In this Restaurant Impossible episode, Robert Irvine visits Country Cow in Campton, New Hampshire.
Country Cow Restaurant and Bar is owned by Jenny Leonzi and Kerry Benton.
They are divorced and struggle to work around each other.
Kerry first met Jenny at a restaurant that they used to work at.
Kerry was a cook and Jenny was a waitress.
They dated for two and a half years before getting married.
Soon after getting married, they opened up Country Cow.
Things quickly turned bad as Kerry would yell at Jenny.
They soon separated and within 16 months they were divorced.
The sales at the restaurant dropped from $900,000 to $450,000.
The pair moved on with their lives and didn’t keep an eye on the business.
They are in debt of more than $300,000 and can’t afford to buy each other out of the business.
Jenny doesn’t know how to run this place on her own.
She says she doesn’t even know how to make a soup.
Kerry takes it upon himself to do all of the work around the restaurant until he explodes.
Jenny says if Country Cow fails, she would be devastated as she doesn’t want to be a failure.
Robert meets with Jenny and Kerry to talk about their history.
Jenny says that Kerry has intense anger issues.
She implies that Kerry is acting nice right now because Robert is here.
Robert plays footage that his camera team recorded a few months ago.
Kerry yells a lot and becomes really aggressive and he says that it’s not always like this.
Kerry says that he doesn’t want to be in business with Jenny anymore.
There is footage of Kerry calling Jenny lazy.
It seems like Kerry just wants to find someone else to blame for everything going on at the restaurant.
Robert wants to find out why Jenny is so adamant that they continue to be business partners.
Kerry admits that he would like to not be a part of this business anymore.
Robert wants to try the food and see how the service is.
The customers think that the decor of the restaurant is dated.
The servers tell Robert a little more about how Kerry is when he’s angry.
However, all Robert sees is a very quiet kitchen.
The workers tell Robert that this is an act.
Kerry thinks Robert is trying to get a reaction out of him.
Kerry has admitted that his anger stems from his upbringing.
The customers think that the food isn’t very good and needs a lot of improvement.
Robert meets with Cheryl, his design expert.
They begin taking everything out of the restaurant to start the remodel.
Kerry says he feels like nobody knows him at the restaurant.
Robert tells him that he needs to let them in in order for them to really know him.
Robert uncovers that Kerry feels guilty for not being able to say goodbye to his dad.
He had to work through his father’s funeral.
Robert gives the staff a sign that says Jenny on one side and Kerry on the other.
He asks them who they respect the most and the majority of them respect Kerry more.
Robert asks who they think could run this business without the other and everyone says Jenny.
He asks who they would rather work for and they all say Jenny again.
Robert wants to show Kerry how much his anger affects the staff and the business.
He also wants the staff to realize the stress that Kerry and Jenny are under.
Robert told Kerry to either sign over the restaurant to Jenny entirely or get it together and make it work.
Robert meets with Kerry and Jenny and he asks for his decision.
Kerry has decided to walk away from the restaurant.
They created a document that they will have to take to their lawyer to make it official.
Kerry says he is very happy to be walking away.
Robert tells Jenny that he thinks she can handle running this place by herself.
Jenny says that she doesn’t need Kerry and that she can hold it together on her own.
Robert lets Jenny release her frustrations.
She throws rocks into the water in hopes of letting Kerry go completely.
Jenny says that she feels empowered.
Jenny and Robert tell the staff the news about Kerry.
The staff is a little nervous about Jenny fully running the restaurant.
Robert joins the cooks in the kitchen to introduce the new menu.
He lets the staff taste the new food and they love it.
Robert says that the kitchen is in great hands and that Jenny has nothing to worry about.
It has started to rain, which slowed down the construction crew with finishing the project but they do finish on time.
Robert says now it’s time to show Jenny her new restaurant.
He brings her inside and tells her to keep her eyes closed.
Robert tells her to open her eyes.
Jenny is crying and says that this restaurant is so beautiful.
She says that it doesn’t even feel like her place.
She admits that she was thinking about running this place by herself and that she didn’t think she could do it.
Jenny says that this is way above what she expected out of this.
She hugs Cheryl and tells her that she loves it.
Jenny says that she can’t believe they pulled this off and that they are going to kill it tonight.
They open up for the first time since remodel.
On relaunch, the staff says that this is a little overwhelming.
They have a great team and they are having a good time right now.
The customers are loving the new menu and decor.
They promise to return to the restaurant again.
Jenny says she can’t wait to see what’s yet to come.
What Happened Next at Country Cow Restaurant and Bar?
After the show, Kerry's signing over of the restaurant was made formal.
Sales were up more $20,000 on the same month in the previous year.
The menu is a mix of their old menu and Roberts menu.
Jenny enrolled in culinary training.
The restaurant was renamed to The Covered Bridge Farm Table in May 2016 with a new look and new menu.
The Covered Bridge Farm Table is open and reviews are excellent.
Country Cow Revisited 2019 episode
In 2019, Robert Irvine revisited the Country Cow.
He visited owners Jenny and Kerry back in 2014 for season 9.
Robert said back then he could feel their pain of dealing with each other and the restaurant.
Jenny admits that back then she was afraid to do this without him.
Robert returns to the restaurant.
He wants to know if Jenny is still running the restaurant on her own.
The inside of the restaurant is beautiful but the paint needs touching up in places.
Robert says it looks exactly how it did when he left.
Robert tells Jenny that he loves that she changed the name.
She says that she changed it back in 2016 as she wanted her own identity.
Jenny enrolled in a 12-week culinary program.
When she came back, she trained all of her people.
Jenny had to call Kerry for a few things while she learned how to run the place on her own.
He even helps her cater events sometimes.
They are friends now and Kerry comes in and eats with his girlfriend.
The year Robert was there they made around $468,000 and in the last year, they made $1.2 million.
Jenny says she thrives on this business.
Robert tells her that he’s proud of her and wants to try the food now.
She makes a Chinese crepe and he tells her that it’s really good.
Jenny has really learned a lot since Robert was here five years ago.
Robert invited 150 people for lunch to test the staff’s ability to keep things going smoothly.
The energy in the kitchen is a lot calmer and the ticket time is less than ten minutes.
The customers love the food and say that it is different to other places.
She thinks her restaurant is at a 9 out 10 and Robert says he thinks it’s a 12.
Jenny says she really appreciates everything Robert has done as it changed her career and her life.
Robert has a toast for Jenny and is really proud of how far she’s come over the past five years.
Country Cow Restaurant and Bar was Restaurant Impossible season 9 episode 5 and aired on 20th August 2014.
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Nice to see a restaurant thrive after all of the hard work R I does for them. The team did an amazing job, the decor was stunningly beautiful.
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