The Most Dysfunctional Restaurants | BRAND NEW Season Kitchen Nightmares Compilation | Gordon Ramsay

It's the first time I've ever had to order food to go. Never thought that would happen in the French quarters. Oh, my God. Beautiful. Let's get the team together. Let's have a catch-up, shall we? A proper meeting. I've seen enough. Let me grab them. This is ridiculous, honestly. Meters away from Bourbon Streets, a delusional owner running a massive restaurant. Food was bad, but then the owner is so disconnected. She is a million miles away from making this place successful. OK, listen, I'll be honest. That was not good. Am I really on Bourbon Street, one of the most sought-after corners of New Orleans? I'm here to help, but I can't just wave a magic wand and, hey, it just happens. Margarine on an oyster? Are you kidding me? Margarine, Nate, on an oyster? Yeah, that's it. That's what I get. That's what I have to use. What do you mean, you have to use? That's all I have. I don't buy the groceries. Seriously, what in the f*** is going on? Anybody? Bonnie, can I just have five minutes with the team? Sure. Because I feel like we're all standing on eggshells. Yeah? The restaurant is not doing well, but it's not because of me. I am giving it my everything, and the staff doesn't see it. Okay. She said to me earlier she's hands-on, she can run the kitchen. No. No, she doesn't. She came in the kitchen one time. She started helping me a little bit, and then she's like, oh, my God, I gotta go. I can't handle this. I'm stressed out. Oh, my God. When you see things going south, are you telling her? Oh, yeah, we tell her everything. But she doesn't listen. She refuses to. We keep telling her how we're feeling, but she don't want to listen to it. What her way is the right way, and that's it. And how many of you are on salary? Just me. Just you. Are you paid as a general manager? I make $40, whether I work an eight-hour shift. A day? Yeah. And are you on a full salary? If we don't have customers, I don't get paid. So how much are you earning a day? I've walked out of here with nothing before. After a full-day shift? Mm-hmm. They don't quite understand just how lucky they are to have such loyalty. This is unfair on you guys. Why are you still here? We thought it was for a reason. We just don't want to see them fail. Like, they've put a lot of money into this, and we understand that. When we first came in, it was like, OK, it's a family. And then, I don't know, lately it hasn't been like that. It really hasn't. And so now, we've done said if things don't change after this, we're all leaving. We all have a plan B. In a couple of months from now, the Super Bowl's coming to town. And it brings in close to half a billion dollars to this industry. And those two or three weeks could be enough to keep you in business for the next 12 months. It's our last shot. If we don't get this right ahead of that... Every rule will be closed. And that's what I'm focused on. How the f*** am I supposed to get into my state? I've never, ever, ever, ever sent food back because I can't f***ing cut into it. No metal forks? Can you ask her to cut that up for me? Oh, my gosh. $34? He broke his fork. F***. I need this cut. Oh, Lord. And he's saying it's not medium rare. I know how to cook a steak. New Orleans ref, he don't like nothing. I did not appreciate Chef Ramsay pointing out, this is bad, this is bad, this is bad. I don't need you f***ing with me. All right, all right. Okay. Do you see this? Don't order nothing else. You let me catch up. You order another ticket, you gonna come back in here and cook it yourself. What's going on? No more tickets. Don't order nothing else. I do apologize, but it is coming up. All right. Go talk to them. I have talked to them three times already. They never got their s*** off. I've talked to them three times. Their ticket's not even up. I'm checking on my customer first. I got one sitting here been waiting an hour, Malika. I have four people that just sat down with me. They didn't get all of their appetizers. I've already blamed them for burning up something. I put it on the kitchen and said they burnt their food. I have to make excuses because our kitchen is screwing up. It's Michiko's fault because Michiko doesn't admit to anything about being wrong in the kitchen. She wants the food out when she wants it out. I need to step outside, y'all. I need to decompress. You okay? Nope, I'm not. What's wrong, Mama King? Nothing. Why can't you walk out? Can't walk out? Roll over. I'm doing my job. I'm doing everything I possibly can, and the tickets are just hanging up there. What am I supposed to do? I lied and blamed it on the kitchen and said that the food was burned. I'm apologizing to these people. What do you want me to tell them? It's every night. What happened? She feels like she keeps making excuses for the