Kitchen Nightmares aired for seven seasons from 2007-2014, as the potty-mouthed Chef Gordon Ramsay traveled across the U.S. trying to help flailing restaurants get out of debt, improve service, and turn themselves around. He encountered discord among staff, owners who didn’t know what they were doing (or who had simply lost their passion), people in over their heads, and menus that were lacking.
At times, he discovered so much more behind why these restaurants weren’t thriving. Some were dirty, not using fresh ingredients, had chefs who didn’t know how to cook, dated décor, or a myriad of other things that impeded their chances of success. But sometimes what Ramsay unearthed was vile, disgusting, and downright stomach-turning. Here are some of the most horrific restaurants featured in the series.
Lela's
It's never good when Gordon has to gag on something in the kitchen. What's worse is that Lela's hadn't even managed to keep their fridge on the correct temperature, sending most of their produce rotten.
Chef Ramsay was not impressed by the way the Californian restaurant was run. From spelling mistakes on the menu to a lack of kitchen knowledge, it's no surprise that Lela's closed due to ridiculously high debts.
Trobiano's
It's difficult to decide what's worse. The fact the kitchen clearly hadn't been cleaned properly in years, resulting in a buildup of grime and muck, or the fact that there were actual rat droppings in that very same place that food is prepared.
When a relationship with the in-laws is involved too, most arguments aren't exactly going to end well. With personal feuds, terrible food hygiene, and mounting debts, the restaurant was seized by the state for missing a whole host of tax payments.
Seascape
While the New York restaurant had an interesting setup, being placed on an old ship, sadly it simply did not live up to expectations. Once again the kitchen was a gross mess that desperately needed a proper clean.
With the smell of sewage coming into the restaurant, it was not a good sign of things to come. Gordon was even served pesto that was already out of date and foul! Needless to say, the owners quickly sold the restaurant on to new management.
Peter's
Another restaurant that failed to understand how to work a freezer properly, Peter's New York Italian eatery was struggling to stay afloat after serving unsafe food for many months.
The financial struggles were so dire that a debt collector turns up in the middle of the episode, which quickly leads to a genuine fight. Eventually, the owners sold to new people and there were rumors that Peter's actually had connections to the mob.
Burger Kitchen
The most disgusting thing about Burger Kitchen was the owners. Despite a genuinely talented chef, they completely ruined the food with their own conspiracies and terrible management, leading to a rare two-parter.
Thinking that there was a plot against the restaurant, the owners believed that Yelp was actually conspiring against them. Fake coughs aside, the poor leadership meant that Burger Kitchen was quickly sold on. Fans have their own conspiracies though that the episode was actually staged.
Dillon’s
When Ramsay visited this New York City restaurant, he encountered fly papers completely covered with dead flies, a pot of some kind of mystery sauce with mold growing on it, burgers that were moldy, chicken that was green, and old potatoes. Oh, and did we mention that all of these foods were actually served to him?
Appearing in the first season of the series way back in 2007, Dillon’s was renamed Purnima, but ended up closing in 2009. The general manager at the time reportedly tried to sue the show to prevent the episode from airing.
Casa Roma
Rotting vegetables and sour meat are the perfect combination for a vile and disgusting meal, which is what Ramsay found being served at this restaurant during an episode that aired in season 3 in 2010. Located in Lancaster, CA, none of the food had any labels (do a smell test to see if it’s still good, I guess?), meat was rock hard and soaking in its own blood, and a parma ham had been growing mold.
This is yet another kitchen that caused Ramsay to physically hurl after he saw (and smelled) a three-month-old rack of ribs. The grossness extended to the bathroom, which had bodily fluids everywhere, as if it hadn’t been cleaned in months. While the restaurant remained open for some time, it eventually closed in 2017.
The Secret Garden
One word: maggots. Yes, this restaurant had maggots feasting on rotten produce in the refrigerator, which itself was filled with mold. It was so bad that Ramsay, who typically has a pretty strong stomach for these kinds of things, had to run to the bathroom to throw up.
