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Over the course of his career, Gordon Ramsay has forged a culinary entertainment empire complete with television shows, cookbooks, and a multitude of restaurants. While the chef is best known for shouting profanities on TV, Ramsay has been a successful restaurateur since 1998. The chef’s restaurant group owns and operates 88 dining establishments throughout the world, with restaurants in the U.K., the U.S., South Korea, Thailand, France, and many other locales. Ramsay’s restaurants have been awarded multiple Michelin stars over the years, which means getting a reservation can be challenging for even world-famous celebrities. In fact, several stars have found themselves turned away or, in some instances, kicked out of Ramsay’s establishments.
As one singer learned the hard way, dress codes are sometimes non-negotiable, and just because you’re a world-famous pop star or tennis legend does not mean you can score a table at the last minute. Celebrities may be able to charm the pants off regular folks, but Ramsay has proven that he cares less about schmoozing and more about running a tight ship (or enacting a bit of revenge on those he’s beefed with in the past, collateral damage be damned).
Rita Ora
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Although she may not be a household name in the States, Rita Ora is a wildly popular British-Yugoslavian singer and actress. In addition to her own star status, Ora is also married to Taika Waititi, director of movies such as “Thor: Ragnarok,” “Jojo Rabbit,” and “What We Do in the Shadows.” While her celebrity pedigree is certainly impressive, it’s no match for the stringent dress code at one Gordon Ramsay restaurant.
In an appearance on “The Jonathan Ross Show” (courtesy of YouTube), Ora revealed she’d been prohibited from dining at the establishment due to her clothing. “I wasn’t dressed the part,” the singer said, explaining to Ross that she was wearing a tracksuit and sneakers to the fancy restaurant. Ramsay also appeared on the show and seemed surprised by the singer’s anecdote, telling her she was welcome back any time. Ramsay even pushed Ora to disclose which restaurant had snubbed her, but the singer was reluctant. “If I say, are they going to get in trouble?” Ora asked. When Ramsay assured her they wouldn’t, the star jokingly exclaimed, “I don’t believe you!”
Madonna and Martina Navratilova (separately)
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Gordon Ramsay isn’t afraid to tell some of the biggest stars in the world “no” when it comes to last-minute reservations. In a conversation with The Independent, the chef claimed to have turned away some very famous faces at Aubergine, located in the Chelsea neighborhood of London. Because the establishment was so exclusive (and a bit on the small side), tables were at a premium. For instance, Ramsay turned Madonna away when she wanted a table for nine unexpectedly. Tennis champion Martina Navratilova was also turned down after personally contacting the restaurant after winning Wimbledon.
According to Ramsay, there’s a surprisingly wholesome reason he didn’t keep some tables reserved for last-minute requests from VIPs. “No, I don’t believe in that,” the chef explained. “Why should one of my locals… who’ve supported me from the beginning, not be able to eat here because we’re keeping a table clear?” Ramsay remained at Aubergine until 1998, at which point he left to open his own restaurant amidst some espionage involving a stolen reservation book (just one of the chef’s many notable feuds). Aubergine later closed in 2010, and Ramsay purchased the location in 2014 to open Gordon Ramsay Bar & Grill Park Walk. According to the restaurant’s website, that establishment “is closed until further notice.”
Joan Collins
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Whether it’s due to accusations of tax fraud or claims the chef roughed up a contestant on one of his shows, Gordon Ramsay is no stranger to controversy. Ramsay has also been wrapped up in many heated conflicts with others, particularly those within the culinary industry or those adjacent to it. Unfortunately, Joan Collins was once collateral damage in a falling out that Ramsay had with another person.
Back in 1998, Collins visited Gordon Ramsay, another Chelsea-based dining establishment helmed by, you guessed it, Ramsay himself. The actress and author was in a group that included British food critic A.A. Gill, who once harshly mocked Ramsay in a review of Aubergine. Characterizing Ramsay as a juvenile who failed to achieve a career in professional sports, Gill raised the ire of the chef, who commanded that the critic, Collins, and the rest of their party leave after placing orders. Years later, Collins joined Ramsay on “The F Word,” where the chef expressed remorse about the incident. Collins took it in good stride and even learned the proper technique for making an omelet from Ramsay.
AA Gill
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While Gordon Ramsay’s primary complaint about A.A. Gill seemed to be the critic’s less-than-flattering opinion of Ramsay, the chef’s brash actions may have sprung from a deeper well of discontent. In the aftermath of the food critic being ejected from Ramsay’s eponymous restaurant, the chef seemed to imply that Gill’s friendship with Marco Pierre White, another Ramsay adversary, had something to do with the critic’s harsh words.
Keep in mind, Ramsay once considered White his teacher in the kitchen. And, as his boss, White reportedly made the tougher-than-nails chef cry. As you can imagine, Ramsay gave as good as he got, and the chef even arranged the theft of Aubergine’s reservation book to make White look bad (which the celebrity chef brazenly admitted to doing years later). While it’s true that White and Gill have a close friendship, there’s no indication that White influenced Gill’s Aubergine review or his statements about Ramsay.