In The Drink - Kitchen Nightmares Update - Open or Closed?

In this Kitchen Nightmares episode, Gordon Ramsay visits In The Drink in Wayne, New Jersey.

In The Drink is owned by Jorge and Solange.

The restaurant is located at a country club and golf course.

They have been together nearly 20 years and bought the restaurant in 2007.

80,000 golfers use the golf course but the restaurant is dark and gloomy and not attracting the golfers.

There are numerous complaints about the food with lots of food being thrown away.

They are in debt and Jorge has taken out loans that Solange doesn’t know the full details about.

Jorge does everything in the restaurant and server Nadia doesn’t think that Jorge runs the restaurant correctly.

Nadia is essentially a manager and runs the restaurant when Jorge is not there.

Gordon arrives at the restaurant and can’t find the restaurant as there is no sign.

He thinks that the place looks closed as he arrives and thinks it looks bleak inside.

He is greeted and seated by Sam, who tells him that he hasn’t come in the back door of the restaurant.

Gordon orders the combo platter, Caesar salad, shrimp, smokehouse burger and the open steak sandwich.

Gordon sees entire plates of food being returned to the kitchen and asks what the issues were.

Sam doesn’t know where the owner is as he just turns up when he wants.

Gordons food is taking a long time as they only have one fryer and two baskets.

He believes the timings may be an issue as the golfers won’t want to wait for food.

Whilst he is waiting, he goes to the other tables to find out how their food is.

One of the diners found a hair on the cheese and it is returned to the kitchen.

The combo platter looks like a mindwarp from the 80s and it is all fried.

The chicken is clearly frozen.

The Caesar salad is acidic, bland and store bought.

The smokehouse burger is greasy, has a burnt bun and the burger is overcooked.

The open sandwich is covered in something that looks like a melted condom.

Gordon thinks that the food looks like cafeteria food.

After an hour Gordon hasn’t seen the owner and it turns out he has been in his office the whole time.

Gordon meets with Jorge and tells him the course is beautiful but the restaurant looks like a funeral home.

He tells him that the best thing about the restaurant is the service.

Gordon tells him that the food was terrible but Jorge doesn’t think it’s that bad.

Jorge continues to be in denial and they don’t have a manager as they can’t afford it.

Gordon tells them they need a manager and Jorge says that he is on site 7 days a week.

He wants to talk to the kitchen team and meets chef Carlos.

Carlos has not been trained and is at the restaurant 7 days a week.

The servers either follow Nadia or follow their own lead.

Gordon thinks that they should be fully booked over the summer.

He asks to meet Jorge and Solange the next morning after spending the evening going over the books.

Gordon meets with the owners and asks Solange if she is aware of how much debt they are in.

She tells Gordon that she doesn’t know the full scale of the debts and she asks for the amount.

She is shocked and angry to learn that it is close to $250,000.

Gordon wants to see a service to find out where the issues are.

They also offer a golf cart drinks service.

He is shocked to learn that they can earn $2000 a day by selling drinks to the golfers from just one cart.

Gordon takes a cart out on the course to sell drinks to the golfers.

One of the golfers ask if they have any food and they say that they would love a wrap, sandwich or salad.

You can see the cogs turning in Gordons head and he asks other golfers if they would like a wrap and they would.

Jorge realises that there is a gap for them to be offering more from the carts.

The dinner service is underway and Gordon is surprised to see Jorge expediting.

He asks the servers if he usually does this and they say no.

Nadia says that Solange is great at expediting but she only usually does the weekend and it is not that often.

Carlos is nervous and makes mistakes, including cooking salmon next to meat on a meat grill.

Food is sent back to the kitchen, the sliders are too salty and the refired burger is raw.

Jorge is causing chaos in the kitchen by rearranging the tickets and failing to see undercooked dishes.

Carlos attempts to put an undercooked salmon dish into the microwave.

At halfway through the service some of the ticket times are over an hour.

The refired salmon looks terrible and Jorge isn’t happy with it but still tries to send it out.

Carlos looks exhausted and tells Gordon that he isn’t feeling well.

Gordon takes him outside and tells him to sit down and drink some water.

He puts owner Jorge in his place in the kitchen, who struggles in the role.

There is a hair in the nachos and the customers aren’t happy about the wait for food.

Gordon says that he is only staying for the staff and Jorge is delusional.

Gordon can’t believe that they are struggling with three chefs and Jorge thinks it is going great.

The ribs are dry, the salad is swimming in dressing and the chicken is dry.

Gordon has had enough and shuts down the kitchen.

Gordon checks in with Carlos and tells him that he must take a break.

He wants to teach Carlos and promises a menu that he can cook and that he has his back.

Gordon talks to Jorge about the restaurant and calls him out on the issues at the restaurant.

Jorge tells Gordon that he doesn’t listen and Gordon tells Jorge that he is deluded.

They argue and Gordon just wants him to listen and not ignore the issues.

They meet with the staff.

Gordon says that he isn’t going to stay and butt heads with the owner and says that he is done.

He asks Jorge whether he is in or whether he is out and he wants him to stay.

The next day, Gordons team have worked overnight on the renovation.

He has spruced up the golf carts to maximise the revenue that they can make.

They will also be offering food including a Caesar salad wrap.

Gordon has added a sign to the outside of the restaurant and it has been given a makeover inside.

It has some personality with added decorations and colour.

The menu has been shortened and simplified and the combo is gone.

They sample the menu and love the new food.

Gordon teaches the chefs the new menu and they are happy to be working with fresh ingredients.

Jorge will be removed from the kitchen and will be working the bar.

Solange will be expediting and running the hot plate in the kitchen.

Gordon has invited local celebrities to the relaunch, including golfers and influencers.

On relaunch, Jorge walks around the restaurant like a bouncer.

The kitchen is on track and the plates are coming back to the kitchen empty.

The customers love the vibe and food.

Solange is doing great in the kitchen.

Jorge keeps neglecting his duties and is meddling in the kitchen.

Gordon puts him in the time out chair.

The team functions better with Jorge out of the way.

Carlos has had an accident and cut the top of his finger off.

After some medical attention he is ready to carry on.

Jorge starts to improve his customer service.

Jorge speaks with Nadia and asks her to become the General Manager.

She agrees to take on the role.

Both the golfers and regulars love the food and new look of the restaurant.

What Happened Next at In The Drink?

Two months later, the dining room continues to be busy.

The new drinks cart is out every day, helping Jorge to repay his debt.

Jorge has taken a step back and Carlos has been able to take some time off.

In The Drink is open.

Reviews are mostly positive with a few complaints about service.

In The Drink was aired on 09 October 2023, the episode was filmed in July 2023 and is Kitchen Nightmares season 8 episode 3.

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This post was last updated in October 2023.