S16.E01: 18 Chefs Compete

[Drogo]

18 Chefs Compete!

[susannot]

Women look strong.

[Tipsymcstagger]

Agree that the women look good. And - with the exception of Gia - appear to be drama free. I'm sure that will all dissolve next episode. The men are pretty terrible. I wish they'd sent that idiot redneck Matt home. He's terrible in pretty much every way.

[candall]

I saw the first couple of seasons of this, skipped the next thirteen.  Hey, it's exactly the same!  Gordon even spits the most offensive offerings into the same bucket.

But here's my question for you true blue fans:  they don't really put one of these jokers in charge of an elegant fine-dining establishment at The Venetian, do they?  I believe those jobs are hard-earned after 20 years of working your way up the ladder.  Maybe it's like the Project Runway car prize, which is actually a one-year lease.

 

The women do appear to be strong.  I liked the one who made fresh gnocchi--she said "Thank you" at the end of her THs.  That's a nice change from some of these dipshits that seem so proud of being . . . uncouth.

[mlp]

Well, that was ridiculous.  Why on earth did GR show up in a tank and have the cheftestants run an obstacle course?  I suspect that had a lot more to do with Gordon's ego than anything he said it was intended to demonstrate.  

The theme song visuals were a big improvement over last season.  At least they had to do with fire.

I always think that a couple of the contestants are plants who are there to be ridiculous and leave early.  I'm suspicious of Matt who was allowed to stay after outright insubordination and the female who used canned clams.

I'm sure I've seen Paulie somewhere before but I can't imagine where.  I wonder if he was ever on Chopped.  

[GHScorpiosRule]

I don't know how Ramsay continues to do this show and act like an utter and complete asshole. I mean, I saw him live yesterday, at his restaurant, making scallops, and working with two of his chefs, and he couldn't be more charming, patient, and funny! No f-bombs or mild cursing. And I admit, I love it when he says "Darling" or "My Darling." It's so sexy.

Ahem. Topic?

I've said in other show forums, that I just love watching him cook, and that hasn't changed. I just continue to remain confused at the two sides of Gordon Ramsay. Why he can't be his, real self, like he was in the live video yesterday, and on the UK The F Word, continues to elude me.

And there's no one I like here. Granted, I haven't watched in years, but it's the same old, same old.  The fact that there are still guys out there, who are supposed to be adults, still act like "ewww, girls have cooties!" and that men are better in and at everything, is just...well, I have no words.

[AZChristian]

I cannot believe Matt is still there.  That is all.

[Albino]

2 hours ago, GHScorpiosRule said:

I don't know how Ramsay continues to do this show and act like an utter and complete asshole. I mean, I saw him live yesterday, at his restaurant, making scallops, and working with two of his chefs, and he couldn't be more charming, patient, and funny! No f-bombs or mild cursing. And I admit, I love it when he says "Darling" or "My Darling." It's so sexy.

That is nice to hear.  But who would watch a show where he was charming and patient with these idiots?

Ramsay:  'WHO COOKED THE FISH?"  "WHO COOKED THE RISOTTO?"  "WHO COOKED THE WHATEVER?"

Dead silence.  What the hell?  It's really rock bottom when these wusses won't even own up to their own mistakes.

I did like Johnny calling out Matt (I think?) for his laughable tough guy belligerence when Ramsay was chewing him out.

The ladies will fall apart next week, I'm sure.

[TDT]

3 hours ago, GHScorpiosRule said:

I've said in other show forums, that I just love watching him cook, and that hasn't changed. I just continue to remain confused at the two sides of Gordon Ramsay. Why he can't be his, real self, like he was in the live video yesterday, and on the UK The F Word, continues to elude me.

 

speaking of The F Word,wish he'd bring that show back..

 

There should a drinking game like for the previous seasons.. take a drink each time Ramsay says:

"ALL OF YOU,COME HERE!!

"COME HERE,YOU.."

"You,you,you(and you)..GET OUT!!"

or if there is the"going into the storeroom to get chewed out" bit(complete with the camera shake for dramatic effect when he slams the door LOL)

Episode ends with a "TO BE CONTINUED.."

