Chef Gordon Ramsay is known for his role as the unrelenting critic on several reality cooking shows, and now he’s chosen to put the spotlight on the hotel industry.
“Hotel Hell” is the working title of Ramsay’s new show that will be modeled after his restaurant makeover program, “Kitchen Nightmares.”
Ramsay and a team of hospitality experts will spend the week at a failing establishment working with the employees to identify problems and find solutions. After refreshing the property, as well as the staff, a grand re-opening event will showcase the renovations.
The show is still in its early stages, and there’s no word yet who will be on Ramsay’s team of experts. Kristin Curtin, a casting producer for The Conlin Company, which is doing the show’s casting, said Ramsay will be selecting the experts himself.
Curtin said they are looking to feature independently owned properties with at least eight rooms.
The show is about helping individuals struggling against the competition or the economy and who are not able to keep up with the times—people who are genuinely struggling, she said.
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A statement released by the Fox television network said we can expect to see “dirty bedrooms, mold-ridden bathrooms, incompetent staff and customer service that’s not up to par.”
That alone is TV heaven for a reality addict like me.
Ramsay’s hotel chops
So what exactly makes Gordon Ramsay qualified to fix these deteriorating properties? We obviously know he’s a world-renowned restaurateur, but what does he know about hotels?
A biography on Ramsay’s personal website mentions he studied hotel management in college. And according to Fox’s statement, Ramsay also spent time running an award-winning boutique hotel in London.
It will certainly be interesting to see him put his hotel expertise into action.
The competition
It doesn’t end there, though. Ramsay’s “Hotel Hell” is set to have hotel reality TV competition. An undisclosed cable network and casting company is casting for another hotel makeover program, too. The call for hoteliers has been circulating around the Web this past week.
They aren’t releasing too many details just yet, but a spokeswoman for the casting company, who asked to remain nameless, said their expert has been in the hotel industry for more than 30 years and that he has names like Ritz-Carlton, among others, under his belt.
Any guesses as to whom it might be? I’m stumped.
This casting company is searching for independent, family-owned properties to feature on the program. The spokeswoman said they want to makeover historic hotels in the U.S. that have been ravaged by natural disasters, that are struggling financially because of the economic downturn or have staffing issues.
The casting company is keeping mum about which network will air the show.
These two new shows, coupled with CBS’ Undercover Boss series that featured several hoteliers, including Steve Joyce, a year ago, are certainly giving the television viewing public a close look at the back-of-house operations that sometimes go unnoticed or unappreciated by the traveling public.
If you’re interested in being on Gordon Ramsay’s “Hotel Hell”, send an email to HotelHell@TheConlinCompany.com. If you’re interested in the cable network hotel makeover show, send an email to hotelfixer@gmail.com for more info.
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