Restaurant Impossible

Have you all seen it? It''s surprisingly good. Robert Irvine is a boot camp-like chef who gives failing restaurants a complete overhaul. One couple in Chapin, SC (near me) operate the Sweet Tea restaurant which is supposed to serve Southern home-cooked food. But everything is from a can or a mix! The green beans were those limp olive green things right out of the can. The graxies were from a mix. The owners and waitresses were dimwits and you could tell the chef offended them and hurt their feelings with his suggestions. %0D\ %0D\ Oh, and the chef is totally hawt, but I can''t tell if he pings so I guess he doesn''t.

Umpy
• This show is as scripted as scripted can be.

• This show is a complete ripoff of Kitchen Nightmares with Gordon Ramsey, which was first to air.

• I saw an episode last week where they renovated the dining area, sanitized the kitchen and revamped the menu in 48 hours!!!

• Who cares, r2? At least Irvine keeps it clean, knows how to motivate minus intimidation, gets right in the muck during clean-ups, cooks everything he suggests, shows respect even while roundly criticizing, etc.%0D\ %0D\ Plus, KI does a complete restaurant make-over, with a known budget, designers and crew; and also showcases other local businesses (kitchen equipment, furniture, painting, re-upholstering, etc.).

• google "Robert Irvine + royal wedding cake"

  fake, fake, fake, fake, etc.

• [quote]This show is as scripted as scripted can be.%0D %0D I'm sure of that too because last year they went to a Spanish restaurant just outside of Newark - one that I've gone to a number of times - and the way it was depicted on the show seemed to be in an alternative universe than the one I'm familiar with or else I wouldn't go there so frequently. (I subsequently came across an article online that suggested Irvine & company did things like planting a dead obster in the lobster tank and letting loose a pigeon that was flying in the kitchen.)%0D %0D One of the things about the show in general is they want the owners have the menus come across as more original, and so they had this particular restaurant include a page of tapas and streamline the menu - which I found funny since there were ALREADY several nearby places that did that, notably Mompou in Newark.%0D %0D BTW the place, which was always crowded on weekends - including for events going on downstairs in the private room - is still packed on weekends, now only more so.

• R5 beat me to it. Irvine is a liar. He is a fake. Is it any wonder his show is a fake also? The man has no credibility in the culinary world. zero.

• My new favorite show. I know one of the construction workers on the crew and the 48 hour time table is strict. It''s staged a bit, of course, but they work their asses off.

• I LOVE IT! It took me along time to get used to Robert "the anteater" Irvine, but now I like him.%0D\ %0D\ What''s amazing is that any of these huge dirty restaurants with horrible food would stay in business a month, let alone for years. And that the owners would sink their live savings into them.%0D\ %0D\ One of the best was two young guys who bought a thriving restaurant, and the recipes for another 100K. The recipies consisted of opening a can and spooning the food onto a plate.

• When is Irvine going to come out of the closet?

• For r10.\ \ "Irvine has lived with his wife Karen in Absecon, New Jersey, since at least 1998. He has two daughters, Annalise and Talia."

  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Irvine

  Wikipedia

• r11 Oh ok....then he couldn''t possibly be gay then.

  Tammy Cruise

• I like the show ,I find it to be one of the more entertaining ''reality'' shows on Food network these days.

• It''s far the best thing Robert Irvine has done, but the only draw the show has is how beyond clueless the restaurant owners are.\ \ Ramsay''s original (the U.K. version, not the bombastic Fox version in the U.S.) is much better. He spends more time addressing the menu and the long term prospects for a place, and more time on how to manage and operate a restaurant -- and much less time screaming about how the booths have to be re-naughahyded "Right now!" and some stupid partitions built of scrap lumber stained cat orange.

• [quote]What''s amazing is that any of these huge dirty restaurants with horrible food would stay in business a month, let alone for years. And that the owners would sink their live savings into them.\ \ Well, but that''s the thing - a lot of them *aren''t* really dirty, with horrible food, or with owners who''ll have to shut down in a matter of weeks if Irvine doesn''t help them. The show exaggerates and flat out fabricates A LOT. A number of the restaurant owners are on the record as saying so, as r6 mentioned.

