Atlantic City has a host of places to eat. If you’re a diehard Gordon Ramsay fan, then Hell’s Kitchen might be the place for you! We are and we dish!
When we were on the other side of the country in Sin City, we had a chance to eat at two of Chef Ramsay’s restaurants — Steak and Burger. Over here on the east coast, Gordon Ramsay has a bunch of locations with several in Atlantic City, N.J. During our latest trip into Monopoly Land we planned on hitting up this location to see what one of Ramsay’s other signature restaurants is all about.
Hell’s Kitchen
The restaurant Hell’s Kitchen is based on the popular TV show of the same name. In the show Chef Ramsay has contestants compete against another. Participants are broken up into two teams, red and blue.
“Nominated for five Primetime Emmy Awards, this popular reality show is hosted by celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay, who roasts a batch of aspiring restaurateurs as they compete against one another for an opportunity to run one of his eateries,” says the listing page for the show on Amazon Prime. “Split into two teams over the course of a season, the chefs must defeat their competitors, make exquisite dishes and face Chef Ramsay’s brutal criticism.”
Location
According the the Hell’s Kitchen webpage, there are nine Hell’s Kitchen locations in the world: Atlantic City, N.J.; Miami, Fla.; Mashantucket (Foxwoods), Conn.; Ibiza, Spain; London, England; Washington, D.C.; Lake Tahoe, Nev.; Las Vegas, Nev.; and Valley Center, Calif.
We hit the Hell’s Kitchen in Atlantic City. The restaurant is located in Caesars Atlantic City Hotel & Casino. Caesars is located on the traditional Atlantic City boardwalk, semi-centrally located towards the middle of the strip. Also located at Caesars is Chef Ramsay’s Pub and Grill and over at Harrah’s Resort is Steak.
If you’re in Atlantic City, it’s not difficult to get around. If walking, we’d recommend walking on the boardwalk, whenever possible. On more than one occasion we’ve walked from property to property via Pacific Avenue, and to say that it can be a little shady would be an understatement.
We actually did not take this advice and traversed from our originating property, the Tropicana to Caesars via Pacific — we were treated with a car fire on our walk back that evening as well we did catch a dude on an ebike crash into a taxi that was making a U turn. So when people say there’s plenty to see on the strip, there literally is plenty to see on the strip, I’d just not recommend walking it.
The menu
Hell’s Kitchen has a great selection of American food. Considered upscale, casual-fine dining, Hell’s Kitchen has something for everyone.
“Experience Hell’s Kitchen signature dishes like Beef Wellington, Lobster Risotto, Pan-Seared Scallops, Sticky Toffee Pudding, and more,” the webpage notes.
Each location has its own specific menu linked on the Hell’s Kitchen website. Naturally, as noted, the beef Wellington is a signature Gordon Ramsay dish and was available at the Atlantic City location.
Prix fixe menu
In addition to the menu where you can get items à la carte, there is a prix fixe menu. The prix fixe menu includes three courses for $119.99 at the time of publication.
For the first course diners can select one of two dishes. Pan seared scallops is one of the dishes and the lobster risotto is the other.
The main course is the beef Wellington. Lobster tails and seasonal truffles can be added for an additional charge.
For the dessert or afters, Ramsay’s signature sticky toffee pudding is what’s offered.
There is a note that sharing is not allowed with the prix fixe option. However, we did not get scolded when we took a bite or two of what came with one of our dining companion’s meals. In fact, our server brought three spoons with dessert.
À la carte
The à la carte menu has a whole host of offerings from fins to fur. Well, there’s some seafood as well as great meat options.
The chilled seafood menu has oysters on the half shell, shrimp cocktail, tuna tartare, and a “shrimp coctel” (cucumber pico de gallo, avocado, salsa coctel, tajin, plantain chips).
Appetizers options include the lobster risotto, a lump crab meat crab cake, pan seared scallops, wagyu beef meatballs, pork belly, steamed mussels, and a short rib arancini. There’s also a variety of different soups and salads such as a lobster bisque or a classic Caesar salad.
The main dishes that are offered are: a crispy skinned salmon, braised short rib, lamb chop, the beef Wellington, filet mignon, N.Y. strip steak, or a prime bone-in ribeye.
A number of steakhouse-style shareable side dishes are on the menu as well. Baked macaroni and cheese, crispy honey potatoes, potato purée, crispy brussels sprouts, and elote corn are the side dish offerings.
For dessert, there’s the sticky toffee pudding, a chocolate peanut butter trifle, lemon blueberry cheesecake, a chocolate sin cake, and a mango carpaccio.
