Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts

Quick facts for kids Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares

Starring	Gordon Ramsay
Narrated by	Gordon Ramsay
Country of origin	United Kingdom
Original language(s)	English
No. of series	7
No. of episodes	35 (27 originals and 8 revisits)
Production
Running time	47-49 minutes
Release
Original network	Channel 4
Picture format	PAL (576i) 16:9 (2004-2009) HDTV 1080i (2014)
Audio format	Stereo
Original release	27 April 2004 (2004-04-27) – 14 October 2014 (2014-10-14)
Chronology
Related shows	Kitchen Nightmares

Ramsay’s Kitchen Nightmares is a TV show from the United Kingdom. It stars famous British chef Gordon Ramsay. The show first aired on Channel 4 in 2004.

In each episode, Gordon Ramsay visits a restaurant that is struggling. He tries to help them fix their problems in just one week. A few months later, Ramsay goes back to see if the restaurant is doing better. Some older episodes were updated and called Ramsay’s Kitchen Nightmares Revisited. In these, Ramsay checked on restaurants a year or more after his first visit.

There is also an American version of the show called Kitchen Nightmares. It started in 2007 on Fox. In the UK, this American version is called Ramsay’s Kitchen Nightmares USA. This helps people tell it apart from the original British show. The American show finished in 2014.

In 2009, Gordon Ramsay said he would stop doing Kitchen Nightmares after 2011. He wanted to work on other shows. But the show came back for one last series in 2014. This final series was called Ramsay's Costa del Nightmares. In it, Ramsay helped British-owned restaurants in other countries. The show has won important awards like the BAFTA and Emmy awards.

About the Show's Seasons
Episode Highlights
See also

About the Show's Seasons

The show had 7 main seasons, or "series" as they are called in the UK. Here is a quick look at them:

Series	Episodes	Originally aired
Series	Episodes	First aired	Last aired
1	4	27 April 2004 (2004-04-27)	18 May 2004 (2004-05-18)
2	8	24 May 2005 (2005-05-24)	12 July 2005 (2005-07-12)
3	4	21 February 2006 (2006-02-21)	14 March 2006 (2006-03-14)
4	6	14 November 2006 (2006-11-14)	19 December 2006 (2006-12-19)
5	8	30 October 2007 (2007-10-30)	18 December 2007 (2007-12-18)
Ramsay’s Great British Nightmare	1	30 January 2009 (2009-01-30)
Ramsay’s Costa del Nightmares	4	23 September 2014 (2014-09-23)	14 October 2014 (2014-10-14)

Episode Highlights

Here are some interesting stories from different episodes of the show.

Season 1 Stories

Episode Number	Restaurant Name	Location	First Shown
1	1	"Bonapartes"	Silsden, England	27 April 2004 (2004-04-27)
Ramsay found two big problems here. The fancy menu did not suit the local people. Also, the head chef, Tim, was very young and not good at cooking. Ramsay even got sick from old food Tim served. Ramsay tried to help Tim learn to cook better and simplify the menu. They had a good Valentine's Day dinner. But when Ramsay came back, the restaurant was worse. The fridges were full of rotten food. The owner, Sue, fired Tim and closed the restaurant. Ramsay felt like he had failed.
2	2	"The Glass House"	Ambleside, England	4 May 2004 (2004-05-04)
Ramsay saw that this restaurant had great potential. It had a nice building and many tourists. But the food was bad. He blamed the new owner, Neil, and the lazy head chef, Richard. Ramsay made the staff clean and repaint the kitchen. Richard almost got fired but improved. They made the menu simpler. When Ramsay visited again, he was happy. The food was better, and Neil and Richard were working well together.
3	3	"The Walnut Tree Inn"	Llanddewi Skirrid, Wales	11 May 2004 (2004-05-11)
This inn used to be very successful. But now, under owner Francesco, it was losing money. Ramsay found no head chef and very expensive, bad food. He helped Francesco find a new chef, Spencer. They made a new, cheaper menu. They even had a special dinner to celebrate the inn's 40th birthday. Later, Ramsay saw some improvement. The food was better, and they had more customers. But prices were still too high. Ramsay told Francesco to lower prices to succeed.
4	4	"Moore Place"	Esher, England	18 May 2004 (2004-05-18)
This restaurant had rich locals nearby, but it was not doing well. The building looked terrible, and the menu was old. Owners Richard and Nick were not experienced. The head chef, Mark, seemed not to care much. Ramsay even threw their deep-fat fryers into a golf course pond! Things got better when a good sous-chef, Andy, was hired. Ramsay gave them a burger recipe that became popular. When Ramsay came back, Andy was the new head chef. The restaurant was doing much better.

