In this 24 Hours to Hell and Back episode, Gordon Ramsay visits Vasi's Restaurant and Bar in Waterbury, Connecticut.
Vasi's Restaurant and Bar is owned by Vasilios 'Vasi' Kaloidis and his mother.
His parents opened a number of restaurants when they came to the country from Greece.
In 2002, Vasi decided to open his own restaurant and bar.
His father sadly passed away in 2008.
The restaurant is $500,000 in debt.
He will be forced to close in a few months.
Gordon appears undercover wearing a beard and a wig.
He doesn't like the decor and is confused by the menu.
A French onion soup has no place in an Italian restaurant.
Gordon orders some staple dishes including calamari, shrimp and clams.
The calamari tastes like rubber and is old.
The shrimp is sour and rancid and the clams are rotten.
Overall, the taste of the food is terrible.
Gordon goes to the bathroom and removes his disguise.
He goes into the kitchen and asks the staff to come out into the dining room.
Chef Val reacts badly to seeing Gordon in the restaurant.
She wants to leave but Gordon reassures her that he knows she can cook.
He reassures her that he isn't there to put her down.
She agrees to stay and Vasi calls his mother Toula over to meet Gordon.
Vasi blames tough times on the failure of the restaurant.
Val blames the boring menu that she isn't allowed to change.
Gordon asks all of the staff and customers to come outside to see his Hell on Wheels truck.
They watch hidden footage of the restaurant including Vasi being abusive to staff.
There is frozen produce being used, fruit flies on produce and rotten food.
There are lapses in food hygiene.
Val is shown to dip her fingers into food and lick them.
Another chef drops food on the floor that is served to a customer.
Vasi doesn't react to the footage.
Gordon questions him and he says that he is tired.
Gordon talks to Val about the menu.
She says she hates the menu whilst Vasi denies knowing she felt this way.
Gordon also speaks to Toula as he feels she had a part to play in the restaurant failing.
She reveals that Vasi owes her $250,000.
Gordon meets with the design team to see their plans for changes to the dining room.
Next he meets with Vasi's wife Lauren to find out how he can get through to Vasi as he is stubborn.
She hates the effect that the restaurant has on Toula.
Lauren knows that Vasi isn't happy with the restaurant.
The only happiness she feels he has is when he is with the children.
Gordon goes back into the kitchen where he finds dead shellfish.
Val tries to tell Vasi that it can't be served to customers but he doesn't listen.
Val gets fed up and leaves again.
Gordon goes after her as he knows that they cannot do this without her.
Vasi sits with Val in her car and apologises for everything that has happened.
He promises her that he can change.
Val goes to the Hell on Wheels truck to learn the new food.
Gordon hopes she will rediscover her passion for cooking.
Gordon introduces the new menu that will have a Greek influence.
He asks Val to come up with a dish of her own for relaunch.
Vasi is angry at Gordon.
Gordon tells him to stop being in denial about the restaurant.
Gordon speaks with Toula and asks her to stop giving Vasi money.
This it will force him to step up.
Val has mastered the new menu dishes and trains cook Jonathan on the new menu dishes.
Gordon gives Vasi a pep talk.
He tells him that he has to let go of the past and rebuild.
Gordon shows Val the new equipment in the kitchen.
The newly renovated dining room is shown to the staff.
Both Vasi and Toula become emotional at the photos of the family that have been introduced to the new decor.
Gordon tastes Val's new menu dish.
He encourages all of the staff to try it as it is delicious.
For relaunch night, there is a food blogger and critic present in the restaurant.
Val shines in the kitchen but Jonathon struggles.
He shuts down, slowing down the pace of the food leaving the kitchen.
Vasi steps up and takes control of the kitchen.
He takes food out to customers and the kitchen begins to recover.
The relaunch overall was a success and the customers loved the new decor and food.
What Happened Next at Vasi's Restaurant and Bar?
Three months later, Vasi says customers love the new concept.
He is getting on better with Val.
Vasi is grateful for Gordon's help and he has lost 30lbs.
The restaurant was renamed to Vasi's Taverna.
They reverted their menu back to Italian.
Vasi claimed this was at the request of customers.
Vasi said that customer numbers peaked after filming and before the show aired.
He says it returned to normal numbers after they reversed Gordon's changes...
Vasi's Taverna closed in January 2020.
It closed after Vasi received an offer for the restaurant that he could not refuse.
This sale later fell through.
As Vasi had let staff go and returned deposits for events he decided to remain closed.
He later found another buyer for the restaurant.
The River Hill Restaurant opened in July 2020 but closed in 2022.
It was sold to a non-profit and reopened as Easterseals Employment and Community Services.
Yelp Reviews were mostly positive after Gordon visited.
There were a few negative comments about not being greeted and issues with service.
Vasi's Restaurant and Bar was aired on January 16 2019.
The episode was filmed in October 2018 and is 24 Hours to Hell and Back season 2 episode 3.
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Next episode - Catfish Cabin
Renaming the business and reverting the menu, that's always a way to ruining your restaurant more sooner than later. If it didn't work the first time it won't work the second time either. That isn't a hard concept to grasp, isn't it?
ReplyDeleteTbh, I think the guy should stay away from the restaurant business as far away as he can because he clearly doesn't have it.
Totally agree Georg Haeder. The guy was in total denial, but even he could see that it started to fail again after reversing Gordon's changes. Besides during the dinner service he seemed pretty clueless.
ReplyDeleteThis was a last ditch effort so no matter what changes had been made, the old ways failed. Vasi waited too long to change.
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