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| Jamie Oliver & Gordon Ramsay |
That is, if the rumors are true. The shadiness that is Gordon Ramsay rears its ugly face again. But then Jamie Oliver gets caught alongside him? The two celebrity chefs, who were recently featured in the British documentary, “Big Fish Fight”, were accused of serving European eel in their restaurants, by The Sunday Times, a popular British newspaper.
The European eel is a critically endangered species that has seen a population decline of up to 98% since the 1970’s, much of which has been attributed to over fishing. And while reports are clear that Jamie Oliver’s London restaurant was specifically offering European eel on their menu, reports state that two of Gordon Ramsay’s restaurants listed eel on their menus, but did not specify the exact type of eel that was being sold. It could have been fresh water eel for all we know.
Both Ramsay and Oliver have been aggressive advocates on behalf the endangered fish and shark movement for the past month and a half and are now being labeled as hypocrites.
I’ve searched for copies of the menus, the actual news article by The Sunday Times, and any other information that would add legitimacy to this story, only to come up empty handed. Not that I think Ramsay or Oliver incapable of serving up a critically endangered species, but we all know that Jamie Oliver is currently in Los Angeles filming his current season of “Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution”. And, to my knowledge, the Hell’s Kitchen celebrity chef has been making the rounds here in the states, spending quite a bit of time in California and New York. If the European eel was being sold at either of their restaurants, they probably weren’t aware of it.
Hugh’s Fish Fight has now accumulated 422,000 signatures because of the support that Gordon Ramsay and Jamie Oliver have provided. If these chefs are actually careless enough to knowingly sell an endangered species in their restaurants after so publicly advocating the protection of endangered sea life, then they deserve to be crucified and destroyed. But neither of them seems that stupid.
So why am I writing about this? I have no idea. When I initially read the news posts, I was shocked. But now I just wish the media would get their facts straight – or at least provide “real” proof – before stirring up trouble.
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)
More on Chef Jamie Oliver:
Wow. People who advocate the protection of endangered sea life "deserve to be crucified and destroyed."
ReplyDeleteAnonymous, looks like you didn't bother to read the article before commenting.
ReplyDeleteThat statement starts with: "If these chefs are actually careless enough to knowingly sell an endangered species in their restaurants after so publicly advocating the protection of endangered sea life, then they deserve to be crucified and destroyed."
And then the statement finishes with: "But neither of them seems that stupid."
Jamie should go get his teeth fixed first...ugggly
ReplyDeletethe european eel isnt, hasnt been, and is at no risk of being endangered, its on the greenpeace redlist and has seen a population decline (completely different)the red list is simply a list of commonly eaten fish that are not farmed from sustainable fisheries. check your facts before you crucify someone
ReplyDeleteAbout 3 seconds of Googling will get you to wikipedia, where the european eel is pretty clearly listed as critically endangered.
ReplyDeletehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_eel