Nathan Barnhouse

 

“

Growing up, I dealt with a lot of people who said I was immature for my age, who just told me to give up on dreams. So what Gordon said really hit me hard. I'm here to prove them wrong.

”

Hometown	Slippery Rock, PA
Age	20
Occupation	Tuxedo Salesman
Statistics
Skills Test(s) Won	1
Elimination Test(s) Won	1
Team Challenge(s) Won	2
Pressure Test(s) Survived	1
Bottom Entries	3
Placement	7th
Episode Eliminated	Tag Team

Nathanael "Nathan" Barnhouse was a contestant on Season 7 of MasterChef. They ranked in 7th place.

Personality

Nathan is widely regarded as one of the most polarizing contestants in the show's history. They started out as misunderstood, had moments of kindness, were shown to be funny on some occasions, and were very passionate. However, most of the other cooks and their teammates bullied them due to their inexperience and immaturity, which proved to be the chagrin toward everybody that they worked with. They had a childish behavior, often acted rude at some points, and pretty much fought with almost every cook of the season, to the point where they were considered to be a liability in every team that they worked with. Their difficulty with communication didn't make them popular as a choice for teams nor a good team player, which was primarily the main reason why everybody was frustrated with them. In the kitchen, despite occasionally showing skill and adaptability in individual challenges, they were seen as useless in team challenges and were easily ousted as the weakest cook by far in individual challenges according to the other cooks, mainly due to their lack of knowledge to cook and prepare some basic ingredients (rice and tomatoes being the prime examples). However, their main problem was that they had a major problem with cracking under pressure, where they fainted in a tag-team challenge that led to their elimination. They only got along with Dan and were an easy target for being berated and ostracized by most of the other cooks, specifically having running feuds with Katie, Andrea (who aggressively bullied them more than anyone else with no provocation), and a longer one with Shaun. However, they were seemingly tolerated by Brandi, Eric, and Terry.

Competition History

Week 3	Low/Win
Week 4	In
Week 5	In/In
Week 6	Low/In
Week 7	Win
Week 8	In/In
Week 9	Win
Week 10	No Pressure Test
Week 11	In/In
Week 12	In/In
Week 13	In/Immune/Immune
Week 14	In/Eliminated

Season 10

Episode 4

Nathan made an appearance as a guest at the Season 10 Pool Party.

Post MasterChef

• After their appearance, they returned to college to complete their degree in Theater and has had parts in local shows.
• They changed their surname after the competition and are now known as Nat Coe.

Trivia

• At 20, they are the youngest contestant of the season.
• Nathan is the first Non-Binary contestant of the American version of MasterChef.
  • Nathan uses they/them pronouns, but was referred to as he/him on the show before they came out as non-binary.

Quotes

• "My dish looks like crap, and all I keep saying to myself is 'please don't taste my dish', 'please don't taste my dish'. And what do they do? They taste my dish. Wolfgang Puck is up there on the stage. My gut drops to the floor."
• "Growing up, I dealt with a lot of people who said I was immature for my age, who just told me to give up on dreams. So what Gordon said really hit me hard; I'm here to prove them wrong."
• (To Christina) "Growing up, I was bullied a lot for things like being immature, and um, it hit me that. I was not gonna leave this challenge with the last words 'being immature', so I wanted to come back."
• "I'd say they're wrong, 100%."
• "QUIET!!!"
• (About Shaun) "I know Shaun thinks he's all hot bananas and stuff, but I just really need him to stop and listen to me, and it doesn't look like it's happening."
• (To Katie) "HE'S TRYING TO TALK TO ME! YOU CAN'T TALK TO ME!"
• Heading into this Pressure Test, it's definitely rough, but I've been resurrected time and time again, kinda like Lazarus, except I don't know how many lives I have left."
• "As a pastor's son, I'm not allowed to touch alcohol, so you're asking me to touch alcohol for the first time; and you're asking me to dump it into a pan, and light that pan on fire, and NOT call 911?"
• "(About the Veterans Team Challenge) "It's very important for me to win this challenge, but then all of a sudden, the wind just kinda goes out of my mind as I see veteran after veteran go up there and push the button; veterans with walkers, veterans in wheelchairs; Win or lose today, I just hope the dish was enough to say thank you."
• (During the Offal Challenge) Gordon: "Nathan, which one would you love to have tonight?" Nathan: "Honestly, I'd love to have any of them; I've cooked them all before." Gordon: "Seriously? Even the testicles?" Nathan: "Testicles are the best part."
• (While trying to ask Katie how to chop tomatoes) "I'm trying to ask you. Please don't treat me like an idiot."
• (After slapping Andrea for saying a swear word) "Don't say that!"
• (To his team) "You know what?! Stop! I'm tired of taking your guys' crap! Andrea's over there; 'I just find it funny that all Nathan did was peel kale'. You couldn't even make a sauce!"
• (About the Bibimbap Challenge) "If I was making this true African-style, I'd make it with caterpillars; but there's not caterpillars in the pantry today, so I grab chicken instead."
• (After being eliminated) "Day 1 when I came into the MasterChef Kitchen, I was labeled the quirky kid. At first, I was scared coming here, but being here on MasterChef taught me to really stand up for myself. Growing up, I was bullied a lot and I made it to Top 7; I proved to those bullies out there that I can make it further than anyone expected me to. I still proved I was someone great and I'm excited to see what God has in store for me next."
• (To Shaun during the finale) "YOU GOT THIS SHAUN!!! Oh, I screamed like a girl there."

Gallery

Season 7

Nathan's Confessional

Nathan receiving their Apron

Nathan's Failed Potato Mystery Box Dish

Nathan, Cassie, and Bill in the Potato Mystery Box Bottom 3

Nathan's Halibut Replication Dish

Nathan in the Blue Team

Nathan in the Red Team

Nathan in a Black Apron

Nathan's Skills Test Lobster

Andrea, Nathan, Lisa Ann, Diana, and Eric in the Lobster Skills Test Bottom 5

Nathan's Lobster Tortellini Replication Dish

Nathan's Offal Dish

Nathan's Bibimbap Dish

Nathan's Fresh Salmon Dish

Nathan's Pressure Skills Test French Fries

Nathan and Shaun's Tag Team Picnic Platter

Nathan and Shaun in the Tag Team Bottom 2

Nathan Eliminated

Season 10

Nathan, Samantha, and Cesar at the Season 10 Pool Party

Nathan, Eric, and D'Andre

External links

• Nathan Barnhouse on Instagram
• Nathan Barnhouse on Twitter