The WORST Food From Season 5 _ Part Two _ DOUBLE FULL EPISODE _ Kitchen Nightmares

The Kitchen's Road to Success: A Transformation Under Chef Ramsay's Guidance

As Alex walked out of the kitchen, he couldn't help but feel a sense of awe and pride at what was happening. The new menu had been well-received by diners, with everyone raving about the delicious food. However, it wasn't all smooth sailing. In an attempt to push food out quickly, Michael had lost control and started sending orders to tables that had already received their food. This mistake caused a roadblock in the kitchen, and Alex was at his wit's end.

"Come on, we're not getting anywhere," Alex exclaimed, frustration evident in his voice. "Michael, what are you doing? You're sending out food twice! Six to table three, but they've already received their appetizers!" The team was stunned, unsure of how to proceed. Michael, however, seemed oblivious to the chaos he had created.

Alex called for a team meeting to regroup and find a solution. "I need you to step up, Michael," Alex said firmly. "You're right there, with your head on straight. We can't keep messing this up." The team nodded in agreement, and Alex took charge, guiding them through the crisis.

As they worked together to rectify the situation, Chef Ramsay appeared at table ten, surveying the scene before him. He offered words of encouragement, "You're right there, guys! You've got this! We can't let mistakes happen. Stay the course, and we'll get back on track."

Michael took a deep breath, gathering his composure. With renewed confidence, he rallied the team, "I need one card, one card to bring it all together." The kitchen fell silent as Michael waited for the signal to proceed.

Finally, with Chef Ramsay's nod of approval, Michael gave the order to move forward. The kitchen sprang back into action, and the food began to flow once more. As they worked, Alex couldn't help but feel a sense of pride in his team's ability to come together and overcome their challenges.

The turning point came when Chef Ramsay praised Michael for taking charge and staying the course. "You're doing a good job," he said, "and I believe in you." This moment marked a shift for Michael, who had previously been lacking confidence. With Chef Ramsay's guidance and support, he finally found his voice as a leader.

As the night wore on, the kitchen continued to hum with activity, but this time with a sense of cohesion and purpose. The team worked together seamlessly, each member playing their part in creating an exceptional dining experience for customers. The restaurant was abuzz with chatter and laughter, and it was clear that something special had happened.

In the end, it wasn't just about the food; it was about the transformation that had taken place within the kitchen itself. Michael had found his voice, and under Chef Ramsay's guidance, he was now leading his team to success. As for Alex, he was proud of what they had achieved together, and he knew that this was only the beginning of a new era for Leones.

Years later, when people walked into the restaurant, they would tell stories of how it used to be a struggling pizzeria, with an owner who seemed content to just watch TV. But now, Leones was a thriving destination in Montclair, known for its upscale atmosphere and exceptional cuisine. The credit went to Michael, who had taken his advice from Chef Ramsay to heart and worked tirelessly to bring about change.

Rose, the owner's mother, could finally rest easy knowing that her son was in control, and the future of Leones looked bright. She would often comment that she knew exactly why her son had been struggling – he needed a push, just like his restaurant did. But with Chef Ramsay's guidance and Michael's newfound confidence, Leones was once again on the map, attracting diners from all over.

As for Jeff Ramsay himself, he had played a pivotal role in turning the restaurant around. His visit had been a turning point for everyone involved, and it marked the beginning of a new chapter for Leones. As the restaurant's success continued to grow, so did its reputation as a place where great food was served with pride, thanks to a team that had learned to work together under Chef Ramsay's guidance.

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enplainfield new jersey a middle-class city with a strong sense of community and smack in the middle of town is a soul food restaurant named blackberries run by a once successful caterer named shelly withers hello the gang's all here huh my catering business was fantastic i had such a tremendous following it just seemed natural that i would move on to open a restaurant oh how are you welcome and with her mother mary investing her entire retirement fund into the restaurant shelley's dream came true daddy put the check in the bank this afternoon oh okay i think it's a parent's responsibility to be supportive of their children i am so happy with the way the restaurant turned down the decor is phenomenal i'm not sure if i understand the records and blackberries has to best sold food in town no doubt fried collard greens is my favorite i don't know what i'm doing wrong the shrimp was firm that's because i forgot him on the stove perfect location perfect food but where are my customers the problem is shelly is in denial she thinks that the decor is amazing and the food tastes spectacular i like it but the food is suffering the customers are suffering and the restaurant is suffering the macaroni actually shelley believes that all of her food is better than any chef out there two done two done is perfect she feels this is the way i want it it tastes good it doesn't matter what someone else thinks about it it'd be in my restaurant i'm gonna have it my way i don't want the food to touch i say it every day and you're doing it to me anyway right it don't make sense to me shelley is a super controlled freak to the 110th power i need you to knock these down just get it out what what what system are we following here there's no system we have 16 people working back here and 16 people doing their own system table five right there in the front where is it please guys it's hot back here why is everybody back here ain't got no food down here she thinks she knows what she's doing when she's actually has no idea what she's doing tell me what i can do to help i don't i don't understand what's going on and that brings a lot of chaos here let me see that plane she's helping the restaurant to fail even more not that many customers though huh things are bad i'm 200 000 in debt i'm barely holding on here i got 14 to my name bro like i tell shelly it's just not only her this restaurant's bills because i have sacrificed a lot to make sure that the doors didn't close i believe in the power of prayer i think chef ramsay is the answer to her breads what an amazing buzzy little town great location for a restaurant okay hello hello good afternoon hello welcome to blackberry thank you very happy to be here i'm happy to have you here wow look at this place somebody having a party no no party we're just having um lunch okay great let me see you okay i'm sitting over here and this big boy there who's that i'm james james what's your job general manager stop it with a baby face like that you call me management get out of here you look about 18 how old are you i'm 30 years old wow amazing aging well and this is mom mary mother mary yes sir you look great nice what do you do the cakes the pies the desserts really she's our baker okay great lord ramsay is here i don't want to be sweating all over him can i kiss him can i give him a kiss and thank him for coming or what yeah they're about to be our own hey how are you how are you doing good to see you you're running around you're busy on you i have to be honest everybody's got to get it done oh three years who designed this place i feel like donna summer's gonna come through the door that would be michelle i think that would be me oh i absolutely love the decor and a dance party that's me excuse me okay look at those beautiful blinds i asked my fiance if i could kiss you he's a manager the woman yeah oh come on sexy right you'll get arrested for cradle snatching hey general manager come here get that beard over here you didn't tell me that you're dating the owner excuse me thank amazing and was it love at first bite yeah wow way too amazing oh man he's a little younger than i am but he's my sexy chocolate let me sit down have a quick look through the menu start ordering thank you thank you for coming gordon okay i'm gonna see as much as i can okay uh right let's go for uh collard greens yes that smothered pork chop sounds delicious let's go for the mac and cheese as well please okay the chipmunks and desserts how's the bread velvet cake delicious okay great very wealthy i'm starving we're gonna put your order in excellence all right guys we have our order for chef all right let's do it i really think that chef ramsay is going to say that the food is phenomenal with the pork chop put some mac this is not hot just microwave it this is the craziest decor i've ever seen wow another record yeah they're all over so first name is eloise oh oh jesus what happened was it the fried chicken or the cornbread what when chipmunks what happened i have no idea i've never seen her before oh oh my god did somebody head butt the wool it was shocking to find that it was a hole in the wall with a record on it i was just like oh my god like what the hell is that doing there i've heard about broken records but jesus christ okay let's get out of there quick i'm afraid to touch any other records all right there you go oh now you know that is a pretty plate right shelly is delusional about how fabulous her food is i hate the macaroni and cheese just looks like crap on a plate this is pork chop this mother pork chop thank you just like someone shot on my plate it's just dry that's bland nothing's seasoned there how's your pork chop the pork chop is dry the mac and cheese is way overcooked and very mushy you think a soul food ration would pride itself on cooking mac and cheese but now it's just all is that heated in the microwave no i think they just put it in the in the oven to warm for our lunch service thank you what's wrong he's saying that the macaroni and cheese is dry and overcooked he asked me how we warmed it in the microwave i told him no it just came out of the oven they may have put it in the microwave for a minute only for a minute though everything is cooked to perfection there is nothing on that menu that is not perfect okay here we go i'm taking over now five collard greens move it to the middle put an orange chip in the middle that's it how can you actually say there's a social restaurant are the collard greens are not just like collard greens since it's just like pepper soil you know you can't have food tasting like that tell chef i said to taste those collard greens they're perfect here you go chefs collard greens wow yeah okay great thank you very much indeed wow this is bland no seasoning it's just fried and soggy and limp uh james what'd you think you got to eat it all together if you eat it all together it should well i did eat it all together it still stayed bland thank you my god what is he saying about our stuff now lil blend oh my god collard greens he's great he's crazy where's the chitlins at it's in the microwave they're delicious if we get one out of three we might be all right and this is the chitlins and okra okay chitlets i mean i know chiplets are the intestine but should they really stink before i do taste them i'd like to pray to god before i put any of that in my mouth jesus name jesus name you are blessed we rebuke the spirit of the devil you are prayed over we guarantee you that you are not about to succumb to those chitlins hallelujah you'll be fine i just had to pray over chef before he ate the chitlins there's no crazy on this one oh my god oh checkpoints shitless i need the toilet excuse me i knew they'd come out quicker they went in jeffrey mc is a mess always check this out gross that went up holy crap are you kidding me oh my god well they stink shall he be taking it lightly and not seriously at all is he in the children's bathroom i'm not sure but i guess the prayer didn't work oh dear dad you're not used to that soul food huh thank you i want to see what's going on oh jesus so we've got the red velvet mom mary makes all of our desserts my merry yes thank you wow that is delicious finally it's a good food wow how do you like this yeah it's delicious well done wow i had to wait to the end i've been saved by mother mary of course the red velvet that mommy makes is gonna be beautiful right because mommy made it i'm gonna punch him in the face she watches sleep just show me into the kitchen please yes guys sure well yep the chef is on his way back i'm scared i would i wouldn't i'm scared to bring him here shelly doesn't listen when ramsay gets back there in the kitchen we'll see if she even opens up to any suggestions or not hi how are you nice to meet you team mating good to see you good to see you likewise how are you doing pleasure um this is barron nice to meet you likewise good to see you buddy uh so i've just had an embarrassing lunch let's start from the top pork chop dry bland no seasoning and the macaroni cheese was an embarrassment the fried collard greens there's no seasoning everything's just fries so just taste the oil and horrible the chitlins but the smell of them almost made me want to go i absolutely do not believe that there's that much wrong with my food who is the head chef here i am show me tonight okay well you think you are the head chef all right as shelly and the staff prepare for the dinner is good you know to my standard chef ramsay returns and is greeted by an unexpected guest oof what is that bloody hell damn oh my god wow it's just 10 minutes before the doors to blackberries open chef ramsay is greeted by something unexpected bloody hell that have you got a bin yes yeah the mouse just by the front door huh it's by the door no we just had the exterminator you paid for the exterminator sure get your money back okay that's not funny i've got an incinerator outside can you take that no as a general manager do something with it the mouse the mouse it was in the entrance as it walked in on the left hand side we always have the exterminator once a month for prevention are you serious no work come on guys be careful of mice tell me where you found that out it was at the front door oh where's the front door in your mind i can't believe that i came in the door walked in there saw him and bang right there right here do you have it on film are you kidding me what you thought i brought it in out of my pocket yeah i think you do are you are you are you dreaming i arrived the mouse was there never never here never there was no no never no mouse right here right okay so we had the exterminator last week they come on regular occasions yes we have an issue with mice that's why you have an exterminator we don't have an issue with mice an exterminator comes in regularly let's let's you know do a little investigation let's go dwayne when's the last time you spotted a mouse in here i've never seen one you've never seen one good except that one that was under the stain table that was dead a few months back almost a year back he found the mouse in the front door i've never been so embarrassed and humiliated in my life this is ridiculous really ridiculous and sad i never seen a mice at home perhaps you planted that uh mouth and you were suggesting that i brought it in i was like hmm i put it together like just for tv sake maybe i wish you would talk a little bit of sense the tv put your money where your mouth is in front of your staff i want a meeting upstairs with you and everybody now pulling mice out of his pockets and stuff you got to chase your responsibilities to tell them man how are you going to help me everybody