# Hotel Hell **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 14, 2012, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hotel-hell/631468 "2012-08-14T14:31:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![WolfpackJeep](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpackjeep/32/2921_2.png) [@WolfpackJeep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WolfpackJeep)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2012, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hotel-hell/631468/21 "2012-08-16T23:25:38Z")
> [@Shakes](#): > > That snooty hotel guy was an overly entitled fucktard. That’s what made the furniture revelation so _delicious_…with his attitude, I really thought he had some valuable stuff. ---
**Author:** ![TBG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@TBG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TBG)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2012, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hotel-hell/631468/22 "2012-08-19T00:33:18Z")
> [@MLS](#): > > I wondered how the owner got away with not paying the staff. Do they not have wage and hours laws and enforcement thereof in the state where this hotel is? All you’d have to do here is to report the place to the necessary authorities. Despite the not getting paid, the staff seemed to have a personal vested interest in working at the hotel. When you work someplace because its where you want to work, it’s amazing the crap you’ll put up with to be able to keep working there. I know someone who worked at a small private school. For quite a while they had financial problems and just wouldn’t get paid on time ever. Yet they all put up with it and kept working there, because if they were in it for money, they wouldn’t be at a small private school in the first place. ---
**Author:** ![asterion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/4da419/32.png) [@asterion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asterion)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2012, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hotel-hell/631468/23 "2012-08-21T00:09:30Z")
Well, I’ll keep watching it, for a bit longer at least. Tonight’s is a bit more interesting as it’s a relatively local hotel. Even Gordon Ramsey couldn’t save this one and it was foreclosed and auctioned off a couple months ago. Fairly large story in the local paper. ---
**Author:** ![GreasyJack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/df705f/32.png) [@GreasyJack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreasyJack)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2012, 12:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hotel-hell/631468/24 "2012-08-21T00:12:05Z")
> [@elfkin477](#): > > It can’t be worse than [Motel Hell](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0081184/combined). More boring, yes, but not worse. What are you talking about? That movie featured some of the best examples of Rory Calhoun’s trademark standing on his hind legs! ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2012, 12:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hotel-hell/631468/25 "2012-08-21T00:24:42Z")
First off, the owner needs to shave his forehead! ---
**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2012, 12:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hotel-hell/631468/26 "2012-08-21T00:49:28Z")
Well, there’s the naked Gordon Ramsey. ---
**Author:** ![Spoons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spoons/32/3141_2.png) [@Spoons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoons)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2012, 4:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hotel-hell/631468/27 "2012-08-21T04:06:15Z")
> [@asterion](#): > > Well, I’ll keep watching it, for a bit longer at least. Tonight’s is a bit more interesting as it’s a relatively local hotel. Even Gordon Ramsey couldn’t save this one and it was foreclosed and auctioned off a couple months ago. Fairly large story in the local paper. I just watched the episode. What happened? Spoilers to my other questions, as it may still be airing elsewhere tonight. Is it still being operated as a hotel? What happened to the owners–were they forced to liquidate their assets to make good on their debt? What about Britney the manager, and the chef, do you know? ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2012, 4:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hotel-hell/631468/28 "2012-08-21T04:30:09Z")
From the [Albany Times Union](http://blog.timesunion.com/tablehopping/32692/cambridge-hotel-on-ramsays-hotel-hell/): “The editing was by turns unkind or even brutal toward Imhof, a former military man and lawyer, who has since closed his Cambridge law practice and taken a civilian position at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba.” So that’s what happened to the owner. I was wondering about the crappy food. How is it possible to bake a pie and end up with raw apples? ---
**Author:** ![StarvingButStrong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/starvingbutstrong/32/335_2.png) [@StarvingButStrong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StarvingButStrong)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2012, 4:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hotel-hell/631468/29 "2012-08-21T04:36:32Z")
I was surprised that a former military man would NOT already understand the importance of the top level guy doing top level tasks. The owner shouldn’t be using his time to haul buckets of ice or cleaning table tops. ---
**Author:** ![interface2x](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c0e974/32.png) [@interface2x](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/interface2x)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2012, 1:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hotel-hell/631468/30 "2012-08-21T13:20:31Z")
Normally this type of thing doesn’t bother me, but WOW is that an awful theme song. I mean really bad and terrible and awful. Wow. ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Doom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/0ea827/32.png) [@Dr\_Doom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Doom)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2012, 1:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hotel-hell/631468/31 "2012-08-21T13:29:26Z")
