Kitchen Nightmares - Where Are They Now? (US - Season 2)

Background

Season 2 of Kitchen Nightmares was shot in late 2007 and early 2008 and debuted on September 4th, 2008. While last season focused exclusively on the New York and California areas, Season 2 added the Midwestern US to the equation. This season is notable for several reasons: first off, it's the first season to debut after the official end of the UK series in 2007. And second (Spoiler alert!) every single restaurant has since failed, making it the biggest sequence of failed rescues in the history of the show.

S02E01: Handlebar (11-Sept-2008)

Location: Mount Sinai, NY

This restaurant was featured in the Season 3 Revisited episode, and appeared to be successful. However, like the majority of Revisited segments, it would only be temporary. The restaurant closed in May 2010, leaving a strong number of negative reviews in its wake, citing poor food and an unappealing atmosphere.

The Site Today

The restaurant was purchased and became Skybox Restaurant and Sports Bar, which closed less than a year later in early 2011. The site then became Benchwarmers Tavern and Grill, which remains open, despite a slew of mixed reviews online.

Billy - The Aftermath

Billy would ultimately return to his construction job following the Handlebar's closure. Sadly, he passed away in 2015 after a long battle with cancer.

S02E02 - Giuseppi's Trattoria (18-Sept-2008)

Location: Macomb Township, MI

The restaurant lasted about a year after it aired, closing in mid-2009. Although the restaurant was able to maintain Ramsay's standards after leaving (with online reviews remaining positive after his departure), the owners ultimately blamed the 2008 credit crunch and the lack of a liquor license for its failure. The site has since turned into a department store.

S02E03 - Trobiano's (25-Sept-2008)

The restaurant closed less than two weeks after the episode aired in October 2008, after it was seized by the state due to unpaid taxes. Chef Anthony (in the middle) got a job at Speranza Food Studio, which closed in 2011. He currently works as an executive chef at Cirella's Restaurant and Bar in New York. He and Tiffany are still married, and welcomed a daughter in March 2010.

S02E04 - The Black Pearl (25-Sept-2008)

Location: New York City, NY

Ahh, the Black Pearl. Probably one of the most infamous episodes this side of Amy's Baking Company. It's unsurprising that the restaurant closed, but what's amazing is how quickly it closed - just four days after the episode aired. While this isn't anything new - especially considering some of the other restaurants featured this season - the circumstances surrounding its closure does bear mentioning.

David - The Owner

The restaurant very well may have succeeded, had it not been for one man. Owner David absolutely refused to accept a single one of Ramsay's changes, going so far as to challenge Ramsay to return to the site one year later and bask in its success. True to his word, Ramsay would return to a successful restaurant at this site in the Revisited series - just not this one. Despite the other owners willing to accept change, David adamantly refused to, ultimately convincing them that there was nothing wrong with the place.

That all changed after the episode aired. Reports from staff state that David was so infuriated with how both he and the restaurant were portrayed that he immediately and without warning closed the doors four days later. He would later go on an absolutely psychotic social media rant, blaming Ramsay for every issue the restaurant ever had. The various rants became so profane (at some points even threatening Ramsay's family) that Ramsay eventually sought a court injunction to silence him.

A restaurant called the Hog Pit has opened here to great reviews. Greg and Brian got jobs in various New York restaurants, while David returned to his music career, releasing an album in 2010. I can't find it anywhere online, so it mustn't be very good.

S02E05 - J Willy's (30-Oct-2008)

Location - South Bend, IN

This restaurant, in keeping with the trend, barely made it three months after airing, closing in February 2009 (Jesus, what the hell happened this season???!!!). The report from owners Rick and Tricia was that, due to rising food costs and declining customers, that they had a choice between cutting food quality or closing the doors. However, reviews were harshly negative towards the end, suggesting that there wouldn't have been much quality to cut in the first place.

Rick and Tricia also ended up closing their second restaurant, Damon's Grill, shortly after this, citing the same reason, despite the equally scathing reviews surrounding this restaurant as well. Rick now makes a living buying, restoring, and selling classic cars.

The Site Tod...Oh.

The site was finally purchased in 2014 and torn down in March 2015, along with several other empty buildings on the street. So far nothing has been built there.

S02E06 - Hannah & Mason's (06-Nov-2008)

Location - Cranbury, NJ

This restaurant managed to make it a WHOLE YEAR after the episode aired before closing in February 2010. Seriously, what the hell happened this season? Initially, owner Chris blamed the lack of customers and poor economy for the closure. Before long, however, he was blaming Ramsay's new menu for ultimately driving customers away. He and Brian did eventually bring the old menu back, but this didn't change matters.

Chris and Brian Today

Chris (in the middle) teaches cooking classes part time at the local community college and is a research chef for Pinnacle Foods Corp. Brian got a chef's job at a nearby restaurant called the Lamp Post in 2010.