keep bullshitting my mouth in the front what matters it's mice infested all over this place it can happen it can happen shelley can i have a two seconds please okay uh all of you this is very very important so i was telling seeing him like almost like that so just look at james for me two seconds i walked in the front door a mouse the mouse that you planted i know they told me but it's okay no it's not okay it's got nothing to do with tv nothing to do with your business in the ship i am not going to stand there and even attempt to take that crap from you you can take your restaurant and stick it i am gone i'm out of here out of here i'm out of here excuse me go see you later shut it down let's go it's over after discovering a mouse in the restaurant do you have it on film and being accused of planting it the mouse that you planted i know chef ramsay has had enough take your restaurant and stick it i am gone you out of here i'm out of here excuse me go see you later shut it down let's go it's over it is not over could you please shut up i mean it's ridiculous it's ridiculous i have worked tremendously trying to support my child and i don't understand you know it's i i don't understand what's happening today honest to god i don't please don't leave no no i'm out of here please cause you're exaggerating i'll talk to you can i talk to you yeah i take back what i said as far as you doing something like that i don't want to defend your character but it just was i'm lost for words that that happened and it just it just like shocked me and i apologize that's the most sensible thing i've heard you say since i've been here thank you the combination of mother mary's plea and an apology by james are enough to keep chef ramsay at blackberries welcome to blackberries at least for now your serving this evening will be tina she'll be right all right ladies let me put his orders in first order shrimp and grits would probably be a shrimp and greek knife am i saying right you got a free burner wok there is that a pizza oven yes that's my pizza oven and what i love it yeah so show me how can you cook soul food in a wok watch me chef watch me soul food supposed to be cooked slowly so is it cooked with love and soul not in a wok shelly's cooking green beans in a wok cooking rice in a wok cabbage in a wok we're not a chinese sofa restaurant we don't need a wok okay that's the first of me a southern food restaurant with a chinese wok and a pizza oven and you have an oven that doesn't work right there tell me what's working apart from you we haven't had correct broken ovens we don't have the correct stoves the correct fryers grills you know how can we produce really great food if we don't have really great ovens how do you manage to fry whether you want find like that very hard a lot of prayer after discovering unusual and dysfunctional equipment in this soul food restaurant chef ramsay turns his attention to shelly and how she runs her kitchen fry chicken please how many weight means do you need fried chicken machines but i'm going to call the artist you can't call it do your tickets let's get one thing straight okay can you please work on ticket one we are are we i mean i don't understand what you're walking in a damn circle shelley has no concept of what it means to actually run a proper functional kitchen masha one ticket at a time i need you to do something okay just one just do one that's what that's how i do one just make it and send it that's it make it intended unbelievable and where's the controller the chef the system what what system are we following here it's like there's no system i mean this is a judge if you try to get one she wants to argue you down you know she wants to argue down and make it sound like you're the one that's wrong or it can't be running like that there's no making sense down i want there guys off the line just go watch out just back up it's getting ridiculous already it's been an hour and a half makes you just kind of want to get off the moon how long have you been waiting closer hour an hour my first time in here and it's dysfunctional it doesn't seem to be one person controlling it i have the recipe i'm the exact oh my god shelly thinks she knows what she's doing when she actually has no idea what she's doing we need a miracle a prayer hands on bending knees because this is going to the shits here we go fried chicken despite the ongoing chaos in the kitchen dishes somehow make their way to the dining room and that's the result you wait 90 minutes and this is what you're lucky to get it's crazy in there huh that's crazy enough always and there's a war zone always always walking the blackberry separation that's it what a welcoming coming up is her way or the highway when the staff tries to get through to shelly i have been open-minded she goes from the defensive to the offensive calm down i want you to leave tell me to go i know and then at dinner service blackberry spirals out of control leaving chef ramsay wondering if this restaurant can be saved now you walk away bye goodbye see you later it's day two at blackberries and chef ramsay knows that before he can implement changes he has to focus on how this restaurant is run and so he starts the day with a staff meeting i want to go round now to identify things that you know that are wrong with the business and things that you'd like to change in the business i think one thing is i've known shelly we kind of grew up together and she is a control freak if she does not see it being implemented the same way that she would do it she's going to jump in and she's going to take over but is it overbearing is it too controlling yes it's either her way or the highway and it enables anyone to show off their skills or what they can do or what they can bring to the restaurant but you have someone that's down your throat constantly and really doesn't know what they're doing if you were so right obviously the restaurant wouldn't be failing on a situation that isn't none but it's a very valid point you've employed some talented individuals okay porsche shelley needs to learn how to delegate responsibility she can't be hands-on all the time it creates a problem oh my god chili in all honesty you take somebody out of what they're supposed to be doing and make them do something else and that's one thing you got to realize and that happens more often than i think that you talk too much and you know too much is it this is that that's what makes this so rough one time or another everybody has been pushed off their position just dewayne calm down i'm not i wasn't upset and tell you something i'm asking you to calm down i just bear with me for two minutes sit down please okay goodness what is wrong with you i made one comment what's become evident is how fragmented we are but that starts from the top chef shelley have to learn how to listen everybody tries to communicate with her and support her but if she's gonna be stubborn and not listen the doors will close and that would just break my heart i mean tremendously from now on in open honest dialogue got it yes shelley shelly i can't hear you i'm listening no we're are we going to be open-minded i have been open-minded as far as i'm concerned why do you say that this is not a joke your livelihood is on the line i mean you're in a serious serious position there's no reason why you cannot be open and honest because my i'm 72 years old and i thank god that i've been able to live this long and these are the most important things that i try to project listen to what this gentleman has to say i want to move forward i'm here to help right and the direction is to you shelly because there's some valuable information that we've just listened to we know you're the boss what you haven't got right now is successful restaurant and everyone in this room including me are here to make that a success but you have to get out of denial agreed i agree i can't hear you agree thank you only time will tell whether shelley has really understood what the staff was saying come with me let's go in the kitchen let's get to work but chef ramsay has already implemented a drastic change in the kitchen oh my god oh my god oh my god i called a friend kelly quip and he arranged for a brand new friar and a state-of-the-art six ring burner an amazing convection over from south bend incredible oh a six burner stove tyrol i just can't believe unbelievable i've had it done especially for your baking as well oh my god i'm bursting at the seams just i just can't believe it oh man this is awesome it's the wok gone there's nowhere on earth we can start to move forward cooking on a chinese wok a wok that you cannot cook soul food on we have a proper system here i am definitely gonna miss my wok but it's just gonna be an adjustment for me oh my god i just can't believe this happy mary father god i just can't thank you enough i'm glad you're happy this is just so wonderful this is truly truly a blessing chef ramsey is he's unbelievable i truly believe in the power of prayer i prayed so hard that you would come and that you were gonna turn this restaurant around i'm just so overwhelmed i thank you so much now that the kitchen has functional equipment okay there's one thing that's missing here that's the structure what what system are we following here we're going to work as a team chef ramsay appoints a leader tomorrow night my team yes i want you cooking and expediting yes chef ramsay helped implement a system to help this restaurant run very smoothly from now until forever i'm going to make something very very simple with you all now just a stunning mac and cheese he also works with the chefs on some new cooking techniques golden brown take his food and have a little taste chef ramsay has suggestions i'm going to do my best to be as open as i can but i just i don't know we are going to reopen this direction tomorrow night with a system one voice one leader yes and work as a team a system don't change it coming up shelly i'm coming it's the relaunch of blackberries will shelly be able to handle the changes after the implementation of a new system in the kitchen chef ramsay and his team worked through the night to give the dining room a much needed makeover okay good morning excited to stay inside yeah yes let's go welcome to the new black prince when i first arrived here there was a cafeteria the menu on the wall and it just lost that intimacy now it's a restaurant gone is the cafeteria you have a wonderful amazing new restaurant brand new tables brand new chairs it's a totally different place yes i promise you they're not your records i love my new restaurant the artwork the tables it's like a dream come true i absolutely love it the soul is back i'm just so excited and so grateful i'm just overwhelmed shelly how'd you feel i feel great oh oh that's right thank god my middle name's james right now that blackberries has an updated look now for the exciting part the food oh wow chef ramsay has created a fresh new soul food menu to match it what we've done is taken some of the dishes and modernize them a little bit give them a bit of a new twist starting off with the black-eyed pea fritters delicious barbecue pulled pork sliders wonderful starter entrees fried chicken and waffles with the honey butter oh i love that a southern meatloaf sandwich done with mac and cheese and a spicy glaze like a really nice rich spicy ketchup oh man i love it i love it shelly looked like she was embracing the change very well i'm glad that chef ramsay finally broke through to her is that beautiful dig in and have a taste oh my god here we go fried chicken and waffles and blackberries this menu is great wow i think i have a wedding combination here chef did it food atmosphere we're ready oh that's heaven it's relaunch night at blackberries okay we're about to open we put a structure in place and chef ramsay has given them all the tools they need to make this restaurant a success good afternoon welcome to blackberries this is a nice looking with the restaurant filling up the fork sliders and orders coming in from the dining room okay order in it's now up to the newly appointed leader chef mateen to take charge of the kitchen one jerk wings one shorty one chicken with white meat fried chicken white meat six minutes echo thank you good off we go here we go thank you let's go with chef ramsay's new system in place and the team working together shelly six minutes from oxtails thank you dinner service is off to a smooth start okay here we go and out in the dining room fried green tomatoes those are excellent the customers are thrilled with what they are receiving i need a knocks down shorty okay hey dad you okay the restaurant is packed wait till you see it you're not gonna believe it i need an exhale and a shorty right now and i'm on the line a little bit tonight shelly shelly he was asking for stuff and you're just ignoring him i'm coming okay all right love you dad you okay let's go please all right charlie being on the phone is totally disrespectful and a slap in the face to her kitchen team what she's saying is i don't give a damn it's my world and this is the way i'm going to do it the rest of you who cares how long for my oxtail what what things are going really well at the beginning because they were being executed but then i just don't think shelly wanted to be there i need a oxtail and a shorty first what she's not in control and if she's not in control she doesn't want to follow her silly yes sure it's like we just switched off and forgotten why have we forgotten our systems the most important thing about a system is keeping it yes go back to your stations i am the owner for this business and i'm just not taking any from anyone hell no what is this what who put my coin in it i did trying to want it to dry out honey shelly yeah so don't do that you're doing you're going back again i don't want it to dry out come here look come here come here look at me i only asked you don't do it yes we're going back again we're going back to our old ways don't touch what he's doing okay you said it's dry was it dry the corn no no it wasn't dry it wasn't even done thank you i don't care what you do chef's ramsay system works is this shelly that doesn't want it to work so when it's sitting on the side drying out just leave it there what are you talking about chilling i'm not talking back shelly now you walk away bye goodbye bye see goodbye later it's relaunch night at blackberries don't touch what he's doing and as chef ramsay tries to keep everything on track shelly goes off the rails goodbye she's gone and storms out of the kitchen unbelievable unbelievable what happened they were doing so good yeah shelley started coming in and picking up bits and distracting them i asked to stop it and let my team do it and she got really funny ever since then she just switched off so she's closed down shelley is a cry baby she's not willing to admit that she's wrong and that's pretty sad with shelly out of the kitchen stop everything you're doing plate this one for me right now chef mateen and the staff try to pull it together okay and we're gonna send this ticket out right now to get the remaining dishes to the hungry diners let's go you've got to push it yes chef you control the kitchen yes i need right now i need two fried green tomatoes i need that now working okay nice let's go can you get wayne to take this out for table one please dwight off we go double 50 let's go finally might be a little slow but it's gonna be great with mateen leading the kitchen i need to start the fries up in the window now sorry fries good the final entrees make their way out to the dining room and customers are loving the food it's worth the wait wonderful i think you guys are good it rains so smooth we have the system now this right here is the first day of greatness of many more days to come and i loved it a lot everything was great thank you thank you with the staff completing a successful relaunch chef ramsay