Hell's Kitchen 2008

[Mrs Foodie]

I thought the programme was pretty boring, compared to previous series.

What did strike me though, was Marco's voice. Considering he is supposed to have come from a council estate in Leeds, he sounds pretty pukka BBC and could always have another career as a voice over artist!

Apart from the older "celebs" I had never heard of any of the others........

Something tells me that this will be the last in the Hell's Kitchen series.

[ameiden]

That was a great response to the person that criticised the pigs trotter "Pigs trotter chicken and egg - that's just wierd". No sir, that is a classic dish, one which I'm pretty certain Marco used to credit Koffman with on his menu.

Incidentally, I notice that somebody sold a copy of a menu from the oak room on ebay recently for £12.50.

You can see that clip (as well as the whole show) here

←

I have still got my Oak Room menu and would not give it away for love or money. It is printed on the heaviest hand-made paper my hands have ever touched and contains all those wonderful dishes. Yes, the pigs trotter has the name Koffman next to it. But the best thing is the Dali quote on the first page:

"At the age of six I wanted to be a chef. At seven I wanted to be Napoleon. And my ambitions have been growing steadily ever since."

What I remember most about the Oak Room is not so much Marco's food though, I have to say. It is the unbelievably luxurious atmosphere and service. This was a haven of luxury without any compromise. The only comparison that comes to my mind is Ducasse's Louis XV in Monte Carlo.

[KimS]

"At the age of six I wanted to be a chef. At seven I wanted to be Napoleon. And my ambitions have been growing steadily ever since."

Used to be written on the menu at Harvey's too.

[Matthew Grant]

That was a great response to the person that criticised the pigs trotter "Pigs trotter chicken and egg - that's just wierd". No sir, that is a classic dish, one which I'm pretty certain Marco used to credit Koffman with on his menu.

Incidentally, I notice that somebody sold a copy of a menu from the oak room on ebay recently for £12.50.

You can see that clip (as well as the whole show) here

←

I have still got my Oak Room menu and would not give it away for love or money. It is printed on the heaviest hand-made paper my hands have ever touched and contains all those wonderful dishes. Yes, the pigs trotter has the name Koffman next to it. But the best thing is the Dali quote on the first page:

"At the age of six I wanted to be a chef. At seven I wanted to be Napoleon. And my ambitions have been growing steadily ever since."

What I remember most about the Oak Room is not so much Marco's food though, I have to say. It is the unbelievably luxurious atmosphere and service. This was a haven of luxury without any compromise. The only comparison that comes to my mind is Ducasse's Louis XV in Monte Carlo.

←

Agree, fantastic service, we were relatively young when we visited and I remember being looked after very well. Beautiful flowers as well, I seem to remember they cost something like £5000 a week?

Edited September 5, 2007 by Matthew Grant (log)

[naebody]

Watched last night, and was left annoyed at myself for wasting an hour on such glib, railroaded nonsense. I genuinely cannot understand why there's a thread on here to discuss the continuing adventures of a few nonentities, who are learning to cook a couple of dishes by rote. They could switch the basic setup to a garage, a hairdressers, or pretty much any service industry and the programme would be identical. The kitchen is nothing more than a backdrop.

So are we supposed to be watching because of Marco? Is he really worth the effort because of what he achieved a decade ago? I found it a bit sad, like watching a pantomime where the understudy is trying to mug through the part of the villain.

Nevertheless, some good yet may come of this unedifying spectacle:

1- Marco pays off his debts, so he can return the kitchen without fear of losing his kneecaps.

2- A tabloid does a full expose on some dark corners of Marco's life, leading the show to be pulled and Cracker reruns to be put in its place.

3- He punches Angus Deaton.

What did strike me though, was Marco's voice.  Considering he is supposed to have come from a council estate in Leeds, he sounds pretty pukka BBC and could always have another career as a voice over artist!

←

What are you suggesting here? That he's a class fraud because he doesn't talk like Alan Bennett (rather than fellow Leedsonians Peter O'Toole and Jeremy Paxman)?

