Gordon Ramsay’s Food Stars - General Discussion

[seacliffsal]

I was sorry to see Jourdan leave at the beginning of the episode as he was my favorite so far as he didn't create drama and cooked whatever his team wanted.  He seemed low-key, mature, and experienced (maybe that's why the show let him leave...).  I had to look up Chanel as I didn't remember her, and even after seeing a couple of photos and reading about her as one of LA's top vegan chefs I still don't remember her.  Sigh.

Okay, Caroline can just leave.  I was really hoping her team was going to lose just so she could be eliminated.  Who chose her to decide what to do about the presentation after the sick woman said she couldn't do the presentation?  I think Megan would have been much better, but Caroline wanted to show her who was boss.

Very telling who the contestants think are the 'cool' contestants and who isn't.  Tony wanted to present and Jake came up with a non-reason why someone else was going to present.  The woman on the other team said she had never seen red wine at a spa and they just ignored her and then all of a sudden were shocked when Gordon said the same thing.

I think they will have to have two non-eliminations episodes to make up for the two early exits.  

[mlp]

I agree with your entire post,  lgandkihei.  I even find the guy with the dangly fork earring the least offensive - except for the earring which I loathe.  I don't actually like any of them.

The woman with the colon issues has one weird eye.  I keep getting distracted and wondering about it.

[TVbitch]

I wonder if the two who bailed realized that this show was going to be all about manufactured drama and making the contestants look stupid and just said "no thank you." They seemed like no drama kind of people and I would not blame then. 

The fight between Megan and the other woman seemed like they had been told by producers to have a fight "Housewives" style, and Megan could barely stop from laughing the whole time at the absurdity of it. I'm quite sure Gordon already knows who he is interested in investing in and the rest are fodder.  

[AZChristian]

Most of these people look like the type of people that Robert Irvine tries to rescue on "Restaurant Impossible."  They have no idea what they're doing, but they like being the boss.  Loosely translated, that means they don't know anything, but they're trying to bull***t and boss everyone into doing what they say to do.  But then when they come up against someone who is successful in the restaurant world, there's no hiding their incompetence.

 

[Daff]

20 hours ago, lgandkihei said:

I totally agree with the above comments about the blond going from zero to sixty, health-wise,  without any warning.

To be fair, that’s exactly how Chrone’s works-why they’re called “episodes”, coming unexpectedly. That said, with her history of colon problems, you would expect she’s on medication to control the symptoms. And it certainly doesn’t explain her bad attitudes toward her teammates.

[Daff]

14 hours ago, AZChristian said:

Most of these people look like the type of people that Robert Irvine tries to rescue on "Restaurant Impossible."  They have no idea what they're doing, but they like being the boss.  Loosely translated, that means they don't know anything, but they're trying to bull***t and boss everyone into doing what they say to do.  But then when they come up against someone who is successful in the restaurant world, there's no hiding their incompetence.

 

“Survivor-Restauranteur Version”! I’ve never watched an episode of Survivor, just know there’s a lot of back stabbing.

18 hours ago, mlp said:

I agree with your entire post,  lgandkihei.  I even find the guy with the dangly fork earring the least offensive - except for the earring which I loathe.  I don't actually like any of them.

The woman with the colon issues has one weird eye.  I keep getting distracted and wondering about it.

I keep wondering about the dog ears she knots her hair into. What mature woman does that? Does she really expect to be taken seriously sporting those?

[AZChristian]

4 minutes ago, Daff said:

“Survivor-Restauranteur Version”! I’ve never watched an episode of Survivor, just know there’s a lot of back stabbing.

And ganging up on other contestants . . . usually the ones who are perceived as threats because of their better skills.

[eel2178]

2 hours ago, Daff said:

I keep wondering about the dog ears she knots her hair into. What mature woman does that? Does she really expect to be taken seriously sporting those?

I only other time I've seen them on an adult was Emma Bunton of The Spice Girls. That is why I keep referring to her as Baby Spice in case any of you missed that.