Season 2 Stories

Episode Number	Restaurant Name	Location	First Shown
5	1	"La Lanterna"	Letchworth, England	24 May 2005 (2005-05-24)
Ramsay found no real Italian food here, just pre-made dishes. The kitchen was very dirty. The owner, Alex, was losing money but had a fancy car. Ramsay helped sell the car to pay debts. He taught the manager, Gavin, to be stronger. Ramsay also helped the chefs find passion for cooking again. They updated the menu and look of the restaurant. Six weeks later, the restaurant was doing much better and making money.
6	2	"D-Place"	Chelmsford, England	31 May 2005 (2005-05-31)
Ramsay thought the restaurant's name was bad. The new owners, Israel and Tara, let their manager and head chef control everything. The manager, Dave, was difficult, and the chef, Philippe, was arrogant. Ramsay helped them rename the restaurant "Saracen's Café Bar" and create a better menu. Dave caused problems during reopening and was fired. Later, Ramsay found out the owners were evicted. The restaurant closed. But Philippe was hired by the hotel and kept Ramsay's club sandwich on his new menu.
7	3	"Momma Cherri's Soul Food Shack"	Brighton, England	7 June 2005 (2005-06-07)
This was different! Ramsay said the food was excellent, the best on the show. But the owner-chef, Charita, was too relaxed with her staff. She also froze food, which ruined the taste, and didn't promote the restaurant. Ramsay helped her cook food fresh and attract more customers. The staff learned to handle the busy times. Two months later, the restaurant was still a big success. Charita was even thinking about moving to a bigger place.
8	4	"La Riviera"	Inverness, Scotland	14 June 2005 (2005-06-14)
Ramsay thought the head chef, Loïc, cooked well, but his food was too fancy and expensive for Inverness. Ramsay helped Loïc understand local tastes. He even got the chefs to wear kilts! They created a new menu that was fancy but also affordable for locals. When Ramsay came back, Loïc was still using the new menu. The restaurant had also been redesigned. It was later renamed "Abstract."
9	5	"The Glass House Revisited"	Ambleside, England	21 June 2005 (2005-06-21)
Revisit episode Ramsay went back to The Glass House. He was happy that things were mostly still good. He did tell Richard to keep standards high. Some kitchen staff had changed, and two were even hired by Ramsay for his own restaurants!
10	6	"The Walnut Tree Revisited"	Llandewi Skirrid, Wales	28 June 2005 (2005-06-28)
Revisit episode Ramsay visited The Walnut Tree again. The food was still good, but fewer customers were coming. Francesco was still charging very high prices, over £60 for a main dish! Locals liked the food but thought it was too expensive. Ramsay suggested a cheaper, profitable dish. But Francesco refused to lower prices. Ramsay gave up, saying the inn would close if prices stayed so high.
11	7	"Moore Place Revisited"	Esher, England	5 July 2005 (2005-07-05)
Revisit episode Ramsay was surprised the building still had the same bad paint color. But he was glad the new menu was working and business was better. He suggested they improve the lunch menu too. He even threw their deep-fat fryer into a pond again to make sure they stopped making cheap fried food!
12	8	"Bonapartes Revisited"	Silsden, England	12 July 2005 (2005-07-12)
Revisit episode When Ramsay visited again, Bonapartes had closed down completely. It was for sale. Ramsay also found out that the former owner, Sue, had made claims against him and the show. She said Tim, the chef, was an actor. Ramsay met Tim, who was now working in TV. Tim still couldn't cook an omelette!

