In this Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares episode, Gordon Ramsay visits Piccolo Teatro in France.
Piccolo Teatro is a vegetarian restaurant is owned by Rachel McNally.
Rachel is a Scottish woman who married a French man and moved to France.
She opened the restaurant but is now struggling to keep the place open.
She is vegetarian who took the opportunity to buy the restaurant when it came up for sale.
Her best friend Stephanie is her only waitress and there are only two chefs.
Fiona works three mornings a week and Daniel is the head chef.
Gordon arrives at the restaurant and can see that it is a tiny place.
He thinks Daniel is a character and when asked he says their best dish is their Pistachio Lasagne.
Gordon sits to sample the menu and he orders a number of vegetarian dishes.
He is first served a hummus salad that he thinks is disgusting.
Gordon spits out the carrot gratin and he brands the food as an insult to vegetarians.
Gordon tells them that they need to stop being so casual about the poor food as Rachel defends the food.
He tells them that selling vegetarian food to a nation of meat lovers isn’t an easy thing.
Gordon discovers that she has a son and her father invested the money to open the restaurant.
She is currently in debt with rent, taxes and loans outstanding.
Gordon wants to see a service.
At the start of service Rachel is agitated and Daniel has nothing prepped for service.
Daniel works in a tiny kitchen and says he will make something up when the orders come in.
He spends 20 minutes preparing two simple garden salads.
Meanwhile more customers have come into the restaurant and more orders have been placed.
Daniel burns food and asks no one to help him.
Daniel, Rachel and Gordon exchange a few words.
It is clear she has no control over her staff.
Daniel does not respect her and Rachel asks him to leave but he is reluctant.
He pretends to leave and goes back to the kitchen where he tries to clear plates.
Gordon tries to remove the plate and utensils from him.
He ends up swinging a knife around the small kitchen.
Eventually he casually strolls into the dining room and talks to customers.
Gordon gets fed up and marches him out of the restaurant. He tries to return so Gordon picks him up and runs down the road with him.
He attempts to return again and Gordon stops him coming into the restaurant.
Rachel decides that she can't let Daniel back into the kitchen after the previous service.
The next day Gordon arrives for a staff meeting.
Daniel has been let go and Fiona can only work in the day.
It is agreed that Stephanie will have to help in the kitchen until Rachel can find a new chef.
Gordon inspects the kitchen and finds that it is filthy.
There are rotten vegetables mixed in with new ones and cooked food that has gone bad.
The kitchen is covered in grime.
Gordon is glad that meat hasn’t been cooked in the kitchen.
Gordon is worried about the extremely small market of vegetarians and decides to do some research.
He talks to a number of tourists and only one of the many he questioned was a vegetarian.
Gordon trains Fiona on a two-bean chilli and a tomato and aubergine dish.
She says she has never cooked with salt.
Gordon teases her for it before letting her go because she stayed late to finish training.
By 6pm Gordon is alone at the restaurant.
Rachel and Stephanie have not arrived.
Rachel comes in and calls Stephanie.
She is supposed to cook with Gordon for the evening service.
They make excuses as to why they are not committed and Gordon is fed up.
When Gordon has words with Stephanie she walks out and Rachel is the only one left.
Gordon leaves the restaurant as well as he is frustrated.
Rachel goes to a local restaurant to find a waitress.
She finds someone who can help her for the night’s service.
Rachel has no choice but to step into the kitchen.
Gordon comes back in the nick of time agreeing to give her another chance.
Rachel catches a break after her father has found a chef who will coming over the next day.
The night ends well but Gordon still sees a problem with her not serving lunch on the weekdays.
She thinks she it is a waste of resources as she had a bad experience in the beginning.
Gordon decides to run a lunch service.
He offers tourists a cup of soup and cheese on toast for 6 euros.
Gordon works both the kitchen and the front of house.
Rachel comes in and is surprised to see the restaurant open.
She is shocked to see that Gordon has been serving lunch.
Gordon serves her the lunch that was served to customers.
She is impressed with the soup and cheese on toast.
He brings out the cash box from the lunch and together they count the money.
She is surprised by how much they took on just one lunch service.
