Asbury Park chef James Avery returns to 'Hell's Kitchen' with Gordon Ramsay

Asbury Park chef James Avery has returned to "Hell's Kitchen," a cooking competition show on FOX.

He is working as Gordon Ramsay's on-camera sous chef for the show, which filmed this spring and summer at Foxwoods Resort Casino in Mashantucket, Connecticut.

"I reconnected with Gordon Ramsay and it's been great," Avery said in a recent interview, "and hopefully that opens up doors for me as well."

The 23rd season of the show premiered Sept. 26.

"Hell's Kitchen" was one of the reasons Avery decided to move on from the corner of Cookman and Bangs avenues in Asbury Park after 10 years.

On Sept. 8, he closed The Mainstay, a bar and lounge that replaced The Bonney Read restaurant and bar in the fall of 2023.

"Businesses don't have to stay open forever," said Avery, who with Sebastian Walker managed the restaurant through their Nicely Done Hospitality group.

"It's not going to be the first business I close, it's not going to be the last business I close, and it's not going to be the only one I ever open."

He and Walker also operate The Black Swan, a European gastropub in Asbury Park, which remains open.

How to watch Hell's Kitchen Season 23

Catch new episodes Thursdays on FOX. Stream on Hulu the next day.

Sarah Griesemer joined the USA TODAY NETWORK New Jersey in 2003 and has been writing all things food since 2014. Send restaurant tips to sgriesemer@gannettnj.com, follow on Instagram at Jersey Shore Eats and subscribe to our Jersey Shore Eats newsletter .

This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Asbury Park chef James Avery returns to 'Hell's Kitchen' with Gordon Ramsay