The Official Hell's Kitchen thread......

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Thought this deserved its own thread. I'll put ksyrup's quote from another thread here to start it off.....

So the season premiere of Hell's Kitchen last night was awesome. I kinda get the feeling they loaded the show with a bunch of losers and a few legit candidates, though, to maximize the entertainment value a bit more. Allen, the gigantic-headed, 48-year old dude who looks 15, clearly can't handle any type of pressure (he cooks in a retirement home and broke out crying twice during the show last night!). And it appears he'll break down again next week, plus pass out at some point right in the middle of the kitchen.

And the women...I haven't seen a group of people live up to a stereotype so perfectly since I don't know when. Do you think a group of women, competing against each other but grouped as a team, would do anything but bitch at each other all show? Hell no! That was embarrassing. And then for most of them to put down that Julia chick because she works at Waffle House was terrible. Although the chick who was considered the least knowledgeable and got shut out last season the way Julia did last night did get knocked out early, so Julia better start asserting herself or she's going home soon.

But Allen clearly needs to remove himself from the show. I honestly felt bad for him as he was blubbering away. Even Ramsay tried to be nice to him during his second meltdown.

[CraigSca]

Why would Aaron (Allen?) even think for a moment that he would be able to run his own Las Vegas restaurant when he cries during the first episode?

FWIW, I'm glad my favorite show is back on the air, at least until the planets align and they decide to bring back Arrested Development.

[Ksyrup]

Was it Aaron? I can't remember names. Aaron, Allen...he'll be gone in a couple of weeks anyway.

He'll be the easiest justification ever when he gets nominated. I think that's what saved Julia last night - that chick who got to choose the nominations probably wanted to get rid of her, but she risked looking bad if she nominated her with no good reason. The other two definitely deserved to be nominated.

[Ksyrup]

The other cooking show - Top Chef - is pretty good, too. I think that one comes back in the fall on Bravo (I think?).

[Richard Weed]

Great show last night and typically pathetic. Aaron gives Asians named Aaron a bad name. There were a couple of hotties on there last night though. I would've bumped the bitchy chick instead of the chick who couldn't make eggs.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

IMO.....definitely the best premiere they've had.

The big guy that was a retirement center chef is going to make for good entertainment, but he's going to get run over in the end. Too many breakdowns. Ramsey doesn't like fat guys who sweat in the food and get tired halfway through the shift either.

The only think that's going to save the big guy is the younger chef who mouthed off to Ramsey late in the episode and thinks he's better than everyone else. Note to him: Ramsey doesn't feel challenged by you because of your confidence. He's pissed at you because you're an overconfident jerk.

The little guy who called himself a bulldog might actually do really well. He's confident in his work, did very well when judging other cooks' meals, and is smart enough to keep his mouth shut in the kitchen. He didn't get called out once in the kitchen while the other male cooks continued to hang themselves.

The ladies look like a mixed bag as well. A couple of really hard workers while the rest of them will likely engage in cat-fights for the rest of the series until they're booted.

[Ksyrup]

The bitchy chick? You mean you could narrow it down to one?!

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by Richard Weed

Great show last night and typically pathetic. Aaron gives Asians named Aaron a bad name. There were a couple of hotties on there last night though. I would've bumped the bitchy chick instead of the chick who couldn't make eggs.

I could be wrong, but I think that Aaron is actually Eskimo or Native American.

[Richard Weed]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

The bitchy chick? You mean you could narrow it down to one?!

The black chick who clashed with the hot blonde and the Waffle House chick and the hot chick who made the call to pick two.

[Ksyrup]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

The little guy who called himself a bulldog might actually do really well. He's confident in his work, did very well when judging other cooks' meals, and is smart enough to keep his mouth shut in the kitchen. He didn't get called out once in the kitchen while the other male cooks continued to hang themselves.

