"(Male announcer) Tonight on Kitchen Nightmares..." "Gordon Ramsay heads to West Babylon, New York, to help two former waitresses..." "I can't do this tonight." "Cry about what we've become here." "(Announcer) Who bought a restaurant called Classic American, hoping to achieve the Classic American dream." "Fighting a losing battle every day." "(Announcer) But with almost a million dollars in debt..." "I feel like I've failed." "What are we gonna do?" "(Announcer) These owners are in for the fight of their life." "Stop going in my [bleep] ear and let me work." "(Announcer) The kitchen has no stock." "We don't have mozzarella sticks." "Teresa, no burgers." "(Announcer) The dining room has no supplies." "We have no cups, no menus." "(Announcer) And everyone..." "I got a [bleep] comment about every [bleep] thing." "(Announcer) Is on edge." "(Gordon) Guys." "Guys." "Back off." "(Announcer) In one of the most emotional Kitchen Nightmares ever..." "We lost our way." "[Sobs]" "(Announcer) chef Ramsay pulls out all the stops." "You cannot give up." "(Announcer) But he may be forced to do the unthinkable." "Close your business." "Close it." "Close it." "[Aggressive surf music]" "♪ Kitchen Nightmares 4x02 ♪ Classic American Original Air Date on January 28, 2011" "(Announcer) West Babylon, New York-- a close-knit suburban community located on Long Island, an hour away from Manhattan." "Best friends Colleen and Naomi started as waitresses at a small, quaint restaurant called Classic American." "Then, in the year 2000, they seized an opportunity and bought the business from their boss." "(Naomi) What do you think?" "We ready to open in a couple of minutes?" "Classic American was like my home." "I grew up here." "I figured I knew everything there was to know about the restaurant." "Why not?" "Everything's good." "Oh, thank you." "(Colleen) We knew the business." "We knew the customers." "And it was good." "This would be the beginning of something great." "(Announcer) Soon after buying the restaurant," "Colleen made her son Kevin the head chef..." "Order." "(Announcer) And her boyfriend, Dom, the unofficial manager." "Give me two bags of raw shrimp." "Thanks." "I started hooking up with Colleen, and then she said, "well, I could use you at the restaurant."" "So she's using me." "[Laughing]" "I enjoy my job at Classic American, 'cause it's like a big family here." "Big hugs, Kev." "Whoa." "(Colleen) It was good in the beginning." "First couple years, the place was packed." "You didn't have to worry or wonder if you were gonna be busy." "Now you get maybe six or eight tables." "It's scary." "You have to ask yourself," ""what did I do wrong?"" "So tonight sucked." "Every night sucks here." "We run out of things on the menu all the time." "We don't have clam strips today." "Hey, Dominick, why do we run out of everything?" "How the [bleep] do I know?" "We haven't been busy." "Dom's job here at the restaurant is just to order the food, which is never done." "It's always kind of a problem." "Dom, I need some of that chicken." "I hear you." "You don't have to tell me eight times." "You need cucumbers on the line?" "Yeah, no." "Yes." "Yes, no, which one is it?" "Hello?" "Nobody leads this restaurant." "You got a bunch of followers and no leaders." "The problem with Colleen and Naomi is they're too easygoing." "There's more of a friendly relationship with the workers rather than business." "It's ridiculous." "Do you want to go out there or no?" "I don't know." "(Dom) You know, the waitresses, they're texting in between working." "Somebody's got to put these kids in order." "How many tables were there?" "Not that many." "Nobody's making money." "We're not successful." "And you're wondering how you're gonna keep the doors open." "Home sweet home." "I was forced to move back home." "I live with my parents because I couldn't afford... (Naomi) I cry on the way to work, on the way home from work." "I cry about what we've become here." "And what are we gonna do?" "It gets to a point where you just dread being here." "It kills me." "It really kills me." "We can't afford to close." "We need someone to show us the way." "Hey." "How are you, sir?" "Dominick." "I'm the manager." "How you doing?" "Very well, thank you." "Come on in." "Have a seat." "My goodness." "Is this here the dining room?" "It's so small." "This is it." "Obviously not much to manage today." "The place is empty." "Is it normally this quiet?" "On Saturdays, yeah." "Damn, damn, damn." "Now, you look like you've been in this business for 30 years." "I haven't." "Six years." "What were you doing before that?" "Laying brick." "It's you and who?" "Colleen and Naomi." "Okay." "They own the place." "Okay, brilliant, yeah." "I'm actually going out with Colleen." "You're going out with Colleen?" "Yeah." "Oh, so you're going out with one of the owners." "Yeah." "Ex-customer?" "Yeah." "Right." "Can I meet the two owners?" "Dying to meet them." "Okay." "Be right out." "Bring them out, please." "You know, this is Colleen and Naomi's last resort." "If Ramsay can't get this place on the map, we might as well just lock the [bleep] doors." "chef Gordon Ramsay, Colleen and Naomi." "Nice to meet