Monday, November 3, 2014

Restaurant Impossible - Papa C's Eastside Cafe Update

Photo - Food Network
Tonight on the season nine finale Restaurant: Impossible, Robert Irvine and his crew are in Fairport, New York to makeover Papa C's Eastside Cafe.  The owner Sal and his three sons spend way too much time fighting with each other rather than doing their jobs.  The restaurant has grease and grime all over the restaurant, and one argument the family had ended in a fistfight.  Robert needs to repair the family issues along with the restaurant to turn around Papa C's.  As I normally do with Restaurant: Impossible episodes, I searched around the Internet to read stories, comments and reviews about Papa C's Eastside Cafe 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:
  • "This was our first time at Papa's C, so I have no idea what it looked like prior to the makeover. Their new decors is great - everything seems really fresh and clean and has that "new" feeling. The hostess was super friendly and attentive - she stopped by several times to make sure that we were okay.  As far as prices, I have to disagree with what others have said as far as it being outrageously overpriced. To me, it seemed comparable to other places in Fairport....My son loved his waffle, so we will definitely be back again!"


Negative Reviews:
  • "Food was dull and over priced.  Ordered a salad and a wrap and it was 20.00.  Starters the salad was small.  They didn't follow instructions very well either asked for blue cheese got ranch.  Asked for sliced banana peppers got whole peppers.  Salad itself tasted old like the lettuce was bought from Wal-Mart and had been sitting in the refrigerator open for a few days....Also was charged 0.50 for the banana peppers...Wait staff was very poor and clueless.  Could go into detail, but I will leave it at that."
  • "I've been here before and since the re-make and had both breakfast and lunch.  The cooking is alright.  It's not great, but it's also not terrible...I hope Papa C's can stick around for years and be a profitable business for their owners.  I really do.  No one wants to see a business go under.  But the future seems, at this point, to be very uncertain for them....The most important constructive criticism I could ever offer is "BE NICE!"  The staff seems so very uninterested in interacting with their customers unless necessary.  They just present an air that they don't want to be there or don't care.  Some of the staff have been just downright rude in the past.  And for Heaven's sake - stop parking your cars in front of the restaurant!"
  • "The new decor is great, but the service still stinks! The employees are as slow and unfriendly as they have always been. The food takes forever to be made and they make no apologies for it. They are completely unattentive. It's unfortunate because there is so much potential. We won't be back."
  • "Visited after Restaurant Impossible makeover, and was very unimpressed.  The dinner menu is very short ( barely 1 page long) and an odd blend of basics and attempted fancy items (that are overpriced).  Also, the acoustics are terrible, with a only about 1/3 of the tables in use but still very noisy from all the hard surface and open floor design.  Although there's not a lot of competition within a few miles radius, it's worth driving a few more miles for some better local options."
*Reviews from Yelp


Other News and Links:
  • Here is the Papa C's website, and dinner menu, which has old items added back onto the menu.
  • Here is the Papa C's Facebook page, which hasn't had any recent posts.
  • In an interview with a local news station, Robert Irvine said this was the first episode of Restaurant Impossible that he almost walked off and left. (Link)
  • Here are some past restaurant inspections for the restaurant, with the last one listed is from 2012.
  • A lot of reviews before the makeover have complaints about the restaurant not honoring coupons and also up-charging for everything. (One example)


Conclusion:

The reviews for Papa C's Eastside Cafe since the Restaurant Impossible visit are mostly negative with there being complaints about unfriendly service and high prices.  With there supposedly being a fist fight, and Robert Irvine also almost leaving the makeover, there is sure to be some drama tonight.

This is the season 9 finale, however season 10 is already scheduled to begin on November 24th.  This will be the FOURTH season to have episodes in 2014, so it seems that they will continue to rapidly produce new episodes.  Plus it probably helps the success rate look a little better.



*Visit Our Restaurant Impossible Update Page to see all Restaurant: Impossible updates, and which restaurants are open, closed, or have been sold. Also Like Us on Facebook and Follow Us on Twitter

26 comments:

  1. The fact that variations of "and solve the family problems" is a staple of almost every ep description shows you how much they want drama at the fore front. I wonder if there has been a drop off since family issues took center stage?

