Gordon Ramsay
The British are coming, the British are coming... to Hollywood. This April the old Bel Age hotel is set to reopen its doors as The London West Hollywood (1020 N. San Vicente Blvd; 1-866-282-4560). And like its East Coast sib, the London NYC, its glittering star will be a restaurant from British chef and TV personality Gordon Ramsay, his first on the West Coast. Like its New York counterpart, Ramsay's LA venture will be home
to his signature New French cuisine, this time inspired by California's famous fresh produce.
How will Ramsay fare in the Hills? Despite a recent slew of imports, the track record of out-of-town chefs in LA has been spotty. While similarly successful TV toque Tom Colicchio's Craft has performed well, its business is boosted by its walking distance from both the CAA and ICM agencies. And Ramsay will have high-class competition coming from another import, Laurent Tourondel's BLT Steak, which is about to make its West Coast debut on the trendiest segment of the Sunset Strip (8720 Sunset Blvd.).
Of course, if Ramsay's new restaurant doesn't work, fixing it will at least make for an excellent episode of his FOX reality show, Kitchen Nightmares.