Gordon Ramsay@ Claridges: The Biggest Flop Since Ishtar

[Simon Majumdar]

I posted an almost identical review to this on chowhound but I can't bear to waste any more imagination on this #### hole of a place.  So there

I make no bones of the fact that while I think Ramsay can cook like a dream, he is one of the most loathesome ticks on God's earth.

                       

That being said, Robin and I were very keen to try his new place at the home of what was my favourite place for sunday lunch in London, Claridges.

                       

He has aimed his bow straight at getting the same number of stars as he has at the eponymous site in Chelsea and so must be judged on the same standards. On all counts he fails.

                       

Robin and I turned up bang on time to be told that our table would not be ready for about another 15 mins. We were pointed vaguely in the direction of an apologetic bar area.

                       

Finally we were offered an expensive glass of house champagne and just as we raised it to our lips we were told that our table was ready. It was indeed, but the room wasn't, looking nothing more than the inside of a whore's boudoir with carpets by way of Brentford nylons.

                       

We were fortunate enough to seated next to a table of loud antipodeans who were offering up plentiful profanity by way of replacement for personality. We explained to the maitre D that people screaming F..k loudly at the next table was not what we wanted, but he merely shrugged and said "what can you do?" They did offer to move us but by that time the table had moved on and the damage had been done. Quite frankly I was on the point of chinning one of the Ockers.

                       

We went for the Menu Prestige @ a mere £55! we also just about managed to order a decent wine flight (although it came out at about £100 for the two of us )from a very confused junior sommmelier.

                       

In the end, it all would have been fine if the food had been exceptional. It wasn't. It wasn't even close. Canapes of Baba ganoush and a chive cheese were good but once bread was finished it disappeared never to be seen again. Amuse of Consomme with bresse pigeon were delicious and followed by a ravioli of lobster which was quite frankly rubbery ( no chinese restaurant jokes please )

                       

Main courses of lamb and pork were very very ordinary and no better than either of us have prepared for Sunday lunch.

                       

The saving graces were the cheese board ( superb- but how hard is it to go the La fromagerie or the Premier Cheese Co and ask for great cheese? ) and one of the puds was very good indeed.

                       

Finally, when I wanted mint tea, they had no fresh mint, only a bag. Hold on you are charging £300 for two and you can't afford fresh mint? Apparently not.

                       

Service was perfunctory and chaotic to say the least.

                       

So this really was a case of the Emperor's new clothes, but of course Gordon doesn't care, #### he wasn't even there. He was back home in Chelsea telling any one who would listen that he used to play for Rangers.

                       

The King is in the all together, the all together as all together as naked as the day that he was born............

                       

4/10 - avoid like the plague

                       

S

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[macrosan]

Oh nooooo !!! I am literally in the process of organising a visit with 4 friends. Now I have problems, having persuaded them that this was the place to try :(

A few weeks ago I went to a private party (30 people) at Claridges. The food and service were exceptional, especially for a set meal for 30. Does this food come from GR, or does Clardige's still have its "own" kitchen in addition to GR?

btw I'm about to leave for lunch at Chez Bruce :) I remember your slightly cynical comments about Mr Poole, Simon. I WILL report back :)

[Simon Majumdar]

I make no cynical comments about Chez Bruce.  I fully intend to go there myself in the new year.  I was merely passing comment on Andy's schoolboy infatuation with him.  We normal people had Cheryl Theigs or Farah Fawcett.  Andy, I believe his parents will confirm, had "issues"

S

[Andy Lynes]

I always fancied Kate Jackson from Charlies Angels myself.

Simon, you may be interested to know that if you book for 8.30pm at CB you can have the table for the evening, but you need to to it a little way in advance, depending on which night you intend to go. Otherwise it is a 2 hour slot, which I know you loath the idea of (a sentiment I heartily agree with).

Macrosan - I will be very interested indeed to know how it went.  

 

[Andy Lynes]

Getting back to the issue in hand, I made a decision never to eat in a GR place again (excepting Petrus which is really Marcus Wareing's domain) when he began to announce his expansion plans immeadiately after winning his 3rd star.

How can he ensure consistancy of the highest standards in Chelsea, Mayfair, Glasgow and Dubia, let alone write books and consult for airlines all at once?

