Tonight on Kitchen Nightmares...
The problem here is the food sucks.
Chef Ramsay heads to the heart of America...
God bless middle America.
South Bend, Indiana...
That looks like it closed down 10 years ago.
And finds some unforgivable food...
It looks like a dog's dinner.
What is that?
In need of extraordinary help.
Good and gracious God, we ask that you bless this food.
Amen.
But Gordon's going to need more than a prayer
To turn this restaurant around.
It's an insult to fast food.
It just makes me want to cry.
Two of the owners are barely there.
Rick, you're not here.
You can't blame this on me.
Yeah, you're never here.
The third is running it into the ground.
What's wrong with the business? John.
I've lost the passion.
Oh, my God!
And an angry staff is caught in the middle.
You're killing this man over here,
saying that he's not good at anything.
Don't blame everything on him.
Can Gordon unite the owners and resurrect J Willy's?
I'm not gonna do anything.
Don't give up on us yet.
We're gonna end up homeless,
And it's all 'cause of J Willy's.
That's coming up on Kitchen Nightmares.
South Bend, Indiana--
a middle-class town
made famous by the University of Notre Dame.
Just a few miles down the road is J Willy's restaurant,
owned by husband and wife Rick and tricia
and their friend John William.
We're having a great day at-- day at J Willy's.
This is Richard speaking. How may I help you?
When we took this over, it was making great money.
Every year, consistently, this made great money.
Yo, yo, let's make money, man. Come on.
The day-to-day management of J Willy's is left to John,
As Rick and tricia live over three hours away,
where they own another restaurant.
Who knows what's gonna happen tonight?
We assumed that John
would be able to uphold the service standards
and the food quality that we have,
and it will continue to make money.
I can do it.
And John has run this into the ground.
John has just let things go.
I certainly got off-kilter.
He needs to step up.
He's got to be the spark. He's got to be the fire.
He can't just be back there, "uhhh.
Uhhh,"
thinking and contemplating what he's supposed to do.
He's got to do it.
It's really been tough.
Since we were struggling
And we weren't really bringing in the cash,
we don't have a chef in the kitchen.
I'm just here to serve what he wants me to serve
and get it out as fast as possible.
All right, got an order up.
You get a lot of complaints
about the quality of the food here.
It's not much fun working in a restaurant
when all you have to experiment with is canned beans
and enchilada sauce out of a jar.
The standards have declined so far
that I--i'm not even sure we can revive it.
I don't think we'll come back,
unless something's fixed.
Sales have just pretty much flatlined.
You know, this sucks. This is tough.
Now this place is so depressing.
It's hard to even talk about it
because it just makes me want to cry.
Now it's just slipped into complete failure.
Once it closes, all the money I put in,
everything, you know, my inheritance,
everything, it's gone.
If we don't make that $22,000 a week,
then we're cooked.
We've cashed in our 401s.
We have no savings, and there's nothing left.
So, I mean...
If this doesn't work, we will no longer be here.
We're gonna end up homeless,
and it's all 'cause of J Willy's.
But it's just, you know, that's it.
J Willy's bar and grille-- that's fine,
but as for that ghastly sign at the bottom,
whenever a sign's flashing, it means desperation.
And the outside building...
Well, that looks like it closed down 10 years ago.
Let's hope inside is much better.
My God.
Good afternoon.
Rick Sutton.
Rick, good to see you. Gordon.
David beninghoff. David. Nice to see you.
First of all, who put that ghastly sign up outside,
the one with the flashing lights?
I believe our owner, John.
Is John here? Yes, he is.
I can't wait to meet him.
I'm very embarrassed to have Gordon Ramsay come in here.
Uh, he's a world-renowned chef.
And we're not even close
to being up to a decent standard.
Chef Ramsay.
John William, owner. John, good to see you.
So you are J Willy? Yes, sir.
Excellent. Good. Take a seat.
Chef, this is, uh, my wife.
And first name? Sorry. Tricia.
Tricia, nice to see you. Nice to meet you.
So, tricia and Rick, owners.
And John is your partner.
I'm gonna have a good look at the menu,
and look forward to catching up
with all three of you.
I'm really nervous about what he might order,
because there's quite a few items on the menu.
And I know he's not gonna like the pictures in there.
Always nervous when there's menus with ghastly pictures.
Did you need a few more moments?
You know what? I'm gonna order the loaded potato pizza.
