Chef Alex Belew first landed on my radar when he was running the kitchen at a popular Murfreesboro restaurant named Dallas & Jane, and then again when he teamed up with local hospitality pros Monte Silva and Christopher Thomas to form Made South Hospitality in 2020. But I wondered when and where he would turn up in a local kitchen again.
Now we know the answer, and it won’t be anywhere anytime soon. That’s because Belew was just crowned the champion of Hell’s Kitchen Season 21, Gordon Ramsay’s combination culinary boot camp and painfully long job interview. As the winner, Belew received a $250,000 prize and an appointment as head chef at the Gordon Ramsay Hell's Kitchen restaurant at Caesars Atlantic City.
Watchers of the series knew that Belew was going to be a formidable competitor early on in the season. This year’s crew of chefs was divided into a “20-something” team and “40-somethings.” At 40, Belew was the youngest of the old — kind of like when you pass a milestone birthday and move into a different group of competition in a 5K so that you’re running against more people older than you. Ahh, those were the days.
In the second competition of Episode 1, contestants were challenged to create an elevated version of chicken wings, and Belew’s General Tso’s-inspired wings took the top prize, earning him a “Punishment Pass,” a very valuable chit when dealing with the vesuvian Ramsay. In subsequent challenges, Belew distinguished himself by quickly breaking down a lobster and cooking it to what Ramsay gushed was “utter perfection.” In later challenges, Belew excelled with a barbecue spice-rubbed hanger steak and a Nashville hot chicken breakfast taco that guest judge (and actor/restaurateur) Danny Trejo said was “killer.”
Belew’s calm leadership in the kitchen shone through, and his professionalism was obvious, born of years of restaurant work. In the finale episode, Belew bested two other finalists over two rounds of competition, finally wowing the panel of famous judges that included Curtis Stone, Stephanie Izard, Nancy Silverton, Mei Lin and David Myers. The final two contestants prepared a full dinner menu for the judges, with Belew coming out on top.
In his official statement after winning, Belew thanked his Middle Tennessee fans. "When I walked through that door I was in complete disbelief," he says. "The whole finale was so surreal. I remember it just clicking and all the experiences came together during that dinner service. All the years of work and sacrifice coming to an epic moment. Having my wife and mom there to celebrate with me made it so much sweeter.”
In addition to his new appointment in Atlantic City, Belew will be a guest at the South Beach Food & Wine Festival, the Feast With 45 at Fenway (Pedro Martinez Foundation) in Boston, and several others that will be announced in the coming weeks. Congrats to our local boy done good!