you." "Colleen, nice to see you." "Naomi, nice to meet you, darling." "Help me get up to speed with Classic American." "How did you get to own it, first off?" "We worked for the previous owner." "You were working as a chef before?" "No, actually, I was a waitress." "Waitress." "Wow." "And what were you doing?" "I was a waitress." "Incredible." "And you bought it from the owner?" "(Colleen) Yes." "How much?" "$240,000." "Really?" "Yeah." "A quarter million dollars for this?" "Just the business, not the property." "(Gordon) How much was that?" "That was $440,000." "Wow." "So in for 700 grand so far." "How long have you owned the restaurant for?" "Ten years." "Straight up, what do you think is the worst thing that's wrong with the restaurant?" "Problem number one would be what?" "What would you say?" "I don't think it's just one thing." "I think it's a lot of things." "Give me one." "Are you always normally this quiet?" "No, I'm not." "(Colleen) chef Ramsay makes me nervous, because I'm out of answers." "Maybe my eyes are closed, you know." "Maybe the head's so stuffed that it's just not seeing what it needs to see." "Okay, well, listen," "I'm gonna have a good look at the menu, taste the food, and catch up later." "Okay." ""Enter as strangers, leave as friends."" "Enter as a stranger, start dating the owner." "Here you go, sir." "Oh." "Hello." "How are you today?" "Very well, thank you." "How are you?" "I'm Ashleigh." "Ashleigh." "I'll be your server." "Okay, great." "I am freaking out." "Having chef Ramsay come is very nerve-racking." "I could throw up right now." "So how long have you been here?" "Ten years." "Ten years, my God-- everyone's been here for a substantial length of time." "Mm-hmm." "Why have you been so loyal?" "It's like a little family." "Great." "Wow." "Huge menu." "About 100 options there." "(Ashleigh) Yes." "Help me out." "You could do fried calamari." "It's very good." "Is it?" "Mm-hmm." "It's one of my favorites." "Let's go for the fried calamari over Caesar salad." "Okay." "And then I'd be stupid not to have the bomb." "The bomb burger?" "The bomb burger." "Does it look like that?" "(Ashleigh) Uh, yeah." "(Gordon) [bleep]." "You know what?" "I'm a big lover of mac and cheese." "Do you have any mac and cheese?" "Yes." "Yeah, lovely." "And that'll be all?" "Brilliant." "You got it." "Thank you." "Thank you." "Order." "You want to throw in a macaroni and cheese?" "1:50." "[bleep]." "Order up, Ash." "That's my mac and cheese." "Thank you." "That was very fast for mac and cheese, my God." "Probably pre-made." "Eh." "It's a mouthful of goo." "That's gross." "Uh-oh." "That doesn't even taste like it's been cooked here." "We don't make the mac and cheese here." "No, it tastes like it." "Is that a big hit?" "No." "The kids eat it." "[bleep]." "Really?" "Yeah, that's dreadful." "Poor kids, damn." "You'd think a menu with Classic American, you'd at least make your mac and cheese, right?" "Yeah." "Not good." "Like, I'm really sorry." "I don't really know what to say, because I'm not the one making the food--I'm just serving it." "What'd he say?" "That it was gross." "Let's just hope he doesn't run to the bathroom." "Here you go." "Oh." "Fried calamari over Caesar salad." "Let's taste." "[Gulps]" "Not good." "The calamari's really soft and sort of chewy." "Touch that." "Oh." "Uh, I don't think I really should be touching food." "Yeah, don't worry." "It won't bite." "Yeah, it's soft." "Is this fresh, or is this frozen?" "'Cause it tastes frozen." "Yeah, it is frozen." "Dreadful." "Anyway, definitely not for me." "I'm finished." "Thank you." "Okay, you're welcome." "How we making out, Ash?" "He said they were gross-- soft and chewy." "What's soft and chewy?" "The calamari." "It's not crispy." "[bleep]." "It wasn't a great feeling when he was sending back all the food, you know-- it's what we do every day." "We think we do a pretty good job." "He wants the bomb next." "Everyone loves the bomb." "It's one of our house specialties." "He's definitely going to enjoy that one." "[Sighs] The bomb burger." "Wow." "Nice toasted bun." "Where's the burger?" "Ah, there she is." "There is a burger." "[bleep]." "How is everything?" "Bad." "Does anyone season food in there?" "Season it?" "Yeah, salt, pepper." "We don't add anything to it." "Wow." "The meat's really chewy." "That is chewy as hell." "Will you ask the chef to taste that?" "Okay." "Damn." "Thank you." "You're welcome." "[bleep]." "He said the burger's really chewy." "He said try it." "He's right." "(Colleen) It's chewy?" "(Kevin) Uh-huh." "That's weird." "It says on the menu, "the way mom used to make."" "That has to be the biggest insult to every mother in America." "It's embarrassing, because those are our most popular dishes." "I was really shocked." "This is the kitchen here, right?" "Can I meet the chefs?" "Introduce me to the team." "This is Kevin, my son." "How are you doing?" "How are you?" "Nice to meet you." "Likewise." "So you're the head chef?" "Yes." "And this is your..." "Son." "Son." "Right." "On a scale of one to ten, rate the food at the restaurant." "Between six and seven." "Six and seven." "I would have said six." "Half it and take two away, and you're