Later that day, Rachel’s Dad Brian introduces India.
She is a 23-year-old chef who is eager to get started.
Gordon takes her around Paris.
He explains that he spent his formative years learning how to cook in Paris.
She is enthusiastic during produce shopping.
Gordon is hopeful that she will be good for the restaurant.
Rachel came in early after being inspired by her father.
India cleans before she is trained on a new dish.
India starts great and she brings out food quickly and to a great standard.
Rachel lags behind and is now the weakest link at the restaurnt.
Gordon takes father and daughter out to dinner.
He wants to show them how food is supposed to be and Rachel buys into it.
The next day they take vegetable and chocolate tarts out to the streets.
They are to advertise the restaurant along with can can dancers.
There is a lot of positive feedback from potential customers on the tarts.
It is unclear if India wants to leave her life in Scotland and become Rachel’s head chef.
She agrees to stay as long as Rachel steps up and doesn’t go back to her old ways.
Gordon also gets Brian to agree to put some pressure on Rachel so she can be more of a boss.
For the relaunch, Gordon introduces new dishes.
These include a toffee apple tarte and a pea and courgette tart.
India adds her own special, a beetroot and goats cheese salad.
Rachel sounds motivated after Gordon speaks to her but he is not convinced.
He is proven right when she is not ready in time.
She makes last minute phone calls for extra serving staff.
The fully booked relaunch starts.
The food is a hit with customers but Rachel is not serving with a smile.
The night is a success taking over 1000 Euros during the service.
Gordon is still not convinced with Rachel even though India has greatly impressed him.
Gordon says his goodbyes and enjoys a sandwich whilst reminiscing of his time in Paris.
What Happened Next at Piccolo Teatro?
Piccolo Teatro closed in April 2007.
Six weeks later, Gordon returns.
He finds out that the restaurant is closed.
Gordon meets with India, who tells Gordon that she went home to get her stuff.
When she returned to Paris the restaurant was filled with flies and mice.
Rachel had disappeared and could not be contacted.
Rachel's father helped India with a lunch service but he didn't want to continue.
Gordon says that he will help India and offers her some work experience in London.
Rachel was due to meet Gordon but doesn't turn up.
Instead Brian turns up.
He tells Gordon that he was left to repay the debt Rachel owed.
Rachel appears late and Gordon lays into her until she walks out.
According to the Sun Newspaper, Rachel went on to become a £200 a night hooker in France.
After this, she went on to work at Shaw's International Bistro, Cafe Fish and Jeremiah’s Taproom.
She is currently Head Chef at The Black Bull Hotel.
Piccolo Teatro was still listed for sale until 2012 when L'Alimentari opened in the space and Trip Advisor reviews are mostly good.
Piccolo Teatro is Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares UK season 5 episode 2 and aired on November 06 2007.
Read About More Kitchen Nightmares
Previous episode - Ruby Tate's
Next episode - The Priory
Rachel was also sayin that throughout filming gordon was always trying to make a pass at her. I would not consider her a credible source though hehe she looks feral!
ReplyDeleteSeriously, i was astonished. i m french and i dont even understand how someone can make it in paris with that kind of work. gordon could not do anything for her, she is a lost cause.
ReplyDeleteI am glad India is doing extremely well, she is mature, dedicated and apparently a good cook.
ReplyDeleteIndia is a lady who appears in Jamie Oliver's series "Ministry of Food". She appears there as a young mother, taught to cook by Jamie.
ReplyDeleteI hope that I am wrong, and we are not treated as consuming idiots.
Definitely not her
DeleteI just watched the show. Rachel hung her hooters out in one of the best down the cleavage shots ever on TV. She struck me as not serious about the restaurant since it was only a credit card for her. The surprise ending about her becoming a hooker? Well I guess she didn't have the head for restaurant work. Do you think she is still vegetarian?
ReplyDeleteAnd so what was in that tomato bisque lunch that went over so well? It looked very tasty.
