First post - please be kind. I'm sorry, I don't buy this line for one second. I watch a lot of reality tv, and while editing can often concentrate on just one side of a person's personality, it cannot put words in your mouth, nor can it fabricate your actions. This is a Mark Burnett show. The man has made the editing of reality shows into an art form, and the truth is that his editors are rarely off the mark. As an avid reality show junkie, I have rather mixed feelings about the show. Most people here ripped the premiere apart, but I truly enjoyed it. I found it very entertaining, and frankly, I don't expect much in the form of "reality" from reality television, and the reason I generally tune in is to mock, rather than to follow blindly. I'm also entirely too accustomed to product placement in reality shows, so in truth, I probably missed half of the rather blatant commercialism. The second episode made me a little uncomfortable. Perhaps because the first one painted Rocco as less of a tool than I expected. His behaviour was annoying, but not yet reprehensible. I found the wait staff absolutely laughable. I can't really comment as to which of the staff were actors, and which were experienced waiters, but what I saw was a joke, and the comments by some of the waitstaff in this thread didn't do much to sway my opinion. Whether they received a month of training or a day of training, professionalism isn't something that can be taught in that time frame. You either are or you aren't, and for the most part, there was no professionalism at all, and I'm not only talking about the waitstaff. It is entirely uncool to have arguments on the floor. For anyone. The third episode made my stomache turn. Rocco was shown to be an unmitigated and unprofessional ass. Starting with his inability to be straight with any of his staff, and primarily with Gideon and the annoying Brazillian chick. I think the wait staff hit the nail on the head when they pointed out the identity crisis of the restaurant. Either it's a chow house, or an upscale restaurant, but those are two extremes that can't mix. You can't be replacing cutlery with every course, while expecting people to eat out of disposable dishes. Furthermore, the way Rocco reacted to criticism was absurd. No joke. I don't care if there was a dialogue that wasn't shown, but the man has absolutely no ability to read people. Those were not people with a sense of humour. They were angry, and when you deal with angry people, you kiss their ass and comp them. Furthermore, a business owner, and I don't care how casual a business (and if he's changing cutlery with every course - it's hardly supposed to be a casual place), should never swear in front of customers. Ever. His behaviour with Linda Stasi was also pathetic. Granted, the woman is hardly a food critic, but she's a critic nonetheless, and acting like and ass and then not even caring if she got her food? If I were in his position, I'd be down there cooking the food myself. Absurd. I'll keep watching, because I enjoy the fall from grace of reality "stars", but I am unimpressed to say the least.
