ramsayinterview1 travel destinations Virgin Media
Gordon Ramsay's Michelin star-studded empire has gone global.
Nick Dalton caught up with TV's top chef at the Hilton Dubai Creek in Verre, his first restaurant outside the UK...Virgin Media: Why Dubai?
Gordon Ramsay: Dubai's moving at a thousand miles an hour. It could be like Vegas in 10 years. It's one of the most vibrant cities around. It was an exciting venture, to expose and train phenomenal staff. Angela Hartnett, who went on to the Connaught, opened it, then Jason Atherton, now a huge success at Maze, in London. The next big chef who'll be here will be Jason Whitelock. I'm not sending them out here to sit in the sun, they have to be on their toes - the level of what we hit here is extraordinary. We have an amazing following of expats.
VM: What else do you do when you're here in Dubai?
GR: I run. From the hotel I go along the Creek, which is beautiful, down to the harbour, through where all the locals go fishing. And the children love the Wild Wadi water park.
VM: How do you find time for everything - restaurants, TV, books?
GR: A chef is built on stamina - that's how we survive. When it's not busy I make it busy. The day before I ran the London marathon I was diving in Kirkenes, northernmost tip of Norway, for king crab, for The F Word. You cut a hole in the ice, put a suit on and dive 90 metres - it's minus 20 degrees.
VM: You recently opened in New York (Gordon Ramsay at The London). Some critics were unkind - how's it doing?
GR: We broke even after five months, a big accomplishment. It's not a race, it's a marathon, having signed a 15-year lease. Without a challenge I'm useless. Under scrutiny I'm better.
