Lisa Vanderpump Says Working With Gordon Ramsay On ‘Food Stars’ Involved “Handling Him” And “Getting Him To Settle Down And Shut The F*** Up Sometimes”

Gordon Ramsay and Lisa Vanderpump have joined forces on the sophomore season of Gordon Ramsay’s Food Stars, and the Vanderpump Rules star has opened up about what it was like to both collaborate and compete.

“There was a little bit of butting heads, but it was all faced with respect,” the Bravo star told Us Weekly. “I  think I can’t minimize what he accomplished in his life. It is extraordinary. But it was also handling him as well and getting him to settle down and shut the fuck up sometimes.”

Vanderpump also conceded that facing off against Ramsay in this latest installment, which kicked off Wednesday night (May 22) on FOX, brought out a “competitive” side of her that she wasn’t expecting.

“I saw how important it was to him for him to win, the more important it was for me to beat him,” she teased.

Nonetheless, she still said that viewers will see a “more sensitive side” of the chef over the course of the season, which she found surprising.

“When I saw that, I was like, ‘Whoa,’ because normally it’s like, ‘Hey, come on.’ … and I saw him moved a couple of times where I thought, ‘Oh my God, you big softie,'” she shared.

This season, Ramsay and Vanderpump form teams of “aspiring food and beverage industry entrepreneurs,” who will all be tested with various challenges, as the contestants vie for the grand prize of $250,000, per a network press release.

Vanderpump noted that she and Ramsay “had a kind of playful relationship, albeit competitive” when he approached her about the project, as they “had restaurants opposite each other, restaurants next to each other.”

“In fact, we’re opening a restaurant each in the Flamingo now, so, you know, off we go again,” she added.

She said she “also thought [the show] was very interesting on many different levels,” ultimately citing the “emotional component between the contestants, the business strategy, the challenges, survival of the fittest, the iconic places that we were gonna go,” as well as how she and Ramsay “would handle each other.”

“He is used to kind of being autonomous and being the boss of everything he does, and suddenly there are two bosses in the picture,” she noted.

In an interview with TV Insider, Ramsay praised Vanderpump as being “incredibly knowledgeable in that food and drink space,” and explained that “it’s [a gift] when you’re working with someone as good as she is because you are giving twice as much knowledge into these individuals that are already up-and-coming young entrepreneurs.”

However, he still reiterated some of her sentiments.

“We got on like a house on fire,” he said. “And we butted heads on multiple occasions. We fought tooth and nail, but I’m telling you, she is Lisa Vander-Powerhouse because there is no stopping that woman.”

Gordon Ramsay’s Food Stars airs new episodes on Wednesdays at 9/8 c on FOX. Next-day streaming is available on Hulu.