Jean-Philippe Susilovic


Jean-Philippe Susilovic, often referred to simply as JP, is a Belgian television personality and restaurant director. He is best known for his appearances as the maître d'hôtel on the American version of Gordon Ramsay's cooking reality show Hell's Kitchen, and was also the maître d'hôtel for the first series of the original British version of the show.

Early life

Susilovic was born in Brussels on 26 November 1975. He is of Croatian descent.

Career

Susilovic met Ramsay when he was 17 and Ramsay was 25. He has been described by one executive chef as the ideal person to be the maître d'hôtel for Hell's Kitchen. He is said to be and represent the "quintessential" maître d'hôtel.
Susilovic joined Ramsay in 1995, working in Ramsay's restaurant Aubergine. His experience in Michelin-starred restaurants broadened when he moved to the U.S. to work in restaurants such as New York's La Panetiere, Danube, and Daniel. In October 2001, he moved to the Middle East to work with Ramsay as the manager of Verre at the Hilton Dubai Creek. In 2010, he returned to serve as the maître d'hôtel at Ramsay's re-opened Pétrus. He was the maître d'hôtel for five years at Pétrus in the Berkeley, and moved over with the restaurant to the new location.
Susilovic left the American Hell's Kitchen show following the seventh season due to his commitment as restaurant director at Ramsay's London restaurant Pétrus. Susilovic returned to the show for seasons 11 and 12 but again left before filming began on season 13. He is a recurrent and popular part of the cast.

Personal life

In 2005, Susilovic fell and broke his back while trying to "break in" to his own apartment. This incident had an eerie similarity to a fatal fall that involved David Dempsey, who had also been employed by Ramsay.
Along with his native French, Susilovic speaks English and Dutch.