Seascape Inn Before Kitchen Nightmares
Seascape Inn was opened in 1962 in Islip, New York, courtesy of Irene and her late husband. It was one of the oldest restaurants in Islip and was consistently packed with customers during its glory days. Nowadays, the establishment is ran by Irene and her son Peter, although it no longer had its luster unlike before.
There were a lot of contributing factors to the decline of the Seascape Inn. Many complained about the smell of sewage circulating inside the restaurant. Most of the walls bore obvious signs of neglect like cracks and décor peeling off. As for Peter, he believed that the failure of the business was due to their chef Doug who doesn’t listen to a word he says. The chef, however, believed that he has the right to say what he wanted to say as he saw himself as the one with expertise in the kitchen.
The Seascape Inn needed $800 grand to a million bucks in order to keep it from sinking. Peter knew that only chef Gordon Ramsay can pull him out of this mess.
Seascape Inn on Kitchen Nightmares
Ramsay arrives at the restaurant and meets the entire staff of Seascape Inn. He sat with the owners and had Peter describe the current state of the restaurant in which the latter compared it to the Titanic: once glorious, now sinking. He then ordered a trio of dishes namely a Cajun Atlantic salmon, crab cakes, and lobster ravioli. While waiting for his meals, he noticed not only the awful smell circulating inside the premises but also the horrible state of the walls and the crumbling décor.
The crab cakes were the first to be served and, like the wall décor, it quickly crumbled due to being frozen instead of freshly prepared. The lobster ravioli was described as soggy with a strange taste as it also wasn’t fresh. Finally, the salmon came with a cup of pesto that looked like an oil slick, and the seafood was dry on the inside. Irene approached the chef and gave him a couple of homemade Greek cookies which was too powdery that he almost choked.
That night, Ramsay stood in a corner to observe the staff of Seascape Inn during a dinner service so he could get a complete picture of the restaurant’s problems. Virtually every customer had something bad to say about the food being served. After being disappointed with the operations in the front, Ramsay moved to the kitchen where Doug did as he pleased. When one of the cooks accidentally spilled sauce on the floor, Peter had to personally clean it up as he lacked the courage to order his employees around.
The next day, Ramsay went to the restaurant early to inspect the kitchen. He found grease and grime on almost every space like underneath the tables and on the walls. He saw the ingredients of the dishes he was served yesterday which were all in an inedible and hazardous state. The chef confronted the owners (who both previously attested that the Seascape Inn was thoroughly clean) and were appalled at the sight of their kitchen’s sorry state. In order to avoid having the customers eat food from such a disgusting environment, Ramsay had the restaurant shut down so the staff could clean every nook and cranny. Afterwards, he confronted the owners where Peter was grilled by the chef and his mother for not doing his job as a co-owner.
The kitchen was finally sanitary during the fourth day. Ramsay taught the cooks how to prepare seafood the proper way, much to Doug’s displeasure. The restaurant’s cooks also showed unprofessional behavior as they were unable to replicate the master chef’s cooking. Seeing that these two were nothing but a burden to the business, Ramsay ordered Peter to axe the pair which he did so. The following day, Ramsay brought Peter to a boxing ring to let off a lot of steam while the Seascape Inn was being remodeled. Here, the owner revealed that he was put down by his father while growing up which explained his behavior in the business. The exercise was successful in making Peter realize that he had to prove his father wrong.
The owners were welcomed to a renovated Seascape Inn during the fifth day. The interior’s walls were splashed in red which, combined with the dark brown wood panels, made the establishment look warm. Old photographs that depict the restaurant’s rich history were framed and hung on the walls. Ramsay also brought in a new chef to replace Doug and this new guy proved to be a massive improvement compared to the Seascape’s former cook. Peter was then introduced to Jean-Baptiste Requien, one of Ramsay’s head waiters, to improve the owner’s wardrobe and posture.
At the grand reopening, things were initially chaotic as the staff weren’t used to such a volume of customers. Eventually, they managed to get their groove and work cohesively as a team. Ramsay stayed for another week to help the restaurant’s second new cook Scott.
Seascape Inn Now in 2024 – The After Kitchen Nightmares Update
After the episode aired, there was a flurry of interest about the fate of the Seascape Inn. The restaurant was initially run by a mother-son duo, Irene and Peter, who unfortunately were struggling with dwindling customers and mounting debt. The intervention by Ramsay brought about significant changes in the restaurant’s management, menu, and overall aesthetics. With his help, Seascape Inn seemed to be thriving again.
However, sailing was anything but smooth for this nautical-themed restaurant. While the initial response was positive, with an influx of curious customers eager to experience the ‘Ramsay effect’, things went downhill pretty quickly. Despite Ramsay’s best efforts, Peter and Irene found it challenging to maintain the standards set by him.
Sadly, the Seascape Inn had to close its doors just a year after their episode on Kitchen Nightmares aired. The mother-son duo cited financial problems as the primary reason for their closure. The news of the closing spread like wildfire, leaving fans of the show and loyal customers of the eatery disappointed.
As of 2024, their old location is occupied by a steakhouse restaurant.
But all is not lost for the Seascape Inn. Recent reports suggest that while the building that housed the Seascape Inn has been sold off, the legacy of the restaurant lives on in a different location under new management. This new venture promises to uphold the spirit of Seaspace Inn while striving to overcome the issues that led to its downfall.
The story of Seascape Inn after Kitchen Nightmares serves as a stark reminder that even with expert advice and an initial boost in business, overcoming long-standing issues and adapting to change is essential for success in the restaurant industry.
