Gordon Ramsay’s latest high-profile restaurant launch should have been a celebration — a glossy, star-studded opening marking another victory in the celebrity chef’s unstoppable empire. But within days of opening its doors, the newest addition to Ramsay’s culinary portfolio has become a lightning rod for controversy, with outraged diners flooding social media to call it “the most overpriced dining experience in London.”
The restaurant, “Ramsay’s Maison,” opened last week in Mayfair — one of the city’s most luxurious dining districts. Styled as an “elevated British experience” blending heritage recipes with fine-dining precision, it promised “a journey through the flavors of home, reimagined through Gordon’s lens.” But many customers aren’t seeing the vision — they’re seeing the bill.
According to guests who shared receipts online, some of the prices have left even seasoned foodies speechless: £48 for fish and chips, £24 for a side of mashed potatoes, £18 for a cocktail described as “Gordon’s Garden Breeze,” and an eye-watering £89 for the restaurant’s signature beef Wellington. One viral post, now viewed over 3 million times on X (formerly Twitter), bluntly reads: “I went to Ramsay’s new place. £300 for dinner and I left hungry. Michelin-star attitude, McDonald’s portions.”
Others joined in with memes and jokes, calling the restaurant “Hell’s Kitchen: Wallet Edition” and comparing the tasting menu prices to “a down payment on a used car.” Yet the backlash hasn’t stopped there — several food critics have chimed in, describing the atmosphere as “impeccably designed but emotionally hollow,” and the food as “technically perfect but soullessly expensive.”
Ramsay himself, however, has remained characteristically defiant. In a recent interview with The Evening Standard, he brushed off the criticism, saying, “Quality has a cost. We don’t apologize for excellence. You can’t compare us to chain restaurants when we’re serving the best ingredients Britain has to offer.” He also added, “If you want cheap, you’re in the wrong postcode.”
Still, even some of his most loyal fans are questioning whether Ramsay has lost touch with the very audience that made him famous — the working-class diners who first cheered for his rise from a Scottish council estate to global stardom. “He used to talk about humble beginnings,” one disappointed fan posted. “Now it feels like he’s cooking for billionaires only.”
The restaurant’s PR team has tried to control the narrative, emphasizing that Maison sources all ingredients from sustainable, UK-based farms and suppliers, with dishes “crafted by a handpicked team of Michelin-trained chefs.” But the wave of criticism isn’t slowing down — TikTok reviewers, YouTubers, and food bloggers have already dubbed it “London’s most controversial restaurant,” with entire videos devoted to testing whether the experience is “worth the hype.”
Meanwhile, industry insiders say Ramsay’s empire has grown so vast — spanning TV shows, hotel partnerships, cookbooks, and over 80 restaurants worldwide — that maintaining the chef’s signature “human touch” has become nearly impossible. “The Gordon Ramsay brand is bigger than the man now,” said one anonymous restaurateur. “And when brands get that big, they forget the taste of the real world.”
Still, in true Ramsay fashion, controversy might actually fuel success. Bookings for Maison remain fully packed for the next three months, with waiting lists in the thousands. Some guests, intrigued by the backlash, say they want to experience “the drama” firsthand.
One online reviewer summed up the situation perfectly: “We’re mad at Gordon, but we’re still giving him our money. He’s like the villain we can’t stop watching.”
Love him or hate him, Gordon Ramsay has once again proven that even scandal can be a secret ingredient for success. And as long as people are arguing about his food, his empire will keep feeding off the heat.
