Kitchen Nightmares 5x8

1. Tonight, on "Kitchen Nightmares,"

2. Chef Ramsay heads to Brooklyn—

3. Oh, my god.

4. —to tackle the many problems

5. of a 55-year-old restaurant.

6. I've just had one of the most disgusting

7. lunches I've ever had.

8. Owner John is not only clinging to the past—

9. It worked before.

10. Why can't it work now?

11. He is no longer running his restaurant.

12. Do you have any idea that this is going on?

13. He works primarily at the pizza oven.

14. They weren't a fan of the egg plant.

15. I don't know what they're doing over there.

16. And he's unaware of what's happening.

17. Where is John?

18. Oh, my god.

19. —in the kitchen—

20. I'm embarrassed to do some of the things that we do here.

21. —in the dining room—

22. Look at this mess.

23. —or in a storage.

24. They're frozen moldy.

25. And as a result, the restaurant is a disaster.

26. There's a man vomiting in the toilet now.

27. It's a "Kitchen Nightmare's" inspection

28. that will have you in shock. - Let it go.

29. It's off.

30. Conditions are so bad—

31. - We could possibly kill them. - Kill someone?

32. A customer pays the price.

33. - Call an ambulance. - Oh, my god.

34. Get ready for an emotional roller

35. coaster as chef Ramsay tries to save a defiant owner—

36. If I need you to tell me put the key to the door,

37. I would have done that without you telling me.

38. —from destroying his parent's legacy.

39. I don't want to be here no more.

40. What is that?

41. You're serving rotten food.

42. - We could possibly kill them. - Then wake up!

43. - You wake up!

44. Shut the place down.

45. Get out of here!

46. That is amazing.

47. Thank you, chef.

48. In Brooklyn, New York, lies the historic neighborhood

49. of Cobble Hill, a hip, thriving area and home

50. to Sal's Pizzeria—

51. run by John Esposito.

52. My parents came here from Italy,

53. and they took over this pizzeria in 1970.

54. And at the age of 14, I left high school to help my mom

55. and dad run the business.

56. This has become my life ever since.

57. - Hello.

58. Sal's.

59. How can I help you?

60. We ran the place very successfully.

61. Thank you.

62. By the '90s, we were able to purchase

63. the restaurant next door. - Hello.

64. How are we doing?

65. Welcome to Maria's.

66. Thank you.

67. My mom became sick.

68. She got diagnosed with cancer.

69. And we thought the right thing to do

70. was to name the room after my mom.

71. That's why you have Sal's Pizza and Mama Maria's.

72. His father passed away.

73. His mom passed away.

74. He was the only one in charge of everything.

75. And as the years passed, it started to go down.

76. We don't have that kind of volume of sales

77. that we once had, and I can't figure out

78. the reason why it dropped off.

79. Where's the people?

80. I've stayed the same.

81. I haven't changed.

82. They weren't a fan of the egg plant.

83. I don't know what they're doing over there.

84. John, as the owner, is supposed

85. to be in charge of this whole place, including the kitchen,

86. but he's usually up front making pizzas covered, in flour.

87. It is a nightmare.

88. The pizzeria and a restaurant are two different animals.

89. That's like the accountant that thought it

90. would be cool open a wine bar.

91. Stop paying attention over here for a minute.

92. Get in the kitchen.

93. Really look at what's going on.

94. John treats this place like his second home.

95. He's got four kids that are always here

96. running around the restaurant.

97. Bang, bang, bang.

98. It doesn't really look good for the restaurant.

99. John is an extremely stubborn owner.

100. All right.

101. So this is the way we're going to set up the tables.

102. In his mind, the system has worked,

103. but it really stopped working like 20 years ago.

104. Cobble Hill used to be a very old school

105. Italian neighborhood, but now we have much, much

106. younger people moving in.

107. A lot of people to call them hipsters.

108. Hey, sorry.

109. Spaghetti doesn't taste quite right.

110. I don't know what to tell you.

111. It's a fresh tomato sauce.

112. Throw this out.

113. Am I going to put on plastic glasses, get a funky haircut,

114. put an earring in my ear just to accommodate the new people?

115. I'm not going to do that.

116. - How are things on this end? - Bad.

117. Horrible.

118. Really?

119. Yeah.

120. John is holding onto the past and to the way

121. things were done when his parents ran the business.

122. We didn't do anything tonight.

123. We didn't even do a quarter of what we used to do.

124. Any businessman would have said enough is enough.

125. Pull the plug.

126. But how do you pull the plug on family history?

127. Pretty Time

128. Yeah.

129. We got to do something to boost these checks.

130. This place, it's mom and dad.

131. Losing one is like losing a parent again,

132. and I'm not prepared to handle that.

133. Mama Maria's. What is that?

134. That is ghastly.

135. Holes everywhere, that is not a good sign.

136. My goodness, me.

137. Hello, how are you?

138. OK. How are you?

139. - First name is? - Fabio.

140. Yeah? Good to see you.

141. I'm the manager here.

142. That, outside, looks like an eye sore.

143. Whose idea was that?

144. The owner, he actually cut the letters out.

145. Why?

146. I guess because it was tearing,

147. and he just completed the whole thing.

148. And the owner is?

149. John.

150. And he is where?

151. Next door.

152. He's responsible for, like, the pizzeria.

153. So two restaurants?

154. Right.

155. Mama Maria's, I'm standing in?

156. Right.

157. And then there Sal's Pizzeria next door.

158. Right, I'm going to go meet the owner.

159. - OK. - Thank you.

