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| Num Episodes: | 16 | ||||||||
| Network: | Fox |
The sixteenth season of the American competitive reality television series Hell's Kitchen premiered on Fox on September 23, 2016, and concluded on February 2, 2017. Gordon Ramsay returned as host and head chef, while Aaron Mitrano returned as the Blue Team's sous-chef, and Andi Van Willigan-Cutspec returned as the Red Team's sous-chef, replacing Christina Wilson, after the former had appeared as a guest in the previous season. Marino Monferrato returned as maître d'.
The season was won by event chef Kimberly-Ann Ryan, with sous-chef Heather Williams finishing second.
This season was filmed between November and December 2014, shortly after the completion of the previous season, about two years before airing.[1]
This was the first season since season 13 to take a hiatus due to Fox's coverage of the World Series, in addition to the holiday breaks. The remaining episodes were moved to Thursday nights, starting on January 5, 2017, as part of the network's midseason schedule.
This is the first season to have episode titles other than the usual "(Remaining number of) Chefs Compete" and "Winner Chosen".
Eighteen chefs compete in season 16.[2]
| Contestant | Age | Occupation | Hometown | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kimberly-Ann Ryan [3] | 29 | Event Chef | Traverse City, Michigan | Winner | |
| Heather Williams | 26 | Sous Chef | Easton, Pennsylvania | Runner-Up | |
| Heidi Parent | 33 | Executive Chef | Auburn, Maine | Eliminated before Finals | |
| Paul "Paulie" Giganti, Jr. † | 34 | Executive Chef | Brooklyn, New York | Eliminated after Thirteenth Service | |
| Kimberly Roth | 34 | Sushi Chef | Ontario, New York | ||
| Andrew Pearce | 27 | Sous Chef | Prospect Park, Pennsylvania | Eliminated after Black Jackets Challenge | |
| Devin Simpson | 33 | Assistant Restaurant Manager | Mount Pleasant, South Carolina | Eliminated after Twelfth Service | |
| Wendy Mendez | 32 | Line Cook/Pastry Chef | Bronx, New York | Eliminated after Eleventh Service | |
| Matthew "Matt" Hearn | 27 | Sauté Chef | Los Angeles, California | Eliminated after Tenth Service | |
| Shaina Hayden | 28 | Banquet Chef | Long Island, New York | ||
| William "Koop" Wynkoop | 28 | Kitchen Manager | Carey, Ohio | Eliminated after Ninth Service | |
| Jonathan "Johnny" McDevitt | 29 | Burger Chef | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | Eliminated after Eighth Service | |
| Aziza Young | 34 | Kitchen Manager | Harrisburg, Pennsylvania | Eliminated after Sixth Service | |
| Aaron Smock | 22 | Culinary Student | Frankenmuth, Michigan | Eliminated after Fifth Service | |
| Rajeeyah "Gia" Young | 31 | Catering Chef | Queens, New York | Eliminated after Fourth Service | |
| Jessica Boynton | 32 | University Chef | Raleigh, North Carolina | Eliminated after Third Service | |
| Genaro Delillo † | 26 | Sous Chef | Lebanon, Pennsylvania | Eliminated after Second Service | |
| Patricio "Pat" Tortorello | 47 | Culinary Instructor | Belleville, New Jersey | Eliminated after First Service |
