Kitchen Nightmares

[Ookii]

I saw the first episode the other day where he visits some past restaurants, it makes me want to eat at Purnima next time I go to NY!

[Evildrider]

It was nice to see that those restaurants managed to benefit from the show and Ramsay's help.  The Purnima turnaround is frigging astounding, that's probably one of the cleanest kitchens I've seen.

[Miasma]

I liked the British series more because he would come back six months later to see how they were doing at the end of every episode.  I couldn't watch the American version because it felt like they forgot the ending each time.  And while both series are clearly hammed up some and use creative editing the American version is more blatant.

[Evildrider]

The Brit shows aren't made as fast as they are in the US.  Most shows in the US are made 2-3 times faster, so they don't have time do the whole comeback at the end of the episode.  The way they did it here wasn't too bad.  They went back to 6 of the restaurants in a 2 hour special.

[Oban]

Plus the British one does not have all of those annoying beeps.

[Bunk]

In the original, he would occasionally comeback to a restuarant a month later and find them out of business. I don't think we'll ever be allowed to see that in the American one. Also, he should be doing his own voiceover.

[Sky]

I'm pretty sure I saw one go out of business last season. The one where a cook was taking home big bundles of food out the back door.

I love the show, both versions. The swearing is much more creative in the uk version, though.

I still think they should fire Peter from Peter's. The scene where he's all roid rage on a bill collector while his dad is lying on the sidewalk was awful.

[HaemishM]

I like both versions, but the American is definitely edited to ramp up the drama - and not well at that. He seems a lot more human and a lot less of an asshole in the UK version.

[Cyrrex]

Maybe he just gets along with his countrymen better?  I just chalked it up to him generally hating Americans.

[Nebu]

He seems a lot more human and a lot less of an asshole in the UK version.

This.  I can't watch the US version because they go to such extremes to highlight the bad stuff without adding much fo the human element.

[Sky]

Yeah, if someone yells in the US version, you'll see that clip about a hundred times in the show. Also, sloppy continuity, easy to see if you watch for that kind of thing.

[JWIV]

Figured I'd resurrect this thread since it seemed appropriate.  Wife was in Hamden today, and apparently they're doing a follow-up episode with Cafe Hon.

[luckton]

It's probably for the upcoming season's flashback episode, where he does a check up of the 'eventful' places he was at last season to see how they're faring, if they're still there.

I remember the Cafe Hon episode.  Good god, it's amazing that woman wasn't lynch mob'd out of town for that trolling she did.   

[HaemishM]

I remember that episode. That bitch deserved a good humbling.

[JWIV]

The crazy thing us that if anything the episode understated how pissed off people were.  It was insane around here for a bit.

[luckton]

Rise, for first time that Ramsey actually said "fuck this place, I'm done" and walked out of "Amy's Baking Co."

Looked up the reviews for this place afterwards.  My god, how does a place like that function for so long 

[Sky]

Cool, going to bump that one to the top of the DVR queue.

Just watched Chappy's last night and ye gods the ending was telegraphed through the whole show. The old lady gets pretty upset that these people waste his time and resources when there are some great struggling restaurants that could probably use his help...but that's not good tv. And the relaunch happens later and later in each episode, seemingly.

I always joke that the chefs he finds to help these losers out is someone who has pissed him off.

[HaemishM]

Rise, for first time that Ramsey actually said "fuck this place, I'm done" and walked out of "Amy's Baking Co."

That bitch be crazy. Super cray cray crazy. He did the right thing.

[Signe]

This show is one of the reasons I almost never go to restaurants.  There's always something dark and nasty lurking in the kitchens.   

[Merusk]

Rise, for first time that Ramsey actually said "fuck this place, I'm done" and walked out of "Amy's Baking Co."

Looked up the reviews for this place afterwards.  My god, how does a place like that function for so long  

I looked up the reviews as well.  Problem is the vast majority are a week or less old.  Lots of trolls on top of any real reviews.

That said if you dig in to the real reviews, they agree that both owners are nuts.  Based on how much she kept harping on the Internet, and how the few good reviews were anon, I wonder how many were her.  Probably a good number of them.

 Google or Yelp had a review that mentioned they'd closed 3 or 4 years ago for a while.  Looks like they'll be doing the same again soon.

[luckton]

This show is one of the reasons I almost never go to restaurants.  There's always something dark and nasty lurking in the kitchens.   

I tend to steer clear of the mom and pop local resturaunts.  Local economy be damned; when I want a steak, it's freaking Outback or GTFO.

[Merusk]

I've worked in and around restaurants since I was about 16 and now I build them.  Trust me when I say they're as likely to have problems as mom & pops. If a place looks dirty out front, it's dirty everywhere.  Folks who can't be bothered to run a vacuum and dust once in a while sure as hell aren't doing the maintenance required in back.  It all comes down to the owners.

[Samwise]

I've been eating in filthy-looking mom and pop restaurants since I was little; I maintain that it strengthens my immune system.

