Queens chef competes on ‘Hell’s Kitchen’

A shy girl with a degree in forensic psychology doesn’t necessarily sound like a good candidate for a reality show about cooking.
But that is exactly where Floral Park resident Krupa Patel will find herself on Monday, July 18 at 8 p.m. – when “Hell’s Kitchen” returns to FOX for its ninth season. Patel will compete against 17 other chefs for the one life changing prize: a head chef position at BLT Steak in Manhattan.
Standing watch over her and the other competitors will be superstar chef and infamous hot head Gordon Ramsay, who will put the chefs through rigorous challenges to see who has the skill and passion to prevail.
Patel’s skill didn’t always reside in the kitchen. While she has loved to cook since she was seven, it took her sister’s prodding to spark a career change.
“It was my sister’s idea,” Patel said of her decision to leave the forensic psychology field in favor of the Institute of Culinary Education in the city. “I’ve always loved to cook and I’ve always watched cooking shows, but I never thought of it as a career.”
Eventually though, a career is what it became. Right now she is a private chef, but during school Patel scored an internship with a restaurant in Chelsea and after she graduated, they hired her. It was there that she met a producer from Hell’s Kitchen who was out scouting for cast members.
The decision to do it was more a lark than anything else – she thought it would be a great challenge and a once-in-a-lifetime adventure.
“I am a very shy person normally,” she said. “I am my own worst critic and as the show airs I’m going to criticize everything from my cooking to what I was wearing. I learned a lot about what goes on behind the scenes, but I don’t think I could ever be on T.V. again.”
As for her experience with Ramsay, Patel said that he is exactly as he appears on T.V. He’s tough, he’s harsh and he can he described with a string a colorful expletives – but according to Patel, Ramsay is a very fair man.
“He always wants perfection and he has no qualms telling you what you did wrong,” she said. “He’s known to have a nasty temperament and seeing his work I knew what he was capable of. My respect for him has grown since being on the show. Because he wants perfection, he prefers to have things a certain way.”
She also said he demanded high standards from all of the competitors. Ramsay’s harshness created a team atmosphere among the chefs, and although there were a few arguments here and there, they all plan to get together to watch the premiere.
“It was like when a brother and sister fight. They next day everything is back to normal. Everyone was fair and mature,” she said. “As a competitor, I’m a little bit sweet and spicy. I don’t cross people unless they cross me. Until that happens everything is fair.”