Kitchen Nightmares: Series Premiere (US version)

Did anyone watch this? I kind of think the BBC version of this show is actually more entertaining than Hell’s Kitchen and the US version appears to be very similar in tone and structure. The only thing that disappointed me was that GR didn’t do the follow up visit a few months later like he does in the UK version.

Anyway, that Peter guy was quite the tool. It was like watching Joe Pesci in Goodfellas. I kept expecting him shoot somebody in the foot or stomp them to death and roll them up in a carpet.

His change of heart seemed a little abrupt to me but it was a fairly entertaing episode over all.

I’m curious about something. Does anyone know if the restaurants which are featured on the UK show get a bump in business after their episode air? It wuld seem that a curiosity factor would draw people in.

I actually enjoyed this version compared to the UK version. Gordon is awesome. He has huuge balls (and probably great insurance, with some tough bodyguard types) to talk shit to that psycho Peter. What an absolute tool.

I got the feeling that the loan shark types were there for TV. Real wiseguys wouldn’t want to be seen on TV, and would be a little more convincing. Still, scary stuff.

It would have been nice to have Ramsay show up a few months later to check on things. I felt so sorry for the staff at Peter’s (btw, who calls an Italian place “Peter’s?”). Peter was a big useless baby who bullied and threatened his staff. Berating the waitress, yelling at the cooks after eating someone’s appetizer… that guy sucked really hard and had the insane orange tan/ultrawhite teeth thing going. A little less time in the gym, and a little more time actually working, hmmm?

I prefer the English version. More emphasis on the food and on the staff making changes. This one was too heavy on the melodrama, with conflicts and stunts like the Brand New Kitchen!

But it wasn’t bad. I’ll check it out a couple more times before making a final decision.

One difference between the UK and US versions is that in the UK programmes, he usually drums up a bit of trade on the local streets using his celebrity while he’s visiting. I imagine Gordon’s isn’t quite famous enough for that to work in America. Or is he?

I HATED this version compared to the BBC version. Its so like fox to turn a perfectly good show into a “reality”, make over, drama show. In one show we had fights, a kitchen make over, and family drama. Looks like another unrealistic fox “reality” show.

I was thinking what idiots the parents were, not seeing how useless Peter was.

And then I noticed that they had had the sense to turn the restaurant over to the daughter.

I’ve seen the BBC version It was pretty good I thought. About 60 percent restauraunt business, 20 percent Ramsey being Ramsey and 20 % Oprah.

This was disappointing. 15% Restauraunt Business, 20% Ramsey Being Ramsey, 20 percent Oprah, and 45% Jerry Springer.

If that was real, and not a put on for the Camera, I expect to see Peter in a mug shot some day.

Sheesh I got to see the whole show (minus proper context of course) in the whole 5 minute intro. The rest of the time was waiting for the actual full footage to come up so we know he didn’t attack Ramsey or whatever.

Too much of the Family drama. The sudden change over in Peter is utter BS. I’ve know twits like him. Nothing makes them stop being “The big Boss” cause they get a kick out of feeling important.

Still… better than Blank Idol or survivor wherever.

I hope the tweak it a little more we don’t need the melodrama all the time, just an interesting story.

I agree, but I wonder if this episode was that way because Gordon got dropped into a restaurant suffering mainly (though not exclusively, of course) from a major personality conflict. Here all of the staff (excepting Peter) was pretty good, and the equipment and menu tweaks were enough to bring around those aspects of the restaurant. It was the Peter drama that Gordon really needed to deal with, and (apparently) did so rather well. Peter’s turn-around did seem a bit too pat in the end, but it isn’t altogether unrealistic that he could have had his “come to Jesus” moment and kept his nose to the grindstone for at least the few weeks of follow-up filming.

I’m waiting to see if all of the episodes will be big personality dramas (which will become quickly tiresome), or whether this one was chosen to be first because it was such a compelling cast of characters and worked out so well in the end.

His “Hell’s Kitchen” has been on for a couple of seasons here and he’s been getting a fair amount of press, there was some controversy happening at his New York restaurant, I believe. On the show the services once he got there were full - I got the impression he drummed up the customers using his name, rather than the restaurant’s.

I prefer the British version.
Last night, Ramsey hardly spent any time with the chef. (It seemed he was fine except for having to work with a busted stove.) Usually he spends a great deal of time talking to the chef and testing them which leads to some hilarious exchanges. (Like the one where the chef serves him fish, but couldn’t be arsed to scale it. Ramsey was incredulous: “I have to put this fucking shit in my mouth?”)

Peter was a big useless twit, but it hardly takes an expert to determine that. Smoking out a chef who’s not up to it does though.

Two things, from a New Yorker.
That filthy rancid food storage locker with the leaking ceiling. There are a lot of inept agencies in NY, but one that is pretty anal is the Board of Health and its inspectors. That accumulation of rotten food would have put a "Closed’ sign on the front door faster than a speedy rat. That crap built up over a few weeks.
And, two, the depiction of the two ‘bill collectors’ was hilarious. The only collecting they were after was the ‘vig’. His attitude towards both of them would have involved a bullet to the back of his head and new owners of the restaurant. (I watch a lot of Mob movies :smiley: ).

I’ll give the new show a chance. It was good, but not great like the BBC version.

It irks me to have to hear the bleeps every two seconds. Maybe they should show it on HBO so we can hear it uncensored.

But anyhoo, some of the previous posters have it right. They should have had Ramsay being the “man on the street” talking to potential customers and buying from local markets. And the smartass comments to the head chef are always hilarious.

But, on the good side, I loved LOVED! the look on the head chefs face when Ramsay was chewed out Peter. Priceless! He looked like a kid at Christmas…

That’s why I have a little trouble taking it for real. I mean If I had eaten at that place anytime before filming and gotten sick I would be really pissed. I’m not a suing kind of person, but depending on circumstance I would consider it after seeing that crap. And a lot of people are a lot more litigious. Did Fox take over liability to show the dirty laundry? Cause that was disgusting.

I didn’t like the new free kitchen they got. The UK version makes the restaurant make it on its own.

But I knew I would be disappointed. I like British TV, not Fox Reality.

That is the crux of the matter. In the UK version (Channel 4, not BBC) Ramsey makes the staff work to get the resteraunt into shape. If the kitchen is a health hazard then he gets them on their hands and knees scrubbing the floors and cleaning whatever nastiness has accumulated (btw greatest episode was when Ramsey vomitted after eating dodgy scallops). This version all the hard work was done for them by the production company.

They’ve taken what actually makes the programme interesting and different and turned it into just another makeover show.

It also loses a lot of the momentum with those godawful “Coming Up Next” flashes, constant bleeps and dreadful camerawork and lighting.

So whilst the UK version gets 2 Michelin Stars, the US version gets only a small ad in The Yellow Pages.

Trimmed down to avoid quoting abuse, but what you said. I shouldn’t have expected better from a Fox reality show, I guess. I’ll still watch it between episodes of the original.