gathers the group uh okay but there's someone missing where's uh shelly in the office shelly can i uh can i talk to you please shelly shelley no point making yourself look any more stupid shelley just two seconds not going to argue she's not coming we don't need her come on shelly needs to listen to chef ramsay you just can't close ears to someone that's come to help you please you really don't have anything to say if you don't need to have anything to say just go outside out of respect for your staff love my staff well then you want them to walk out on you and you'll have the restaurants i'll clean up tonight forget about cleaning up tonight what about the rest of the days oh dude and i'm so ashamed of you that i don't know what to do shelly we have worked our ass off you are done close the damn place down let's go tyrone i don't believe shelly deserves all this great help she got i mean someone like me that's been cooking and with the culinary school would kill for something like this opportunity you know it saddens me so much okay i know it's been a rough night but on a personal note i just want to say thank you why because you guys worked your putt off nobody gave up there's something personal about soul food for me i started a small little documentary called kitchen nightmares seven years ago and my first ever restaurant was a soul food shack it's why i started putting back into the industry and you guys deserve success you did a fantastic job chef ramsay he's up there with the best angels i'm just so delighted and so grateful and we are going to do our part to make him proud of us we definitely will make sure that your efforts were not in vain thank you shelly had the world's greatest chef in here to teach her and to help her business but she may throw this all the whole system out the window with the whole menu only time can tell can we have 30 seconds please i think this is my office are you asking me for 30 seconds at my office yes i am absolutely not okay that just sums it up yeah that's the only thing i haven't changed i really wanted a happy ending tonight why because this week i've met some amazing people mother mary what a sweetheart and a phenomenal cook mateen that guy has a bright future and he is packed with passion but the fate and the future of blackberries rests in the hands of shelley and unfortunately russians do not succeed when they're run by a dictator i planted a mouse is she crazy in the weeks that followed hi nice to see you customers responded well to the changes chef ramsay made to the menu and the decor the steak is tender after witnessing the positive reviews surprisingly shelley embraced all that chef ramsay has done for blackberries nice right i was so skeptical but chef ramsay has opened up a new world for us here at blackberries i'm ready for change it was difficult for me to see that at the beginning but here it is the truth is the light you guys enjoy montclair new jersey an affluent suburban community just 20 minutes from manhattan in the heart of town sits an italian eatery called leones opened more than a decade ago by rose leone when my mom first opened leone's in 1996 leonis was the place to go to if you wanted italian food welcome to leone do you have a reservation people wait in line to come in i was here eight o'clock in the morning till 12 at night i did everything cooking cleaning the inventory mama treated this restaurant like her child this restaurant was her life about two years ago my mother went in for a routine kidney stone operation went bad and she went into a coma which was very very difficult when rosie was ill it was a bad moment you look around you don't see rosie there's nothing here and that's what hurts without mama rose everybody was just scrambling to make it work literally she said the fish was dry and she didn't like the polenta was soft is that the polenta no i got it i got it i got it michael stepped in and he says he's the boss but doesn't do anything boss worthy he shows up around six walks around hands out of sambuca as long as you're 21 it's my tree watch this little football gets dinner one pizza cake okay that goes home all right see you later michael's not taking care of this restaurant so basically i do everything i do ordering i coordinate staff you're supposed to make menu the way the menu states my goal does not show any concern about this restaurant and when everybody sees that they do the same it gets stiff they take naps out in the back they play soccer hello after michael took over the food went to there's no flavor the taste just wasn't there anymore i mean this place used to be good i'm not happy anymore business nowadays is awful we are very slow last weekend we had 12 to 15 tables on a friday night and that's bad my reservations we got lizzy there's no reservations two years later when i come back i always had a heart attack everything i see was dirty so if this is filthy i'm afraid about what the kitchen looks like kitchen out of control that's just crazy disgusting what are you doing they destroyed everything i worked for in my life there was no manager in the restaurant i changed i need my goal to make some money what are you gonna do michael i don't know i can ask you you gotta do something michael you tell me what do you want me to do i need chef ramsay to come in and straighten them out seth ramsey needs to be my voice if this doesn't work out i will have no other choice but to die right leonis here we go you think of new jersey you think of italian hey hello gordon how are you doing likewise going to see you too um first name is michael michael good to see you here to meet you guys so you are oh oh no yes okay um what's that thing there that's uh my old uh television that i watch all the games oh you watch the games on there yes sir seriously yes sir but this is the main entrance right yes wow this business that flat that you're watching games and trying to deal with customers at the same time yes it is chef really yes not bad yes sir wow yeah go outside yes sir and come back in in 10 seconds okay hello table for one sir i'm busy okay two seconds i'm just gonna watch this goal would you mind i'll see myself i'm busy i'm just trying to find the game it's so important because this is far more important than running my business seriously honestly michael do you get the message i mean it's just do you think that's a good impression for customers walking in for the first time no terrible chef ramsay looked at me in such a way like what is this rodent doing next to a television in a restaurant it was just embarrassing oh my god is that a baby yes i mean they say that there's never an ugly baby i think i just found one but that's not you is it no sir we have one of the worst of course i've ever seen the creepy baby keeps me up at night i don't know what my mother was thinking to be honest everything you see every artwork was my mother right my mother's actually owner and i was kind of like the general manager until she got sick everything she got sick yes my mom's name is rose okay is your mother here yes okay can we meet please please how are you thank you good to see you sweet good to see you are you feeling better yes okay and how long have you been back at the business two months so you just come back now and how long were you out for two years i was a vegetable oh really wow i'm sorry um how long have you had the restaurants 14 years in your mind what's wrong with the restaurant what is it everything okay um let's get the group together and uh let's have a little meeting and a ketchup and i'd like to hear from everybody so i can get my head around this okay yeah can we get the chefs and uh yeah everybody please michael yeah chef ramsay this is my list i bet everything i got on him so this is john john good to see you thank you this is elizabeth elizabeth nice to see you and you are i'm trudy i'm a waitress a waitress i'm sorry john what'd you do i'm a waiter a waiter elizabeth hostess hostess because i've met the man that's in charge of the tv control chef ramsay is going to tear michael a new i would hope that michael knows that he has it coming but it is my goal so he probably doesn't know that he has it coming okay good um first of all i can't start to even think about turning this place around until i get to the bottom of the issues um who'd like to go first wow trudy the major problem here is there's no manager there no nobody can control this restaurant basically the staff is running this restaurant right now i i disagree i believe the problem is is that i believe that the corps is a turn off the deck no it's ridiculous she got sick i had to step up to the plate i take care of payroll i take care of ordering and take care of payables receiving doing the menus wow is that right what would happen if trudy fell ill god forbid where in the hell would we be i don't know the answer to that if i don't know do you want it you don't do you yes i do are you incapable i think i am capable so why haven't you done it when i see the business not busy it's hard for me to really show a passion have you ever had the passion yes i don't think he ever had the pets he's never had it wow is that true i don't think so chef i fell into it hoping that michael somewhere along the line would learn from me but he hasn't made the initiative michael says you gotta have goals you wanna rest out desire time headphone it doesn't stop gotta be your life i think the bottom line chef is everyone can do more i think the servers can do more i think the busboys can do more and the chefs can do more are you here every day except monday yeah i'm here every day except monday you're here six days a week across those six days a week you're in here you hear what 12 14 hours a day no no how many i work the dinner shift from like uh five to ten five to eleven so five hours a day out of those five hours a night how many of them do you sit down depending on the situation roughly two three so you're on your feet for two hours a day yes holy crap what's the break-even per week in this restaurant twelve thousand dollars what are we taking currently a week eight thousand we're losing four grand a week sir we're drowning we've already drowned when the business doesn't cover the expense there is no business it can't last wow okay i'm gonna have a look round i'm gonna be back in 20 minutes okay so do me a favor just make me one of everything on that menu our menu is 15 pages let's go and i just have to laugh because i knew it was going to look like a freaking chinese buffet i need one of every pasta on the venue we need chicken parm veal palm shrimp parm eggplant farm all the parms lily one of every pizza please don't forget the sides i think the pizza's top top notch i think most of the food is outstanding 80 or 6 days a week don't forget your pizza's special too there you go i appreciate it more play more plates more plates volatility in the window okay rice oh my gosh holy crap look at all this food bloody hell i need to get up to speed so i'm going to keep it simple just make me one of everything after a meeting with the staff chef ramsay is anxious to get up to speed on the food i need one of every pasta all farms but when he returns he makes a shocking discovery yacht holy crap a dining room full of food how many items on the menu over a hundred a hundred i mean physically the appearance jesus christ could have a knife and fork please maybe a bag a sick bag chef ramsay i would like to apologize in advance it's just everything's just terrible where'd you start here what's what this is sweet onion pie this is a basic cheese pie crust looks very dark is that normal that or is he just having an off day the oven gets very hard so have you tasted that how bland is that i think the texture i don't like but the taste you like the taste but you don't like the texture yeah jesus is that rice that's risotto risotto oh come on guys let me do me a favor what stinks here what's that smell is that you no sir what don't think so just smell that smell inside i don't want you smelling that no no no not with your state of health i don't want you back in a coma taste of them quick ah mine's full of grit or spongy sponge most great they're not even clean yeah are you crunching grapes yes yes dirt sands how do you clean a clam if it's steel you run them under cold water oh i know you've been normal yeah lord only knows where those clams came from at least it was just sand that's all i'm saying what is that that's our riviata why is all the vinegar on there people like that recipe they love it actually oh my god the chilies the garlic i mean that is a disaster next row what the is that what the is it it's chicken in balsamic sauce yeah red wine in a balsamic reduction taste it it should come with a warning that'll blow your lungs out i mean and whereabouts in italy is that from i don't know oh come on what is this one there's no seasoning in there everything's bland it's bland it's bland pasta's black ah it's like a flip-flop look at the garlic in there too much garlic smell of garlic this thing we got way too much garlic how many bowls of garlic in there a lot of garlic yeah are they trying to put me in hospital for two years i mean it's bad it's bad i mean honestly give me the chest out here will you please check my food even though i think it needs help it's definitely not that bad i eat it myself it's not as bad as a chef's head who made this i did it have you tasted it have you ever sat down and tasted your own food sit down hurry up with it what happens no no not with with would it happen sit down come on quickly i need you to taste it i know sit down please yes welcome to leonia's there we are i know it is this how does that taste no you're not eating that no no i'm not gonna be responsible put you back in hospital sit down you are not eating that how does that taste how does it taste i don't like protein i don't like you don't like it i don't know how was that it's very vinegary have you tasted your risotto yes i do taste the result but yeah stay there have a little taste yeah just have a taste that result usually use knife before have a little taste how does that taste wow it's disgusting and if that's classed as a risotto here in new jersey dude you've got to get out more what if any dish do you like on these tables nothing at all when a chef doesn't like his own food how the do you expect the customer to for me that says it all even your chefs don't like their food i think it's cool you think it's good well are you in denial or you're just doing this in front of your mouth no no i'm gonna get some fresh air i'll be back later yeah i'd like to catch a plane out here right now let's go mama looks after discovering early on that leone's menu is more about quantity than quality chef ramsay returns to observe dinner service and news of his arrival in montclair has spread and the restaurant is busy for the first time in years what are we having and oh you're michael's wife yes wow didn't he do well hey there yeah good right um tonight run the place as normal i'd like to see how this thing functions i've tasted it yeah now i want to see how it works take me to the kitchen show me the line please the kitchen ordering scanner one asparagus out one fight commerce scooter hot here's our um fire area salads and desserts yeah uh hello hi how are you i'm diana diana okay great and how long have you been here i've been here seven years seven years yes wow okay great um the main problem with the rest of it was they can say the main problem is the food the food wow i like the honesty i work here and i try to take pride in my work but i don't think the food is good michael needs the eye opener pick it out kick it out okay yeah here we go all right here we are enjoy tasty or what do you think the batter is kind of flavorless while diners try to digest their food gordon is having a hard time digesting what he sees in the kitchen what the is that in there is that how we heat