• He had his children before fame, r12. But hey, every man is gay, right?

• Professional honoursAmbassador of the Culinary Institute of America (awarded at commencement, December 2007)[15]%0D\ Chef Professional from La Toque Blanche International[16]%0D\ Chef%E2%80%99s Five-Star Diamond Award from American Academy of Hospitality Sciences 1998%E2%80%932003[16]%0D\ 2001 Culinary Excellence Award granted at Carnegie Hall by the Culinary Institute of America and the American Tasting Institute[16]%0D\ Trustee of the American Academy of Hospitality Sciences'' Five-Star Diamond Award[16]%0D\ Member of the Malta Chefs Society (MCS)[17]%0D

  Wikipedia

• He has a nerdy face, but a large, masculine body. He sounds Irish.

  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d0l5ZOeM-a0

  Umpy

• Yeah. Yeah.\ \ Anne Burrell still kicks his ass..... everytime.

• I don''t believe that R6/16 because I''ve been to Flood Tide in Mystic, CT, in 1998, 2000 and 2010 -- saw the improvements.\ \ ALL of these shows -- all on Food Network and HGTV -- are heavily edited, somewhat staged. But I''m looking for entertainment, not food police. \ \ Restaurant Impossible is fun, and so much better that Robert Irvine''s Dinner Impossible. \ \ On the newer shows, he''s doing "family therapy" with the owners of these places, which must STOP. Otherwise it''s still a fun program.

• Shirtless pic.

  http://foodnetworkhumor.com/2011/08/im-sorry-in-advance/

• [quote]I don''t believe that [R6]/16 because I''ve been to Flood Tide in Mystic, CT, in 1998, 2000 and 2010 -- saw the improvements.%0D\ %0D\ I''m R16. I can''t comment on the other restaurants or the one you know, R20. But I am very familiar with the Spanish Pavilion since I go there about a half dozen times a year, including for my union''s Christmas party. (In fact I was just at the place for dinner last night.) And I haven''t invented what I posted above, including the reference to the local news article, regardless of what you believe.%0D\ %0D\ As a result of the show, the restaurant repainted the interior and made some other cosmetic changes that neither added nor detracted from the ambiance. And they streamlined the menu, unfortunately, because its expansive menu, notable for its variety, is what set it apart from the other Spanish restaurants in the Newark-Harrison area. In addition, the food they now serve tastes exactly the same (very good) as before. And the place, including its bar, is still popular.

• Sounds to me like the owner of the Spanish Pavilion was pulling a fast one on Restaurant Impossible.

• It''s an enjoyable enough show. Like most "reality" TV you can''t take it too seriously, not if you''re sane. I find Irvine really appealing though, and a lot of fun to watch. I think I like his "Dinner Impossible" show better though.\ \ Thanks for the pic R21, hot.

• %E2%80%9CRestaurant: Impossible%E2%80%9D experience not a happy -- said the owner of mouse infested Rascal%E2%80%99s BBQ & Crab House. Owner Steve Kledaras was the one who had a hoading problem.

  http://blogs.delawareonline.com/secondhelpings/2011/01/25/restaurant-impossible-experience-not-a-happy-one-new-castle-restaurateur-says/

• bump

• He lives in Absecon? God, what a dump. I lived there briefly during college, when I was working a summer in AC. It''s a backwater full of white trash. %0D

• I can tell the time limit is somewhat real because on occasion they don''t actually finish all their design ideas. I watched an episode where they designed a lovely plaid burberry style pattern for the "focal point" in the dining room but when the restaurant opened it was clearly missing some of the colors in the design. I checked the website of the restaurant and the owners had already painted back over the design with plain white.

• OMG r25. I remember that episode!!! My GF said it was totally hoarding and I thought, ''Oh they must just make it look that way... ''

• "He lives in Absecon? God, what a dump."%0D\ %0D\ Irvine''s from England, he wouldn''t know any different. Plus, he used to be a chef in the Royal Navy.

• [quote] He lives in Absecon? God, what a dump.\ \ So does Michelle Malkin of all people.

