Photo from Wikimedia Commons
By Kayla Brown, Arts & Entertainment Editor
On Jan. 7 Ard’s Farm line cook, Drew Tingley, made his debut on season 19 of “Hell’s Kitchen” as one of 16 competitors vying for a $250,000 cash prize and a chef’s position at Gordon Ramsay’s restaurant in Lake Tahoe, Nev.
According to the Daily Item, Tingley had only been working at Ard’s Farm in Lewisburg for a month when he was offered a spot on the show, but was encouraged by his employers to go for his dreams.
After arriving at “Hell’s Kitchen,” meeting Ramsay and getting to know their fellow competitors, the competing chefs were split into red and blue teams. This season, Tingley competed on the blue team, along with the other men.
Season 19 of “Hell’s Kitchen” was shot in Las Vegas and began with a surprise twist of events. Instead of the usual signature dish competition that the competing chefs have been preparing for since they were picked for the show, Ramsay decided to change it up a bit.
One member from the blue team was given the same three ingredients as a member of the red team. In Tingley’s case, he was paired against Lauren Lawless and given halibut, spinach and fettuccine.
Tingley’s plated dish was halibut with pesto sauce, which Ramsay, Lawless and Tingley all agreed was missing one key ingredient: salt. Because this was a crucial, rookie mistake, Ramsay awarded Tingley a score of 2 out of 5.
Despite Tingley’s low score, the blue team managed to win by one point and were rewarded by joining Ramsay for a nice dinner, while the red team were punished and forced to clean the fountain outside of Caesar’s Palace.
Tingley, who has been shown to be quite competitive, said, “Bye Felicia. Go enjoy scrubbing those fountains. We’re gonna have dinner with Chef Ramsay.”
During the first dinner service, Tingley was assigned to the meat portion of the meal alongside his teammate, Peter Martinez. Martinez was to cook the duck while Tingley was to cook the lamb. With confidence, Tingley announced, “There’s two things we do as fathers: tell bad jokes and grill meat.”
Although Tingley was confident in their meat cooking abilities, he almost served raw lamb, while Martinez almost served overcooked and raw duck. Ramsay, who was annoyed with their continued mistakes, kicked them and Elliott Sanchez out of the kitchen.
In the back, Tingley punched a stall in anger, showing even more of his competitive side. Once the three of them were gone, the remainder of the blue team began to implode, leading to the whole team being dismissed before the food was served.
Following the dinner service, the blue team had to nominate two chefs, and because of his mistakes, Tingley was the first nominee.
His teammate, Sanchez, was also nominated, but Tingley outlasted him and remained in the competition. In his interview, he said, “I have a lot more to show than what my teammates saw so far.”
As the competition, which was filmed in 2018, went on, Tingley’s health declined and he eventually had to pull out of the competition. According to Hell’s Kitchen Fandom, which has in-depth information on all competitors, Tingley was suffering from full-body cramps and headaches and was taken to the hospital for further evaluation. His condition did not improve and he was forced to withdraw from “Hell’s Kitchen.”
Although Tingley wasn’t on the show for long, he made a lasting impression with his competitive spirit and willingness to do better.