[eel2178]

2 hours ago, Daff said:

To be fair, that’s exactly how Chrone’s works-why they’re called “episodes”, coming unexpectedly. That said, with her history of colon problems, you would expect she’s on medication to control the symptoms. 

The medications that are used to control Crohn's disease cause immunosuppression which greatly increases the risk of developing cancer. I would assume that she had been on them previously which is what contributed to her to getting colon cancer at such a young age and now that she has already had cancer, it is considered too big a risk to keep her on them now.

Stress also increases the risk of a Crohn's flair-up which makes her a horrible candidate for any reality show competition.

[eel2178]

2 hours ago, Daff said:

“Survivor-Restauranteur Version”!

I think of it more as The Apprentice with Gordon Ramsey replacing Donald Trump or Martha Stewart.

[Daff]

1 hour ago, eel2178 said:

The medications that are used to control Crohn's disease cause immunosuppression which greatly increases the risk of developing cancer. I would assume that she had been on them previously which is what contributed to her to getting colon cancer at such a young age and now that she has already had cancer, it is considered too big a risk to keep her on them now.

Stress also increases the risk of a Crohn's flair-up which makes her a horrible candidate for any reality show competition.

Good to know. Long ago, I had a roommate who was diagnosed with it-long before any medications were available to treat the symptoms. See, I didn’t even spell it right. We also played softball together, and let’s just say the coach was not very sympathetic toward a condition that she could do nothing about. 
 

1 hour ago, eel2178 said:

I only other time I've seen them on an adult was Emma Bunton of The Spice Girls. That is why I keep referring to her as Baby Spice in case any of you missed that.

You’ve heard people say, “They were before my time”?  Well, I was way before their time!
 

1 hour ago, eel2178 said:

I think of it more as The Apprentice with Gordon Ramsey replacing Donald Trump or Martha Stewart.

I get it- “I won’t be investing in you,” instead of “You’re fired!” But I never watched “Apprentice” either. Seems like those were the only promos the network ever showed. 

Edited June 9, 2023 by Daff

[jcbrown]

10 hours ago, Daff said:

To be fair, that’s exactly how Chrone’s works-why they’re called “episodes”, coming unexpectedly. That said, with her history of colon problems, you would expect she’s on medication to control the symptoms. And it certainly doesn’t explain her bad attitudes toward her teammates.

Or her dumbass hairstyle. Is she five years old?

[potatoradio]

On 6/8/2023 at 12:18 PM, lgandkihei said:

How horrible a person do I sound if I say I pretty much hate them all? 

If you're horrible, so am I and I'll save you a seat at the horrible people table. I can't stand any of these idiots. Just watching because it's Ramsay and there's not much else on at the moment. 

Who thought it was a good idea to have Megan sit on the floor in a ball gown with a slit up to her privates during the pregrilling? That didn't look completely ridiculous at all. 

Didn't know it was such a faux pas to drink red wine at a spa. I'm thinking a nice pinot noir on a fall day sounds kinda inviting, but I'm not the type to peel my face off on a regular basis, so...

[oliviabenson]

A few people left at the beginning including the food truck vegan one. Guess they realized the show wasn’t for them.

[oliviabenson]

Sydney is annoying I hope she doesn’t win.

Ashley: how many eyelashes is she wearing? Looks like a spider.

[jcbrown]

On 6/10/2023 at 8:58 AM, potatoradio said:

Who thought it was a good idea to have Megan sit on the floor in a ball gown with a slit up to her privates during the pregrilling? That didn't look completely ridiculous at all. 

I had the same thought. Wildly overdressed and it made her look like a literal poseur.

[GHScorpiosRule]

Caroline’s ass can leave any time now.

Aside from her bullying behavior, she proved yet again she SUCKS MONKEY BALLS at presenting. How many times did she say “grassy flavor” or whatever? My point being she kept repeating herself and looked STOOPID the longer she kept yapping.

[mertensia]

Does Caroline look like actress Erika Christensen to anyone else?

[KeithJ]

Wow.  Caroline is really a bitch.  She can criticize all she wants but as soon as someone criticizes something she did (and rightfully so), she goes right at them. 