You can never tell what they're showing you from the previews, but it looked like he gets into a ton of shit next week. At least, that's what the preview suggested. That, and another blubber session from Aaron. At the very beginning, they showed him pass out on the line, too, and also showed an ambulance. Not sure if those are connected, but it looks like we'll be getting plenty of Aaron drama until he goes home.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by Richard Weed

The black chick who clashed with the hot blonde and the Waffle House chick and the hot chick who made the call to pick two.

Someone's going to have to post some pictures with names to avoid any further posts like this.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

You can never tell what they're showing you from the previews, but it looked like he gets into a ton of shit next week. At least, that's what the preview suggested. That, and another blubber session from Aaron. At the very beginning, they showed him pass out on the line, too, and also showed an ambulance. Not sure if those are connected, but it looks like we'll be getting plenty of Aaron drama until he goes home.

I actually delete the episodes off Tivo at the end of the episode and before the previews for next week. I do that because they usually portray the next episode's events to be something somewhat different than what actually occurs just to get people to tune in.

I'm not surprised about the ambulance for any of these contestants. They all look like they're one step from the morgue at some point. Smoking, crying, fainting, kidney issues.......this crew has it all.

[Ksyrup]

Yeah, the black chick was over the top pushy, although I had a hard time figuring out whether she was ultimately in the right on the pasta thing. Still, the way she makes her points to people shows that she's got no leadership skills.

[Ksyrup]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

I actually delete the episodes off Tivo at the end of the episode and before the previews for next week. I do that because they usually portray the next episode's events to be something somewhat different than what actually occurs just to get people to tune in.

I'm not surprised about the ambulance for any of these contestants. They all look like they're one step from the morgue at some point. Smoking, crying, fainting, kidney issues.......this crew has it all.

True. Even during the show last night, they made the commercial breaks out to be much more than they were. Like when that chick bent down after Ramsay picked her dish, it looked like she was about to faint, and then nothing came of it after the break.

BTW, that part of the show was the best...about half the time Ramsay opened a dish, his immediate reaction was to mumble/say, "Oh fuck me!" I couldn't get enough of it. I can't imagine having him react to my dish that way, and then say, "Who's dish is this?" Can't be a good feeling...

[Richard Weed]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

Yeah, the black chick was over the top pushy, although I had a hard time figuring out whether she was ultimately in the right on the pasta thing. Still, the way she makes her points to people shows that she's got no leadership skills.

Good call there. At first, it seemed as if she wasn't doing it correctly. Then, she jumped on the pasta when it was kicked back. I couldn't tell either.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

BTW, that part of the show was the best...about half the time Ramsay opened a dish, his immediate reaction was to mumble/say, "Oh fuck me!" I couldn't get enough of it. I can't imagine having him react to my dish that way, and then say, "Who's dish is this?" Can't be a good feeling...

Yeah, the taste-testing portion of the show was awesome. It made the episode. Some of those dishes just looked terrible and he nailed them pretty hard. I also liked how he did like a couple of the dishes and also noted a couple of the chefs who actually made good assessments when they did the taste-testing. It certainly made it seem like he was actually judging the dishes rather than just busting the chops of every single candidate just to knock them down.

[Pumpy Tudors]

I don't have any specific comments about the show, but I was very entertained. This is easily my favorite of the "reality" contests.

Being somewhat facetious here, I can't figure out why customers would actually go to this "restaurant" for dinner, particularly on opening night. Hell, in the first two seasons, the teams could be on their fifth or sixth dinner service and still not get everybody served. Who goes there expecting to actually eat on opening night? I brought this up to my wife, and she figures that the people are there more for the event than the food. That's probably true, but I can't wrap my head around it. Even if I was given the opportunity at a free meal (and I'm sure these people don't have to pay for the dinners), I'm not sure how keen I'd be on possibly sitting there hungry for two hours and then having the restaurant close on me.

[CraigSca]

It's always endearing when people tell you, flat out, that they're the best and that they'll step over everyone to get what they want. I forget what book of the Bible that's from.