S02E07 - Jack's Waterfront (06-Nov-2008)

Location: St. Clair Shores, MI

This restaurant actually became very successful after the relaunch, prompting the three owners to accept a very generous buyout offer by the restaurant's original owners in 2010. However, the original owners had no interest in keeping with the high standards, assuming the success would continue regardless of how it was run, and closed in December 2010.

Jack's Today

The site was sold and reopened as Dockside Jack's in March 2011, which lasted just one month before closing in April. It was sold again and reopened in April 2012 as Brownies on the Lake, a once successful St. Clair restaurant and bar that originally operated from 1968-1997. This site remains open (albeit on a seasonal basis) and has been very successful.

S02E08 - Sabatiello's (13-Nov-2008)

Location: Stamford, CT

Yet another restaurant with an insane aftermath. Sabatiello's barely made it six months after Ramsay left, closing one month before the episode aired (note that each episode is filmed six months to one year before it is aired). Owner Sammy, according to staff, had no interest in accepting any of Ramsay's changes, but chose to ride on the fame of his arrival regardless, advertising his appearance extensively after his departure, going so far as to hand out flyers falsely stating that Ramsay declared this was his favorite Italian restaurant in the state. Of course none of this would work, and the place closed in October 2008. What happened next, however, is practically worthy of its own article...

Sammy - The Criminal Owner / Psychopath

When Sammy's publicity attempts didn't work, and right after the site was seized by the state, he went on a psychotic rampage, destroying the inside of the restaurant and causing over $30,000 worth of damage. Sammy was arrested and forced to pay the damages as well as a hefty fine. He managed to avoid jail time and was instead placed on probation. Due to the legal proceedings that were taking place, FOX was not allowed to mention the restaurant's closure, or what happened, during the closing credits of the episode (like they did with Lela's last season).

The story continues, however; the next month, Sammy decided to open another restaurant in neighboring Riverside, ironically named Sabatiello's Gourmet Pizzas. The restaurant only lasted a couple months before closing due to nonpayment of rent. Shortly after, Sammy was arrested again after it was discovered that he fraudulently charged over $20,000 to various credit card accounts that he had collected during his time at the original Sabatiello's, sparking suspicion that the second restaurant was opened merely as a scam to allow Sammy to make use of the card numbers. He served two years in jail, was heavily fined again, and can now be found making his "world famous" pizzas at a New York gas station called the Appalachian Market.

The Site Today

The site was purchased, cleaned up, and reopened as an Italian restaurant named Quattro Pazzi. It has had very good reviews and remains open. Sammy's second restaurant became a pizzeria named Marco's Gourmet Pizzas, this remains open as well.

S02E09 - Fiesta Sunrise (13-Nov-2008)

Location: West Nyack, NY

One of my favorite all time episodes, this one was mired with issues before filming even began. The site was seized in July 2007 (just a few months before filming was set to begin) due to a failure to pay the restaurant's taxes. Luckily, they were able to pay the fines, and filming was able to commence.

Unfortunately, in August 2008, a robbery gone bad led to a fatal stabbing in the parking lot of the restaurant. The locals, understandably, abandoned the restaurant, destroying any chance it ever had of rebounding. The site was seized by the state the following month (again for nonpayment of taxes), two months before the episode aired. However, after reading reviews posted before it closed, it seems apparent that it would have ended up closing on its own anyway.

The Site Today

The site is still for sale; however, due to the location's notoriety, it has never been sold, and remains boarded up and empty. As you can see, the building and surrounding site have since fallen into a bad state of disrepair.

EDIT: Thanks to Imgurian user Iloveablackmage for informing me that the Fiesta Sunrise site has been purchased, cleaned up, and turned into an equipment rental store.

S02E10 - Sante La Brea (20-Nov-2008)

Location: Los Angeles, CA

The restaurant was one of the few this season that actually enjoyed a steady stream of success following Ramsay's departure. Despite all this, the owners decided that they no longer wanted to run a restaurant, and chose to cash out and sell it in June 2011.

The Site and Staff Today

A German restaurant named Wirsthaus opened here the following month and has had good review since then. Owner Dean retired to Europe, Aurelio got a job at another LA restaurant, as did Mark, who now works as a waiter nearby.

S02E11 - Cafe 36 (15-Jan-2009)

Location - La Grange, IL

The restaurant managed to remain open until April 2009, blaming the local economy for the closure at first, before regressing to the Kitchen Nightmares standard of blasting Ramsay's new menu for driving customers away.

Chef Barney finished his culinary degree and works as a chef in Chicago. Pinto is a personal chef for a wealthy family in La Grange.

Ramsay Meme Tax

Thanks for reading! Season 3 will be coming next. If the interest is there, I'm thinking of also doing a recap for Hell's Kitchen as well. Let me know what you think!

EDIT 1: Vote in the comments what you would like to see next:

-Hells Kitchen Season 1
-Kitchen Nightmares Season 3
-Hotel Hell Season 1