on my mark." "Personally, I like the food." "But what the [bleep] Do I know?" "I was a bricklayer." "You know what I'm saying?" "Let me tell you straight and honest, okay?" "The menu's hideous in a dining room that's miserable." "The food's depressing, and you've got the audacity to call it Classic American." "You can't even get a burger right." "We eat the burgers here." "Most nights, we're proud of our food." "Seriously?" "Yes." "Yeah." "I'm really sorry, but your food [bleep]." "I'm a little pissed off right now." "I couldn't believe that he said that." "You're a young chef standing by your mother." "Totally respect that." "But you're pulling it down." "And to think that your rating was seven out of ten, mate, you've got issues." "And as owners with a huge responsibility on your shoulders, it's like you guys have disappeared." "You're screwed." "It's not that I don't try." "[Voice breaking] And I have not given up." "God." "I tried to do my best." "It's not that I don't care, and it's not that we're trying to take shortcuts." "But we've cut back on the payroll, and she's got a baby, and she can't be here, and he's got a baby, and I can't afford to pay him." "And I need to pay my people." "(Gordon) It's not a comfortable position to be in." "I can see that, but it doesn't stop you from trying." "So who's on the payroll here?" "We don't-- we're not on payroll." "(Gordon) So not even the owners are getting paid?" "We haven't gotten paid in over a year." "I moved back home." "I live with my parents." "[bleep]." "I knew you had your problems, but I didn't think it was gonna be that bad." "The situation is actually worse than I thought it would be." "I'm gonna go for a walk." "I got to do some thinking." "And I'll see you tonight." "God, it's depressing." "(Colleen) His first impression was that we didn't care." "It made me realize we lost our way." "Come on." "Come here." "Come here." "Come on." "Come on." "He's right, you know?" "Don't feel bad." "(Dom) It's gotten to the point where this ain't no joke." "There's a lot at stake." "You need a fresh set of eyes." "That's what you need." "(Colleen) I'm scared." "Don't worry about it." "It'll be all right." "Maybe we're a lost cause." "[Cries]" "(Announcer) After a lunch in which Classic American dishes were more disgusting than classic, chef Ramsay looks to observe how the restaurant functions in a dinner service." "I'll have the ultimate combo." "Soup--can I get the bisque?" "Can I do sweet-potato fries?" "Sure." "Great." "Thank you." "What's your strength?" "I'm not really sure." "You're not really sure?" "I'm good with the customers." "Right." "And yet you work behind the scenes." "You don't in front of the customers?" "Wow." "And what are you doing?" "Are you running around?" "I'm the busboy." "You're the busboy." "I do whatever they tell me." "When Chef Ramsay said hi to me," "I just looked up at him, 'cause I was scared." "His hair's a little crazy." "Even though it looks soft, it's like, whoosh." "Order." "So when the tickets come on, where's your tab go?" "They were originally coming out here." "This broke, so now they handwrite the tickets." "(Gordon) Really?" "We used to have a computer, but somebody spilled coffee all over the register and burnt it out." "We can't afford to fix it." "Ashleigh, what does this say?" "(Ashleigh) Oh, focaccia bread." "Reuben, cut me two focaccias." "Ashleigh, write the tickets better." "So do the tickets take a lot longer to handwrite?" "Well, if the writing is sloppy, it tends to get a little confusing." "(Gordon) How long's the printer been down?" "Six months maybe." "Oh, [bleep]." "Order up." "(Announcer) Even with handwritten tickets..." "Order up." "Order up." "Order up." "(Announcer) Naomi and Kevin manage to push out the food at a rapid pace." "Thank you." "You're welcome." "God, the food goes out fast, doesn't it?" "Pretty fast." "[bleep]." "Excuse me." "This isn't hot." "(Announcer) Unfortunately, the fast food is not exactly pleasing to many of the customers." "Just kind of soggy." "(Gordon) What's wrong with that?" "They said the shrimp is no good." "[Sighs]" "What is that?" "Garlic white wine." "Wow." "No good?" "[bleep]." "The food coming back used to upset me more." "But it's happened so often that I just become numb to it." "Does anyone ever get bothered about all the food coming back?" "Yes." "Yes." "It just seems like everybody's taking it in stride." "(Man) I got you." "(Colleen) I'm lost for words." "I don't know what to do." "You all right?" "I'm taking it all in." "Likewise." "I know the feeling." "Colleen, hey, listen, I know you're stressed and you got a lot on your mind, but take the reins and run your restaurant." "What can I get for you?" "Can I have spicy tender appetizer and burger?" "There is no more." "Teresa, no burgers." "(Teresa) We're out?" "Yeah." "You're gonna have to 86 'em." "How can we 86 a burger?" "Sorry." "(Announcer) With owner Colleen completely shutting down..." "I really need that chicken for table ten." "You're gonna have to wait." "(Announcer) A leaderless Classic American runs into problems..." "Table three wants meatloaf." "(Colleen) We don't have meatloaf." "(Announcer) After