Gordon Ramsay Hell's Kitchen — Restaurant in South Lake Tahoe

TLDR; The experience is worth if you (or your loved ones) really want to go, but don't feel bad if you can't. It's overrated. We are not opposed to giving them a 2nd chance but we wouldn't go out of our way.

The reservation website times you out & gets booked fast. When we got there we saw that you could order dinner at their at their casino side bar, first-come-first-serve.

I went with 3 other people. I had the foie gras, parsnip soup, brussel sprouts, chicken & hibiscus mocktail. We had a half order of oysters, 2 beef Wellington specials with wine, and a filet mignon with mashed potatoes and a Caesar salad. They also had smoked drinks & a couple of glasses of wine.

I will list our pros & cons more or less chronologically.

Con: I got a text message to check in at 7. We were nearby and we checked in via text. We get there at 7:03 and then we are told to finish our drinks outside.

Con: It's in a casino (like most things in Nevada) which cheapens the experience. We felt that it could have been built so you don't need to walk through all the smokey bars, or at least so you don't see the casino while you're eating.

Con: It's a sports bar! It has a giant TV screen at which a 10 person family screamed through most of our dinner. The high ceilings didn't help the noise.

Con: Trying to get to the nearest restrooms made it feel like we were in Dora The Explorer (through the doors, across the casino, down the stairs & through the tunnel--literally).

Pro: Our waiter was good. He asked about the pork & shellfish allergy I mentioned in the reservation, I told him it's not life threatening, and he let me know which items had these ingredients. He asked if we were celebrating a special occasion, we said yes.

Pros: The foie gras, scallops, caesar salad, filet, and sticky toffee pudding were great. We agreed that the cherries, almonds, and pastry that came with the foie gras were too sweet. But it was still a favorite. I didn't try the scallops but everyone raved about them. The brussel sprouts were awesome. However, I noticed towards the bottom there was bacon. They may have forgotten to omit it as they mentioned they would do (I didn't see bacon on menu description so I had no idea). Anyway, I was fine, and everyone else also loved them. Everyone also loved the Caesar salad, and by far we agreed that the the medium rare filet mignon was the winner!

Pro: The mocktail, cocktails, and wine were great. My mocktail was not too sweet and it drank beautifully through my meal. The smoking barrel cocktails were fantastic. The wine I was told was also excellent.

Cons: The oysters were tiny. The group expressed mixed reviews, so make what you will of that. The beef Wellington was small & the meat quality was fine. The potato puree was exactly as described (not great). The parsnip soup was VERY salty-- otherwise it could have been a favorite.

Con: This one deserved its own category. The chicken was bad. The kale bed that it came on was fine. The potatoes were dry, the mushrooms were chewy. But that chicken breast was the most rubbery I've ever had. Someone else tried a piece and mentioned it was rubbery (before I said anything) and I had to explain that he got the soft piece. I tried different pieces of meat but by the 4th bite I spat it out. I couldn't even cut it with the knife!

Pro: We all LOVED the sticky toffee pudding. They were surprisingly large and delicious. The waiter brought 2 extra tiny desserts, each with a candle and a beautiful "congratulations" ganache. These were good & very similar to the sticky toffee pudding.

Con: They don't validate parking. Valet was $30.

Overall I'd say we can PROBABLY make better beef Wellingtons, and we can DEFINITELY make better chicken. I hate to say it but you're not missing much especially at those prices....

After visiting a number of Gordon Ramsay locations, we were excited about visiting because our experiences have always been phenomenal. However, in hindsight, we should have read the poor reviews prior to making reservations.

Upon arriving, the Greeter escorted us to our table & advised that our waiter (Sean) would arrive shortly. Sean did arrive along with his subpar customer service. Although Sean inquired about our water preference (sparkling or regular) and gave us a history lesson on the origin of every menu item (Lobster tail flown in from Spain, filet mignon flown in from Australia, etc.), his script pretty much ended there.

Sean was not engaging and at one point, we assumed that it was just his personality. Well, we were definitely mistaken. Sean began greeting other tables and the presentation was superb. Sean asked others questions including, “Are you celebrating anything tonight?”, “Are there any dietary restrictions that I need to be aware of?”, “Are you all here visiting?”, “Can I share some of my personal dishes on the menu?”, “Can I show you a bottle of our wine?”. Our neighboring tables received like a whole show! While observing him with others, it became apparent that he was simply uninterested in us.