it we blast it in the microwave that's very italian here what's in here did i do yesterday this chicken you do this yesterday chicken or balsamic so hold on a minute that's cooked chicken and what's that in there like that today so you have the raw veil next to the cooked chicken come on if the cooks are to blame for their part if they make a mistake i can live with that but something by being irresponsible and neglectful there's no excuse look at the crap in here bloody house bells what's that in there is that calamari yeah it comes in definitely fresh though that i know for a fact fresh that's frozen you buy this in fresh it is not fresh calamari we use here is all frozen oh jesus what is that in there what is that i think it's field shot you think it's real pretty sure you didn't put it in there no i didn't thought of what is up that looks like meat thrown in a pan what is it though i don't know it's not labeled oh my god hey forget the orders in five minutes and come around you daryl come round don't worry about the cooking for now i've got more issues where's the last time this was organized hasn't been organized oh come on what's that molasses molasses that's been in there since thanksgiving what it's july what's that oh my god oh this is raw pork that's not my pork that you serve to me is it no that's uh all the old pork there left that that's the old pork when's this one from not thanksgiving again stuffed what am i strong smell that smell it that's older than me smell it yours that's your sauce what in the is this oh my god is that flounder definitely old it's green smell that it was embarrassing it was mortifying he comes in something that's so easily identifiable and no one noticed how is that possible oh hi can i just show you something for two seconds mama rose i am absolutely horrified that's from thanksgiving and that a slimy vile sticky flounder and a sour disgusting cream sauce i mean honestly this restaurant has been run like a pigsty you may be resistant to change but what's become very clear is that you're resistant to quality michael should have been a boss to begin with and have his dishwashers and cook have it done it should have been done always all of you come here let's go come here how can we work like that you've got ingredients from last thanksgiving did you smell the flounder yes did you see the cooked chicken the raw pork the raw veal it's a joke you should be ashamed of yourselves under no circumstances can we continue to serve food shut the place down after discovering disgusting and dangerous practices in leone's kitchen under no circumstances can we continue to serve food chef ramsay has no choice but to shut the place down we go in the dining room now and just apologize get cleaning get it going should i tell them no more service for the rest of the night or just until they're done cleaning what do you think not at all just embarrassed us i'm embarrassed everybody everybody i'm sorry to interrupt you everybody i'm sad to say and embarrassed to say that for closing down leonies for the night the food is not up to par it's not what you deserve so i apologize for your convenience i thank you for choosing leone's but right now it's a must we must shut down you shut it down that's it you shut it down sorry guys leon's never been shut down very embarrassed by it but he won't sleep over this thank you ma'am sorry take care sorry about that ladies i'm feeling disappointed i feel humiliated telling everyone that they can't eat at my own restaurant can you sit down please that's the most badly practiced kitchen i've ever seen doesn't mean we need your chef no michael michael you let it happen on a daily basis you need to run your business you never die you don't understand it not in your mother's eyes you don't have you ever walked into your kitchen and opened the door to your refrigeration units and called them out no i checked but i don't check hard enough obviously talking about all my stuff am i stopping you're oblivious it's happening under your own nose they don't give a because you don't diana is he lazy yes john is he lazy yes sir trudy is he lazy yes mama he is right now we have a room full of individuals that don't believe in your conviction to run this place prove to me and more importantly to your mother and your staff that you are ready to lead got it got it a manager who doesn't manage my god telling me a rag with some soap and water okay i don't feel like i've given up but i feel like i'm broken i'm angry at myself i think as the boss of the restaurant it was just irresponsible is he capable of taking care of this restaurant for myself i don't know i think seeing is believing are you okay ma yeah what's it like ryan come here what's the matter what's the matter what's the matter huh we're gonna turn the ship around my mother put in almost 20 years of her life in this place her spirit her money i'm crushed that i might lay down i want to make it good but the truth is i don't know if i can turn it around and it's a scary feeling it really is come on get out of there get some rest okay okay after shutting down leones chef ramsay realizes michael and his staff need to have their eyes opened and he's arranged something appropriate at an art gallery only half a block away take a look at this amazing exhibition come in look at that what do you see food what kind of food you see on there italian food that's very pleasurable to the eye is it inviting yes yes this is your competition only blocks away from leones michael i went to five restaurants this morning lovely thank you i took the pictures and trust me after shooting those dishes i ate everything and they don't only look great wow that was delicious but they taste amazing i was glad that michael got to see what else was in the neighborhood instead of living in the denial that our food is fantastic your dishes set an impression and they remain in people's memories so let's take a look at these dishes from another local restaurant this restaurant is called that's right leonis you recognize the food yes wow i've never seen such an outdated mess in all my life take a look at that and then turn around and have a look at your competition come on trudy what's the message i'm trying to get across get your together your food is no comparison to what's in the neighborhood i can't believe it but i'm embarrassed to serve food like that jeff's opened my eyes to the neighboring competition and i think it takes someone outside the family and your friends to tell you how it is today we move in this direction let's get back to leone's and get started let's go i think it's time for change and i want to be the best italian restaurant in town with michael finally realizing how much his restaurant has slipped gordon's next move is to push michael to better understand his business when was the last time you cooked anything never and that means working in the kitchen i want you here to watch me now cook a delicious filled chop and a simple capolini but i want to do them with me you don't need to be an amazing chef to understand when your chefs are going badly wrong you can't continue being blindsided by your brigade i need you to start leading from the helm you start running your business okay field shop let's go to be the man of the house i have to take all the responsibility i mean i have to take a kick in the ass a lot of people depend on me you're following me every step of the way touch of olive oil yeah salt and pepper it's cooked on the bone why are we cooking on the boat more flavor right get that pan nice and hot how do you know when the oil's reaching i like smoke coming off there you've got the sear in there wow leave that steering away has never crossed your mind to come in and cook from time to time no it's one of those things as the italian prince my mother always did the cooking it even had from my mind it is very embarrassing i don't have different positions in my restaurant i think it's time for change the most important thing is to see you know i'm leaving my pride aside i want to do better really nice fear there we go into the convection seven minutes okay cabelini in gently now gently push and pull back nice and again good let's go check our veal is that ready chef i want you to tell me for once i want to pull it right now let's go then pull it cooking with chef ramsay has given me great confidence in myself and in my restaurant i'm sure i will make some errors but i have to learn has to come the hard way look at that visually how do they look they look fantastic do they belong in the gallery or the garbage the gallery the gallery okay dig in guys please dig and dig in dig in that is it just melts in your mouth i love the fact that someone above michael that had the knowledge she finally pushed him it was very good for michael delicious tell them what do you think of the field the veal was excellent good job it's probably the best food that's ever come out of that kitchen the staff when they seen the food they looked at me in a different light knowing that i could do the job and i wasn't just a bump in a log that could sit in the front i don't think i've seen trudy eat or smile in about two years you may recognize him from sat on his ass outside watching television but that guy's gone now you ever new michael let's go after feeling a little more positive about michael chef ramsay's team works through the night to transform leones from a sleepy and dated restaurant into a modern italian bistro good morning good morning chef today we are relaunching the new leones are you ready i'm ready let's go come in come in wow now big deep breath god is the dated salmon color now we have something sort of contemporary we have some elegance with the tablecloths red and white chairs the new lampshades cool contemporary fabulous gone the walls laced with hideous artwork we used the phrase and put an imprint of italy nice very nice as soon as i opened the door it was like a whole different world it's amazing beautiful surrounding that makes you feel like you're in italy i love that i can't blame the decor in this restaurant no more i love it i have another big surprise this is going to make your life so much easier i have for you the most amazing state-of-the-art point of sale system it is the state of the art latest touch screen device it's unbelievable each and every dish has been photographed and programmed on there you go to the table you take you take the order from wireless touch screen device even before you've left the table the order is in the kitchen i might have to cry oh my god i've been asking them to get any kind of computer here for years this handwritten stuff has to go and thank god it's finally gone we're like a real restaurant you are like a real restaurant before gordon ramsay came here this was an outdated new jersey restaurant after gordon ramsay this restaurant fits right in it's just this modern classic italian bistro thank you tears of happiness or perhaps oh mama rose don't hug me too you okay yes okay i feel good come on poet my quest ready pretty little i look like in addition to revamping leone's decor chef ramsay has overhauled their massive and stale menu and replaced it with fresh and innovative modern italian dishes these dishes are good enough to go in any gallery when i seen the food i really was excited the most eye-popping dishes i've seen in a long time it's exactly the first way i felt when i saw you now let's start off on the top herloom tomatoes with cucumber and a sherry vinaigrette then a delicious capillini yeah fresh crab beautiful i love it when you think of italian classics you think of a chicken cacciatore polenta olives mushrooms and tomatoes vibrant fresh it's beautiful a delicious shrimp scampi a roasted pan seared cod very nature a menu one-third of the size with 45 dishes that can change frequently got it yeah yeah you happy good i want to get some knife and forks and dig in oh my god that is so good this is excellent wow everything on the menu was out of this world this food is a complete 180 from what we were serving here before i'm very happy right now i absolutely love all the dishes on this menu and you just could taste the difference of the freshness as soon as it goes in your mouth we're back back in business it's relaunch night at leones and after an overhaul of the menu and the decor chef ramsay is encouraged by michael's new attitude and so he expects him to take complete control of his restaurant tonight we're going to get it done i want you expedited i want you holding the fort together sure yeah king of the castle yeah we get in the weeds we get out we stay get together as a team i'm nervous i'm excited i got the butterflies but i think it's time for me to make this business run the way it should i know what i can do tonight we're getting down we're going to get it done let's go guys come on move let's go hi welcome to the new leones leone's once a famed restaurant in this community had lost its way this is our menu tonight with news of the relaunch diners are streaming in ready to give it another chance are we ready to order the penny and the lasagna okay what would you like like okay pizza mexico pizza i'm so impressed by this i adore the pls just it was really cool i mean the ease of ordering it was incredible and my handwriting is atrocious so this for me is a dream come true gala appetizers thank you come here buddy this one is that's a new food on alex chef okay get our way first name is alex good to see you so what's going next we're looking at table six okay michael is off to a good start ensuring quality dish after dish is quickly leaving the kitchen this looks awesome and diners are thrilled with the new menu how does everything look very good good everyone's loving it i mean loving it but the kitchen has hit a roadblock alex this right here is table three as michael in an attempt to push food out fast has lost control and is sending an order to a table that has already received its food oh come on we're not getting anywhere guys we've already sent the appetizers just so you caught was that six somebody got a three okay they check six then check six it's not the same table no just check it out we're sending food out twice six and three are eating do you know what you're doing mike screwing up boy michael needs to step up to the plate i know it everyone knows except for him michael in the air michael i need you to step up stop panicking you're right there's something difficult here i know bring the team together we got this chef we're gonna play through you got it word this line have the balls to do it mistakes are gonna happen it all depends on how you handle the mistake john table ten did they get older appetizers yes they did alex did you bring this to 19 right and olives and a calamari table 19 years i got to keep it together get my head on straight have confidence in myself and stick to the game plan right now listen i need one card deli one card one or a chat day and then we'll worry about everything else but that i mean now yes sir come on keep it going we've got to drive the team hi guys yes how are we doing on 18. i'm coming right okay gotta talk to each other guys okay i want to stay in the window together good right here right here thank you sir table six with chef ramsay's encouragement michael has rallied back okay lasagna lasagna well lasagna in the window baby beautiful baby food is flowing into the dining room again at a steady pace no snags it tastes great and no complaints delicious what did you like about the pizza diana how is everybody out there they're loving it everybody's loving it they're loving it yeah gotcha you gave me a chicken parm with no home is the shrimp coming with it it's incredible having michael finally step up he's doing a good job he actually sounds like a boss today that's a first you guys are doing a great job food looks absolutely gorgeous okay thank you thank you michael is now working together with us hey