160. No problem.

161. Wow.

162. So Sal's Pizzeria.

163. John?

164. There he is there.

165. - How are you? - Very well, thank you.

166. How are you? - Good, thank you.

167. Excellent.

168. So are you filling in today?

169. Someone phone in sick?

170. I pretty much make the pizzas. Pretty much, is this it?

171. Yeah, I always work the front of the counter to make pizzas.

172. Oh, so you're behind there constantly?

173. Yeah.

174. Wow, how long have you been making pizzas?

175. Since I'm 10 years old.

176. That's incredible.

177. I got confused with the hideous canopy outside.

178. Was that you who cut holes in the canopy?

179. Actually, the wind did that.

180. The wind did that?

181. Yeah.

182. Anyway, come around.

183. Let's have a catch-up.

184. OK, first of all, give me a little insight—

185. the history.

186. My mom and dad had a pizzeria, and my father and my mother

187. did all the cooking in back.

188. By the '90s, my mom got sick.

189. She came down with cancer.

190. She passed first.

191. I'm sorry. She's no longer with—

192. wow.

193. So that's why it has two different names, mom and dad—

194. Sal and Maria.

195. Right.

196. Combined restaurants, what is the number one problem here?

197. We're not busy.

198. You're not busy?

199. There's more competition in the neighborhood,

200. and we're struggling.

201. We're struggling to keep the doors open.

202. It's a hard pill to swallow.

203. Yeah, I can see that.

204. I'd like to eat and find out what's going on here.

205. It's very uncomfortable for me to sit here right now

206. and ask for help.

207. Thank you.

208. I'm not feeling who I am.

209. I feel weak.

210. - Oh, hello. - Hello.

211. - How are you? - Good, how are you?

212. - And this is? - Laurie.

213. - Laurie, nice to see you. - Nice to meet you.

214. - And what do you do? - I'm a waitress.

215. Excellent.

216. What's wrong with the restaurants?

217. Lack of leadership.

218. John's a little frantic, chaotic—

219. usually very busy in the pizzeria.

220. John has been here forever, so you would think John would

221. know how to run this place.

222. But he doesn't want to change anything,

223. because this is what his parents knew before they passed away.

224. Homemade pastas.

225. Pasta made daily on the premises.

226. All the pasta's made fresh on a daily basis?

227. Yep.

228. OK.

229. Let's start off with the tortellini di patate.

230. OK.

231. I got to try the spaghetti meatballs.

232. Spaghetti meatballs.

233. Margherita, please.

234. OK.

235. Thank you.

236. Wow.

237. oreganata.

238. Second course.

239. You got the tortellini di patate?

240. The food is not good here, but it's not my food.

241. I'm serving it the same way we always serve it.

242. Oh, boy.

243. I think that chef Ramsay's going to have a heart attack when he

244. sees what goes on around here.

245. - Oh, my god. - Oh, hello.

246. - Hi, how are you?

247. I'm Ramsay. How are you?

248. Good. - I'm Fran.

249. Nice to meet you. - Fran, nice to see you.

250. What do you do?

251. I just show the desserts to your table.

252. Oh, great. Let's have a look.

253. Sure.

254. Wow.

255. So they showcase the desserts.

256. Mm.

257. So this is our desserts.

258. Everything's made here fresh on premise.

259. So, jeez.

260. What is that?

261. It's butter.

262. Oh, it's butter.

263. Yeah, just to display as the ice cream.

264. And that mold on there, you show that?

265. No, the butter is on top, so it covers that.

266. And that bit there?

267. Yeah.

268. And Fabio, you're the general manager, right?

269. So you got no idea you're presenting

270. those mol it's stuck with butter on top?

271. No, those are just for display.

272. Hold on. Hold on.

273. Because they're for display, you've

274. got the right to cake them in mold

275. and serve customers a display that's full of mold?

276. So we're supposed to, like, put a fresh one every day,

277. so we can throw it out?

278. Are you kidding me?

279. What do you think?

280. I think that, you know, as long as it's—

281. I mean, it's fresh.

282. It's good.

283. But I wouldn't—

284. I mean, have you lost the plot?

285. - No, I haven't. - No.

286. It's changed colors four times, and it absolutely reeks.

287. All I'm saying is that this is for display.

288. We're not serving it.

289. So do the customers deserve a display that's full of?

290. Oh, my god.

291. He's ripping into him.

292. He's ripping into him, man.

293. Look at this mess.

294. Oh, my god.

295. That, it must be two months old.

296. It's probably a few days old.

297. A few days?

298. Uh?

299. We don't serve it.

300. It's for presentation.

301. I'm aware you're not serving it.

302. Think gold star.

303. Congratulations on that one.

304. That's a big breakthrough with you.

305. - That's why you're here. - Excuse me.

306. That's why you're here.

307. I'm here to tell you that that, and you

308. shouldn't be presenting it. - No.

309. You don't know the difference between mold and fresh?

310. It's for presentation only.

311. Give me two seconds.

312. I need to clean my hands.

313. I'm caked in mold.

314. I've got disgusting butter, and I've

315. got hands full of puss.

316. Oh, my god.

317. Oh, almighty.

318. You've got Tylenol with codeine?

319. No.

320. He's going to come throw it at us.

321. I'd rather him throw it at us than me serve it to him.

322. The patate.

323. Thank you.

324. You're welcome.

325. I don't know.

326. It's bland. I mean, really bland.

327. And visually, it look like someone's just

328. eaten that whole dessert tray.