Yeah, let's go for the famous ribs.
I'll go for this pulled-pork cheese boat.
Not a problem. Thank you, my darling.
Thank you very much. Thank you so much.
Say a little prayer.
Okay, here's his order.
Is that Ramsay?
Yes, sir. Ooh.
I'm just hoping Gordon Ramsay isn't too hard on me
Because this type of food wasn't my idea.
This fryer is ready to go.
God, it's grim in here.
Sad and grim.
And the carpet-- that looks like
it's had 1,000 buffaloes walk all over it.
Holy.
I now have....
Loaded baked potato pizza. Lovely.
Thank you. Mm-hmm.
Holy mackerel.
That's the strangest pizza I've ever seen.
I'm gonna ask my beloved father to bless my food.
Gentlemen, can I ask a quick favor?
Yes. What's that?
Would you mind just blessing my food?
Oh. Oh, sure. Yeah, would you? Yeah.
If you'd be so kind. Absolutely.
Well, good and gracious God, we ask that you bless this food.
Bless chef Gordon as he is about to receive it,
that it may nourish him.
We ask this of Christ our Lord. Amen.
Thank you.
Fingers crossed.
My God.
Oh, my God.
What is all that in there?
That is a ranch sauce.
So they put a ranch dressing on the pizza?
Yes.
Almost like sort of wallpaper paste.
John, your pizza has bombed.
To be honest, I've tasted the pizza, and it tasted good.
I didn't see what he was talking about.
The ribs are gonna be right, huh?
What do you think?
Yep, perfect ribs.
Finally, the ribs.
Lovely. Thank you.
You're welcome.
I was hoping maybe, just maybe, he'd like the ribs.
Chef, you doing all right here?
Who's responsible for the sauce?
The chef's recipe or...
It's, uh, generic sauce.
It's a shame because it just destroys the flavor.
Yeah. I mean, you got cartilage there.
A mouthful of fat, grease on the outside.
That's not even trimmed.
Sad.
Uh, I agree. I'm very embarrassed.
A bit like the restaurant--
sad.
The fat.
All ribs have fat on them.
John doesn't get it.
He's ordering an inferior rib.
He's trying to cut corners.
I'm just so frustrated
that I feel like banging my head against the wall.
Steamboat sandwich with French fries.
Thank you, darling. Enjoy.
Thank you.
God, processed cheese that just--like glue.
Pulled-pork sandwich--
yeah, that's pulled straight out of the bin.
Sweet, tastes of nothing,
and absolutely ghastly.
Oh, dear.
They're having the pulled-pork sandwich.
Oh, uh, sorry. Excuse me.
Forgive me, father, but they have sinned,
and I, out of respect for you guys--
you're not gonna eat that, okay? okay.
I don't want to go straight to hell.
Oh, man.
Forgive me. They have sinned.
After saving the priests from an ungodly meal...
Dear, oh, dear.
Gordon's anxious
To meet the creative minds responsible for the food.
Jeff? Gordon.
Are you the chef?
How can we not have a chef?
The recipes don't really change.
Everything's prepared the same way.
You seem to sound proud of that.
The menu is designed to cut a lot of the labor out.
Cut a lot of labor out and serve?
I finally am glad that I have somebody who agrees with me
as far as the standards on the food.
John doesn't listen to me.
Hopefully he'll listen to Gordon.
I think of Midwest cuisine, you think of excitement
in terms of, you know, a lovely braised rib,
a fantastic sauce.
The sauce was synthetic.
We sell a lot of them.
Is that an excuse to serve ,
'cause you sell a lot of them?
Are you that lazy?
Or you sell them, so it, who cares?
Sorry, that attitude stinks.
Can we have a chat as owners somewhere?
Yeah. Together.
Right now. We're ready.
Ay-yi-yi.
Well, that went about as I expected.
Yeah.
Dissatisfied with the answers
Found in the kitchen,
Gordon takes the owners aside,
hoping to determine the root of the problem.
What's wrong with the business?
John.
John has to be the leader here.
He's not taking any ownership.
Passion. Exactly.
And there's none.
I try.
But without any money,
the passion is tough when you-- when you're going downhill.
How much are we in for if we had to close the door tomorrow?
$1.2 million.
So you're-- you're on your ass.
I'll lose the first and only house I've ever owned.
Yeah, we've never owned a house before.
Any children anywhere?
No. We can't have kids.
