Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares USA.

[bgmnts]

Is there a better formulaic reality tv show going?

I can't help but watch it, I hate myself inside for doing it so but I fucking love it.

[QDRPHNC]

Entertaining in small doses. You could set your watch by the way it's structured though.

[weekender]

There was a follow-up episode to the "Amy's Baking Company" episode earlier today.

They explained in great detail about why Amy was a cunt, and then they went onto further explain shit and memes.

Honestly, best episode ever.

[bgmnts]

Entertaining in small doses. You could set your watch by the way it's structured though.

Thats the beauty of it though.

Taste testing
Slag decor
Bad service
Slag dirty kitchen
Marriage counselling
Redecorate/refit ENTIRE restaurant
Show off new menu
Better service but with shaky start.

It's Prussian in its structure and rigidity.

[weekender]

You Dostoyevsky bastard

[bgmnts]

Me thick prole and have never read Dosto so I have no idea what it means sorry.

[Nowhere Man]

Thats the beauty of it though.

Taste testing
Slag decor
Bad service
Slag dirty kitchen
Marriage counselling
Redecorate/refit ENTIRE restaurant
Show off new menu
Better service but with shaky start.

It's Prussian in its structure and rigidity.

All that's missing is when he has a coronary after finding out the foods all served from frozen

[H-O-W-L]

I prefer the UK version for actual watching because every episode actually feels different, but I like the US version as second-monitor fodder.

[Lord Mandrake]

Ramsey was hilarious on the youtube channel 'hot ones' recently. I was crying with laughter as he attempted to remain composed and critique new food trends whilst clearly in extreme discomfort. He even downs a pint of pepto at one point.

[grassbath]

I saw an episode once where it was implied that the Christian restaurant-owning family were led to believe Ramsay was sent by God. When the new restaurant's opened and Gordon's standing in front of it giving them the big generosity bit, he says something like 'or maybe it came from... somewhere up above.' Cut to the face of the zealously religious eldest son who'd been giving Gordon gip, nodding, and the subtitles catching his whispered 'yes... yes.' Just absurd hubris.

[Sebastian Cobb]

He was already an unlikable, bullying, egomaniac cunt; I don't know why the US looked at him and thought he needed to be Flanderised.

[Piggyoioi]

UK version is far better.

US Kitchen Nightmares has that desperate and bombastic 'please dear god, don't you dare change channel it's DEFCON 2' type assault on the senses that kind of hypnotises you into a headache.

UK version leaves much more room to breathe and the characters seem to go on a genuine journey. Maybe its just that people in the US are so televised but their behaviour feels much more of a front/act being performed.

[Piggyoioi]

He was already an unlikable, bullying, egomaniac cunt; I don't know why the US looked at him and thought he needed to be Flanderised.

This comment is going 'STRAIGHT TO DVD!'.

[colacentral]

I love it but I wish it was more authentic and wasn't edited to fuck. It's filled to the brim with completely manufactured, spliced together conversations. It's so contrived that there's a disclaimer in the credits to say "some situations have been created for entertainment purposes" or whatever.

Favourite episode is one in New Orleans where the owner was fucked off his head on something the whole time, probably coke, and threatened to get some guys to feed Ramsay to a crocodile.

[checkoutgirl]

A guilty pleasure for me for sure as I'm not keen on helping Ramsay no matter how tangentially. Haven't watched it in months but when I get on a youtube jag I can spend hours and hours watching it. I suppose I like the positivity towards the end that mitigates the exploity feeling at the start.

[Epic Bisto]

UK version is far better.

US Kitchen Nightmares has that desperate and bombastic 'please dear god, don't you dare change channel it's DEFCON 2' type assault on the senses that kind of hypnotises you into a headache.

UK version leaves much more room to breathe and the characters seem to go on a genuine journey. Maybe its just that people in the US are so televised but their behaviour feels much more of a front/act being performed.