Meanwhile, the ovens used to cook all of the presumably fresh and delicious meals were caked with grease and severely dirty. This Moorpark, CA restaurant, which was the first season’s finale episode, had been slowly improving in customer ratings after Ramsay and his team swept in to help turn things around. But it ended up closing in 2015, as the business was sold.
Spanish Pavilion
Do you know what would make a tank of live lobsters completely unappetizing? A dead lobster floating around with them, contaminating them with bacteria before they’re pulled out to be boiled and served. Ramsay headed to the walk-in where he found more dead lobsters and slimy snails. And then there was that pigeon in the kitchen.
The episode about this Harrison, NJ restaurant kicked off the fourth season of the show in 2011, and it’s one of the few that appears to still be open. Its latest reviews are relatively positive, with travelers and locals praising the large portions, delicious food, and great service.
Fiesta Sunrise
Rife with rotten food at every corner, things took a really gross turn at this West Nyack, NY restaurant when Ramsay caught a server taking chips that were leftover on a guest’s plate and placing them back into a drawer to be re-served to someone else.
Along with slimy, rotten, smelly fish and bad meat soaking in its own blood, the restaurant also had chicken so rancid that Ramsay actually gagged when seeing and smelling it. Making things worse was that he found cockroaches all over the kitchen. The restaurant closed before the episode even aired in season 2, reportedly because they failed to pay their back taxes.
Oceana
Milky crabs being stored at room temperature, sour sauce, half dead craw fish, a warm bag of jambalaya, and shrimp so old and rancid that Ramsay physically vomited into the closest bin he could find, it’s no surprise that the entire kitchen had to be completely cleaned out. Making things even worse was the mice trap with three dead mice in it. The restaurant group filed suit against the show, complaining that some of these instances were completely contrived.
As the final episode in 2011’s season 4, this New Orleans, LA restaurant is one of the few that still remains open. The restaurant has a Facebook Page, but it’s unclear if they still have the same owners. In any case, it has a 4.6 out of 5 stars rating, so they seem to have turned themselves around.
Old Neighborhood Restaurant
You know it isn’t a good sign when the dessert, like chocolate, is being stored in the walk-in fridge on top of raw meat. This was supplemented by moldy and rotting food that one shouldn’t even serve to a dog much less a human. Let’s not forget about the dead mouse, too.
The preview for the episode, from season 7 in 2014, called it one of the dirtiest restaurants in the show’s history to date. This spot, in Arvado, CO was already up for sale by the time the episode aired. It eventually closed down for good in 2016 and was turned into a steakhouse.
Finn McCool’s
When Ramsay finds sour meat, mold on canned artichokes, cooked chicken being stored next to raw chicken, and big batches of cooked food that has spoiled, you’d think that would be enough. But then he discovers some old mincemeat that was just served to him in a Shepherd’s pie!
From season 1, this Irish-themed family restaurant in a tourist hotspot of Westhampton, NY was owned by a retired policeman. Reviews started looking up after Ramsay left, but the restaurant was sold in 2009, and eventually closed in 2012.
Mama Rita’s
What was most horrific about this restaurant was that they were effectively serving customers TV dinners. Ramsay discovered that they would prepare food ahead of time, anywhere from two months to a year in advance, freeze it, re-heat it, and serve it to customers.
This was combined with the usual mold, though all in all, it wasn’t the filthiest kitchen compared to others. The Newbury Park, CA restaurant, which was featured in season 3, closed in 2010. But reportedly the owner Laura still works in the food industry, running her own catering business.
Amy’s Baking Company
The most well-known restaurant ever featured on the series is this Scottsdale, AZ gem, which was the subject of the season 6 finale. It wasn’t so much the state of the restaurant but the attitude of the owners that made this the first restaurant that Ramsay actually walked out of, saying he couldn’t help them. After it aired, people began calling the owners names and posting bad reviews on the Facebook page.
The owners, Amy and Samy, hit back in the same combative style that was seen on the show, alleging that the reviews and angry purported customers were actually plants from the show and not real diners. They decided to eventually sell the restaurant, and it officially closed in 2015, a few years after the episode aired. Amy and Samy promised to continue working on other projects. The latest updates suggest that they are now living in Israel and appear to still be baking there.