Gordon Ramsay Reveals His Favorite Insults in Hell’s Kitchen

Whether you think of him as a brilliant culinary entrepreneur or a loudmouthed self-promoter, Gordon Ramsay has hosted more of America’s most successful reality TV shows than anyone else. Below, we interview the notoriously volatile chef and producer about the upcoming 18th season of Fox’s Hell’s Kitchen, asking him to talk about his favorite insults and secret guilty snacks. Plus, we discuss NatGeo’s controversial upcoming Uncharted, CBS’s attempt to import Love Island, and what he thinks is the secret to his longevity in Hollywood. GORDON RAMSAY: I’m excited about the rookies, the young, hungry talent who don’t have the money to go to culinary school. They don’t want to leave culinary school with $100,000 in debt. So they’re warriors. They’re millennials who learned on YouTube. They’ve taken classes, and they’re raw, hungry talent. I want to kick the All-Stars’ asses and pit the rookies against the pros. It’s an interesting mix. It’s just a very competitive look at the culinary world, and they’ve had some rough diamonds this year who have honed their talent beyond belief. This is the best season we’ve ever done.

I have indigestion. If it’s not Pepto-Bismol, it’s Xantac to control my damn heartburn. The biggest problem from a chef’s perspective is that everyone thinks they can cook because they’ve hosted dinner parties. They think they can transfer that skill from running a six- or ten-person restaurant to running a restaurant. I applaud that attitude. Can you name an athlete or an incredible success anywhere in the world without a little bit of an attitude?

When they lie, that’s the worst insult any chef can hear. When someone lies to you, it’s worse than working with someone who can’t cook. Because when you trust someone with your reputation and they cross that line, they want [the food] out of their sight and they tell you they ate it all, and you know they’re lying, that’s the worst. They also get a little carried away with this fancy paperwork. They bought the best Japanese knife that costs $700. There’s no point in buying the best knife if you can’t cut it [properly]. But I think the biggest insult I’ll turn around and say is, “I’ve forgotten more than you know,” or “butternut squash, do you want it diced and shoved up your ass?”