Kitchen Nightmares, the one you refer to, was a brilliant series. Most
times Ramsay was called in (we can only assume for an undisclosed fee)
to sort out the mayhem in a commercial restaurant/kitchen which had
previously been doing great business, but had since gone to ruin.
Given the agenda, Gordon was required (by owners or management) to
source the area/s and the personnell who attributed to the downfall of
a once successful venue.
In almost all of the episodes Ramsay went for the jugular. Ruthless,
critical and rude to the extreme. But the source of his angst (the
staff member/s) were well deserving targets. Most should never have
been in charge of a kitchen, let alone a restaurant!
In one episode one 'head chef' dished up rancid mussels, which sent
Ramsay dashing out the back door of the kitchen within 30 seconds, to
heave his guts up near the bins! And the HC was happy to send this dish
out to unsuspecting diners!!! Ramsay went berserk! And called it as he
saw it in all episodes. Luckily the restaurant owners/chefs took heed
and most went on to prosper.

Hell's Kitchen was totally different. It was Ramsay's restaurant - crew
and staff were his to do with as he wanted - and he wanted perfection,
while pitting one team against the other. Made for good reality tv.
Almost reminiscent of Jamie Olivers 13 - though instead of bringing a
team together the object seemed to tear the teams apart. It's still
screening here in Aus so haven't seen the finale.

Another one to look out for is The F Word - his new restaurant where he
meets & greets friends, colleagues and VIPs then cooks up a treat for
their pleasure, arriving at their table post-nosh to guage their
response/pleasure. It's currently screening here in Aus.

One nice aspect to The F Word is Ramsay in one or more shows gets his
Mum into the kitchen in a cook-off section and their dishes (identical,
but different ingredients/methods) are served (anonymously) to the
diners who have to rate the dishes. Ramsay has come off second best on
a number of occasions! But he takes it well.
Most head chefs/restaurant owners expect the best from their staff, and
a high standard of service. It's a lost more remiscent of his earlier
cooking shows - occasional language - but toned down a bit. Especially
with the punters! (aka diners)

Nice thing about the F Word, you get a glimpse of another side of
Ramsay, at home, in his garden, with his kids - 4 or 5 (can't remember)
- who are currently tending to the family's brood of turkeys which are
being loved & cared for prior to butchering for Christmas dinner -
guess the names of the turkeys......... Nigella (Lawson), Jamie
(Oliver), Nick (Nairn), Anthony (Worrall Thompson), Ainsley (Herriot),
Rick (Stein) and Gary (Rhodes) etc.... and most of them are hens! But
you get to see a side of Ramsay that is really quite nice. But not
necessarily good for ratings.
The f'ing and blinding Ramsay is over the top - which everyone loves
and expects. The more outrageous the better!
Amazing he's only 38-39..... achieved quite a lot in a short time
frame.

LadyJane
--
"Never trust a skinny cook!"
Still laugh over Anthony Bourdain's Kitchen Confidential - which was a
bloody good read - though it begs the question, having read it, SHOULD
you trust a restaurant ever again?