Agreed.  I can't add anything more so here's something I wrote about it many years ago:

I have to admit that I'm quite partial to any UK-based Nightmares episodes. Sure, the Americans have massive egos and shout a lot, but the British episodes have a wonderful air of pathetic sad-sacks with ideas above their stations, but it all seems rather grey or beige. Typically English and typically pathetic. Think of past episodes where either the head chef leaves to work in a pub microwaving pies ("ding ding food"), or the one where the 20-year-old lied his way into work and gave that wrinkly-faced sweary Scotch food poisoning.

Needless to say, I'm enjoying the Costa Del Nightmares episodes so far. Less "all singing, all dancing" and more Alan Bennett-style characters.

"IS THUR DISCOUNT FER TRAAADE?"

[wooders1978]

Love it - seen them all and I regularly watch highlights on YouTube - I know it's just tv but it never ceases to amaze me just how shit places are

My local growing up got phoned up and offered to be on it but the landlord turned it down, a huge shame as I am sure it would have gone down as one of all time classic episodes as the landlord is a little bit eccentric shall we say - a closeted gay who loves his tall tails (I.e. I've got the first ever fruit machine in storage) - he also thought that the reason his pub was empty and the place up the road that eventually got a Michelin star was rammed was "because his prices were to low and it puts people off"

[H-O-W-L]

That fucking violin sting too.

NNNNNEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEOOOOOOOOWWWWWWWWWWWWRRRRGGGGGHHHHHHH

[The Boston Crab]

I always love the vat of mouldy pesto that he's detected as being dodgy at lunch and then he sees it and he's like

CHEF RODLEY EAT DATTTTTTTTT

[dr beat]

Handy guide here to what happened to all the venues featured in all of Ramsay's shows:

https://www.realitytvrevisited.com/

One or two of the BTL comments are quite revealing.

[BritishHobo]

It's amazing the difference between the UK and the US ones. In the American show the conversations are so overblown, nobody speaks to anyone else like they're talking to a human being. Everything is at 11, all the time, especially Gordon. They're all the lead performer in a panto. I caught a bit of a UK one, and Gordon was having a quiet laugh with the chef anout a swear jar/smoke-break jar. Just a matey bit of chat inbetween the pressure. There's nothing like that in the US one - every moment is the increasingly louder ticking of a terrifying timebomb, the pressure always building.

Fucking love it though.

[Huxleys Babkins]

I love how the Yanks fawningly call him Chef Ramsay, like it's a police/military rank and not just the job title of someone in charge of a kitchen.

[QDRPHNC]

Love it - seen them all and I regularly watch highlights on YouTube - I know it's just tv but it never ceases to amaze me just how shit places are

The US version really stacks the deck in many cases. While the UK restaurants are, for the most part, places that seem like they should be doing better than they are given the location or the money invested or the backgrounds of the people running them, the US version will find a dank bar in a strip mall in Ohio for Ramsay to start kicking off about frozen food.

Yes Gordon, it's a dank bar in a strip mall in Ohio.

[Shoulders?-Stomach!]

Love the UK episode with the timid husband and wife who visibly flinched whenever he swore. The bearded guy had an insane selection of different plates for hundreds of different dishes. They learned their lesson and then when leaving Ramsey signed off with:

And if you ever find he's hoarding plates and never using them COME AND TELL ME COS I'LL SMASH THEM OVER HIS FUCKING HEAD

[QDRPHNC]

Ah yes, that was a good one. Eccentric man, but threw himself into the Real Gravy campaign with admirable gusto.

[imitationleather]

Was he the guy who'd had about thirty heart attacks?

[bgmnts]

Ah yes, that was a good one. Eccentric man, but threw himself into the Real Gravy campaign with admirable gusto.

With admirable bisto.

[Epic Bisto]

Ah yes, that was a good one. Eccentric man, but threw himself into the Real Gravy campaign with admirable gusto.

"I know you like that because your fucking tongue is sticking out!"

[PowerButchi]

"Bollocks to Bisto!  Bollocks to Maggi!"

[bgmnts]

Le Bistro episode.

Weirdest most petulant cunt i've seen with the most bizarre accent. Wanted him to fail badly.