problems..." "We have no cup, Jay." "I need these cleaned immediately." "After problems... [bleep] Crazy." "Leaving the customers unhappy..." "And the staff frustrated." "(Teresa) Table 56 has been waiting 18 minutes for something to drink, 'cause I have no cup." "I know Colleen's really stressed out, but how could you run a business when you don't have enough silverware, you don't have enough cups?" "Can I have a cup?" "Uh..." "There's none in there?" "There's none in there." "You know, who'd want to come to a restaurant like that that's so unorganized?" "I wouldn't." "I need soup cups." "Can you please wash 'em out?" "There's nothing here." "There's two in there right now." "Oh, my God." "(Teresa) No soup cups-- like, how do they expect me to serve?" "Hey, guys." "Guys, guys." "(Dom) Wash dishes." "I can't." "I got to-- I can't do this tonight." "I really can't." "I can't." "You got to go [bleep] Work the line, because I'm [bleep] losing my mind." "(Announcer) It's two hours into dinner service, the kitchen has run out of everything, from burgers..." "Teresa, no burgers." "(Teresa) We're out?" "(Announcer) To coffee." "Is the coffee even good?" "No, don't do that." "(Announcer) And owner Colleen has just run out of patience." "I can't." "I got to-- I can't do this tonight." "I really can't." "[Sighs]" "(Gordon) What's the matter?" "I've been fighting a losing battle every day." "You're standing there, and you're not getting anywhere." "And I just keep going and going and going." "You understand?" "I do understand." "I feel disappointed in myself." "I feel like I've failed." "And I've tried hard, you know." "At the end of the day..." "It's your family, and it's your friends." "And it's not malicious, and nobody's out to hurt, but I'm frustrated, and I'm angry." "And I'm scared." "I'm really, really scared." "I feel I have more to lose than anybody else in this place." "Excuse me." "Here's the honest truth." "The standards have been accepted too low, and in amongst those standards, there's a big friendship." "Friendship's got [bleep] All to do with it, 'cause there's no friends when that place is closed." "They get their next job six months, three months, two weeks, they move on." "And you'll spend the rest of your life reducing that [bleep] Debt." "You're right." "You're absolutely right." "I need this to stay." "Yeah, but it's not gonna get better if you keep on doing the same thing." "Right, and I know that." "You cannot give up." "Okay?" "Well..." "Let's go and finish the service, yeah?" "I've never met a woman with as much on their shoulders as Colleen." "And today's been a bad day, but tomorrow I'm gonna have to pick her up and get those standards up there, and she's got to set an example." "(Announcer) In his first 24 hours," "Chef Ramsay realized that there are many problems at Classic American." "And high on his priority list is fixing the lack of communication." "There's an exercise this morning that I need everybody to be open to." "I want to find out the problems you have with each other." "I want each of you to write down two questions, two issues." "Ask anything you want." "Open house." "(Colleen) This is not gonna go well." "People don't like to be confronted here." "Thank you." "Okay." "So on the questions," "Colleen, why do you always seem frustrated at the waitresses?" "Here we go." "Because..." "When these customers walk through that door, you're the first person that they see." "And they're not getting service." "If they're sitting there and you're texting on your phone, they're paying customers." "They deserve your attention, not the person on the phone." "(Gordon) Ashleigh, Teresa, you don't text in the middle of service when customers are waiting for stuff, though, do you?" "You text when customers are..." "Wow." "Naomi, why are you such a pushover?" "Because they're my family." "They're not, though." "Your family's at home, and this is your business." "And the difference is night and day." "You have to change." "I have to work on that." "Okay, Dom." "Why are we always running out of product?" "I don't close every night." "At the end of the day, everything's got to be stocked and written down what we need." "But..." "I'm right." "You're not right." "Before you make an order, okay, you need to go through everything." "Who's not feeding you the right information?" "(Kevin) He doesn't wait for information." "He just goes." "I just got through telling you." "I don't close every [bleep] Night." "(Naomi) You're always so defensive." "I'm not [bleep] Defensive." "We're not picking on you." "You always got an answer." "You always got to come back." "That's right." "I got a [bleep] comment about every [bleep] Thing, because when I open my [bleep] Mouth, everybody shrugs their shoulders and gets a [bleep] attitude." "Because you do it all the time." "That's why." "(Dom) 'Cause I see something wrong-- 'cause I see something wrong, and I say something, and she don't want to be bothered--she's spent." "You'd rather walk around pissed off." "This is the problem." "Is it you?" "Is it him?" "Is it me?" "Is it her?" "Who?" "Who?" "It's everybody." "No!" "Yeah, it is everybody!" "It don't take one person to run a