Restaurant Nightmare: Gordon Ramsay Claims His New Restaurant Was Sabotaged By Rival

World-renowned chef Gordon Ramsay claims that his new restaurant was sabotaged on opening day.

Ramsay recently opened a new restaurant in Mayfair called Heddon Street Kitchen and, for the opening day, the restaurant received 140 reservations but of those, only 40 showed up.

According to Ramsay, a competitor in the industry that he did not name was the one responsible for the screw up. He spoke about the incident on the Jonathan Ross Show and said that it showed the “level of envy” in the restaurant business. He claimed that the competitor went on the computer and made a block booking to sabotage the restaurant because of professional jealousy, Business Insider reports.

Ramsay also said that the low turnout on opening night left the staff upset. Now, they will have to reconfirm all of the future bookings for the restaurant to ensure that fake bookings won’t happen again.

“I think there’s all that level of envy. Saturday was our first big day, we had 140 on the books and 100 no show. It’s bad spirit and you see the staff and they are down and frustrated, I was there to pick them up and make sure we stay focused.”

Heddon Street Kitchen opened earlier this month and is described as having a relaxed atmosphere where customers can grab brunches, dinners, and cocktails. The restaurant is run by head chef Maria Tampakis and features a modern European menu.

Gordon Ramsay has opened 12 restaurants in the capital for a total of 24 restaurants opened all around the world, according to Daily Mail UK. He has received seven Michelin stars and also appears on several television shows including Hell’s Kitchen, MasterChef, Kitchen Nightmares, and Hotel Hell.

Aside from his superb reputation as a chef, Ramsay is also known for the foul language he uses on his shows. However, he said that it’s only a professional persona and he isn’t that way at home with his children.

“I like to think it’s an industry language. I’ve worked with some great chefs, and when I’ve made a mistake there’s a naughty word that comes out. But do I want Matilda and Jack [Ramsay’s children] walking around swearing? Definitely not.”

With several awards and countless recognitions in the restaurant industry, it’s no wonder that other people might envy Ramsay. In 2013, he was inducted into the Culinary Hall of Fame for his contributions to the cuisine and food preparation industry.

[Image via Mirror]