After Gordon Ramsay and Marcus Wareing (supposedly) patched up their differences over the latter's imminent departure from the Ramsay empire, one might have thought the simmering rows in the chef world would have calmed down for a while.
But, fortunately for those of us who like a bit of conflict, yesterday's publication of the annual Harden's Restaurants guide saw things kick off again.
Kapow! Announcing that Wareing's Petrus restaurant (a Gordon Ramsay Holdings operation for a few more weeks) had overtaken Ramsay's eponymous Chelsea outpost to win the accolade of the capital's finest top-end restaurant, co-author Peter Harden said: "What (Ramsay) urgently needs to do is to stop chasing media attention across the globe and to start putting some real effort into improving standards at the restaurants in his London heartland."
Biff! GRH hit back with a statement: "GRH has taken the one and two top spots in the current Harden's guide, which is surely cause for plaudits rather than the inevitably negative spin that the guide's editors have chosen in order to generate publicity for their guide."
Splatt! Not one to take things lying down, Harden responded thus: "In the old days, we used to get an annual call from Gordon thanking us for our support. We always told him not to thank us, but to thank the hundreds of reporters who rated his restaurant so highly. Why his representatives now think it's time to 'shoot the messenger' is not entirely clear."
Touche. Kitchen Rat reckons it's a high-scoring draw.
Update, 4 September: "And Harden's hits a 25-yard screamer into the corner to make it 2-1".
Another blistering attack on Ramsay on the Harden's website today. "Sometimes you do wonder if Gordon Ramsay isn't just moving from hype to self-delusion," the entry reads, going on to describe the chef's comments likening his Foxtrot Oscar pub to New York's famed Spotted Dig as "ridiculous".