Hell's Kitchen, U.S. Season 1

[SiseFromm]

There is no way that Ramsey would have offered Michael the opportunity to come to London in lieu of the restaurant prize without first clearing it with Fox. That doesn't mean his offer is any less valid, or that he had the idea just before commencing with the grand finale ceremony. Simply put, Fox owns the show and would have final say in any changes to the master plan. Whatever the case, choosing to move to London to work in what sounds like his namesake 3 Michelin-starred restaurant is an absolute no brainer. You work under Gordon for a few years, then you do whatever the hell you want, anywhere you want.

EDIT: for spelling

Edited August 2, 2005 by SiseFromm (log)

[jhlurie]

Whatever the case, choosing to move to London to work in what sounds like his namesake 3 Michelin-starred restaurant is an absolute no brainer.  You work under Gordon for a few years, then you do whatever the hell you want, anywhere you want.

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Ah. But only if they have a huge billboard with Gordo's face for Michael to stare lovingly up at every time he's cutting vegetables.

[Anko]

I was flabbergasted by the "fantasy" chef team that Ralph put together. He picked Andrew (cut finger), Wendy (doesn't know where the pans are), and Dewberry (wilting Southern flower) over... anyone? Had he not been watching the show?

Edited August 2, 2005 by Anko (log)

[ronnie_suburban]

I was flabbergasted by the "fantasy" chef team that Ralph put together.  He picked Andrew (cut finger), Wendy (doesn't know where the pans are), and Dewberry (wilting Southern flower) over... anyone?  Had he not been watching the show?

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I absolutely agree. Luck of the draw is one thing -- as Michael did have the first pick -- but Ralph chose the 3 weakest staff members available. As for Elsie being chosen so late, it made sense to me because, even though her sensibilities were strong, she'd been weak on the line in previous challenges (as Ralph pointed out). Still, he would have been better off with her on his side than any of the 3 he did choose.

=R=

[rose_ayn]

I must be one suspicious little brat. I never believed Fox would actually give a restaurant to the winner. From the first episode I believed that there was a back-up plan as a prize, espeically considering a couple of these contestanst had no cooking experience. The restaurant was the lure to enter the contest but buried someplace on page 48 of the contract was a clause stating the Fox had the right to change the prize.

[SKinCA]

As I've said, I found myself liking both final contestants less and less as time wore on. But Michael was more appealing in the final episode while Ralph's brashness became more annoying.

I really loved the look of Michael's restaurant and didn't like Ralph's.

I wonder how much of their superior approval ratings came from the fact that it must have been a freebie meal? They should have charged people, then seen if they felt like returning.

I thought the GR London offer was totally scripted, but a good outcome for Michael.

I wonder if GR would do the show again. Maybe another celeb chef would be willing to host this time and we could see a different kitchen style? Or would that be totally pointless for "Hell's Kitchen"?

Maybe Tony Bourdain could do it and the challenge wouldn't be so much the hellacious in-kitchen service but the hellacious after-hours pub crawl every night?

Or Mario Batali and everyone would be forced to wear orange clogs all the time?

Or Jamie Oliver and no one could use any tools but their hands and have to say either "mate" or "my son" in every sentence or be disqualified?

Or....

you get the idea.

[jbonne]

i still wouldn't want to eat food cooked by a backstabbing, third-person-referential SOB like Michael.

that said, Ralph managed to royally screw himself every way possible. even i wouldn't want to eat his damn porterhouse, what with braised short ribs on offer.

the upside of GR's offer is that Michael doesn't actually get the damn prize. and Ramsay gets himself a new punching bag on the line.

[rose_ayn]

I wonder how much of their superior approval ratings came from the fact that it must have been a freebie meal? They should have charged people, then seen if they felt like returning.

I thought the GR London offer was totally scripted, but a good outcome for Michael.

I wonder if GR would do the show again. Maybe another celeb chef would be willing to host this time and we could see a different kitchen style? Or would that be totally pointless for "Hell's Kitchen"?

Maybe Tony Bourdain could do it and the challenge wouldn't be so much the hellacious in-kitchen service but the hellacious after-hours pub crawl every night?

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Perhaps the customer ratings would have been different if the customers weren't paid. Everyone who ate at Hell's Kitchen was paid to appear on the program and signed non-disclosure contracts before sitting down. Michael's customers in the finale were probably paid because Ralph's customers were flown in from NY.

The London offer was totally scripted.

I don't think Ramsay will do it again here seeing that he's refused to do another season of Hell's Kitchen in England.

I remember seeing Bourdain's name attached to this one time long ago. It may have just been someone's wishful thinking, but I do know that the first time I saw an article about this is was Bourdain not Ramsay as the host.