kitchen. Right. And she's been back to the table three to four times. When you serve half the table, it's really frustrating, but it's for you because they're standing staring at you. I can see the biggest problem. I'm here to help, okay? Man, this place is beyond dysfunctional. It's a mess. Ticket times were ridiculous. The owner is just in a spin. The one saving grace in there is that for me there's passion, but they've forgotten how to run a business. Let's get the team in and let's have a chat together. Yeah, please. Sit down or stand, whatever you wish, but let's come together. I've seen enough, let me tell you, and I'm in shock because we are dysfunctional. Agreed? Agreed. Gumbo, I love. Oh, my God. That's just watery. Watery, bland gumbo. What a shame. Barbecue shrimp, they just taste frozen. We shouldn't really be serving frozen. They're just so peppery. How is everything? Um, such a shame because the gumbo is really watery. Bland, bland. And how much pepper is he putting on the barbecue shrimp? He doesn't put too much. At the bottom here, it's just packed with pepper. Oh, my God. Thank you very much. You're welcome. Will you explain that to him? I will right now. What makes me nervous about Gordon being at our restaurant is the criticism. My dad doesn't deal with criticism very well. Too much black pepper in the barbecue shrimp. Gumbo's very bland. My gumbo's not bland. I've been in the business longer than him. I don't think anything was bad. Building a big boy platter right here. That's hot. First, I have the big boy seafood platter. Gotcha. What are these? That is our stuffed crab. And you also have fried frog legs in there as well. Oh, ah, there she is. Right, thank you. You're welcome. I'm glad to have the crab. It's just a big fried mess of seafood. That is embarrassing. Janet, thanks, darling. So it all looks and tastes the same. Is any of this fresh? It's actually all fresh. So nothing's frozen? Nothing's frozen. Oh. How is that possible? These are all signature dishes, right? Most of them are, especially the flounder lafitte. Flounder lafitte. This is our most unique signature dish. And where's the flounder? The flounder is actually inside. That one's very popular. That one's been on the menu for 30 years. 30? Exactly the same? Exactly the same. And it was looking like this back in 1995. It was. Is this one of your favorites as well? It is. Thank you. You're welcome. OK. Well, uh, this could be any fish, right? This is a joke. It's just bland. I don't know what I've tasted so far. It's just food that is just so underwhelming. Everything's almost like he's given up. But that's why we needed you here. I'm just not sure what my dad's going to say. Oh, boy. But he's too stubborn. He needs somebody just like him to get through his hard-headed brain that things need to change. Gordon isn't happy in the restaurant right now. Everything is bland. That son of a bitch. That pisses me off. Criticism like that you take to heart. Oof. Wow, what a lunch. Let's bring him out. OK. Please. Dave, Dad, chef is ready to see y'all. Why don't we take a seat? Yeah. OK, uh, David. I'll be honest with you. That wasn't good. I'm going through the motions of the food thinking, this guy's given up. I ain't giving up. It tastes like you're pissed off. Well, I didn't think I was. Oh, I'm telling you are. Chef wants to know why we use bagged guacamole when we have avocados. I'm at Kindred in uptown New Orleans. Because we're perpetually short-staffed, and we take shortcuts to get things done. Where the cook is serving up every excuse in the book. We're perpetually short-staffed, and so sometimes we take shortcuts. Oh, boy. The food is appalling. And a chef that doesn't care. Lunch service over. Thank you. Have a good one. I need to meet the team face-to-face to find out what's really going on here. This is? Kiva. Kiva, yes. Ava. How are you, sir? This must be Frank. Another day in paradise. Another day in Paris. I wouldn't call it paradise. First of all, I want all of you to know that I'm here to help. But what I've just experienced has been bitterly disappointing. What was the worst? Where would you like me to start? Well, the beginning. What was the idea behind store-bought avocado puree? There's literally no time to do extra prep for stuff that you're going to be throwing away. That's a f***ing excuse. How long does it take to make a fresh guacamole? Never made in my life. What? Yeah, I never worked in a Spanish restaurant. And the frozen spring roll? As the kitchen manager, you're executing this stuff. It's sort of, you're just going through the motions because you're getting paid? Well, it would be great to come in and make everything from scratch. But the lack of time, it's challenging. It's destroying any little business we have. The frozen spring rolls? Just in general. Just the attitude of what you're doing. We have