guys come on baby one more and the finish line is here they're supposed to be like that we're looking for them for a long time how'd everything go okay oh my god excellent yeah you're back on the map okay how you feeling good yes yes feedback they love the food the old customers right mama rose i thought you went to bed huh you happy yeah i'm very happy look after your son i will let him spoil you now you need to sit and relax and go around the corner for a little game of bingo he's good enough to take over yeah he is i was proud to see michael be the boss and hopefully things work out and be better i'd like a little word with you yes sir okay three important words that right now i need you to remember stay the course if you don't do that we're coming off track and we're going to slip back day by day to our old ways stay the course stay the course chef i can't hear you stay the course take a big deep breath and shout at me chef in my restaurant i'm going to stay the course good well done thank you sir good night thank you this was just a phenomenal experience and the thing that changed me the most is jeff ramsey that's a god's honest stay the course you got it brother good luck good night he believed in me and he said i can do it i truly believe i can do it good job michael you're proud of me yeah thank you very much okay wow when i first arrived i saw a lazy owner sat in his pizzeria watching tv we made a lot of changes not just to the restaurants but to the owner michael found his voice and finally he's now speaking not just for himself but for his mother wow that baby was ugly only days after chef ramsay left alex give me a silverware rap somewhere michael took his advice to heart and stayed the course here's your field job tara go get it baby and under his leadership guys if he needs help jump in frank will help him leones is once again a popular spot in montclair things are more upscale as for rose she can finally rest easy knowing that her son is in control and the future of leones looks bright thank you so friendly because of you i go to the boss and leonard is the hottest restaurant in town for us like jeff ramsey youplainfield new jersey a middle-class city with a strong sense of community and smack in the middle of town is a soul food restaurant named blackberries run by a once successful caterer named shelly withers hello the gang's all here huh my catering business was fantastic i had such a tremendous following it just seemed natural that i would move on to open a restaurant oh how are you welcome and with her mother mary investing her entire retirement fund into the restaurant shelley's dream came true daddy put the check in the bank this afternoon oh okay i think it's a parent's responsibility to be supportive of their children i am so happy with the way the restaurant turned down the decor is phenomenal i'm not sure if i understand the records and blackberries has to best sold food in town no doubt fried collard greens is my favorite i don't know what i'm doing wrong the shrimp was firm that's because i forgot him on the stove perfect location perfect food but where are my customers the problem is shelly is in denial she thinks that the decor is amazing and the food tastes spectacular i like it but the food is suffering the customers are suffering and the restaurant is suffering the macaroni actually shelley believes that all of her food is better than any chef out there two done two done is perfect she feels this is the way i want it it tastes good it doesn't matter what someone else thinks about it it'd be in my restaurant i'm gonna have it my way i don't want the food to touch i say it every day and you're doing it to me anyway right it don't make sense to me shelley is a super controlled freak to the 110th power i need you to knock these down just get it out what what what system are we following here there's no system we have 16 people working back here and 16 people doing their own system table five right there in the front where is it please guys it's hot back here why is everybody back here ain't got no food down here she thinks she knows what she's doing when she's actually has no idea what she's doing tell me what i can do to help i don't i don't understand what's going on and that brings a lot of chaos here let me see that plane she's helping the restaurant to fail even more not that many customers though huh things are bad i'm 200 000 in debt i'm barely holding on here i got 14 to my name bro like i tell shelly it's just not only her this restaurant's bills because i have sacrificed a lot to make sure that the doors didn't close i believe in the power of prayer i think chef ramsay is the answer to her breads what an amazing buzzy little town great location for a restaurant okay hello hello good afternoon hello welcome to blackberry thank you very happy to be here i'm happy to have you here wow look at this place somebody having a party no no party we're just having um lunch okay great let me see you okay i'm sitting over here and this big boy there who's that i'm james james what's your job general manager stop it with a baby face like that you call me management get out of here you look about 18 how old are you i'm 30 years old wow amazing aging well and this is mom mary mother mary yes sir you look great nice what do you do the cakes the pies the desserts really she's our baker okay great lord ramsay is here i don't want to be sweating all over him can i kiss him can i give him a kiss and thank him for coming or what yeah they're about to be our own hey how are you how are you doing good to see you you're running around you're busy on you i have to be honest everybody's got to get it done oh three years who designed this place i feel like donna summer's gonna come through the door that would be michelle i think that would be me oh i absolutely love the decor and a dance party that's me excuse me okay look at those beautiful blinds i asked my fiance if i could kiss you he's a manager the woman yeah oh come on sexy right you'll get arrested for cradle snatching hey general manager come here get that beard over here you didn't tell me that you're dating the owner excuse me thank amazing and was it love at first bite yeah wow way too amazing oh man he's a little younger than i am but he's my sexy chocolate let me sit down have a quick look through the menu start ordering thank you thank you for coming gordon okay i'm gonna see as much as i can okay uh right let's go for uh collard greens yes that smothered pork chop sounds delicious let's go for the mac and cheese as well please okay the chipmunks and desserts how's the bread velvet cake delicious okay great very wealthy i'm starving we're gonna put your order in excellence all right guys we have our order for chef all right let's do it i really think that chef ramsay is going to say that the food is phenomenal with the pork chop put some mac this is not hot just microwave it this is the craziest decor i've ever seen wow another record yeah they're all over so first name is eloise oh oh jesus what happened was it the fried chicken or the cornbread what when chipmunks what happened i have no idea i've never seen her before oh oh my god did somebody head butt the wool it was shocking to find that it was a hole in the wall with a record on it i was just like oh my god like what the hell is that doing there i've heard about broken records but jesus christ okay let's get out of there quick i'm afraid to touch any other records all right there you go oh now you know that is a pretty plate right shelly is delusional about how fabulous her food is i hate the macaroni and cheese just looks like crap on a plate this is pork chop this mother pork chop thank you just like someone shot on my plate it's just dry that's bland nothing's seasoned there how's your pork chop the pork chop is dry the mac and cheese is way overcooked and very mushy you think a soul food ration would pride itself on cooking mac and cheese but now it's just all is that heated in the microwave no i think they just put it in the in the oven to warm for our lunch service thank you what's wrong he's saying that the macaroni and cheese is dry and overcooked he asked me how we warmed it in the microwave i told him no it just came out of the oven they may have put it in the microwave for a minute only for a minute though everything is cooked to perfection there is nothing on that menu that is not perfect okay here we go i'm taking over now five collard greens move it to the middle put an orange chip in the middle that's it how can you actually say there's a social restaurant are the collard greens are not just like collard greens since it's just like pepper soil you know you can't have food tasting like that tell chef i said to taste those collard greens they're perfect here you go chefs collard greens wow yeah okay great thank you very much indeed wow this is bland no seasoning it's just fried and soggy and limp uh james what'd you think you got to eat it all together if you eat it all together it should well i did eat it all together it still stayed bland thank you my god what is he saying about our stuff now lil blend oh my god collard greens he's great he's crazy where's the chitlins at it's in the microwave they're delicious if we get one out of three we might be all right and this is the chitlins and okra okay chitlets i mean i know chiplets are the intestine but should they really stink before i do taste them i'd like to pray to god before i put any of that in my mouth jesus name jesus name you are blessed we rebuke the spirit of the devil you are prayed over we guarantee you that you are not about to succumb to those chitlins hallelujah you'll be fine i just had to pray over chef before he ate the chitlins there's no crazy on this one oh my god oh checkpoints shitless i need the toilet excuse me i knew they'd come out quicker they went in jeffrey mc is a mess always check this out gross that went up holy crap are you kidding me oh my god well they stink shall he be taking it lightly and not seriously at all is he in the children's bathroom i'm not sure but i guess the prayer didn't work oh dear dad you're not used to that soul food huh thank you i want to see what's going on oh jesus so we've got the red velvet mom mary makes all of our desserts my merry yes thank you wow that is delicious finally it's a good food wow how do you like this yeah it's delicious well done wow i had to wait to the end i've been saved by mother mary of course the red velvet that mommy makes is gonna be beautiful right because mommy made it i'm gonna punch him in the face she watches sleep just show me into the kitchen please yes guys sure well yep the chef is on his way back i'm scared i would i wouldn't i'm scared to bring him here shelly doesn't listen when ramsay gets back there in the kitchen we'll see if she even opens up to any suggestions or not hi how are you nice to meet you team mating good to see you good to see you likewise how are you doing pleasure um this is barron nice to meet you likewise good to see you buddy uh so i've just had an embarrassing lunch let's start from the top pork chop dry bland no seasoning and the macaroni cheese was an embarrassment the fried collard greens there's no seasoning everything's just fries so just taste the oil and horrible the chitlins but the smell of them almost made me want to go i absolutely do not believe that there's that much wrong with my food who is the head chef here i am show me tonight okay well you think you are the head chef all right as shelly and the staff prepare for the dinner is good you know to my standard chef ramsay returns and is greeted by an unexpected guest oof what is that bloody hell damn oh my god wow it's just 10 minutes before the doors to blackberries open chef ramsay is greeted by something unexpected bloody hell that have you got a bin yes yeah the mouse just by the front door huh it's by the door no we just had the exterminator you paid for the exterminator sure get your money back okay that's not funny i've got an incinerator outside can you take that no as a general manager do something with it the mouse the mouse it was in the entrance as it walked in on the left hand side we always have the exterminator once a month for prevention are you serious no work come on guys be careful of mice tell me where you found that out it was at the front door oh where's the front door in your mind i can't believe that i came in the door walked in there saw him and bang right there right here do you have it on film are you kidding me what you thought i brought it in out of my pocket yeah i think you do are you are you are you dreaming i arrived the mouse was there never never here never there was no no never no mouse right here right okay so we had the exterminator last week they come on regular occasions yes we have an issue with mice that's why you have an exterminator we don't have an issue with mice an exterminator comes in regularly let's let's you know do a little investigation let's go dwayne when's the last time you spotted a mouse in here i've never seen one you've never seen one good except that one that was under the stain table that was dead a few months back almost a year back he found the mouse in the front door i've never been so embarrassed and humiliated in my life this is ridiculous really ridiculous and sad i never seen a mice at home perhaps you planted that uh mouth and you were suggesting that i brought it in i was like hmm i put it together like just for tv sake maybe i wish you would talk a little bit of sense the tv put your money where your mouth is in front of your staff i want a meeting upstairs with you and everybody now pulling mice out of his pockets and stuff you got to chase your responsibilities to tell them man how are you going to help me everybody keep bullshitting my mouth in the front what matters it's mice infested all over this place it can happen it can happen shelley can i have a two seconds please okay uh all of you this is very very important so i was telling seeing him like almost like that so just look at james for me two seconds i walked in the front door a mouse the mouse that you planted i know they told me but it's okay no it's not okay it's got nothing to do with tv nothing to do with your business in the ship i am not going to stand there and even attempt to take that crap from you you can take your restaurant and stick it i am gone i'm out of here out of here i'm out of here excuse me go see you later shut it down let's go it's over after discovering a mouse in the restaurant do you have it on film and being accused of planting it the mouse that you planted i know chef ramsay has had enough take your restaurant and stick it i am gone you out of here i'm out of here excuse me go see you later shut it down let's go it's over it is not over could you please shut up i mean it's ridiculous it's ridiculous i have worked tremendously trying to support my child and i don't understand you know it's i i don't understand what's happening today honest to god i don't please don't leave no no i'm out of here please cause you're exaggerating i'll talk to you can i talk to you yeah i take back what i said as far as you doing something like that i don't want to defend your character but it just was i'm lost for words that that happened and it just it just like shocked me and i apologize that's the most sensible thing i've heard you say since i've been here thank you the combination of mother mary's plea and an apology by james are enough to keep chef ramsay at blackberries welcome to blackberries at least for now your serving this evening will be tina she'll be right all right ladies let me put his orders in first order shrimp and grits would probably be a shrimp and greek knife am i saying right you got a free burner wok there is that a pizza oven yes that's my pizza oven and what i love it yeah so show me how can you cook soul food in a wok watch me chef watch me soul