Unless a lot was edited out, I don't really see why Luther was saying that Queen was trying to run the team.  All she did was tell Luther to STFU when he was trying to organize Chris' (I think it was Chris) station his way instead of letting Chris set it up how he wanted. And Luther, when Gordon Ramsay tells you, on his show, to do (or not do) something, you listen.  You don't double-down on what you were originally doing.

[seacliffsal]

Luther lost as soon as he disagreed with Gordon about how/when to cook the steak.  Really?  Thinking he knows better than Gordon?  Just no.

I felt like Queen was trying to bail out the team from Luther's poor leadership (including his micromanaging).  Glad that Queen has Caroline's number.  

The other person with a lot of nerve was the guy who was cooking the grilled cheese on the other team as he knew he was sending out burnt grilled cheese.  His team mates even questioned him about it but he brushed them off.  

Gordon has the ability to draw some big names for judging on his various shows.

[Daff]

On 6/13/2023 at 12:34 AM, GHScorpiosRule said:

Caroline’s ass can leave any time now.

Aside from her bullying behavior, she proved yet again she SUCKS MONKEY BALLS at presenting. How many times did she say “grassy flavor” or whatever? My point being she kept repeating herself and looked STOOPID the longer she kept yapping.

She seriously needs to drop the word “you” from her vocabulary. Time and time again, after she claims to know it all, she’s proven wrong and just rolls her eyes. Then she starts yapping off the “you”-bombs.

[mertensia]

3 hours ago, KeithJ said:

Wow.  Caroline is really a bitch.  She can criticize all she wants but as soon as someone criticizes something she did (and rightfully so), she goes right at them. 

Unless a lot was edited out, I don't really see why Luther was saying that Queen was trying to run the team.  All she did was tell Luther to STFU when he was trying to organize Chris' (I think it was Chris) station his way instead of letting Chris set it up how he wanted. And Luther, when Gordon Ramsay tells you, on his show, to do (or not do) something, you listen.  You don't double-down on what you were originally doing.

I think any team she is on is doomed. Bitch gonna bitch.

 

Luther was just way too laid back.

[fishcakes]

I adored how much the food photographer clearly hated Caroline. He was talking and smiling with Megan on the other team, then they'd cut to him being completely stonefaced while Caroline micromanaged him.

[lgandkihei]

Ok, so I think most (all?) of us are in agreement that Caroline is beyond arrogant and obnoxious.  All I can think is that she's working overtime to make an impression so that somebody in TV land can discover her and waltz her off to stardom.  Maybe she's a believer in the whole "so bad she's good" or "the one you love to hate" school of thought? 

That being said, the teams had four (five?  not sure) other people on them, so her team wussing out and letting her call all the shots was just stupid.  They all preferred the steak or the chicken photo to the close-up eggplant one, so why did her choice prevail?  Since they all knew that one of their asses was on the line if they lost, it was asinine to let her ride roughshod over them. 

Queen and Luther have been oil and water since week one, so you knew that wasn't ever going to end well.  If he's the ghost kitchen expert, maybe he should have done something more to help?  Technically, if the fork earring guy was in charge of the bacon jam (which he forgot) and the grilled cheese (which he burnt), then he had actual errors, but he seems harmless, so I don't mind that he skated through. 

The gluten-free fiasco was shocking- - I'm not a chef, but I get the connection between wheat and gluten, and even dumbass me knows that bulgur is wheat!  Duh!  Not a single one of these experts picked up on that?  How'd that slip past Caroline since she's soooo perfect?

Also, the eyelash girl has done nothing to annoy me, except to wear those stupid caterpillars on her eyes, which distract me so much that I know absolutely nothing else about her!   I understand that we all see ourselves differently from how others see us, but c'mon!  Is there no one around her who might just drop a friendly little hint to maybe ease up just a tad?

For now, I couldn't care less who ultimately wins, but please just get Caroline off my screen as soon as possible.  

Edited June 15, 2023 by lgandkihei

[mertensia]

This is Caroline:  https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caroline_D'Amore

[eel2178]

On 6/12/2023 at 10:46 PM, mertensia said:

Does Caroline look like actress Erika Christensen to anyone else?

