“When was the last time you ate a salad?” – Gordon Ramsay
This edition of Kitchen Nightmares takes us to Bellmore, New York, so immediately I’m super amped as it’s on Long Island, my homeland. Bellmore is on the island’s south shore, about a 40-minute drive from where I grew up, but anywhere on Long Island means attitude for days and howze youse doin’ accents besides, so I couldn’t be more stoked for what’s in store.
We learn that The Mixing Bowl has been in business for 10 years but “now is only months away from closing.” Billy Giletti is the owner of The Mixing Bowl, but he also describes himself as the “chef, delivery guy, Mr. Fix It.”
It’s clear that things are going poorly when we learn that six total diners patronized The Mixing Bowl one night, and Billy’s wife Lisa soon says, “My hope is really gone for this place.” And later she implies that if The Mixing Bowl closes, it could well also mean the end of her marriage with Billy.
Mike the manager tells us that he’s known as Mixing Bowl Mike, and the only reason I mention this is because it would have been way cooler had he been known as Mix Master Mike of Beastie Boys fame.
But as for the real Mixing Bowl Mike, the staff thinks he’s pretty awful, and we see a clip of him yelling at employees and telling one to shut up.
Mike also tells us that he’s known as The Mayor of Bellmore, which makes me realize that in the style of Donald Trump, he enjoys making up accolades about himself.
Entering the fray on a blustery day is our guy, the tough lovin’ chef himself, Mr. Gordon Ramsay.
There are times when Ramsay’s brand of consulting can be harsh but fair, and even harsh but necessary. But there are other times when he can be flat out rude or demeaning seemingly for its own sake. An example of the latter is on display during his first meeting with Mike.
Ramsay asks what kind of cuisine The Mixing Bowl serves, and Mike says American cuisine, featuring salads and wraps. “Sounds like a health spa,” Gordon replies, and then asks Mike, “When was the last time you went to a gym?”
But he doesn’t stop there. Mike affably plays along under the guise that Ramsay is “just kidding around,” but Ramsay presses further, finally asking, “When was the last time you ate a salad?”
Talk to anyone with a weight problem, and you’ll get a read on how hurtful these kinds of comments can be.
Anyway, Ramsay observes that just from the look of the restaurant, the décor, how empty the place is, and so on, that The Mixing Bowl is “on its last legs.”
Ramsay starts with Maryland crab cakes with zucchini, and when Mike asks him if he likes it, Gordon asks him not to stare at him and I believe he alludes to his being a “cockroach.” There’s something about Mike that just seriously irks the good chef from Great Britain, it seems.
And it’s unwarranted. From what we’ve seen, Mike may not be a good dude and is probably a lousy restaurant manager, but he was absolutely friendly and courteous with Ramsay in the footage we see, and it makes the Kitchen Nightmares star simply look like an asshole, frankly.
Another surprise here is that Ramsay finds the crab cakes to be “fresh.” It’s super rare for him to like anything in the first tasting. Other dishes are “too garlicky” or “too gluey” or “bland.” but that pales in comparison to typically super negative of the food coming out of Kitchen Nightmares kitchens.
After the meal, Ramsay meets Billy and tells him that Mike is a “depressing manager, which is a great shame,” before getting into how most of the meal was pretty bad.
“It’s very average, very dreary, and very sad,” Ramsay says, which honestly is kind of a huge compliment compared to how awful he thinks the food at most Kitchen Nightmares restaurants is from the jump.
The Mixing Bowl is not very busy that night, and Ramsay quickly diagnoses that the business’ financial situation is being further hampered by a 50% off coupon program that’s been ongoing for the last eight years. We’re not told how exactly the program works, but then things quickly segue to Ramsay scrutinizing a blizzard of signage that Mike uses in all kinds of situations.
An exasperated Ramsay finally tells Mike, “You’re f—ing worse than the Dollar Shop.”
Later, chatting with Billy and Lisa, Ramsay fully throws the Mixing Bowl manager under the bus, telling the couple essentially that letting him run the business is a major cause of the crisis. He also advises Billy that he’s the “quietest chef” in the kitchen that he’s ever come across.
