Hell's Kitchen Winner Nona Johnson Talks About Her Time On The Show - Exclusive Interview

Few individuals have gone on a culinary journey like Nona Johnson. This acclaimed chef made waves when she appeared on Season 8 of "Hell's Kitchen" and ended up beating the competition to take home the grand prize. After winning it all, Johnson worked at a handful of restaurants across Los Angeles and eventually made her way to Georgia, where she currently works as an executive chef at The Local Peach, a catering company that provides delectable meals for a variety of social events and stays active in the local community.

Thanks to her appearance on "Hell's Kitchen," Johnson got a nuanced look at what really goes on during this iconic cooking competition, encountered some of the most stressful moments of her life as a chef, and learned firsthand what it was really like working alongside Gordon Ramsay, all while building her career and transforming into a chef that can take on any challenge. Johnson sat down with Mashed for an exclusive interview and dished on her experiences on "Hell's Kitchen," sharing an inside look as to what really went on during the show.

What caught you the most off guard during that entire process of being on the show?

Probably the fact that everything is so controlled. As cast members, we don't have any control over anything. And we don't have pens, we don't have pencils, we don't have paper, we don't have anything. Nothing. No resources, nothing. And so, being in that situation where there aren't even light switches, okay? There's nothing, it's all a set, but it looks very, very real. I think probably the most disorienting thing was that there literally are cameras everywhere. And behind the walls, behind the mirrors, behind everything. They're everywhere, especially the ones that, I think they're called Robo. I don't know about that, but they're the ones that move. And so those were fun because you can hear them.

And so if you're standing there, we were obviously told not to look at cameras, you don't look at them. But there were times when it was just something to do, just to mess with the production staff and we would look at them, and then we would hear them move. And so, we would just do this kind of thing with them, and then we would hear a phone call saying like, "Nona, please stop looking at the cameras," or such and such. Like, "Stop messing with the cameras," because we would try to do little things just to entertain us and break up the stress level if that makes sense. 

But yeah, I think that was probably the most disorienting or the most unexpected thing about the whole process ... just how controlled everything is. Even when we were getting mic'd up, it was like, "Alright, come here, turn around, lift your chef jacket." And you had to have your hands out. And if you touched the mic, it was a problem. Because we knew how much they were. They told us how expensive they were. We were like, "Okay, okay."

In the big picture, what do you think the hardest thing you faced was? 

I think the hardest part, for me, it goes back to ... the fact that you don't have any resources. You don't have any outlet. You can't have a book. You can't have paper, there's literally nothing. And so I think that [the] hardest part was really getting yourself ready for isolation, if that makes sense? Because you are completely away from your family and everyone. And so, for me, I had to compartmentalize, if you will. You know what I mean? You have to get your mind right and got to push out all the other outside influences or outside stuff that you brought with you, like family and things you have to take care of at your house, whatever. You have to take it all out and go, "Okay, I'm now hyper-focused on the task at hand," which is difficult. It is difficult because for us, we were around, I don't even know how many people were on our season. Eighteen, I think. You're around people you've never met, you have no idea and you don't know what's going on, really. Because you're just told where to be at certain times. So you just have to go.

That sounds incredibly stressful.

When I say it was the single most stressful thing I've ever experienced, it legitimately was mind-boggling how stressful it was. You don't even know your name when people always ask. They're like, "Well, how come you can't cook scallops?" Or, "How come you can't cook risotto?"  You can't even answer your name. 

How do you think that these experiences ended up shaping your career, going forward?

Well, when I went in there, I already felt like I had pretty high standards just from my own life and my work experience and that whole thing, but being there and learning from Chef Ramsay, even the smallest little things, what would seem minute to people outside of this industry — it was instrumental in how I run my kitchens now. And it could be something just as simple as where he placed his side towel or how he stood in front of the actual range, how he stood in front of it. And just watching little micro mannerisms, if you will, and adopting those into my own daily work, if that makes sense. 

But yeah, I think the biggest thing I took from it would really be the increase in my own standards and how I bring that into my own kitchens. Probably that would be the biggest. ... Well, also the doors it opened — that was immediate and I think it really gave me the confidence that I needed. I was not in a very healthy relationship when I was on the show and I had lost a lot of who I was in that situation. And so, really being on there and seeing what I could do and what I was capable of and what I was learning, I was able to open myself up again, if that makes sense.

I was able to really find myself and if it wasn't for winning the show and moving to Los Angeles, I don't know if I would have had that courage or that confidence to be able to leave that situation. And the gratitude that I have for, yes, my career, yes — it opened doors and it shot me out there and it really did boost so much for me. I think, bigger picture, my personal life, it far, far outweighs what, career-wise, if that makes sense. You know what I mean? I was able to go back to being Nona. I was able to go back to me and find me. 

