Pappas Restaurant - Restaurant Impossible Update - Open or Closed?

In this Restaurant Impossible, Robert Irvine visits Pappas Restaurant in Benicia, California.

Pappas Restaurant is a Greek restaurant run by Mike Anastasios and his sons Nick and Andreas, who constantly bicker.

He opened the restaurant to give his son Nick a future after he finished at restaurant school.

Andreas started as a temp and is still there 16 years ago.

Mike has invested $1 million and they are losing $15,000 a month.

Due to the lack of a paycheck Andreas lost his house and had to file for bankruptcy.

The restaurant can only stay open for another three months and it has taken a toll on the family, especially the brothers.

Robert arrives and finds that the front of the house is filthy and outdated with a litter of dead flies and bugs.

The decor is shabby and he meets with the owners in the dining room to talk about the restaurant.

He paid $500,000 for the business and 16 years later the mortgage is still the same amount.

He owes the IRS and owes a number of taxes.

Son Nick has put in $125,000 and personally went bankrupt and Andreas lost his house.

Nick is the evening cook and Andreas is the morning cook.

Both brothers don't feel like the other is doing a good job and they are critical of each others performance.

Robert asks diners to come in for a lunch service and they aren't impressed with the atmosphere, dead plants and the greasy spoon look.

The food is terrible, the moussaka is greasy, the shrimp aren't peeled, the lamb tastes canned and the chicken is swimming in oil.

Robert orders a number of Greek staples from the menu but he isn't impressed with the food as it looks and tastes disgusting.

The moussaka is stone cold and tastes like dog food, the tempura batter is soft and grease filled and the Athenian chicken is a mass of oil.

The fish is tasteless, the gyro is frozen and nothing he was served looks edible.

Robert asks the family to taste the dishes - Mike thinks it is tasteless, Nick thinks it tastes okay and Andreas thinks it is bad.

Robert calls Nick out for frozen meat and he just stares at him, unfazed so Robert tells them that is why they are failing.

He feels that the issues between the brothers are down to bad management and Nick feels that Andreas gets away with a lot.

Andreas wants them to be able to get along but he says Nick gets angry and wants to walk away and refuses to even look at his brother.

He wants to talk to Robert one on one and Mike feels like he has failed as a father and is heart broken.

Nick tells Robert that if the tension and the stress about money is lessened then there will be less resentment.

Robert tells Nick that the final option is that one of the brothers have to leave but he wants to fix the relatiosnhip.

Robert meets with Tom, who will be tackling the makeover alone.

There is much to be fixed and replaced as it is shabby.

As he is taking the restaurant apart he finds mouse poo, a dead mouse and a cockroach and an exterminator is called in.

As they find these issues the Health Inspector arrives and there are many violations on her sheet.

The ice machine is filled with mould, the fridge is held up by a can and the walk-in is filthy with food stored on the floor.

She gives them a week to fix the violations and he shows the issues to Nick and Andreas.

They will be deep cleaning, labelling products and organising the kitchen.

Robert's next issue is to tackle who will be the Head Chef so he gives them 30 minutes to cook a dish each using a box of ingredients.

They don't know what the food is and show poor basic cookery skills.

Nick doesn't know what the fish is but Andreas knows that it is Branzino.

Whilst prepping the dish Nick is cutting the fish badly, Andreas thinks the mint is basil and Nick doesn't know what an artichoke is.

Both dishes are disappointing, overcooked and bizarre flavours and Robert tells them that neither should be running the kitchen.

Robert reveals that he has called a number of chefs to audition for a chef position.

They will be paid from the relaunch takings and this will set them up for paying a chef with some juggled payments.

The auditioning chefs are given the same ingredients that the brothers were given.

Whilst some create a range of impressive dishes there are some that lack the necessary skills.

The dishes are all different and the winner is agreed by both brothers and is T named the winner.

James and Patrick volunteer to stay on and help for the first evening service.

Tom reveals that he has a lot of work to do and the build is behind.

Robert wants to discuss who is in charge of the restaurant.

Robert thinks Nick should be General Manager to do the business and Andreas Assistant Manager and he will talk to the guests.

Both seem happy with their new roles and hug each other and they will commit to regular meetings.

Robert reveals the new restaurant to the family and they love the new look of the restaurant.

On Relaunch night, the customers love the new, modern, airy decor and Andreas wife is in tears.

The food is hitting the tables and the brothers are excelling in their new roles.

The kitchen is overcrowded and communication is difficult in the busy kitchen so T has to shout to get the kitchen together.

The kitchen copes well with the busy dining room and the food is well received by the diners.

What Happened Next at Pappas Restaurant?

Robert revisits and Mike tells him that business is up 50% on the previous year.

Pappas Restaurant closed in March 2013.

Owner Mike said that business declined after the initial rise following the airing of the show.

They also blamed vast amount of restaurants in Benicia for diners to choose from and taking too long to return staple dishes to the menu that the regulars missed.

Pappas Restaurant was Restaurant Impossible season 3 episode 9 and aired on May 09 2012.

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