• I saw this show for the first time this week. An Italian restaurant near Scranton, Pa. Was entertaining to an extent, but then I googled the place and saw articles on line about how exaggerated the dirtiness of the place was. Now I don't trust watching it anymore (and I know it's just tv but why waste time on fakery?)

• [quote]Oh ok....then he couldn't possibly be gay then Well, his marriage is certainly more evidence than is your own "feeling" he's gay. The world isn't actually a construction of your little brain.

• R32 I saw that episode,too. Honestly, if my restaurant was that dirty, I would want people to think that it was exaggerated for the show. With the layers and layers of built up grease and crud, I seriously doubt that it was exaggerated. It really seemed to be that filthy and the owner really seemed to be that clueless.

• And R(34), if I was a prospective customer, I would wonder how long it would be until it got that dirty again! If you google restaurant impossible anna maria's , you will see a Times Tribune article about how this place passed its last inspection.

• So, is this the first time that Umpy has revealed that he's in South Carolina? This fact explains a lot, and gives me a bit of empathy for him.

• My new fav.

• Kitchen Nightmares on a tiny budget. The time frame is just arbitrary drama.

• Well, I must say that if you look at Gordon Ramsay's track record more than 95% of his restaurant makeovers fail and usually do so within 3 months. I'd be curious to see if Robert Irvine can do better but something tells me no.

• [quote]Well, I must say that if you look at Gordon Ramsay's track record more than 95% of his restaurant makeovers fail and usually do so within 3 months. Do you have a link for that? The follow-up visits give the impression that 2/3 stay open.

• I thought you were banned, OP. But I see that you have never really stopped posting, have you? We are onto you...

  The%20Thoughtful%20Critic

• The yelp reviews for the places on the show seem to follow a pattern: a brief uptick in quality/service, followed by the owner reverting back to past behavior and sinking again.

• More importantly, does Irvine have sizemeat? Verificatia needed.

• Picture of Robert Irvine's fiance. Let the gay rumors commence:

  http://www.wwezone.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/Gail-Kim-WWE-Diva-Pictures98.jpg

• His fiance is WWE wrestler Gail Kim, R44. As for Irvine's HOTNESS, even Paula Deen can't help herself...

  http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/MSNBC/Components/Photo/_new/110228-tdy-pauladeen-butter.photoblog500.jpg

• Paula Deen is disgusting.

• Paula may be going for his abs in that photo, but you know she's really hot for his buttah face.

• Can not stand that Irvine creep. He's such a fraud. And didn't they find out he was lying about his culinary past at some point? But I agree, that show is as real as my dyed hair.

• I'm not buying this show! That 1 restaurant that was so filthy it made Robert puke...... how did it pass it's health inspections?!! all that grease and dirt on the stove and other equipment, pan of bread crumbs just sitting on the floor, food stored improperly in the fridge, filthy basement were other food was stored, etc. How did it pass it's health inspections? Don't believe it!! Here in Georgia health inspection reports have to be placed in a prominent place up front where all customers can see it and the score.

• I think the common pattern here seems to be the owners after the fact complain the show trumped up the filthiness for more drama, but can the local inspection department (health dept) sue for making it look bad?

• The show recently re-did a Greek restaurant near my house. The episode hasn't yet aired, but news of the renovation made the local papers in light of the "Grand Re-Opening." I'm Greek, so my partner and I visited the restaurant several years ago. The chicken (basic olive oil, oregano, and lemon) was the only thing that was passable, and the decor--an 80s-era southwestern-style coffee shop completely discordant with the theme--was laughable. We went back post-reno to check it out. The decor is now your basic blue and white. It's clean, bright, and much more in line with what you'd expect. The food, though, was still mediocre-to-bad, with an overpriced, oversized lamb shank as the featured item. No traditional Greek items on the menu--not even the chicken--and, candidly, nothing that looked appealing. If Irvine wanted to transform the menu to serve simple, straightforward, neighborhoody Greek food, he failed miserably. But, hey--at least it looks nice.

• The show is stupid and he's a hack but he's hot as hell (rather, kind of "ugly hot") and I would gladly be his sex slave.

• on Gail Kim: "Prior to signing with WWE, Kim undertook breast augmentation surgery. After signing, she had her implants enlarged. While performing for WWE, one of her implants ruptured, which resulted in her being sidelined for two weeks."

