Danny Wins Hell’s Kitchen Season 5

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For the first time in Hell’s Kitchen there were two contestants from the same state competing for the prize. At the start of the season I really had my doubts that any of these contestants should even be on the show. Bad service after bad service drove Ramsay to his limits and tore down the morale of the kitchen.  Despite the disappointing services and degrading mess-ups, the contestants never seemed to lose their overzealous egos which seem to come with the territory.  Through twelve grueling weeks, it came down to two chefs who both hailed from Florida, Danny and Paula.  

 Danny and Paula throughout the tenure on the show never were put up for elimination and both had produced well, despite their teams’ miserable contestants.  Paula helped the women win the most challenges this year and Danny was the strongest leader in the kitchen, but you won’t be able to convince Ben of that.  These two deserved the chance to win it all, and they proved if you just keep a level head and do your job well, you will go far.

Tonight they had their chance to shine. Paula chose a very beautiful design for her dining room; it was a place I could sit and relax in for hours while dining on five star rated food.  Danny had a different approach; very simplistic but still impressive, as he combined his love for the sea with an elegant five star atmosphere.

Paula had probably the worst kitchen mates possible with the likes of Lacy, but she did have Andrea who came in third, despite having major trouble throughout the competition. Paula also had LA, who was probably the most stable on the line.  Danny got Ben, Carol and Giovanni.  The problem most of them had with these contestants was that they couldn’t cook before and now they are bitter they got kicked off.  Was sabotage in the air?

Danny, during the first two hours of dinner service, had a strong start despite a few set backs. He did get his team focused and they managed to produce for him and made up for the errors.  Paula, unfortunately, had a team of idiots. Lacy was a screw up and couldn’t get the garnishes right.  Andrea overcooked the Halibut and that really set her back.  Paula tried hard to get her team focused and wanted to jump in and do it for them, which hurt her in the long run.  Amazingly, she got the team together and acquired her voice and dominance, but was it too late?

Ramsay said this year was the hardest choice of all; both contestants were even in their culinary skills, running the kitchen and in personality.  It really came down to how they managed to get themselves out of jams in the kitchen and with the customers’ comments.  In the end, Danny won the prize and at 23, now has a $250,000 paycheck and is the head chef of the Borgata (a five star restaurant) in Atlantic City, NJ.  Congratulations to both Danny and Paula, as they each did a fabulous job and redeemed this season of Hell’s Kitchen!