offered a senior chef position at Terra Rossa at the Red Rock Resort & Spa in Las Vegas, where she worked for one year. After exhausting her contract, she moved to California, where she worked as the head chef at Monterey's Jellyfish Restaurant.
Heather, a mother of three, currently resides in Nashville, Tennessee, and maintains an active social media presence. After suffering three miscarriages and a stillbirth, she uses her social media handles to advocate for postpartum depression awareness.
3) Rock Harper (Season 3)
After winning the third installment of Hell's Kitchen, Rock established his career in the hospitality industry. He went on to work as the head chef at the Terre Verde Restaurant at Green Valley Ranch Restaurant. However, a year later he left Terre Verde and joined Ben's Next Door and The Carlyle Club as their executive chef.
He now owns Queen Mother's Fried Chicken in Washington D.C., a restaurant he opened in 2020 to honor his mother, Carole. Later, in 2023, he took ownership of Hill Prince Bar in Washington D.C.
4) Christina Machamer (Season 4)
Hell's Kitchen season 4 winner Christina served as the sous chef at The London West Hollywood restaurant after emerging victorious on the reality show. In 2011, she relocated to Napa Valley to study wine while also working as a personal chef.
Christina currently owns her own catering business, Clandestine Table, which provides dinners and wine tastings in Napa Valley.
5) Danny Veltri (Season 5)
After winning Hell's Kitchen in 2009, he briefly worked as the head chef at Fornelletto at Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa. However, he left the job after a few months.
Although not much is known about his present job status, his last known head chef role was with Salt Life Food Shack in Fernandina Beach, Jacksonville Beach, and St. Augustine.
6) Dave Levey (Season 6)
Dave won the 6th season of the show and joined the kitchen at Araxi Restaurant and Bar in Whistler, British Columbia. After working there for a while, he relocated to New Jersey. He has since worked as a chef and baker for multiple restaurants and eateries.
As of early 2024, he worked as a chef at Embark Smoked Meats in Boonton. However, his current employment status is under wraps.
7) Holli Ugalde (Season 7)
Holli won season 7 of Hell's Kitchen and was promised the role of head chef at Savory Grill in London, United Kingdom. However, she ultimately lost the opportunity due to visa issues.
According to her LinkedIn profile, she served as a spokesperson at Le Cordon Bleu from 2011 to 2015. She then worked as an organic farmer for six years before joining Beaumont Electric Inc. as a design and project manager. Holli currently serves as the President of Intelligent Lighting Systems Inc.
8) Nona Johnson (Season 8)
After emerging as Hell's Kitchen season 8's winner, Nona took on the role of head chef at LA Market. However, after three years of work, she left the restaurant and eventually started her own business.
She later opened a restaurant named Sizzling Peach with her wife, Briana. Together they expanded the restaurant into their current venture, The Local Peach, in February 2022. It is a grocery store that specializes in grab-and-go food items.
9) Paul Niedermann (Season 9)
Hell's Kitchen season 9 winner Paul's life changed for the better after his stint on the cooking reality show. He worked with the BLT Group post-show and traveled all over the United States before returning home and opening his own restaurant SALT7 in Delray Beach.
Paul soon opened a second branch in Fort Lauderdale and currently serves as executive chef at The Jupiter Grill in Jupiter.
10) Christina Wilson (Season 10)
After winning season 10 of Hell's Kitchen, Christina became the executive chef at the Gordon Ramsay Burger in 2014. With multiple promotions, she eventually became the Vice President of Culinary for Gordon Ramsay North America, serving from 2020 to 2023.
She also made several appearances on subsequent seasons of Hell's Kitchen, most recently in season 22 where she featured as the sous-chef of the red team. However, her plans for 2024 remain under wraps.
11) Ja'Nel Witt (Season 11)
Ja'Nel won season 11 of Hell's Kitchen and was awarded the head chef position at Gordon Ramsay Pub & Grill in Caesars Palace, Las Vegas. Despite failing to redeem the offer, she still received the $250,000 cash prize.
Ja'Nel is currently working as an executive chef for Sonoma, a restaurant and wine bar in Houston. She has also continued working as a private chef.