Our experience at Hell’s Kitchen
We were in Atlantic City to catch Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu over at the iMax Theater at the Tropicana. After the movie we had plans to hit Hell’s Kitchen before sprinting back north. My two roommates and I lumbered over to Caesars — as noted, irresponsibly on Pacific Avenue. Prior to our 20 minute walk, we did sign up for a reservation via one of the online booking services. On a Sunday evening in June, an advance reservation was apparently not needed, but we always err on the side of caution with such things.
Arrival
Hell’s Kitchen is located in Caesars Hotel and Casino. Depending on which way you’ve entered the building depends on where you’ll have to head to get there. Coming in off the street like we did in the valet entrance by Morton’s Steakhouse, we had to head to the back left of the property past the Pub and Grill.
The restaurant is one level below the gaming floor where the reception desk is located. There’s a Hell’s Kitchen bar with gaming machines right by the staircase leading down to the restaurant.
Ambiance
The location is modern yet elegant. The main dining area closest to the kitchen is themed to match the show’s theme of red and blue teams. The dining area on the outer perimeter seems a bit more secluded and there’s also an additional private dining area.
Drinks
My eldest roommate and I both ordered some cocktails. We’re not big drinkers but aren’t shy about having a libation or two when we’re out. I will note that on the last two cruises we went on, most recent to Bahamas earlier this year, we did get the alcoholic drink packages — so we’re not exactly teetotalers.
The eldest of my fellow adventurers ordered an espresso martini, which was standard and she said was good.
I ended up getting one of the signature cocktails. Smoke on the Boardwalk is a Manhattan-style whiskey drink. It comes smoked in its own smoking box.
The Smoke on the Boardwalk was a great spin on the Manhattan and pleasant. Paired with the impressive presentation I’d say this was a top notch selection. Would I order more than one? Probably not. If I were to have a second drink at dinner, I’d likely revert to a plain Manhattan or old fashioned, but this drink was great.
Appetizers
We did not actually order any appetizers for the table. However, my one travel companions did order the prix fixe meal. For her appetizer, she did order the lobster risotto.
The lobster risotto was creamy and rich. The lobster tasted fresh and did not seem like it was just popped out of a freezer. We’d recommend this dish, 100 percent.
Main entrées
Since we were at a Gordon Ramsay restaurant we thought it would be blasphemous to not get the beef Wellington. Well, if we were to hit Fish and Chips or Pub and Grill, we’d likely not get the beef Wellington. Also, when visiting Burger, we got burgers, but you get the idea.
The Wellington at Hell’s Kitchen was prepared a bit differently than the way it was made at Steak. I’d say I favored the Steak version only slightly over the Hell’s Kitchen version, but I’m not going to do a push-away by any stretch of the imagination.
The Wellington is served medium rare. I’d stipulate that the medium description is a leap, as when we asked to get our junior adventurers made medium, we were told they come to order medium rare. His did come closer to medium, while mine and my other roommate’s looked like it was just bruised during the cooking process. I’m not complaining — however the Wellington was a bit undercooked for my eldest dining companion.
I don’t mind my meat looking like it was only beat, but yes, it was a bit on the rare, rather than medium rare side.
The flavor of the Wellington was spot on and the pastry was flaky, not soggy. This dish was perfectly executed — rareness excluded.
The side
We did order some elote corn as a side dish. The corn was actually really refreshing and tasty. It had a good amount of zip, perhaps too much for our junior diner. But, overall, I’d say it was a great compliment to the Wellingtons.
Afters
For dessert, we each had some of the sticky toffee pudding that came with the prix fixe meal. Much like the Wellington, the sticky toffee pudding was different than what gets served at Steak. It’s worth noting that if you go to different Ramsay restaurants that there might be similar themes but you’ll be getting a different product.
Naturally no meal is complete without some espresso if they offer it. The espresso at Hell’s Kitchen was standard. It had a good crema and the flavor was fine.
Overall experience
We loved our Hell’s Kitchen experience. If you’re planning on hitting this location, they’re not shy about making you break out your checkbook, but it’s all well worth it if you’re a foodie. The atmosphere, service and quality of food was top notch. We’re all Chef Ramsay fans and this was our third Ramsay restaurant. We can recommend this restaurant, as well as the other two locations we visited in Vegas — Steak and Burger.
Hell’s Kitchen is located at: Caesars Atlantic City Hotel & Casino, 2100 Pacific Ave, Atlantic City, NJ 08401
