According to Quad-City Times, owner Brenda Brewer was seen inside talking to a police officer, but she did not speak with a reporter outside the restaurant. It also appeared that the bar inside was being disassembled, and open liquor bottles were in a box on top of the bar. The restaurant had a minor issue in front of the city's liquor commission on Tuesday, but the Mayor said it was nothing that would shut down a restaurant.
No one is answering the phone at the restaurant and their Facebook page has also been deactivated.
This is the 2nd restaurant from season 7 (2013 - 2014) of Restaurant Impossible to close, and the Restaurant Impossible Update Page has been updated to show this.
Good riddance!
ReplyDeleteThat guy (the guy that acted like he owned the place but never put a dime into it) was creepy and he totally controlled the female owner. She needs a new boyfriend.
ReplyDeleteThe show is entertaining, but I agree with you. It is beyond insane to imagine that in two days anyone except GOD could actually teach people how to cook and manage any business.
ReplyDeleteNot only that, but many times Irvine accomplishes spiritual awakenings that border on being miracles. I wonder if there are producers with shotguns in the background, saying "YOU BETTER START GETTING ALONG WITH YOUR BROTHER, OR YOUR FAMILY DIES."
The location rehabs are also very slipshod, as they seem to rely on refurbishing junk yard trash, and some of the makeovers are tacky and horrible.
that dude was such a total douchey assbag-- i'm not surprised it closed.... my gues they got popped for serving alcohol to a minor or somwthing
ReplyDeleteGood job Robert Irvine, you brought nothing to the town of lake city, except 1 more thing for this town to hate.(lake city is a very negative town)
ReplyDeleteAnother article has been posted by the Quad-City Times saying the restaurant owes $6k of sales tax to the city. On top of that, the restaurant owes money on a $25k loan the city made to them.
ReplyDeleteObviously he was the "idea man" behind this...she was the $$$$.
ReplyDeleteIf I lived at that city, I would be so aggravated that my tax dollars were funding a restaurant.
ReplyDeleteReplying a little late here, but if these owners are in as bad of a financial situation as they claim when the show comes to town (note that I said 'if') the shut-down rate would probably be much higher than 50%. They're always claiming they're several hundred thousand in the hole. 50% failure rate is of restaurants for the first year as a whole. Many owners of restaurants in general see the writing on the wall and cut their losses, those who contact shows like RI are still several hundred thousand in the hole when the show leaves. The fact that more than a couple of these places are still open is amazing.
ReplyDeleteCities giving money to restaurants is not unusual
ReplyDeleteI think there are at least 2 reasons why these places die even with Robert's help: 1) Some of them are in the hole for hundreds of thousands of dollars before they even called Robert, and by then, it's a case of "too little, too late" and 2) Some of these businesses get lazy and/or cheap and go back to their old way of doing stuff, even though it resulted in terrible food.
ReplyDeleteHated to see that another restaurant had to close down. I still say that it is amazing that Chef Irvine is able to help as many as he does, especially when you think that most likely 100% of these places would close down without his help. The bad thing though is when he comes in to try to help a struggling restaurant when the owner never intended to try and make it, & called RI just to get a free makeover so they could get a few more bucks when they sell the place. I think they should be forced to sign a contract stating that if they sold out sooner than AT LEAST 6 months (actually should be a year) after the RI makeover, they should have to reimburse Food Network the $10,000 plus pay at least a minimum wage salary to all of the people who volunteered their time to help them. Maybe then the people who were just looking for a hand out (not saying that Goombazz was doing that, but it sure looks suspicious) would think twice before stealing the money from the Food Network. Keep up the good work Chef Irvine, because there are a lot of good, honest, hard-working people who really need your help!!!
ReplyDeleteWhat really frosts me on these shows they call for help then they get angry and argue with Robert ....hello...clearly what you are doing isn't working! and as soon as they leave they go back to doing things the way they were before. That's just crazy. Also if you watch this show you know to keep the place clean and use fresh food but they never do.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if Robert knows what went wrong?
ReplyDeleteAdios Goombahs. You can't cheat the city or death.
ReplyDeleteI do agree that it is an outlandish idea that a restaurant and it's owner's can be genuinely revolutionized within 2 days. It would be nice if they would simply do a few more days and a bit more $$ that would include nicer remodels as well as some genuine training of all restaurant areas. I realize that even then, it would be impossible to address all areas, but they could sure get a whole lot more done and the remodels could look nicer because of the extra time and money given. Some of the things they could do with the extra time would be to address Owner/Manager, Kitchen Staff, front of house, etc. and an entire list of what their daily/weekly/monthly duties should be as well as having owner assign these jobs to specific people.
