Hell's Kitchen: The Wrath of Ramsey

I apologize for the non-food posting, but I am still unable to cook or really go out so I have nothing to report. But the one thing that lends itself well to being laid-up with a bad back is television, and lots of it.

Hell's Kitchen kicked off last night with the looniest cast of characters yet. Ramsey is still the constantly vexed, red-faced, bulldog-on-steroids character we've all grown to love (ok, maybe not "all," but I think he's kind of cool). His volcanic bursts of expletives are enough to make even the most thick-skinned wannabe see stars, and from the looks of last night's episode, at least two felt the physical effects of being barked at for hours on end.

Do I feel sorry for Aaron, the dough boy ball of tears who works as a cook at a retirement home? Nope. I mean, Aaron has seen the show, has he not? He should know after two seasons of Hell's Kitchen that Ramsey makes Simon Cowell look like a monk in a coma. In any case, Ramsey simply asked Aaron a question (without yelling - gasp!), and the poor poof burst into hysterical, squealy sobs. Aaron, in the words of Top Chef's Padma Lakshmi, "Get some balls and GO!"

But it was the girl's team that lost, and so one of them had to go - and snooty Tiffany got the boot. Though she couldn't even cook a single egg without breaking the yolk, she had nothing but harsh words for the competent Julia who went out of her way to help. Tiffany had her reasons, she claimed, for not allowing Julia to work as part of the team. "She cooks at the House of Waffles!" said Tiffany with utter contempt and sheer disgust. Earth to Tiffany: When you can't even cook up ONE egg in a [non-stick] pan, you ain't got nothing on waffle girl.

Next week: Aaron blubbers his way through yet another episode. I'll be watching.