Serenity "Reni" Lee went home on Hell's Kitchen Season 25 Episode 2, sent packing after her salmon came back raw twice during the season's first real dinner service. The episode, titled "A Tale of Two Kitchens," also resolved last week's cliffhanger: Gordon Ramsay didn't eliminate either of the Episode 1 bottom scorers, giving Valentín Royo and Sandra Leclerc their menu books early instead. Here is the full recap of the October 1, 2026 episode: the Punishment Pass challenge, the first dinner service, the standout dishes and disasters, and where the two teams stand now.
New here? The Hell's Kitchen Season 25 guide has the premiere date, the all-under-25 cast, and the Foxwoods prize. Catch up on Episode 1's recap, where the Signature Dish Challenge ended on that same cliffhanger.
Who Went Home on Hell's Kitchen Season 25 Episode 2?
Serenity "Reni" Lee was eliminated, the season's first chef sent home. Per Gold Derby's episode 2 recap, after the Red Team's dinner service collapsed, Ramsay pulled the whole team from the kitchen and had them nominate two chefs: Lee, for sending out raw salmon twice, and Jeyda Brooks, for falling behind on appetizers. Lee went home; Brooks stays in the competition.
Valentín Royo and Sandra Leclerc, the two bottom scorers from Episode 1's cliffhanger, were not eliminated. Ramsay opened the episode by calling both of them forward again and, in a twist he said the show had never done before, handed them their menu books early, telling them he wanted to set them up to succeed rather than send either of them home over one dish.
The Challenge: The Punishment Pass
Ramsay introduced two Punishment Passes this season, one per team, each letting its holder skip a future punishment. Both teams ran the same three-round elimination bracket cooking Hell's Kitchen appetizers and entrées: scallops, then carbonara, then lobster risotto. On the Red Team, Mya Gonsalves won the pass after the carbonara round went sideways for Sandra Leclerc, whose egg allergy meant she couldn't taste her own dish and sent up an over-salted carbonara, letting Nadia Philips and Georgiana Pahon advance in her place. On the Blue Team, Michael "Mike" Catuosco won the pass in the lobster risotto round by having a backup lobster tail ready after his first one came out undercooked.
Dinner Service
Both teams ran their first real dinner service, for a dining room reportedly filled with influencers, and it went two very different ways. The Blue Team won narrowly despite its own trouble: Miles Anderson's flatbread came out misshapen and had to be redone from scratch, and the team sent out an extra Beef Wellington that no table had ordered, which drew a sharp reaction from Ramsay. Diego Sanchez's Wellington itself held up well and helped carry the team's win.
The Red Team's service fell apart over salmon. Reni Lee's salmon came back raw, Ramsay sent it back, and the second attempt came back raw again. Ramsay pulled the entire Red Team out of the kitchen before service could continue, and the team had to decide who went up for elimination, a sequence TVmaze's episode log also confirms as the hour's turning point.
Where the Teams Stand
17 chefs remain after Episode 2, out of the original 18-chef all-under-25 cast. The Blue Team is unchanged at nine. The Red Team is down to eight after Serenity "Reni" Lee's elimination; Jeyda Brooks, Valentín Royo, and Sandra Leclerc are all still in the competition.
| Team | Chefs remaining after Episode 2 |
|---|---|
| Blue Team (Men) | Aiden Ricklef, Diego Sanchez, Dylan Duffy, Gabriel "Gabe" Cerease, Jonathan "Jonny G" Gudino, Michael "Mike" Catuosco, Miguel Soliz, Miles Anderson, Valentín Royo |
| Red Team (Women) | Georgiana Pahon, Haley Moss, Jeyda Brooks, Joy Shi, Kylie Budich, Mya Gonsalves, Nadia Philips, Sandra Leclerc |
| Eliminated | Serenity "Reni" Lee (Episode 2) |
This Week's Standout Dish: Beef Wellington
Diego Sanchez's Beef Wellington was the dish that actually worked in the Blue Team's shaky service, holding its seal and its pink center while a flatbread had to be remade next to it. Want to cook a version at home? Our Gordon Ramsay Beef Wellington recipe covers the same pâté-and-mushroom-duxelles build and the pastry-sealing technique that kept Sanchez's plate from leaking in the oven; our Hell's Kitchen Beef Wellington recipe is a second, slightly simpler version of the same classic.
Cook the Episode 2 Dishes at Home
The Punishment Pass bracket ran through three real Hell's Kitchen dishes, and we have a home version of each: the opening round's Hell's Kitchen scallops, the carbonara that tripped up Sandra Leclerc in our Gordon Ramsay carbonara, and the final round's lobster risotto, the same dish Mike Catuosco won his Punishment Pass on after rescuing an undercooked lobster tail with a backup (our how to cook a lobster tail guide covers exactly that doneness problem). And if Reni Lee's raw salmon has you double-checking your own pan, our crispy skin salmon recipe has the doneness cues that would have saved her service: the skin needs to sear on a bone-dry surface above 284°F for the Maillard browning that makes it crisp, and the center needs to hit 125-130°F before it leaves the pan, two checks a raw piece of fish never passes. For more of the show's dishes, see the best Hell's Kitchen recipes.
What to Expect Next Week
Episode 3, "Sliding into Hell," airs Thursday, October 8, 2026 at 8/7c on FOX (streaming on Hulu the next day). The preview points to a reward trip to Great Wolf Lodge for waterslides, followed by a Red-vs-Blue burger slider cook-off judged by Wahlburgers co-founder Paul Wahlberg.
Hell's Kitchen Season 25 Episode 2 FAQs
The questions that come up most: who went home, what happened, who won the challenge, who is still in the competition, and when the next episode airs.
Who went home on Hell's Kitchen Season 25 Episode 2?
Serenity "Reni" Lee was eliminated after sending out raw salmon twice during the Red Team's first dinner service. Jeyda Brooks was also nominated but stayed in the competition.
What happened on Hell's Kitchen Season 25 Episode 2?
Ramsay resolved the Episode 1 cliffhanger by giving Valentín Royo and Sandra Leclerc their menu books early rather than eliminating either of them. Both teams then ran a three-round Punishment Pass challenge (scallops, carbonara, lobster risotto) before their first real dinner service. The Blue Team won narrowly despite a redone flatbread and an unordered extra Wellington; the Red Team's service collapsed over raw salmon, and Serenity "Reni" Lee was sent home.
Who won the Punishment Pass challenge on Episode 2?
Michael "Mike" Catuosco won the Blue Team's pass in the lobster risotto round, and Mya Gonsalves won the Red Team's pass after Sandra Leclerc's egg allergy led to an over-salted carbonara.
Who is still on Hell's Kitchen Season 25 after Episode 2?
All nine Blue Team chefs remain. The Red Team is down to eight: Georgiana Pahon, Haley Moss, Jeyda Brooks, Joy Shi, Kylie Budich, Mya Gonsalves, Nadia Philips, and Sandra Leclerc.
When is the next episode of Hell's Kitchen Season 25?
Episode 3, "Sliding into Hell," airs Thursday, October 8, 2026 at 8/7c on FOX, streaming on Hulu the following day.
About the Author
John Siracusa is the founder of Hell’s Kitchen Recipes. He focuses on technique-first, reproducible home cooking and researches recipes & kitchen equipment from published food science and professional chef methods since 2016.