ReplyDeletePerhaps an idea would be for Robert I. to create an all inclusive training manual that he "gifts" each restaurant owner. This manual, of course, would cover all of the things that he can't possibly in the short amount of time given. The proceeds from the book sales could help to fund the extra money needed to pay for a bit better of a show in these regards.
WORST NAME EVER! CORNY AS HELL, PLUS DUDE WAS COMPLETELY USING THE CHICK.
ReplyDeleteI try not to rejoice in the misery of others but that guy was a total huckster and I believe he'll move onto another woman with low self esteem that he can manipulate and bleed dry.
ReplyDeleteI question the whole 2 day thing more in regards to the construction aspect of it, if Tom is moving walls, electrical, etc. doesn't an inspector have to come in and make sure everything was done to code before the restaurant can open? Seems difficult for that to happen if the volunteers are moving and setting up tables 3 minutes before the dinner rush.
ReplyDeleteHe probably bankrolled her restaurant too.
ReplyDeleteThis show is a piece of shit! Some guy won and he didnt even finish a dish for thr judges. thats BS fuck this show stupud as fuck guy should just stay with ddd
ReplyDeleteAlmost all of Gordon Ramsey,s re-do,s are closed too. Most owners just can,t change enough to be effective.
ReplyDeleteAll of these idiots who blame Robert for a failing restaurant to indeed have to close their doors r about as stupid as stupid can get. U can give people the tools they need to succeed but if they can't it's their own fault. So keep your brainless comments to yourself. Jerk!
ReplyDeleteThey were failing before, that is why Robert Irving came. He gave them all the tools to fix it, but it is up to the owners to use those tools.
ReplyDeleteSpeaking of the Goombazz restaurant, I read that she criticized RI for taking so long to get there when she was losing $10,000. A month! She said she requested help in July and they didn't come til October. They probably don't film til fall and I'm sure it takes time and planning to get a crew out there! Maybe she should have had a better business partner and also one that would have contributed some money!
ReplyDeleteI agree Guy does a great job and is fun to watch he presents so many good recipes and techniques Guy and Paula are my faves and I love Ree... There are many shows to watch... People can watch those instead of saying negative comments. ..A true foodie looks at everyone's work with interest and delight just to be able to have the pros perform... Thanks for standing up for being positive. ..I'm watching DID right now... :0)
ReplyDeleteYeah, he was a jerk. She could do a lot better than that ego-centric creep.
ReplyDeleteI have a question why are all the African American contestants always vote off this show?
ReplyDeleteI feel like this show racist.
Good. That guy is a tool and the lady is a chump.
ReplyDeleteFive days would be a better time frame for renovations - that way there would be less tackiness as more than a few of Cheryl's tend to be(maybe more & better planning, less junky looking decor that can't be kept clean?) plus mandatory courses for ALL staff on how to do their jobs to include mandatory financial counseling and auditing. I'd also like to see a clause in the agreements between RI and the restaurant owners that they can't advertise, sell or sub-lease for at least 6 months after the redo & if they violate those terms then they're on the hook for ALL the cost of the renovation.
ReplyDeleteAs for the shows I'd like to see a LOT less psycho-babble from Chef Irvine and more focus on practical aspects. Yeah, I know it's a TV program with the goal of making moola but it's rapidly getting old - this may have been the last season unless FN/RI changes the show radically.
And BTW, I've not only worked in a restaurant but owned one plus some heavy-duty training in the Army prior so I have more than a bit of knowledge about sanitation, food prep, cooking and decor.
Since I've been able to visit 3 of the re-done restaurants before and after - what's wrong with re-doing the restrooms too? A good indicator of the kitchen sanitation is the cleanliness in the restroom...filthy restroom = filthy kitchen, almost never fails. And I just LOVE staff using the facilities and not washing up before they go back to work..real confidence builder.
Some restaurants really are impossible!
ReplyDeleteA lot of these restaurant owners have big egos and thing they know better. After Irvine leaves, many go back to their failing ways. Also, many have dug themselves in too big of a hole before he gets there. If the creditors won't wait, they end up forcing you out of business. You can't blame Irvine for that.
ReplyDeleteYou're ignorant.
ReplyDeleteThey probably went back to buying all frozen food.
ReplyDeleteI have the same question.every time there is a black person/
ReplyDeletefamily, they get to the end and go home. why? I may have to stop watching the show.