During a trip to Costa Rica, where Gordon Ramsay and his crew were filming a piece on shark hunting for Ramsay’s new show “Gordon Ramsay: Shark Bait”, Ramsay got too close to the action and was doused with gasoline and held at gun point by a Costa Rican gang that “specialized” in the shark fun trade.The Hell’s Kitchen star and his crew were warned by authorities when they arrived, but apparently Gordon Ramsay needed more than just a warning. In a statement made by Ramsay, he shares his experience:
"It's a multi-billion dollar industry, completely unregulated. We traced some of the biggest culprits to Costa Rica. These gangs operate from places like forts, with barbed wire and gun towers.
"At one point, I managed to shake off the people keeping us away, ran up some stairs to a rooftop and looked down to see thousands of fins, drying on rooftops as far as the eye could see. When I got back downstairs, they tipped a barrel of petrol over me."
Ramsay adds, "Back at the wharf, there were people pointing rifles at us to stop us filming. A van pulled up and these seedy characters made us stand against a wall. The police came and advised us to leave the country. They said, 'If you set one foot in there, they'll shoot you.'"
I’m sure we’re all relieved that Gordon Ramsay wasn’t hurt – and that his new show spotlights some real action and not just Ramsay’s foul-mouthed temper, but literally stepping into the line of fire is just stupid. After the never-ending bad press in 2010, I’m sure Ramsay feels he has to do something drastic to spruce up his career, but getting shot isn’t the answer.
My two-cents: Gordon, if you really want to gain positive media attention and live on the edge, how about serving up a public apology for your bad behavior and then taking action to fix your mistakes? That would provide you with positive buzz for months, maybe even hero status, and it would be far less life-threatening!
It looks like Gordon Ramsay’s Kitchen Nightmares isn’t just about the restaurant anymore. According to The Daily Mirror, the Kitchen Nightmares’ star and executive producer has added a number of irrelevant questions to the Kitchen Nightmares contestant application. How much a contestant weighs, as well as their height, eye and hair color are just a few of the questions that have been added. But my favorites of all of them are these:
- Have you ever had a restraining order filed against you?
- Does your family have a history of depression?
- Are you easily upset?
A friend of mine had filled out an application for Chef Ramsay’s Hell’s Kitchen (as a joke) and told me that they had similar questions on the application he filled out, which he thought was strange. Considering that Kitchen Nightmare’s is supposed to be focused on the restaurants and not the contestants, asking such personal questions doesn’t seem right.
Moreover, Chef Gordon Ramsay should be focused more on cleaning up his muddied image instead of adding to his laundry list of drama and evil doings.
Are those questions even legal? But then again, does he really care?
More on Gordon Ramsay and Hell's Kitchen:
The Sharks that Gordon Ramsay Killed: The Movie (warning: video contains graphic violence)
Gordon Ramsay Tossed to the Sharks (Warning: Contains graphic photo)
You cannot claim, that in the heat of the moment Gordon Ramsay was running around that Costa Rican gang's fort, adrenerline running on an attempt to uncover the gritty underside to a trade he obviously hates, that all he was thinking about was what a good change of direction it was for his career. Maybe keep your two cents in your pocket next time.
ReplyDeleteThat is a very interesting perspective – albeit, a touch angry. I appreciate your comment, and I’m sure Gordon Ramsay appreciates your support. =)
ReplyDeleteHe made the documentary to spark change not to improve his cooking career, these bastards are killing sharks to the brink of their extinction. i personally woul have been disappointed if he had done anything less. he's got the right idea.
ReplyDeletethese pricks need stopping, and the only way is by shocking the rest of the world into actually doing something for a bloody change.
If this sparked an interest in your rational side then take a look at the film Sharkwater by Rob Stewart, very informative also but with a bit more science thrown in too. BTW did anyone mention the fact that apex marine predators such as sharks, whales and dolphins contain high levels of Methylmercury, PCB's etc. that can be very dangerous if consumed during pregnancy. Look up 'Minimata Disease' and weigh it up for yourselves.
ReplyDeletewhat Gordon said is bullshit, based on information given by the Costa Rican authorities, they didn't even know that he was in the country. Also, the guy on the camera also stated that Gordon was never threaten by any gang. I do believe in Gordon's habilities in the kitchen, but please don't lie about such an important thing.
ReplyDeleteOf course the authorities of one of many corrupt countries in central America could be telling the truth, YEA RIGHT!!!.....Piss Off, already. There's your controversial documentary right there. Corrupt officials in foreign countries.
DeleteI've worked in kitchens before and they are never a pleasure to work in. The egotism that Ramsey displays is no where near the egotism among food grime lined humans in those kitchens. To watch him run a cooking contest shows exactly how "shit" works and how "shit" shouldn't be operated. I applaud Chef Gordon Ramsay on showing the world how "shit" should be ran and operated.
...............HARD-CORE-onsultant
well, this is not so true, nobody saw the "attack" and the police hasn´t any notice about this, so i think that someone is lying
ReplyDeleteI am always amazed at the selective process used when it comes to water dwelling creatures. We just pick one and decide this is the one we will stop catching. Then we have people like Ramsay, who does more abuse to the cooking industry than anyone else in it, deciding to become a humanitarian to fish but continue abusing people.
ReplyDeleteI would like to see an experiment. Lets place a giant aquarium in a prominent place where everyone will have to work around it, right on Hell's Kitchen. We can put two sharks in it, and require Gordon to give the exact same treatment to the fish that he gives to his students. The difficulty in this experiment of course would be that Sharks aren't prolific in the English language. I'm sure the producers of Hell's Kitchen could easily overcome this without any trouble. Devising a way to deliver the horrid treatment Gordon gives his students to the fish in a way they could understand it, can't possibly be outside their wide scope of respected talents.
Since Gordon is now becoming "Fish Savior" perhaps he would curtail the temper tantrums he throws at his students, because this would mean he would have to deliver the same to the sharks. The Queen would Knight him as "Lord of the Sharks" and his students could erect a giant bronze shark statue, celebrating what the sharks did for them!
Dave McVey from Pensacola FL
May 6 2012