While this show is still intriguing to watch (probably related to why people find serious traffic accidents fascinating) I have a couple of problems with the show. First of all, what's with all the chefs who are smokers? I really don't understand how people with such a chosen profession would choose to smoke. Lots of them look to be chain smokers based on previous seasons. Besides not being very appetizing to me as a customer in a restaurant I would think that smoking probably makes one's palate a bit less functional. Maybe the way that Ramsay treats these contestants makes them require various ways to unwind?
Also, what I found "quaint" in the first season or so (Ramsay's totally obnoxious - and often uncalled for - attitude and language toward the contestants) has become downright irritating. To me, he has now gone from celebrity to bully status. In the real world (without money and a possible position on the line) he would have been flattened long before now by at least one of the contestants that he verbally abused.
And what's with the diners? I know that it's L.A. but there must be a higher proportion of masochists in that city because they keep filling the restaurant up on a regular basis. Surely they know what to expect - so some of their indignant posturing is a bit contrived to me. Most of them probably want their fifteen minutes of fame (after all, it is Tinseltown
) but they look like lemmings each time the restaurant "opens" and shuts down. Does anyone out there who lives in the L.A. area have any idea what the big deal is? I assume that the "diners" don't have to pay for any meals that might actually be served. What's the story here?
Of course, the fact that this is a FOX show speaks volumes. Never known for good taste, there's some irony in the whole thing. C'mon, Ramsay - shut the **BLEEP** up! After all you come from Britain - that bastion of culinary excellence. (And before you get on my case, I'm half British.)
This show has gone from a "must watch" status for me to the "DVR and Zip-Zip" category.
His reactions to some of those dishes were a hoot.