329. And it shot out twice as quick as it went in.

330. Laurie.

331. It's just bland.

332. I mean, really bland.

333. I'll let them know.

334. And this is frozen, because there's

335. a grainy potato flavor inside.

336. I don't think anything's frozen here.

337. So the tortellini's aren't frozen?

338. I'll double check.

339. Thank you, Laurie.

340. Uh oh.

341. He said it was very, very bland.

342. He asked if the tortellini were frozen.

343. I wasn't sure if they were frozen or not.

344. He's right.

345. All our pasta's fresh frozen.

346. That's the most mind boggling thing in this place.

347. We make everything and then freeze it.

348. Chef, the tortellinis are frozen.

349. Oh, they are frozen?

350. They are.

351. So you advertise you're making it daily,

352. but you freeze it daily.

353. Something's wrong big time.

354. Thank you, Laurie.

355. Wow.

356. They said that tortellini is frozen.

357. I can't—

358. I didn't even know that. - M either.

359. Everything was, like, fresh.

360. He makes no sense.

361. What, to make it fresh and then freeze it?

362. —and then freeze it, it makes no sense.

363. I smell burning.

364. Does anyone clean here?

365. Fabio, how often is this place cleaned?

366. I have no idea.

367. You've got no idea when this place was last cleaned?

368. They don't have a cleaning crew.

369. What are these?

370. I'm not sure.

371. I'll have to ask John.

372. What's that smell in here?

373. That's The smell.

374. Oh, my god.

375. What's in the?

376. Daft.

377. It was a little bit of a payback,

378. because he just finished tearing me apart.

379. I thought that was a little bit of karma.

380. Did I get you?

381. Yeah.

382. Where in the did all that come from?

383. He over-flooded it.

384. Who watered the plants this morning?

385. John, they're full of water.

386. Somebody watered the plants.

387. Someone was doing a great job of watering plants

388. but not changing desserts.

389. Man.

390. Wow.

391. I'll pay for any dry cleaning, all right?

392. OK?

393. me.

394. The spaghetti and meatballs, I would say

395. enjoy it, but I know better.

396. Spaghetti and meatballs.

397. Spaghetti and meatballs.

398. Fresh meatballs or frozen?

399. Frozen.

400. Oh, come on.

401. Everything is frozen?

402. Look at that now, inside, how rubbery it

403. looks even before tasting it.

404. Man, look at that, how dry that is.

405. Dry, disgusting, frozen meatballs.

406. Uh oh.

407. Meatballs are frozen, rubbery, and dry.

408. - He's right. - OK.

409. Every product we use in here is frozen.

410. When I first started here, we cut up a leg of veal,

411. and I'm still waiting to use it.

412. And here is your pizza.

413. For a margherita pizza, it's very greasy.

414. Yeah, I got oil sticks in here.

415. He doesn't like the pizza either.

416. It's too greasy.

417. That's just full of grease.

418. Laurie, the pizza's grease is anything, but what concerns me

419. is that John's behind the bar.

420. All this food is coming out,

421. and I want him to taste what he's sending me,

422. because I'm a little bit miffed as to why

423. I'm here if no one's caring.

424. - OK. - Please?

425. Sure.

426. Wow.

427. He said the pizza is greasy and that you

428. should be tasting everything before it gets sent out to him.

429. I've had enough.

430. Oh, boy.

431. Oh, my god.

432. Enough.

433. I had enough.

434. I've had enough.

435. I've had enough.

436. After being disappointed by bland frozen

437. food and greasy pizza at Brooklyn's Mama Maria's, chef

438. Ramsay heads to the kitchen looking for an explanation.

439. I don't want to talk to this guy when he comes in here.

440. Come on, everybody, outside.

441. Introduce me to— who's who?

442. This is Joe.

443. Joe.

444. - This is Oscar.

445. Hi. How are yourself?

446. I'm coming through. - Valentino.

447. - Hello, sir. - Valentino, how are you?

448. Good to meet you.

449. Likewise, good to see you too.

450. I don't know where to start.

451. I've just had one of the most disgusting

452. lunches I've ever had.

453. I stopped a dessert tray full of moldy dessert.

454. And the tortellini grainy and bland— and the potato

455. was just dreadful.

456. The meatballs— frozen, dry, solid.

457. Yes, they're disgusting.

458. I don't eat them.

459. But you can't make meatballs every day.

460. You get 20 pounds of chopped meat.

461. You make the meatballs, then you freeze the rest.

462. Do you know how long it takes to make

463. five pounds of meatballs?

464. 10 minutes.

465. It's what we've done all our lifetime.

466. I haven't just started this yesterday.

467. The meatballs are always done —-

468. You could get away with it in 1967.

469. It's 2012, John.

470. Does anyone have standards here?

471. We're not in control of the menu.

472. Whose menu is this?

473. This is my menu.

474. I'm embarrassed to do some of the things that we do here.

475. Are you kidding me?

476. We make pasta fresh, and we freeze it.

477. Like, are you crazy?

478. But why are you doing it?

479. I don't have a choice.

480. Who's stopping you?

481. The menu— my menu.

482. Why don't you listen to this man?

483. He's spoken more sense in the last five minutes

484. than anybody has since I've been here.

485. Do you listen to your staff?

486. They're not paying my bills.

487. I'm the guy paying the bills.

488. Oh, because you make the pizza,

489. and so they can't have a voice.