It seems that Ramsay and his team are spread a little thin. We should remember that Mark Sargent, head chef at Claridges, was a chef de partie at GR in Chelsea just a few short years ago. He was young chef of the year a little before that, but can you really expect him to produce 3 star food with relatively little experience? I'm not saying he hasn't got the potential however, just don't expect that much of him now.

It would appear that Ramsay is attempting to replicate Marco's career (Claridges is the new Oak Room and just as ugly) but at twice the rate, and without an experienced team  to back him up. He is a great cook, as is Marcus Wareing, but I think he is throwing his employees to the lions in a bid to match the achievements of his idols.

You only get one Marco every generation. Ramsay should think about what he wants to achieve for himself (apart from a very healthy bank balance of course and who could blame him), rather than compete with those who have already finished the race.

[Simon Majumdar]

Perhaps he should also consider giving his customers ( there's that dirty word again)

a) Value for the enormous amount of money he is fleecing from them

b) Decent service

c) Decent food

his whole schtick is predicated on his three stars, yet on the miserable showing of last night, he will be lucky to get none

I recall a few years ago eating at Interlude de Chavot when they had one star.  It was in every single aspect the superior of last night and even though it was a few years back it was less than half the price.

I will NEVER set foot in a GR or MPW place again as long as I live, so help me God.

S

[Andy Lynes]

He seems to have got it into his head that if he keeps on saying that he wants 3 stars for this or that place, he will be given them, afterall, it worked once.

The trouble is that if standards are below what you should expect in one restaurant, you immeadiately become suspicious of every other place within the same group. It may well be that GR in Chelsea is as wonderful as ever, but I'm not willing to risk the money to find out. Been there done that I'm afraid.  

[jayrayner]

Andy

I think your comments on GR trying to replicate what Marco has done are a little unfair. Marco has collected restaurants. Ramsay is collecting chefs. It is fair to separate Petrus out on grounds of food and I agree that Wareing's food is distinctive, but the retsaurant is Ramsay's doing. He made that happen and promoted the talent to allow it to happen. My feeling is that, in the long run, his strategy will pay dividends. THis is not all just guess work on my part. I've recently finished work on a large fetaure for the January issue of the magazine everybody love's to hate (OFM) in which we punt seven chefs to watch. It's hardly a new exercise, but fun to do. Of the seven, three - including Wareing - are from Ramsay's organisation and I really think I could have inculded two more. None were from Marco's. The only one I could name is Robert Reed and for various reasons I couldn't include him. Marco controls 11 restaurants I think, and to have so little buzz around his brigades is, well, odd.

[Simon Majumdar]

Jay

I think the real point here is not about MPW.  He has been found out.  The laughable chain of themed restaurants he has built up have been seen for what they are.  How many people can you (not you Andy- you're anal enough to know them all ) name from Conran's places? Probably none and it doesn't matter.  MPW is on the same level.  It would be like looking at "chefs" from Planet Hollywood or or a flipper at Burger king

I think the real problem is Ramsay himself.  I am not sure if you went to one of the soft opening events for this place?  I have been to enough of these to know that they bear no resemblance in any way to what the punters can expect when it gets up and running.  I can imagine, Fay/Meades/Gill huddled in one of those little side rooms being hand fed little morsels of this that and the other as Gordon siddles around like a mixture of Gollum ( nothing if not topical ) and Uriah Heap.  What we experienced on Thursday was quite simply shoddy at all levels. Seargent(sp?) is not up to handling this size of operation.  If he is not, they should not be charging £150 per head.  The food was unimaginably ordinary, the service was inept to the point of offense and I have no idea where the money they tell us was spent on the room went.

Oh it's booked up for 12 months to come, so who gives a toss what I think?  But to let Ramsay off the hook by saying that he has produced some good sous it letting him get away with murder.  In NY or Paris, this scam of a place would be closed in a week and GR would be back selling hot dogs at his beloved Ibrox.....

[Andy Lynes]

Marco's expansion plans now seem to have taken a particular turn in that he is reviving old hot spots, the latest being the Stork Club. However both chefs have used the platform of 3 stars for ambitious expansions plans and I believe that the reputation of both as restauranteurs will suffer in the same way.

That doesn't mean to say that what they are doing isn't right for them and their families and some of their employees.

At least Marco has officialy retired from the kitchen and has put his personal reputation as a chef beyond doubt. He was and always will be the greatest UK chef of his generation. Maybe Ramsay should do the same before Michelin have his 3rd star away and spoil all his fun.  

