Although running a restaurant can be tough, one would expect that a good chef can at least
make a decent tasting pizza. Unfortunately, for these chefs, even the basics were too
difficult to achieve. So here are the Top 10 Times Gordon Ramsay Was Furious Over a
Pizza!
The Moldy Tower of Pizza
People have served Gordon some pretty terrible pizzas over the years and they've all thought
they knew everything there was to know about cooking. However, Gordon has rarely been so
unimpressed by a restaurant's pizza quality than that of Barefoot Bob's Beach Grill. A
common issue on Kitchen Nightmares is the quality of the food being prepared and the
cleanliness of the restaurant. You can get seriously ill if your food has not been properly
cooked or prepared. It's called Food Health and Safety for a reason, people. Even though
Gordon didn't order the pizza during his routine taste test, he still managed to get his hands
on some, and it wasn't a pretty sight. In the midst of looking through tons of frozen
and expired food, he came across a stack of 25 moldy pizzas, all piled up together in
a soaked, forgotten fridge, and it sent him into a furious spiral. Not the best first
impression, let's just leave it at that. Ramsay estimated that the restaurant had wasted hundreds
of thousands of dollars on spoiled food. With food standards this low, it's no wonder the
restaurant was struggling. Despite Gordon's best efforts to help the restaurant, it eventually
closed after going back to its original decor and menu.
Favorito Del Nonna or Disgusto Del Gordon
When Gordon arrived at Anna Vincenzo’s in Boca Raton, he was pleasantly surprised. Not
by the pizza, but by the decor of the restaurant. The outside looked relatively clean, well
decorated, and ready for service. But you know what they say - never judge a book by
its cover. The biggest issue with the restaurant wasn't its appearance, but the food itself.
If the food is bad, the restaurant will suffer, no doubt about it. Add in a stubborn chef
who doesn't take criticism, and you've got yourself a ticking time bomb of disaster. After
eating some horrible appetizers and butting heads with the owner via the innocent waitress,
Gordon finally tasted the alleged best pizza served at the restaurant - the Favorito Del
Nonna - and let's just say it wasn't love at first bite. Gordon described it as completely
dry, bland, and boring, with a little touch of sogginess in the middle of the pizza. Even
stranger still, the pizza was topped with broccoli, one of the most universally hated
vegetables. To which the owner replied with a friendly comment saying Ramsay didn't know
anything about pizza because he was British. How's that for not taking criticism, right?
For Gordon, this pizza was certainly not the perfect Italian experience and the owner's
snobby and obstinate attitude did not help the cause. Gordon attempted to turn this family
restaurant around but it was hopeless. The one saving grace here is that no child will
ever have to try eating this broccoli pizza again!
The World's Most Bizarre Pizza
In an attempt to fuse two incredibly popular dishes of the 21st century, Sushi Ko in California
tried to create a Sushi Pizza. The attempt was not exactly a flaming success, at least,
not according to Ramsay. The restaurant's specialty item was no better than their other
food failures of frozen salmon and overnight soup. The waitress told Gordon that the dish
was made of rice, mayo, cheese, salmon, and crab - which seemed like an interesting, yet
unappetizing combination. Despite the waitress's warning, Gordon decided to order it anyway.
Gordon took one bite of the dish and immediately spit it out and smashed his napkin on top
of it to hide its hideousness. He then took a stroll down to the kitchen to express his
discontent with the nefarious pizza. After reprimanding the owner and the chef for not
wearing hairnets in the kitchen, Gordon couldn't hold back saying that the Sushi pizza was
a disgrace to both the pizza and the Japanese culture, potentially one of the harshest
criticisms ever given on the show. Nonetheless, Ramsay did his best to help the owners out,
but Sushi Ko ended up closing its doors. Too little too late. However, they did serve one
of the most memorable dishes that Gordon has ever tasted! Just not memorable in a good
way.
Catastrophic Calzone
When visiting Pantalone’s restaurant in Denver Colorado, they served Gordon a wide
array of Italian “cuisine”, however, one of the most unappetizing items had to be the
Chef's Calzone. Named after Head Chef Pete, Pete’s Calzone was easily one of the largest
meals Gordon had ever been presented with. This calzone was practically an entire pizza
folded in half! After some profanities were said about the looks of this overly stuffed
calzone, Gordon took a bite and did not have anything nice to say about the taste either.
