I know I have a lot of haters that aren’t too fond of me, but I definitely think my attitude was portrayed a little over the top. That’s not how I am in real life. I really am a fun-loving person, and anyone who really knows me, knows that.
I was in a competition, and if people don’t understand that, then that’s unfortunate for them. I displayed great cooking skills while I was there. I wasn’t there to make friends; I was there to stand out in Chef Ramsay’s eyes and show him that I deserved to win. That was by any means necessary, and anyone who was put in a reality TV show with a competition like that, would see it brings out some sides that you didn’t know you had. I don’t regret anything I did on the show.
Final Four
I attribute making it to the final four to my solid culinary background. That’s a misconception that a lot of viewers have – that the chefs on the show are just imbeciles. Personally I studied abroad; I worked in Belgium and France for over six months. I’ve worked in numerous fine dining restaurants and five-star resorts. I’ve done ice carving, food and vegetable carving…I pretty much do it all, so don’t doubt the skill level.
Yeah, the attitude I gotta work on, but I’m young. I was 24 at the time of the competition. You get wiser with age, and I’ll work on that.
Corey Versus Jen
It definitely boggled my mind when Chef chose Corey to stay over me. I won a lot more of the challenges – I won the pizza challenge and the first individual challenge. In the pasta challenge I led my team with my determination. I stood out as a leader more than Corey did. I was much more passionate about cooking than Corey was.
I can only remember one episode where Corey stood out, and that was when her and Christina kicked Matt out of the kitchen. Even then she was on the heels of Christina. She came in second with the teaching challenge, but second is not first. She didn’t win anything, so I’m still not sure why Chef chose me to go.
Sneaky Or Smart?
Corey called me “sneaky” for writing Christina’s name down twice when we were nominating people to stand up for elimination. Yeah, I did it. What are you going to do about it Corey? What are you going to do Christina? That’s my response to that.
So what? It’s a competition. What about all the backhanded stuff that they did to me? Anytime I had anything negative to say about anybody on the show, I did it to their face, be it Louross, Ben, Christina, whoever. Every time they said anything about me, it was in the confessional, behind my back. When they’re in my face, they have nothing to say.
Talking Back To Chef
Could I bite my tongue with Chef? It depends. When I’m wrong and Chef Ramsay’s scolding me, it hurts. It’s like, “Dang!” I don’t want to mess up in his eyes or be yelled at.
But when he’s yelling at me for something I didn’t do, like last week when Petrozza took my fish up there and Chef Ramsay accused me of doing it, I didn’t realize that I was elevating my voice. If he’s yelling, it’s kind of hard not to, you know? I’m not going to be accused of something I didn’t do. If I’m wrong for standing up for myself, then hey, what can I say?
I think Chef Gordon Ramsay is a great chef. He’s very passionate, he’s precise, he’s a perfectionist, and there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that. He’s hiring for his namesake, so I expect nothing less.
Leaving With Grace
The main thing I learned from the experience is that sometimes I come off a bit too strong, but as far as cooking-related things, I learned to be clean and precise in my work and to simplify my dishes a bit more. Simplifying will take me far.
Out of the people that are left, who would I choose for the job? If not myself, then the person I am rooting for is Chef Ramsay. I hope he wins and gets rid of the whole lot of them.
If I was forced to pick, I’d have to go with Petrozza.
*****
Tune in to Orato.com every Wednesday for the exclusive interviews with the latest eliminated Hell's Kitchen cooks. Also check out all the Orato.com special series:
Hell’s Kitchen Chopping Block [1]
In The Hope Of Becoming A Next Top Model [2]
Song Over For American Idols [3]
People In Peril [5]
