Double H Ranch - Restaurant Impossible Update - Open or Closed?

In this Restaurant impossible episode, Robert Irvine visits the Double H Ranch in Lake Luzerne, New York.

Double H Ranch was set up for children with special health needs and life-threatening illnesses.

Some of the children are in recovery and some are terminal.

The worst part for them is receiving the news that they have lost a child who visits the camp.

Many of the children don’t have friends at home, are picked on at school and are isolated from other children.

The idea was to set up a community for the children to have fun and feel a sense of belonging.

The ranch was set up in 1992 by Charles R. Wood and Paul Newman.

They were fortunate in life and wanted to give something back.

They took over an existing ranch but they made no changes.

They building is very dark and it can be a challenge for the children whilst they are in there.

Tom and Cheryl meet Robert at the entrance as they need a head start on the space.

They will be working on is more than 4000 square feet with a large dining hall, 4 spaces and a kitchen.

They have an extra day added to the usual two days and a larger $50,000 budget.

Max and Jackie are the managers and Robert meets them for a brief about the camp.

They meet the team and tell them about their activities and more about the ranch.

They offer a high rope assault course, horse riding, art sessions, boating and fishing.

They have up to 250 campers and counsellors at a time and have equipment that is over 20 years old.

There are more than 20 volunteers who come from all over the country to help at the camp.

They offer a traditional camp experience but can cater for the medical needs of the campers.

In recent years, they have seen an increase in allergies and needs to cater to different diets for medical reasons.

The food needs to be prepared separately but they are limited with the space and manpower that they have.

It is opening day and the children arrive so Robert can meet a few campers and camp instructors.

Robert gets to watch the mealtime and see how the kids are fed and it is vibrant with a lot of energy.

Robert likes the food but there is room for improvement.

Robert heads to kitchen to meet the head cook Jeremy.

He has been there for about 15 years, after starting as a pot washer.

He highlights that there is no hot storage so food goes out cold as they are unable to keep it warm.

There are separate diet areas for allergies but with little space to work with.

The team and volunteers empty out the spaces that they will be working on.

Robert meets a camper called Gabe to learn about the activities he enjoys, which is fishing.

The pair go fishing together on the lake.

Robert meets Tom and Cheryl to communicate the theme for the new design, which is ‘energy’.

The design team gets to work with painting the space.

The next day, they have allocated an allergy room which has been worked on, a smaller dining room and the large dining room.

Robert meets with Kate, who shows him the cabins where he meets some more campers.

There is also a barn with animals and rope sports in a forest, which Robert gets to participate in.

There is also a lake for different activities but the equipment they use on it is old.

Robert is inspired to invite his friend and chef Michelle Berstein to help cook.

The new kitchen equipment arrives and is installed overnight ready for cooking on the final day.

As for the main areas, there are over 30 volunteers working on various projects.

The allergy area has been set up correctly with colour coding to enhance safety.

The kids are gathered together to help design artwork to be used in the final designs of the rooms.

At the end of the second day, they are not close to finished and wallpaper is still being put up.

On the final day, the kids are sent to an amusement park so the team can work on the space and the celebratory meal.

Jeremy is shown the new kitchen and the equipment with the new designated allergy area.

He is surprised at the attention to detail and is happy his work will be made much easier.

There are new portable warmers, steamers and four new ovens.

Robert works on the new menu with Jeremy incorporating healthy alternatives.

Michelle from the Lexus Culinary Council arrives as they are working on it.

She adds a Taco Bar so the kids are more involved in their meal prep using healthy ingredients.

The spaces are now coming together with the murals being almost done.

The painting has been finished and the rooms are brightened up.

Robert also has a surprise for them and he has bought presents for the camp.

He re-joins the team in the kitchen to make some healthy snacks.

The team rush to put in the finishing touches and Robert meets the Camp Directors to let them in to see it first.

They are so excited to see the space which has been transformed from dark and dingy to bright and colourful.

The children’s artwork has been displayed and the colours chosen were inspired by their artwork.

The camp team get to meet Tom and Cheryl.

The kids are soon let into the space and they are pleased with the changes that have been made.

The food is served in the warming tables so the kids get hot meals served at the table.

They also love the tacos and there is energy and warmth in the space during the meal.

Finally, Robert delivers his presents that he is donating.

These include boating equipment, camping equipment and lots of other items including $10,000 from Lexus.

What Happened Next at Double H Ranch?

Double H Ranch is open.

Please consider donating to their cause.

Double H Ranch was Restaurant Impossible season 10 episode 2 and aired on 8th December 2014.

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