- Network: FOX
- Series Premiere Date: Sep 19, 2005
Critic Reviews
- Critic score
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'Kitchen Confidential" is the kind of new TV show that fits perfectly beside the adjective ''promising." Pilots sometimes strain to set up the entire series, and tonight's episode of ''Confidential" has its share of forced material.
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"Kitchen Confidential" holds more potential than tonight's decent if imperfect start, given Star's track record and casting.
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The biggest problem with Fox's "Kitchen Confidential" is that star Bradley Cooper... is far too appealing to play a bad-boy chef.
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One tasty comic treat.
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Only a few scenes capture the swagger and passion that made Bourdain's memoir so enthralling.
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It embodies many of the same elements that made Star's HBO half-hour a winner. That means an energetic blend of sex, sophistication, outlandishness and rat-a-tat-tat dialogue spilling from the mouths of effortlessly attractive characters in a sleek setting.
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This is one smart, funny comedy that deserves better than the anemic time slot it’s getting.
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Cooper and Somerville... keep things moving.
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The antics, though, are standard sitcom - and, refreshingly, many actually are funny.
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Anyone who wants to take a walk on the wild side and lose an appetite in the process, your show has arrived.
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The cast is attractive, the show's look is sleek, the pace is frantic, but Kitchen Confidential isn't especially funny.
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Confidential is a comedy hash - lots of heat, little taste.
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Backstage antics are what's supposed to make "Kitchen Confidential" hilarious, but instead the characters just come off as juvenile.
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So no, the jokes aren't as haute as the cuisine. But presentation, on the plate or on television, goes a long way, and Confidential has the look of a winner.
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The writing is sharp and sophisticated, avoiding the predictable sitcom cliches.
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It isn't a laugh-a-minute free-for-all.
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[Cooper's] presence [is] almost engaging enough to redeem an overstuffed, overbaked first episode.
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The writers seem to assume that life backstage at a glamorous New York restaurant is so inherently enticing, we'll just fall into the story on our own. Maybe, but a few sympathetic characters or amusing lines couldn't have hurt.
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One of the sharpest-looking comedy pilots in recent years.
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All the elements of a first-rate show are in place.... So why isn't it funnier?
Awards & Rankings
User score distribution:
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Positive: 16 out of 21
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Mixed: 2 out of 21
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Negative: 3 out of 21
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Aug 15, 2011
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TriciaSJul 28, 2007
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AudreyGMay 20, 2006i thought this was wonderfully done and extremely funny. fox lost a viewer when they cancelled it!!