490. You should be nowhere near this business.

491. I don't agree with you.

492. I think we should close the doors.

493. I don't think this man actually gives a ..

494. I didn't call you, because I wanted

495. to put the key to the door.

496. Look, if I need you to tell me put the key to the door,

497. I would have done that without you coming here.

498. It worked before.

499. Why can't it work now?

500. Well, you were running nostalgia.

501. It stood still.

502. And yet, outside these four walls,

503. the whole neighborhood has overtaken you.

504. You're in love with the memories, John.

505. I don't know what to say.

506. Thank you for your honesty.

507. I need a shower.

508. stink of plant juice.

509. I'm not going to close the doors just because he said so.

510. I don't agree with him.

511. 100% game on, all right?

512. Within a short time of his arrival,

513. chef Ramsay has discovered that the staff may actually

514. know more than the owner.

515. What are we supposed to do?

516. Because we didn't make these recipes.

517. And now he's eager to see how the team

518. functions in a dinner service.

519. Oh, my god.

520. Hello.

521. How are we doing? Welcome to Maria's.

522. Thank you.

523. Second course, tomato sauce.

524. Our boxes, pizza boxes,

525. What's going on down here?

526. Hello.

527. Business running as normal, John?

528. Yes, this is.

529. If I wasn't here, you'd be doing exactly the same?

530. Exactly the same, no difference.

531. Give me that portobello and clam.

532. I need that first.

533. So what John would normally do— just all

534. night and the pizzas out there?

535. Yeah.

536. I mean, he doesn't come in here.

537. He just stays out there all night?

538. He's afraid.

539. I think he's afraid of the kitchen.

540. - He's afraid of the kitchen? - I think so, sir.

541. But he owns the place.

542. I know.

543. It's crazy.

544. As John seems content to pound

545. away at the pizza oven—

546. Margherita sauce.

547. Margherita.

548. —the kitchen, led by Joe,

549. is pushing out food at a steady pace.

550. Pick it up.

551. - Here is your pasta. - Thank you.

552. That doesn't mean the fast arriving

553. food is pleasing the customers.

554. How is everything?

555. Um, the shells are, like, frozen.

556. OK.

557. It looks like it's freezer burned.

558. All I got was rosemary.

559. All I taste is rosemary.

560. I don't taste any of the sauce.

561. What is that?

562. A bone?

563. Joe, two seconds.

564. There's a bone in your rigatoni, and she's vegetarian.

565. In the tomato sauce, they put pork bones in it.

566. What the?

567. She's vegetarian.

568. That's how we do it every day.

569. John is responsible for the methods

570. that we used to produce the food.

571. Get me John, urgently.

572. He says if you don't like it, leave.

573. John, this is urgent now.

574. A lady had just found a pork bone in the rigatoni.

575. To give the sauce flavor, we always, always added sausage—

576. So you're serving pork bones in the sauce for vegetarian?

577. Oh,

578. That's how we prepared food for the last 40 years.

579. And I don't see that being a problem.

580. A pork sauce for vegetarian?

581. It's the way we've always done our business.

582. But you can't serve a vegetarian a pork sauce.

583. I don't know.

584. What the is going on here?

585. I don't know what— what—

586. I had enough.

587. Had enough.

588. I had enough.

589. Do you want me to order you a coffee?

590. Will that make it better?

591. Are you OK?

592. Because I can't hear you.

593. Are you waiting for the bathroom, honey?

594. No.

595. My friend got sick.

596. Is he vegetarian?

597. - No. - No.

598. What did he have?

599. The lobster tail.

600. Damn.

601. And the lobster, he said, tasted funny.

602. Damn.

603. John, come here for two seconds.

604. There's a gentleman being sick in the bathroom.

605. Yeah, he had lobster, and the mushroom, and then—

606. Would you like a medical assistance?

607. Would you like for me to call 911?

608. No, no, no.

609. Joe, pass me the lobster tail, please.

610. I need one lobster tail.

611. It's tough, right?

612. Well, the guy's throwing up.

613. He's in the bathroom, and he's sick.

614. Please show me exactly what you served that customer.

615. Yeah, please. Thank you.

616. You all right?

617. You OK?

618. Chef, your lobster's ready.

619. John come here.

620. Smell it.

621. Seriously. - Fishy.

622. - I can smell the ammonia. - Yeah, you smell that?

623. And that's what that man's just eaten.

624. That's ammonia.

625. That's what releases.

626. When a body starts to decompose, it's being pulled

627. apart and then decomposed.

628. That what makes it bad?

629. Joe, just clarify something for me.

630. We could possibly kill them.

631. Kill someone.

632. And whilst we're discussing this,

633. there's a man vomiting in the toilet now.

634. I can't believe this is happening right now.

635. It feels like knowing that you got somebody sick.

636. And it's the first time that you've got

637. your head out the.

638. But it's Johnny's responsibility no matter what,

639. because John buys all the product that we use.

640. Yeah, please.

641. Should we call an ambulance?

642. I don't know.

643. He does not look well.

644. Call an ambulance.

645. Hi, this is Sal's Pizzeria.

646. I need an ambulance.

647. A customer's not feeling well.

648. Your face is really flushed.

649. Oh, my god.

650. My worst fear is for anybody to get sick in my restaurant.

651. Where's a shot of something? I need a shot.

652. I need a shot of something.

653. I've got a guy vomiting.

654. I don't know. Give me something.

655. Give me it quick. - Whiskey?

656. Vodka, I want vodka.

657. If somebody came to your house, and you cooked them a dinner,

658. how would you feel if he started puking all over the place?