[CraigSca]

Originally Posted by Pumpy Tudors

Being somewhat facetious here, I can't figure out why customers would actually go to this "restaurant" for dinner, particularly on opening night. Hell, in the first two seasons, the teams could be on their fifth or sixth dinner service and still not get everybody served. Who goes there expecting to actually eat on opening night? I brought this up to my wife, and she figures that the people are there more for the event than the food. That's probably true, but I can't wrap my head around it. Even if I was given the opportunity at a free meal (and I'm sure these people don't have to pay for the dinners), I'm not sure how keen I'd be on possibly sitting there hungry for two hours and then having the restaurant close on me.

My wife and I were commenting on that as well. I'm hoping everyone stopped off at McDonalds before they started getting in line.

What gets me is their disgust and surprise at not getting served for that length of time.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by CraigSca

It's always endearing when people tell you, flat out, that they're the best and that they'll step over everyone to get what they want. I forget what book of the Bible that's from.

I believe it's Revelations.......

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by CraigSca

My wife and I were commenting on that as well. I'm hoping everyone stopped off at McDonalds before they started getting in line.

What gets me is their disgust and surprise at not getting served for that length of time.

1. They don't have to pay; I'm pretty certain of that.
2. There is no lack of attention whores in California who would love to be on TV and throw a fit like a Hilton sister.

[rkmsuf]

I would think that the "diners" are staged and part of the show in a way. The same way Ramsey would not let it go smoothly even if they cooked stuff perfectly right from the go.

[Ksyrup]

Honestly, I thought they were half-extras, half-real diners...real in the sense that they would choose what to eat, be served, eat it, and give comments, but all in the context of the show. But I don't know...is it possible for Joe Connected Shmoe to call up and get a reservation on the show/restaurant for a particular night they are having a challenge? Is it basically like getting tickets to a studio audience taping, or is it much more controlled than that? I just assumed it was more staged than an actual restaurant.

[rkmsuf]

I would guess it's all totally staged. Or staged in the sense that people "getting tickets to the taping" are preconditioned to act and respond in a certain way since they would probably be familiar with the show.

I mean what actual diner hangs in there for 3 hours hearing Ramsey screaming at the staff.

Heck for all we know they are just hired actors. It doesn't really matter though since the fun of the show is suspending belief and just accepting the scene at face value I guess.

[Ksyrup]

If I ever open a restaurant, I'm putting Gnat Piss on the menu as a specialty drink.

[Toddzilla]

I'm kind of bummed out because - much like Survivor but to a much more obvious degree - the producers all but tell you who the finalists are going to be in the first episode. I won't give it away, but everyone in the premiere was made to look like a bumbling ass-clown except for two of them, who were made to look tremendously poised and capable.

Ah well, it'll be fun to watch anyhow.

[Terps]

One of my favorite shows since I'm a chef myself.

It was entertaining, but I couldn't imagine taking so long to get food out. Plus, running out of chicken and other stuff when they hadn't even sent any entrees out.

[JeeberD]

The screaming black woman is annoying as hell and I'm sad that Ramsey didn't axe her when he had the chance. But most likely she's going to be on a while since she's "entertaining". Ugh...

[Ksyrup]

I wanted the black girl to go home just for the fireworks that would have resulted from the other chick staying after being told there was no way she was going home, and then the chick nominated her. That was good for some fireworks last year between those two guys.

[Qwikshot]

It is an amusing show. I read in Anthony Bourdain's book ("Kitchen Confidential" - I think) that most people pay, book in advance, to see the senior chefs be raked over the coals in the open kitchen at the CIA (Culinary Instute, not Central Intelligence). Bourdain raves about Ramsey.

Amazing as it seems outside of the promotional chef (Ramsey, Oliver, Lagasse, even Bourdain - though I think he'd hate to admit it), most chefs are f-ups, criminals, drug users, migrants...