got nobody coming through those doors. Not at all. You know all this? But you just keep on playing the same old tune, serving the same old s***. I'm trying to care a lot more, but it's difficult. Do you like Caroline? She's a great person. Do you care for her? A little. A little? Wow. Frank is not handling Gordon being here very well. He's kind of acting like a child and not taking responsibility for his role. Can I just have a word with him on my own? What's going on? Why are you here? I'm here to help Caroline, but there's only so much you can do. You know f***ing damn well what you're doing is not helping her. I do the best job I can with half the energy I used to have. It's like you're just having a f***ing jolly. The business has disappeared. I don't think it's the business. I think this economy is downturned. Oh, come on, Frank. There's got to be some ownership somewhere. Do you have pride? I do. It's in me. I need to know. Have you given up? I have not given up. Do you want out? Not quite yet. I want to see you in action tonight. I just want to see how this place functions. Oh, I got to come back and work again? I mean, I'm normally not doing tea shifts today. Frank, we've had f***ing 15 people here for lunch. Don't be f***ing lazy. I'll be here. Thank you. Frank is just taking advantage of Caroline's weakness and just going through the motions, getting these checked week by week and just, yeah, sticking Band-Aids on all the problems as opposed to addressing them. Would you like me to bring anybody out, or would you like to talk to somebody? Yeah, well, let's bring them out. Can I bring the kitchen guy? They're ready. All right, he said bring out the kitchen to come talk to him. How you doing, Chef Cece? Hey, Cece. How are you? Good. Nice to meet you. Likewise. Take a seat, please. All right. Blake, I don't know where to start. Lunch was disappointing, I will be honest. Yeah. Everything was salty. Everything was sort of just processed and seriously seasoned. Are you just pushing the seasoning or you listen to customers? I listen to customers. You do? We can't smother everything in your seasoning and then expect that to be a big hit. Yeah. It goes way deeper than that, way deeper. I need to see some heart, some love, some soul, some passion. I got none of that today. Zero. Cece, you're the head chef here. Yes. How do you rate the food on a scale of 1 to 10, truthfully? I ain't going to do that. Is Blake scared of hearing the truth? Is she ignoring the truth? I don't know. I can't answer that for her. Seems like it sometimes. But you're the head chef. Correct. And Blake's what, then? She's everything. Blake is the law here. You put this together, Blake, right? Yes. This is your house. Your name's on the wall. Because you're shooting for the stars, right? Correct. What's the dream? The dream is to have multiple restaurants in multiple locations. I want to follow in your footsteps, chef. Forget my footsteps, because there are other talented female chefs in this town that are behind the line, busting their ass, creating a reputation to become successful. We haven't got the reputation. Customers aren't queuing up. Are you struggling? Yeah. Struggling with what? With finances. Can I just have a chat with Blake and Nelson together, please? Can you guys just go in the kitchen, take five minutes out? I don't want to talk money in front of the team. Young lady, what's going on, truthfully? This has always been my dream. This is my passion. Is the dream at the heart of this food, restaurateur, or does the celebrity part come first? No. The dream, the passion. I know that I have to have good quality tasting dishes. Before celebrity, before anything, but opening up my first casual dining restaurant, I guess I didn't know what all the expenses that come with it. It has been a lot, and it has been overwhelming. I'm worried about staying open. We are in debt. You need to get your **** together. I opened a restaurant called Ramsay back in 1998. I had to convince my wife to sell our apartment to get the deposit. The bank wouldn't touch us. At the time, we just had our first daughter, Megan, and so this restaurant had to work. I didn't move from that stove for 10 years, sweating, grafting, to build that reputation. But I think you're way more interested in being a celebrity chef than a real chef. It starts in the kitchen, Blake. Yeah. You've got to create food better than you can in the food truck, and you've got to get customers banging to get a table in here. Yeah. Here he is. Thank you. There you go. Sorry. What did you think of the setup? It was great. What's in here? Chicken, sausage, and shrimp. Chicken, sausage, and shrimp? Yes, sir. Appreciate it, man. Thanks, bud. Thank you. OK, the gumbo. That's the staple right there. It looks hearty. It tastes like a short-cooked gumbo. Gumbo takes hours. And the longer