659. A guy had some lobster, and he has a reaction to it.

660. The gentleman's sitting down.

661. Oh, my god.

662. Did we just saw an ambulance come out?

663. - Yes, you did. - Oh, my god.

664. Oh, my god.

665. Need to kill the cameras.

666. Kill the cameras.

667. It's dinner service at Mama Maria's.

668. You all right?

669. You OK?

670. No.

671. One of the diners is feeling ill after eating

672. a questionable lobster.

673. Just smell it, seriously.

674. It's fishy.

675. And that's what that man's just eaten.

676. And the paramedics have just arrived on the scene.

677. A guy had some lobster, and he has a reaction to it.

678. The gentleman's sitting down.

679. It's terrible for anybody to get sick on anything

680. that you serve.

681. You— you, I want to stop everything.

682. Just close the down now.

683. OK, so whatever's been served has been served?

684. Shut it down.

685. I don't want to serve anything else.

686. Joe. - Shut it down.

687. Pork in vegetarian's and now this.

688. I've had it. To stop.

689. Everybody stop, OK?

690. Nothing else leaves this kitchen unless it's

691. gone in a garbage bag.

692. OK, so when I shut it down

693. do I just kick everybody out? - Just apologize.

694. No check. Deeply sorry.

695. And we have an issue that we have to deal with.

696. My apologies.

697. OK. We need to close.

698. Go to the tables.

699. Tell everybody they need to go.

700. No check, just go.

701. OK, close down.

702. So sorry, but we're going to close the restaurant down too.

703. - So should we not eat this? - Yes, don't eat it.

704. Yeah, don't eat it. - Don't eat this?

705. I'm starving.

706. We're shutting down. We are shutting down.

707. I'm sorry.

708. Am I going to get sick from any appetizer we eat?

709. Is that— is it that kind of thing?

710. No.

711. They're not going to serve anything else.

712. It's embarrassing to have paramedics walk

713. into your restaurant, and to have

714. to shut down your restaurant because of that.

715. Should we take his contact information

716. or any kind of information like that?

717. John, can I have a word—

718. Yeah.

719. —outside.

720. John, tonight was beyond a disaster.

721. I never expected this—

722. never in my wildest dreams.

723. It's sort of humiliation.

724. But it's not just bad food, John.

725. It's bad practices.

726. I mean, you're so detached from your business.

727. You don't look like an hour.

728. You don't sound like an owner.

729. You're like a member of staff back there.

730. You— you're right.

731. But why?

732. I don't know why.

733. I don't know why—

734. just because I think I've been beat up too much.

735. There's got to be some fight inside.

736. There's got to be some—

737. Listen, I am a fighter.

738. I've been a fighter my entire life.

739. I was thrown into this place, because they needed to— they

740. needed a donkey to run the place,

741. because they couldn't afford to hire people.

742. They sacrificed my education to throw me in here.

743. But you've given up.

744. Come on.

745. You're destroying yourself.

746. Listen.

747. I will help you, but you have to understand

748. you cannot be a member of staff pounding dough.

749. That's not right.

750. You shouldn't be doing that.

751. I do it, because I love my family,

752. and I want to provide for them the best way I know how.

753. But do you think they get enjoyment watching

754. you kill yourself in there?

755. John, come on.

756. You have to take a big, long step

757. back, and stop running this place

758. from a pizza oven.

759. I can't.

760. I'm— emotionally, I can't.

761. Why?

762. I need to take a break.

763. I want you out of here.

764. I want you to get some rest. - OK.

765. Well, as soon as I close these registers.

766. No. No, listen.

767. You're an owner.

768. Hey, I can see the pain.

769. I feel it.

770. Let me tell you I've got four kids on my own,

771. and I know how hard it is.

772. But I'm here for you.

773. And I want you to win.

774. Understand that?

775. Man to man, I'm telling you.

776. I want you to win, but you have got to listen.

777. OK?

778. We can do this, right?

779. I want to do it.

780. Good.

781. Not for me— for my kids.

782. Let's do it for them, OK?

783. See you in the morning.

784. Chef Ramsay may have pledged his help to John,

785. but he needs to get a handle on everything before he

786. can implement changes.

787. So early this morning, he does a little research.

788. What is this?

789. Bloody hell.

790. It's time to see how much frozen food there really is.

791. Oh, god.

792. Look at this.

793. Bloody hell.

794. Fettuccine.

795. Penne.

796. They said they had frozen food, but I certainly wasn't

797. aware that there was this much.

798. Oh, my god.

799. It just goes on.

800. It's endless.

801. How much pasta's in there?

802. Look at the colors.

803. It's frozen badly. No date.

804. No name.

805. Look at it.

806. Are you kidding me?

807. What is that?

808. The sausage is— I mean, honestly, look at this—

809. buckets of them.

810. What's that?

811. That's just out of two freezers, and look,

812. there's more freezers down there.

813. Oh, my god.

814. You are kidding me.

815. Chicken freezer burned.

816. Oh, man.

817. Look at this.

818. This must be five years old, this stuff.

819. It's ruined.

820. You can't cook that.

821. Oh, my god.

822. this is a joke.