Cooking is a delight, and it is a discipline...I could tell a few of the guys/gals were not of the head chef mold.

There is an entire chapter in Bourdain's book about one day, just one day in the life of a head chef, and I don't relish the thought of it.

I highly recommend it if you have an interest in cooking, because he does give some tips for what to do, and it did remove the romantic allusion of being a head chef at any restaurant.

[Richard Weed]

We re-watched it yesterday. Some really good stuff there. We started watching in the middle of last season and one of the things I noticed is that Ramsey is somewhat easy on the good-looking girls. If she's a hag, the chick has no chance.

One of the things that appeals is that Ramsey's character is a character. You can tell that he's yelling at them, but underneath he really cares about the people. He can separate their performance from them.

[CraigSca]

I highly recommend "Ramsey's Kitchen Nightmares" on BBC America if you're a fan of this show. He basically goes into failing restaurants and attempts to bring them back from the brink of bankruptcy. A great show, but definitely shouldn't be watched around children.

[Ksyrup]

Originally Posted by Richard Weed

We re-watched it yesterday. Some really good stuff there. We started watching in the middle of last season and one of the things I noticed is that Ramsey is somewhat easy on the good-looking girls. If she's a hag, the chick has no chance.

One of the things that appeals is that Ramsey's character is a character. You can tell that he's yelling at them, but underneath he really cares about the people. He can separate their performance from them.

That's when I got into it last year, toward the end (probably 5 or so people left). This, along with Deadliest Catch, were the two shows I started watching during my rest periods from studying for the Bar last summer.

Have any of you watched Top Chef on Bravo? A slightly different dynamic, in that the show isn't really centered on an overbearing personality like HK is, and it's far more toned down and seems more real to me, but it's basically the same concept. On that show, at least in the last season, the fireworks come from the competitors themselves, so we get to know them more because they're not really splitting time with the "head chef." In fact, that show is judged by a panel, although one guy is considering the main chef.

[Qwikshot]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

That's when I got into it last year, toward the end (probably 5 or so people left). This, along with Deadliest Catch, were the two shows I started watching during my rest periods from studying for the Bar last summer.

Have any of you watched Top Chef on Bravo? A slightly different dynamic, in that the show isn't really centered on an overbearing personality like HK is, and it's far more toned down and seems more real to me, but it's basically the same concept. On that show, at least in the last season, the fireworks come from the competitors themselves, so we get to know them more because they're not really splitting time with the "head chef." In fact, that show is judged by a panel, although one guy is considering the main chef.

Top Chef is a fav of mine, though last season sucked, too much on personality not enough on the art of cooking.

I'm thinking Ramsey is rough on dishelved appearances, if you can't take pride in yourself, how can you take pride in your food (He also yelled any the cryguy for the snot).

One thing Boudrain stresses is order, you have to know where everything is, it's like an assembly line and it begins with you, the chef. So you can be hungover, strung out, or dying, but keep the scuzz out of the dishes, keep the work place neat, and churn out the dishes with consistency and you're gold.

[GrantDawg]

Originally Posted by CraigSca

I highly recommend "Ramsey's Kitchen Nightmares" on BBC America if you're a fan of this show. He basically goes into failing restaurants and attempts to bring them back from the brink of bankruptcy. A great show, but definitely shouldn't be watched around children.

And the American version starts this fall. I cannot wait.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by GrantDawg

And the American version starts this fall. I cannot wait.

Any information on when it starts? It's on the BBC America channel?

[Ksyrup]

Here's what Wiki says:


Ramsay has also inked a deal to bring an American version of the show (called simply Kitchen Nightmares) to US network FOX in summer 2007 (although the UK version already runs in the US on BBC America). Production will start in February and will follow the same format as the original but based in American restaurants.

And then...

The show is scheduled to premiere on FOX in fall 2007 (following the third season of Ramsay's Hell's Kitchen airing in the summer) in the competitive Thursday 9:00PM/8:00PM CT timeslot.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

And then...