“You look like a man who is dying to be out of his misery,” Ramsay adds, and then tells Billy that he must find his “passion and his support” if there’s any chance for The Mixing Bowl to survive.
Which means it’s time for a gimmick! Ramsay literally takes Mike to the woodchipper, where they chop up The Mixing Bowl’s myriad signage about discounts and coupon programs.
Then he assembles the team around a map in a scene that looks a little like a heist movie where the team is poring over the plans for The Big Jewel Heist or what have you. Instead, it’s a map of the neighborhood, where it seems that dozens of restaurants have opened near The Mixing Bowl over the past decade. To combat this, Gen. Ramsay says, they must reposition the restaurant’s strategy.
The answer, we learn, is to become the healthiest option for high quality food in Bellmore… which I thought that was the idea already? But far be it from me to slow down the episode’s momentum, so carrying on.
That night at dinner service, Ramsay instills two salmon specials that he worked on with Billy that afternoon. Mike is still in the barrel, with Ramsay snapping at him, “Don’t point at customers, we’re not at the f—ing zoo.”
Then cut to Mike “joking” around with the customers about how “water is complimentary.”
Don’t quit your day job (while you still have one), my guy.
Ramsay isn’t the only one frustrated with Mike. “He thinks he owns the business,” Lisa relays.
Things come to a head between Billy and Lisa on hand, and Mike on the other in a staff meeting. When Billy finally pushes back hard on Mike’s attitude, Ramsay tells him, “That’s the first time I’ve heard you act like a f—ing boss.”
It’s around this time that it’s become clear that Mike is the kind of super annoying guy you know where you can patiently explain to him a million times why he’s annoying and provide advice on how to not be annoying but he will immediately go back to being just that same level of annoying.
The staff is amped by the overnight renovation of The Mixing Bowl, and even the “gross paper” tablecloths have been replaced by something much fancier. Even Mike becomes a teary mess.
The menu overhaul includes apples and endives salad, slow roasted tomato soup, and other “fresh and vibrant” entrees with a focus on light and healthy foods.
In the run up to relaunch night, Mike gets stressed out and flips out on people, which makes his colleagues like him less than they already did (probably). And then when dinner service begins, it turns out that The Mixing Bowl took too many reservations… a screwup that lands at Mike’s feet.
Mike tries to blame Kim the server, but she says, “I’ve never done that.”
And then during dinner service, Mike as always is called out for shmoozing and hanging out with his friends versus actually doing the work of managing a restaurant.
And then later, Mike once again is found to have screwed up the reservation for the local New York Dragons arena football team, which was to be a big part of the relaunch night’s clientele. This is the thing that sends Mike into full thermonuclear meltdown. “Not my fault! Not my fault!” he resorts to shouting.
Sidenote that it was around this point in the episode that I realized that Lisa’s accent reminds me of Charmaine Bucco from The Sopranos, also a restaurant co-owner and married to the head chef, as it turns out.
Anyway, Ramsay tells Billy and Lisa that they have “one problem,” and it’s not hard to figure out what that is. Instead of firing him though, Billy decides that Mike can have a second chance, though he’s advised that he needs to change along with everyone else on staff.
Eventually, the New York Dragons’ players are seated, and dinner service ends successfully. And notably, there were zero issues with the food and kitchen during the relaunch night.
Before leaving, Ramsay delivers a pretty huge compliment (coming from him): “I would totally eat here.”
🍽 Want more? Check out Pop Thruster’s Kitchen Nightmares episode reviews (there’s a lot).
Kitchen Nightmares, “The Mixing Bowl”: is it still open?
No, and The Mixing Bowl only stayed open “a little over a year after the episode aired,” according to IMDB!
Further, “Billy [stated it] was more profitable to be a consultant to restaurants in the poor economy. As of late 2014, the location is still home to a new restaurant called Greek Delight.”
Some stats and info about Kitchen Nightmares, “The Mixing Bowl”
TV SHOW – Kitchen Nightmares
SEASON/EPISODE – Season 1, Episode 2
AIRED ON – September 26th, 2007
NETWORK/STREAMING SERVICE – FOX
GENRE – Reality TV, Docuseries, Food Shows
CAST – Gordon Ramsay