food supposed to be cooked slowly so is it cooked with love and soul not in a wok shelly's cooking green beans in a wok cooking rice in a wok cabbage in a wok we're not a chinese sofa restaurant we don't need a wok okay that's the first of me a southern food restaurant with a chinese wok and a pizza oven and you have an oven that doesn't work right there tell me what's working apart from you we haven't had correct broken ovens we don't have the correct stoves the correct fryers grills you know how can we produce really great food if we don't have really great ovens how do you manage to fry whether you want find like that very hard a lot of prayer after discovering unusual and dysfunctional equipment in this soul food restaurant chef ramsay turns his attention to shelly and how she runs her kitchen fry chicken please how many weight means do you need fried chicken machines but i'm going to call the artist you can't call it do your tickets let's get one thing straight okay can you please work on ticket one we are are we i mean i don't understand what you're walking in a damn circle shelley has no concept of what it means to actually run a proper functional kitchen masha one ticket at a time i need you to do something okay just one just do one that's what that's how i do one just make it and send it that's it make it intended unbelievable and where's the controller the chef the system what what system are we following here it's like there's no system i mean this is a judge if you try to get one she wants to argue you down you know she wants to argue down and make it sound like you're the one that's wrong or it can't be running like that there's no making sense down i want there guys off the line just go watch out just back up it's getting ridiculous already it's been an hour and a half makes you just kind of want to get off the moon how long have you been waiting closer hour an hour my first time in here and it's dysfunctional it doesn't seem to be one person controlling it i have the recipe i'm the exact oh my god shelly thinks she knows what she's doing when she actually has no idea what she's doing we need a miracle a prayer hands on bending knees because this is going to the shits here we go fried chicken despite the ongoing chaos in the kitchen dishes somehow make their way to the dining room and that's the result you wait 90 minutes and this is what you're lucky to get it's crazy in there huh that's crazy enough always and there's a war zone always always walking the blackberry separation that's it what a welcoming coming up is her way or the highway when the staff tries to get through to shelly i have been open-minded she goes from the defensive to the offensive calm down i want you to leave tell me to go i know and then at dinner service blackberry spirals out of control leaving chef ramsay wondering if this restaurant can be saved now you walk away bye goodbye see you later it's day two at blackberries and chef ramsay knows that before he can implement changes he has to focus on how this restaurant is run and so he starts the day with a staff meeting i want to go round now to identify things that you know that are wrong with the business and things that you'd like to change in the business i think one thing is i've known shelly we kind of grew up together and she is a control freak if she does not see it being implemented the same way that she would do it she's going to jump in and she's going to take over but is it overbearing is it too controlling yes it's either her way or the highway and it enables anyone to show off their skills or what they can do or what they can bring to the restaurant but you have someone that's down your throat constantly and really doesn't know what they're doing if you were so right obviously the restaurant wouldn't be failing on a situation that isn't none but it's a very valid point you've employed some talented individuals okay porsche shelley needs to learn how to delegate responsibility she can't be hands-on all the time it creates a problem oh my god chili in all honesty you take somebody out of what they're supposed to be doing and make them do something else and that's one thing you got to realize and that happens more often than i think that you talk too much and you know too much is it this is that that's what makes this so rough one time or another everybody has been pushed off their position just dewayne calm down i'm not i wasn't upset and tell you something i'm asking you to calm down i just bear with me for two minutes sit down please okay goodness what is wrong with you i made one comment what's become evident is how fragmented we are but that starts from the top chef shelley have to learn how to listen everybody tries to communicate with her and support her but if she's gonna be stubborn and not listen the doors will close and that would just break my heart i mean tremendously from now on in open honest dialogue got it yes shelley shelly i can't hear you i'm listening no we're are we going to be open-minded i have been open-minded as far as i'm concerned why do you say that this is not a joke your livelihood is on the line i mean you're in a serious serious position there's no reason why you cannot be open and honest because my i'm 72 years old and i thank god that i've been able to live this long and these are the most important things that i try to project listen to what this gentleman has to say i want to move forward i'm here to help right and the direction is to you shelly because there's some valuable information that we've just listened to we know you're the boss what you haven't got right now is successful restaurant and everyone in this room including me are here to make that a success but you have to get out of denial agreed i agree i can't hear you agree thank you only time will tell whether shelley has really understood what the staff was saying come with me let's go in the kitchen let's get to work but chef ramsay has already implemented a drastic change in the kitchen oh my god oh my god oh my god i called a friend kelly quip and he arranged for a brand new friar and a state-of-the-art six ring burner an amazing convection over from south bend incredible oh a six burner stove tyrol i just can't believe unbelievable i've had it done especially for your baking as well oh my god i'm bursting at the seams just i just can't believe it oh man this is awesome it's the wok gone there's nowhere on earth we can start to move forward cooking on a chinese wok a wok that you cannot cook soul food on we have a proper system here i am definitely gonna miss my wok but it's just gonna be an adjustment for me oh my god i just can't believe this happy mary father god i just can't thank you enough i'm glad you're happy this is just so wonderful this is truly truly a blessing chef ramsey is he's unbelievable i truly believe in the power of prayer i prayed so hard that you would come and that you were gonna turn this restaurant around i'm just so overwhelmed i thank you so much now that the kitchen has functional equipment okay there's one thing that's missing here that's the structure what what system are we following here we're going to work as a team chef ramsay appoints a leader tomorrow night my team yes i want you cooking and expediting yes chef ramsay helped implement a system to help this restaurant run very smoothly from now until forever i'm going to make something very very simple with you all now just a stunning mac and cheese he also works with the chefs on some new cooking techniques golden brown take his food and have a little taste chef ramsay has suggestions i'm going to do my best to be as open as i can but i just i don't know we are going to reopen this direction tomorrow night with a system one voice one leader yes and work as a team a system don't change it coming up shelly i'm coming it's the relaunch of blackberries will shelly be able to handle the changes after the implementation of a new system in the kitchen chef ramsay and his team worked through the night to give the dining room a much needed makeover okay good morning excited to stay inside yeah yes let's go welcome to the new black prince when i first arrived here there was a cafeteria the menu on the wall and it just lost that intimacy now it's a restaurant gone is the cafeteria you have a wonderful amazing new restaurant brand new tables brand new chairs it's a totally different place yes i promise you they're not your records i love my new restaurant the artwork the tables it's like a dream come true i absolutely love it the soul is back i'm just so excited and so grateful i'm just overwhelmed shelly how'd you feel i feel great oh oh that's right thank god my middle name's james right now that blackberries has an updated look now for the exciting part the food oh wow chef ramsay has created a fresh new soul food menu to match it what we've done is taken some of the dishes and modernize them a little bit give them a bit of a new twist starting off with the black-eyed pea fritters delicious barbecue pulled pork sliders wonderful starter entrees fried chicken and waffles with the honey butter oh i love that a southern meatloaf sandwich done with mac and cheese and a spicy glaze like a really nice rich spicy ketchup oh man i love it i love it shelly looked like she was embracing the change very well i'm glad that chef ramsay finally broke through to her is that beautiful dig in and have a taste oh my god here we go fried chicken and waffles and blackberries this menu is great wow i think i have a wedding combination here chef did it food atmosphere we're ready oh that's heaven it's relaunch night at blackberries okay we're about to open we put a structure in place and chef ramsay has given them all the tools they need to make this restaurant a success good afternoon welcome to blackberries this is a nice looking with the restaurant filling up the fork sliders and orders coming in from the dining room okay order in it's now up to the newly appointed leader chef mateen to take charge of the kitchen one jerk wings one shorty one chicken with white meat fried chicken white meat six minutes echo thank you good off we go here we go thank you let's go with chef ramsay's new system in place and the team working together shelly six minutes from oxtails thank you dinner service is off to a smooth start okay here we go and out in the dining room fried green tomatoes those are excellent the customers are thrilled with what they are receiving i need a knocks down shorty okay hey dad you okay the restaurant is packed wait till you see it you're not gonna believe it i need an exhale and a shorty right now and i'm on the line a little bit tonight shelly shelly he was asking for stuff and you're just ignoring him i'm coming okay all right love you dad you okay let's go please all right charlie being on the phone is totally disrespectful and a slap in the face to her kitchen team what she's saying is i don't give a damn it's my world and this is the way i'm going to do it the rest of you who cares how long for my oxtail what what things are going really well at the beginning because they were being executed but then i just don't think shelly wanted to be there i need a oxtail and a shorty first what she's not in control and if she's not in control she doesn't want to follow her silly yes sure it's like we just switched off and forgotten why have we forgotten our systems the most important thing about a system is keeping it yes go back to your stations i am the owner for this business and i'm just not taking any from anyone hell no what is this what who put my coin in it i did trying to want it to dry out honey shelly yeah so don't do that you're doing you're going back again i don't want it to dry out come here look come here come here look at me i only asked you don't do it yes we're going back again we're going back to our old ways don't touch what he's doing okay you said it's dry was it dry the corn no no it wasn't dry it wasn't even done thank you i don't care what you do chef's ramsay system works is this shelly that doesn't want it to work so when it's sitting on the side drying out just leave it there what are you talking about chilling i'm not talking back shelly now you walk away bye goodbye bye see goodbye later it's relaunch night at blackberries don't touch what he's doing and as chef ramsay tries to keep everything on track shelly goes off the rails goodbye she's gone and storms out of the kitchen unbelievable unbelievable what happened they were doing so good yeah shelley started coming in and picking up bits and distracting them i asked to stop it and let my team do it and she got really funny ever since then she just switched off so she's closed down shelley is a cry baby she's not willing to admit that she's wrong and that's pretty sad with shelly out of the kitchen stop everything you're doing plate this one for me right now chef mateen and the staff try to pull it together okay and we're gonna send this ticket out right now to get the remaining dishes to the hungry diners let's go you've got to push it yes chef you control the kitchen yes i need right now i need two fried green tomatoes i need that now working okay nice let's go can you get wayne to take this out for table one please dwight off we go double 50 let's go finally might be a little slow but it's gonna be great with mateen leading the kitchen i need to start the fries up in the window now sorry fries good the final entrees make their way out to the dining room and customers are loving the food it's worth the wait wonderful i think you guys are good it rains so smooth we have the system now this right here is the first day of greatness of many more days to come and i loved it a lot everything was great thank you thank you with the staff completing a successful relaunch chef ramsay gathers the group uh okay but there's someone missing where's uh shelly in the office shelly can i uh can i talk to you please shelly shelley no point making yourself look any more stupid shelley just two seconds not going to argue she's not coming we don't need her come on shelly needs to listen to chef ramsay you just can't close ears to someone that's come to help you please you really don't have anything to say if you don't need to have anything to say just go outside out of respect for your staff love my staff well then you want them to walk out on you and you'll have the restaurants i'll clean up tonight forget about cleaning up tonight what about the rest of the days oh dude and i'm so ashamed of you that i don't know what to do shelly we have worked our ass off you are done close the damn place down let's go tyrone i don't believe shelly deserves all this great help she got i mean someone like me that's been cooking and with the culinary school would kill for something like this opportunity you know it saddens me so much okay i know it's been a rough night but on a personal note i just want to say thank you why because you guys worked your putt off nobody gave up there's something personal about soul food for me i started a small little documentary called kitchen nightmares seven years ago and my first ever restaurant was a soul food shack it's why i started putting back into the industry and you guys deserve success you did a fantastic job chef ramsay he's up there with the best angels i'm just so delighted and so grateful and we are going to do our part to make him proud of us we definitely will make sure that your efforts were not in vain thank you shelly had the world's greatest chef in here to teach her and to help her business but she may throw this all the whole system out the window with the whole menu only time can tell can we have 30 seconds please i think this is my office are you asking me for 30 seconds at my office yes i am absolutely not okay that just sums it up yeah that's the only thing i haven't changed i really wanted a happy ending tonight why because this week i've met some amazing people mother mary