Kind of surprised there’s not a Hell’s Kitchen thread for June 25 yet. Guess there is now.
Julia is still in there. No worries about her performance last night–looked to be good and solid all round, although she neither screwed up so badly nor was so terrific that she stood out. Had to love Chef Ramsay’s remark to Brad (was it Brad?) after losing to Julia in the tasting challenge: “You were beaten by a waffle house chef.” Maybe it’s just me, but Julia’s confidence in playing this game seems to be growing–she may come from the Waffle House, but she’s proving to herself and the others that she can do this.
There still seems to be an idea that teamwork is not as important as eliminating your strongest competitor. Bonnie and Vinnie clearly were out of their elements last night, yet neither was nominated for elimination–at first. I’m glad Chef Ramsay picked up on this and overruled Jen and Rock. Another good argument for “know how to make Beef Wellington perfectly before going on this show.”
Somewhat related–I don’t know what product placements anybody else is getting in the show (what does the shopping bag on the table in the dorm say, for example), but I’m finding them laughable. Here, the show is broadcast by a Canadian carrier that rebroadcasts the Fox signal. So, every show, I get to see a bag or a wrapper or a soft drink cup from a Canadian fast food place that as far as I know, simply doesn’t exist in LA, or even in the United States. True, such things could be changed so that other markets saw the products of local businesses, but the Canadian product makes this technique silly. What are we to think; these competitors have such a thing for a “Mr. Sub” sandwich and a soft drink that they had it flown in from Toronto?
I haven’t noticed the product placement. I’ll have to try to look for it next time.
I despise how every single season the women try their feminine wiles on Ramsey. It’s not working, girls, start impressing him in the kitchen!
He was right to disregard Jen and Rock’s recommendations, but I was still disappointed. I really want to see Melissa out of there. As for the guys…is it just me or do the white guys all look alike? I don’t care who goes or stays because I can’t even tell them apart.
I haven’t paid any attention to product placement. Either it’s too subtle or it just seems that way because Ramsay is a screaming lunatic.
I was really disappointed in Rock’s choice for elimination. You’d think by now people would have figured out that this ain’t Survivor. Ramsay wants the weakest member of your team eliminated. Even if you don’t nominate the weakest performer and Ramsay doesn’t overrule you, he’ll probably choose the weak performer fromt the other team. Then you’re in Rock’s situation in which Vinnie believes (probably correctly) he’s being targeted.
It’ll be interesting to see who comes out on top because I don’t get the feeling that any of them could handle their own restaurant other than Rock, Julia and possibly Melissa.
I’m glad I’m not the only one noticing the Mr Sub thing – it jars me (just a little) every time.
And I don’t know why contestants on this show and “The Apprentice” always think they’re playing “Survivor”. A lot of the little stunts they pull to manipulate the system don’t mean squat to Ramsay or Trump, powerful guys who are used to cutting through the bullshit.
I didn’t even notice it. But then I’m usually knitting and I glance between it and the tv so I miss subtle things like that.
Josh, Vinnie got the boot. They do look a lot alike though, Vinnie was just shorter.
Seconded. At the moment it’s a matter of having gotten rid of the ones who can’t do anything (though Bonnie fits there too, she’ll be gone next week I think unless she gets herself together). I’m rooting for Julia though. Second choice is Rock, Melissa… she rubs me the wrong way. Reminds me of an old schoolmate.
Vaguely surprised that neither got the venison. It’s another of those things that tastes pretty distinct to me, but then we used to eat it a lot (not so much anymore). But then, they probably haven’t had it so that makes it less surprising.
Vinnie looked a bit like Brad and was a dick a lot like Josh. Now that he’s gone, it should be easier to distinguish the remaining.
And did anyone notice how “Waffle-House-bee-yatch-doesn’t-know-the-ingredients-I-spent-ten-years-learning” Melissa completely tanked on the blind taste test?
Oh, and there was an ad indicating that Ramsay is doing an American version of his “Kitchen Nightmares” show. I’m totally there. The BBC version showed that he’s not just some TV personality, that he knows everything there is to know about making a restaurant successful.
I was waiting to see if someone else was going to start the thread and then I was about to start it myself when my computer decided to reboot itself and I decided I was too tired to sign back on.
Anyway, about the product placement thing. I’ve never noticed the fast food bags but isn’t it just possible that there’s a local mom and pop place in LA with coincidentally the same name as the Canadian franchise where they are getting the food? If it were actually product placement wouldn’t it be more in your face?
During the taste testing I think he should finish the test even when we know one side has lost. We never got to see if Jen could identify the tuna and I’d like to see if they could identify any of the other items.
I missed some of the comments during the guys solo-tasting, were they just supposed to taste everything or were they supposed to eat it all? If they were only tasting then I think Rock was a bit of a sissy. As a chef I think you should be prepared for having to taste some food items you don’t particularly like that you might have to prepare. Sure those items look and sound gross, they may even taste terrible, but some people do eat and like those things so they can’t be that vomit-inducing. I think he just psyched himself out with “oh, god, I’m eating a an organ that filters urine!”. I walked away from the TV when he started with the retching because I wasn’t sure if they’d actually show him spewing and I did not want to see/hear that.