12) Scott Commings (Season 12)
After winning the 12th installment of Hell's Kitchen, Scott worked as an executive chef at Freedom Boat at the Downtown Grand Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas.
In 2022, Scott and his business partner, Chef Manuel of MG Catering and Chef Manny Catering, launched their own bakery and cafe, The Daily Bread, in Las Vegas. As of 2024, the chef is involved with the business and focused on its growth.
13) LaTasha McCutchen (Season 13)
Season 13's winner, LaTasha worked as the head chef at Gordon Ramsay's Pub & Grill in Atlantic City, New Jersey, post-show. The Salt Lake City native currently works as an executive chef and owns her own private catering business called Entertaining with Chef Tasha Mac.
14) Meghan Gill (Season 14)
Season 14 of Hell's Kitchen declared Meghan its winner. After her time on the show she landed a gig at the Gordon Group at Caesar's in Atlantic City before leaving to serve as the executive chef at The Chandelier Steakhouse in Springfield, Massachusetts.
She currently works as an executive chef at Hidden Creek Golf Club in New Jersey.
15) Ariel Malone (Season 15)
After winning season 15 of Hell's Kitchen, Ariel took up the head chef's position at BLT Steak at Bally's Las Vegas. However, in 2017, she left the restaurant to explore other opportunities.
Ariel, a mother of two, currently works as a private chef through her business, Three Little Birds Kitchen. She also aims to own a bed and breakfast sometime in the future.
16) Kimberly-Ann Ryan (Season 16)
Season 16's winner, Kimberly faced multiple challenges after her appearance on the show. She worked for a while at The Cook's House in Traverse City, Michigan, before leaving to serve as a recovery coach to those striving to achieve sobriety.
According to a 2024 GoFundMe post, Kimberly had to pause her professional life after her health deteriorated in 2023. An August update on the GoFundMe page revealed that she was scheduled for heart surgery in September 2024.
17) Michelle Tribble (Season 17)
Hell's Kitchen season 17 winner, Michelle worked as head chef at the Hell's Kitchen restaurant at Caesars Palace, Las Vegas for over two years before being dismissed from her position during the COVID-19 pandemic.
In 2021, she resumed duty as Culinary Development executive chef at the Gordon Ramsay Restaurants North America. She has since been promoted to the Director of Culinary Development.
18) Ariel Contreras (Season 18)
Although Ariel won season 18 of Hell's Kitchen, she turned down the offer to work at Hell's Kitchen Restaurant, hoping to find an opportunity closer to home.
Ariel currently serves as the Vice President of Dos Caminos and Del Friscos, showcasing her culinary talent. She also published two books, Freckle-Faced Foodie: Journey of a Young Chef in 2020 and Spice Kitchen: Healthy Latin and Caribbean Cuisine in 2022. She also appears as a guest jugde on Food Network.
19) Kori Sutton (Season 19)
After winning season 19 of Hell's Kitchen, Kori started work at Gordon Ramsay Hell's Kitchen in Lake Tahoe in 2021.
Kori now focuses on expanding her salsa brand, Mama Kori Salsa, besides working as a private chef.
20) Trenton Garvey (Season 20)
After his victory, Trenton filled in the role of head chef at Gordon Ramsay Steak in the Paris Las Vegas Resort.
After a while, he left his position at the Las Vegas Resort to join The Bedford by Martha Stewart. However, he soon returned to his post as executive chef at The Blue Duck in Maplewood, Missouri, where he has worked since.
21) Alex Belew (Season 21)
After winning the cooking culinary show in 2022, Alex landed a gig in Hell's Kitchen in Atlantic City. However, he did not commit all his time to the role. In April 2024, Alex left the position to pursue other things, including private chef services and collaborating with Nutrition Faktory, for which he develops meal preps.
Alex also maintains an active presence online, sharing recipes and tips with his followers on Instagram.
22) Ryan O'Sullivan (Season 22)
Ryan won season 22 of the reality show in January 2024. Although he did not accept a full-time position at one of Gordon's restaurants, he cooked at the Hell's Kitchen Las Vegas restaurant in April 2024.
He is currently serving as chef de cuisine at Solstice, a modern-day Italian restaurant, located in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida.
Episodes of Hell's Kitchen can be streamed on Hulu.