Season 3 Stories

Episode Number	Restaurant Name	Location	First Shown
13	1	"Oscar's"	Nantwich, England	21 February 2006 (2006-02-21)
Ramsay first thought the menu was the problem. He helped owner Maura and her son, Lenin, the head chef. But Ramsay found Lenin's cooking was inconsistent. Lenin also had serious health problems. Ramsay tried to help Lenin get better. Meanwhile, Ramsay and another chef, Les, made a new Irish menu. When Ramsay came back, Lenin was getting help and the restaurant had a new head chef.
14	2	"The Sandgate Hotel"	Sandgate, England	28 February 2006 (2006-02-28)
Ramsay was confused by this hotel's many restaurants and menus. The head chef, Stuart, was gentle but not comfortable cooking all the different foods. The kitchen was messy, and staff spent too much time at the bar. Stuart even lost an important food award. Ramsay helped by making the Japanese restaurant a special dining area. He focused the menu on fresh seafood. When Ramsay returned, business had doubled, and Stuart was much happier.
15	3	"Clubway 41"	Blackpool, England	7 March 2006 (2006-03-07)
This restaurant was struggling, even though it claimed to be "Blackpool Restaurant of the Year." Ramsay found the owner, Dave, cooked terrible food. He also found out the award was not real. Ramsay decided to turn the downstairs café into the main restaurant, serving simple English food. It was renamed "Jacksons." The reopening started well, but Dave struggled. When Ramsay revisited, a new bus stop blocked the restaurant. Dave was back to serving cheap café food. Ramsay helped them promote the restaurant again.
16	4	"La Gondola"	Derby, England	14 March 2006 (2006-03-14)
Owner Daniela didn't want to update this 40-year-old restaurant. It relied on parties, not regular customers. Ramsay said it was stuck in the past. The food was too cheap, and they were losing money. The head chef, Steve, lacked passion. They even used canned tuna and bought pies. Ramsay changed the menu to be simpler and updated the dining room. He brought back table-side cooking. The dinner service went well. When Ramsay revisited, Steve had left, and Daniela had hired a new chef.

Season 4 Stories

Episode Number	Restaurant Name	Location	First Shown
17	1	"La Parra de Burriana"	Nerja, Spain	14 November 2006 (2006-11-14)
Owner Laurence had trouble attracting locals. Ramsay found a menu with too many different foods and awful recipes, like prawns with chocolate sauce. The restaurant had a bad reputation. Ramsay showed Laurence how bad his food was by making smoothies from his weird dishes. He taught them to cook fresh food. The restaurant was even robbed one night! Ramsay was worried about the winter. But when he came back, the restaurant was doing well. Laurence was cooking with passion.
18	2	"The Fenwick Arms"	Claughton, England	21 November 2006 (2006-11-21)
This was a classic English pub, but the food was not good. Owner and chef Brian made sloppy sauces. At 62, Brian worked too much and collected too many old plates. Ramsay moved Brian to the front of the restaurant. He threw away Brian's bad sauce and helped him sell his plates. They focused on simple pub food and good gravy. The customers liked the new food. Ramsay made Brian promise to stay out of the kitchen. But on his revisit, Brian was back in the kitchen, and some old habits were returning.
19	3	"Rococo"	King's Lynn, England	28 November 2006 (2006-11-28)
Owner and chef Nick used to be successful, but he refused to update his menu. Ramsay told Nick they needed to start over. Rococo was renamed "Maggie's." It got a new look and a new menu with local seafood. When Ramsay came back, Nick had accepted the changes. He had finally moved past his old problems.
20	4	"Morgans"	Liverpool, England	5 December 2006 (2006-12-05)
Ramsay had big problems with the food and the fights among the staff. Owner Sandy bought all ingredients from a supermarket. Her daughters, Laura and Helen, had little business knowledge. Head chef Philip used strange food combinations and argued with sous-chef Emma. Ramsay found it tough. Helen started working full-time, and Philip agreed to work with Emma. Things improved. When Ramsay revisited, Emma was the head chef, and the restaurant was running much better. Philip had resigned and found a new job.
21	5	"La Riviera Revisited"	Inverness, Scotland	12 December 2006 (2006-12-12)
Revisit episode The restaurant was now called Abstract. Ramsay checked in on how things were going.
22	6	"Momma Cherri's Soul Food Shack Revisited"	Brighton, England	19 November 2006 (2006-11-19)
Revisit episode This restaurant was very popular and had moved to a bigger place called Momma Cherri's Big House. With so many more customers, Charita was starting to go back to her old ways. But Ramsay helped her learn to cook for many people without losing quality.