business." "You need a [bleep] Team." "You need a team, but you need a chief." "Exactly." "And there ain't no [bleep] Chief here." "Who signs the [bleep] Checks-- you or us?" "Okay." "You're right." "(Dom) I was ready to kill somebody." "You don't disrespect me like that." "They gotta find a way to [bleep] Piss me off." "This ain't no [bleep] Joke." "These girls are in debt up to their heads." "They gotta get it." "We gotta stay in business." "Colleen, you and Naomi, you need to lead this business." "You need to be tough, Naomi, 'cause if you're not, everybody just does as they please." "Text, serve..." "[bleep] Off home." "And if you cannot lead, you shouldn't have bought this place." "You shouldn't have done it." "(Announcer) Coming up..." "Table three has been waiting a really long time." "Back off." "(Announcer) Colleen can't take the heat." "Stop going in my [bleep] Ear and let me work!" "(Announcer) Chef Ramsay can't take the food." "Look at that!" "(Announcer) And the owners are faced with a frightening reality." "If we are gonna continue serving that, close your business." "Close it!" "(Announcer) That's next on Kitchen Nightmares." "(Announcer) After an explosive..." "It's everybody!" "No!" "Yeah, it is everybody." "(Announcer) Yet revealing..." "You need to lead this business." "(Announcer) Staff meeting..." "Naomi?" "Come here." "I need two seconds." "(Announcer) Chef Ramsay knows he needs to help Colleen and Naomi take charge of their restaurant." "I need to make sure this service starts to go the way we want it." "(Announcer) And he begins by assigning the owners new roles for tonight's dinner service." "I want you expediting, and I want you working with these two." "Boss in the kitchen, and boss in the front of the house." "(Naomi) I'm very anxious right now." "It was a long time ago since I spent a night in the dining room." "You've got to show me quickly why you own this place and what it means to you." "We're opening in half an hour, yeah?" "Let's go." "Time for some changes, yes?" "(Announcer) Chef Ramsay has also added a special to tonight's menu... (Gordon) Fun sliders." "(Announcer) Giving a modern spin to an American classic." "(Gordon) They're sliders." "Fun and bite-size, yeah?" "That is 1,000 miles away from the bomb burger." "Yeah?" "Have a taste." "Ooh, this is good." "How's that?" "Perfect." "Try and chew it before you swallow it, yes?" "Easy." "(Naomi) We have a slider special, which I think they're gonna sell out the door." "I'm starting to feel like this restaurant is taking a turn for the better." "You're not texting." "Sorry." "No, no, no, no, no." "No." "What happened?" "Who were you texting-- salon, hair, nails?" "I got busted text-messaging." "Run your business tonight, and let's make one big step in the right direction, okay?" "Let's go." "How are you?" "How many?" "Four." "Thank you you're welcome." "(Naomi) How are you?" "Two?" "(Announcer) As word of Chef Ramsay's visit spreads..." "You can have a seat here." "I'll bring your menus right over." "(Announcer) This once-quiet restaurant is even busier than the previous night." "Your menus will be right out." "(Naomi) I have no more menus." "(Ashleigh) I really need menus for 15." "You want to take an order on 11, so I can grab those menus?" "You have to wait for a menu?" "It's crazy." "Why is it so slow?" "We only have 13 menus." "We only have how many?" "13." "You can have a seat right here." "Your menus will be right out." "50 seats and 13 menus." "Trust us to run out on number 13, right?" "I just wanted to hide." "There was people standing at the door, and I was under so much pressure." "We didn't have enough money to print any more menus, so we had what we had." "13 menus?" "You're kidding me." "I told you it was hell here." "Yeah, you're right." "It's not far from hell." "(Gordon) Naomi, sit those customers down." "We ran out of menus." "I'd much rather they sit down with no menu than stand in the corridor staring at you." "As soon as they're finished with those menus, pass them on to the next table." "Mm-hmm." "Thank you." "Here you go." "(Announcer) After a slow start caused by the menu shortage..." "The trio as your meal?" "(Announcer) Orders are finally taken... (Colleen) I'm gonna need two more sliders." "(Announcer) Many of which include" "Chef Ramsay's sliders..." "Which gets the evening off on a positive note." "They said it was excellent." "I need sliders, mac and cheese, and crab cake app." "Okay." "Uh, Colleen?" "Yes." "Open up now, start getting the team together." "(Colleen) I'm trying." "I'm trying." "(Announcer) An hour into dinner service, the kitchen, led by Colleen and her son Kevin, are having a hard time keeping up with the orders." "Table eight needs their food." "They've been waiting so long." "(Kevin) She knows everyone's waiting a long time, okay?" "(Colleen) What do you want me to do?" "(Announcer) And the mood in the dining room is starting to turn." "I can't even remember what I ordered." "If they don't make it now, then we'll leave." "The food will be out shortly." "(Colleen) Everything just snowballed." "I was doing the best that I could do." "Table three has been waiting a really long time." "They're