[Gary Marshall]

So are we supposed to be watching because of Marco? Is he really worth the effort because of what he achieved a decade ago?

yes, of course, i couldn't care less about the contestants or indeed who wins, (though i will of course be sad to lose my daily dose of abigail clancy)

As the youngest chef ever to win 3 stars i'd say he warrants some attention and, dare i say it - respect

[Fibilou]

For me it has been a pleasure to watch Marco, albeit it a little larger and more patrician than in the days of my serious crush at college. I wanted to do a stage at The Oak Room at college but they wouldnt' let me because of his "abusive reputation" !

I think it has been a very nice change from Mr Sweary Ramsay who only seems to be able to carry a format through being abusive rather than demonstrating his formidable cooking abilities.

Gordon has become a parody of himself.

Edited September 5, 2007 by Fibilou (log)

[BertieWooster]

What did strike me though, was Marco's voice.  Considering he is supposed to have come from a council estate in Leeds, he sounds pretty pukka BBC and could always have another career as a voice over artist!

←

What are you suggesting here? That he's a class fraud because he doesn't talk like Alan Bennett (rather than fellow Leedsonians Peter O'Toole and Jeremy Paxman)?

←

They're called Loiners. To be fair, O'Toole went to RADA and Paxman went to Charterhouse so you'd expect them to have posh accents. I think White's came from having to work in Harrogate and Ilkley---last remaining homes in the north of proper pronounciation.

[Fibilou]

I thought the programme was pretty boring, compared to previous series.

What did strike me though, was Marco's voice.  Considering he is supposed to have come from a council estate in Leeds, he sounds pretty pukka BBC and could always have another career as a voice over artist!

←

Who the hell cares if he sounds like the mutant lovechild of Joanna Lumley and David Beckham ? I know I'm only interested in his cooking.

Why boring ? Because he wasn't throwing his (admittedly hefty) weight around humiliating people and swearing at them ? Obviously anything is going to be pretty boring compared to the uncontrolled and over excitable Gordon.

[britcook]

Watched last night, and was left annoyed at myself for wasting an hour on such glib, railroaded nonsense. I genuinely cannot understand why there's a thread on here to discuss the continuing adventures of a few nonentities, who are learning to cook a couple of dishes by rote. They could switch the basic setup to a garage, a hairdressers, or pretty much any service industry and the programme would be identical. The kitchen is nothing more than a backdrop.

←

I take it you've watched your last episode then? Yes the kitchen is only a backdrop, but it one that a lot of people can relate to because most people have one, albeit rather more modest than the TV version. I suppose in an ideal world we would get a cooking programme that eGulleteers could fully enjoy but I'm afraid that in the real world an audience of a few tens of thousands is not enough to justify it. So we take what we can get. It's a bit like watching a comedy, we'd like a laugh a minute but in the end we settle for a couple of good jokes and the occasional smile. For some (like me) the hit rate, i.e. the bits of real cooking/kitchen information we get, is enough to ignore the rubbish and z-list celebrities thing, for others (like you) it isn't, but that's just a matter of personal preferences and expectations.

Strangely enough until this series I had never been much of a fan of MPW (although obviously an admirer of his talent), but once you get past the wild hair and folksy sincerity I'm quite warming to him.

[Basildog]

That was a great response to the person that criticised the pigs trotter "Pigs trotter chicken and egg - that's just wierd". No sir, that is a classic dish, one which I'm pretty certain Marco used to credit Koffman with on his menu.

Incidentally, I notice that somebody sold a copy of a menu from the oak room on ebay recently for £12.50.

You can see that clip (as well as the whole show) here

←

I have still got my Oak Room menu and would not give it away for love or money. It is printed on the heaviest hand-made paper my hands have ever touched and contains all those wonderful dishes. Yes, the pigs trotter has the name Koffman next to it. But the best thing is the Dali quote on the first page:

"At the age of six I wanted to be a chef. At seven I wanted to be Napoleon. And my ambitions have been growing steadily ever since."

What I remember most about the Oak Room is not so much Marco's food though, I have to say. It is the unbelievably luxurious atmosphere and service. This was a haven of luxury without any compromise. The only comparison that comes to my mind is Ducasse's Louis XV in Monte Carlo.

←

Agree, fantastic service, we were relatively young when we visited and I remember being looked after very well. Beautiful flowers as well, I seem to remember they cost something like £5000 a week?