  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gail_Kim

• Not attracted to Irvine but his carpenter, Tom Bury, is rather do-able.

• total ripoff of kitchen nightmares ditto poster # 2 love the show anyway

• R6, the restaurant owners ALWAYS say that the nasty stuff found in the kitchen was planted. It's the same way on Kitchen Nightmares, they always claim it's faked. I've seen and heard enough about the stuff restaurants do to totally believe that they're actually that dirty.

• I was a random "customer" at one of the R.I. restaurants (the Chatterbox). Local press said that the show would be re-doing a diner a couple towns over, and for the heck of it my wife and I went to see. They invited people to come in and try the food (this was the "before" part) and filmed peoples' reactions. What was later shown on TV “was less than complete.” First we weren't really "customers" since we were given the meals free. We also didn't "order" from the menu per se, we were given what they gave us (we were given breakfast even though it was afternoon, though others were given lunch). But it was free as I said so can‘t complain. But where it really is misleading is how they get the bad "before" reviews. We weren't really asked how we liked it, just given leading questions. I had an omelet and why wife had a basic eggs plate. We both basically said it was good. Nothing special, but nothing really wrong with it either. My omelet was about like you would find at any random diner. They proceeded to ask, "Was it greasy? Was it over/under cooked? What didn't you like?" and the such. Didn‘t really agree with any of it so we stuck with, "It was fine." I guess they didn't like that cause at one point an (off camera) crew member had an uncomfortable exchange with my wife where they pressed her for criticism and she had to get pretty forceful in saying, "I had fried eggs. That's pretty hard to mess up, I don't know what you want me to say." The only interest they showed in our response was when we said it would be unlikely we would go out of our way to come back, but alas our chance at 10 seconds on TV was missed as we explained that it was a 40 minute drive for us and if we lived close we might eat there again. We did note some people around us seemed to eat the camera attention up and would after saying the food was okay would agree to pointed questions by saying stuff like, "Well yeah, it was kinda overcooked" or some such after asked. Though there were others like us who just stuck to saying the food was fine. We didn't hear anyone say, "Wow that was awful," without coaxing. I suppose to be fair we didn't hear anyone say, “Wow that was awesome," either. But still, definitely not that bad reaction TV showed. Also it seemed that though the "time limit" may have to end pretty strictly (they announced a grand re-opening in media ahead of time), they can really start well ahead of schedule. Our part took place almost a week before the reopen. We heard that the crew had been in and out for a few days before that. Robert Irvine wasn't around (as far as we could tell), so for my part I suspect it may be run in terms of: Crew comes in early and builds a plan well ahead of time, the "clock starts" when Irvine shows up on site and follows a pre-made fixing plan in 2 days, leaving the time limit "real" from a certain point of view. I didn't see anything that would imply cleanliness issues were faked as other reports have said of other restaurants, but after having been pointed to some of Irvine's past busted lies (having claimed to be a British Knight, the exaggerations at best about cooking in the White House and for Charles and Di) paired with how much the "before" reactions we were a part of were manipulated I would be surprised if there wasn't at least some exaggeration and editing techniques in play with some of the restaurants cleanliness. We did go back after the re-open (but not during) for the fun of it. It looked nicer in terms of appearance, but then it wasn’t packed with a crew and “customers” giving interviews, so hard to say if it was real improvement or just less hectic since we had only been there that one other time. They boasted of the TV show makeover and redone menu, but I hadn’t seen a real menu before either so I didn’t know what had changed. I had an omelet again just to compare. It was good. Nothing special. About like you would find at any random diner. I won’t go out of my way to go back, but if I lived closer I might eat there again. Huh. Well what do you know

  I%20was%20part%20of%20RI%20%3A%29%20%20But%20didn%27t%20make%20TV%20%3A%28

• Lov it love the show love robert irvine love the fake drama fun to see the new decor on 10k enjoy the new menus LOVE IT ALL I said Love

• In Seabrooke, Texas the cook had tried to convince the owner to use abbreviations on the tickets. Owner's wife thought tickets with only three items (written with full words) was easier to read. Neither had previous restaurant experience. Three sons who were waiters were geeks. They paid $125,000 for the place and lost money every month until Irvine showed up.