not waiting any longer than these people." "These tables came in at 6:00." "Back off, please." "You don't understand." "I understand." "Stop going in my [bleep] Ear and let me work!" "All right, all right, all right." "(Announcer) As Colleen begins to get a grip of the kitchen once again..." "That's for table one." "(Announcer) Food slowly makes its way out to the diners." "Blehh!" "(Announcer) But the customers are far from impressed." "Oh, my God, how gross is that?" "Send it back, it's terrible." "Send it back." "They didn't like the calamari." "It was crazy." "He would like less sauce." "Definitely just want to bury your head in the sand." "How much sauce do you normally put on that, Kevin?" "About that much sauce, usually." "Take a bite of that." "Tell me that's normal." "Yeah, it's normal." "Kevin, if that's normal, you're abnormal." "Two Caesar salads going to table 12." "(Announcer) The mother-and-son team are finally pushing food out... (Gordon) Where's that going?" "Hold on, stop, stop." "(Announcer) But a disturbing dish catches Chef Ramsay's watchful eye." "Look at that!" "Just touch it!" "Plate of vegetables." "Fingers going right through it!" "This is the sorry state that we've got ourselves into." "If we are gonna continue serving that, close your [bleep] Business!" "Close it!" "I wouldn't serve that to my dog!" "Stop!" "I wouldn't serve that to my dog!" "(Announcer) Tonight's dinner service has been plagued with problems." "Stop going in my [bleep] ear and let me work!" "Send it back." "It's terrible." "They didn't like the calamari." "(Announcer) But this last broccoli dish..." "Look at that!" "(Announcer) Was the last straw for Chef Ramsay." "If we are gonna continue serving that, close your [bleep] Business!" "Close it!" "Teresa, could you deliver that for me?" "(Gordon) Stop!" "Stop!" "Don't send anything else." "Close it!" "We're closed." "Yous are closed?" "Can I get a waitress over here, please?" "I'm sorry, we're not serving anymore." "No." "Tonight was terrible." "Tonight was a [bleep] Nightmare." "I don't want to face Chef Ramsay." "I don't want to face my employees." "I just wanted everybody to go away, because it was horrendous." "(Gordon) Okay..." "Tonight was ridiculous!" "Instead of making progress, we went backwards more than I ever thought was possible." "Tonight I realized there's no way this restaurant can survive..." "Unless there's a dramatic change." "Tomorrow, from the minute you arrive, there's gonna be change after change after change." "Get ready for that." "Agreed?" "Agreed." "Yes." "Good night." "(Colleen) We just lost our way." "I'm hoping Chef Ramsay can put us back on track." "(Announcer) Chef Ramsay knows that this dysfunctional restaurant needs a massive overhaul in order for it to have any chance of surviving." "So he goes to work immediately after the staff leaves, working through the night to give Classic American a dramatic makeover." "(Gordon) Right, good morning." "(All) Good morning." "Ready to see your new restaurant?" "I'm ready to see the new restaurant." "Yes." "Okay, guys, let's go." "The new classic America." "Oh, my..." "[All gasp] (Gordon) Come in, come in." "Here's your floor." "Holy..." "[Laughter]" "(Gordon) Come in, come in." "Colleen, come in." "I love it." "(Gordon) Gone is the old country-style whatever it was, and welcome to the new Classic American." "[Applause]" "Beautiful, light, vibrant!" "(Naomi) Oh, my God." "(Gordon) What do you think, Colleen?" "Talk to me, darling!" "Are you happy?" "I'm jumping out of my skin." "This is more than I could imagine." "And it's nice to have tears of happiness instead of sadness." "(Gordon) Naomi, what do you think?" "It looks great." "(Gordon) We got rid of those horrendous tablecloths." "Now we've got some vibe, some lightness, some excitement." "This place is gonna be so busy, you won't have time to start handwriting tickets." "You're going to need to work with something that is from the 21st century." "And in here, this is a state-of-the-art p.O.S. System installed by halo." "Wow." "Absolutely amazing." "Stock control, price check." "Dom, those arguments about," ""I'm going for bread." "I'm going for potatoes." "We need chicken." "We need ground beef"-- it's all in there." "Good." "(Dom) Gordon got us this awesome computer." "It does everything but wipe your [bleep]." "I'm afraid to touch it." "I'm gonna break it." "Okay, there's one more thing." "I need you to come outside." "Here, there we are." "Look at that beautiful color." "Nice." "Wow." "Beautiful." "(Gordon) What do you think of the sign?" "I love it." "It looks great." "It stands out." "It stands out." "(Gordon) The first time i drove past it, i couldn't even see the logo." "We can see it now!" "Now it stands out." "What do you think?" "I love it." "I love this color." "I love it." "Good." "Mwah!" "Thank you." "(Naomi) I haven't felt this good in a long time." "This is the fresh start we've been waiting for." "There's more good news." "We have a menu for every frickin' table." "Yes?" "Now, gone are the 75 items." "Yeah?" "Seriously." "I love this menu." "It's nice, clear." "(Naomi) We needed menus really bad." "Oh, I'm really happy." "(Gordon) Now, let's