I'm too busy babysitting two restaurants. Tricia--
she deserves to have kids, too.
My wife would love to have a child.
She deserves it.
But we can't do it 'cause-- 'cause of J Willy's.
I mean, I just feel so bad because I keep--
she's such a beautiful woman.
I can't give her what-- what she--she deserves.
I--this wasn't how we planned our lives.
We are.
We're screwed.
Gordon is hoping tonight's dinner service
Will give him some more answers
as to why this restaurant is failing.
Hi. Hi, there.
Welcome to J Willy's. How you folks doing today?
Floodgates is open!
Potato skins, sure.
I'm thinking the fish sandwich.
Oh, got a 16-inch pizza.
What's that for? It's a special pizza.
So that's, uh...
Frozen dough.
Frozen dough, ranch dressing.
And then, uh, what are these? They're like fish food pellets.
What are they? Yeah. Pre-frozen sausage.
That's the saddest excuse
I've ever seen for a pizza in my life.
There's no doubt I've take some--i've cut some corners.
Some of the items are frozen,
and that's just from a cost point of view.
What's that there?
Uh, cooked chicken.
I mean, it's like cat food in here.
Well, it'll get fully cooked.
It's really hard when you're trying to...
Stay open.
And what's in here?
Some baked potatoes.
You don't clean them before they go in?
They're supposed to.
My God. That's dirt.
Everything's reheat?
God bless middle America.
The quality of the food is just not there.
I wouldn't feed it to my dog.
It's embarrassing. It really is.
Buy it, defrost it, fry it, send it.
You can't call yourself a restaurant.
No wonder no one's coming back.
J Willy's is doing bad
Because John is not upholding the standards.
Order up.
Okay, thank you.
The things that I see in this restaurant,
It's like he-- he accepts it all
and rolls-- rolled over and died.
It's awful.
So you sent your fish back.
Yes, I did.
What is that?
Fish sandwich?
Is it frozen?
Holy mackerel.
Okay.
What have we got here?
Oh, lordy.
What's wrong with that, darling?
She doesn't like it. It looks like a dog's dinner.
What is that? Oh, my God.
That is a shock.
Uh, I'm absolutely devastated.
I mean, they're cutting corners, but all the wrong places.
And John's clueless.
Nobody's responsible for the kitchen,
but, overall, it's an insult to fast food.
It's a disgrace.
Son of a...
Why are the ribs back? She said it was--
these were too mushy. these were too cold.
What, it's food coming back?
I-i-i don't know what to say.
Food just put in the process line.
More food coming back that's been sent out.
I mean, it's almost like you guys
have just, you know, given up.
I'm standing here with my jaw on the floor.
This was definitely humiliating, eye-opening, embarrassing.
Gordon Ramsay's appearance at the restaurant
May have brought in some extra customers.
But unfortunately, the food has scared many of them away.
J Willy's is doing bad because John's killing off the business.
That's the bottom line.
After a miserable dinner service,
Gordon decides that he needs to meet
with not only the owners,
but with the entire staff.
We have some serious issues back there.
I wanted you all together to get an idea of how you felt.
And how does it make you feel when you serve that food?
Embarrassing.
I'm amazed you girls put up with it.
It's getting harder and harder every day,
'cause the paychecks keep getting slimmer and slimmer.
And our sales are dropping like a rock
because of John's inability to make anything happen.
Rick, you're not here.
You're killing this man over here,
saying that he's not good at anything.
I wouldn't be here if this restaurant wasn't dying.
So you don't-- you can't blame this on me.
I'm not blaming it all on you! There's stuff everywhere!
I'm saying, "don't blame everything on him."
yeah, you're never here.
I cannot come down here and run this restaurant.
We live 3 1/2 hours away.
John has to do it. It has to come from John.
The point--
the point is you're just not helping the business,
and you're blaming John for it, and it's wrong!
He's here. Yeah, he's here every day.
And so what else have I done to ruin our business?
You know, this is our business, too.
I have mouths at home to feed.
Nail me to the cross.
Rick's ridiculous.
I really just want to punch Rick sometimes.
To be honest, this whole issue
is not what the problem is with this restaurant.
The problem here,
whether we all like it or not,
is the food sucks.
And it's not fresh.
And even frozen food is handled badly.
All three of you should be ashamed
to stand there and allow it to go on.
Is it time to get somebody else in to run it?
I mean, you know... Have you had enough?
I believe it's still in me. I just need somebody to help.
