O’Sullivan
He was selected to be on the show by producers through his social media account and filmed the competition in Los Angeles.
The theme of this season was “The American Dream,” and during the second-to-last episode, he said that coming from Ireland with “pennies in my pocket,” he feels he is the epitome of the American dream.
He said he has relatives in Boston and California and had visited the United States when he was younger. It was during one of those trips, he recounted, “I got a taste and knew that if I came back I could make something of myself.”
“When they said the theme was the American Dream, I thought, ‘surely this was written for me,’” O’Sullivan said. “This journey has been incredibly challenging, but the lessons learned, and the experiences gained, will stay with me throughout my culinary career.”
Though he received his formal training to become a chef at Munster Technological University in Cork, his love of cooking began at home. His claim that his passion for cooking is “in the blood, the DNA” seems pretty accurate, considering his father also is a chef.
He had never cooked a dish for his father, but that changed during the finale when he cooked on air for his father as part of the final dinner service.
Ryan also noted several times on the show that his father’s idol in the cooking world is Gordon Ramsay, an established celebrity chef who is the figurehead in several reality cooking shows in addition to “Hell’s Kitchen.”
Though one of the prizes for winning “Hell’s Kitchen” is head chef at Hell’s Kitchen Caesars in Las Vegas, O’Sullivan
said he’s not sure he’s moving just yet. “It’s a massive, massive job to take on.” While he’s not sure about the position, he stressed that he “wants to stay in Gordon Ramsay’s wheelhouse nonetheless.”
Michael Crain, Mirasol’s executive chef and director of culinary operations, said, “When Ryan began at Mirasol, I knew he was destined for big things, as his unwavering passion for culinary excellence was evident from day one.
“I couldn’t be prouder and happier for him and all that he has accomplished in the United States, and I am excited to see what the future holds for him. He is the epitome of the American dream!”
Eddie Ritz is a journalist at The Palm Beach Post, part of the USA TODAY Florida Network. You can reach him at eritz@pbpost.com. Help support our journalism. Subscribe today.