She looks as though she was doing laundry and forgot to separate the colors from the whites then used the rinse water to wash her hair.

[lgandkihei]

Thanks so much for that link!  It's all so clear to me now!  So forget everything I said about Caroline wanting to be discovered by Hollywood.  She's obviously already a part of that whole young Hollywood reality famewhore vibe, so I can now see this whole food enterprise as just one more marketing ploy.  She's ambitious, I'll certainly give her that.

All the more reason to hope she crashes and burns quickly, but I suspect she'll just come crawling out of the ashes with a new gig anyway.

I guess I'm a softie, but I'd really prefer if this show was looking to actually help someone who truly could use the leg up, along with the financial boost from Gordon.  Caroline obviously doesn't need it.

[mlp]

20 hours ago, mertensia said:

This is Caroline:  https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caroline_D'Amore

I'll bet she wrote that whole thing herself.  So she pals around with Paris Hilton and Kardashians.  I already couldn't stand her and that information didn't improve my opinion one bit.

[Tango64]

Ugh, I hate seeing these reality tv regulars cast in shows that are presented as just regulars folks trying to succeed. I’d respect any show that banned applicants who have been on any other tv show. 

[TVbitch]

At least the UK version was mostly regular people. Still it was totally obvious by the end that Gordon had chosen the "winner" beforehand based on which product he wanted to invest in. 

[AZChristian]

On 6/16/2023 at 12:43 PM, mlp said:

I'll bet she wrote that whole thing herself.  So she pals around with Paris Hilton and Kardashians.  I already couldn't stand her and that information didn't improve my opinion one bit.

Wow.  Her Wiki entry is more detailed than REAL stars.  She sure has a high opinion of herself.  I'd have rewritten it as:

Caroline D'Amore:  High school dropout with family money.  

She seems not to recognize that all of the accomplishments she lists are focused on famous people she tries to hang around with.  Her whole bragathon is summarized thusly:  "Going out in LA, I don't have to wait in line or anything like that. I don't remember the last time I did that. It's definitely the VIP lifestyle. Drinks are often on the house and I've lived a fabulous life so far . . . "

Wow.  What a narcissist.  

[KeithJ]

On 6/15/2023 at 5:53 PM, mertensia said:

This is Caroline:  https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caroline_D'Amore

Reading all of that makes me dislike her even more.  She must have spent a lot of time on that.  I really hate it when shows like this cast someone that really doesn't need the help but they are there just for drama.

[jabRI]

42 minutes ago, KeithJ said:

I really hate it when shows like this cast someone that really doesn't need the help but they are there just for drama.

Yeah, they cast trash like this for the intended drama, instead of worthy worker bees who could actually use a hand up.

[eel2178]

4 hours ago, AZChristian said:

Wow.  What a narcissist.  

She reminds me of one the girls from Pretty Wild.

https://archive.vanityfair.com/article/share/e9cc0cc3-dbf1-4fab-8367-5fc7c05608e6

[mertensia]

6 hours ago, KeithJ said:

Reading all of that makes me dislike her even more.  She must have spent a lot of time on that.  I really hate it when shows like this cast someone that really doesn't need the help but they are there just for drama.

What? You aren't impressed that she "sashayed down the runway"?

[candall]

I haven't checked in with this mess since the first episode and it's all exactly the same! 

Queen still refuses to listen to anyone about any-bloody-thing, the prom queen girls are still sniping at each other, and the idiot redhead guy is still just standing on the side staring vacantly into space while the whole exercise implodes around him. 

 

Now, about that idiot redhead.  I HATED watching him kick that fish.  The objection Gordon was searching for was "Because you don't treat a living creature with such casual cruelty."

Of course, all the fish they hurled back into the water were soon just as dead as the one he was kicking across the rocks.  (If you want to release a fish, you gently lower it into the water and support it until its gills acclimate and it shoots away.)

No one associated with this stupid show knew fuck-all about fishing.  All that screeching and yelling!  Hasn't anyone ever heard of "Quiet!  You'll scare the fish!"?

