Gordon Ramsay: Well Done or Half-Baked?

[AlicornAcolyte 254]

I assume everyone here has heard of Gordon Ramsay, the tough talking British celebrity chef, and star of such TV shows as Hell's Kitchen & Kitchen Nightmares. He is known for his inflammatory language, and his disdain for incompetence.

 

However, his network of restaurants around the world are known for their quality and excellent service. When it comes to food, it is obvious that he does know what he is talking about.

 

But does this excuse his harsh and intimidating behavior?

[Scootalove 10,692]

I think his harsh and intimidating behavior is to encourage the people that he works with to work harder and not make stupid mistakes. It doesn't excuse his behavior, but he knows what to do.

[repsol rave 2,963]

this is going to sound really stupid, but the way Gordon screams at his cooks is actually the way it goes in every major restaurant. 

gordon may be the most extreme one out there, but every chef yells and screams at his cooks. and the better the restaurant is, the more of an asshole the chef seems. 

[Cirrus. 1,093]

Chef Ramsay and his attitude doesn't bother me. I think some of the things he randomly comes up with when he's pissed are hilarious. On the other hand, the STUPID "dramatic" music every 2 seconds in the American shows he's in does bother me.

 

He really does know his stuff, works hard, and can't stand BS. That's seemed to work out pretty good for him in my opinion. He's working on multiple shows at a time and owns numerous successful and highly rated restaurants.

 

I do often wonder what his blood pressure is though.

 

Here's one of my favorite clips:

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AREJHFfIAdA

Edited May 3, 2014 by steve88

[Dattebayo 2,850]

IT'S F*CKING RAW.

 

I like the guy, he gives a kick in the a$$ to the people who deserve it.

I love his shows, too.

[SkyDream 315]

--- Appropriate Image Macro with eventually NSFW language ---

 

 

I definitely admire Gordon Ramsay. He puts his all into what he loves to do, and doesn't settle for anything less. Especially not from those who would one day wish to call themselves his peers. Running a kitchen is far from a stress-free position.

 

I feel like him sometimes. I am in an equivalent position in my job, and although I want to be nice to everyone and not be an antagonist, I also know that if anyone is truly giving 110% and making sure everything is perfect, a lot more people than you'd think would suffer because of it. There's just no room for anything less than a high level of committment and passion, and paying attention to what you're doing.

[Thrashy 2,800]

Whatever works, I suppose. I've always seen his attitude as equivalent to that of a drill sergeant...you know, just with a bit less "dirtbag" and "maggot" thrown in.

[Jammo 986]

I'm not gonna tell a drill sergeant how to do his job.

Gordon is a very tough-love, no-nonsense guy but often you need to be harsh to help undisciplined people.

[yeet 2,027]

He's amazing, one of the greater people to come out this country.

[AlicornAcolyte 254]

I have an interest in cooking as a hobby, and Ramsay is one of my inspirations. I'm going to New York for the summer, and you can bet I'm going to eat at his restaurant while I'm there!

 

There is an interesting difference between his American and British shows. It's funny to see how the different cultural expectations of both audiences are reflected in his shows. For example, the American version of Kitchen Nightmares is modeled after a reality show, with the dramatic music, shocking scenes, and badmouthing interviews. The British version plays out more as a documentary.

[Guest]

You don't make a good chef by having the kiddie gloves on, never will do, never have done.

 

 

I love him.

Edited April 30, 2014 by Guest

[DDV 36]

It's probably one of his traits. It's in his genes, I guess.

[firetorn 187]

Gordon Ramsay is a god! Honestly if I were to meet any celebrity it would be him. The REALLY angry/aggressive personality from Hell's Kitchen that you speak of is mostly just a brand for the show. In reality Gordon is a really nice guy who does a lot in the way of helping out charitable causes and upcoming chefs. Try watching shows like Kitchen nightmares UK and Gordon Ramsay Behind Bars. Sure he still tells people off and yells occasionally but who wouldn't in those kind of situations?

[PsychedelicPony 440]

He explains in interviews his behavior through his life of making people at his restaurants up to his standards. When he doesn't do that way, it doesn't force people as much as when he he yells (they don't want him to yell again), but on top of that people some of the time don't understand the pressure of a kitchen in a restaurant, especially his which are five star I believe. One wrong dish to one wrong person and the entire restaurant's reputation is in shambles.

 

In addition, most of the brashness is to people who are supposed to know how to cook. If you watch some of the other shows where he's teaching amateur's like home cooker's and such he's very kind and supportive.

Edited April 30, 2014 by PsychedelicPony

[Celtore 2,770]

I can understand why he can get so angry, he's the type of person that cares about quality and things meeting his expectations; perhaps taking anything less from professional chefs as an insult. The restaraunt industry is also very fast paced and a high-pressure environment, whether working at a 5 star restaraunt or fast food joint.

 

Speaking personally, hells kitchen is sort of a way for me to laugh at myself. I had a Gordon of sorts when I worked at McDonalds every Saturday morning who would yell over the simplest innocent mistakes or anything that wasn't stock. One time I served a big breakfast with the scrambled eggs and muffin resembling a smiley face and I got written up and yelled at for it, but hey, at least the eggs weren't raw!

Edited April 30, 2014 by Celtore

[Northern Star 1,024]

I thought off camera he wasn't as hot headed?

[Codelyy 1,289]

I honestly love Gordan Ramsay. If you've seen him outside of his TV shows, he's incredibly kind, respectful, and has this sort of attitude that just makes you want to succeed in whatever you do. Often time you will find people mostly talking about his TV persona where he is very insulting and swears a lot but that's all that is.. a persona made to make TV interesting. 

[EpicEnergy 23,247]

He's in one of Mr. Beast's videos, and he seemed like a decent guy.

[Clawdeen 22,048]

I was under the impression a good chunk of his behavior was for show and he’s not like that off camera. People wouldn’t watch if he was nice to everyone. 

[daviddaviddavid 779]

7 hours ago, Clawdeen said:

I was under the impression a good chunk of his behavior was for show and he’s not like that off camera. People wouldn’t watch if he was nice to everyone. 

A lot of it is manufactured for American television in particular. If you watch an episode of the UK version of Kitchen Nightmares he almost never raises his voice or insults restaurant owners, and the editing isn't as dramatic. He's also done a few "cooking roadtrip" collaborations with other celebrity chefs here, and he largely comes across as quite a pleasant person.