Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares Revisited (DVD)

Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares is a great show, and in my opinion is one of the best programs on tv at the moment, although this isn't difficult as the quality of programs being broadcasted at the moment is very poor. Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares is broadcasted on Channel 4, and has done since the series first aired in 2004. The show has since gone on to make 5 series, all of which have been excellent, and I genuinely can't remember a poor episode being ...
...a dull moment in the Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares shows, as with nearly every episode, Chef Ramsay is faced with a stereotypically, obnoxious, 'head-up-his-own-@rse' (Ramsay's own words) chef, who fails to accept his own faults and lack of abilities. This is almost a recurring theme throughout the series, and often leads to many heated disputes and confrontations, of which there is always only one winner. To be fair to Ramsay, he never seems to back ... more

Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares is a great show, and in my opinion is one of the best programs on tv at the moment, although this isn't difficult as the quality of programs being broadcasted at the moment is very poor. Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares is broadcasted on Channel 4, and has done since the series first aired in 2004. The show has since gone on to make 5 series, all of which have been excellent, and I genuinely can't remember a poor episode being shown in any.

Ramsay's kitchen Nightmares is a reality documentary show, that sees celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay visiting struggling restaurants throughout the country, and how he attempts to help the failing restaurants avoid certain closure. He does this in a manner of ways, from changing the menus to altering the decor, but ultimately by teaching the head chef's he is confronted with to cook .. properly. During many of the episodes that have been shown, a 'Re-visited' follow-on show has been broadcasted the following year, where Gordon Ramsay returns to the retaurants he has previously visited to find out if they have in fact improved, and stuck to the advice given to them.

There is never a dull moment in the Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares shows, as with nearly every episode, Chef Ramsay is faced with a stereotypically, obnoxious, 'head-up-his-own-@rse' (Ramsay's own words) chef, who fails to accept his own faults and lack of abilities. This is almost a recurring theme throughout the series, and often leads to many heated disputes and confrontations, of which there is always only one winner. To be fair to Ramsay, he never seems to back down, no matter what size the opposing chef, and there was also an episode where he even stood up to an irrate, knife-wielding chef .. stupidly maybe, but nevertheless he did.

I often get annoyed with many of the restaurant owners and chef's in the shows, as Ramsay's methods are pretty much textbook, and he basically preaches the same points in each and every show. With every restaurant he visits, Ramsay always simplyfies the menu, introduces new dishes using fresh, local ingredients, as opposed to frozen foods, and where need be, will update old looking, dated decor. What annoys me about the owners and chef's is that had they bothered to watch the show before asking for Ramsay's help, they would know exactly what to do, and how to improve, and so wouldn't need his help in the first place. It often baffles me why this is never the case.

The success of Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares has spawned the creation of an American equivilent, called just 'Kitchen Nightmares', but in which Gordon Ramsay also appears. This series is just as good as the British version, if not better. The chef's he has to deal with over the pond are often more arrogant and headstrong than their British counterparts, which often leads to even bigger rows and confrontations. His methods are much the same in this version, the only difference being that there is obviously a larger budget involved in the show, since a make-over of the restaurants involved is always included.

I like Gordon Ramsay a lot, he is honest, and always tells it like he is. He can come across as arrogant himself, but he is not, this is simply the way he is. There are some occassions where I believe he may have treated a chef harshly, and it is easy to see how these chef's do often boil at wave after wave of harsh critisism that is thrown ay them. But despite this, he is definitely a man to be respected, and who undoubtedly knows his stuff. The number of restaurants he has saved from certain closure, and turned into profit making businesses is proof of that.

This DVD includes the first 4 episodes of the show that were ever made, and sees Gordon Ramsay re-visit the scenes to inspect the progress, or lack of, made by the restaurants since his original visit. The re-visited episodes are basically repeats of the original episodes, but also include footage that was previously unseen in the original episodes. The re-visited part of the episode doesn't last too long, only a brief 10 - 15 minutes at the end of the episode. This 2 disk DVD also includes special features such as an introduction and interview with the great man himself, and also a biography his life. The biography tells the story of how Ramsay went from an unsettled chilhood, which included an abusive, alcoholic father, to his promising football career with Rangers football club, that was cut short due to a serious knee injury. Despite suffering many setbacks in his life, Gordon Ramsay's strong will and determination has seen him become one of the leading culinary chef's in the UK. The man deserves respect!

I can't recommend this show enough, if you can handle Gordon Ramsay's ways, then this is a great way to spend the evenings viewing! 

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