Edited September 24, 2016 by TDT

[spiderpig]

6 hours ago, AZChristian said:

I cannot believe Matt is still there.  That is all.

Matt looks like a byproduct of When Cousins Marry.

When Pat said "I'm Italian and I can make risotto in my sleep" you knew he would screw it up.  The rest of the men were such tools.  Did you notice the weird captions during their talking heads?  One was "Burger Chef".  What's next?  "Pot Scrubber"?***

***Have to clarify that I am not deriding burger chefs or pot scrubbers who perform their tasks honorably on a daily basis.  It's just the manic promotion of the fabulous prize at an overpriced Vegas resort, and they can't find enough executive/head/sous chefs or sauciers to compete?

In general, the competitors on HK look like they just got off a prison bus.

Edited September 24, 2016 by spiderpig

[OhioSongbird]

Matt & Pat were a toss-up for me to leave.  But you know they kept him for draaama, man, draaama.

I call Ryan for the win with Heidi a close second.

[Tipsymcstagger]

Ryan was really lovely and seemed so reserved and free of nonsense. I hope that doesn't mean she'll get the heave-ho for the likes of morons like Matt. Given the coarseness (to put it politely) of past contestants, she really didn't seem to fit in. Maybe she thought she was applying for Master Chef? Or she's never seen this show?

[threebluestars]

Matt was such a tough guy wannabe. God, he makes me cringe.

[mojoween]

I have watched every episode of this show and I have no idea who Scott, the winner of season 12, is.

Gia is super annoying.

Oh great, another reality Paulie.

I hate this show when they do "single mom," "mother of four," "I'm doing this for my kids" yet we hardly ever hear this about the men.

[AZChristian]

4 minutes ago, mojoween said:

I have watched every episode of this show and I have no idea who Scott, the winner of season 12, is.

Scott's prize was running Gordon Ramsey's Bar and Grill at Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas.  I was there a couple of years ago, and mentioned to my server what a huge fan I was of Chef Scott when he was on the show, and how happy I was that he won, because he seemed to be a genuinely nice person.  Five minutes later, there was a tap on my shoulder:  Chef Scott had come to thank me for my kind words (and, yes, I got my wits about me enough to pose for a picture with him).

Don't ask me who a lot of the other "winners" are for HK, but I'll NEVER forget Chef Scott!!!!

[spiderpig]

19 minutes ago, AZChristian said:

Scott's prize was running Gordon Ramsey's Bar and Grill at Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas.  I was there a couple of years ago, and mentioned to my server what a huge fan I was of Chef Scott when he was on the show, and how happy I was that he won, because he seemed to be a genuinely nice person.  Five minutes later, there was a tap on my shoulder:  Chef Scott had come to thank me for my kind words (and, yes, I got my wits about me enough to pose for a picture with him).

Don't ask me who a lot of the other "winners" are for HK, but I'll NEVER forget Chef Scott!!!!

It's great to hear a positive outcome from this show.

[Sara2009]

23 hours ago, GHScorpiosRule said:

I don't know how Ramsay continues to do this show and act like an utter and complete asshole. I mean, I saw him live yesterday, at his restaurant, making scallops, and working with two of his chefs, and he couldn't be more charming, patient, and funny! No f-bombs or mild cursing. And I admit, I love it when he says "Darling" or "My Darling." It's so sexy.

Ahem. Topic?

I've said in other show forums, that I just love watching him cook, and that hasn't changed. I just continue to remain confused at the two sides of Gordon Ramsay. Why he can't be his, real self, like he was in the live video yesterday, and on the UK The F Word, continues to elude me.

And there's no one I like here. Granted, I haven't watched in years, but it's the same old, same old.  The fact that there are still guys out there, who are supposed to be adults, still act like "ewww, girls have cooties!" and that men are better in and at everything, is just...well, I have no words.

I think the appeal of this show for some people( including me) is seeing Gordon Ramsey throw temper tantrums, and it woukdn't surprise me if the producers think the more over the top the better. It's a guilty pleasure.

[jumper sage]

16 hours ago, spiderpig said:

When Pat said "I'm Italian and I can make risotto in my sleep" you knew he would screw it up.  

