Cauchemar en cuisine: Avec Gordon Ramsay

Gordon Ramsay, a rich and famous chef, years ago hit the reality TV circuit by acting as a consultant to failing restaurants.

Two things strike me about this series.

First, these restaurant owners and employees, despite having so many problems when they agree to be one of these shows that they are on the verge of bankruptcy, have the gall to actually argue with his suggestions for becoming successful.

Second, I often wonder why, after seeing one of these shows, I ever go to eat at a restaurant again! LOL Interesting in the manner that makes people slow down to view the details of a car wreck, Nightmares often provides an uplifting story of a group of people getting it together to run their business properly for the very first time. Sadly, there are those that are so stubborn, and/or so inept, that they fail despite Gordon's intervention.

There is a lot of bad language and bad food, so this is not for small children. If you run a business of ANY type, you can learn real lessons for success from these shows.

Hell's Kitchen introduced me to Gordon Ramsay. The commercials for that show portray him as a harsh tyrant in a chef's jacket. This is not the case on Hell's Kitchen or on Kitchen Nightmares. Kitchen Nightmares is an enjoyable show that allows the viewer to better understand what goes on behind the scenes of the restaurant business. Part of the the show's entertainment though lies in the incompetence and arrogance of those working in the restaurants Gordon Ramsay sets out to rescue. Without Gordon Ramsay, this show would find itself on The Food Network or TLC. He truly makes the show great as he is hard but fair. He seeks to raise the bar to improve skills, decor and ultimately business. As he does this, it makes for a fairly entertaining reality show.

It's a 7 but only because Chef Ramsay is absolutely hilarious (in my opinion). I may be weird but I reckon he is really funny. He turns restaurants around because they're underperforming, management issues or whatever the real problem is. I recommend that Gordon Ramsay fans watch this show, you won't regret it.

Every episode of Kitchen Nightmares is the same. There's a failing restaurant, and we get an overview of the restaurant and why it's failing. The problems vary from a stubborn chef, a spineless owner, a clueless staff, or some mix of the above, but one thing is common: the food is terrible, but the owners don't seem to believe that. Gordon comes in, sees the restaurant, tries the food (big shock, he doesn't like the food) and he tells the owners that the food is not good, and the owners disagree and insist that their food is good, which leaves Chef Ramsay speechless. Later that night, he observes a terrible dinner service and then later inspects a more than filthy kitchen and Ramsay is furious. After getting the owners on board with change (which takes some time), they relaunch the menu (and most of the time, the decor), and the relaunch is a success, with the exception of a minor hiccup. That is your average Kitchen Nightmares episode........and I love it! There's something hypnotic about watching stubborn people so deep in denial getting yelled at by a decorated chef over how terrible their service and food are. My only concern with this show is how dramatized it is. They seem to focus more on drama between family and coworkers than they do on how a restaurant operates. In addition, some of the exercises Gordon Ramsay does with the owners seemed pointless. There was one episode that took place in a courtroom halfway through and two episodes had the owners boxing their feelings out. Those felt bizarre, like it was purely for theatrics. Other than that, I enjoyed this show. It had a capable formula and even featured some colorful personalities, and it actually made me want start cooking more.

Although I am a fan of the series, the American version of Kitchen Nightmares is not as good as the British version. The American version seems much more dramatic. It is loaded with arguments, family problems, and near fisticuffs. The British version concentrates on the restaurant's problems and how to solve them. It is excellent. I don't want to see a bunch of staged drama (Similar to the fake drama in Cake Boss). I want reality, something that is missing from reality TV! I want to watch Gordon identify the problems, and fix the problems. Along the way, show me how the food is made and improved upon. And by the way, does Gordon really hate every single first meal he has at these restaurants? The chefs can't be that bad, at least not some of them anyway.