Kristin Barone

In the Season 15 premiere of HELL’S KITCHEN, Chef Gordon Ramsay welcomes the newest bunch of contestants into the kitchen. The steaks are high when the contestants travel to Las Vegas and see the kitchen where this season’s winner will work as a Head Chef: BLT Steak at Bally’s Las Vegas. And, for the first time in HELL’S KITCHEN history, they will compete in that kitchen for the signature dish team challenge. The winning team will earn a ride on the High Roller – the world’s tallest Ferris wheel – and get VIP service at Drai’s Nightclub, while the losing team prepares a Vegas buffet service, which includes peeling 50 lbs. of shrimp and 1,000 lbs. of potatoes. Later, during their first dinner service, one of the teams will fail early on in the service, prompting Chef Ramsay to kick them out of the kitchen. Find out which contestants will be safe from elimination and whose luck will run out.

Chef Gordon Ramsay puts both teams to the test when they are challenged to produce more shrimp dumplings than their opposing team in just 20 minutes. To make the challenge more difficult, Chef Ramsay sends out multiple rounds of distractions, testing the team’s attention to detail and concentration. Later, the teams face a tough dinner service when Grammy Award-winning rap artist “The Game” shows up unannounced. Find out which contestants up their game, and who must face elimination.

After the contestants struggle to work together during opening night in the dining room, Chef Ramsay presents the red and blue teams with a communication challenge. Each contestant will wear a chef jacket with the dish they must complete written on the back of the jacket, while their teammates must read off the instructions to that contestant in order for him/her to properly prepare the dish. The team that correctly completes the most dishes will win a relaxing retreat in Santa Barbara, while the losing team must prepare the kitchen for the next dinner service, which involves gutting 100 lbs. of seabass. Later, during the dinner service, the teams will cook their second dinner service for VIP guests, including astronaut Buzz Aldrin. Find out which team will deliver an out-of-this world successful dinner service, and which team will struggle to manage the simplest tasks.

After an unexpected elimination for the red team, Chef Ramsay starts at the quack of dawn, as he challenges contestants to a rubber duck hunt to determine what ingredients they will use with duck in the next team challenge. With the help of special guest judge Chef Josiah Citron, Chef Ramsay will decide which team had the best duck dishes. The winning team will enjoy a day on a yacht, while the losing team must prepare the duck for the appetizer at the next dinner service. During that service, tempers will flare as the teams cook for the biggest VIP guests yet, manager and producer Kris Jenner and burlesque entertainer Dita Von Teese. Find out which team will succeed and which team will need help from the winning team.

This week, Chef Ramsay wastes no time, quickly throwing the remaining chefs into a challenge that will be a test of teamwork, creativity and communication. Each team will be responsible for preparing three entrees, each using a different protein. But, there’s a catch: only one chef from each team will be allowed in the kitchen at a time. The winning team will enjoy a VIP day at the Santa Anita horse racetrack, while the losing team will be left behind to unload 100 pounds of lamb, in preparation for their upcoming dinner service. Later that night, during one of the most successful dinner services with VIP dining guests, actress Lainie Kazan and comedian Bill Engvall, the first team to finish their last plate will win. In a race to the finish line, one chef will fall behind.

After the red team gains a member from the blue team, Chef Ramsay introduces the contestants to a celebratory challenge as he tasks them to work in pairs to create three main dishes each with a different holiday theme: 4th of July, Cinco de Mayo and Mardi Gras. The team that completes the most dishes successfully wins. With the help of special guest Linda Fears, editor-in-chief of Family Circle magazine, Chef Ramsay will choose who will win and be flown to Santa Inez Valley to blend their own wine and who will face a not-so-sweet dinner service preparation. Later during the dinner service, tempers flare during family night in HELL’S KITCHEN, causing not one, but both teams to be kicked out of the kitchen.