have a look at the new menu." "Classic American dishes done brilliantly well." "Got a wedge salad-- vibrant." "Slider trio-- turkey, beef, and chicken." "Delicious, yeah?" "(Naomi) Yes, Chef." "(Gordon) Turkey, Swiss club." "Wonderful." "The Classic American burger-- your burger, the bomb, has gone." "Yeah?" "Hallelujah!" "Dom!" "[Laughter]" "I swear to God, who needs a pig in the backyard when you got [bleep] Dom?" "Big, deep breath." "Oh, great." "Dom, save some for the staff, will you, please, yeah?" "Uh-huh." "Okay, dig in." "Oh, jeez." "[Laughter]" "(John) It's so good." "Mmm..." "Kev, if you can cook all this like this, we won't have a problem." "The menu is cool." "It's exciting." "There's a lot of new stuff." "It looked awesome, and it tasted even better." "Did you eat this?" "Gotta try the corndog here." "I love the new menu." "It was easy." "It was fresh." "It was a lot of new things." "I'm excited." "(Dom) I just bit my tongue." "Oh, man!" "I just want to say something, and I'm gonna cry." "[Chuckles] I can't help it." "The last couple days have been really rough." "But we pulled through it." "And I know..." "You have to lead by example." "And somewhere along the line, we got lost." "And I just want to apologize for that and say, you know," "I've gotten a lot of clarity over the last couple days..." "And in order for anything to work, you have to have a leader, and you have to have a strong leader, because if you don't have leadership, you can't function." "We're family, but we have a business to run, okay?" "So those two things need to be separated." "And we will, I promise you, show you the leadership that you need to do your job." "Okay?" "(Colleen) It's the moment I've been waiting for." "It's a new beginning for myself as an owner of a business, first and foremost." "I love everybody here." "So from this point on, we're good." "Okay?" "(Dom) I never saw Colleen with that kind of energy." "It was a shock." "And it's a good feeling." "I think I'm done yelling at people." "It's time for me to change too." "Chef Ramsay handed this to us, and it's on our shoulders to make this work." "We're both gonna take the reins, and we're gonna be in control of this place again." "(Announcer) Coming up, they may have all the right tools..." "Diners are standing in the dining room waiting to be sat down." "(Announcer) But will the staff..." "Are you smoking cigarettes out there?" "(Announcer) And the owners..." "All over the place." "Come on, guys!" "(Announcer) Make this relaunch a success..." "You got to keep on driving." "(Announcer) Or a disappointing disaster?" "Get out there!" "(Announcer) That's next on Kitchen Nightmares." "(Announcer) Inspired by the new decor and the upgraded menu, the staff is eager to get ready for the grand reopening." "Let's have some fun tonight, guys." "You know it." "(Announcer) The owners have decided to split responsibilities, with Naomi taking control of the kitchen..." "You want to cut your rolls?" "I guess I could cut some, right?" "(Announcer) And Colleen leading the staff in the dining room." "You need something, take a deep breath, ask for help." "Okay?" "Everybody good?" "Yay!" "All right, let's go." "Opening in five minutes, guys, yes?" "Kevin, you ready?" "Good man." "Ready." "(Gordon) I cannot wait for that first order to come through on that machine." "I need to smoke before we do this." "Yeah." "Tonight is a very big night, I feel." "And I'm a little nervous." "Dude, you got a lighter?" "Yeah." "Hey, guys, there's people at the front door." "There's nobody here to greet them." "Come on!" "Where are the girls?" "Oh, not now." "[bleep]." "Ladies!" "Where's--where's Ashleigh?" "Get out there!" "No." "Yes!" "Are you smoking cigarettes out there?" "Look at me." "No, stop." "Are you smoking cigarettes?" "We were." "We didn't." "Okay, well, let me tell you something." "Let me tell you something really important." "Diners are standing in the dining room waiting to be sat down." "Okay." "And look at the time." "We opened up five minutes ago." "Come on, guys!" "They didn't ask anybody if they could take a smoke break." "They know that service is about to begin." "They should have been ready." "(Announcer) With the restaurant quickly filling up..." "Your server will be over shortly." "(Announcer) The waitresses rush to redeem themselves." "Did we see any delicious appetizers we want?" "Can I get you something to drink to start?" "(Announcer) And Chef Ramsay looks to the owners to finally provide the much-needed leadership at Classic American." "Naomi, I need a leader." "Yeah." "Mm-hmm." "Cooking and talking at the same time is the hardest thing in the world to do." "When you get it right, it's harmony." "Yeah?" "I want to hear it tonight, okay?" "Colleen and I had always just blended in, but it's time to stand out now." "And it's on our shoulders to make this work." "Herbie, you're up--I need a mac and cheese bite and a corndog." "Kevin, you got a classic burger." "Two orders of wings all day." "Got the wings." "Yeah." "(Gordon) Excellent." "Nice." "Keep it going guys, yes?" "Yeah." "Yes!" "(Announcer) Naomi's newfound confidence has the kitchen humming..." "(Kevin) Let's