http://www.caterersearch.com/Articles/2005/01/27/56510/waking-from-the-nightmare.htmlArticle Thumbnail
Waking from the Nightmare
(27 January 2005 11:56)
A year ago programme makers for Channel 4 stormed into the kitchens of four struggling restaurants scattered across Britain in an attempt to transform them. They sent in Gordon Ramsay, who was given just one week to convert the flagging businesses into raging successes.
One of those businesses was the Glass House in Ambleside, a 100-seat restaurant set in picturesque Cumbria. When Ramsay arrived, turnover was down, the menu was - according to Ramsay - "confusing and bizarre", staff morale was low and owner Neil Farrell was on the verge of selling up.
More than four million viewers tuned in to Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares to watch Ramsay liken the Glass House kitchen's hygiene levels to "a puppy's litter tray", tear a strip off a member of staff for having bad breath, slam the overpriced menu and, with tempers reaching boiling point, almost come to blows with Farrell in a now-legendary incident after he criticised Ramsay's Caesar salad for being too rich.
Ramsay's biggest roasting, however, was reserved for head chef Richard Collins with his culinary novelties such as garlic popcorn, duck cakes with chilli jam and a much-derided pomegranate risotto, a dish Ramsay blasted as "revolting".
So, 12 months on, it comes as something of a surprise to discover that head chef Collins is still here - in fact he's working away downstairs in the kitchen as we speak. And despite Ramsay's ridicule, the pomegranate risotto is on the menu. But then so is the Caesar salad, although in a lighter form.
On the surface, it seems that nothing's changed. But Farrell disagrees. "Having Gordon here for a week made a huge difference to what we do and we've benefited without a doubt," he says. "Standards were slipping here and I was getting very complacent - Gordon gave me the kick I needed."
The "kick" came in the form of a Ramsay-style, expletive-fuelled verbal pummelling - and Farrell admits he was "gutted" when he first saw the show. "But his main criticisms were correct," he says. "Richard wasn't leading the kitchen, and I wasn't managing things properly, so the content [of the programme] wasn't surprising, but it was upsetting."
Farrell is, nevertheless, positive about his TV experience and remains faithful to Ramsay. "It's easy for people to say they wouldn't have gone on the programme, but to get somebody of his calibre here in my restaurant was an opportunity I couldn't turn down. He's the best chef in the country," he adds.
Despite the upheaval and stress of filming and having a production crew in the kitchen - "you don't realise how nervous you are until you've got a camera shining at you down the pass," says head chef Collins - Ramsay's practical focus was evident.
One of Ramsay's first innovations was the introduction of a £10 two-course lunch menu, but unfortunately this promotion didn't last. "It wasn't right for our customers," says Farrell, who has since reinstated his original range of main courses, soups and sandwiches. The early supper menu - although labelled unprofitable - is still a fixture, but the … la carte, previously far too complicated with nearly 90 dishes on offer, was trimmed down to a much more manageable six-choice starter, main and dessert format. There have been clear benefits to this new design. "Our standards are higher now because we're not stretching ourselves - and it's more cost-effective to do just six options. We have much more time to spend on the food," Farrell explains.
Ah yes, the food. With the pomegranate you-know-what still very much in pride of place, what influences did the kitchen take from the three-Michelin-starred chef? "Well, at Gordon's suggestion, we replaced the duck cakes with a duck salad, which is selling well, and Richard has introduced a daily fish special. Gordon did give us very good tips. For instance, we now use shoulder of lamb, not shank, and once cooked it's left in its liquor for about two hours to draw in all the flavour. It's much tastier."
And what about the menu wording "frozen but lovely", used to describe the chips, much criticised by Ramsay? "We've taken that off," confirms Farrell, though not without first pointing out that some customers appreciated the honesty.
Farrell has since cut his menu prices across the board by 25% - an idea he admits was influenced by Ramsay. "He told me he used to charge £14 for a two-course lunch at Aubergine, to get people interested and in the door. Once you've won over customers you can then tweak prices." It's a strategy that seems to have worked. "We're making more money with bums on seats than we did last year with higher prices," Farrell confirms.
In fact, business is good at the Glass House. Since the show was screened in May, the restaurant's turnover is up by 25%, an increase Farrell attributes to the publicity it generated. "Last Sunday we did 55 covers, and that's a lot for a wet November night in the Lake District. This time last year, it was more like 20," he says. "We're getting people in because they know us from the show."
As 70% of the Glass House's trade is tourism-led, the restaurant has also seen numbers boosted from unexpected quarters. "People are now making a booking here, then trying to find a hotel locally, instead of the other way round," says Farrell. "We've had visitors from all over the world. It was shown in Australia, and we had calls from people saying they had family nearby, and asking if they could they book a table for a meal."
Farrell is clearly surprised at the level of publicity the show brought. "During the screening, there were 20,000 people looking at our website. And in the three days following the programme, we'd had 183,000 hits."
Other unexpected occurrences include customers sneaking downstairs unannounced to quiz the staff in the kitchen, endless photo and signed-menu requests, and people walking up to Farrell and Collins in the street greeting them by name. "It's strange - people think they know us now."
Of the original brigade, only Collins remains at the Glass House. There's now a new team of four in the kitchen working under Collins, and things seem to be working out well. "Richard's now a lot more confident in the kitchen," says Farrell, who says he also has a new lease of life. "I used to spend hours working but not really achieving anything. Now I'm more in control. Gordon brought that out in me."
Despite the past year's successes, Farrell admits he will find it hard to watch Ramsay's revisit when it's screened at Christmas. "I'm trying not to think about it," he confesses.
But would he recommend the experience to other businesses? After a thoughtful pause, Farrell nods. "What we went through was nightmarish but worth it," he says. "It's been fantastic for business. And I'd do it again. At the end of the day, we've had Gordon Ramsay in our kitchen for a week. You can't beat that."