ReplyDeleteI couldn't stand that horrible woman at all. It's disgusting that she had so little regard for her customers that she let food like that go out, and even more disgusting that she didn't take her business seriously at all when so many other livelihoods were depending on her. If she finds a better life as a prostitute, at least she's only going to let herself down if she fails at her new venture.
ReplyDeleteI agree that India made the episode worth watching. She was amazing! Hope she found success.
I am watching the program right now, omg what a waste of time and effort, seriously if you are going to do something put all your passion into it to achieve the goals, she just seems like she doesn't care an she was playing on a barbie house that father gave to her.
ReplyDeleteGood for India , if someone is able to detect talent is Ramsey , he could be all the grumpy and kinda bad guy you want but he knows the business as no one and knows who deserves to have an oportunity too.
If you don't enjoy it don't do it and give other the tools don't waste them .
I saw this episode recently, and I agree with a lot of you guys! Rachel and her friend are just so unbelievably lazy, it's no surprise their little restaurant failed. You all said it, Rachel had no idea as to running a business, nor did it seem she was willing to learn! And her friend wasn't much better! I really feel for the dad, for having to give her the money to run the place, only so she'd end up running it into the ground... Still, Gordon was right, the one bright spot in this whole mess was India (although the part timer did what she could to help). India had shown how much more mature, responsible, and driven than Rachel was, and I'm glad she's doing well!
ReplyDeleteI had a (paid) night with rachel. She should've paid more attention to the restaurant.
ReplyDeleteI had a romp with Rachel in her new career. It was quite enjoyable. She's much more skilled in that profession.
ReplyDeleteAnybody know how old is Rachel is? I'm guessing 30-ish, maybe even 35.
ReplyDeleteI found this episode really strange when I first watched it. It felt a lot more 'set up' that most others. When I saw Rachel's dad I could have sworn that I recognised him from somewhere. And then it hit me - he has been in 3 series of Channel 4's Late Night Poker, back in 2000 and 2001, as Brian 'the Cowboy' McNally. He even wrote a book, How to Play Poker and Win, which accompanied the series. If it wasn't for this, I doubt very much Rachel's restaurant would have featured on the show.
ReplyDeleteHer father is also a famous restauranteur, having developed several restaurants around the world including the famous Indochine.
DeleteThat chef Daniel is a complete nob-head! Horrible, little man with no respect for the people he serves or the people who pay him. The way he runs of down the road, he is like some odd little French Charlie Chaplin - a Charlot.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteKissing people on the cheeks is a normal way to greet people in France and other countries.
DeleteIt's completely normal all over Europe and most of the world.
DeleteIt is a total, total shame. As Chef Ramasy told Rachel, She had every possibility in making the restaurant a success. It is such a shame that Rachel had a golden opportunity to make something good out of the restaurant and make lots of money and maybe have a good life if she put the effort to it. But instead she throws that golden opportunity away to be a hooker. I hope one day she looks back at this and be ashamed.
ReplyDeleteI feel so bad for the father. He put a load of money in this and Chef Ramsay summed it up well when he said she abused her father's money. I hope he sold the place and was able to salvage something from the wreckage of Piccolo Teatro. I also felt bad for India for willing to support the place only to get the shaft from Rachel. Thank god Chef Ramsay got her to Boxwood and I wish India all the best!
I just want to know what happened to the cat that had babies.
ReplyDeleteWow, she became a hooker!? I'd go as for as to say she never had her heart into making her restaurant work in the first place and the fact that she had that whacko Brazilian chef at the helm in the kitchen kind of underscores that!
ReplyDeleteJust a reality check, that this is still TV and they will have made her out to appear as they wanted her to for good entertainment. There is no reliable source that she is now a prostitute?? Really well done to India, and certainly a restaurant in that location really should succeed with just a bit of effort (relatively).
ReplyDeleteIndia was great - so much enthusiasm, common sense, graft, and potential. Rachael didn't deserve her to be honest.
ReplyDeleteGlad to hear Gordon gave India a helping hand and got her career properly started.
I wonder if the "pregnant cat" that she went home for was actually a horizontal customer. She sounded worried about the debts, yet was so carefree about the running of the restaurant. She was strangely detached, like she didn't care and didn't need it to survive.
ReplyDelete