I need somebody to cover my back.
All three of you need to wake up
and wake up quickly.
Coming up...
We're sat here wondering why
The business is on its ass.
Gordon uncovers more problems at J Willy's...
I wanted to hide my face
So people wouldn't associate me with such crap.
Forcing the owners to take drastic action.
Unbelievable.
Just let it all go.
Is the staff in this restaurant so clueless...
And I don't know what to do.
That it may be impossible for Gordon Ramsay
to turn them around?
I'm not gonna do anything until you're ready to commit.
Don't give up on us yet.
Up next on Kitchen Nightmares.
After the staff meeting,
Gordon takes a peek into the kitchen storage...
What's that there?
And uncovers the unthinkable.
This is basic hygiene.
It doesn't get drained of the blood.
It's sat out in a warm kitchen.
It's not even cold.
John, there's more.
When chef Gordon pulled those potato skins out,
I knew that he had found something
that I wasn't gonna like.
So hold on a minute.
That's gonna be deep-fried tomorrow.
Yeah.
That's really gonna make it taste better, right?
The potatoes are rotten.
And we're sat here wondering why
the business is on its ass.
Starts at the top, John.
It's called responsibility.
No wonder you've given up.
I've been in denial, and I've lowered my standards,
and it takes somebody like a Gordon Ramsay
to come in and wake you up.
Rotten tomatoes.
Soft, rotten. Ugh.
Rotten peppers.
The whole box is rotten.
I wanted to crawl under the table
And hide my face
so people wouldn't associate me with such crap.
If you seriously are honest
with yourself that you are starting again,
then we start again.
We--we'll do whatever it takes.
I'd be ashamed.
Chef, I'm embarrassed.
Where do I start with the problems in this restaurant?
The staff have got their issues, but that's irrelevant.
The big problem is the food.
And the quicker they all get up to speed
with how the food is,
the better, 'cause that was embarrassing.
John? Yeah?
You gonna pitch all this crap?
Chef Ramsay gave us a challenge
To see if we're committed to changing this food
and making it better.
It's a fresh start for every-- everybody, everything.
Right.
Oh, my God, are they taking all the food out?
They are.
I guess we start new tomorrow. I guess so.
I was absolutely ecstatic that he was throwing everything away.
It has been a huge complaint for a long time.
I have to now. It could.
Let it go. Just let it all go.
It's a huge amount of food that we threw away this evening.
John, does it feel good?
Yeah?
We're starting fresh,
And that means getting rid of everything.
When I finally saw John throwing out food
That he would've otherwise saved,
I knew that we were
taking the first step to making progress.
Okay, this is a fresh start to a fresh day.
After the owners took it upon themselves
To clean out their restaurant,
this morning, Gordon is looking for the owners
to bare their souls.
Good morning.
How are we? Good.
Tough day yesterday. Real tough.
Cleaned out the restaurant, cleaned out the kitchen.
And I'd like to think we started a new chapter.
I want to chat with you.
I want to clean out our conscience.
Rick, you're first, yeah?
Let's go.
Okay...
Clearing your conscience is about
reaching inside
and being honest with yourself.
Yeah.
Biggest fear is what?
My fate
rests in John's hands.
And that really scares me.
I want this to work, desperately.
I just haven't got much to work with.
That's what I'm struggling with.
Most people who face the pressure
and the problems I have give up.
And I'm-- I refuse to do that.
I will fight till the last dog dies.
I like your determination,
you know that. I appreciate it, chef.
Who do you turn to?
I don't have, uh, anybody to voice my concerns, so...
It's been tough.
Everything's pretty much inside.
That's not easy.
Truthfully,
I'm just struggling to find an internal flame.
Have you got it?
Because I don't feel it.
With support,
I've got it inside me.
It's there.
What I saw last night was huge.
What I, uh, felt last night was huge.
And what I feel this morning,
I'm ready to go.
I look forward to seeing you later.
Trish, what do you want to see happen?
I want John to be J Willy.
If I could take half of Rick and put it in John's body,
I think things would be a little bit better.
He'd have more enthusiasm, a little bit more passion.
He's just lacking in that.
Thank you, tricia.
Thanks.
Having gained a deeper understanding
Of the owners' situation,
Gordon is ready to start implementing his plan,
beginning in the place that needs it the most...
Come through.
The kitchen.
Look at all that ingredients. What's that for?
Barbeque sauce.