←

I have a vague recollection of the fact that the floor for the Oak Room cost more than i paid for a whole restaurant.Still loving the show.

[Corinna Dunne]

I know that this is called Hell’s Kitchen, but what’s going on with the church choral music and the exaltation of Marco on high? “Marco is wonderful, quite magical…. Marco, a genius?... Marco is God… he takes you with him, guides us through each night…”

And Marco says: follow and you’ll see the light, do it for your children and your family, believe in me. So all happily follow the White Light and touch the hem of his apron except for little boy Blue who is about to skedaddle. Bizarre.

By the end of the programme, after much “I am a caged animal, get me out of here” pacing, Marco looked decidedly odd and seemed to be slurring his words. Maybe it was the pressure of using a stock cube and not uttering the K-norr word repeatedly when he did it.

Anyone impressed with the culinary knowledge to be gleaned last night?

[Matthew Grant]

I lost a little respect last night when the stockcube product placement happened, are we seriously to think that Marco approves of stock cubes. I'm guessing he needed a whole butter of Worcestershire sauce to cover up the flavour of the cube

Edited September 6, 2007 by Matthew Grant (log)

[ravelda]

Actually, I have it on pretty good authority that he did use stock cubes in the restaurant at times - not as a replacement for stock mind you, but as a seasoning aid

[naebody]

are we seriously to think that Marco approves of stock cubes?

←

Yes.

In a taxi yesterday, I was inflicted to half an hour with Radio One DJ Scott Mills. He was having one of those DJ chats about his meal at Hells Kitchen the evening before. Memorable quotes included: "I had to order the scallops, whatever they are", and "I know tinned strawberries, and those stawberries were definitely from a tin".

This, I guess, is what Marco does now: he cajoles people obsessed with celebrity into feeding those not interested in food. It's just like Planet Hollywood, except less honest.

[RDB]

I know that this is called Hell’s Kitchen, but what’s going on with the church choral music and the exaltation of Marco on high? “Marco is wonderful, quite magical…. Marco, a genius?... Marco is God… he takes you with him, guides us through each night…”

And Marco says: follow and you’ll see the light, do it for your children and your family, believe in me. So all happily follow the White Light and touch the hem of his apron except for little boy Blue who is about to skedaddle. Bizarre.

By the end of the programme, after much “I am a caged animal, get me out of here” pacing, Marco looked decidedly odd and seemed to be slurring his words. Maybe it was the pressure of using a stock cube and not uttering the K-norr word repeatedly when he did it.

Anyone impressed with the culinary knowledge to be gleaned last night?

←

I do not think the purpose of the show is to glean culinary knowledge, if you want that tune into Saturday kitchen or Ready Steady Cook. Maybe I am wrong but I think its more about the how things work in a restuarant kitchen, albeit highly simulated. Also whether intended or not it shows how teams work, how they are led, how Marco motivates etc etc etc. It is interesting how the majority of the contestants seem to respect the man so much solely based on their time in the kitchen, as I am sure the majority of them knew next to nothing about himself or his past prior to the show.

Yes he gets annoyed during service but once finished he seems quite positive and relaxed.

He also seems to be getting better results from the food and respect from his team than his three predecessors.

Anyway, remember ' at the end of the day its only food, thats all...'

[ameiden]

How did he say? You don't have to impress the diners, you only have to impress yourself. All we have to do is feed 76 people ... From a diner's perspective, I'm not sure I agree with this. My palate would like to be impressed and excited, specially by a kitchen led by a chef of this caliber.

[erica graham]

Actually, I have it on pretty good authority that he did use stock cubes in the restaurant at times - not as a replacement for stock mind you, but as a seasoning aid

←

I can second that one - "Rooster Booster" regularly used in addition to stock.

[Matthew Grant]

How did he say? You don't have to impress the diners, you only have to impress yourself. All we have to do is feed 76 people ... From a diner's perspective, I'm not sure I agree with this. My palate would like to be impressed and excited, specially by a kitchen led by a chef of this caliber.