With a mouthful of raw onions and ice-cold pepperoni, he declared it a hideous meal.
Word got back to the kitchen, and Pete was less than joyful about the news. With a dish
that big, the most important thing is to make sure the whole thing is cooked and hot.
Crispy on the outside and soggy on the inside isn't exactly the most appetizing taste ever. The
calzone is a classic pizzeria dish loved around the world, however, Pete’s Calzone at Pantalone’s
ended up being a major disappointment in Gordon's eyes.
Baked Potato Pizza Pie
If a pizza arrives at the table and Gordon’s immediate reaction is to say: "what is that",
then it doesn't bode well for the rest of the dinner experience. One of the strangest
pizzas he had ever seen, the Loaded Baked Potato Pizza at J.Willy's in Indiana, did
not set the bar super high right off the bat. Gordon was so shocked by the funny-looking
pizza that he asked the priest who was eating at the next table to bless his food. But,
needless to say, God wasn't on his side as he took his first and last bite of this loaded
pizza. He compared the ranch dressing to wallpaper paste and sent it right back to where it came
from. The layer of oil on the pizza did not impress Gordon either. Overall, a very disappointing
pizza, especially if you were looking for that tangy marinara sauce. But, no. Instead,
you get this. Wallpaper paste. Yum. It’s always great when a restaurant wants to push
the boundaries in terms of ingredients and recipe creativity, however, the quality has
to meet the mark too. J.Willy's did not make it despite the recipe improvements and closed
down a few months after Ramsay's visit. So, no more Baked Potato Pizza, but, maybe that's
for the best.
Mama Maria’s Monster Mess
From the moment this pizza was placed on the table, you could already tell it was one of
the greasiest pizzas ever made. And from the moment Ramsay stood outside of Mama Maria’s
Italian Ristorante in Brooklyn, he could already tell by the shabby appearance that this was
going to be an interesting ride. And he was more than right. The staff and the owner did
not greet Gordon's arrival with a burst of excitement, but rather with a lot of awkward
looks and snarky comments. Gordon became hopeful that the rude staff was the issue at this
restaurant, and not the actual food itself. He's proved wrong after he receives and tastes
his frozen-looking meal and doubly so after a quick stroll around the kitchen. With moldy
desserts on his plate, dirt, and dust around the restaurant, and an overly oily pizza,
the unwelcoming staff was only the tip of the iceberg. Gordon sat down and tried to
decipher why the pizza was so greasy and oily. "How could a pizza contain so much grease?" seemed
to be a burning question in his mind. After some time pondering, he realized that no one
tasted the food before it was sent to him, which is a pivotal step in any chef's process.
The employees were on the verge of losing their cool after Ramsay told them he just
had one of the most disgusting lunches ever, insulting their cooking methods. Following
a somewhat bustling rush hour, Gordon came to the rescue of the 55-year-old Italian restaurant
and redesigned the entire menu, getting rid of anything frozen and coming up with new,
exciting recipes. Thanks to Gordon's help, Mama Maria was able to turn itself around
and no longer offers one of the greasiest pizzas Ramsay ever tasted!
Poor Prosciutto Pie
While many of the restaurants listed here may share the same scandalous and horrific
kitchen tidiness problems, this next contender has made it solely due to its distinguished pizza.