[ronnie_suburban]

Some interesting comments about the show (and a few other topics) from Ramsay himself appeared in yesterday's Chicago Sun-Times:

Q. Did you have any say in the choice of contestants for the show?

A. I didn't want to get over-involved in that. I didn't want any pre-conceived ideas of who I wanted to stay around or leave. Watching them create their signature dishes on the first show was enormous insight into their personalities. I can tell in two minutes if someone will make it in my kitchen.

=R=

[chefzadi]

Some interesting comments about the show (and a few other topics) from Ramsay himself appeared in yesterday's Chicago Sun-Times:

Q. Did you have any say in the choice of contestants for the show?

A. I didn't want to get over-involved in that. I didn't want any pre-conceived ideas of who I wanted to stay around or leave. Watching them create their signature dishes on the first show was enormous insight into their personalities. I can tell in two minutes if someone will make it in my kitchen.

=R=

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He makes some good points in the interview

Q. You come across as a boor on "Hell's Kitchen." You know that, right?

A. I think people tend to think of being a chef as this glamorous job. But to cook at this level, it's nothing but incredibly hard work. There's nothing glamorous about it.

Excuse me, didn't his show glamourize it? Go through boot camp with a staged restaurant and win a big prize.

Fantastic that celerbrity chefs say things like that, including Bourdain. I hope some of it is tongue in cheek. Actually I know it is.

[BlahFace]

Whatever the case, choosing to move to London to work in what sounds like his namesake 3 Michelin-starred restaurant is an absolute no brainer.  You work under Gordon for a few years, then you do whatever the hell you want, anywhere you want.

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Ah. But only if they have a huge billboard with Gordo's face for Michael to stare lovingly up at every time he's cutting vegetables.

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i'm glad i am not the only one that found the billboard prayers hilarious...or maybe creepy.

either way, i liked this show compared to most reality shows (at least the ones on fox) and i am curious to see if they will do another season.

also has anyone seen the previews for kitchen confidential? I have not read the book, but the show looks really lame. does it seem close to the book from what you have seen??

[BlahFace]

I was flabbergasted by the "fantasy" chef team that Ralph put together.  He picked Andrew (cut finger), Wendy (doesn't know where the pans are), and Dewberry (wilting Southern flower) over... anyone?  Had he not been watching the show?

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hah. i love your signature.

[BCinBC]

Well, another reality TV show in the books. If there was another HK I'd watch, but if there is not then I probably won't lose too much sleep. I like GR, but I prefer Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares.

Agreed the clips of Michael talking to himself etc were weird, and possibly non-spontaneous (read: scripted). But what if you were being recorded 24 hours a day, can you say that the ruthless producers at Fox would find nothing to splice into the show to make you appear "weird"? I'm not trying to defend the "reality show" format, because frankly I hate it in most of its forms (HK and the Amazing Race notwithstanding). I'm just saying that the producers can manipulate Michael or any other contestant into whatever they want to portray.

Also agreed that Ralph's choices on the line were completely baffling. Why did he take Andrew over Elsie or Jimmy? And why Wendy over Elsie? Okay Andrew did come back after the cut thumb, that shows dedication... But the skills.

And the diamond wallpaper... Good thing that stuff arrived at the stroke of midnight. Phew. Now his clashing wall patterns can really induce vertigo / epilepsy / vomiting. Seriously, the place would have looked good with a plainer wallpaper, but the diamonds and the brick?

Regarding the customer approval ratings, yes one has to take them with a grain of salt. But were they paid to eat? I would have guessed that they lined up to be "on TV" and did not get paid at all. Maybe the question was, or should have been, "Would you pay $X to eat another meal at this restaurant?"

Poor old Dewberry was obviously inserted to be the butt of more jokes, but I suppose that's the danger when you sign up for reality TV. And whether Ramsay's "Trump" offer was spontaneous, well, I have my doubts - it was too convenient to not have to float the HK restaurant for a year or whatever then let it sink, but it does require GR to hire someone full time (does Fox pay Michael's salary now?). In any event I was glad to see Michael take it, as any real cook would (unless circumstances truly prevented relocation to London). I am definitely curious to see what position he got and how he's doing with it.

[jhlurie]

Poor old Dewberry was obviously inserted to be the butt of more jokes, but I suppose that's the danger when you sign up for reality TV.

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Hey, he made the Brad Pitt comment all by himself. Then again, he could have been making comments like that throughout his time on the show and they might have just been edited out.

[Mnehrling]

Prepare to die laughing.. Andrew has his own website:

http://www.andrewbonito.com/

All I can say is this is one of the worst cases of narcissism I've ever seen..

