SPICY MAYO

Gordon Ramsay is a talented prick. That’s probably why I like him so much. I gravitate to people–real or fictional–who have at least a minor degree of jerkiness in their character. It’s not that I’m partial to assholes; rather, I like people who are challenging, complex, surprising, and who awe me with unexpected talents. Sometimes those talents are ones I wish I had, and sometimes those talents are not so desirable. Either way it makes them interesting, and that’s what hooks me. Personal favourites across the spectrum include David Brent, Gaius Baltar, Nietzsche, Batman, Homer Simpson, Trudeau, Chretien, and Gordon Ramsay.

Seeing these people in action under pressure is often exhilarating. Last year Todd lent me Boiling Point, an older British documentary about Ramsay’s first solo restaurant venture and his attempt to secure his third Michelin Star. I watched it more than once, fascinated by how Ramsay is such a marvelous example of human ridiculousness. He is, in fact, a real-life David Brent–arguably the greatest television character in history. Just compare these two clips and notice the similarities of their characters (aside from the British accents, of course):

• Gordon Ramsay (the 4:25 mark, especially)
• David Brent
  

Ramsay, like Brent, is big on self-aggrandizement whenever possible. In his account of the firing of one of his servers, Ramsay just has to slip in the server’s comment about how he is “the best chef I’ve ever worked for”. What an awesomely subtle display.

The argument in Ramsay’s favour–and this is where he differs from David Brent–is that he is actually talented at his job and has earned his right to boast. I mostly agree. And it’s that combination of talent and prickishness that makes Ramsay such a wonderful subject.

I received the Ramsay cookbook In the Heat of the Kitchen as a Christmas gift last year. It has some great recipes in it, naturally, but the best part is the writing itself. Last night I made this scallop salad recipe from the book. It was incredibly simple and delicious (obviously I didn’t have actual truffles, though I did have some truffle oil). My favourite part, however, was his introduction to the recipe:

“Scallops taste wonderful and can be served in a variety of ways, though they are quite expensive. I use only hand-dived king scallops from Scotland which are delivered so fresh they almost pulsate when we prise them open.”

It just wouldn’t be a Ramsay recipe if he didn’t alienate the home cook with such hilarious elitism right off the bat. Translation: “You can make this recipe, but there’s no fucking way you’ll make it like I do.” Well, my on-special Superstore scallops worked out just fine even though they didn’t pulsate.

Thanks, Gordon. I love you.