Joseph Tinnelly Was Booted From 'Hell's Kitchen,' but Did He Get His Career Back?
"They can speak for themselves, they know who they are," were fighting words that led to Joseph's elimination.
Published June 23 2024, 10:30 a.m. ET
If you can't handle the heat, stay out of the kitchen. In the case of Joseph Tinnelly from Season 6 of Hell's Kitchen, fans are wondering if he was able to battle the temperatures or if he had to put down his knives permanently.
When you walk into Gordon Ramsay's kitchen, you need to be prepared to check your ego at the door — something that Joseph wasn't able to do. The chef was let go from the show due to his poor behavior.
What happened to Joseph Tinnelly from 'Hell's Kitchen'?
While certainly incredibly talented, Joseph was also incredibly hot-headed. During one episode of the show, he confronted Gordon, fully prepared to fight the celebrity chef.
He even ended up taking off his jacket. Of course, Gordon's temper is known to be bad, but at least he's the one calling the shots. It was clear right away that Joseph wouldn't be lasting on the show and he was sent home that episode.
After the episode aired, he was seemingly still able to secure work following his furious Hell's Kitchen exit.
At first, it seemed like he was able to return to his old job. After all, he was the part-owner and executive chef at American Beauty Bistro in North Massapequa, N.Y. However, it doesn't look like he lasted there.
A Yelp review revealed that he may have only had a small hand in the business. Maria, the owner, wrote on Yelp, "Joe worked at Abb for a total of 2 weeks over 2 years ago," in 2019.
According to Looper, he later went on to work as an executive chef at Uncle Jack's Steakhouse and then Taste Kitchen, but it's unknown where he's working today.
Why did Joseph try to fight Gordon and was it staged?
There's been a lot of speculation about what actually went down. After all, it is reality television at the end of the day, so surely some of it might have been a little hammed up.
Some fans on Reddit pointed out that Joseph was a veteran, arguing he might have been suffering from PTSD which caused him to experience a lapse in judgment and some sudden rage. Some people, though, argued that could be a dangerous stereotype. One fan said: "We don't know if Joseph saw action, and even if he did, that in and of itself doesn't guarantee PTSD. So unless PTSD is mentioned either by him or someone close to him, I'm comfortable assuming he was just a hot-headed a--hole."
Another fan pointed out he wasn't the only veteran to encounter Gordon's pressure. "The show had chefs on different seasons who also served overseas and most likely are dealing with some form of PTSD, and they didn’t even come close to act like Joseph did. He was just a jerk who couldn’t handle the heat," they said.
Whether or not it was faked is only something that he and the producers truly know. "My personal theory is that he was a plant because it honestly seemed so fake (to me anyway)," a fan argued.