 

How's that writers' strike coming along?  We're really scraping the bottom of the barrel with this dross.

[threebluestars]

... Does Gordon have to give money to one of these people? Is he being punished for something?

[seacliffsal]

IMO Queen was the right person to send home.  As much as I dislike Caroline, she did contribute to a positive experience for the clients (darn it...).  Queen went on about how undercooked food is not what she does, but it is exactly what she does.  I really thought the yellow team was going to win, so the food portion had to be a really bad experience.  Caroline could hardly wait to jump in and try to place the blame on Meghan, but Gordon was actually there and saw all of the under-cooked fish.  He even stated that grilling trout was easier than grilling burgers so he probably already knew what he was going to do at that point.

I really don't know who is being set up to win, but I think the young guy who doesn't know how to adapt in social situations may be soon to go.

[AZChristian]

1 hour ago, seacliffsal said:

I really don't know who is being set up to win, but I think the young guy who doesn't know how to adapt in social situations may be soon to go.

Knowing how Gordon's "competitions" really go, I think it's going to come down to Caroline and Lan at the end.   All I know for sure is that there's going to be a dramatic pause and a long commercial break before the final winner is announced.

[DanaK]

4 hours ago, seacliffsal said:

IMO Queen was the right person to send home.  As much as I dislike Caroline, she did contribute to a positive experience for the clients (darn it...).  Queen went on about how undercooked food is not what she does, but it is exactly what she does.  I really thought the yellow team was going to win, so the food portion had to be a really bad experience.  Caroline could hardly wait to jump in and try to place the blame on Meghan, but Gordon was actually there and saw all of the under-cooked fish.  He even stated that grilling trout was easier than grilling burgers so he probably already knew what he was going to do at that point.

I really don't know who is being set up to win, but I think the young guy who doesn't know how to adapt in social situations may be soon to go.

I can't recall, has Queenie undercooked food before on the show?

[seacliffsal]

15 minutes ago, DanaK said:

I can't recall, has Queenie undercooked food before on the show?

I don't know about previous episodes, but she did this episode, so she does under-cook food.  Maybe not all of the time, but she did.

[AZChristian]

33 minutes ago, seacliffsal said:

I don't know about previous episodes, but she did this episode, so she does under-cook food.  Maybe not all of the time, but she did.

In previous episodes, I just remember her crossing the line between "take-charge attitude" and demonstrating that she didn't have the chops to be in charge.  Rude, condescending, and - as they said last night - unwilling to listen to anyone.

[lgandkihei]

Ok, so I'm sure we're all experienced and savvy competition show watchers, so I don't think I'm talking out of school by saying that lots of this is manufactured drama and not exactly cinema-verite.  We get it, right?  That said, naturally it's written/edited to make us feel like the conclusion really is up for grabs.  We're supposed to root for our favorites (the good guys?) and hiss at the villains, hence the careful casting to get a diverse variety of characters.

Since Gordon is supposedly going to bankroll one of them (why do I not believe that it's his "personal" money, even though $250K to him is like $10 to me), naturally he wants to pick someone with actual potential.  Therefore, of course he's actually going to know what the real story is and not rely on the stupid "grilling" interview.  Obviously, in that situation, they're basically all going to make themselves look great while sabotaging everyone else, so he'd have no way to actually know the truth.  That's not the way anyone would decide a $250K decision.

Queen definitely outstayed her welcome.  She obviously isn't nearly the be-all/end-all expert that she seems to think she is, and if I recall, it's not the first time she's messed up a cook.  Plus, her lack of any sort of compromise is not so endearing, and I can only imagine what a nightmare she'd be to work with in real life.  I'm not necessarily pro-Megan, but I did feel for her in this instance, because she did keep trying to get the table set and the drinks ready, getting shot down repeatedly. Then again, just because Queen told her to wait, she didn't have to, did she?  Queen wasn't in charge of anything, so Megan could have simply done whatever she wanted, couldn't she?  Oh wait....if she had done that, we would have missed all that lovely drama.  I forgot.

