14 Nov 2007
You
been watching any tv? Yeah? Me neither. Well, some.
I
suggest you check out Kitchen Nightmares. It's on Fox on Wednesdays at 9 p.m.
And, yeah, it's one of those "chef" shows. Gordon Ramsey is the chef. He gets a
pretty bad rap. But after watching a couple of episodes, he does a good job of
mixing pushy with kind in order to get through to restaurant owners and staff
that need to be gotten through to.
The
show is Gordon visiting a different restaurant each week that is failing.
Gordon eats the food, gets a feel for the décor, chef, and operations, then
throws a grenade into the middle of it all. And good thing, too.
Most
of the problems are typical. The menu is too crowded and no theme is apparent.
(Those of you who know me know that menu design is one of the things that
really tick me off. Keep it simple, people!) The food isn't prepared fresh. The
kitchen is dirty. The dining area décor is too dark, depressing, or undefined.
And the outdoor sign is either non-existent or tacky.
And
so Chef Ramsey whips everyone into shape and the restaurant comes out the
better for it. I always seem to miss where the restaurant is located, but if I
ever spot one of 'em, I'll be sure to dine there.