you cook it, the more it improves. And it's nowhere near as spicy as I thought it would be. So almost cooking in a rush, cooking and cutting corners, results to flavors like this. And yet it took over an hour to get the food. That's a big letdown. But when you've got a restaurant titled Three Southern Girls, you just expect food that's packed with power, flavor, and really punchy with spice. It's sort of almost cooking with no love. What a shame. With the lunch service over and customers heading home. Thank you, ma'am. Thank you. I need to talk to Gabby and the staff to find out what's going wrong in that kitchen. May I meet the team, please? Yes. Thank you. Come out. Come out? Yeah. I am prepared to receive whatever criticism he has for me. I can't say I'm going to respond any other way other than myself. But if it becomes too much, you might see a little. How are you feeling first? Good. You're feeling good? I'm feeling good, yeah. Good. I'm going to ask you straight, in terms of the food, how would you rate your own food, honestly, on a scale of 1 to 10? I would say 10. Correct. Right. But when I look at the title of this restaurant, Three Southern Girls, I expect a southern charm and bloody good food. Sadly, I didn't taste any charm in that food today. It's about me. I had a catch up with Makai, yeah, this morning. Sadly, for me, the gumbo was just, it didn't taste as authentic as Makai described you. OK. Hardworking, passionate, dedicated woman. You didn't like anything? Well, hear me out. OK. I can give you five local restaurants that are serving gumbo way better than that. Way better and cheaper. Wait a minute. What are you tasting? Because you confused my baby. Like, no. I can't agree with some of what you said. I've experienced Gabby's restaurant food versus Gabby's at home food. She has to keep her business going. And sometimes that means making adjustments so that she can deliver still quality products, but different from what I'm used to outside of the restaurant. We've been cutting corners for efficiency versus quality because Gabby does not accept the help that's available. I respect you honestly. And I'm grateful for the truth. We're, what, four years in now? Yeah. We're not making money. And there are clearly issues here. In your mind, what's wrong with the place? Uh, nothing. I just need you to be honest with me. Because this is not a joke. I'm not here to put a Band-Aid on things. I'm here to get things fixed. Now, I don't mind button heads. But what we need to be is constructive. It's not a party. F*** these guys. F*** him. And f*** him. Do you know why? If we don't change, we are f***ed. We're really stacking up here. Go ahead and finish it off then. Go ahead. Go right ahead. You were so eager to do it. Ah. So, that is... We've got our biscuit Benedict right there. That looks ridiculous. Thank you. No problem. Enjoy. I'm not too sure about the word enjoy. I think I'm about to eat the worst Benedict I've ever got. And my eggs are half-boiled. Egg Benedict should be like a soft-boiling egg. The hollandaise sauce with barbecue sauce running through. What were they thinking? You doing okay over here, Mr. Ramsay? Between you and I, especially in a breakfast diner, when a chef can't poach an egg, we're in trouble. Yeah. Thank you. Oh, boy. That was so bad. Even five didn't want to land on it. He said the poached eggs, it was not poached. It was like almost hard-boiled. Okay. I don't think he liked the brisket. Can you get the other biscuit from the microwave, please, Aaron? Yeah. I knew when Chef Ramsay came in and ate the dishes, I knew what was wrong with them. The recipes were outdated. I've brought all these things up before, and Connie doesn't listen to me. Okay, I've got our fresh homemade biscuit here. Are the oysters heavy? They're microwaved, so that's probably why. Right. Okay. Is Chef Mike busy in the kitchen? Sorry? Is Chef Mike busy in the kitchen? Mike? No, he doesn't work here anymore. Chef Mike. Mike? Microwave. Oh, you're killing me. Hold on. Is that the waffle for this? Yeah. Thank you. What's this one? Chicken and waffles here. Chicken and waffles. Oh, boy. Oh, my... The waffle tastes strange. Wow. That chicken's drier than the... Sahara Desert. Is Miss Connie available for a quick chat? I'll go grab her for you. Yeah, once you get on my way. Thank you. Shocking. I'm really bad. Everything is cooked with no care. Awful. Awful, awful, awful. He said for the chicken and waffles, the chicken was dry. Okay. I don't think our chicken is dry. Maybe things are fried a little differently. Chef Ramsay probably isn't used to eating Southern food in the South. You must be Connie. Connie. Nice to meet you. Please, sit down. How are you? Good. Tough morning. This dream of running this cafe is everything you've always wanted, right? It is. Are you aware how much this business is crumbling