Well that was pretty predictable. No surprise Ramsay is the executive producer, what with all the tooth-brushing and stepping naked into the shower shots. I have a feeling he offered to help out the sickly young pastry-chef wannabe due to some deep-seated bad-skin kinship. ---
**Author:** ![MLS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/919ad9/32.png) [@MLS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MLS)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2012, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hotel-hell/631468/32 "2012-08-21T17:49:47Z")
> [@Spoons](#): > > I just watched the episode. What happened? Spoilers to my other questions, as it may still be airing elsewhere tonight. > > Is it still being operated as a hotel? What happened to the owners–were they forced to liquidate their assets to make good on their debt? What about Britney the manager, and the chef, do you know? [spoiler]According to the Times Union of June 14, > [@](#): > > The troubled Cambridge Hotel, which was foreclosed on earlier this spring, will close after a farewell party on Sunday, according to a note sent to customers. The hotel was scheduled to be auctioned off on Friday. [/spoiler] ---
**Author:** ![DiosaBellissima](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a8b319/32.png) [@DiosaBellissima](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DiosaBellissima)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2012, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hotel-hell/631468/33 "2012-08-21T18:08:48Z")
I rather like this show, despite it’s predictability. I can’t tell you what I specifically like, but I seem to stumble on it each week and settle in for the duration of the episode. I won’t DVR it or anything, but if I find it, I’ll watch it. ---
**Author:** ![Springtime\_for\_Spacers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Springtime\_for\_Spacers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Springtime_for_Spacers)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2012, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hotel-hell/631468/34 "2012-08-21T18:42:01Z")
Over here in the UK Ramsey has been mired in scandal and controversy for the last few years. First it was a long term affair, then his restaurants were serving preprepared food and finally a huge and public bust up with his father in law and business partner. He’s been rather absent from British screens recently. I’m not surprised to hear he’s doing a copy of Alex Petriedes successful Hotel Inspector over in the US. It’s alright, you can keep him. ---
**Author:** ![That\_Don\_Guy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/that_don_guy/32/538_2.png) [@That\_Don\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/That_Don_Guy)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2012, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hotel-hell/631468/35 "2012-08-21T19:07:45Z")
> [@UncleRojelio](#): > > And why start out with a two-parter? Two reasons. First, to get more people to realize that the show has premiered (especially after it has had two previously announced starting dates - early April and early June). Second, so Fox can premiere The Mob Doctor on Monday 9/17. (They can’t move Hotel Hell to Tuesday as they are already moving So You Think You Can Dance? to Tuesdays on 9/11 and 9/18 since The X Factor starts on Wednesdays on 9/12.) Fox does a lot of shuffling with its fall season premieres; I think it’s mainly because of the pre-emptions caused by postseason baseball in October (although the season premiere of The Cleveland Show is one week later than the rest of the Sunday schedule because of Fox’s NFL coverage). ---
**Author:** ![Spoons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spoons/32/3141_2.png) [@Spoons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoons)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2012, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hotel-hell/631468/36 "2012-08-21T21:11:19Z")
Thanks for the answers, **MLS** and **Dewey Finn**. Much appreciated! ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2012, 9:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hotel-hell/631468/37 "2012-08-21T21:35:07Z")
I was amused by the chef’s response when Ramsay complained that the meat in the entree was cold. He said, “It’s prepared sous-vide” which doesn’t explain or excuse the fact that the food is cold. And as Ramsay pointed out, you’d think that a hotel famous as the originator of pie a la mode wouldn’t have such crappy pie. It really didn’t even look like a slice of pie, but just some sort of crumble. And I’m not even that much of a cook, but an apple pie shouldn’t very hard to make. ---
**Author:** ![TBG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@TBG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TBG)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2012, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hotel-hell/631468/38 "2012-08-23T23:59:35Z")
I’m surprised when he redid the room he kept the wallpaper. That was the most hideous part, I thought. ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2012, 12:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hotel-hell/631468/39 "2012-08-24T00:30:15Z")
I just found out that Monday’s show features a San Diego hotel – where one of my best friends from high school was the chef. ---
**Author:** ![Shamozzle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shamozzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shamozzle)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2012, 7:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hotel-hell/631468/40 "2012-08-24T07:37:27Z")
> [@interface2x](#): > > Normally this type of thing doesn’t bother me, but WOW is that an awful theme song. I mean really bad and terrible and awful. Wow. Yea, that intro is atrocious. Beyond ridiculous. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hotel-hell/631468.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hotel-hell/631468.md?page=3)