Sounds like that was a pivotal moment for you during the filming experience.

And that's how the kitchen works. One thing could go wrong and it sets off the domino effect. And it was. One thing is I didn't drop my chicken when I heard it. And these chickens weren't par cooked. It was half chickens. They take some time, so you have to hear it, drop it and then when it's time for pickup, you just splash it, sear it, whatever, get that color. And you're good to go. Well, I didn't hear it. So then that backed me up for all of my beef and that did not go well. That did not go well. And I didn't understand what he was saying. You know, he was saying back up or whatever. I didn't realize that he was telling me to get out.

So I was like, "I am backed up," and I'm getting frustrated because it didn't happen like he thought it happened. He was like, "You're in here just throwing them all in here and steaming them." And I'm like, "No, no," it all happened within 30 seconds and it wasn't translating. And you can't explain yourself. He's just like, "No, get out!" And it's like, "Yeah, but, but," and there is no time for that. You just have to eat it and go out there. And man, I flew out of that kitchen and flew open doors the whole way back and just crumbled. Just all my emotions were just raging. They were just coming out and for a lot of people, if they get angry or frustrated, they cry, and I was just balling. Just totally freaked out. Like, "Oh my God, this is it. This is it. Oh my God." And to have that at the end of the service, for him to come back and be like, "Yeah, you know what? We all have bad times. We all have bad nights, whatever. You have that jewel that no one else has. So you have to keep going." And so, yeah, it was an up and down all at the same time.

Do you think that the editing was fair or do you think the editing skewed what actually happened?

There were definitely some editing moments where I was like, "But that's not how that happened." And it's some of the little tweaks that they would do or the little edits that they would do would be to sensationalize a moment that really wasn't that big just to make it bigger than it was. Man, it's hard to really remember because the things that were edits, they were so minute. 

For me, anyway. And I can only speak from my experience because for instance, on the guys side, we had no idea what was going on over there. We had no clue. And so, for me, okay, I think there was one moment where I was like, "I didn't say that, though." And it was when we lost a challenge and it was one of the only challenges I didn't want to lose. Because I think we only lost two in our whole season, the women's side. And it was the one when all the inventory came in, all the food comes in.

That was a nightmare. And I remember one of the things, it had a voiceover and it was saying, "Oh, I hate running," as if I said it and I was like, "I never said that!" Straight up, 100%, I was like, "I never said that ever. Never, I never said that." So, maybe that kind of stuff would be added just for production's sake. But for me, there was nothing noticeable ... where I was like, "Oh no, that's not right," at least for Season 8, if you will.

When I went back, because I was there on [Seasons ] 8, 9, and 10. And I think 10 was when we came back with some other winners and we competed against their black jackets. And that was definitely edited to a point where I was like, "Yeah, I did seem kind of like a b**** then, didn't I?" But that isn't how it happened. That wasn't how it was, but I could see how the editing made it that way. I even remember commenting on my Facebook page about it. Because I didn't see it when it aired and then I saw it later and I was like, "Ew, I promise that's not how it happened."

Do you still keep in touch with the other contestants from Season 8?

I talked to Gail probably the most. We remained friendly and we saw each other after the show, she came out to LA. I talk to Russell. I talk to him mostly through Facebook and we keep in contact with each other. And I talked with Melissa. Probably like once or twice a year, we'll say hi or whatever. And I don't have any animosity towards any of them. We all have our lives, we all do our things. And so, we keep in touch as much as we can.

So, in your daily, regular life, one would imagine you're probably not doing French and Cajun every single day.

No, not at all. Today, for instance, for breakfast I had sauteed spinach and sauteed zucchini with tater tot. And we pretty much eat potatoes or tater tots in some form or fashion, most every day, almost. And for lunch, I had leftover white bean and rice soup with corn bread. So, I eat regular stuff and yesterday or the day before I had oatmeal for breakfast, so it's just whatever I've got around that I can throw in a pan or I can throw in the oven or whatever, I'm going to, I'm going to get it in.

And seriously, you can ask anybody and we don't eat the greatest because our hours are not conducive to really a healthy lifestyle. Now me, I have gotten out of the restaurant life, when I started my own businesses. And, but even just the kitchen life in general, it's very difficult to maintain healthy eating habits because you are working. And for me, and I think this is probably common for a lot of chefs, is that because you're around the food all day constantly and you're tasting and tasting and tasting and tasting, you're not hungry for meals. You don't want the food. We don't typically eat our own food because we've tasted it the whole way through. So, by the time it's time for a meal, we're pretty sick and bloated, we're like, "No, I'm good. I'm good." But yeah. And when we get off work, the only things that are open are garbage. It's fast food and we hit up Taco Bell and we hit up these places because that's what's open.