South Brooklyn Foundry - Kitchen Nightmares Update - Open or Closed?

In this Kitchen Nightmares episode, Gordon Ramsay visits South Brooklyn Foundry in Brooklyn, New York.

South Brooklyn Foundry is owned by Kelly and Rey.

They have owned the restaurant since 2018.

Kelly started as a server and now takes care of the front of house.

Rey takes care of the back as the chef.

The space is small but the prices are high and they are not getting enough customers.

They are in debt, with Kelly handling the finances.

There is a lot of tension between the owners, mainly due to money issues.

Gordon arrives in Brooklyn to head to the restaurant.

Outside, he is confused by the entrance and thinks that it looks like a hardware store.

When he enters, he finds it small and meets with Kelly, who serves him.

He soon finds out from Kelly that they offer Botox and a drag show at the restaurant.

Server Nicholas takes his order including ribs.

Gordon ensures to order the overpriced burger, which they are supposedly known for.

A mistake is made and Kelly checks on Gordon’s order while trying to get Rey to make Gordon’s order special.

Gordon has to wait for his food and notices Kelly has a sour look on her face as she works.

After a long wait the ribs come out cold which he complains to Kelly about, who passes the feedback on to Rey.

The burger arrives but he thinks that it is bland and not worth the $30 tag.

After the lunch rush is over he calls the owners to give them feedback directly and get to know the business better.

They blame each other for the state of the pricing.

It is revealed that Kelly is bearing the burden of the debt alone.

Rey says his menu and concept as well as cooking is worth 50% of the business.

He has no financial stake and he has another business that he spends more time at.

The sous chef has been in charge of the kitchen for months.

Rey only started coming back to the restaurant when the show got involved.

Kelly has no access to the business bank accounts but she has all the debt.

It is a confusing mess and Gordon is shocked at every revelation.

They are completely out of sync and Gordon ends the session to focus on watching a service.

For the dinner service Kelly is nervous but with an upbeat attitude.

Gordon returns and goes straight to the kitchen to see what happens behind the line.

The kitchen is inefficient with unused cooktops.

Gordon witnesses Rey ignore Kelly when she is trying to get information about the food.

A table leaves after the food takes 30 minutes to reach them and Kelly informs a silent Rey.

Food is sent back when it is not cooked to the customers request.

Gordon sees a plated dish about to go out that is below standards.

The burger is well done rather than medium as the customer requested.

Rey blames Gordon at first then is rude and backtracks.

Gordon keeps calling him out on all the dishes being sent back.

He thinks that is obvious he is not committed to the business.

Gordon has seen enough and facilitates a meeting between the owners after the dinner service.

Rey is asked if he would just hand over the business to Kelly.

He is collecting $70,000 a year from the struggling business and not contributing enough.

He is manipulative but then walks away.

Gordon assures Kelly he has a plan that could save the business.

The staff are called and their loyalty is questioned.

Everyone but Sous Chef Danny commit to the restaurant.

Danny walks out and Gordon is happy they have a loyal staff to work with at least.

Gordon brings his team to work overnight on the restaurant space.

The next morning, Gordon sits with Kelly to work on her business plan.

Small business consultant Pedro Sotto is brought in to work with her and will be with her for a few weeks.

Gordon has arranged for a full kitchen staff come in to help out for a few weeks while they work on hiring.

After the renovation, Kelly and the staff are shown the new look of their business.

It is brighter with new lighting, a new bar top, new tables and chairs for better space flow and an extra 9 seats.

Gordon has also made a new menu of food that can be made quickly in their small kitchen.

The staff taste the dishes and love it all.

Kelly meets the new kitchen staff and she is grateful for the help they are providing.

There is a last meeting between the staff.

They learn the new space and set up for their first service.

The space fills up quickly with customers and a food blogger with over 1m followers.

Kelly is now front of house managing staff rather than micro managing, carrying plates herself.

The kitchen rises to the challenge but the food is going to the wrong tables with some confusion.

Kelly is able to correct some things.

The serving staff are forgetting orders, which is causing confusion.

Kelly panics and settles into her old patterns but is shaken out of it and gets a handle on her staff.

The customers are finally enjoying themselves.

At the end of the night, Gordon is happy with how they all stepped up and is optimistic about leaving the restaurant in Kelly’s hands.

What Happened Next at South Brooklyn Foundry?

Two months later, it is revealed that Rey came back.

He said that the time apart was necessary for both of them.

He is now committed to growing the business.

Kelly is confident they can do it together and things are better.

South Brooklyn Foundry is closed.

They closed in July 2024.

They blame the show for the closure with Kelly calling it the worst decision she has ever made.

Rey was not happy with how he was portrayed on the show.

Reviews were mostly positive since the show.

As is the usual with these shows there are some negative reviews that do not seem genuine.

South Brooklyn Foundry was aired on 27 November 2023, the episode was filmed in June 2023 and is Kitchen Nightmares season 8 episode 8.

Read About More Kitchen Nightmares

Next episode - Max's Bar and Grill

Previous episode - El Cantito