Excellent. Barbeque sauce.
First off, garlic, ketchup,
chili, ground coffee, soy sauce,
spice.
First off, olive oil, yeah?
Quite generous on the olive oil.
That gives the shine on the sauce.
Yeah?
It was an absolutely amazing experience
working with Gordon Ramsay.
Nice and caramelized.
I'm just in utter awe of his ability
As a chef.
And then our molasses.
That gives it its barbeque flavor.
Okay?Thatis a barbeque sauce.
We're serving fresh,
homemade barbeque sauce tonight.
Yeah, heh heh.
In addition to the new
J Willy's signature barbeque sauce,
Gordon introduces a new hamburger special
that J Willy's has never offered before,
one made with fresh ingredients.
Homemade burger.
Served with a homemade barbeque sauce
and fresh-cut, homemade fries.
Are we ready? Yes.
As customers arrive,
The kitchen prepares the new burger specials.
We're serving real food tonight.
And everyone seems eager
To make tonight's service a success.
We have a homemade, fresh ground beef burger.
I am gonna have a burger.
Yeah, thank you. Got your ticket.
Go ahead and, uh, get those fries comin'.
Four orders.
You can do it.
Tonight, prove it. Yes?
It's a half hour into dinner service...
Kobes are done.
And the new burger specials
Are flying out of the kitchen.
It's incredible in there,
the difference in the energy is extraordinary.
And it just goes to prove one single thing on the menu,
freshly made, homemade, sells like hotcakes.
Order!
Oh, boy.
Walking in, we got three chef's specials going,
well done.
The tickets kept coming in,
And I got real nervous.
I could barely read the tickets.
Two medium Wells and a medium.
Make that two well dones, five med Wells.
I thought you said two mediums.
Uh, make it a medium well.
Dude, I need you to tell me what I have, dude.
'cause now I'm all ed.
I was frustrated. I wanted to throw stuff.
I wasn't okay with the organization at all.
, dude, I don't know what's going on.
I'm ing up burgers.
This burger you gave me,
is that the well done?
No, it was-- you said med well.
It's done, dude.
All right, got an order up. Thank you.
Despite the confusion over the burgers...
Burger, burger, burger.
They are rushed out to the dining room.
Our new burger.
And the customers are in for an unpleasant surprise.
It's pink.
Is it pink? Yeah.
It's overcooked.
Sorry.
That's all right.
How many burgers have you got left?
Uh, one more burger.
Okay, Christian,
86 burger, yes?
Yes, sir. Stop.
Yes? Make sure everybody knows, David, please.
Yes, sir.
Chris, I need two recooks.
Medium, on the fly.
Yeah, we can't make that burger.
We're completely out of ground beef.
Oh, my gosh!
All of a sudden, burgers came back
undercooked, overcooked,
and it's bad.
We don't have it, we don't have it,
we don't have it.
Got a burger coming back.
Supposed to be well done.
No, we're out.
Unbelievable.
I got another recook.
This is ridiculous.
We're all kind of freaking out.
You know, it was scary.
Burger sitting over here.
Burgers here, burgers here.
And I don't know what to do.
It's an hour into dinner service,
And the kitchen has run out of its special,
fresh hamburgers.
We're completely out of ground beef.
And the burgers that have been served
Are unfortunately coming back.
We got a burger coming back.
With no one taking control of the situation...
I don't know what to do.
The kitchen,
And the restaurant, for that matter,
is in a state of confusion.
Dave!
Could you grab us a package of the old burgers?
We gotta do what we gotta do.
Get 'em out the burger. They're gonna love it anyway,
sourdough or bun. hell, yeah.
I was just gonna keep trying to put the food out.
Going back to regular fries!
So we started making the burgers
on sourdough bread
and using the frozen French fries
and the frozen ground beef.
Dude, this-- I can't serve this, can I?
I don't care! Serve me one!
In an effort to make good on the orders...
Order up, Ashley.
A desperate kitchen staff
Lowers its standards
and starts delivering cheap substitutes.
Sorry about that.
Your bun? That is all we have as a bun.
And the disappointment combined with the long wait
Is too much for one customer to bear.
Would you like something else?
So you ran out of the fries?
You ran out of the buns? This is bad.
I know. The whole dinner is gone.
Uh, it came-- the burger came back.
Take it off her check.
She's in tears?
Yeah!
What is that pile of?
What's that for?
What?