Speaking of which, Caroline was off at the fishing hole, so she had absolutely no idea what had transpired back at the grill, but as soon as her entitled pink head appeared, she decided that Megan was throwing Queen under the bus.  WTF?  Then, they all got to pile on accordingly while Queen stood there looking wounded.  I guess Caroline could see that she didn't have a big enough part this week, so she had to jump in to grab some air time rather then risk her precious TV exposure.  Remember, in her eyes, she's already a huge star, because she gets to flit around and hang with Paris and the Kardashians.

The red-haired kid can leave anytime, too.  Thus far, he's just struck me as basically clueless and semi-annoying, but kicking the fish put him on my loathe list.  No, I don't especially enjoy putting worms on hooks or taking them out of the caught fish's mouth and touching all that slimy stuff, but you don't just kick the poor fish through the dirt, you jackass!  I realize that it's just a sunny or a bass or whatever it is, and its days are probably pretty numbered anyway, but people who abuse an animal (ANY animal) are dead to me.

But, above and beyond all that, those eyelashes continue to horrify! Forget the cooking- - Gordon should invest his money in getting her a professional make-up make-over person.

 

Edited June 23, 2023 by lgandkihei

[Madding crowd]

I still don’t see the connection between any of this stuff and the business they want Gordon to invest in. I get he wants to test teamwork and problem solving skills but there is a difference between solving a problem with a spice business or food app and knowing how to teach fishing or ax throwing. 
Queen seems like she can cook but will not listen to anyone else. Caroline just wants air time and to cause trouble and there are already a million kinds of pizza/spaghetti sauces out there, we don’t need hers.

[fishcakes]

I've noticed that Queen and Caroline both say the names of their businesses as often as possible, probably thinking that if they don't win, at least they get all that free advertising. And that's okay with me because if I ever see a Pizza Girl or Indulgent Essential Spices product in the store, I'll know not to buy it.

[mertensia]

Well, as a resident of Tucson, I can assure you that the Tanque Verde Guest Ranch is real although I have never been there.

Queen was the.right person to go. Stuffing cabbage in trout? Like, what?

Caroline, rest assured I will remember the name of your brand.....And never ever  buy it because I loathe you.

 

[mlp]

I keep wondering why Gordon is involved in a show this bad.  Surely he doesn't need the money.  I also wonder if Caroline was hired to play a part.  She doesn't seem to be all that knowledgeable and she's not attractive but she's very good at being the villain.

Queen was difficult and hard to work with so I was glad to see her go.  Megan seems a lot nicer but she just acted like a doormat instead of ignoring Queen and getting the tables set and so on.  She's never going to win.

The heavy-set gal (don't know her name) needs to take several steps back from her false eyelashes.  She must think they make her look more attractive but she can't have looked in a mirror.  Yike.

The only one I sort of like is the tall guy with the ridiculous dangling earring but that earring puts me off.  I can't remember what his product is so I have no idea if it's something Gordon might want to promote.

 

 

[Colorado David]

i need to go bac to watch kitchen nightmares, becuase gordon's eyes seem unnaturally blue on this show. like they have been digitally enhanced?? i get it is tv, it just seems so phony for a legit chef.

 

eta: I thought Luther got sent home, not Queen? am i behind in watching?

Edited June 22, 2023 by Colorado David

[KeithJ]

I don't think there was any answer Megan could have given Gordon that wouldn't have been "throwing Queen under the bus".

Gordon: How's everything going?
Megan: Great! (lie)

Gordon: How's everything going?
Megan: We're behind.
Gordon: Why, what's going on?
Megan: The fish is raw (throws Queen under the bus).

Gordon: How's everything going?
Megan: Ask Queen (throws Queen under the bus).

I was glad that Gordon brought up that three times now Queen's teammates complained about her not wanting to listen to them.

[DanaK]

1 hour ago, Colorado David said:

i need to go bac to watch kitchen nightmares, becuase gordon's eyes seem unnaturally blue on this show. like they have been digitally enhanced?? i get it is tv, it just seems so phony for a legit chef.

 

eta: I thought Luther got sent home, not Queen? am i behind in watching?

Luther went home last week