Well, it was bound to happen eventually. It looks like a restaurant featured on the UK version of Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares has failed. However, not in the way that you think.
Your first thought would be that, after chef Gordon Ramsay, star of FOX's US version of Kitchen Nightmares as well as Hell's Kitchen, helped revamp Momma Cherri's diner three years ago, the owner, Charita Jones, just decided not to heed the chef's advice and failed on her own. Not quite. After moving into a bigger location and expanding her staff, at Ramsay's advice, Jones' restaurant did quite well. In fact, it led to a business award and a book deal for the 52-year-old mother of two.
However, with the success of the television appearance, the book deal, and subsequent promotion of said book, Jones began to neglect the object that got her to where she is now in the first place. Momma Cherri's closed and went into administration (the UK's version of bankruptcy, I believe) with 200,000 pounds (about $395,000 US) of debt. It reopened last week under the ownership of Jones' 28-year-old daughter Katryna.
Charita has no regrets about doing Nightmares and doesn't blame Chef Ramsay for her bad luck. She does wish that Gordon comes back and does a follow-up show teaching viewers how to get the right backers for a successful restaurant.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
2-01-2008 @ 12:46PM
smoothie73 said...
Thankfully,The Walnut Tree Inn has reopened and has enlisted the help of several former workers who were there when the original owners were still involved.The former owner just seemed to be too proud and stubborn to listen to the changes that Gordon said would be essential for the Walnut tree to survive.
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1-09-2008 @ 11:55AM
Eirik said...
This isn't the first of the UK restaurants to fail, though it's probably the most surprising because Ramsey seemed to love the place. I think it's the only one that I can think of where he actually liked the food.
I know from an old article that La Gondola failed, and I seem to recall a couple others did as well. At least one failed between his arriving and coming back a couple months later for a recap. At least one of the US shows locations has already failed (or at least was sold to new owners), and in fact did before the show aired.
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1-09-2008 @ 10:08AM
Arc|Angel said...
How convenient. Rack up hundreds of thousands in debt. Declare bankruptcy to get out of debt. And poof the restaurant reopens under your daughters ownership and all is forgiven.
While she did head some advice. Momma Cherri was quick to crank up prices and leverage everything she had towards fame. No surprise here.
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3-06-2008 @ 7:06AM
Graeme said...
Sorry dude Thats the system we vote and live under so no hard feelings to her for leaving the bank holding the bunny. God forbid they rip us off every day maybe we sould all declare bankrupt and give the banks some of their own back!!!
1-09-2008 @ 10:30AM
JPN said...
Um....huh? Hasn't there been a ton of episodes of the UK version of this? And this is the FIRST it's happened? From the follow-ups on the show, it seems like the restaurants almost ALWAYS continue to fail, especially the UK version.
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1-09-2008 @ 11:18AM
BludChyld said...
I agree...I could swear I've seen at least 3 or 4 others fail on the UK version. Some to the point of being shut down. Don't think this was the first.
1-09-2008 @ 11:18AM
GigG said...
It's not the first. There was one I watched on BBC-America just the other day. Where the owners got the restaurant taken over by the brewery that held the note even before Gordon made it back for the one month follow-up.
Gordon even called the folks who held the note and tried to get them to re consider to no avail.
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1-09-2008 @ 12:43PM
Ken said...
There's at least one that failed on the U.S. version. I forget the name of it, but it was owned by a woman. At the very end of the show there was an epilogue in which the announcer said that despite the effort, the restaurant was forced to close six months later.
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1-09-2008 @ 1:11PM
Junyo said...
As a faithful watcher of the show, it has to be pointed out that Gordon did two UK shows on her restaurant. The original, and a follow up in her new space. And he warned her the second time about the high prices and having slid back into the sloppy practices that had her in the hole in the first place. Some people weren't cut out to run a restaurant.
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1-09-2008 @ 1:34PM
kccolt said...
All of these restaurants were on the brink of failing. Gordon comes in and gives them as much advice and help he can give in a weeks time. There's really only so much one can do. Success or failure is ultimately up to the owner.
The recent Paris episode was a good example. You had a lady that was never going to be a good operator. She was lazy and had poor front of the restaurant skills. It seemed that her cat was more important than her business. After a months time, despite getting talented chef she had closed down.
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2-01-2008 @ 12:47PM
smoothie73 said...
Just looked at the Paris episode and it seems to me that Gordon was dealing with a crew of un dedicated morons.The cook was taking entirely too long to get anything out and too eccentric to be real.The waitress came in when she felt like it,none had proper respect for the owner and the owner didn't have any business trying to run a restaraunt. She had her father as a backer to the tune of $100,000.00, had a new young chef come in from Scotland named India who was brilliant(and quite attractive) and yet the owner failed the business because she is not mature enough to handle grown up responsabilities. Her dad probably spoiled her too much.He paid off the bank loan after the place closed and she almost didn't show up for the meeting afterwards.
On an up note,Gordon made sure that India didn't withdraw because of the closure.He gave her employment at one of his UK eateries where she can continue to grow.
1-09-2008 @ 2:14PM
Brainfish said...
Administration is the UK equivalent of Chapter 11 in the US
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1-09-2008 @ 2:24PM
kevjohn said...
I'd be surprised if some (more) of the U.S. restaurants don't start failing. Some of them start out deep in debt before ol' Gordo ever gets to them. It may be a matter of the kitchen makeover being too little too late. And there's always the issue of a restaurant just falling out of favor. They show the lavish renovation and re-openings, but what are things like in a year or so when a hot new Cosmo's Make-Your-Own pizza joint opens across the street?
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1-09-2008 @ 6:25PM
Eligio J Rosa said...
Here's the link to La Gondola's demise:
http://www.caterersearch.com/Articles/2007/07/19/315019/gordon-ramsays-magic-fails-to-save-derby-restaurant.html
I feel sorry for the owners of that restaurant, they have problems getting a new chef.
There's also The Walnut Tree:
http://www.caterersearch.com/Articles/2007/03/08/312035/former-michelin-starred-restaurant-the-walnut-tree-inn-forced-to.html
But the owners was a stubborn bat.
I hope people don't start thinking that theres a "Kitchen Nightmares curse".
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