In this Restaurant Impossible episode, Robert Irvine visits Grille No. 13 in Waldorf, Maryland.
Grille No. 13 is owned by Katie.
Grill No. 13 is an Irish-American pub.
Katie says that Waldorf is a great community and she has lived there for 12 years.
She used to be a 9th grade English teacher.
She loves people but sometimes she can be bossy.
Katie has always loved to bake.
She would bake for her coworkers, and eventually things started to take off.
She figured she could start her own bakery.
In 2012, she opened up Sugar Lips Cakery and baked out of her home.
She took her cakes to a local diner and it really took off.
She wanted to open an Irish pub in the area.
She quit her job as a teacher and opened the pub in September of 2017.
When they first opened, they were very busy.
She didn’t realize until too late that finances were a challenge to manage and she wasn’t managing it.
She had to borrow $40,000 from her parents to make payroll.
She has maxed out her lines of credit.
If nothing changes, it will take her years to get out of debt.
Katie says the restaurant means the world to her.
She says that she created this restaurant so it’s up to her to get it together and change the business for the better.
She feels torn between the restaurant and her ten month old baby.
Katie’s husband Royce says they wish she could be home more.
Katie doesn’t get to spend much time with her newborn.
Royce says this is the time when you’re supposed to bond with your child.
Katie says she feels guilty every day.
Robert arrives at the restaurant.
He thinks that the restaurant is decorated to look like a bakery.
There is a clear identity issue as to whether it is a restaurant or a bakery.
The chairs are ripped, tables are broken and the floors are dirty.
Robert says he can’t tell what kind of restaurant this is.
Robert calls Katie into the restaurant.
He says he’s the only Irish thing in this pub.
Katie rents the restaurant for $18,000 a month.
Their revenue is around $600,000 but it costs over $600,000 to run.
It costs around $100,000 a month to just basically run the restaurant.
Her house is tied to the restaurant.
Katie is in debt of around $350,000.
Her only restaurant experience is having been a server back in college.
Katie oversees all the ordering of food and alcohol, payroll, scheduling, hiring, and training.
Katie explains her cake business to Robert.
Robert says she is failing because she isn’t focused on what will make them money.
He doesn’t think Katie is working smart.
Robert says he wants to see the service to see how the restaurant works.
The staff doesn’t clean the silverware, instead they soak it in water.
It’s clear that the staff isn’t trained at all.
There are no protocols in place.
Katie is responsible for expediting.
Assistant manager Erin says that Katie is new at managing.
She’s been the Assistant manager for three months.
Erin says she doesn’t really know what her job description is.
Robert says it’s sad that you have to be told that.
Robert is telling Katie what she’s doing wrong, but she is focusing on expediting.
He thinks that this is a task that the servers should handle.
The staff in the kitchen say that Katie gets them all frazzled.
Robert asks the customers who would come back based on service this morning.
The customers say the food was cold and too salty and they would not return.
They also think that the atmosphere isn’t very inviting.
Robert ends the service.
Robert tells Katie that she is the hold up in the kitchen.
She must work on being a better boss.
Katie says Robert doesn’t know the blood, sweat, and tears she has put into the restaurant.
Robert tries some dishes from the menu.
Robert says he isn’t looking forward to trying the food.
The bangers and mash is way too salty.
The Ruben is also too salty and too soft.
The corn beef and cabbage is so salty that he can’t eat it.
Robert says his father would be kicking and screaming right now if he tried it.
Robert tells Katie to bring the staff into the restaurant.
He tells them that he’s Irish and that this is the worst restaurant he’s been in.
Robert says that all of the food should go in the trash.
He says that not one of the staff is working smartly.
Robert meets with Tom to discuss the design concept.
Taniya was supposed to be there but she wasn’t able to make it.
Tom will need to also come up with the design concept himself.
The staff begins taking everything out of the restaurant.
Tom says he is actually scared of this one.
Katie wants to sit with Robert for a few minutes so he can get to know her better.
Robert says he isn’t here to beat her up, he’s here to help her bring the restaurant back to life.
Robert says that this is going to be a long journey for Katie.
Tom FaceTime’s Taniya for help with the redesign.
Katie tells Robert that she isn’t afraid of the process as she loves the restaurant so much.
Katie tells Robert about her daughter and how she was in the NICU for two months after being born.
Robert reassures her that he is here to help her.
She shows Robert her recipes, protocols, training papers, etc.
Robert says he can tell she used to be a teacher but the staff needs to be following them.
Robert creates an exercise to show Katie how not changing anything will ruin the business.
Robert gives Katie homework.
She must write down what she needs to do in order to focus more on spending time with her family.
The next morning, Katie tells Robert about what she realized while doing her homework.
Katie is working with her staff to practice her leadership skills.
The staff notices that Katie is more confident now.
Robert shows Katie and the cook recipes that will be added to the new menu.
They begin putting the finishing touches on the restaurant.
Before Robert came to visit, Katie didn’t realize she was trying to control something that really wasn’t under control.
She lost her way and Robert gave her another chance.
Robert takes Katie inside to see her new restaurant.
Katie is amazed by how great the restaurant looks.
Katie invites the customers into her new restaurant.
On relaunch, the customers love the food.
They also love the new look of the restaurant.
Royce says he is excited for the future of this restaurant and his family.
Katie says this is a dream come true.
What Happened Next at Grille No. 13?
Two months later, Katie has hired a dedicated baker to come in twice a week to bake and decorate cakes.
She promoted Donnie to restaurant manager.
Megan is thriving in the kitchen with the new menu.
Katie now gets home by 7 every night and was home to celebrate Mablerose’s first birthday.
Grille No. 13 is closed.
They closed the restaurant in August 2023.
They reopened as a carry out place in 2024, in a new location.
They have plans to open a further location.
Reviews were mostly positive with some complaints on service and food.
Grille No. 13 is Restaurant Impossible season 19 episode 8 and aired on 8th July 2021.
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