what a sweetheart and a phenomenal cook mateen that guy has a bright future and he is packed with passion but the fate and the future of blackberries rests in the hands of shelley and unfortunately russians do not succeed when they're run by a dictator i planted a mouse is she crazy in the weeks that followed hi nice to see you customers responded well to the changes chef ramsay made to the menu and the decor the steak is tender after witnessing the positive reviews surprisingly shelley embraced all that chef ramsay has done for blackberries nice right i was so skeptical but chef ramsay has opened up a new world for us here at blackberries i'm ready for change it was difficult for me to see that at the beginning but here it is the truth is the light you guys enjoy montclair new jersey an affluent suburban community just 20 minutes from manhattan in the heart of town sits an italian eatery called leones opened more than a decade ago by rose leone when my mom first opened leone's in 1996 leonis was the place to go to if you wanted italian food welcome to leone do you have a reservation people wait in line to come in i was here eight o'clock in the morning till 12 at night i did everything cooking cleaning the inventory mama treated this restaurant like her child this restaurant was her life about two years ago my mother went in for a routine kidney stone operation went bad and she went into a coma which was very very difficult when rosie was ill it was a bad moment you look around you don't see rosie there's nothing here and that's what hurts without mama rose everybody was just scrambling to make it work literally she said the fish was dry and she didn't like the polenta was soft is that the polenta no i got it i got it i got it michael stepped in and he says he's the boss but doesn't do anything boss worthy he shows up around six walks around hands out of sambuca as long as you're 21 it's my tree watch this little football gets dinner one pizza cake okay that goes home all right see you later michael's not taking care of this restaurant so basically i do everything i do ordering i coordinate staff you're supposed to make menu the way the menu states my goal does not show any concern about this restaurant and when everybody sees that they do the same it gets stiff they take naps out in the back they play soccer hello after michael took over the food went to there's no flavor the taste just wasn't there anymore i mean this place used to be good i'm not happy anymore business nowadays is awful we are very slow last weekend we had 12 to 15 tables on a friday night and that's bad my reservations we got lizzy there's no reservations two years later when i come back i always had a heart attack everything i see was dirty so if this is filthy i'm afraid about what the kitchen looks like kitchen out of control that's just crazy disgusting what are you doing they destroyed everything i worked for in my life there was no manager in the restaurant i changed i need my goal to make some money what are you gonna do michael i don't know i can ask you you gotta do something michael you tell me what do you want me to do i need chef ramsay to come in and straighten them out seth ramsey needs to be my voice if this doesn't work out i will have no other choice but to die right leonis here we go you think of new jersey you think of italian hey hello gordon how are you doing likewise going to see you too um first name is michael michael good to see you here to meet you guys so you are oh oh no yes okay um what's that thing there that's uh my old uh television that i watch all the games oh you watch the games on there yes sir seriously yes sir but this is the main entrance right yes wow this business that flat that you're watching games and trying to deal with customers at the same time yes it is chef really yes not bad yes sir wow yeah go outside yes sir and come back in in 10 seconds okay hello table for one sir i'm busy okay two seconds i'm just gonna watch this goal would you mind i'll see myself i'm busy i'm just trying to find the game it's so important because this is far more important than running my business seriously honestly michael do you get the message i mean it's just do you think that's a good impression for customers walking in for the first time no terrible chef ramsay looked at me in such a way like what is this rodent doing next to a television in a restaurant it was just embarrassing oh my god is that a baby yes i mean they say that there's never an ugly baby i think i just found one but that's not you is it no sir we have one of the worst of course i've ever seen the creepy baby keeps me up at night i don't know what my mother was thinking to be honest everything you see every artwork was my mother right my mother's actually owner and i was kind of like the general manager until she got sick everything she got sick yes my mom's name is rose okay is your mother here yes okay can we meet please please how are you thank you good to see you sweet good to see you are you feeling better yes okay and how long have you been back at the business two months so you just come back now and how long were you out for two years i was a vegetable oh really wow i'm sorry um how long have you had the restaurants 14 years in your mind what's wrong with the restaurant what is it everything okay um let's get the group together and uh let's have a little meeting and a ketchup and i'd like to hear from everybody so i can get my head around this okay yeah can we get the chefs and uh yeah everybody please michael yeah chef ramsay this is my list i bet everything i got on him so this is john john good to see you thank you this is elizabeth elizabeth nice to see you and you are i'm trudy i'm a waitress a waitress i'm sorry john what'd you do i'm a waiter a waiter elizabeth hostess hostess because i've met the man that's in charge of the tv control chef ramsay is going to tear michael a new i would hope that michael knows that he has it coming but it is my goal so he probably doesn't know that he has it coming okay good um first of all i can't start to even think about turning this place around until i get to the bottom of the issues um who'd like to go first wow trudy the major problem here is there's no manager there no nobody can control this restaurant basically the staff is running this restaurant right now i i disagree i believe the problem is is that i believe that the corps is a turn off the deck no it's ridiculous she got sick i had to step up to the plate i take care of payroll i take care of ordering and take care of payables receiving doing the menus wow is that right what would happen if trudy fell ill god forbid where in the hell would we be i don't know the answer to that if i don't know do you want it you don't do you yes i do are you incapable i think i am capable so why haven't you done it when i see the business not busy it's hard for me to really show a passion have you ever had the passion yes i don't think he ever had the pets he's never had it wow is that true i don't think so chef i fell into it hoping that michael somewhere along the line would learn from me but he hasn't made the initiative michael says you gotta have goals you wanna rest out desire time headphone it doesn't stop gotta be your life i think the bottom line chef is everyone can do more i think the servers can do more i think the busboys can do more and the chefs can do more are you here every day except monday yeah i'm here every day except monday you're here six days a week across those six days a week you're in here you hear what 12 14 hours a day no no how many i work the dinner shift from like uh five to ten five to eleven so five hours a day out of those five hours a night how many of them do you sit down depending on the situation roughly two three so you're on your feet for two hours a day yes holy crap what's the break-even per week in this restaurant twelve thousand dollars what are we taking currently a week eight thousand we're losing four grand a week sir we're drowning we've already drowned when the business doesn't cover the expense there is no business it can't last wow okay i'm gonna have a look round i'm gonna be back in 20 minutes okay so do me a favor just make me one of everything on that menu our menu is 15 pages let's go and i just have to laugh because i knew it was going to look like a freaking chinese buffet i need one of every pasta on the venue we need chicken parm veal palm shrimp parm eggplant farm all the parms lily one of every pizza please don't forget the sides i think the pizza's top top notch i think most of the food is outstanding 80 or 6 days a week don't forget your pizza's special too there you go i appreciate it more play more plates more plates volatility in the window okay rice oh my gosh holy crap look at all this food bloody hell i need to get up to speed so i'm going to keep it simple just make me one of everything after a meeting with the staff chef ramsay is anxious to get up to speed on the food i need one of every pasta all farms but when he returns he makes a shocking discovery yacht holy crap a dining room full of food how many items on the menu over a hundred a hundred i mean physically the appearance jesus christ could have a knife and fork please maybe a bag a sick bag chef ramsay i would like to apologize in advance it's just everything's just terrible where'd you start here what's what this is sweet onion pie this is a basic cheese pie crust looks very dark is that normal that or is he just having an off day the oven gets very hard so have you tasted that how bland is that i think the texture i don't like but the taste you like the taste but you don't like the texture yeah jesus is that rice that's risotto risotto oh come on guys let me do me a favor what stinks here what's that smell is that you no sir what don't think so just smell that smell inside i don't want you smelling that no no no not with your state of health i don't want you back in a coma taste of them quick ah mine's full of grit or spongy sponge most great they're not even clean yeah are you crunching grapes yes yes dirt sands how do you clean a clam if it's steel you run them under cold water oh i know you've been normal yeah lord only knows where those clams came from at least it was just sand that's all i'm saying what is that that's our riviata why is all the vinegar on there people like that recipe they love it actually oh my god the chilies the garlic i mean that is a disaster next row what the is that what the is it it's chicken in balsamic sauce yeah red wine in a balsamic reduction taste it it should come with a warning that'll blow your lungs out i mean and whereabouts in italy is that from i don't know oh come on what is this one there's no seasoning in there everything's bland it's bland it's bland pasta's black ah it's like a flip-flop look at the garlic in there too much garlic smell of garlic this thing we got way too much garlic how many bowls of garlic in there a lot of garlic yeah are they trying to put me in hospital for two years i mean it's bad it's bad i mean honestly give me the chest out here will you please check my food even though i think it needs help it's definitely not that bad i eat it myself it's not as bad as a chef's head who made this i did it have you tasted it have you ever sat down and tasted your own food sit down hurry up with it what happens no no not with with would it happen sit down come on quickly i need you to taste it i know sit down please yes welcome to leonia's there we are i know it is this how does that taste no you're not eating that no no i'm not gonna be responsible put you back in hospital sit down you are not eating that how does that taste how does it taste i don't like protein i don't like you don't like it i don't know how was that it's very vinegary have you tasted your risotto yes i do taste the result but yeah stay there have a little taste yeah just have a taste that result usually use knife before have a little taste how does that taste wow it's disgusting and if that's classed as a risotto here in new jersey dude you've got to get out more what if any dish do you like on these tables nothing at all when a chef doesn't like his own food how the do you expect the customer to for me that says it all even your chefs don't like their food i think it's cool you think it's good well are you in denial or you're just doing this in front of your mouth no no i'm gonna get some fresh air i'll be back later yeah i'd like to catch a plane out here right now let's go mama looks after discovering early on that leone's menu is more about quantity than quality chef ramsay returns to observe dinner service and news of his arrival in montclair has spread and the restaurant is busy for the first time in years what are we having and oh you're michael's wife yes wow didn't he do well hey there yeah good right um tonight run the place as normal i'd like to see how this thing functions i've tasted it yeah now i want to see how it works take me to the kitchen show me the line please the kitchen ordering scanner one asparagus out one fight commerce scooter hot here's our um fire area salads and desserts yeah uh hello hi how are you i'm diana diana okay great and how long have you been here i've been here seven years seven years yes wow okay great um the main problem with the rest of it was they can say the main problem is the food the food wow i like the honesty i work here and i try to take pride in my work but i don't think the food is good michael needs the eye opener pick it out kick it out okay yeah here we go all right here we are enjoy tasty or what do you think the batter is kind of flavorless while diners try to digest their food gordon is having a hard time digesting what he sees in the kitchen what the is that in there is that how we heat it we blast it in the microwave that's very italian here what's in here did i do yesterday this chicken you do this yesterday chicken or balsamic so hold on a minute that's cooked chicken and what's that in there like that today so you have the raw veil next to the cooked chicken come on if the cooks are to blame for their part if they make a mistake i can live with that but something by being irresponsible and neglectful there's no excuse look at the crap in here bloody house bells what's that in there is that calamari yeah it comes in definitely fresh though that i know for a fact fresh that's frozen you buy this in fresh it is not fresh calamari we use here is all frozen oh jesus what is that in there what is that i think it's field shot you think it's real pretty sure you didn't put it in there no i didn't thought of what is up that looks like meat thrown in a pan what is it though i don't know it's not labeled oh my god hey forget the orders in five minutes and come around you daryl come round don't worry about the cooking for now i've got more issues where's the last time this was organized hasn't been organized oh come on what's that molasses molasses that's been in there since thanksgiving what it's july what's that oh my god oh this is raw pork that's not my pork that you serve to me is it no that's uh all the old pork there left that that's the old pork when's this one from not thanksgiving again stuffed what am i strong smell that smell it that's older than me smell it yours that's your sauce what in the is this oh my god is that flounder definitely old it's green smell that it was embarrassing it was mortifying he comes in something that's so easily identifiable and no one noticed how is that possible oh hi can i just show you something for two seconds mama rose i am absolutely horrified that's from thanksgiving and that a slimy vile sticky flounder and a sour disgusting cream sauce i mean honestly this restaurant has been run like a pigsty you may be resistant to change but what's become very clear is that you're resistant to quality michael should have been a boss to begin with and have his dishwashers and cook