The Chelmsford restaurant that Gordon Ramsey tore to pieces in infamous Kitchen Nightmares

Gordon Ramsey is one of the world's most famous chefs, but mention his name in a kitchen and chefs might run with fear. He has become a household name thanks to his hit TV shows and critical views.

His determination to get high standards, short temper and brutal criticism has made him a formidable chef in the food and hospitality industries. The most popular and long-running TV show of his is Kitchen Nightmares when he visits struggling restaurants to help them turn their luck around.

The first episodes aired on Channel 4 back in 2005. Most restaurants struggle to change their ways and sadly do not always last.

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Many years ago Gordon paid a visit to D-Place in Chelmsford, situated at the top of the High Street close to Shire Hall. Situated on the site of the former-Saracen's Head Hotel - which had been operating as a pub/inn for hundreds of years on Chelmsford High Street - D-Place was a cafe/bar owned by businessman Israel Pons.

The top chef's first challenge was trying to get the food to meet his standards. On a Valentine's Day visit, he had food that tasted "rubbery and overcooked" and his crème brulee left him considering whether he needed a straw as it was still so runny.

In another iconic scene Gordon had a heated row with the head chef over 'roast' potatoes which were deep fried. The chef insisted they were cooked in the oven despite Gordon's protestations.

However, things started to turn around when Gordon unveiled a new vision for the restaurant. He heavily redecorated it, and gave it a new name - The Saracen's Head.

The Saracen's Head had been the name of a pub and hotel which had been on the site for decades, and Gordon saw opportunity in this legacy. Gordon left The Saracen's Head in good spirits, having left the restaurant with a new identity and a new menu.

"In the week I spent at D-Place, it did not take long to sus out that D stood for dreadful," Gordon told the show. "The owners were in dire straights and the staff were dysfunctional.

"Over the longest seven days of my life we injected some passion into the food and got the team eating out of each other's hands. It's not perfect but I really felt it was well on the road to recovery."

When Gordon returned months later, he found that the owner Israel had been kicked off the business by the brewery which owned the lease of the building. The restaurant had gone into receivership after poor profits, and the brewery took back control.

They sold the restaurant, and new owners reopened on the same location keeping the restaurant open as The Saracen's Head Hotel. After nearly 500 years on the high street, the future of the building as a hotel/pub looked uncertain.

At the beginning of 2020, and to the relief of many local residents, it was announced that someone had purchased The Saracen's Head Hotel and was planning a grand refurbishment. Later on in the year, the doors were reopened, but this time not as The Saracen's Head Hotel, or even as D-Place.

The Garrison, a Peaky Blinders themed bar, opened in August 2020, soon after the end of the first coronavirus lockdown. Ahead of a planned opening in Spring 2020, owner Samuel Edward Gaitens said: "I am a fan of Peaky Blinders - I think it's a missing gap in the market with all the nostalgia."

The iconic Saracen's Head Hotel sign which is on the front of the building remains as it's listed. So even if Gordon couldn't save D-Place, or save the Saracen's Head, it's nice to know part of that identity remains.