Whoa. Hey, guys.
Why is that burger on there, the processed one?
John, why didn't they 86 it when I said take it off?
We were dropping the standards just a bit,
but we were under tremendous pressure.
'cause there were so many people out there
that were anxious to try the food.
If we haven't got the right buns,
we shouldn't be serving it.
What's the point in lowering the standards
just to keep it on?
It doesn't make sense.
How do you run out of potatoes?
What did they say?
It's disgusting. Un-edible.
Unbelievable.
Such a shame, 'cause they got off to a really good start.
But then standards started dropping.
But John and Rick accepted the standards dropping,
and they just were happy to send slop.
So a real sad ending to the evening,
because, right now, we're back to square one.
You should be ashamed.
I busted my s all day today
Thinking of a way of marketing this place
and putting it back on the map.
It.
Can't do it.
Don't give up on us yet.
I'm not gonna do anything...
Until I'm 100% convinced
that you guys are ready to turn the corner.
I seriously want to help!
I need to know
from each and every one of you
that you're ready to commit.
I commit.
I'm ready to commit.
Okay, see you in the morning.
I'm here early.
Taking the staff's word of commitment to heart,
Gordon moves forward with his plan
to transform J Willy's from a dreary restaurant
into a more inviting establishment.
Right, guys. Good morning.
How are we feeling?
Can you see?
Yes? Awesome.
Doesn't that look great?
J Willy's barbeque house. Awesome.
Yes, this is gonna be
the best barbeque house in town.
Rick, what's the matter?
Thank you.
But if we don't execute tonight...
This is for.
You're absolutely right.
But we are gonna play restaurant tonight.
And...Let's get positive.
Come on. I am positive!
Okay, good.
You own part of this place,
so I'm gonna be looking towards you
to drive this forward, yes?
Yes.
Last night,
the minute you guys left, yeah,
my team arrived
and been working all night.
Let's go.
Ah, yeah.
Now...Come through.
First of all, new wallpaper, new paint.
Oh, look at this!
Vinyl tablecloths, yes?
It's a new place!
Oh, my gosh.
Oh, it's beautiful.
I'm so overwhelmed.
There are no words.
Look at it. And this!
Oh, my gosh.
It's just amazing.
The brick facade to give you some warmth.
Oh, my gosh!
It's classy.
Yeah!
It was overwhelming for me.
Just, everything blew me away.
Warm, vibrant, and exciting!
Carpet, first time in 15 years.
Hey, John, keep it clean.
Yes?
Keep it clean!
And I'm not sticking to the floor.
Look.
John, what do you think?
It's awesome.
Yes? It's awesome!
Rick, what do you think?
That we don't deserve this.
What do you mean "don't deserve it"?
Huh? Smack him, eh?
I just want to yell and scream,
whoo-hoo!
I mean, this is too much.
This is too much.
Every top barbeque house in the country
Has the best sauce.
And that is what we're gonna be famous for.
Look over there.
On-site, homemade.
A exclusive.
And when people come to visit South Bend,
J Willy's, the best barbeque house in town,
it's warm.
I wanna stay in this restaurant.
I wanna spend money in here.
Today is a moving experience.
Both in my career as well as my attitude.
And I just--there's so much potential.
I just can't wait.
With the staff energized
By the changes to the restaurant,
Gordon now unveils his plan for the food.
75 items
on the last menu.
No wonder we couldn't control it.
Hey, it's now in half.
It's fresh.
And it's gonna be quick.
From the homemade burger, the blt,
to the pulled pork.
Potato skins-- no processed cheese anywhere.
Barbeque chicken.
Uh, spicy chicken wings and legs.
Yes?
At this point, I think with the momentum
that Chef Ramsay has given us,
we are now committed to making this thing right.
I'm gonna do something I've never, ever done before.
I've had my concerns
about the lack of strength in the kitchen.
They need
a proper training and a proper insight
to what's going on.
I'm bringing in not one, not two,
but four chefs.
Scott, Kim, Michael, please, and April.
This kind of tuition has never been done before.
It's awesome.
Chef Ramsay let us know that he was there for us.
We will be ready for the relaunch
Of J Willy's tonight.
Let's go.
Coming up...
Tonight is comeback night.
Can J Willy's maintain their new standards
During their most important dinner service ever?
We can't drop standards!
We're staring to slip! Come on!
Or will they crack under the pressure?
This is cold. This can't go out.
