A German chef visiting New York claims he suffered a kitchen nightmare at the fiery British restaurateur Gordon Ramsay’s outpost at The London hotel, biting into a burger that contained a sharp shard of ceramic.
Markus Barthel is suing Ramsay in Manhattan Supreme Court for the unappetizing episode.
Last March, Barthel, 28, was having lunch at the Gordon Ramsay eatery on W. 54th St. and “suffered serious injuries that rendered him unable to continue working in his occupation as a professional chef,” his suit says.
The German tourist’s attorney Florian Bruno described his client as a blue collar cook who worked in a cafe in a small town, but was let go because he lost some of his ability to taste.
“As a chef he has to taste food — soups, whatever he’s making and for several weeks he wasn’t able to do that,” Bruno said.
The lawsuit says the burger episode caused him “extreme pain,” and forced him to cut his New York City holiday short and return home for surgery.
“He treated himself to this trip,” Bruno explained. “He had some extra money and said, ‘Let’s do something really spectacular and stay in the London. For him it was like an adventure into a new world.”
Until his experience at the hotel’s acclaimed restaurant turned into a scene from one of Ramsay’s “Kitchen Nightmares” cooking shows where he lambastes lesser chefs for their shortcomings. The show is entering its sixth season on Fox.
“As we know Mr. Ramsay is a man who makes a living out of criticizing other restaurants,” Bruno quipped.
“Now he’s having his own little kitchen nightmare.”
Barthel is suing for unspecified damages.
Amanda Duff, a spokesperson for Ramsay, said, “It is company policy not to comment on pending litigation.”
The Michelin starred chef’s empire includes over a half dozen restaurant in locales from Italy to Las Vegas.