I was surprised that Ramsay picked Jen to do the nominating but was a little disappointed that Julia did not stand out this week. So once again another contestant practically begs to be sent home because they are out of their league and their teammate nominates someone else. I’m rather disappointed that Jen went with the “get rid of the competition route” but at least she didn’t pick on Julia again. I’d want to see Jen go next except Bonnie really needs to go, I can’t take anymore of her crying. Well, I guess I’ll have to take one more week of it.
So how do they pick the customers that go up to the station and complain to Ramsay? Is it a producer’s friend, relative or lover? The giraffe blew her big acting break though, she didn’t get nearly as outraged as everyone else and she forgot to throw something. I thought Ramsay was actually pretty nice to her in comparison to other complainers and the contestants.
Re: Next week’s preview.
More draaaama when they have a wedding reception in the restaurant. Ramsay was screaming about not ruining their wedding day, well I have no sympathy for a couple that has their wedding and/or reception on a reality tv show and has it ruined, come on what did you expect?
Pretty sure that it’s deliberate by the Canadian station. I read an article about this a year or so back, explaining that it’s pretty common to use computer technology for this kind of stuff. It first came to my attention when the New York City taxis that were taking away the losers on “The Apprentice” all had signs advertising a Canadian casino nowhere near NYC.
I know! They showed the bride dabbing at her teary eyes. If my wedding supper was ‘ruined’ I’d probably be bawling. But I totally agree about the no sympathy.
I’m sure there are some hired professional extras in there, but an interview I read with Mike who won season 1 of this show said that most of the “patrons” were friends/family of the crew and production staff, and people they haul in off the street.
According to him, the bribe that gets them to stay there all night while the chefs screw up in the kitchens is free drinks for the duration. So by the end of a really bad kitchen run, you’ve got a room full of starving drunks, which brings on the histrionics, like leaving in a huff, walking up to the hot plate, or the occasional protest chant.
Well, I guess I just don’t notice it because I’m not familiar with the products. Does it work though, does anyone watching the show in Canada ever get an urge to run out to Mr. Sub?
I dunno, people who get paid to worry about these things pay money for it, so they must think it works. I know that this thread has got me hungry for a sub, anyway.
While I like Julie and hope she wins, I don’t know if she is ready to be a head chef. I think this group is easily the worst group ever. The winner on season 1 I thought could do it and Ramsay apparently agreed since he invited him to a year traingin or something like that. The second season winner was more dubious, but I though could at least give it a decent shot. This year, I don’t think anybody really could.
Actually, they’re pretty rare out here in Calgary. I only know of one location, though there are probably two or three. Still, they were as common as dirt when I lived in Toronto. You’d find one every few blocks. I don’t, however, feel the need to jump in the car and drive twenty minutes to the Mr. Sub location I know, when there is a perfectly good (and better, IMHO) Subway a ten-minute walk away.
I doubt that an LA Mom-and-Pop sub shop, even if it was called “Mr. Sub,” would use the same typeface, logos, corporate colours, and such as the Canadian chain. Mr. Sub also runs a couple of their commercials on our broadcast, so it wouldn’t seem likely that there is any coincidental resemblance to an LA business.
If you’re in Canada, anyway, watch the scenes when the chefs are in the dorms. You’ll see what looks like a grocery bag with the Mr. Sub logo on a table or the kitchen counter, and/or wrapped sandwiches and soft drink cups on the patio table when they’re outside. I don’t know what you’d see in the US–maybe some of you American viewers can look for us next week?
That same thought occurred to me–this isn’t a great group. I do think Julie, and perhaps Rock, could benefit from further training by Chef Ramsay; and if they got it, they might well be ready for something bigger than the Waffle House. Well, Julia, at any rate.
But the others? Remember, Chef Ramsay said at the meal on the aircraft carrier that he values consistency, and he has remarked on trust a few times. Of course, he wants a high standard of consistency, but it would seem to me that you’re going to accomplish neither if you get rattled under the pressure, if your ego gets in the way, or if you demonstrate that you cannot be trusted. At least Julie and Rock can be consistent, and have shown that they can be trusted. And I think Chef Ramsay is noticing.
Remember also that we’re not hearing about a particular restaurant–we’re only hearing about the Green Valley Resort. It may have a few restaurants in it, ranging from a “Chef Ramsay-approved fine dining experience” to a coffee shop. It is possible, I suppose, that the producers knew this was a weak group, and wanted to allow the winner’s skills and so on to determine which of the restaurants at the Resort he or she would end up at.
That’s an interesting idea. I think Julia could totally run a restaurant right now, I just have my doubts whether it could be an upscale restaurant. A more casual coffee shop type diner would be perfect for her. It would allow her to work with what she knows and possibly experiment with some more trendy type meals to fit with the theme of the location. It wouldn’t be throwing her in to the deep end of the pool to see if she can swim. At first I was worried that the prize might be a little out of her league but this idea makes me feel a little better about it. Then again an apprenticeship with Ramsay would probably help her a great deal as well. roots for Julia with renewed vigor