823. Look at that.

824. Oh, come on.

825. Meatballs.

826. This is ridiculous.

827. They're frozen molded.

828. What's that?

829. Oh, god.

830. No dates.

831. No labels.

832. Another freezer.

833. Frozen vegetables.

834. Frozen pasta.

835. My god, I don't even know what it is.

836. An ice cream container— some are filled with pasta shells.

837. Look at this stuff.

838. Freezing tiramisu.

839. You are kidding me.

840. That's egg plant.

841. How many portions of food is there?

842. It's just endless.

843. Oh, my god.

844. Horrified by the amount of frozen food—

845. Wow.

846. —chef Ramsay is determined

847. to give John and his staff—

848. Unbelievable.

849. —a much needed wake up call.

850. - How are you today? - Good.

851. day yesterday.

852. Yeah.

853. I've just spoken to Charles.

854. The diner from last night, he got checked out this morning

855. at the hospital totally fine.

856. OK?

857. Big breath of fresh air there, let me you.

858. I was really nervous. - No, we all were.

859. We all were.

860. Today, we start fresh.

861. Fortunately, we are still a little frozen in the past.

862. Come with me. - Oh, boy.

863. Let's go.

864. Let me show you something.

865. Come in.

866. Wow.

867. What the is this?

868. It's our menu.

869. What do you think it is?

870. This is our store.

871. Joe, I've never ever encountered

872. anything like this in my entire cooking career ever—

873. never.

874. But if we had to not touch anything else in this kitchen

875. and cook what we've got, you'd be open for the next 12 months

876. and still not run out.

877. Wow.

878. Come on.

879. We have 40 stacks.

880. That's like 400 pounds of chicken.

881. Kentucky Fried Chicken probably doesn't

882. have that much chicken on hand.

883. Joe, did you have any idea that this is going on?

884. Yes.

885. It is— it's amazing when you look at it,

886. but I knew it was going on.

887. Look at the meatballs.

888. They fricking turned color.

889. Hey, don't throw it at me.

890. Come on, guys.

891. There's more, Joe. - I know.

892. There's more downstairs.

893. There's more.

894. It pains me.

895. You're right.

896. There is no— there's no way around this.

897. This is my fault. It's the sad truth, it is.

898. It lies with me.

899. This is my fault.

900. I let this get out of my grasp.

901. Past glory, we used to do 10 cases of chicken in two weeks.

902. I'm still buying like we were busy at that level,

903. and we're not.

904. The restaurant is struggling as it is,

905. but you're losing money twice as fast.

906. Is that true?

907. He's trying to change.

908. You'll say no?

909. Yes.

910. It is resistance to change, yes.

911. That's another of my big problems.

912. Like, I told you—

913. I mean, look at this.

914. How long do you think those have been special?

915. When's this from?

916. Listen.

917. I'm just asking.

918. How long is that been here?

919. Yeah.

920. Since my parents died.

921. I don't want to take it down.

922. I don't post the specials.

923. It's just something— a memory to me.

924. But that's the really important issue,

925. and you mustn't take this personally.

926. You're still treating this business

927. as if mom and dad are here.

928. We have to let go.

929. Throw it out.

930. It's holding me onto the bench. Throw it out.

931. No.

932. I'm not asking to throw that out.

933. Take it home. No, take it home.

934. No, John.

935. I don't want you to get upset, but you got to understand.

936. You got to leg go of the past.

937. OK?

938. Yep.

939. Guys, get the out of here.

940. John, let's go.

941. I'm prepared to help you, but I can just see the pressure.

942. I can feel— - No, it's not on me.

943. —the frustration.

944. I don't want to be here no more.

945. Not that I don't want to be here—

946. I don't want to be in this position no more.

947. It's just sad just being here every day

948. working seven days a week.

949. I don't know if I told you.

950. I wasn't educated.

951. My mom and dad threw me in here.

952. I would come home from school not to eat lunch—

953. to serve lunch.

954. How old?

955. I was a kid, eight, ten, and this

956. has been my life ever since.

957. It's just sad to sit here every day knowing

958. what we used to do and not be able to do

959. what I used to do anymore.

960. It's just you're holding onto the wrong things,

961. and I think, deep down inside, you're just running scared.

962. I don't want to be scared.

963. I sent my kids to camp.

964. They were so happy that you were coming.

965. My third child said to me, daddy,

966. Ramsay's going to fix everything,

967. and we can spend more time together.

968. Hey, you will, but you have got to let go of the past.

969. It's your turn now.

970. I am here to help.

971. Do you understand?

972. But there's one condition.

973. You step away from that pizza dough.

974. I want a commitment that you are—

975. I will. I will.

976. —not going to jump behind there— and the safety net.

977. That's going to be hard.

978. I just want a commitment from you that you're going

979. to get your head out the dough. - Yes.

980. Yes, I will. Yes.

981. You want to start making it, not pounding it.

982. All right.

983. Yeah.

984. Let's do it.

985. Let's do it.

986. Can you hear what's going out there?

987. I hear it.

988. That's for a reason.

989. I hope they're listening.

990. It's going to be extremely hard not to fall back

991. into your old habits, but I'm ready to, from today on,

992. change my ways, and move forward, and not

993. let that ever happen again.

994. Chef Ramsay clearly feels for this owner

995. and is now ready to reveal the first important change.

996. First of all, good morning.

997. - Good morning, sir. - Good morning.

998. Where are you?

999. We hear you, but I don't see you.

1000. Don't worry about that.

1001. We are relaunching Mama Maria's.

1002. Excited? - Very.

1003. Yay. - Good.

1004. Remove your blindfolds.

1005. Oh, my god.

1006. Wow.

1007. Oh, that's awning's gone.

1008. That's right.

1009. The awning has gone.

1010. Let me welcome you to the new sign, Mama Maria's.

1011. When I first arrived here, I saw a disgusting awning—

1012. letters cut out— just hideous.