Please concentrate!
It's late and I'm tired and I'm hungry.
This whole thing is just gonna fall apart.
Tonight's too important to it up!
That's next on Kitchen Nightmares.
J Willy's has come a long way
In a matter of days.
Oh, my gosh!
It's awesome.
And it's only minutes from relaunch.
Tonight is comeback night, yes?
Yes.
So, John,
you've got to motivate the place,
push it through its highs and lows.
Don't just do it for chef,
Do it for the gipper.
Yes, the gipper.
Okay, guys, let's go.
We're open in four minutes, yeah?
Let's go, yes?
On sides, your coleslaw looks a little different now.
Chef Ramsay is hoping his chefs will give
J Willy's kitchen staff the support it needs
take make this critical night a success.
Welcome to J Willy's.
Welcome to the new J Willy's.
I'll take the baby back ribs.
Yo, yo, kitchen!
Get us rolling, let's go. We're gonna be busy.
I'm so apprehensive,
because if we aren't perfect,
then none of this matters.
I might as well just get in my car and drive home.
Let's rock this out.
Dave, you gotta expedite.
You and Steve have got to stay connected.
Come on! Let's go.
Let's get this out.
In all my being, I didn't want to fail.
I was a little scared.
Order up, 122.
These guys have never been held to these standards.
There.
Barbequed chicken.
This is wonderful.
Good sauce, different.
It is good.
It's all really good.
Sean, that's it, that's it.
Yeah?
Got off to a good start.
Um, vibrant in there.
Food looking good.
But it's not how you start, it's how you finish.
How are we?
There's no bacon on the potato skins.
That was...Not cool.
Damn, damn, damn.
Yep. Yeah.
Let me check on your entrees.
Nice to see you all, yes?
Entrees'll be fabulous.
Okay, guys...
The skins they just sent,
was it--there was no bacon in there.
Please concentrate!
Yes, sir.
Creamed corn and mac. It's all good.
No, Dave.
We do not send a dirty plate!
We're getting busy, guys.
We're starting to slip! Come on!
Yes, sir.
My gosh, Chef Ramsay busted me out.
You know, there's a little barbeque sauce on the corner.
Get it out. This is our ticker time.
I'm so hungry now.
We all are very hungry.
It's the heart of dinner service,
And in spite of the pressure to get dishes out...
Unbelievable.
Gordon insists on the staff maintaining its standards.
You've kept the customers waiting.
We can't keep them waiting for fat.
Yes, gotcha.
What table? 114.
There you go.
All right, 114, Steve,
they've been waiting for an hour.
114, that's our next check.
Our next...
Come on, come on, come on.
Let's push it, Steve. Come on, man.
Oh.
IT'S 8:30. It is, it is.
John...Standards, come on. Yeah?
The kitchen really got behind.
Part of it was my fault
because it was overwhelming for me.
Come on, guys.
Can we stop pushing food
round the outside of the plate?
They can't eat off the rim of a plate, guys!
Yes, chef.
We can't drop standards!
Last ing time, okay?
Once, fine. Twice, slightly pissed.
Three times, take your jacket off and off, yeah?
Yes, chef! Thank you.
Now clean it, John.
As the backup in the kitchen continues to grow,
John turns his attention to the potential disaster
in the front of the house.
I've had one drink...
And I need food.
She--trust me. She needs food.
Yeah, trust me.
I, uh, I gotta talk to these people.
Do ya? And, uh...
Okay. I don't know your name, though.
My name--J Willy.
J--oh!
That's me.
J-- John.
John, I need some food. Okay.
I'm gonna do my best.
How long is the wait?
It's running pretty late right now.
Let's worry about our standards
and not worry about that, all right?
John, can we look?
Why you gonna run out with that, John?
Look at--look at-- look, look, look.
You taste that, then,
and think of a nice pile of.
Yes, customers are waiting. But are we happy with that?
You are happy with that. No, I'm not.
Come on, then. Standards.
There's so much stress.
The guests were starting
to get pretty tired of waiting.
I did drop my standard, and I shouldn't have.
We'll get free desserts, right?
Uh, I'll do my best to take care of you.
I had so many people who were upset.
And it was embarrassing.
I was just--i was ready to pack up and leave
at that point.
We cook--i'm sorry, we cook it fresh to order.
Come on, guys!
Tonight's too important to it up, come on!
I'll be back.
Come on, please, Dave.
No one's getting a handle of this.
