Oh, Gordon Ramsay. Those 10 Michelin stars are not—we repeat, not—some sort of military ranking allowing you to run roughshod over the delicate sensibilities of reality-television viewers. I refer, of course, to Ramsay’s recent fake spear-gunning incident. British television’s Channel 4 has admitted that Ramsay pretended to spear several sea bass for an episode of The F Word, striding out of the waters off the Devon coast, fish in hand, chuffing, “I feel like a fucking action man” (we assume that’s what all those asterisks in the Sunday Times article stood for). In fact, the sea bass were caught by a spearfishing expert over an hour before.
The sea bass embarrassment follows former Ramsay’s Kitchen Nightmares contestant Martin Hyde’s lawsuit alleging that Ramsay and his producers “faked” how bad Hyde’s restaurant was by planting bad hamburger meat in the fridge and staging a scene in which Ramsay fell off a wobbly chair brought into the restaurant.
It also follows reports that winners on Hell’s Kitchen didn’t get their promised jobs.
You know, reality television not being, um, real is one thing, but blatantly dishing out lies is bound to create a little dyspeptic backlash. As Ramsay gets set to debut the American version of Kitchen Nightmares this fall, the New York Observer asks, “Who exactly is Gordon Ramsay?” Is he the “exasperated Simon Cowell caricature,” a “nurturing, wickedly talented food expert who wants to save wayward restaurants,” or “just a greedy blond bastard?”
Vince McMahon and his stable of professional wrestlers have more credibility than Gordon Ramsay, as well as more integrity. They never claim to be “reality”. Gordon Ramsay, no matter what he may have accomplished as a Chef in the past, has become less that a prostitute: he’s become a dishonest buffoon, acting out the absolute worst stereotypes of his profession, all for a paycheck. That he does it for a network such as Fox does not make it acceptable… it make HIM even worse for taking their money. He insults the countless men and women who are professionals in the restaurant business, and does it with a leering smirk. As for his being a “greedy blond bastard”, are we really sure that he’s a blond, or is his hair color as scripted as the rest of his act?
I like Kitchen Nightmares, he helped a restaurant in my town and now they make a damn good pizza.
The original “Kitchen Nightmares”, from Great Britain, WAS a very good show: enjoyable, entertaining and actually enlightening. What Ramsey did in the US with “Hell’s Kitchen” was, and is, a despicable insult to restaurant professionals. He’s gone from Chef to buffoon. Possibly worse.
I absolutely loved him on Kitchen Nightmares, but his approach on Hells Kitchen was really too much. Wow is he talented, but I was sorry to see him interact so nastily. I am looking forward to the US Kitchen Nightmares, though it could be a sore disappointment as most UK–>US conversions of tv shows seem to be.
I think the guy is good entertainment. Sure he is an ass and he needs to pull some unethical things in order to create controversey for his shows, but that is television folks. That is what sells. I will say that if he ever planted bad food in my restaurant or talked to me like he does some of those guys/gals I would punch his fugly lights out… da da da da dats all folks!