1013. This now is your first statement.

1014. It says a lot— first impressions— let me tell you.

1015. - Oh, yeah. - I like it.

1016. It looks modern.

1017. I've made some minor changes inside.

1018. - Minor? - Trust me.

1019. When you walk through those doors,

1020. I think you're going yourself.

1021. Let's go in.

1022. Come in please.

1023. Oh, wow.

1024. Holy crap. Wow.

1025. Wow. - Oh, my god.

1026. This is totally— - Oh, my—

1027. —different.

1028. First of all, welcome to the new,

1029. bright, vibrant Mama Maria's.

1030. And my goodness, does it scream Brooklyn.

1031. Oh, wow— totally different.

1032. When I first came in here, it was

1033. resembling a restaurant that hadn't been touched in years.

1034. It was dark.

1035. It was grimy.

1036. And it had no life.

1037. We got stunning turquoise walls that

1038. gives that nice vibrant pop.

1039. The custom artwork done by a very talented artist

1040. painting the beautiful, historic Brooklyn

1041. Bridge above your fireplace.

1042. I like that.

1043. I think this is what Brooklyn wants and needs.

1044. We got rid of all the clutter that John

1045. was just holding onto.

1046. We have, on the wall, your parents

1047. in full blown stunning photographs, which is

1048. an amazing memory to hold onto.

1049. Oh, have a look at the paper. - That's your mom.

1050. Oh.

1051. You didn't see that.

1052. That's me serving the dog.

1053. I didn't notice the pictures.

1054. Never forget this day moving forward—

1055. a new beginning in the history of the stunning

1056. family-run Mama Maria's.

1057. Let me tell you.

1058. This is my family. This is me.

1059. It was here in front of my eyes. I didn't see it.

1060. It's amazing.

1061. It's changing from old to new without letting go of the past.

1062. The past is still here with us, and I got a new lease on life.

1063. Chef Ramsay's remodel of the restaurant

1064. is only part of his master plan.

1065. Come through please.

1066. The overhaul of the menu

1067. is the real key to turning this Brooklyn eatery around.

1068. First of all, just take a look at the vibrancy.

1069. - Looks great. - Fresh.

1070. Yeah, that's wanted too.

1071. That's what I need. - Right.

1072. Menu.

1073. Starting with a delicious bruschetta,

1074. it's done with a really nice chopped

1075. up mozzarella, so the marinated tomatoes,

1076. earthly, rustic, and charming.

1077. Brilliant and fresh.

1078. The mussels are just incredible—

1079. a great little appetizer to get the palate, the juices flowing.

1080. The specialities of the house, the pizzas.

1081. Margherita, stunning, simple, delicious.

1082. You hit on the head.

1083. Next to that, you've got the osso bucco.

1084. Served in its cooking juices over mashed potato, gremolata,

1085. and a really nice, rich demi-glace.

1086. I'm hungry.

1087. You're hungry.

1088. That's a great sign.

1089. Boss, John, what do you think?

1090. I'm excited. You're excited?

1091. - Yep. - Here's the scenario.

1092. We have some very, very influential

1093. journalists and bloggers.

1094. Can we get everybody on their game?

1095. Yes, chef.

1096. One more thing that needs a little sprucing up.

1097. Got this for you especially.

1098. A nice, beautiful shirt.

1099. After 40 years, I got to take my colors off?

1100. That's right.

1101. Because you're no longer a pizza boy.

1102. You are the owner.

1103. No

1104. If I catch your head inside that pizza oven,

1105. I'll put it in permanently.

1106. And as I look at you now, right over your shoulder,

1107. I see your father looking down. - Look at him.

1108. Look.

1109. That's right.

1110. And you are going to run this business

1111. just like they did when they brought you into this world.

1112. You got it.

1113. Coming up.

1114. Let's go!

1115. It's the most important night

1116. in 20 years for Mama Maria's.

1117. One mistake and we fall apart.

1118. Will John be able to lead his team

1119. to a successful relaunch?

1120. I ain't got time for this.

1121. Where is John?

1122. Or will he collapse under the pressure

1123. and take the restaurant with him?

1124. Son of a bitch.

1125. I am not letting you sink the dining room.

1126. It's relaunch night.

1127. We got some big hitters in tonight, yeah.

1128. And chef Ramsay is determined

1129. to let everyone know that Mama Maria's is the new cool place

1130. to dine in Brooklyn.

1131. First off, Eat in Brooklyn blogging website—

1132. dynamic.

1133. Blackboard Eats— blog.

1134. Great.

1135. We're going to impress him.

1136. Eat to Blog are also joining us,

1137. followed by the New York Observer— big one—

1138. absolutely big one.

1139. Getting nervous.

1140. And you have got a powerhouse full of critics.

1141. Look how smart you are. Wow.

1142. Turn around.

1143. Give us a spin.

1144. Amazing, amazing, amazing.

1145. Let's go.

1146. Welcome to Mama Maria's.

1147. This is our brand new menu.

1148. Welcome to Mama Maria's, our relaunch, and I'm

1149. very proud of what we're doing now.

1150. Can we have the Trebbiano?

1151. That two-top that's coming in?

1152. I just recognized them.

1153. "The New York Observer," the guy with the notepad.