around you? Yes, sir. I feel it crumbling around me. And how much did you invest to get this thing up and running? We're in debt about $600,000. In debt? In debt. $600,000. And how are you getting by month to month? We're not even really meeting the bills at the door. I'm sorry. But you've got family here as well. You've got your... My daughter. Daughter. But that must put a strain on your relationship, right? Mm-hmm. How long is this sustainable for? If we can't turn it around, we just need to close the doors. This is crazy. We have a hell of a lot of work to do. All I need is just the honesty. That's all. Peggy gets Connie. Oh, boy. Is she out there still? Yeah. Are you OK? Watch your feet. It's everywhere. There's some lady in the bag projectile vomiting from, I think, something she ate here. What happened? Do you have the shrimp and grits as well? The bangers and mash. Let's do it. Good? Here we go. Bangers and mash. All right, sir. Bangers and mash for you. I'll give you some utensils here. Thank you. Enjoy. Mash is lumpy. I mean, really lumpy. That's a lot of garbage. It's not mash at all. That's terrible. How are we doing, sir? This is massive lump. That didn't get mashed, did it? It's... That potato's raw. Understood. Thank you. All over wasn't a fan. There was a big chunk of raw potato in his mashed potato. Big chunk of raw. Raw potato, mashed potato. Oh, my God. I felt frustrated. But in my head, I guess I nailed it. Everything's there. Chef Ramsay's the toughest customer I ever had. I finished tasting a selection of what the Grumpy George has to offer. Thank you for coming in, guys. Appreciate it. Now I need to chat to the owners about the disappointing meal I've just had. Karen, let's have a chat together now those customers have gone. OK. Oh, boy. I need to know what in the hell's going on. Help me. I kind of wanted to have a modern twist on a British pub. What's the twist? Salty, lumpy, raw mashed potatoes, overcooked sausage rolls. I could go on. My team have given me the numbers. I cannot understand why you'd purchase this burden at this stage in your life with no fricking experience. It's a good question. Help me. So, we know that Georgetown is one of the fastest growing cities in the US. If we could offer a concept that was unique, that was kind of the idea behind it. I have to be blunt with you. If you're going to run a modern British gastropub, it needs commitment. Because the food is just not up to scratch. OK. The reason food is not quintessential British is because of me. Chef Michael, he's a trained chef and he's very, very good at what he does. I gave him the recipes and said this is kind of what I would like to have on the menu. So that's all on me. But you can't get a recipe off the internet and hand it to a talented chef and expect it to become quintessential. No, I agree. Are you not nervous? We thought it would be a good idea. But again, we don't have any experience with the restaurant, so we didn't know all the pitfalls and we made a mistake. I am absolutely exhausted. It's just draining. Constantly worrying about everything. Sometimes I just don't know what to worry about first. I think we're about four weeks away from having to close our doors. In terms of cash flow? Yes, sir. Where is this money coming from? So we put a second mortgage on the house? Yes. This is a house of freaking cards. If I project the next six months or 12 months trading, you're going to be up to a million dollars in debt. All right. Neil, his carbonara is up here. Carbonara. Oh, bloody hell's bells. Let me eat one dish in peace. Gotcha. Does the chef make the actual carbonara sauce? Yes. Can you ask him how he makes the carbonara sauce? I'm a massive fan of carbonara. Just a big bowl of congealed mess. The carbonara. Bacon instead of pancetta, is that correct? They stink. That is not fresh. It is bacon, roasted bell peppers, seafood, shallot, heavy whipping cream, a four cheese blend, white wine, garlic, and fresh oregano. None of those above ingredients are in a traditional carbonara. There's just no way I can eat. I need to know it's not good. Just about to turn. Thank you. You're welcome. Pardon me. Gordon, what were your thoughts on the carbonara? Yeah, disappointing. Sadly, the pasta was overcooked. I was more concerned about the smell from the shrimp. Chef Ramsay isn't impressed with anything. Some of the dishes that he had are some of my favorites. I mean, I love the carbonara, though. It's a little disheartening, and my heart breaks for Leo. Embarrassing, seriously. There is nothing authentic here. I mean, either the chef's completely lost his way, or he does not give a ****. What a shame. How many covers does this place do on a Friday night? Lately, not many. The decline has affected all of us. And is it a Taiwan ship? It's the Titanic. In the middle of Texas. Thank you very much. You're