get it going!" "Order up." "Ashleigh, table eight." "Thank you." "(Announcer) And orders are flying out of the kitchen." "Meanwhile..." "Welcome." "My name is Colleen." "I'm one of the owners." "(Announcer) Colleen has stepped up in her role as floor manager." "(Colleen) Table six is adding a shrimp appetizer." "Oh, the ladies-- my table." "Yes." "But their food is already in, so you have to let the kitchen know." "Okay." "It was really good to see Colleen actually step up and tell us what to do and be the leader." "Take the meatloaf out." "Pulled pork right away." "Let's go." "[Exhales sharply]" "Surprisingly, we got off to a good start" "I mean, a really good start, but based on the performance of this kitchen over the last ten years," "I'm not holding out..." "Not yet." "All right, Kevin, turkey burger with onion rings." "Just put it up." "Guys..." "Guys, look!" "[bleep]." "I'm not gonna send it with that [bleep] Underneath there." "You bust your ass like that to create fantastic food." "You don't serve it onto [bleep] Plates with crap underneath." "Look, all over the place." "Come on." "I cannot afford for you to take your eye off the ball now, please." "See that?" "I was nervous, and I was trying to get in the zone." "This is where all the mistakes start to happen." "You got to keep on driving, yeah?" "Yes." "Come on, keep it going." "We'll all pull together, and we'll all step up, and we'll get past it." "Just watch the bottom of the plates for me." "There's nowhere else to move but forward." "(Gordon) There you go." "Excellent." "Table nine." "(Announcer) After looking after a small hiccup, this kitchen, led by Naomi, is back in its groove..." "How is everything?" "Excellent." "Good?" "You like it?" "Good choice?" "(Announcer) And delivering high-quality dishes that are striking a chord with customers." "How do we like everything?" "Absolutely delicious." "I'm glad." "We'll come back for more, trust me." "All right." "Okay." "(Announcer) As dinner winds down and happy customers leave the restaurant..." "Thank you." "See you later." "Bye." "(Announcer) It is clear that these two owners, under the guidance of Chef Ramsay..." "Stay together, guys." "Stay together." "(Announcer) Have just made the greatest comeback in Kitchen Nightmares history." "(Naomi) How we doing, guys?" "Where are all the tickets?" "(Gordon) Yeah, we cleared the board." "Colleen, the place is full." "The board's clear." "Customers are happy." "Yeah?" "Come on, keep it going." "Behind everybody, all the way." "Watching the customers enjoying what they were eating, that's what you're here for." "That's why you bust your ass, you know?" "From this point on, it's a new beginning." "(Colleen) Good night." "Thank you very much." "Okay, let's be honest, this has been a very difficult turnaround, yeah?" "But you all pulled off a fantastic service." "Congratulations!" "Amazing!" "Thank you." "Colleen, how's it feel?" "It felt great." "I'm proud of each and every one of them." "(Gordon) Everybody worked hard." "Yeah." "And, Naomi, hearing your voice calling, commanding, assertive is really important, because it just puts that discipline across the line." "And more importantly, you're good at it." "Colleen, Naomi, this restaurant has every potential to really seriously become a huge success." "Do not start dropping your standard." "It means too much." "Okay." "Well done." "Well done." "Thanks, Chef." "Thank you." "Well done." "Well done." "Come here, you." "Well done." "Oh--ohh..." "Well done." "Mmm!" "I want to thank Chef Ramsay for giving us this opportunity to start all over again-- it's a dream come true." "You're on your way." "Good night." "(All) Good night." "There's only one word to describe what happened here tonight, and that's a "miracle."" "I only hope that these two former waitresses can finally achieve their Classic American dream." "[bleep]." "Jeez, 50 seats, 13 menus." "[bleep] Me." "(Announcer) After Chef Ramsay left," "Colleen and Naomi continued to run Classic American like a well-oiled machine." "Kevin, you need two chickens on." "Dom, maybe you should jump on dishes for a little bit." "All right." "(Announcer) The owners also implemented a loyalty system to reward repeat customers." "These are punch cards, okay?" "At the end, you get your meal free." "(Announcer) Since then, the staff is happy." "I love this computer." "I love it." "Mm-hmm." "(Announcer) Business is booming..." "We will be back, I guarantee that." "(Announcer) And Classic American looks poised to become a classic success." "I feel alive, and it feels good to finally be able to smile again." "It's a new beginning." "(announcer) Next time on Kitchen Nightmares..." "Chef Ramsay finds an owner running away from reality." "Can you motivate yourself to want to keep the restaurant open?" "I don't know." "Even though the kitchen is run by a Chef bursting with confidence..." "My food is good, and if he critiques it," "I'm gonna probably throw it at him." "It's really a mess, and Chef Ramsay is caught in the middle." "I cannot continue like this." "Can Gordon breathe new life into a restaurant that is in critical condition?" "This business cannot go any further forward."