The show is scheduled to premiere on FOX in fall 2007 (following the third season of Ramsay's Hell's Kitchen airing in the summer) in the competitive Thursday 9:00PM/8:00PM CT timeslot.

Wow, they're throwing that one right into the fire. Honestly, I don't watch the NBC shows during that timeslot, so that's likely a good spot as far as I'm concerned.

[Ksyrup]

Another good episode last night. Fairly obvious a girl was going home after they shit-canned Aaron. I've never seen someone so unable to deal with life. I wonder if he's beenhome curled up in the fetal position since he got kicked off? As bad as the chick was who got sent home, I thought Jen should have gone. There's doing poorly in the pitcken (repeatedly), and then there's picking food out of the garbage and trying to reuse it. She will not win now, it's guaranteed. How could you give a restaurant to someone like that? And I got sick of people calling it a "mistake." That was not a mistake. The mistake was throwing it out to begin with. Taking it out of the garbage was a deliberate act.

I had no idea Top Chef premiered last night on Bravo. Luckily, since it's Bravo, they'll probably re-run it 150 times. Looks like Mondays are going to be food nights this summer.

[Toddzilla]

I think the show is wearing thin and getting too repetitive - every single episode is basically exactly the same

• Ramsay is upset over the previous dinner service
• They wake the contestants up early
• There is a challenge, winners get something cool and rag on the losers who have to perform some long labor-intensive chore where they resolve to win the next dinner service
• Dinner service is a disaster
• Ramsay yells and curses at everyone
• Losing team boots out someone obviously over their head
• Rinse, Repeat.

The only redeeming quality to the show is Gordon Ramsay himself - he's must-see IMO and outweighs any negatives the rest of the show piles on. His new show this fall will be 100x more entertaining than HK.

BTW, if you can't tell who the final 2 are at this point, you really aren't paying attention.

[Qwikshot]

Originally Posted by Toddzilla

I think the show is wearing thin and getting too repetitive - every single episode is basically exactly the same

BTW, if you can't tell who the final 2 are at this point, you really aren't paying attention.

..Aaron?

[Arles]

It's always that way early on. I think he wants to purposefully weed out the players over their head (Eddie, Aaron, Joanna). Next will probably be Jen then Vinnie. The dinners will continue to go bad and he will single out those two (I think he partially sets this up with the quantity/state of the food in some ways).

It will then be Julia (good story), Melissa and Bonnie for the girls against Rock, Josh and Matt for the guys. At this point, suddenly the services will start getting much better as the show head towards the final 2 (which I agree most should know by now).

[Pumpy Tudors]

I still can't tell most of the guys apart, so unless the final two will be women, I have no idea. Maybe I should pay more attention.

[Ksyrup]

June 20, 2007


Gordon Ramsay’s lawsuit nightmare






(Stefan Rousseau/PA)

Nico Hines



The celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay has been accused of faking his reality television show by staging culinary disasters and hiring actors to dupe the viewers.

A former manager of an Indian restaurant in Manhattan filed a lawsuit against the Glaswegian chef yesterday. He demands millions of dollars in damages and a court order to prevent the airing of an episode from the American version of Ramsay’s Kitchen Nightmares.

The series, which was first broadcast in the UK, shows Ramsay being parachuted in to save a failing restaurant with his gastronomic and business expertise. By the end of the programme dramatic improvements have usually been seen.

The lawsuit claims that Ramsay pretended that meat he found at Dillons restaurant was rotten and that he used a defective chair to suggest that the restaurant was full of faulty furniture.

Martin Hyde, the general manager who was fired on Ramsay’s advice, says that to demonstrate the success of his advice actors were hired to make the restaurant look busy.

Mr Hyde says exaggerations about the restaurant’s conditions will destroy its reputation and the good name of the people who worked there. The lawsuit has been filed at the US District Court in Manhattan.