    ReplyDelete
  2. This show is like a daytime talk show nowadays.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I don't enjoy the family issues nearly as much as I did seeing more about the restaurant's actual makeover and seeing Robert teach new recipes. The family drama is getting tired.

    ReplyDelete
  4. it's turning into a real formula. Robert comes in, yells and screams at everyone. Then, he tries to become a social worker/psychologist trying to fix some family drama issues. Finally he spends the least amount of time on providing an awesome new menu, teaching new cooking techniques, etc. Then, a miracle happens and everyone appears happy and crying at the end with the new redesigned restaurant.

    The show is almost all about the drama now with very little food. He's yelling, screaming, playing games, breaking stuff. There's very little real teaching/coaching, constructive criticism, developing new business strategy or ideas. These are the things that really save businesses.

    ReplyDelete
  5. You cannot mange your own girlfriend....
    You cannot be objective.
    Her co-workers will always think she is getting special treatment
    There could be legal issues...


    Considering the family problems the girl should get another job as she is a bad waitress anyway!

    ReplyDelete
  6. This does not look like a place where I would pay 20 bucks for a 16" 2 topping pizza.... the fact that it had been filthy for years would make me really not want to eat there at all unless they keep it spotless.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Playing Doctor Phil does not suit Robert Irvine. Not much about food at all this episode. He made average looking stuffed peppers and that was about it.

    ReplyDelete
  8. I agree that the show was much better when it concentrated on restaurant issues. I can't figure out why the easy solution to the family issues wasn't to just convince the son that his girlfriend would be happier somewhere else (how much $ can she make as a not so great waitress at a quasi-diner).

    ReplyDelete
  9. Maybe Robert needs to partner with Dr. Phil.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Perhaps it's time to move the show from Food Network to Lifetime, which has already turned Project Runway into a soap opera. Put production in the hands of Bunnim/Murray, and it'll be Lifetime-ready.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Dysfunction! Girlfriend has to go..fast. She is nothing but trouble. He needs to dump her.

    ReplyDelete
  12. What a nasty nasty person the girlfriend is. Unless she is out of the picture....the place will implode. She sucks as a person and a waitress......all to willing to tear that messed up family apart.

    ReplyDelete
  13. I've also been checking out of the show for other programming as the Robert Irvine counselor stuff hasn't been working for me. It certainly needs to be done in some cases, but two or three segments worth isn't interesting. They should move back to talking about redesigning the restaurant to welcome diners and fixing problems with service, management and food.

    ReplyDelete
  14. I'm hoping they're not going towards the Mystery Diners route and saying "hey, do you have a difficult girl/boyfriend/spouse? Give them a job here so we can have some friction on the show."

    ReplyDelete
  15. Seems like he does the family counseling every episode now. The drama is repetitive and boring. I agree, stick with the food and decor.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Exactly right. Every episode seems the same.

    ReplyDelete
  17. Or maybe these restaurant owners need to go on Dr. Phil's show so that Restaurant Impossible can go back to being focused on fixing the business, rather than family counseling. I watch this show for the businesses, not for the family drama. And I work in the counseling field! I can only imagine how sick of this stuff other people must be.

    ReplyDelete
  18. You forgot the formulaic ending - the restaurant is listed for sale before or just after the episode airs.

    ReplyDelete
  19. Or just end the show altogether.

    ReplyDelete
  20. For anyone who is sick of what this show has become, I recommend Restaurant Startup on CNBC. I am really enjoying that show.

    ReplyDelete
  21. There are certainly enough alternatives available. grandaddy of them all Kitchen Nightmares, Restaurant Takeover, Restaurant Redemption, Bar Rescue, and Anne Burrell's new Review Rescue all come to mind, and I'm sure there are plenty other clones waiting in the wings.

    ReplyDelete
  22. How about seeking out deserving restaurants where the family dynamics are not causing the restaurant to fail. I do not enjoy watching people fighting and screaming at each other. That is not entertainment.....that is the Jerry Springer Show.

    ReplyDelete
  23. Great idea Cakester. It would be nice.

    ReplyDelete
  24. I love Restaurant Takeover!

    ReplyDelete