Season 5 Stories

Episode Number	Restaurant Name	Location	First Shown
23	1	"Ruby Tates"	Brighton, England	30 October 2007 (2007-10-30)
Owner Allan, a former actor, was very worried about losing his house. His restaurant sold fish, which he didn't even like. His chefs were lazy. Ramsay found the fish was too expensive and not good. He found cheaper local fish and added a popular fish and chips meal. Allan didn't like Ramsay changing the restaurant's look at first. But he agreed, and it was renamed "Love's Fish Restaurant." The reopening was a big hit. When Ramsay returned, it was still successful. One of the lazy chefs had been fired.
24	2	"Piccolo Teatro"	Paris, France	6 November 2007 (2007-11-06)
Ramsay was excited to work in Paris, but this was a vegetarian restaurant. He made owner Rachel fire her lazy head chef. Ramsay thought the food was boring. He showed them how to make tasty, fancy vegetarian dishes. He even opened the restaurant for lunch, which Rachel had never done, and made a lot of money. Rachel's father and a good young chef, India, came to help. The relaunch went well. But when Gordon returned, the restaurant had closed. Rachel had given up. Ramsay was very angry with her. But he hired India to work at his own restaurant.
25	3	"The Fenwick Arms Revisited"	Claughton, England	13 November 2007 (2007-11-13)
Revisit episode
26	4	"La Parra Revisited"	Nerja, Spain	20 November 2007 (2007-11-20)
Revisit episode Ramsay was happy to see many visitors at first. But he soon worried because the menu had grown again, with bad pasta dishes. Ramsay set up a cooking contest on the beach to show Laurence that local seafood was better. Laurence agreed to remove the pasta. But Ramsay was not as hopeful about the restaurant's future anymore.
27	5	"The Priory"	Haywards Heath, England	27 November 2007 (2007-11-27)
This restaurant had many customers, but it was losing money. People were using "50% off" coupons, so they paid very little for a full meal. Ramsay also criticized the head chef, Toby, and found a dirty kitchen with old food. Ramsay thought the staff were just unmotivated. He created a new grill menu. But Toby was bad at cooking it. Ramsay made the general manager, Matt, take over as head chef. This helped the kitchen finally work well. Later, Matt was still in charge, and Toby had been fired for serving bad chicken.
28	6	"The Fish and Anchor"	Lampeter, Wales	4 December 2007 (2007-12-04)
This local restaurant was run by former boxer Mike and his wife Caron. They argued a lot, which scared customers away. Mike was not a trained chef and used cookbooks for his complicated menu. Ramsay said the menu was too complex for a busy restaurant. Caron also had a bad temper. Ramsay got rid of the cookbooks and made a simpler, authentic Italian menu. He helped them work together. The reopening was busy, and Caron controlled her temper. Mike struggled a bit, and the service stopped when a waitress fell. When Ramsay revisited, the restaurant was doing much better, and Mike and Caron no longer argued.
29	7	"Curry Lounge"	Nottingham, England	11 December 2007 (2007-12-11)
Ramsay didn't like the restaurant's atmosphere or its false claims of being the best. Owner Raz was proud of his "make your own curry" idea, but Ramsay said it was making them fail. They bought too many ingredients, and the curries didn't taste good. Ramsay helped the head chef, Khan, put a family recipe on the menu, which was a big hit. Ramsay also suggested they deliver curries to offices. The new menu was very successful. When Ramsay revisited, the restaurant was so busy he couldn't even find a seat! He also took some ugly bread stands to be destroyed.
30	8	"The Granary"	Titchfield, England	18 December 2007 (2007-12-18)
Owner Nigel wanted an exclusive club, but it struggled to get customers. Ramsay found the food was not modern British, with strange dishes like shark with mozzarella. The kitchen staff struggled. Ramsay realized Nigel, who had no experience, lacked control. He helped Nigel create a simpler British menu and let chef Martin have more control. They held a food fair to attract locals. The reopening started well, but Martin struggled under pressure. The service was disappointing. When Ramsay revisited, the restaurant had steady customers. Martin was leaving to help troubled teenagers through cooking.

