Books : Gordon Ramsay's Playing with Fire

Rating: - Misleading.
Having just read Marco Pierre White's superb autobiography (Devil in the Kitchen)I thought it would be interesting to read GR's as a cross reference. The piece on the back was misleading. It inferred that this was a book that had soul/intimacy and insight. How far from the truth that is! GR seems to sneer at others whilst boasting at length and bigging himself up. He tries to come across as an everyman, for eg, he talks about leaving Aubergine and going for an interview taking his 'one suit from my sparse warddrobe' then goes on to say that at the time he was earning £75000... As a nurse on less than half than that it was irritating.
His anaolgy for common sense, using NASA's huge spend on finding a biro that worked in space whilst the Russians used a pencil is badly researched as that is a common urban myth. Pencils lead could break off in space and cause damage to delicate machinery. (Stephen Fry...)
The book describes basically the MacDonaldisation of 'Haute Cuisine' and GR makes it very clear that money is his God. Nowhere does a love of food come through, it's all about greed and being the biggest. He doesn't come across as someone who likes his customers, rather he manipulates them in order to make maximum profit. I will never eat in one of his restaurants as it is unpleasant to feel that all you are is a cash cow.
He sneers at Marco Pierre White very early on in the book, whilst in Marco's book he is gracious and gives Gordon his due as well as explaining why they fell out.
The difference between the two chefs from council houses is that Marco loves food and clearly has grace, humility and class, whilst Gordon comes across as a boastful, greedy, envious, materialistic, insecure man with no class or understanding of what's really important. His success is clearly due to the fact that he can jump on any band wagon and format it. I actually quite liked him before I read this book.

---

Rating: - inspiring
Playing with Fire is a great book to read as you learn how Ramsey became famous through his rise and falls in the restaurent business. Although i feel that Humble Pie was more interesting as it retold his life. Still, Playing with Fire is still inspirational.

---

Rating: - Good information
This could be any business. I am at the moment going through all sorts of emotions in buisness. One day things are up, one day things are down. It is good to read something which you can relate to.
Gordon writes about restaurants but it could be any type of business.
Before i got the book i didn't like Gordon Ramsey, don't know why? Just didn't.
After the book i admire Gordon, Good luck to you Gordon! I wish you all the best.

---

Rating: - Much more illuminating than Humble Pie
I enjoyed this book, and found it offered greater insights into the character and values of the author than his previous title. As the focus is more on GR's business, he is able to describe his actual experience with a passion that makes it more authentic than the autobiography of last year.

GR is definitely at his most convincing and compelling when he's on his own territory - and this is something that he freely admits in the book. When he starts to stray into commentary on corporate customer service, government incompetence and tax and insurance procedures, he begins to sound little more than a grumpy old man with a thousand axes to grind.

The main weakness of this book is its structure - and the way the conclusion repeats more than it concludes - not such a good recipe for a chef!

It is also slightly irritating that some rather cliched examples are wheeled out to illustrate such things as the importance of lateral thinking. If you read a lot of business books you won't thank Mr.Ramsay for using the old NASA biro story again.

The most compelling bits of the book are about what they found when they dismantled kitchens like The Connaught and Claridges, and how they built them back up again to be so completely focussed on guest experience and satisfaction - including the loos!

GR comes across as an individual with extremely high standards, and a faultless commitment always to live up to his own expectations. It will be interesting to track his next steps, as this business book finishes with quite a cliff-hanger!

---

Rating: - Was expecting a follow up to Humble Pie ...
I really enjoyed reading Humble Pie, alright it was very easy to read but sometimes it's just nice to read a book you don't really have to think about.

The thing I liked most about Humble Pie was the way it took you through Gordon's life and all the ups and downs he'd faced along the way, all written in his unique style!

I was expecting Playing with Fire to be a follow on from this and have been disappointed. Instead it's basically a list of all the restaurants he's opened, in chronological order and the lessons learned in each one. It's trying to be more of a business self-help type book instead of an autobiography and just ends up to me as Gordon giving himself a very big pat on the back for being extremely successful and making loads of money. Which, to be honest, he's come from nothing so he deserves to be pleased with himself but it wasn't the book I was expecting which is a shame.