That is always the spoiler alert, no?  I will say Pat had to go when it was shown he did not have the ability to even set the place up.

[backformore]

6 hours ago, mojoween said:

I hate this show when they do "single mom," "mother of four," "I'm doing this for my kids" yet we hardly ever hear this about the men.

Yes, it's the way Ramsey thinks about people, if a woman has kids, he feels the need to showcase that.   It drives me crazy, because women don't need to be identified by whether or not they are mothers, unless it's relevant to the context.  

I also don't like that he still has to have the women's team and the men's team.   WHY?   Just  so we can get the "Women don't belong in professional kitchens"  and "Men think they can do better, but they can't" bullshit taunting.   Why not have random blue/red teams, having nothing to do with gender?  

Oh, and "Paulie"  isn't a grown-up name.  Especially since the last season of Big Brother, I don't want to see anyone named Paulie unless they're under the age of 8. 

[OhioSongbird]

Don't say that to Paulie Walnuts from The Sopranos!

Pat got me with his "..well, I'm a young 47..." then slacks off and let's the "young guys" do the heavy lifting.  Yeesh, dude.  Haven't you ever seen this show?  Lots of hard work in the restaurant biz, bud.

[xcrayon2215x]

I think Pat should have stayed over Matt because he had a good signature dish but Matt brings the drama so he stayed. So far only Johnny on the blue team seems to be that strong.

[MajorWoody]

Too early to get a grasp of the characters, I mean chefs. Nah, most are characters, not really chefs. 

Pat was obviously cannon fodder, as these types of shows will never allow an older person to win. I just didn't expect him to get sent packing so soon. Gordon was very nasty about it too, and it seemed uncalled for. 

Matt should have been sent home, in fact he should have been sent home directly from the kitchen. But like I told my wife, and a few earlier posters have mentioned, he brings drama, so it was obvious he will stick around for awhile. 

I have no idea why the other guy, Paulie, was being considered. It didn't seem like he did anything egregious, but maybe I missed it.

One guy did the requisite "insult the girls" misogynist comment during the TH's, but I can't remember which one it was. 

The girls seemed to put out a good service, but once again, who knows if that was accurate or editing.

When Gordon yelled at the one clueless girl about not making pasta from scratch, and using canned clams, it begs the question : If you don't want them using that stuff, why is it in the pantry? It's not like the girl ran out to Ralphs and bought it. 

The obstacle course Army drill segment was idiotic. It really needed R Lee Ermey to move it up a few notches. 

Interesting note, the falling wall scene was a direct copy of the famous Buster Keaton scene in Steamboat Bill, Jr, the classic silent film. But Keaton did it with an actual house wall, and no safety margin of error. i'm sure this one was tested repeatedly beforehand.

i see they are still doing the GR trademark of repeating the last few lines whenever they come back from a commercial, wasting several minutes per episode. 

A final note. If I knew I was going to be on that show, I would spend several months perfecting risotto, beef wellington, NY strips, scallops, and halibut. It seems several characters every season are completely flummoxed by those dishes, yet they are on the menu every single season.

[MajorWoody]

16 hours ago, OhioSongbird said:

Don't say that to Paulie Walnuts from The Sopranos!

 

Guy killed 16 Czechoslovakians. He was an interior decorator

[nitrofishblue]

I think that the young kid with the weird pants is canon fodder. Too dumb to be much else. I wish somebody would steal the script book they use so they would have to create a new one. There hasn't been an original thought since season two. I am so sick of the head-to-heads always ending in a tie so they can have the dramatic tasting interrupted by a commercial break.

[hkalex]

"I can do this" is Hell's Kitchen code for "let's see how quickly I can fuck this up".

I'm going an edgic chart for this season (research it if you don't know what this is) and I think Heather could go far. Even though the women had a strong opening night, I think a man will win this season. The men haven't been successful since season 12.

Last season, I initially pegged Hassan, Dannie and Jared to do well...look how well that worked out. I'm pegging Heather, Ryan and Johnny. Executive chefs, emotional backstories and quietly competent chefs are usually the best ones I think.