And I'm getting ing irritated here.
The thought of crumbling
Existed most of the night.
But the feeling was I hope it just doesn't explode.
John.
In' a.
I'm leaving.
Two hours.
No food.
And it's just.
I just want you to know...
This isn't gonna last.
Come on, guys!
Tonight, J Willy's kitchen
Is being tested like it's never been tested before.
We do not send a dirty plate.
And although the standards are better than ever...
This has been way too long.
I'll be back.
One customer is fed up with the wait.
Two hours.
No food. Right.
And it's just.
I just want you to know
this isn't gonna last.
In' a.
I'm leaving.
John, Rick.
Two seconds, both of you a minute.
Another in' table walked out,
And we can't just all walk around
with our heads on the floor. well...
Come on then, dig deep and...
Tables are backed up.
It's not the end of the world, is it?
We still gotta keep it going. Right.
But if you give up, they give up.
Play till the very end.
That means the last ticket.
I'm with you. I'm trying to...
Come on, guys.
Let's go.
We got it.
We're gonna have to push the staff,
or else this whole thing is just gonna fall apart.
Wait a minute. This is cold--this can't go out.
That's all we needed..
You sound just like Gordon.
Come on.
Okay. No problem.
With the owner stepping up,
The staff gets inspired,
which, in turn, motivates manager Dave.
Come on, let's-- let's calm down and focus.
We need some ribs and chicken, baby!
Serve it!
No, I do feel that I'm gonna have to
step up and take charge and get 'er done.
Six combos, I need now!
All right, let's do it.
Full rack, tri-tip entree,
and a half rack.
Let's worry about our standards.
You hear that?
Make sure the ribs are hot.
Oh, they're hot!
They're beautiful!
Service, please.
Come on, you, muffin. Let's go!
The kitchen has shifted into high gear,
And with one final push,
the highly anticipated food is on its way to the customers.
Mine's very good. Tender, spicy.
Thank you. I appreciate it.
I got an order up.
Now we're movin'.
Now we're doin' good. Let's keep it up.
Food's coming out right.
I believe that John has realized
He will not accept sub-standard quality.
Good deal. All right.
We got a dining room full of locusts, man.
They've eaten everything except for the plate.
Every plate I've picked up has been clean.
Awesome.
All we gotta do is get these tickets out, man.
Just this last batch.
Oh, I think I see the light
at the end of the tunnel, folks.
Now I don't feel like I'm a man
On an island alone.
I know that Rick and Trish
will be here to support me.
That food looked beautiful.
And we will be back.
Will the locals' seal of approval,
J Willy's is on the road to recovery.
It was so nice to see clean plates coming back, yes?
Yes.
And we were so busy.
165 customers.
I know there was some complaints,
and it was difficult, but...
The kitchen got slammed.
And, more importantly, we held on to our standards.
And now that we know how to do it, don't stop.
We won't. They won't let me.
No, no.
Chef Ramsay has taught us
have a passion and make it perfect
and don't accept any excuses.
John, if they offer you
a little less expensive cheese, and it--
no!
No, no. No processed cheese.
No, no, no, no, no. No.
The staff has changed.
John has changed.
I'm overwhelmed with sincere thanks
for Chef Ramsay.
Without him, we would not be here now.
What was the feedback from the dining room?
They loved it.
The word is starting to spread.
Definitely.
You've got your foot on the ladder.
It's really important
that you continue climbing.
You all did a bloody good job,
and I'm really proud of you.
Kitchen boys!
Yeah!
Bye, guys.
Bye, ladies. Thank you very much.
John has a new...
Bounce in his step.
He has to know that we're on his side,
and that we're all in this together,
and it's just not him taking on the world.
It's all of us.
And get ready, 'cause we're gonna take on the world.
Wow.
It's been very interesting for me
to come to the heart of America and meet
a really nice bunch of hardworking, humble individuals.
But when I first arrived, I honestly thought
the restaurant was beyond salvation.
But tonight showed a little glimmer of hope.
So long may it continue and... Heaven help them.
In the days that followed,
Everyone at J Willy's
worked hard to keep their standards up.
Let's do it! Start hollering out.
Thank you, gentlemen.
And continued to perfect their barbeque sauce.
A sauce that earned J Willy's first prize
at the college football hall of fame ribs cook-off.
With a taste of success,
the staff at J Willy's
continues to work together
to make its new barbeque house a success.