• It's fun to watch but it's way too formulaic. They need a some additional fake narratives. The 11th hour screaming at the designers due to their lateness and unforeseen crises is so transparent.

• r59, the place you mentioned is Pelican Grill. It airede again last night.

• FAKE FAKE FAKE

• Why do they impose a time limit? Hell, it took months for those places to fall into disrepair, what's a week more? Shut it down and do it right. They are always rushing about right before it opens. It would behoove them to take their time. When things (construction and decoration) start to fall apart, they can say, 'well, what do you expect for a 2 day completion time'? Is that why they do a rush job?

• How is it possible a fully renovated restaurant doesn't wreak of paint, adhesives, and chemicals used just moments before they reopen? Food and service is PERFECT from the start without issues or complaints, just rave reviews. Entertaining yes, just make it more "reality".

  swshawaii

• OP eats Spaghettios, cold, out of a can and comes here and pretends he can afford a fine dining establishment.

• WHET Umpy?

• Watched a marathon last night. Best episode was the one with the dysfunctional trio of an elderlez couple and the femme partner's bitch daughter. They own a French bistro in Bumfuck, Montana, housed in what has to be a former Mexican restaurant. Lots of tears and recriminations and accusations of embezzlement. Plus eye candy in the form of Tom Bury and Lynn Kegan.

• Is this the same show as the guy who sounds like Joe Pesce? I watched a show about a restaurant about 5 miles from here. Then I ate there the next week. The same sour lady was waiting on tables but she was much nicer. (She was a bitch on the show). The food was really good so I guess it makes sense if you've got a good menu to have a good attitude. She's the owner's wife so I don't know how long it'll last.

• ^ That's [italic]Restaurant Stakeout.[/italic]

• I only like the 1st 20 minutes. Some of those places are really disgusting. How they got past the health inspectors is beyond me. And what's with all the canned and frozen food?

• R6;, paint doesn't smell anymore.

• When Robert asked an Italian restaurant owner in Wilkes-Barre or Scranton why she used frozen chicken parmigian, she said it was to save time because of high volume. He screamed "High volume? You're goin' out of business1"

• And your point is?

• The restaurant owner was clueless!

• I look forward to this show every week. It is fun to see someone that may need some help get a boost to continue trying. I don't know why you are all so cynical about staging. Of course every show needs a little staging or it wouldn't be inviting to watch. How would you complainers and scoffers do it any different. You've got 60 minutes to tell a story of transformation-this is great TV of helping people or can't you rejoice in that. Of course Robert Irvine can't personally guide every minute from now on for these restauranteurs, but he gives them some hope. He's and/or they've created a great idea into a fun show! And he plays his role well!

• I assume many of the posters here are familiar with today's media production process. In this age of ubiquitous media in everyone's hands, I just assume that people understand that it takes hundreds of people to create ANY professional media program or film. First of all, Irvine is just the "talent" part of the show. The rest of it is created, written, managed, filmed, edited, planned, and executed by the rest of these talented (or sometimes not so talented) people. Whether or not your like the concept or an individual show is up to you, of course. In today's world, content is king: there are 24-hours each day on hundreds of channels that are blank until something is broadcast. This is simply a concept that gets ratings, so it will stay on in the same format until people stop watching. Then, something else will take its place. Whether or not the individual places are successful is irrelevant to the overall goal of ratings. Regarding health department issues, I would GUESS that health inspectors are compensated and trained at about the same level as the average dog catcher. This does not mean that they accept illegal payoffs from owners, but I would guess you can find the inspection list of your local county online or at city hall. If you are concerned, go find out what the latest inspection found, how long ago it was done, and then go eat that the place and see what YOU think. Finally, this show give me an insight into what MIGHT be going on at some of the places where I eat. I found the inspection information and made decisions based on that information. By the way, check out your local fast-food places. You will get some REAL eye-openers when you look up their scores. Cheers!

  Rich

• I'm completely bored with it. Chopped is still the best they got. Did you see Top chef Richard compete. My God, his facial expressions! He acted like it was a matter of life and death. He did well, but came in 2nd