Gordon Ramsay blasted for serving pub ready meals
Gordon Ramsay has been blasted for mass-producing popular dishes such as coq au vin and fishcakes for his London gastropubs and Foxtrot Oscar bistro at a central kitchen in Wandsworth.
The Sun newspaper today criticised Ramsay for serving food at The Warrington, The Narrow and The Devonshire that had been pre-made by GR Logistics, a catering arm of Gordon Ramsay Holdings (GRH).
In the article Darran Ridley, head chef for GR Logistics, told The Sun`s undercover reporter that they provided most of the food served at Foxtrot Oscar because the restaurant`s own kitchen was too small.
“We provide everything from coq au vin, starters, terrines, snacks, salmon rillettes, various desserts, braised beef in red wine, beef pie mixes,” he said. “Anything that takes a long time to cook, any braised items or items in sauces — we do all of that. We do coq au vin at £2.60 a portion, leg or thigh, in a bag with a sauce. All you have to do is pop it into a pan of boiling water and reheat it.”
A spokeswoman for GRH said the food produced by GR Logistics was of the ‘highest Gordon Ramsay standards,’ and was only supplied to those kitchens within the group whose kitchen space was limited.
“(The meals) are sealed and transported daily in refrigerated vans and all menu dishes are then cooked in the individual kitchens,” she said. “This is only for the supply of Foxtrot Oscar and the three pubs and allows each establishment to control the consistency and the quality of the food served. GR Logistics also supply a number of other restaurants outside the Group with prepared components."
While many gastropubs will often bulk buy in prepared desserts and dishes, The Sun claims the staff at Foxtrot Oscar described the food as being produced fresh on the premises, with the assistant manager quoted as saying: “Everything is cooked here. It’s Gordon Ramsay - it’s very good.”
Ramsay was also criticised by the newspaper for marking up prices on some items by as much as 586 per cent, claiming a fishcake portion cost £1.92 to produce but £11.25 to buy.
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