Top Chef's Padma Lakshmi REACTS to Emmy 2022 Nomination

This conflict was 1 for the ages—or rather, of the ages.

Hell's Kitchen crowned Alex Belew arsenic its 21st victor connected Feb. 9 aft a play that pit 40-somethings vs. 20-somethings successful the hopes of becoming Gordon Ramsay's enforcement cook astatine Hell's Kitchen Caesar's Atlantic City. In the end, the 40-year-old bushed out Dafne Mejia, 29, and Alejandro Najar, 28, to assertion the $250,000 prize.

"I had nary hint it was coming, it was a toss-up," Alex exclusively told E! News of his win. "Dafne had gotten beauteous beardown towards the extremity winning a clump of competitions and challenges. She's overmuch younger than I am, truthful I did not cognize what was gonna happen. So, erstwhile I walked done that door, my caput deed the floor."

In fact, erstwhile the contention had narrowed down to the last 5 achromatic jackets, Alex was the lone remaining subordinate of his archetypal squad forced to look disconnected against 4 younger chefs.

"There's nary script wherever I deliberation the 40-year-olds had an advantage," helium admitted. "My teammates were getting assassinated from the infinitesimal we stepped successful the kitchen. It was brutal. As idiosyncratic who was connected that squad portion it was going on, successful my caput the full time, I was like, 'What the hellhole is happening? This is simply a nightmare.'"

"It was decidedly backbreaking. Those things similar sorting peppercorns and atom grains with tweezers [are] really, truly exhausting," helium confirmed. "It decidedly kept maine grounded."

Punishments are doled retired play pursuing squad challenges portion the winners get to spell connected rewards. However, they're not needfully ever a atrocious thing.

"Leaving to bash a reward is astir damaging successful immoderate ways due to the fact that it pulls your caput retired of the game," Alex pointed out. "You get retired of the contention mode and you get to fto loose. A fewer times erstwhile idiosyncratic went connected a reward, erstwhile they came backmost they mightiness person gone location that night."

As for 1 of the biggest challenges passim the competition: the notorious unsighted sensation test.

"I'd emotion to assertion that I had COVID and it ruined my palate," Alex joked of his performance. "I had the loudest decease metallic euphony I've ever heard playing successful my ears. So, you can't adjacent deliberation oregon concentrate. You are blindfolded and everything that you sensation tastes similar nothing. It's been manipulated, but it's overcooked, it's not seasoned, truthful it each tastes similar mush."

Still, Alex said he'd bash it each again. Perhaps connected an All Stars season, but ideally arsenic a sous chef, pursuing successful the footsteps of Christina Wilson and Jason Santos—past contestants (and successful Christina's case, a winner) who service arsenic Gordon's leaders successful the competing reddish and bluish kitchens.

The play 21 champ besides shared the proposal helium learned from the MasterChef star.

"Gordon's punctuation that was the taxable of the season, helium said it disconnected camera a fewer times, was ne'er fto thing get successful your way," Alex revealed. "A batch of times arsenic humans, we deed roadblocks, we deed walls, and we thin to springiness up. You person to propulsion done that worldly and you person to propulsion done the symptom and the discomfort and that's truly erstwhile existent maturation happens."