TV super-chef Gordon Ramsay has pinpointed the one restaurant starter you should never order.
With an iron grip on the cooking landscape - his eatery group Gordon Ramsay Restaurants has been awarded 17 prestigious Michelin stars across its 28-year existence - there's nobody else's word you'd rather trust.
In conversation with Town & Country magazine in 2017, the famously acid-mouthed star claimed one dish is his official no-go for customers, as they'll typically consist of leftovers or the day prior's unsold specials.
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With over 80 restaurants across the globe, countless TV shows including classics like Hells Kitchen, Kitchen Nightmares and The F word, I think he knows a thing or two about what goes on the kitchen, on and off the camera - so I'd listen if I was you.
"Ask what yesterday's soup du jour was before today's special," he said. "It may be the case that it's the soup du month."
Harking back to his own experiences, Ramsay also urged restaurant visitors to call upon the waiting staff for recommendations if you're looking for an establishment's best offerings.
"It depends on the restaurant, but servers tend to taste most of the dishes on the menu and can give you insight into what the chef has added and what the locals have," he noted.
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Meanwhile, 'red flags' to be weary of include terminology such as 'world's best', 'famous' or 'best in the country', while a lengthy specials board should be taken with a pinch of salt (no pun intended).
"Specials are there to disappear throughout the evening," Ramsay claimed, per The Mail. "When they list 10 specials, that's not special."
Away from menu insights, the 58-year-old Hell's Kitchen and Kitchen Nightmares favourite previously revealed the worst meal he'd ever eaten on The Late Late Show with James Corden.
Recalling a female contestant's dish he encountered, while working on MasterChef USA, Ramsay admitted he physically spat it out after she explained which special ingredient she'd laced her macaroni and cheese with.
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"Worst thing I've ever eaten? Mac and cheese at last year's audition show for MasterChef," he told the talkshow host. "And it was sweet, and I thought this lady had made it with almond milk.
"I said, 'You know, the cheese on top's nice, but it's very sweet. You know, how do you make this thing?' She said, 'It's my breast milk.' Not good."
This comes after the restauranteur claimed he never eats at his own buildings for one specific reason.
Appearing on Alex Zane's eight-episode podcast series, The Savoy Originals, Ramsay said he'd only ever sat down for some nosh at his restaurant on two occasions.
"Once was for [his daughter] Megan's birthday and the second time was with Bradley Cooper," he shared. "Because it's not my style - it's too posh for me! It sounds weird right, you build the f***ing place and it's too posh for you.
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"I can't sit there with that level of attention," he added. "So Megan sat and cried at the end of that birthday, her 16th and said, 'Dad, I get it. I get it I understand now. It's taken me all this time, but now I know why you want us all to work hard and find this craft in life.
"It's intimidating - you don't understand how far you go, how far you build and what kind of creation you put out there on a daily basis. It's bloody intimidating and it's a very special moment for the guests - not for me, because I'm a giver, not a receiver.
"So I'm uncomfortable here."
Topics: Food And Drink, Gordon Ramsay, Podcast
Dan Seddon