Kriti Mehrotra
While there’s no denying Fox’s ‘Kitchen Nightmares’ is the epitome of a Gordon Ramsay-led show with incredible food and high-stakes drama, it is also very, very real. After all, it follows the professional chef as he travels across the nation to help struggling restaurants fulfill their potential by inspiring their managers/owners to deal with their issues. Therefore, of course, its season 9 finale (episode 11), appropriately titled ‘Simmer Down,’ is absolutely no different, owing to the care, emotions, and honesty behind it at every turn.
Simmer Down Started With a Bang But Began Struggling Over Time
It was back in March 2017 when long-time chef and aspiring restauranteur Chris Marino made his lifelong dream of having his own establishment a reality by launching Simmer Down Cafe. He had done so with the support of the love of his life, his wife Terry Marino, and located it at a spot close to home and heart, 4701 Williams Drive Suite 1 in Georgetown, Texas. As per his own accounts, this family-run joint, specializing in breakfast as well as comfort food, was filled to the brim every single day during its opening week, but then things began spiraling.
The truth is Chris couldn’t handle the pressure of owning and operating a restaurant, all the while also being in the kitchen as a chef, which affected every aspect of his life. He was at work every single day at 4 am and didn’t return home till 7 or 8 pm, meaning he was consistently having 80-hour work weeks and burning out. As if that’s not enough, it even affected his family life to such an extent that his wife suddenly packed her bags and left home in the summer of 2024. She used to love Simmer Down as much as her husband did because it was their life dream, but it was slowly taking everything away from Chris.
In other words, Chris was losing his health, his family was falling apart, and his restaurant was at such a point that it was going to ruin his entire reputation. The fact he couldn’t handle criticisms well didn’t help either, and neither did the fact that his employees were more like a dysfunctional family whose preferred form of communication was yelling. Once his wife left, he did call in his brother, his niece, and his nephew to come to help him, yet it didn’t make much of a difference because there was a core management problem – Chris wasn’t delegating.
With the Help of Family, Gordon Ramsay Was Able to Understand Chris
Since Chris’ brother Albert Marino had taken charge of the front of the restaurant, he is the first to meet Gordon Ramsay when the renowned chef enters Simmer Down. He seats the celebrity and immediately notices the displeasure on his face as he picks up the menu. That’s because at the center of its cover page is a sticker stating that customers will get 15% off if their servers don’t ask them about appetizers and/or desserts. This is Chris’ way of pushing these menu items while also teaching his servers how to do their job, but the only thing that Gordon realizes is that he is losing profits.
Nevertheless, the chef goes ahead and orders, just to soon realize why Simmer Down isn’t working nearly as well as it should, considering it has a retirement community and a youngster hub nearby. His All Meat Omellete has way too much meat, there is barely any seasoning on his overcooked Salmon, and the Livers and Onions he receives are too salty, all of which Albert agrees with. Nevertheless, the second the Manager tries to relay this information to his brother, Chris gets defensive and asserts everything is perfect because he made it himself from scratch and had even tasted the sauces a few hours prior.
Gordon then asks for a chef’s recommended pie and receives a Lemon Cherry piece that he learned Chris also made from scratch at 4 am that morning. That’s when he asks Albert to give him the rundown, getting to know everything about their dysfunctional-yelling set-up, Chris’ troubled home life, as well as his health. He even discovers Chris has no financial backing or savings left, so if things didn’t improve, he would lose everything in 3 months. The fact he could also see how messy everything was and how no one inside or outside the kitchen ever took any responsibility for anything didn’t help matters either.
Gordon Ramsay Didn’t Hesitate to Reach Out to Help Chris and Simmer Down
As soon as Gordon comprehends that even though Chris is defensive, he is honest, he decides to take matters into his own hands to bring about a much-needed change. He talks to Chris’ estranged wife to learn she was just tired of not having any quality time with her husband and couldn’t bear to see him give everything to a place that was supposed to be a dream, especially with no returns. She even concedes she will definitely take her husband back if things improve because she does love him, motivating even Gordon to do his best to help the struggling chef, starting with observing a full dinner service.
No one ever imagined Gordon would shut things down midway owing to the utter chaos of the service. The food coming out is still overly salty, the servers, chefs, as well as managers are arguing more than doing their jobs, and the lack of system became evident at every step. He knew then they had no structure, no standards, and no respect, resulting in him asking all patrons to leave before asking to speak to the brothers alone. That’s when Chris breaks down to concede he really does want help because he wants the restaurant to work so that he can get his family back without any worries because they are his priority.
So, Gordon agrees to help, has his team renovate Simmer Down overnight, and then curates an entirely new menu for them before training Chris’ staff so that there is structure. There is a brief moment where it seems like everything will blow up as long-time server Cierra doesn’t adapt well to the changes, instructions, and criticism given to her, but she pulls through. In the end, with the new launch, better communication between the front and the back, everyone taking responsibility, and a fresher menu, Simmer Down becomes an instant hit without Chris having to be in the kitchen. In fact, he gets to celebrate his 27th wedding anniversary with his wife in the cafe they had built together without any sword hanging over their heads.
Simmer Down Cafe is Reaching New Heights
Despite the fact Simmer Down was close to shutting down in the fall of 2024, it has since turned over a completely new leaf thanks to the help of Gordon Ramsay and ‘Kitchen Nightmares.’ Its decor is now bright and inviting, there is a real family-owned charm to the place with the cozy home pictures, and the connection between everyone involved is really like a tight-knit group instead of a dysfunctional unit. This has resulted in a rejuvenated interest in the establishment, meaning they are almost always full at service times and are even getting incredible reviews these days.
In fact, Simmer Down has a rating of 4.3/5 on Google Reviews and 3.8/5 on Yelp as of writing, making it clear it really is rising from the ashes in a way it never could have expected just a few months ago. The fact it is currently openly promoting itself across not just Georgetown but also nearby Sun City is also doing wonders for them, and so is the way they have learned to handle the business. Its Happy Hours specials, affordable new menu additions, and daily specials are also giving it a boost. Honestly, Chris, Albert, and everyone else associated with the business now finally seem utterly content and proud to be a part of it, which is all that matters in the long run.
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