[Andy Lynes]

I await the January issue with interest. My guess is that the other 2 chefs are Angela (don't know surname) head chef of the Dubia restaurant and either Mark Sergant or the bloke at Amyrilis.

[jayrayner]

Andy - impressive on picking Angela (Hartnett). How the #### did you hear about her? Sergant and that bloke from amaryllis were the other two who could have been in but weren't. The third is Jason Atherton, also now part of the Dubai operation, previoiulsy at l'anis doing a great job on limited resources etc.

Simon - your descripton of GR at Claridges sounds appalling and yr right; they don't deserve to survive if that's what happens. I reviewed on the first official night, and yes GR was in attendance entertaining Meades. I was eventually rumbled too (they have a bar man called Said, brought over from Petrus, who has the memory of a mountain goat, #### him); given that they had worked out who I was and what I was doing there the fact that the overall result was not great - and I said so in my review - I think speaks volumes.

[Andy Lynes]

Jay - I'm afraid I was an avid viewer of "Passion For Flavour" (possibly the most mind numbingly boring cookery show ever made)on Taste CFN cable channel, and Angela Hartnett was featured quite heavily on that. I think she was sous chef at Petrus at the time. I then read in Caterer about the Dubai set up and was surprised that she had the executive role above Atherton, but only because Atherton has had more press and GR loves to portray himself as a male chauvinist pig.

Did you get a trip to Dubai and if so is the restaurant any good?

[Jon Tseng]

I think shes been with Gordon for quite a while. I seem to remember her popping up in the original Passion for Flavour book too...

(spend far too much time flicking through that volume in the late nineties. tomato confit; can't be beat...)

j

[Andy Lynes]

A great book to look at but not really to cook from, whereas Chef For All Seasons meets both criteria successfully.

[macrosan]

Did anyone else read Michael Winger's piece in yesterday's Sunday Times? He says GR is a great man, describes the main course he had as very poor, commends the restaurant to his plebeian readers, and confirms he will stick to GR at Chelsea

Winger believes that he has eaten in all the expensive restaurants in the world, ergo he must understand and appreciate good food :) But in fact his only basis for measurement of a restaurant is a combination of its alleged exclusivity, the fame or notoriety of the chef or owner, and the size of the bill.

His column is fun to read occasionally (unless you actually want an intelligent review of a restaurant) but I think the associated letters column is becoming more interesting.

[Tony Finch]

Mr Ramsay may be a fine cook and all but I,for one,will not hand over my money to anyone who thinks its all right to humiliate,abuse and deprive people of their livelihood whenever the mood so takes him.If he's "a nice guy really" and its all done for publicity then that just makes it cynical in my book.I'm not saying that you have to like a chef in order to enjoy his food, but it must help if you don't have to sit there thinking "yeah the man can cook despite the fact that he's a twat"

[Andy Lynes]

I agree Tony, but what about all those restaurants we eat in where the chef has not been foolish/egotistical/brave enough to expose his working methods to a primetime audience?

I, like many others I imagine, usually think people are nice and perfectly alright when I meet them, but in fact know nothing about them whatsoever, apart from the public persona they wish to project. I have spoken to Gordon Ramsay twice following meals at this restaurant and he was utterly charming and very happy to chat. If I had not seen Boiling Point, I would have no reason to suspect that he was anything other than a nice guy at all times.

I have heard stories about tele chefs from their ex-employees that would suprise you (all gossip of course and note the "ex", sour grapes a strong possibility) so is it really fair to judge Ramsay on this basis?

Did you see the undercover report that cost Nigel Marriage his career about 5 years ago. Gary Hollihead was covertly filmed in his kitchen and he was actually worse than Ramsay. Would that stop you eating at the Embassy?

Who knows what Pierre Koffmann or Michel Roux Junior are like to work for. They may be lovely, but on the other hand, they have serioius kitchens to run and that takes a lot of discipline in one form or another.

I would not defend the strong arm style of management. Bullying in any form should not be encouraged, but until there is an across the board investigation into the working practices of chefs, Ramsay is being used as a convienient high profile scapegoat for what is in all likelihood a very common problem.

If you are willing to eat out in London, you are going to have to accept the risk that you are eating food prepared by a brigade working under less than ideal conditions.  

[Tony Finch]

Oh God,Andy.I've just booked Embassy for my anniversary in January.I wish you hadn't said that about Hollihead.I'll have to think about whether to cancel now.Or am I being daft?