Ramsay’s Great British Nightmare

This was a special two-hour show in 2009. Gordon Ramsay encouraged people to support local restaurants, especially during tough economic times.

Episode Number	Restaurant Name	Location	First Shown
31	1	"The Dovecote Bistro & The Runaway Girl"	Devon, England Sheffield, England	30 January 2009 (2009-01-30)
The Dovecote Bistro (renamed Martins' Bistro) Mick, a former truck driver, opened this bistro. Ramsay was shocked by the bad wallpaper and Mick's poor cooking skills. Mick used orange juice for sauce and microwaved pre-cooked lamb. He was also secretive about money and in debt. Ramsay took Mick out of the kitchen and put his daughter, Michelle, in charge. She had no cooking experience but did very well. The reopening was a success. Months later, the restaurant was making a profit. Michelle even got more cooking training. The Runaway Girl (renamed Silversmiths) Justin ran this Spanish tapas restaurant with his friend, Richie, the head chef. The kitchen pre-cooked all meals to avoid waste. Justin spent little on the kitchen and focused on loud live music events. Richie was very upset with Justin. Ramsay sent a secret diner, who gave a terrible review. Ramsay helped Justin and Richie make up. He changed the restaurant's look and renamed it "Silversmiths." He banned live music and changed the menu to modern British food. Before Ramsay's revisit, another secret diner gave a good review. Justin had stuck to the changes, and Richie loved cooking again.

Ramsay’s Costa del Nightmares

Episode Number	Restaurant Name	Location	First Shown
32	1	"Mayfair Restaurante"	Fuengirola, Spain	23 September 2014 (2014-09-23)
This restaurant was struggling because owner Jack refused to fire his head chef, Juan. The hygiene was awful, so Ramsay closed it for cleaning. Jack also filled the restaurant with useless junk. Ramsay thought Jack's son, John, could take over. But John's car hire business was failing, and he had used his parents' money. Ramsay made John promise to close his business and pay his parents back. He renamed the restaurant "Jack's Chicken Shack" and made a new fried chicken menu. The service started badly but got better. When Ramsay revisited, the restaurant was busy. Juan was now a barkeeper, and a younger chef was in charge. Cleanliness was good. But John still hadn't paid his parents back, so Ramsay made him write an IOU.
33	2	"Le Deck"	Capbreton, France	30 September 2014 (2014-09-30)
Ramsay was angry when head chef Steve and staff cooked themselves expensive steak. He accused them of taking advantage of owners Tim and Debbie. But Tim was also a problem. He interfered too much and handled business carelessly. Steve didn't know local products or speak French. Ramsay took them to a seafood market, and they cooked good dishes. But Tim accused them of being lazy. Despite this, the reopening went well. Ramsay told Tim that if he didn't interfere, Le Deck could be a success. The restaurant was still doing well later, and Steve had left, with the sous-chef taking over.
34	3	"La Granada Divino"	Gaucín, Spain	7 October 2014 (2014-10-07)
This restaurant had only been open for 8 weeks. Owners Milan and Gina were new to restaurants. They relied too much on head chef Neal, putting him under great pressure. The menu was too complicated, and Neal didn't share tasks with his assistants. This made service slow and stressed Neal. Ramsay made Milan and Gina work a service with only six guests to show them their mistakes. He created a new menu with sharing plates to help the kitchen. The relaunch started strong, but Neal went back to old habits when plates ran out. Ramsay helped him get back on track. The restaurant was later making £5,000 a week, and the owners had stepped back.
35	4	"Quelcuttis"	Els Poblets, Spain	14 October 2014 (2014-10-14)
Siblings Joe and Terry Quelcutti seemed more interested in running a bar than a restaurant. Chef Terry's food was terrible. But Ramsay found a bigger problem: server Joe often argued with customers. To help them, Ramsay had them work at a Michelin-starred restaurant. Ramsay relaunched the restaurant as "Quelcutti’s Tapas" with Spanish tapas and good wine. During service, Joe got stressed and took too many orders. But he got back on track, and the service ended well. When Ramsay revisited, the restaurant was making money, and the siblings were finally paying themselves.