Non-Disney Entertainment
Topic: "Kitchen Nightmares" - TV show

#	Author	Message
1	cstephens Wed 9/19/2007 11:13p	I started watching "Hell's Kitchen" because the husband was watching it. I've seen the past couple seasons, and I usually start watching about half-way into the season. I'm not particularly keen on Gordon Ramsay's abrasive tactics, but you can see that he does really appreciate good cooking talent and expects of others the same that he expects of himself. So I decided to give this new show a try as well. This show is like a combination of "Extreme Makeover" and "Supernanny". Ramsay goes into a different restaurant each week that is on the verge of failure and tries to help them fix it up. The first episode has him in a family-run Italian restaurant where the brother co-owner, Peter, is the major problem. It was really frustrating to watch Peter's antics, and it was really fun when Gordon gave him the needed dressing-downs, much to the amusement, appreciation and admiration of the sister co-owner and everyone else on the staff who has had to put up with Peter's shenanigans. Oftentimes, these kinds of shows are done from the restauranteur/businessman's perspectives, but knowing that Ramsay is an accomplished chef gives you a different look. When he is examining the refrigeration units and sees the rotting vegetables and other food and sees the deplorable state of the kitchen, with so many non-working or non-existent tools, you can see how appalled Ramsay is at those conditions. It's an enjoyable hour of television, and it's being added to my schedule as well. /cs
2	Lisann22 Wed 9/19/2007 11:16p	Holy cow that guy Peter was such a jerk. It was like a 250lb 2 year old! I enjoyed the show too.
3	sarahwithbaloo Wed 9/19/2007 11:54p	Is this a version made in the US or the UK one bein shown over there ? I love this show. If it is a US version I hope they show it here.
4	DAR Thu 9/20/2007 4:47a	I loved how the "bill collectors" looked like these mobbed up gangsters.
5	u k fan Thu 9/20/2007 7:12a	Sarah, do you remember Momma Cherie who had the soul food shack in Brighton? I have her cookbook and it's excellent!!!
6	cstephens Thu 9/20/2007 8:03a	It's the US version of the UK show. /cs
7	sarahwithbaloo Thu 9/20/2007 8:08a	^^Cool I guess 1 of our channels will ick it up sooner or later.
8	trekkeruss Thu 9/20/2007 8:20a	I was really looking forward to this show, and I did enjoy it and will keep watching, but as I feared, it has been "Americanized" by FOX and is not nearly as good as the BBC version. The U.K. show was much more of a documentary, while this show has that reality-show burnish. I don't like the melodramatic voice-over announcer, nor the silly background soundtrack; it's a much better show with Ramsay providing the voice-overs, and sans the incessant and overly loud music. As for this particular makeover...LOL! Peter was a real piece of work! Ramsay nailed it that he was the main reason for the restaurant's problems. What was a bit odd was the quick turnaround in his attitude. The magic of eidting and the need to get the show under 44 minutes, I guess, but it makes me wonder what *really* happened.
9	u k fan Thu 9/20/2007 9:02a	<<Cool I guess 1 of our channels will ick it up sooner or later.>> I'll add a P please, Bob!!!
10	Jim in Merced CA Thu 9/20/2007 9:38a	I would agree, trekkeruss. I really like the BBC version -- it's a bit more laid-back. This one is produced by the 'Hell's Kitchen' people, and so does have that forced intensity. Makes it seem more staged to me. Sure, in the BBC version, Ramsay gets in people's faces and dresses people down, but it's just different. Maybe it was this Italian restaurant in Babylon, NY that was chosen here. Peter was such an Italian cliche -- with his man-tan, bleached teeth, and sculpted eyebrows, cheap looking suits, expensive car -- and with all the 'Goodfella' wannabes and so forth, it just came across as farce. And at the end, when Peter was hosting a 'kids in the park' event for the neighborhood, the switch just felt too fast to me. We'll see how it progresses.

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