I've split them into three categories: The ones who could go far (Johnny, Ryan, Heather) The ones who won't (Jessica, Matt, Kimberly) And the ones who could go either way (pretty much up the rest of them)

[Sir RaiderDuck OMS]

15 hours ago, MajorWoody said:

Guy killed 16 Czechoslovakians. He was an interior decorator

His apartment looked like shit. 

On Friday, September 23, 2016 at 6:50 PM, candall said:

But here's my question for you true blue fans:  they don't really put one of these jokers in charge of an elegant fine-dining establishment at The Venetian, do they?  I believe those jobs are hard-earned after 20 years of working your way up the ladder. 

The winners are given the made-up position of "Head Chef," which basically translates to "well-paid line chef." Some work their way up to a real Executive Chef at these restaurants, some don't. But none is given a real Executive Chef gig straight from the show. 

[candall]

5 hours ago, Sir RaiderDuck OMS said:

The winners are given the made-up position of "Head Chef," which basically translates to "well-paid line chef." Some work their way up to a real Executive Chef at these restaurants, some don't. But none is given a real Executive Chef gig straight from the show. 

Okay, great, that makes sense.  Thank you.  I keep getting bogged down thinking, "Well, there's no way you or you or you can be qualified to run an elegant restaurant." 

A foot in the door and an opportunity to work your way up make a legitimate, worthwhile Grand Prize.

Edited September 27, 2016 by candall
subject/verb agreement, derp

[bluepiano]

Here we go again. I'll see how long I last. Last season I made it through about 5 episodes before calling it quits.

Agree that Matt was kept because he's obnoxious, but surprised Pat got booted because the overweight older guy who fights with everyone is another HK staple.

It seems to be the way this show is cast that there are always a few seemingly normal, competent women, while all the guys with maybe one exception are buffoons and losers. The "Burger Chef" may be this year's exception. I thought the bit about him calling himself "Head chef" when he's the only one was funny. But what exactly does being a burger chef mean? Does he have a hamburger stand?

[Eolivet]

After a number of years watching this show, I'm now convinced that they cast for drama, then the production assistants make all the signature dishes and cook the food, and the contestants are there to play act cooking in the kitchen and to read off cue cards during confessionals (think about it -- I don't think I've ever seen a chef make a meal from start to finish, there are always cuts). It actually makes the show more entertaining to think it's that fixed. And it explains why none of the men fessed up to cooking the scallops!

I love figuring out the method behind reality show madness -- reading into editing and production choices -- but it's not nearly as fun when everything feels like it's been pre-destined from jump, and we're all just here to watch really bad acting and Gordon Ramsay giving the censor button a workout.

[BogoGog24]

I'm not sure it's quite THAT scripted but I definitely think they cast a few actual cooks/chefs and the rest are actors or plants. 

Matt's idea to cook dove was a stupid move. The challenge is your signature dish, as in something that you make frequently. How is cooking something you have never made before a "signature" dish? 

With the exception of Petrozza from season 4, the old guys never last. I think it's because Ramsay doesn't see them as being moldable. Plus if at the age of 47, Pat can't make a risotto it's going to go nowhere but downhill from there. I hated his comment about being a "young 47" then making all the other guys do the hard work. If there's one kind of contestant Ramsay doesn't like, whether for fair reasons or not, is old, fat, lazy guys like Pat. He doesn't see them as teachable and, despite the fact I think weight is something some people can't control, he views (or seems to view) fat chefs as slobs. So with all of that against him, Pat was never going to last long. 

I do think it should have been Matt and Gennaro up for elimination though. 

I wondered if it's possible the women had a perfect service because production didn't tamper with the ovens? Either that or the red team was just cast better.

[Michel]

On Sunday, October 02, 2016 at 7:34 AM, BogoGog24 said:

With the exception of Petrozza from season 4, the old guys never last. I think it's because Ramsay doesn't see them as being moldable.

Not true.  It should be noted that in HK12, Richard, the oldest, heaviest chef that season, made it all the way to the F9.  Ninth place out of twenty chefs is clearly lasting a good while.