Restaurant Impossible - Heather's Country Kitchen Update

Photo - Food Network

Tonight on Restaurant Impossible, Robert Irvine and crew are going to Plains, Montana to makeover Heather's Country Kitchen.  Heather, the owner of the restaurant, was a stay-at-home mom who decided to buy a restaurant and is supposedly 'clueless' about the restaurant industry.  The restaurant has been open for three years, and Robert has to manage high food and labor costs along with getting Heather to embrace working with her daughters.  As I normally do with Restaurant: Impossible episodes, I searched around the Internet to read stories, comments and reviews about Heather's Country Kitchen to get an idea of how the restaurant is doing since Robert Irvine visited, and here is what I found (note - all reviews are post Restaurant Impossible):


Positive Reviews:

• "We stopped for lunch on our way through Plains. It was about 11:30 am, so we were offered either lunch or breakfast, which is a nice service. The soup...was tasty and fresh, but could have been hotter in temp. The taco salad was hearty and served with fresh guacamole and sour cream . The patty melt sandwich is served with plenty of beef and was delicious..... The staff is friendly and the facility is clean and welcoming."
• "Love the food, the new decor, and most of all....the staff!"
• "The food only takes a back seat to all of the wonderful employees!!  Great spot for breakfast, lunch, or dinner (or all three)."
• "Had a great dinner! The chicken fried steak was awesome and the asparagus is amazing."

Negative Reviews:
None

Reviews from Tripadvisor, Facebook

Other News:

• According to the restaurant's Facebook page, they recently started offering To-Go fried chicken with mashed potatoes, biscuits and coleslaw on Sunday's.  Prices are 20 pieces for $40, 16 for $35, 12 for $30 and 8 for $25!
• They have a post Facebook that says they planned incorporating some of their old menu with the new menu based on customer feedback.  They confirmed they did this in another post.
• In an interview during the makeover, Robert Irvine stated, "We're in a beautiful area...this restaurant should have a deck looking at these mountains and the scenery. It doesn't, but hopefully when they start making money, they'll put one on, because it is absolutely beautiful here."  I guess there wasn't enough money for the show to add the deck themselves.
• Plains is a small town and the residents hope the publicity of this makeover draws more attention to their town.

• Here is an excerpt of a blog post about Heather's Country Kitchen on twofarfromnormal: "We parked the car to take a photo of the outside of the restaurant; they were closed when we were there. Curious to our arrival, Heather and her husband invited us inside for a sneak peak of the newly renovated restaurant. Wow. The decor was stunning, homey and cozy. The colors spectacular. We spent some time with Heather and her husband talking about the process of filming, meeting the crew and their experience and their hopes for the future of the restaurant. What left us in awe (besides scanning the menu) was the stories of everyone coming together to help turn this restaurant around. Folks from as far as Idaho and Washington and all over Montana came to volunteer their times and services over the few days it took to renovate. Heather and her husband were blown away at the support and local community involvement. We were not allowed to take any photos inside, as the show has not aired yet, but can promise you it is worth stopping into Plains, Montana for a delicious meal and conversation with Heather and her husband. Thank you both for the behind the scenes “tour.”

 Conclusion:

Reviews of the restaurant before were very good before the makeover, with most of the people saying they like the 'comfort' food, but state that the restaurant 'off the beaten path.'

There were minimal reviews after the makeover, which is why no negative reviews were out there.  There was one review on Tripadvisor, and the other positive reviews were from the restaurant's Facebook page (which are almost always positive as the restaurant can delete negative one's).

It seems like the both the restaurant and town of Plains are excited about the makeover and the restaurant had plenty of support during the makeover.  Location may be one of the issues, but with the publicity Restaurant Impossible brings, it could make this restaurant a success.


UPDATE 1/15/2014 - According to a local article, Heather's has seen its first month with a profit after four years of operation.  Business has been busy, and Heather only expects it to get better when the weather gets warmer.  She also wouldn't change a thing about the Restaurant Impossible experience and is very satisfied with it.

UPDATE 9/2014 - Heather's sales are up 40% according to a local article, and they have been very busy during the summer.

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