Gordon Ramsay, the profanity-dishing British chef who hosts top US TV show ‘Hotel Hell‘, ironing out flaws in other people’s struggling hotels, is having his own living nightmare!
I hear the television star’s upmarket York and Albany hotel and restaurant in London lost £882,000 last year. That brings the total debt for Ramsay (York and Albany) Ltd to £13million in just eight years.
Oo-bloody-er!
Part of the problem, it would appear, is that he signed a deal guaranteeing to pay £640,000 a year rent.
The hotel, in trendy Camden, north London, has been voted a disappointing 651 out of the 1,066 hotels in the capital on TripAdvisor.
Of the 297 reviews on TripAdvisor, 57 were average – with 37 rating it poor and 27 saying it was plain terrible.
One user wrote: “Ironic that Mr R is doing a programme called Hotel Hell. Mr R should start with his own place! Wouldn’t go back.”
Another commented: “Ironic that Mr R is doing a programme called Hotel Hell. Mr R should start with his own place!
“Small dismal bog standard room, nothing like the ones on the website which boasts.
“The sink tap just spluttered cold water and the shower ran constantly cold.”
And one disgruntled guest went so far as to say: “Breakfast was horrible – ordered full English which appeared in about two minutes flat – obviously all pre-cooked and kept tepid while a choice of eggs was added – just nasty. Staff couldn’t care less.”
Last year, a spokesman for the star stressed that guest feedback was welcomed and taken seriously ‘across all our properties’.
He added: “The York & Albany enjoys a strong online rating with the majority of TripAdvisor reviews having rated it as either ‘Excellent’ or ‘Very Good’.”
Sources close to Ramsay insisted the £13 million shown as liabilities in the accounts was cash earmarked for investment in his long term financial plans.
The financial results for the hotel show the onerous impact of the £640,000-a-year rent on the York & Albany’s results.
But a spokeswoman for Gordon Ramsay Holdings said: “Overall the group is performing well and returned profits in the latest financial year.”
A spokesman for Mr Ramsay was last night approached for comment.
So far the food empire is keeping mum…but it sounds to me like the hotel’s goose is cooked!