[BCinBC]

Yeah I don't want to offend anyone, but IMO he went from odd to downright flaming with the "I wish you'd call me Brad Pitt's wife" comment, then back to odd. Perhaps, as with Jessica, they were trying to downplay any gay references, but that comment was too funny to pass up?

Edited to add: I'm talking about Dewberry again.

Edited August 2, 2005 by BCinBC (log)

[fiftydollars]

Prepare to die laughing.. Andrew has his own website:

http://www.andrewbonito.com/

All I can say is this is one of the worst cases of narcissism I've ever seen..

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Damn you!!

I just lost a perfectly good 5 minutes that I won’t get back…

I hear Dewberry also has a site, but his requires a monthly paid membership.

[Mnehrling]

Prepare to die laughing.. Andrew has his own website:

http://www.andrewbonito.com/

All I can say is this is one of the worst cases of narcissism I've ever seen..

←

Damn you!!

I just lost a perfectly good 5 minutes that I won’t get back…

I hear Dewberry also has a site, but his requires a monthly paid membership.

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How do you like his catering menu? All wraps, all the time..

[rose_ayn]

Prepare to die laughing.. Andrew has his own website:

http://www.andrewbonito.com/

All I can say is this is one of the worst cases of narcissism I've ever seen..

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If he seriously wants to sell a cookbook he'd better hurry up and ride the coat tails of Hell's Kitchen. If those sample pages are complete thoughts and not notes to self - well it won't sell, not without a profound amount of editing.

"Worst cases of narcissism" is an understatement.

And why the hell did he link to Ramsay's site for the biography of the man? Of course then I'd respect it an ounce if he'd done that.

[tan319]

Some interesting comments about the show (and a few other topics) from Ramsay himself appeared in yesterday's Chicago Sun-Times:

Q. Did you have any say in the choice of contestants for the show?

A. I didn't want to get over-involved in that. I didn't want any pre-conceived ideas of who I wanted to stay around or leave. Watching them create their signature dishes on the first show was enormous insight into their personalities. I can tell in two minutes if someone will make it in my kitchen.

=R=

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Mssr. ronnie...

Anyway to get to that rest of that intv.?

Awesome stuff, funny as hell!!

Thanks for the link

[ronnie_suburban]

Mssr. ronnie...

Anyway to get to that rest of that intv.?

Awesome stuff, funny as hell!!

Thanks for the link

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That's all I could find of it, those few questions. I even searched the PPV archives.

Glad you enjoyed it

=R=

[rascal]

Just joining the conversation.. watched every episode... the thing that piqued my interest was GR's slam of Trotter in that Sun-Tribune article...

Quote:

I don't want to turn into some old fart philosopher who gives a superficial insight into the industry that's not true.

I love CT's cooking and have gotten a lot of insight from his show on PBS, but this just rings so true... I can't help but laugh at loud at some of his philosophical waxing.

[McDermitt]

I still feel the "London Offer" originated with Chef Ramsay. If we take him at his word it would seem Michael has the basic talent and skills needed to become a class act chef. This isn't to imply he didn't discuss it with the producers of the show.

Only that the offer originated with Ramsey. He could watch Michael start a restaurant only to see it fail in a year, or he could put him on staff as a potential money maker in one of his new restaurants (maybe the one in NY). Of course this would happen only after complete Ramsey training.

Looking at Chef Ramsey's record I don't think he would have an issue with hijacking a Fox production. (that's what lawyers are for.) As far as Fox, they win either way. They get a twist to the plot, ratings and no restaurant to throw away money.

[johnder]

Prepare to die laughing.. Andrew has his own website:

http://www.andrewbonito.com/

All I can say is this is one of the worst cases of narcissism I've ever seen..

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Damn you!!

I just lost a perfectly good 5 minutes that I won’t get back…

I hear Dewberry also has a site, but his requires a monthly paid membership.

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How do you like his catering menu? All wraps, all the time..

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I like his past menus...

What the hell is:

First Course

Pasta with Peas, Prosciutto, and Fresh Basil Chifinoid.

Chifinoid? Sounds like a robot. He may want to re-think the cookbook, or at least get someone that can write it for him.

[Jeni Hicks]

Hehe....you gotta' love someone who includes "1 long match or lighter" in the ingredients list for a recipe!!

Andrew's Penne Recipe

Anyone know where I can get me some "heavey" cream???

and - um - I'm supposed to put red pepper seeds in my pasta??? WTF?

Hell's Kitchen was pretty much just something to watch on Monday nights - nothing more or less. I am a big fan of GR, but far prefer his UK productions - I think he's more "real", and the shows less contrived.

Edited August 3, 2005 by Jeni Hicks (log)