welcome. Michelle, can you bring the team over? Sure, of course. Ah, there he is, the man. Yes, sir. How are you, bud? I'm good, sir. You well? Yes, sir. Take a seat. OK. Let's get the team together. Let's catch up. OK, Leo. Yes, sir. With a scratch kitchen, the freshest ingredients, and a great chef, you won't walk away disappointed. Yes, sir. I'll be honest, that's not what I discovered. Well, that's disappointing, for sure. You're now on the road out of Austin, in a unique position, with very little competition around here, to clean up. But honestly, you're absolutely missing the mark. Young man, what's wrong with this restaurant, truthfully? I'd say a little bit of quality control and consistency in the kitchen. Yeah. I would say consistency. It's a common thread, isn't it? I fell in love with meatballs, having lived in Italy for 12 months. It's hard to believe, if I'm honest. My meatball was cold in the middle, gray on the outside, and just crumbled. My carbonara was not authentic. I think of Texas, and one thing that comes to mind immediately is great beef. How are you searing it? We're cooking on the flat tile. Is it seared? There was no color on it. It was just gray. I am not feeling the love, and we are not cooking with passion. We really need Chef Ramsay's help, but Leo's not communicating at all. I need to know what in the hell is going on. I know I'm not getting the best from you. This is not going to work. It's a team full of misfits here. A lot of craziness, you know. This thing's taking him down. It's taking you down. It's taking me down. I'm just trying to get back up. Dude, where was that polish last? Oh. Oh, my God. Oh! It's on his back. It's on his shoulder right there. Where is it? Where is it? Hold on, man. Where is it? Where is it? It's gross. Let's bring out the whole team, please, Alva. All right, team members. We would like to have everybody out here now. Come take a seat, bud. Where's Chef? He's coming right there. We're putting up some food. I'm thinking when I go out there, I'm going to tell him what's up. I don't think this is going to end up well. Ah, this is him. Feeling tired? Yes. And this is? This squirrel. Oh, squirrel. Yeah, take a seat. Come and sit down. Oh, boy. I am lost for words. What's going on with the food? I don't know what's going on. You don't know what's going on? No. I'm pretty pissed about the salt. Everybody yesterday, they had the same gravy. They're saying my food is all salty. And it's not computing in my head whatsoever. You tasted the food. Wasn't salty at all. But I'm going to tell you, eight other people tonight had told me the same thing. Things were salty today, man. I just never had anybody in the seven years that I've been here complain about my food being salty. Until today. People don't complain. They just don't come back, Chris. A lot of people don't complain. They just don't come back. Did your server ask whether you had appetizers and desserts? If not, you get 15% off your bill. Chris, what does that mean? I can't get a server to sell a piece of pie. If I told them they'd get shot if they don't sell a pie, I'd have a bunch of dead servers in here. Do you have any idea how degrading that is on the menu when the customers sit down? That was the only way I can threaten them into doing their job. Have you tried teaching them? Have you tried engaging them? They've got a rough teaching from me. A rough teaching from you? What the **** does that mean? That means once you **** up, I chew your ass and you know now not to do it. So why are the front of the house so bad in your eyes? They don't have no control. But they're your team. Yeah. Do you care about them? Oh, yeah. It doesn't sound like it to me. Well, the front of the house has never been trained properly, so there's just a free for all. Everybody does what they want to do, Chef. You're getting mad at us for doing our own **** thing. Well, if we didn't do our own **** thing, nothing would get done. But y'all ain't doing nothing. How long has that dust been on that fan? I don't know, Bert. There's four of us. There's four of us and you're sitting here walking around and you can get it just as much as I can get it. ****. Sierra doesn't like to be critiqued. She doesn't like to be told what to do. A dust snake that long landed on Chef Ramsay's back. I swear to God. And all I hear is you could have done it, but you could have done it and I don't see nobody **** doing it. You got people here that have all been doing what they want for so long. ****. And if I try to come in and hold them accountable, then they're all going to start a mutiny against me because I've already heard I've been called ****. Don't be acting like ****. I'm trying to prove something. You want to sit here and talk all this and say that we don't have any kind of management because we don't. Oh my God. I can't reach that anyway.