[luckton]

I've worked in and around restaurants since I was about 16 and now I build them.  Trust me when I say they're as likely to have problems as mom & pops. If a place looks dirty out front, it's dirty everywhere.  Folks who can't be bothered to run a vacuum and dust once in a while sure as hell aren't doing the maintenance required in back.  It all comes down to the owners.

Oh I agree.  In general though, most of the chain places around here have heir shit together.

[Khaldun]

I've also worked in the biz. I can tell you really quick when you've got a fucking nutbag operation going on--usually even before sitting down.

The problem with Ramsay's show is that it gives you too strong an impression of most places being fucked up. Most places, even little neighborhood joints, don't have some of the problems he sees. If they're calling on Ramsay, they know they're fucked.

More typical is just over-reliance on Sysco/other prepackager and a certain amount of microwaving. If you go to a chain, any chain, I guarantee you're getting airplane food with some very fatty sauce or something else (salt on Outback steaks, for example) that will blind you to the submediocrity of what you're getting. If you like that, save yourself the money and get it straight from the frozen food section at the supermarket and dump the surplus money into quality booze and a hooker.

When a restaurant goes very bad, though, the things that can happen would really turn your stomach as per the show. One place I worked for mostly in their catering biz, the owner was a very well-meaning dude who had been in the liquor biz his whole life, decided to move into food when he had a chance to buy the place next door to his booze seller, and had no idea what he was doing. He would buy crazy fucktons of perishables for the lunch/catering trade he was doing and they'd rot in the cooler. Me and one other guy he hired while I was in grad school had to spend six months re-educating him about his order schedule and about keeping the cooler clear and clean. First month working there was one of the grossest things I've ever done.

[Ironwood]

The UK version of this used to just be about the Kitchen, the Food and the Business.

I've noticed that once it got exported over there, it became about abberant personalities.

This isn't a good change, in my opinion.  Typical reality show bullshit leaked in.

[Evildrider]

Ramsey is really all about his asshole personality on these shows.  I can't stand Hell's Kitchen anymore and Kitchen Nightmares is grating as well, because of the idiots that they find for the show.  I actually prefer Restaurant: Impossible over Kitchen Nightmares at this point.

I like Ramsey better on Masterchef and I'm sure he's going to be toned down even more when Jr. Masterchef comes out.

[Ironwood]

Eh ?  What Masterchef is he on ?

[Evildrider]

Masterchef is another competition show he hosts here on Fox.  It's all home cooks that compete for some cash and a cookbook deal.  It's actually pretty good and there was this amazing blind girl that won last season,

He actually has 5 shows on Fox now.. Hell's Kitchen, Kitchen Nightmares, Masterchef, Jr. Masterchef, and Hotel Hell.

[Ironwood]

Heh.  Yes, I know Masterchef.  Just didn't know there was an American one.

Wife-Unit watches Masterchef, Junior Masterchef, Masterchef the professionals, Masterchef Australia, Great British Menu and tried to watch Masterchef New Zealand, but it was utter shit.

I am like the chap in Clockwork Orange when it comes to Masterchef.  So this Masterchef America stays JUST BETWEEN US, ok ?

Sam, I hope you're listening.

[Evildrider]

Yeah I forget about all his other shows across the pond.  I can only take so much of reality TV in general, so I don't have the patience to watch versions from other countries.

[Signe]

Yeah, the British versions of some of his Kitchen shows were really very different.  There's some lady who does one of those Hotel shows in Britain.  I watched it once.  No plot.  I think it might have popped up because there are more restrictions now in the UK that determines whether or not you can call yourself a "hotel".  I don't know but I'm sure some Hotel lawyer could tell you.  I only watch his Hell's Kitchen show now, at least on purpose, and I only do so because he ends every show with either "Piss off" or "fuck off", which is the way I feel too.

And he's fucking cute.

[HaemishM]

The UK version of this used to just be about the Kitchen, the Food and the Business.

I've noticed that once it got exported over there, it became about abberant personalities.

This isn't a good change, in my opinion.  Typical reality show bullshit leaked in.

QFT. The difference is gobsmacking. On the UK version, you'd get the opening night reveal about 30 minutes in and the rest of the time was the "this is how shit got better" details. The American version is 55 minutes of "WAARARAGGHAHGLGGLELBLBLBLBL" and sobbing, with a 5 minute montage of how the changes succeeded and the owners changed their ways or didn't. It's really goddamn irritating.

[Shannow]

They also play up Ramsey's 'asshole' persona too. In the UK version he can be decent for most of the show. I don't even watch the American one, knowing that it will probably be about some obnoxious dickweed from New Jersey.

Outback? Seriously? GTFO. Having worked at a cpl of chain restuarants here in the States all I can say is .....

[Samwise]

Sam, I hope you're listening.

 

Luckily I try not to admit publicly that I secretly enjoy some of those shows.  So you're probably safe.