Ramsay earned his first Michelin star when he was only 28 years old. But his global culinary fame would come later from his signature dish Beef Wellington. Now we know why.
There are two things that contestants on Gordon Ramsay’s cooking shows know by heart. First is that you can’t be too sensitive because that man can churn insulting metaphors and analogies like he’s on the shortlist for the Pulitzer Prize. (“This looks like it was cooked by a blindfolded monkey” and “This is so bland, it makes cardboard taste exciting.”)
Second is that is that if you’re going to cook his signature dish Beef Wellington, you’d better make sure it’s so damn good that it would render him speechless. That puff pastry—with a thin layer of finely chopped mushrooms—had better be flaky and perfectly brown on the outside, and the tenderloin pink in the middle.
Two Michelin-starred chef David Chang of Momofoku said of Ramsay, ‘Love him or hate him, Gordon Ramsay has changed the way we think about chefs and restaurants.‘
Well, his Beef Wellington was both of these when I had dinner with colleagues a few nights ago at the newly opened Gordon Ramsay Bar & Grill in Newport World Resorts. At first bite I let out a curse because, dammit, it was so good! The beef was tender and a blushing pink in the middle, retaining a moistness that can be tricky to achieve when you have to make sure the puff pastry is crusty on the outside.
Beef Wellington is in large part the reason why Ramsay’s 90 restaurants across the globe have earned 22 Michelin stars overall. You come for the Beef Wellington—and stay till the end of the meal for the Sticky Toffee Pudding.
The dish is said to originate in 1815 and named after the Duke of Wellington, Arthur of Wellesley, to celebrate his victory in Waterloo. Ramsay loves it so much that he has gone on record stating that he would have it on his last meal on earth.
“Beef Wellington has to be the ultimate indulgence,” Ramsay said. “It’s one of my all-time favorite main courses and it would definitely be on my last supper menu.”
While global chain restaurants aim is to deliver consistent food and service, people working in the Gordon Ramsay Group have said that Manila’s Beef Wellington—with the tenderloin sourced from Australia—is the best among his restaurants in Asia.
The Newport outlet is Ramsay’s sixth country in Asia (following UAE, Qatar, Mainland China and Macau, Singapore, and Malaysia). It might seem a little late, but it is the fastest to be built from the moment Kevin Tan, president and CEO of Alliance Global Group Inc., met Gordon Ramsay at the opening of his bar and grill in Macau’s The Londoner in January this year.
The two men inked the deal and a mere eight months later, Tan opened the chef’s bar and grill in Newport. In the months before opening, about 5,000 chefs and restaurant staff sent in their applications. And despite building the restaurant to the strict design and kitchen specifications of the Ramsay Group, despite the short time to choose the right chefs, bartenders and training the wait staff, Tan’s group did it quicker than it takes for some people to recover from a season of MasterChef or Hell’s Kitchen. We’re pretty sure that this time, there were fewer tantrums too.
On opening day at the end of August, guests were limited to the Tan family and friends, and the restaurant staff. From day one, you could ask any waiter what any of the dishes tastes like and they would describe it to you from experience.
“We are overwhelmed and very thankful with the response,” Tan said. “The team, some of whom have had experience in Gordon Ramsay restaurants in other countries, are working very hard to elevate the full experience here in the Philippines.”
Like two Michelin-starred chef David Chang of Momofoku said, “Love him or hate him, Gordon Ramsay has changed the way we think about chefs and restaurants.”
No mixed signals
Since 2005, Ramsay’s Hell’s Kitchen has aired 23 seasons, and since 2010 MasterChef has had 14 seasons. The only constant amid the revolving door of judges on the latter show is Gordon Ramsay. It’s safe to say that for two decades, TV audiences have become well acquainted with his colorful language when he’s giving feedback to the dishes in front of him.
Yet when Ramsay says, “Are you trying to kill me with this dish?” you can never be a hundred percent sure if his next sentence would be “This is the worst thing I have eaten” or “This is the best thing I have eaten.” He could crush your dreams or give them wings. Either way, he will make you famous.
So, when Key and Peele did the parody sketch Gideon’s Kitchen in 2012, people knew exactly who it was about. The Scottish accent was on point but the most glorious thing about the sendup was the mixed signals.
“You should be working in the finest restaurant in the world,” chef Gideon says. “Just not in any world I live in.” And that’s just one in a series of mixed signals the chef spews. Toward the end, you think, surely there would be a definitive feedback, but you don’t know if Gideon actually liked the dish or not.
As for the real chef Gordon Ramsay, I think he’s hilarious! And in his restaurant, there are no mixed signals about his food: the dishes are straight-up some of the best in the world.
Quintessentially British
While British food to me is not exactly a cuisine I’d camp out to wait for, it has that comforting quality that etches itself in your mind.
Ramsay’s fish and chips brought me back to Northumberland on a camping trip from London to Newport and Edinburgh. It brought back memories of eating fish and chips by the sea and looking at the famous lighthouse on a rainy day in autumn some years ago. And to say that Ramsay’s fish and chips tasted the same that I’ve had in both posh and not-so-fancy London and Scottish pubs—that crispy batter and flaky white meat—is the highest compliment I can give.
The seafood tower, which started our meal and accompanied by freshly baked brioche, features lobsters from the waters of the US East Coast, specifically Maine—so succulent and sweet, tender and firm with a buttery finish.
Between the Beef Wellington and two classic British desserts is beef tartare or finely chopped raw beef, seasoned to perfection that you forget it’s raw.
Ramsay’s Sticky Toffee Pudding has achieved fame on equal footing with his Beef Wellington. The truth is, toffee pudding is a British comfort food—and yes his version is super indulgent, but comfort food just the same. The moist sponge cake is made with chopped dates and soaked in decadent toffee sauce. It’s velvety, not too sweet, and worth all the calories.
Like how the evening began—with whiskey-based The Old Man by Filipino bartenders—the meal ended with another cocktail. This time, it was made by award-winning bartender and cool chick Raiza Carrera, who has included Newport World Resorts in her bar takeover around Asia. Carrera’s bar list on her limited stint includes Hurricane G, a cognac, rum, and rye whisky-based concoction; the gin-based Chicha Tu Madre; the vodka-based Teikrisi; and the tequila-based In the Mood for Love.
As Gordon Ramsay would say, “Are you trying to kill me?” This time, it’s a definitive “Yes, please.”