Michael Dussault

Hometown	Hartford, CT
Occupation	Senior Center Chef
Statistics
Signature Dish Challenge Score	3 out of 5
Challenges Won	1
Services Won	1
Times as BoW/Announcer	0
Times Nominated	2
Placement	16th
Episode Eliminated	16 Chefs Compete

Michael Dussault was a contestant on Season 14 of Hell's Kitchen. He ranked in 16th place.

Season 14

Episode 1

Main article: Episode 1401 - 18 Chefs Compete

When the chefs arrived at Hell's Kitchen, the doors were locked, and they noticed that Ramsay was on the roof. Then, Ramsay said that in order to see if the chefs were 100% committed, they would jump onto an air mattress from the roof. While Michael was more eager to jump after seeing Enrique and Ruth doing it, Ramsay revealed that it was not necessary as those two were stunt people, and asked the chefs to cook their signature dishes.

During the Signature Dish Challenge, Michael was the sixth person from the blue team to have his dish judged by Ramsay and went up against Chrissa. Before having his dish judged, he revealed to Ramsay that he was working in an upscale Jewish senior home, and denied having anybody pass away from his food. He served an herb-roasted chicken breast, Ramsay deemed it a solid but not spectacular attempt, and he scored three points. The blue team won the challenge 31-28, and they were rewarded with a Hummer limousine ride to Saint Rocke, in Hermosa Beach, to meet William Shatner, and a picture taken with him and Billy Sherwood. During the reward, he was starstruck over seeing Shatner and wanted to make a Captain Kirk impression to him.

During dinner service, Michael was on the fish station with Adam. At one point, he did not put his scallops in time despite Nick sending his risotto to the pass, much to Ramsay's dismay. When he finally sent his first order of scallops, they were boiled on one side, Ramsay reminded him that he was not cooking at the senior home, and threatened him with elimination if it would happen again. His second attempt was accepted, and the blue team eventually won the service.

Episode 2

Main article: Episode 1402 - 17 Chefs Compete

During the Crab Challenge, Michael was on a boat with Bret, Josh, and Randy for the first part, and they were seen collecting six crabs. During the second part, he was paired with Bret, and they were seen only having one attempt accepted as he was moving very slowly, with Ramsay saying that he looked like he was sunbathing on the beach. The blue team lost the challenge 7-10, and they were punished by prepping shrimp, clams, and lobster for a seafood special during the next service.

During prep, Ramsay noticed Michael reading through a prep list, ripped it up, and asked him to yell in the mirror what the ingredients for the risotto were. When he called oil as the first ingredient, Ramsay corrected with rice, while calling him a fucking pellock. During dinner service, he was on the appetizer station with Milly. At one point, he sent a beet salad that was not on order, and Ramsay accused him of cooking for his imaginary friends. While he claimed that he thought he heard it being called, Ramsay told him to wake up. Later, he was on the fish station, covering for Cameron and Brendan, but was pushed away when the two of them came back, and he did not have enough time to put his scallops on, before being kicked out of the kitchen, along with those two.

The blue team lost the service, and they were asked to nominate two people for elimination. During deliberation, Michael was considered by Cameron for being the weakest chef, but he reminded the latter how he was pushed away by him without having the chance to drop his scallops.

Michael was the blue team's second nominee for elimination, with Cameron being the first. During his plea, he said that while he made mistakes on the opening night, he felt that the fish station sunk the blue team. However, Ramsay asked him why he was reading the recipe book two minutes before service began, which he answered that it was a prep list to help him. He survived elimination, and while going back to the dorms, he refused to let Ramsay break him, and knew that he was a strong chef in his own heart.

Episode 3

Main article: Episode 1403 - 16 Chefs Compete

While going back to the dorms, Michael let out a screech of relief, which took Ramsay by surprise. Then, he believed that Ramsay made the right decision by keeping him, promised to bounce back, and was willing to fight hard to do so.

During the Alaskan Fish Challenge, Michael was paired with Josh, and during the first part, he struggled to find the salmon head needed as he pulled out fish that were not on the board. Despite that, he managed to find it, and it was accepted. He and Josh were the second pair from the blue team to have their dishes judged, and went up against Monique and Mieka in the salmon round. He prepared a bronzed salmon, it was criticized for having a lack of seasoning, and they lost the round to the two women.

The blue team lost the challenge 1-3, and they were punished by taking part in seafood Delivery day, prepping the fish for the following service, and eating a peanut butter and jellyfish sandwich. During the punishment, Michael went up to the dorms to make his lunch after Sous Chef James told the men that they would be eating in ten minutes, only to be pulled back by the latter.

During dinner service, Michael was on the garnish station. Despite knowing that the garnish station was the most important, Ramsay and Sous Chef James noticed that he was not making the flatbreads despite being his responsibility, and Milly was doing them instead. Ramsay asked him why and chewed him out for being more focused on organizing his own station than what was going on around him. Later, Ramsay saw him put a sizzling hot pan down on a nearby rack and lectured him that if either Bret or Josh would grab that pan, they would seriously burn themselves. When he tried to interject, Ramsay got angrier. Near the end of service, he sent his garnishes despite Nick telling him that he needed one more minute. Both teams were named joint-losers, and they were asked to nominate two people each.

Michael was the blue team's first nominee, with Nick being the second, and they joined Mieka and Christine from the red team. During his plea, he said that he had the skills and experience to become Ramsay’s next head chef despite a rough start, but Ramsay reminded him that he did not start at all. He was eliminated as, on top of his poor performances, leaving a sizzling hot pan underneath the fish station could have left his teammates seriously burned. During his exit interview, he believed that Nick and Adam were the true liabilities of the blue team and that his mistake should not have sent him home.

Ramsay's comment: "Fortunately for Michael, he can go back to his job at the senior center. Unfortunately for his residents, it's as the chef."

Nomination history

Week 1	Win
Week 2	Nominated
Week 3	Nominated

Post Hell's Kitchen

• After his appearance on the show, Michael became the Director of Operations and Executive Chef for his own catering company Adventure By The Plate.
• He was the Culinary Director at a Yacht and Golf club in Massachusetts.

Quotes

• (About his slow performance in the crab cake challenge) "I got sand in my mouth, I'm soaking wet from the water, I'm freezing... a lot going on here."
• Gordon: "Look at yourself in the mirror and scream risotto ingredients." Michael: "Risotto ingre..." Gordon: "Ingredient number one: what is it?" Michael: "Oil, chef." Gordon: "Rice, you fucking pillock."
• (After being eliminated) "Michelin Star, you know, it's not my thing, I guess. I can go back to where I was at the senior center. I think Nick and Adam are liabilities. You know, serving raw pork, serving plastic in a salad. I made one mistake. I don't feel that should've sent me home."

Gallery

• Chef
• Dishes

Michael and Christine's Intro Spot

Michael in Blue Jacket

Michael's Confessional

Cameron and Michael Nominated

Mieka, Christine, Michael, and Nick Nominated

Michael Eliminated

Michael's Signature Dish (Episode 1)

Michael's Alaskan Fish Dish (Salmon) (Episode 3)

External links

• Michael Dussault on Instagram