# The Pressure Cooker

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***The Pressure Cooker*** is a once-off [fly on the wall](/source/Fly_on_the_wall) documentary broadcast on [RTÉ One](/source/RT%C3%89_One). It follows the successful efforts of celebrity chef [Dylan McGrath](/source/Dylan_McGrath) to obtain a [Michelin](/source/Michelin) star for his business, [Mint](/source/Mint_(restaurant)), in [Ranelagh](/source/Ranelagh), [Dublin](/source/Dublin). It was broadcast on 4 February 2008 at 21:30. McGrath was noted in the Irish media and in the general cuisine profession for his repeated shouting and swearing at his staff during the filming of this documentary.

## Background

Prior to the show being filmed only four restaurants in Ireland had obtained a Michelin star.[1] McGrath was described as "a driven, ambitious, determined, innovative, hot-tempered, bad-mouthed and very intense man" by RTÉ and *[Image](/source/Image_(Irish_magazine))* food critic [Domini Kemp](/source/Domini_Kemp) described him as a "creative genius".[1] Mint Restaurant was described by *[Hot Press](/source/Hot_Press)* as a "[gastronomic](/source/Gastronomy) playground". The restaurant has also received praise from newspaper *[The Sunday Business Post](/source/The_Sunday_Business_Post)*.[1]

## Controversy

McGrath encountered ire from his fellow celebrity chefs for his alleged mistreatment of his staff which was evident during the documentary.[2] [Kevin Dundon](/source/Kevin_Dundon), who appeared in the show *[Guerrilla Gourmet](/source/Guerrilla_Gourmet)* with McGrath, appeared alongside him on the television chat show *[Tubridy Tonight](/source/Tubridy_Tonight)* and criticised him live on air, describing his attitude as "appalling" and saying that [Gordon Ramsay](/source/Gordon_Ramsay) (a British chef) had "a bit of charisma about himself as well and a huge amount of passion".[2] Dundon also questioned McGrath's methods of training his staff and said he would not have been required to shout at them so much if he had taught them better.[2] [Kevin Thornton](/source/Kevin_Thornton_(chef)) agreed with Dundon – the two appear together on the reality television series *[Heat](/source/Heat_(Irish_TV_series))* – describing McGrath's comments as "a mess" and "a waste of energy" and suggesting that "people like that will not go very far".[2] [Patrick Guilbaud](/source/Patrick_Guilbaud) labelled McGrath "sad" on the [RTÉ Radio 1](/source/RT%C3%89_Radio_1) show, *[Conversations with Eamon Dunphy](/source/Conversations_with_Eamon_Dunphy)*, after witnessing him shouting and swearing at his Mint staff.[3]

## References

1. ["About"](http://www.rte.ie/tv/thepressurecooker/). RTÉ. Accessed 25 April 2009.

1. ["Thornton sinks teeth into rival's Michelin star"](http://www.independent.ie/national-news/thornton-sinks-teeth-into-rivals-michelin-star-1280151.html). *[Irish Independent](/source/Irish_Independent)*. 2008-02-03. Retrieved 2009-04-25.

1. ["I'm deadly serious, McGrath is a muppet, says Corrigan"](https://www.independent.ie/regionals/herald/im-deadly-serious-mcgrath-is-a-muppet-says-corrigan/27885391.html). *[Evening Herald](/source/Evening_Herald)*. 2008-09-15. [Archived](https://archive.today/20120801104633/http://www.herald.ie/entertainment/tv-radio/im-deadly-serious-mcgrath-is-a-muppet-says-corrigan-1475783.html) 2012-08-01 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2009-04-25.

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [The Pressure Cooker](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Pressure_Cooker) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Pressure_Cooker?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.