James Curich, a Ramsay spokesman, said that he could not comment on the lawsuit because he had not yet seen it. “It is a reality show and as far as I know it’s not something they do,” he said.

Ramsay, 40, opened his own restaurant in New York last year. The Gordon Ramsay at the London (NYC) hotel in Manhattan has received mixed reviews.

Ramsay was expecting to emulate the success of transferring Hell’s Kitchen across the Atlantic with the American series of Kitchen Nightmares due to start in September.

The programme won high ratings when it was shown on Channel 4, but it attracted a similar accusation of “gastronomic mendacity” in the UK.

Ramsay won a libel payout last year after a newspaper suggested programme makers appointed an incompetent chef and invented disasters in the kitchen in a bid to prove that Ramsay’s expertise was required.

Bonaparte's was the first restaurant to feature on Ramsay’s Kitchen Nightmares. A month after Ramsay was broadcast choking on a rancid scallop, owners said bookings had dried up and the restaurant folded.

At the time, Ramsay celebrated his £75,000 libel payout by saying: “I won’t let people write anything they want to about me.”

Ramsay has also been threatened with a lawsuit by fellow celebrity chef Marco Pierre White this year. In April, Ramsay told New Yorker magazine that he had framed White for a robbery nine years ago.

Ramsay admitted that he stole the reservations book from Aubergine, a Michelin-starred restaurant, in order to prevent his former friend replacing him as head chef.

"I nicked it. I blamed Marco. Because I knew that would f*** him and that it would call off the dogs. I still have the book in a safe at home,” he told the magazine.

"It was my one stroke of genius, f****** somebody over without his knowing that I was the one who done it. You always eat that f****** revenge when it's cold, don't you? Trust me, this was stone cold."

White’s lawyers said they were considering a lawsuit for “malicious falsehood”.

[Ksyrup]

This guy is a piece of work, huh?

[flere-imsaho]

Given the backstory between Ramsay & White, that'll be an exciting lawsuit to watch. I believe in one of White's books there's a picture of Ramsay as a young chef on the verge of tears after being on the receiving end of one of White's own tirades.

[Ksyrup]

Yeah, that story kinda overshadows the main story of the article.

[Ksyrup]

So getting back to our discussion of the legitimacy of the diners, what is the consensus about the wedding party? Real couple, real wedding that day, real wedding reception? Real couple, but staged dinner party? Actors? Could the wedding planner have been any more typecast as the gay SoCal event planner? How can anyone be surprised that they are given a honeymoon as a gift - how many couples do you know that decide to have a big, planned wedding and reception, but also decide to wing the honeymoon later than night?

It all seemed fishy...particularly the fact that they finished service!

I had an inkling no one was going home last night. I told my wife about halfway through the episode that they wre focusing so much on Melissa, there's no way she's going home (the Survivor Effect). And I kept the fact that Aaron left the show in the back of my mind, meaning they were one week short of vote-offs. I'm just surprised it happened this early. It's too bad, because she has to go. What a freaking whiny, controlling bitch.

I've been watching Top Chef as well, and I think those contestants could cook circles around the Hell's Kitchen people. It's like they're on another level.

[Alan T]

I made the same comment about the wedding gift last night. It had to have been pre-planned as part of the whole thing. I wouldn't be suprised if it was a real wedding party, just alot more preplanned and alot more help then what was shown in the show to make sure it worked ok.

We were annoyed by melissa really quickly, but then the annoyence turned into a conversation of trying to figure out what was on her chin. It looked like she had a small goatee. Was it a pimple?

[Ksyrup]

Yep - same thing at our house! At one point I asked my wife if she had a soul patch.

That was the other thing I asked my wife - even if it was completely free plus a free honeymoon, would it be worth the chance that the reception was ruined by a lack of food? She said not a chance. They had to have had some help, and I bet they assured the couple that they would finish service.