| No. | Chef | Original teams | First Switch | Second Switch | Individual | Final | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1601 | 1602 | 1603 | 1604 | 1605 | 1606 | 1607 | 1608 | 1609 | 1610 | 1611 | 1612 | 1613 | 1614 | 1615 | 1616 | |||||||
| 1 | Ryan | WIN | WIN | LOSE | WIN | WIN | LOSE | LOSE | WIN | WIN | LOSE | LOSE | LOSE | IN | IN | IN | WINNER | |||||
| 2 | Heather | WIN | WIN | LOSE | WIN | WIN | LOSE | LOSE | WIN | WIN | LOSE | WIN | WIN | IN | IN | IN | ||||||
| 3 | Heidi | WIN | WIN | LOSE | WIN | WIN | LOSE | LOSE | WIN | WIN | LOSE | WIN | WIN | IN | IN | OUT | ||||||
| 4 | Paulie | LOSE | LOSE | WIN | LOSE | LOSE | NOM | WIN | NOM | NOM | LOSE | NOM | LOSE | IN | OUT | |||||||
| 5 | Kimberly | WIN | WIN | LOSE | WIN | WIN | LOSE | LOSE | WIN | WIN | NOM | WIN | WIN | IN | OUT | |||||||
| 6 | Andrew | LOSE | LOSE | WIN | LOSE | LOSE | LOSE | WIN | WIN | WIN | LOSE | WIN | WIN | OUT | ||||||||
| 7 | Devin | LOSE | LOSE | WIN | LOSE | NOM | NOM | WIN | LOSE | LOSE | LOSE | LOSE | OUT | |||||||||
| 8 | Wendy | WIN | WIN | LOSE | WIN | WIN | NOM | NOM | NOM | LOSE | NOM | OUT | ||||||||||
| 9 | Matt | NOM | LOSE | WIN | LOSE | LOSE | LOSE | WIN | WIN | WIN | OUT | |||||||||||
| 10 | Shaina | WIN | WIN | LOSE | WIN | WIN | LOSE | NOM | LOSE | LOSE | OUT | |||||||||||
| 11 | Koop | LOSE | LOSE | WIN | NOM | LOSE | LOSE | WIN | LOSE | OUT | ||||||||||||
| 12 | Johnny | LOSE | LOSE | WIN | LOSE | NOM | LOSE | WIN | OUT | |||||||||||||
| 13 | Aziza | WIN | WIN | LOSE | WIN | WIN | OUT | |||||||||||||||
| 14 | Aaron | LOSE | NOM | WIN | NOM | OUT | ||||||||||||||||
| 15 | Gia | WIN | WIN | NOM | OUT[4] | |||||||||||||||||
| 16 | Jessica | WIN | WIN | OUT | ||||||||||||||||||
| 17 | Genaro | LOSE | OUT | |||||||||||||||||||
| 18 | Pat | OUT | ||||||||||||||||||||
| No. | Episode | Air date | Timeslot (ET) | Rating/Share (18–49) | Viewers (millions) | Nightly rank | DVR 18–49 | DVR viewers (millions) | Total (18–49) | Total viewers (millions) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "When the Wall Comes Tumbling Down" | September 23, 2016 | Friday 8:00 p.m. | 1.1 | 5 | 3.37 | 4 | 1.49 | 4.85[5] | ||
| 2 | "Crepe Grand Prix" | September 30, 2016 | 1.0 | 4 | 3.28 | 6 | 0.6 | 1.6[6] | |||
| 3 | "The Yolks on Them" | October 7, 2016 | 1.0 | 4 | 3.13 | 4 | 1.34 | 4.44[7] | |||
| 4 | "Surf Riding & Turf Riding" | October 14, 2016 | 1.0 | 4 | 3.38 | 4 | |||||
| 5 | "Walking the Plank" | October 21, 2016 | 1.1 | 5 | 3.38 | 3 | |||||
| 6 | "Let the Catfights Begin" | November 4, 2016 | 1.1 | 5 | 3.38 | 3 | |||||
| 7 | "Don't Tell My Fiance" | November 11, 2016 | 1.1 | 4 | 3.30[8] | 4 | |||||
| 8 | "Dancing with the Chefs" | November 18, 2016 | 1.0 | 4 | 3.14 | 4 | |||||
| 9 | "Spoon Fed" | December 9, 2016 | 1.0 | 4 | 3.31 | 3 | |||||
| 10 | "Dancing in the Grotto" | December 16, 2016 | 1.0 | 4 | 3.31 | 3 | |||||
| 11 | "Aerial Maneuvers" | January 5, 2017 | Thursday 8:00 p.m. | 1.2 | 4 | 3.66 | 6 | ||||
| 12 | "Fusion Confusion" | Thursday 9:00 p.m. | 1.1 | 4 | 3.49 | 7 | |||||
| 13 | "Black Jacket Lounge" | January 12, 2017 | Thursday 8:00 p.m | 1.2 | 4 | 3.97 | 4 | ||||
| 14 | "Playing Your Cards Right" | January 19, 2017 | 1.3 | 5 | 3.92 | 5 | |||||
| 15 | "Tequila Shots?" | January 26, 2017 | 1.2 | 4 | 3.98 | 5 | |||||
| 16 | "Leaving It on the Line" | February 2, 2017 | 1.1 | 4 | 3.67 | 8 | |||||