by Gina Scarpa

 

Last night, on the season premiere of Hell's Kitchen, the new batch of chefs didn't exactly impress Gordon Ramsay. In fact, they were so bad that he told them their first night was the worst ever in the show's eight seasons. A little harsh perhaps, but you wouldn't expect anything else from good ol' Gordy. Today, his first two casualties, Lisa and Curtis, spoke to RealityWanted in an exclusive

interview about their experiences on the show.

 

Q. Gina, RealityWanted: What made you want to try out for Hell's Kitchen this season?
A. Lisa: I had actually tried out a few years ago. I got to L.A. and had some personal issues. My best friend had passed away. I went back and did it again. It all came, for me, out of being dared to be on the show. People told me I had to get on.
A. Curtis: I tried out for season 2 and made it to L.A. My daughter was about to be born and so I gave up the opportunity to possibly be on the show to be there for that. I made it to L.A. again in either season 5 or 6 and got picked for season 8. I want to see if it was really like how it was on tv.

 

Q. Gina, RealityWanted: How did you feel about your signature dish when you presented it to Chef Ramsay?
A. Lisa: I'm my worst critic and I wasn't really happy with it because I couldn't get the flames to come up on that charbroiler. It wasn't a total failure but it wasn't a success.
A. Curtis: I think I did a lot better than Antonia with that god awful gravy.

 

Q. Gina, RealityWanted: Being told that your group had the worst first night in Hell's Kitchen history is pretty harsh. Have you watched past seasons and do you agree with what Ramsay said?
A. Lisa: I don't agree as far as the girls' side. Obviously, we didn't do the best but we certainly weren't the worst compared to other seasons.
A. Curtis: Trev, on my side, couldn't even make a salad.  I don't think we were the worst ones. It was first day jitters. It's hell in Hell's Kitchen. They don't call it that for no reason.

 

Q. Gina, RealityWanted: Lisa, why did you feel that Sabrina should have gone home first instead of you?
A. Lisa: She's very inexperienced. She was a spoiled little brat. She was whining. She just wanted to bring on the drama because I guess the more drama, the longer you'll stay, and she did exactly that. It is what it is. As I was standing up there with her, I had to hold back from beating the hell out of her. I have two kids in middle school and I kept thinking about them and their friends watching the show and I didn't want my actions to embarrass them. I said it was a great experience and I walked off with my head held up high. That was it.

 

Q. Gina, RealityWanted: Curtis, before you left, you were told that you destroyed your team's chances of winning. How do you feel about taking the blame for your team's loss?
A. Curtis: Well, I will definitely take some of the blame, obviously. Sushi is a very delicate dish. Where I come from, we use that stuff as bait. It's a very intricate dish. I don't think I was the worst. Raj was more of an actor than he is a cook. He's definitely the sabotage of the blue team. I can't wait to see him go! He belongs on a reality show with Flavor Flav or something. I hate fake people. That's one guy I hope to never meet again.

 

Q. Gina, RealityWanted: Even though the two of you were there for a short time, did you learn something valuable from being on Hell's Kitchen?
A. Lisa: For me, it was a great experience. It just confirms to me to be who I am and to give up on your dreams. Just continue to do what you want to do and don't let people tell you that you can't. We made it, out of thousands of people! I hope to use this experience in a positive way. I'm hoping to do some
A. Curtis: Absolutely. Whenever I tried out, I was working in ditches. I was working for the water dept here in Arkansas. It renewed my passion and I knew what I needed to do. I wanted to be a chef since I was 10 years old, cooking on my farm. Now I'm an executive chef at the age of 22.

 

Q. Gina, RealityWanted: Where are you cooking now and what's next for you?
A. Lisa: I'm a food and beverage director for a food management company. I'll continue to do that. I'd love to run into Anthony Bourdain and tag along with him and throwdown with Bobby Flay. That's what I'm into. I love to socialize, I love to watch people eat, and I love making people smile.
A. Curtis: I'm cooking in Little Rock, Arkansas. I want to expand and go somewhere else. I've been in Arkansas all this time and I love this state but I'm hoping to go somewhere else and provide for my two beautiful daughters and my future stepsons. I just wanna have a better future for my family.

 

Hell's Kitchen airs Wednesdays at 8/7c on Fox.

 

(Image courtesy of Fox)

 

Follow Gina at twitter.com/ginascarpa

 

For more Hell's Kitchen links, visit SirLinksALot.net