have it done it should have been done always all of you come here let's go come here how can we work like that you've got ingredients from last thanksgiving did you smell the flounder yes did you see the cooked chicken the raw pork the raw veal it's a joke you should be ashamed of yourselves under no circumstances can we continue to serve food shut the place down after discovering disgusting and dangerous practices in leone's kitchen under no circumstances can we continue to serve food chef ramsay has no choice but to shut the place down we go in the dining room now and just apologize get cleaning get it going should i tell them no more service for the rest of the night or just until they're done cleaning what do you think not at all just embarrassed us i'm embarrassed everybody everybody i'm sorry to interrupt you everybody i'm sad to say and embarrassed to say that for closing down leonies for the night the food is not up to par it's not what you deserve so i apologize for your convenience i thank you for choosing leone's but right now it's a must we must shut down you shut it down that's it you shut it down sorry guys leon's never been shut down very embarrassed by it but he won't sleep over this thank you ma'am sorry take care sorry about that ladies i'm feeling disappointed i feel humiliated telling everyone that they can't eat at my own restaurant can you sit down please that's the most badly practiced kitchen i've ever seen doesn't mean we need your chef no michael michael you let it happen on a daily basis you need to run your business you never die you don't understand it not in your mother's eyes you don't have you ever walked into your kitchen and opened the door to your refrigeration units and called them out no i checked but i don't check hard enough obviously talking about all my stuff am i stopping you're oblivious it's happening under your own nose they don't give a because you don't diana is he lazy yes john is he lazy yes sir trudy is he lazy yes mama he is right now we have a room full of individuals that don't believe in your conviction to run this place prove to me and more importantly to your mother and your staff that you are ready to lead got it got it a manager who doesn't manage my god telling me a rag with some soap and water okay i don't feel like i've given up but i feel like i'm broken i'm angry at myself i think as the boss of the restaurant it was just irresponsible is he capable of taking care of this restaurant for myself i don't know i think seeing is believing are you okay ma yeah what's it like ryan come here what's the matter what's the matter what's the matter huh we're gonna turn the ship around my mother put in almost 20 years of her life in this place her spirit her money i'm crushed that i might lay down i want to make it good but the truth is i don't know if i can turn it around and it's a scary feeling it really is come on get out of there get some rest okay okay after shutting down leones chef ramsay realizes michael and his staff need to have their eyes opened and he's arranged something appropriate at an art gallery only half a block away take a look at this amazing exhibition come in look at that what do you see food what kind of food you see on there italian food that's very pleasurable to the eye is it inviting yes yes this is your competition only blocks away from leones michael i went to five restaurants this morning lovely thank you i took the pictures and trust me after shooting those dishes i ate everything and they don't only look great wow that was delicious but they taste amazing i was glad that michael got to see what else was in the neighborhood instead of living in the denial that our food is fantastic your dishes set an impression and they remain in people's memories so let's take a look at these dishes from another local restaurant this restaurant is called that's right leonis you recognize the food yes wow i've never seen such an outdated mess in all my life take a look at that and then turn around and have a look at your competition come on trudy what's the message i'm trying to get across get your together your food is no comparison to what's in the neighborhood i can't believe it but i'm embarrassed to serve food like that jeff's opened my eyes to the neighboring competition and i think it takes someone outside the family and your friends to tell you how it is today we move in this direction let's get back to leone's and get started let's go i think it's time for change and i want to be the best italian restaurant in town with michael finally realizing how much his restaurant has slipped gordon's next move is to push michael to better understand his business when was the last time you cooked anything never and that means working in the kitchen i want you here to watch me now cook a delicious filled chop and a simple capolini but i want to do them with me you don't need to be an amazing chef to understand when your chefs are going badly wrong you can't continue being blindsided by your brigade i need you to start leading from the helm you start running your business okay field shop let's go to be the man of the house i have to take all the responsibility i mean i have to take a kick in the ass a lot of people depend on me you're following me every step of the way touch of olive oil yeah salt and pepper it's cooked on the bone why are we cooking on the boat more flavor right get that pan nice and hot how do you know when the oil's reaching i like smoke coming off there you've got the sear in there wow leave that steering away has never crossed your mind to come in and cook from time to time no it's one of those things as the italian prince my mother always did the cooking it even had from my mind it is very embarrassing i don't have different positions in my restaurant i think it's time for change the most important thing is to see you know i'm leaving my pride aside i want to do better really nice fear there we go into the convection seven minutes okay cabelini in gently now gently push and pull back nice and again good let's go check our veal is that ready chef i want you to tell me for once i want to pull it right now let's go then pull it cooking with chef ramsay has given me great confidence in myself and in my restaurant i'm sure i will make some errors but i have to learn has to come the hard way look at that visually how do they look they look fantastic do they belong in the gallery or the garbage the gallery the gallery okay dig in guys please dig and dig in dig in that is it just melts in your mouth i love the fact that someone above michael that had the knowledge she finally pushed him it was very good for michael delicious tell them what do you think of the field the veal was excellent good job it's probably the best food that's ever come out of that kitchen the staff when they seen the food they looked at me in a different light knowing that i could do the job and i wasn't just a bump in a log that could sit in the front i don't think i've seen trudy eat or smile in about two years you may recognize him from sat on his ass outside watching television but that guy's gone now you ever new michael let's go after feeling a little more positive about michael chef ramsay's team works through the night to transform leones from a sleepy and dated restaurant into a modern italian bistro good morning good morning chef today we are relaunching the new leones are you ready i'm ready let's go come in come in wow now big deep breath god is the dated salmon color now we have something sort of contemporary we have some elegance with the tablecloths red and white chairs the new lampshades cool contemporary fabulous gone the walls laced with hideous artwork we used the phrase and put an imprint of italy nice very nice as soon as i opened the door it was like a whole different world it's amazing beautiful surrounding that makes you feel like you're in italy i love that i can't blame the decor in this restaurant no more i love it i have another big surprise this is going to make your life so much easier i have for you the most amazing state-of-the-art point of sale system it is the state of the art latest touch screen device it's unbelievable each and every dish has been photographed and programmed on there you go to the table you take you take the order from wireless touch screen device even before you've left the table the order is in the kitchen i might have to cry oh my god i've been asking them to get any kind of computer here for years this handwritten stuff has to go and thank god it's finally gone we're like a real restaurant you are like a real restaurant before gordon ramsay came here this was an outdated new jersey restaurant after gordon ramsay this restaurant fits right in it's just this modern classic italian bistro thank you tears of happiness or perhaps oh mama rose don't hug me too you okay yes okay i feel good come on poet my quest ready pretty little i look like in addition to revamping leone's decor chef ramsay has overhauled their massive and stale menu and replaced it with fresh and innovative modern italian dishes these dishes are good enough to go in any gallery when i seen the food i really was excited the most eye-popping dishes i've seen in a long time it's exactly the first way i felt when i saw you now let's start off on the top herloom tomatoes with cucumber and a sherry vinaigrette then a delicious capillini yeah fresh crab beautiful i love it when you think of italian classics you think of a chicken cacciatore polenta olives mushrooms and tomatoes vibrant fresh it's beautiful a delicious shrimp scampi a roasted pan seared cod very nature a menu one-third of the size with 45 dishes that can change frequently got it yeah yeah you happy good i want to get some knife and forks and dig in oh my god that is so good this is excellent wow everything on the menu was out of this world this food is a complete 180 from what we were serving here before i'm very happy right now i absolutely love all the dishes on this menu and you just could taste the difference of the freshness as soon as it goes in your mouth we're back back in business it's relaunch night at leones and after an overhaul of the menu and the decor chef ramsay is encouraged by michael's new attitude and so he expects him to take complete control of his restaurant tonight we're going to get it done i want you expedited i want you holding the fort together sure yeah king of the castle yeah we get in the weeds we get out we stay get together as a team i'm nervous i'm excited i got the butterflies but i think it's time for me to make this business run the way it should i know what i can do tonight we're getting down we're going to get it done let's go guys come on move let's go hi welcome to the new leones leone's once a famed restaurant in this community had lost its way this is our menu tonight with news of the relaunch diners are streaming in ready to give it another chance are we ready to order the penny and the lasagna okay what would you like like okay pizza mexico pizza i'm so impressed by this i adore the pls just it was really cool i mean the ease of ordering it was incredible and my handwriting is atrocious so this for me is a dream come true gala appetizers thank you come here buddy this one is that's a new food on alex chef okay get our way first name is alex good to see you so what's going next we're looking at table six okay michael is off to a good start ensuring quality dish after dish is quickly leaving the kitchen this looks awesome and diners are thrilled with the new menu how does everything look very good good everyone's loving it i mean loving it but the kitchen has hit a roadblock alex this right here is table three as michael in an attempt to push food out fast has lost control and is sending an order to a table that has already received its food oh come on we're not getting anywhere guys we've already sent the appetizers just so you caught was that six somebody got a three okay they check six then check six it's not the same table no just check it out we're sending food out twice six and three are eating do you know what you're doing mike screwing up boy michael needs to step up to the plate i know it everyone knows except for him michael in the air michael i need you to step up stop panicking you're right there's something difficult here i know bring the team together we got this chef we're gonna play through you got it word this line have the balls to do it mistakes are gonna happen it all depends on how you handle the mistake john table ten did they get older appetizers yes they did alex did you bring this to 19 right and olives and a calamari table 19 years i got to keep it together get my head on straight have confidence in myself and stick to the game plan right now listen i need one card deli one card one or a chat day and then we'll worry about everything else but that i mean now yes sir come on keep it going we've got to drive the team hi guys yes how are we doing on 18. i'm coming right okay gotta talk to each other guys okay i want to stay in the window together good right here right here thank you sir table six with chef ramsay's encouragement michael has rallied back okay lasagna lasagna well lasagna in the window baby beautiful baby food is flowing into the dining room again at a steady pace no snags it tastes great and no complaints delicious what did you like about the pizza diana how is everybody out there they're loving it everybody's loving it they're loving it yeah gotcha you gave me a chicken parm with no home is the shrimp coming with it it's incredible having michael finally step up he's doing a good job he actually sounds like a boss today that's a first you guys are doing a great job food looks absolutely gorgeous okay thank you thank you michael is now working together with us hey guys come on baby one more and the finish line is here they're supposed to be like that we're looking for them for a long time how'd everything go okay oh my god excellent yeah you're back on the map okay how you feeling good yes yes feedback they love the food the old customers right mama rose i thought you went to bed huh you happy yeah i'm very happy look after your son i will let him spoil you now you need to sit and relax and go around the corner for a little game of bingo he's good enough to take over yeah he is i was proud to see michael be the boss and hopefully things work out and be better i'd like a little word with you yes sir okay three important words that right now i need you to remember stay the course if you don't do that we're coming off track and we're going to slip back day by day to our old ways stay the course stay the course chef i can't hear you stay the course take a big deep breath and shout at me chef in my restaurant i'm going to stay the course good well done thank you sir good night thank you this was just a phenomenal experience and the thing that changed me the most is jeff ramsey that's a god's honest stay the course you got it brother good luck good night he believed in me and he said i can do it i truly believe i can do it good job michael you're proud of me yeah thank you very much okay wow when i first arrived i saw a lazy owner sat in his pizzeria watching tv we made a lot of changes not just to the restaurants but to the owner michael found his voice and finally he's now speaking not just for himself but for his mother wow that baby was ugly only days after chef ramsay left alex give me a silverware rap somewhere michael took his advice to heart and stayed the course here's your field job tara go get it baby and under his leadership guys if he needs help jump in frank will help him leones is once again a popular spot in montclair things are more upscale as for rose she can finally rest easy knowing that her son is in control and the future of leones looks bright thank you so friendly because of you i go to the boss and leonard is the hottest restaurant in town for us like jeff ramsey you\n"