Kitchen Nightmares

Season 1 Episode 3

The Mixing Bowl

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8.6
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Episode Summary

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The Mixing Bowl
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Gordon Ramsay heads to Bellmore, New Jersey where he finds a local eatery on its last legs. The Mixing Bowl faces an influx of competition and has almost no customers. The owners have lost their spark and their marriage is crumbling. The manager does not have proper business skills and spends his time on fruitless schemes from coupons to promotional signs to drum up business for the restaurant. Gordon faces a tough challenge as he strives to correct problems with the restaurant's appearance and menu, as well as its staffing problems.moreless
FAN RECAP

Fan Episode Reviews (4)

SUBMIT REVIEW

  • The Mixing Bowl

    9.8
    By crftyms49, Oct 30, 2007
    I think any of think any Restaurant that is sloopy and Dirty should be shut down even if Ramsay is not there to help them or do a make over. It up to the people to report them in and have them shut down. I use to work in a Restaurant up here in B.C. Canada and some of the things I have seen should of been shut down..but the health peope don't come out til late and by that time the Restaurant is not open yet when they are out. I have worked in so many and had tried to have them all shut down..got two done but thats it..there is so many limits that you can do in Canadamoreless

  • Gordon Ramsay fine-tunes another restaurant to success!

    9.5
    By gabriel927, Oct 16, 2007
    It's been a while since I've caught up with my reviews. So here comes another one from me.



    This episode was a pretty good one. I thought this took a new step for those concerned about personal health, which is important in America. It was cool seeing Gordon Ramsay working with a healthy restaurant and elevate it. I definitely had reservations about Mike staying on board at the end.



    This is the first episode where they actually did a "two months later" follow up on the status of The Mixing Bowl. The marriage between the owners is stronger than ever and the restaurant is making more money than usual.



    While I can understand why people think this episode was simply average, I thought it was done pretty well. The show appears to be moving in the direction that the UK format had before. Not all restaurants that Gordon visits on KN have disgusting kitchens. It may very well be other factors: managerial skills, menu pricing, personal communication, and the staff's passion.moreless

  • From drab to fab

    7.5
    By bosko666, Oct 04, 2007
    The Mixing Bowl episode was average. The weakest so far.



    The inside of the restaurant was very dull almost drab.

    Definitely no style.



    and Mike's 50% off coupon deals just doesn't make sense...pretty stupid



    I loved the wood chipper sign destroying scene.



    and Mike taking half of the waitresses tips? WTF?

    Mike's got a BIG ego..saying the waitresses wouldn't get the tips if it wasn't for him.



    the restaurant getting the face lift was great. looked SO much better.



    The new food looked amazing



    Mike's blowup about the Dragon's reservation was unnecessary to do in front of customers. Mike seems very emotional, cries too much.

    Or maybe it was the full moon that night.moreless

  • Another bad manager...

    9.3
    By scatha_guardian, Oct 04, 2007
    Gordon comes to a new restuarant, the Mixing Bowl. For once, he does not find anything wrong with the kitchen, but the food is still not all that good. Gordon needs to find out what is the real problem of why the place is not making money. On the second day after watching the place in operation, he sees that the main problem is the manager, Mike. Mike sees the restuarant as his own and treats everyone there as HIS employees. After the turn around and making the place over, Mike messes up on opening night and blames others for his screw-up. The owner, Billy, decides to give him one more chance and things do turn around for the place. Gordon helps again...moreless
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Cast & Crew: STARS

Gordon Ramsay

Gordon Ramsay

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Cast & Crew: RECURRING AND GUESTS

J.V. Martin

J.V. Martin

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Trivia, Notes, Quotes and Allusions

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  • TRIVIA (1)

  • QUOTES (13)

    • Gordon: (at the first-annual Mixing Bowl Mile Run) Come on, Mike. Your eight-year-old is beatin' ya.

    • Narrator: It's relaunch night for The Mixing Bowl and Mike's reservation mishap with the New York Dragons has caused him to go over the edge.
      Mike: I wasn't told!
      Lisa: Do not talk to me like that.
      Mike: I'm pissed off! That's it! I was told 7 o'clock this morning! Not my fault! Dragons on the paper!

    • Gordon: Can you wake up? Wake up.
      Mike: (in an interview segment) This is our one shot to make our lasting impression and we're gonna blow it.

    • Narrator: It's the dinner service you have to see to believe.
      Mike: Seriously, I'm pissed off!
      Lisa: Do not talk to me like that.
      Mike: It's done!
      Narrator: Coming up next on Kitchen Nightmares.

    • Gordon: Give the (bleep) neighborhood what they want.
      Narrator: With The Mixing Bowl now embracing being the healthy, high-quality restaurant of Bellmore, Gordon also realizes he needs to ignite Billy's passion.

    • Mike: It's not really that big of a deal. Gordon, can you come here? It's a little big.
      Gordon: What in the (bleep)?
      Mike: "Free appetizer with dinner."
      Gordon: Oh, (bleep). Man, get me out of here. (bleep)

    • Gordon: Tuesday night dinner specials -- select three. Three what?
      Billy: That was -- that was one of the worst things we've ever done.

    • Billy: 50% off.
      Gordon: Holy smoke. So we're giving more money away before we get money in the till. My goodness me.

    • Narrator: Coming up, Gordon sees a sign of the times.
      Gordon: "Now accepting dinner reservations?"
      Mike: We thought maybe because we're not taking reservations, so--
      Gordon: It's (bleep) empty!

    • Gordon: When you first walk in the dining room, you get this depressing manager jumping on you, which is a great shame. I'm sure five years ago you had some sort of spark.

    • Gordon: (regarding the crab cakes) Hmm, award-winning? Maybe not. In terms of freshness, yeah. I wouldn't expect to find something so fresh in such a dreary, dreadful dining room.

    • Lisa: Our marriage gets affected by his business.
      Billy: (in clips) Go. Go out, go out.
      Lisa: We're struggling seven days a week. That puts a damper on our relationship. I can't sacrifice myself and our children for the Mixing Bowl anymore.

    • Mike: It looks like a wood chipper to me.
      Gordon: That's right. It's time to say goodbye to the past. It's time to say goodbye to Valentine's Day. Bloody hell.
      Mike: You're a madman!
      Gordon Ramsay: Yeah, I am (bleep). Working with guys like you makes me (bleep) mad.

  • NOTES (3)

    • Original International Airdates:
      - Denmark: May 20, 2008 on TV3
      - Slovakia: September 5, 2012 on JOJ

    • This episode marks the first time a restaurant followup is done after Gordon Ramsay leaves. This type of format is done in the UK edition - Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares.

    • The episode title "The Mixing Bowl" refers to the Mixing Bowl Eatery in Bellmore, New York. The restaurant received great reviews when it opened in 1997 from local newspapers including the New York Times, before losing steam in later years.

  • ALLUSIONS (0)

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