1154. Oh, OK.

1155. He's the man to.

1156. Don't tell me who they are because I'll get nervous.

1157. No, I just told you.

1158. You need to know who they are. Let's go.

1159. You can do it.

1160. It's tough taking on this new role.

1161. You know, it's not my make up.

1162. I'll grab them Two?

1163. Yeah.

1164. I need to step away from that pizza counter

1165. and be more hands on to make sure everybody's

1166. doing their job and doing it correctly.

1167. Table four, New York Observer.

1168. Yes.

1169. OK?

1170. OK, listen up.

1171. First course.

1172. Minestrone and a Caesar.

1173. You got it.

1174. I need this risotto cavatelli, please.

1175. - 30 seconds in the window. - Good.

1176. While John may be in the unfamiliar role

1177. of leading his staff—

1178. How we're doing over here?

1179. Are the pizzas all done?

1180. There's another one coming.

1181. —Mama Maria is off to a good start—

1182. Pick up lasagna, gnocchi, spaghetti and meatballs.

1183. —and customers are thoroughly enjoying the food.

1184. The gnocchi's delicious.

1185. I think the sauce is spot on and delicious.

1186. But while Chef Joe continues to push dishes out

1187. in a timely manner—

1188. Mussels in the window— bruschetta in the window.

1189. Let's go.

1190. It was a typical southern Italian ..

1191. John seems to have forgotten

1192. that he is still needed in his new role as leader.

1193. I'm still hungry.

1194. Yeah, I'm really hungry, too.

1195. Table four in the window.

1196. Let's go.

1197. It's a blogger's table, guys.

1198. Let's go.

1199. Rapido.

1200. It's very frustrating when I see dishes not leaving the window.

1201. There's no time for mistakes.

1202. I ain't got time for this.

1203. Where is John?

1204. Let's go!

1205. Get me John.

1206. Let me get him. Are you serious right now?

1207. Son of a bitch.

1208. Is

1209. There is a guy walking around with a white jacket—

1210. blonde hair.

1211. Oh, for sake. John.

1212. Yes, sir.

1213. So you can't just favor two guys at the bar.

1214. You've got to be everywhere. - Right.

1215. Right. - In and out.

1216. We're in the middle of service.

1217. I'm not letting you sink the dining room.

1218. No. No.

1219. This place is full of some the most influential—

1220. influential bloggers. - I hear you.

1221. Step up period.

1222. End of story. - I tried.

1223. I tried.

1224. We have to encourage don't stop.

1225. You cannot stop.

1226. We're going to communicate with that team.

1227. We still got VIP tables out there.

1228. OK, the stuff is right over here.

1229. - I'll take it out to them. - OK.

1230. Beautiful. - Let's not drop our heads.

1231. Let's bounce back, OK? - Here you go, guys.

1232. Thank you.

1233. Oh, I'm so happy.

1234. Sorry about the service.

1235. We're trying our best.

1236. We're trying to keep up, and we're

1237. trying to do whatever we can.

1238. This is the first time, John was acting like the owner

1239. here tonight. You're doing great.

1240. - All right. - Keep it up.

1241. And that's exactly what Mama Maria needs.

1242. This looks awesome and smells awesome.

1243. Yum.

1244. This is delicious.

1245. Let me know when that margherita is ready please.

1246. I need that margherita.

1247. So guys, how did everything go?

1248. The spaghetti and meatballs were delicious.

1249. They were awesome— totally awesome.

1250. Absolutely spectacular.

1251. Thank you.

1252. Real good place.

1253. We'll definitely be coming here again.

1254. Great job. Well done.

1255. Thank you. Have a good night.

1256. Thank you. - Thank you.

1257. Bye.

1258. Thank you.

1259. Good night, guys.

1260. John, listen.

1261. You are one hard working honest guy.

1262. Thank you.

1263. I feel I was living in a shell.

1264. I'm coming out of that shell.

1265. That shell is broken.

1266. Good.

1267. And now I've got to be honest with you.

1268. You hit it, man.

1269. You hit it right on the head.

1270. Here's my memories. - Mom and dad are here.

1271. Yeah, they're here. They're still here.

1272. And so, they are looking down, and they, right now, are proud.

1273. You have got the door open.

1274. Grab it. Just go forward.

1275. Don't go backwards.

1276. No, I'm not going backwards.

1277. I refuse to go backwards. - Good.

1278. One thing I remember of my father was his leadership,

1279. and that's what I'm going to continue doing.

1280. Thank you so much.

1281. Take care of yourself.

1282. I know what I need to do.

1283. And there's more to come of Mama Maria's in the future.

1284. For the last 55 years, this restaurant

1285. has belonged to John's parents, and

1286. even after they sadly passed away,

1287. he remained a pizza maker.

1288. But tonight, he was an owner.

1289. This restaurant now belongs to John and John only,

1290. and I'm truly—

1291. and I mean truly rooting for this Brooklyn underdog.

1292. How much water can be put in one plant pot?

1293. God bless pizzas.

1294. After chef Ramsay left—

1295. Welcome to Mama Maria.

1296. —John has kept his promise of running his business

1297. away from the pizza counter.

1298. I need a bowl of grated cheese please—

1299. a bowl of grated cheese.

1300. Mama Maria's has already

1301. generated a ton of positive buzz from bloggers and websites.

1302. It's really good. Thank you.

1303. Our help from chef Ramsay— we've come a long way.

1304. And this 55-year-old restaurant is on its way

1305. back to being a fixture in Brooklyn once again.