To see if we could break the ice, we attempted to initiate dialogue by inquiring about how long Sean had worked there. He quickly said 2 years and hurriedly walked away. Surprisingly, a gentleman at a table beside us re-asked the very same question. Sean advised he that he’d worked at Hell’s for 2 years, however, he previously worked at a another restaurant on the property. He also recommended Sapori, an Italian restaurant on the property and continued to chitchat…Nevermind us waiting on refills & requiring assistance. At the end of the meal, Sean offered our neighboring table a Sticky Toffee Pudding on the house.

Our food, on the other hand. was incompletely prepared & we were required to wait on the remaining items after being initially served. Sean was so busy lollygagging with others, that his fellow servers began assisting us with our requests. Sean was so blatantly inattentive that we wrapped up our meals before completing them, just so we could remove ourselves from the toxic dining room.

Although we did opt to leave Sean a tip, we also asked to speak to the Manager before we departed to make her aware of the experience. The Manager, Jody, apologized but said that she completely understood our concerns. She expressed that she wished that we had requested her presence while we were still eating. She also provided her business card and asked that we contact her if we wished to visit again. Per Jody, if we could provide her with a heads-up of our arrival, she would ensure that we were seated at a good table and able to receive better service.

Although I appreciate Jody listening to us, her response was somewhat concerning. Customer service should be mandatory, not hit or miss. Additionally, no customer should have to provide notice in order to receive quality service. With other customers expressing our same sentiments, Jody should remedy the deficiencies immediately and in real time - not encourage customers to return to spend another $200-$300+ in hopes of having an improved experience. As a Manager, asking “How can we make this right?” is a key question that shows the customer that you care and wish for them to return. It’s actually Management 101.

This location is an embarrassment to the Gordon Ramsay experience and we encourage others to keep expectations low. That way, you will not be highly disappointed should your service reflect the service that...

UPDATE...1 -30-2025

Came to Tahoe to play in the snow. I have been wanting to try Hells Kitchen after my aunt suggested it.

We arrived early for service and there were only TWO other tables that had people seated at them and the hostess seats us all the way in the back segregated from everyone. I asked her to move us and she refused.

What is the problem..there are so many open tables. Why not accommodate us? I will be contacting Gordon Ramsey about this.

Two more people came in after us and was seated in the front also.

The hostess made me feel so bad..I will never be back again to this location.

I love watching the show..I follow Gordon on social media and clearly this location has many bad reviews about the staff that He needs to know about.

You have only 1 chance to keep a customer. With the other reviews I read..clearly it is a management problem. There are serious character flaws at this location...the reviews prove it.

The horrific experiences some people have had...is so terrible...they should feel ashamed of themselves...

I contacted Gordon and encouraged him to read all the horrible reviews...hopefully for the sake of His business He fires some of the staff for the evil they have committed against the customers.

I will certainly pray against the hostess today and ask the Lord to punish her. He saw everything. There are no accidents. I have seen my God shut down restaurants and businesses that are doing wrong.

I did not get the name...the hostess tonight...you really should be ashamed of yourself. Clearly it is a character flaw.

We are Asain. Maybe she is racist...all the people seated in the front were white..

Additionally...the scallops cost more and they now only serve 3 instead of 5 like on the show.

Omg. My daughter brought me here for my birthday.

It's inside Harvey's on the 3rd floor. I thought the entrance would be like the Las Vegas location..but its not. I almost missed it.

The staff was very kind and attentive. We were seated right away upon arrival.

My daughter got the prix fixe meal for 89.00

She ordered the scallops which were buttery and wonderful...I would order those. They come on a corn puree with a little corn...then the beef wellington. They were clear they cook it to only one temperature which is medium...I did not order that because I need my meat cooked more. She said it was very good. It comes with potato puree. And the toffee cake for dessert. Ohhhh...the cake was very sweet...over bearing really. The flavor was fantastic though.

I ordered the lobster risotto...omg that was so good...that I already found a recipe to make it at home...then I had the meatballs and Mac and cheese.

The meatballs were delicious...the sauce was so good...amazing with a little sweetness...I would certainly order those again...Mac n cheese...very good...cheesy with the bacon flavor.

I have wanted to eat here for a long time since I watch the show.

Definitely recommend...