QUOTE(swalker @ Jun 20 2009, 04:49 PM)

Oh man. That would be amazing.
I feel like it's only American chefs though.
Does Ramsey work in the UK most of the time?
Ramsay has restaurants all over the world (new ones in Dubai and Paris), but he seems to spend most of his time in London (where he has 3 or 4 restaurants now). I am not sure if he has any new UK tv shows in the works. I think he spends a fair amount of time in the US filming his shows--probably a month or so for Hell's Kitchen, and maybe a month for Kitchen Nightmares (he only spends a few days at each restaurant and it's a short season). I think we get new episodes of both in the Fall, plus some "cooking along live with Gordon segments." Besides, Ramsay's shows all air on a competing network with Top Chef.
These competing chefs spend 2 or 3 days in LA, but then have to come back if they will compete again, so it makes sense that they are all in the US.
Although many of the chefs on this show are well-regarded, I don't think any have as many restaurants or anywhere the Michelin rating Ramsay has. Hubert Keller, Wylie Dufresne, Rick Bayliss, Elizabeth from this episode and some of the others (as mentioned this episode) have been judges on Top Chef, often when the show airs in the city where their restaurant is located (or the chef is promoting a new book). (Wylie has appeared at least 3 times: in the season 2 finale--where one of the tasters from the Quickfire won-- in season 4 Chicago, and last season for the "last supper" challenge, although he is based in NYC.) Hilariously, in season 1, Keller kicked a guy out of his kitchen during a challenge for dipping a finger in a sauce to taste it. They probably invited past judges first.
Any more and we should start a discussion thread.