So, I love Gordon Ramsay, but my appreciation for him developed in recent years.
During the pandemic, I mainly spent my time applying to new places and binge-watching food shows that made me hungry. Eventually, this led me to all of Gordon Ramsay's cooking shows, and while there are plenty that I love—such as his latest, Next Level Chef, or a classic like MasterChef—there's one show that truly captured my heart, and that is Hell's Kitchen.
The Americanized version exploded and has been ongoing for twenty-four seasons now. During those binging times, I watched every season of Hell's Kitchen so far and have stayed up to date with it each year since then. It's made me laugh, feel stressed, and smile so often that it's hard to count.
But for the first time, Hell's Kitchen has made me cry – or, more specifically, Gordon Ramsay did, and I have to talk about it.
Let Me Start By Saying That I've Always Loved Hell's Kitchen
As I said in the introduction, Hell's Kitchen has been my favorite Ramsay show for a while, and it's for a good reason.
It's not just because it has excellent competition. I like how the show has evolved so well. There are a lot of competition shows or reality shows that are just the same thing over and over again, or they evolve in the wrong way.
For example, Love Is Blind has evolved in some good ways, but Love Is Blind Season 7 has been messy and less enjoyable. The same thing applies to competition shows like The Voice or American Idol; they've changed judges and specific aspects of the show over the years, but maybe not always for the better.
Hell's Kitchen, has changed things up all the time, really for the last several seasons. From this season focusing primarily on executive chefs to other seasons focusing on young ones to those that are all about All-Stars, it constantly changes, and I like that.
The Show Itself Makes Me Stressed – In An Entertaining Way
Aside from the show evolving, Hell's Kitchen genuinely makes me feel stressed – but in a good, entertaining way, which is why it's such good television.
Think of one of the best Hulu shows: The Bear. That's the most stressful original series on television, but you can't help but watch it because there's entertainment within the stress. It lures you in, just like Hell's Kitchen does. Is Ramsay going to yell at the contestants? Is he going to throw a random salmon into the wall? Or is everything going to work out?
That kind of suspense and stressfulness entertains me so much, and I feel giddy half the time.
But Gordon Ramsay Had A Very Emotional Moment In The Latest Season – And It Got Me Crying For The First Time
For the first time… instead of making me stressed or laugh or any of that, Gordon Ramsay made me cry during Hell's Kitchen -- in a good way.
Let me paint the scene. It's the fifth episode of Season 23, and one of the contestants, Egypt, an executive banquet chef, is this close to quitting the competition. Why? Two reasons – the Blue Team (his team) has basically teamed up against him, and he's experiencing some severe homesickness, which really anyone can relate to.
These people are far away from their families for weeks on end, and he misses his family and, most certainly, his daughter. Anyone can understand that. When he tells Ramsay, I was almost expecting him just to let him go, considering we've lost a good amount of contestants already in this season. But Ramsay pulls him aside.
Ramsay actually has a heart-to-heart with Egypt away from the other contestants, where he admits that he's had moments like this too – especially since, at the time of filming, Ramsay's wife had just given birth to a newborn, and he couldn't be there with her. It kills him inside, but he pushes through it. He then goes on to tell Egypt that there's a reason he's kept him around, despite his team ganging up on him, and it's because Ramsay believes in him and he sees something that his team does not.
The two exchange a hug, with Ramsay helping him gain back his confidence and step back out into the kitchen. And that scene… it just hit me. So hard. I think it's because while I've seen the kinder side of Ramsay in many of his other shows, we don't see that in this series.
This is a serious show, and it always has been. It's about who is going to lead Ramsay's next restaurant, and that's a big deal. But seeing this understanding side of him, genuinely connecting with one of the head chefs – made me sob pretty hard because it just makes me realize that even the most skilled and decorated people combat things as simple as homesickness. It's a moment that makes you connect even more with Ramsay, and I appreciate that.
I Hope That We Can See This Side Of Him More In Hell's Kitchen
I know that it's rare for us to get this side of Ramsay again. This show rarely tends to lean in that regard. But I don't know – I really would like it to. The series is going to continue to air as part of the 2024 TV schedule, and I really think that people seeing Ramsay connecting with his contestants more is a big deal.
While it's obvious Gordon Ramsay isn't always the big, mean chef all the time – because who can be? – it's nice to see this change of heart. And I hope it's something we see a heck of a lot more in the future.
For now, I'll just enjoy my little cooking channels on YouTube while I wait for the next episode to drop—and try to resist the urge to make Beef Wellington again.