[Simon Majumdar]

Andy

I think you are missing the point.  GR has made himself a "convenient high profile scapegoat" by his constant desire to be seen in the glare of media publicity.  The role he has chosen for himself is "bad boy".  Let's not forget that this is the man who once denounced his fellow chefs for appearing on Ready Steady Cook as it made them look like C**ts.  So how much sympathy can he expect when his own obsession with self aggrandisement causes him to be on the end of barbs and media ( or eevn unimportant food board barbs ) when he appears at the Birmingham Good Food Show with a headset on making him look nothing less than a fat reject from Boyzone

Kitchens are stressful places and always have been ( read "down & out in Paris & London and see how much has changed ) good chefs demand exacting standards and always should.  That does not mean we should have commis branded with skewers Aitken like, but it also does not mean that I should be unduly worried about a sobbing chef du partis.

There is a big difference between working for a bully in any environment and someone who has predicated his whole schtick on being a bully and then complaining when people don't like him

Didums Gordon, just be any good, which on my recent visit you are not.

S

[Andy Lynes]

Tony - if I were you I would go. I believe that Hollihead's reputation preceeds him and that many, if not all of his employees knew what he is like before they decided to work for him.

I also know that Ramsay's brigade are extremely loyal to him, for whatever reason and are willing and able to swallow what he dishes out. I would be suprised if the situation was not similar with Hollihead.

Simon - by coincidence, I have just finished re-reading Down and Out in London and Paris by George Orwell and was going to post to recommend it to those who hadn't got round to doing so yet. It's a terrific book, and still very relevant today. It's also quite short, which is an admirable thing for a book to be.

(Edited by Andy Lynes at 2:37 pm on Dec. 18, 2001)

[magnolia]

Down & Out in Paris & London is one of my favorite books! Back to the discussion of GR...for Christams, someone gave my B-friend his latest coffee table book, over which we duly slobbered. Is there anywhere beside Claridge's where we might sample his cooking without the fuss, humiliation and rip-offism described so feverishly herewith and on The Other Board...? Or is that the only place he's currently in attendance?  

[Andy Lynes]

Restaurant Gordon Ramsay is in Royal Hospital Road in Chelsea and that is where is has his 3 stars. Whether he actually cooks there any more I couldn't say. He has places in Glasgow and Dubia to worry about as well as Claridges and his consultancy with Singapore airlines (and tv apperarances and book writing and a family of three to look after).

I would give Petrus a go over GR's places these days. Marcus Wareing still has something to prove, it's a little cheaper, the food is wonderful and Christophe Chalvidal is a great Maitre'd. Go for a £26.00 lunch, ask for table 2 and spoil yourself.

[Matthew Grant]

In response to all the negative comments regarding GR at Claridges, we ate there on the second Saturday of opening. I have Followed GR's cooking since Aubergine and ultimately think he deserves his 3 stars. Our meal at Claridges was superb AND excellent value for money, cooking like this will not be around at these prices for long. Unfortunately Service was embarassingly bad and it took over 30 minutes to get our bill. We weren't offered liqueurs/Brandy etc. It was difficult to attract the attention of the wine waiter and even more difficult to understand him. We put this down to teething problems and friends that have been since said that the service was fantastic. Perhaps they need to get Jean-Claude or Christophe in to smooth things over.

GR was in attendance on the night, perhaps it might be better to go on a Saturday when Royal Hospital Road is shut, I imagine that you will have a better chance of GR being in the kitchen (this isn't an excuse for poor food on other nights).

Why do we build up all the big chefs and then knock them down again? To say that Gordon Ramsay asked for and got 3 stars is nonsense, in my mind he was deserving of 3 long before he got them and, by his own admission, probably ruined his chances by making Boiling Point.

I would like to reiterate Andy's point that his brigade are all loyal to Gordon Ramsay, this is because they know that ultimately he looks after them and can give them the breaks if they are good enough.

As for Pierre Koffman and Michel Roux Jnr. I have visited both kitchens and both were a model of peace and quiet!

[macrosan]

Quote: from Matthew Grant on 10:33 am on Jan. 4, 2002

It was difficult to attract the attention of the wine waiter and even more difficult to understand him. We put this down to teething problems...

Sorry Matthew, but I couldn't resist this one :)

Was the wine waiter a 6-month-old baby, or was it just that his dentures kept falling out ?