←

I think his point was that by impressing yourself you will have hopefully impressed the diners though with the standard of the celebs cooking so low I'm not necessarily sure that is the case

[Tim Hayward]

You don't have to impress the diners, you only have to impress yourself.

←

The amount of half-baked motivational psycho-cack coming out of the man's mouth bespeaks a more than passing acquaintance with something like the Landmark Forum or that notable mountebank McKenna.

Both MPW and Heston are now behaving like mad-eyed cultists - quoting great lumps of unreconstructed 'motivational' horseshit.

I realise that many successful/famous chefs are probably emotionally illiterate control freaks and thus a classic fit for this kind of weak-minded charlatanism - but it gives me the creeps.

[grahamR]

I couldn’t decide if all the talk of “respect” was NLP or Cosa Nostra.

Things are often most revealing when they break. Psychologists spend so much time studying depression, anxiety and abnormal function for exactly this reason. So it is with MPW. His handling of Lee was exemplary. Utterly measured and never anything but in control MPW totally missed the point that was being made.

Now Lee has a mind about as sharp as a jammy dodger, so in his simple way he said a simple thing. Unfortunately as he’d just been caught out using slightly more offensive language he had neither the moral high ground nor the ability to properly make his point.

[Matthew Grant]

I guess Lee was on the show to attact a new fanbase, and so he has, a few thousand "travellers" who are now his biggest fan. His manager will be very happy

[Simon_S]

I guess Lee was on the show to attact a new fanbase, and so he has, a few thousand "travellers" who are now his biggest fan. His manager will be very happy

←

Although seeing as how he counts "lots of travellers" amongst his friends already, maybe the itinerant fanbase is already saturated.

I'm glad I don't have to look at or listen to him again, but I'm cold-hearted like that. "I'm a musician, I can't cut my fingers". Uh-huh.

I still think Marco rocks, BTW.

[Scott]

I couldn’t decide if all the talk of “respect” was NLP or Cosa Nostra.

Things are often most revealing when they break. Psychologists spend so much time studying depression, anxiety and abnormal function for exactly this reason. So it is with MPW. His handling of Lee was exemplary. Utterly measured and never anything but in control MPW totally missed the point that was being made.

Now Lee has a mind about as sharp as a jammy dodger, so in his simple way he said a simple thing. Unfortunately as he’d just been caught out using slightly more offensive language he had neither the moral high ground nor the ability to properly make his point.

←

funny, because for me, I couldn't agree less.

MPW - blessed with his own brand of rat cunning, saw through lee's unsophisticated attempts at same. it was a clumsy, dolt-ish attempt at alpha bravado.

Lee is neither stupid nor especially clever, and used a pitiful excuse at being PC to demonstrate his stones.

believe me, there was NO point being made.

[BRIGHTON CHEF]

I know that this is called Hell’s Kitchen, but what’s going on with the church choral music and the exaltation of Marco on high? “Marco is wonderful, quite magical…. Marco, a genius?... Marco is God… he takes you with him, guides us through each night…”

And Marco says: follow and you’ll see the light, do it for your children and your family, believe in me. So all happily follow the White Light and touch the hem of his apron except for little boy Blue who is about to skedaddle. Bizarre.

By the end of the programme, after much “I am a caged animal, get me out of here” pacing, Marco looked decidedly odd and seemed to be slurring his words. Maybe it was the pressure of using a stock cube and not uttering the K-norr word repeatedly when he did it.

Anyone impressed with the culinary knowledge to be gleaned last night?

←

I do not think the purpose of the show is to glean culinary knowledge, if you want that tune into Saturday kitchen or Ready Steady Cook. Maybe I am wrong but I think its more about the how things work in a restuarant kitchen, albeit highly simulated. Also whether intended or not it shows how teams work, how they are led, how Marco motivates etc etc etc. It is interesting how the majority of the contestants seem to respect the man so much solely based on their time in the kitchen, as I am sure the majority of them knew next to nothing about himself or his past prior to the show.

Yes he gets annoyed during service but once finished he seems quite positive and relaxed.

He also seems to be getting better results from the food and respect from his team than his three predecessors.

Anyway, remember ' at the end of the day its only food, thats all...'

←

HERE HERE!!!

YOU GUYS DONT REALLY GET IT.......