Well Fed Network

Posted by Chris Perrin on Edible TV.

BBC America, a channel found long after the basic cable channels and well before HBO and Cinemax, has become a shrine to Gordon Ramsey. Viewers who can find the British channel are treated to Kitchen Nightmares, Kitchen Nightmares Revisited, the American version of Kitchen Nightmares, and even reruns of Gordon Ramsey’s F Word. And if you have any respect for Gordon Ramsey at all, it’s a thing of beauty.

Let’s face it, Ramsey is a divisive figure in culinary circles. He’s loud, he’s brash, and he yells more than seems strictly necessary. When compared to the polite (at least on camera) though equally boisterous Emeril or Mario Batali, his defining qualities appear uncouth and almost vulgar. At the same time, Ramsey’s an excellent cook, he seems to care for the people he yells at, and the man knows how to run a restaurant. And the fact that he seems to be a bit of a [bleep]ing [bleep]er [bleep] [bleep] who struts around like he’s the dog’s bollocks does make him stand out.

All of this means that you either hate the man for his antics or you love the man for his antics. Either way, there is much to learn from watching him.

The thing I find so compelling about watching Ramsey is the variety of his shows. With the notable exception of Kitchen Nightmares Revisited (which are replays of Kitchen Nightmares), all of Ramsey’s shows are different.

Gordon Ramsey’s F Word is frenetic, with the star chef showing how to make a dish while interviewing celebrities and screaming at his trainee chefs. In Kitchen Nightmares, Ramsey goes to some truly awful restaurants and helps bring them back to profitability. Hell’s Kitchen borrows some of the screaming motif as Ramsey tests/tortures chefs in his quest to find one to run his restaurant. Then you have the American version of Kitchen Nightmares which, while the same concept, has a more modern, glamorous feel than his earlier shows.

Basically, that means you can watch his shows back-to-back and get something different. There are so many lessons to learn, tips for running your own restaurant, recipes to master, and different swanky new ways to swear like a Scot.

All of which, in the end, explains why BBC America is my second most DVRed channel (next to the Food Network). I’m definitely a Ramsey fan and, frankly, I like learning new ways to cuss.

Photo courtesy of TVGuide.com