And the owners' bubbly personalities, of course. While you may have watched Gordon wreak havoc
in disgusting kitchens filled with mold, bacteria, and rotting food, the issue at Amy’s Baking
Company had little to do with the kitchen’s quality control, and all to do with the actual
food. Although the owners were extremely confident in the crisp crust of their pizza, Gordon
strongly disagreed when they served him the prosciutto pie. Not only was the crust nowhere
near the standard that had been promised, but it was also completely undercooked, and
in some bites, just straight out inedible. Gordon went on to voice his remarks to Amy,
one of the owners, but that was all in vain. She refused to accept his critique and claimed
that to her, there was nothing wrong with her pizza. Even though you could clearly see
the half-cooked dough dangling in a pool of grease. In addition to the cooking time issue,
Gordon also noted how oddly sweet the pizza tasted. Although a certain level of sweetness
is wanted from the tomatoes, there's supposed to be some sort of acidity to balance out
the flavor. Alas, this pizza didn't fit the bill. The owners continued to defend their
precious, unpalatable pizza and finally, Gordon had enough. He told them the pizza was raw,
soggy, wet, and too sweet and after being yelled at, he walked out, leaving the owners
to fend for themselves. Chaos and inedible pizza were on the menu of this now-closed
restaurant and if it's taught us anything it's this: if Gordon Ramsay tells you your
pizza is bad, it might be a good idea to listen to him!
Grocery Store Style
When Gordon arrived at Charlie’s Italian Bistro, he fully expected to meet Charlie
himself. But, turned out, the owner of the restaurant was a woman named Tatiana. When
they served Gordon his food, he expressed how this was one of the worst Italian food
experiences he had ever had. After he ate some raw toasted ravioli along with a weird-looking
pink lasagna, he was hopeful that the pizza - an Italian staple - would redeem the menu.
But, sad to say, it was just as terrible as the rest of the food. He even compared it
to a store-bought frozen pizza, since it was so undercooked, cold, and of extremely bad
quality. And funny enough, no one except Tatiana and the head chef, Casimiro, seemed to disagree
with him. His comparison wasn't so far off after all, as he discovered tons and tons
of foods in the freezers, including the pizza doughs. No wonder they tasted like frozen
pizzas. Gordon pointed out that more does not always mean better when it comes to pizza
- a concept that didn't seem quite understood by the head chef. Gordon introduces his chef,
Jonathan, who stepped in and helped maintain the restaurant's new standards after Gordon's
exit and the pizza became much more enjoyable after that.
The Colossal: A Pizza Nightmare
The next pizza on the list is one of the most massive pizzas that Gordon had ever seen - and
it is jaw-dropping to behold. The name The Capri Restaurant gave this monstrosity of
a pizza was truly fitting as customers knew this beast as “The Colossal”. This pizza
was loaded to the brim with nearly every imaginable pizza topping. Yes, this sounds like it could
be a fantastic pizza, loaded with flavor, but, one look is enough to make your stomach
turn, and this is exactly what happened with Gordon before he even took a bite. As he
pushed the endless toppings around on top of the uncooked pizza dough, it started to
look more like a grilled vegetable salad than an actual pizza. Just way too many ingredients
on this pie. The waitress even told Ramsay the pizza had a bit of everything - minus
anchovies. Gordon wasn't impressed and called the pizza dreadful and hideous. As Kitchen
Nightmares continues to prove time and again, the most simple recipes are almost always
the best. The taller the pie, the harder they fall! After receiving some help from Gordon,
the owners improved their restaurant and their reputation for a little while. But, all good
things must come to an end and Capri closed its doors in 2019, and the world said goodbye
to The Colossal, without too many regrets.
The Best and Worst Pizza in Denver
Remember Pantalone’s in Denver, Colorado? Well, they have the honor to be another contender
on this list and they've even earned the number one spot! Score! Considering the Calzone didn't
set the bar very high for any other dish, it should come as no surprise that their pizza
did not fare any better. It was covered in a heavy amount of grease from the unreasonable
amount of cheese and sausage. Gordon couldn't believe his eyes. The pizza, which was supposed
to be thin crust, was easily one of the largest Gordon had ever seen. When Gordon saw how
gigantic, doughy and oily the pizza was, he said that this was in no way the best in Denver,
as the owner proudly claimed. Because of the chef's stubbornness to admit that his pizza
was not good at all, Gordon conducted a taste-test with 3 different pizzas with random people
on the street. Pete's pizza, shockingly, came in last - finishing behind even a store-bought
pizza. Ouch. But, eventually, with Gordon's help, the restaurant got a little "make-over"
and began to earn its "Best pizza in Denver" title back!
Power up and tap on one of our other great videos, hit that subscribe button and ring
that bell to join our notification squad.