Community Corner
Leone's Gets the Full Gordon Ramsay Treatment
The TV reality show, "Kitchen Nightmares" is filming this week on South Park Street
Restaurant ownership has never been the province of shrinking violets. Still, one might need more than brass cajones to endure the inevitable chewing up and spitting out that comes with being featured on celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay’s Kitchen Nightmares. And this week, Leone’s cozy Italian restaurant on South Park Street, with its casual vibe and faded photos of Hollywood mafiosi, will be doing just that.
Leone's has been selected to get the full Gordon Ramsey treatment on Kitchen Nightmares, a reality TV series on the Fox network. The show is a no-holds-barred "extreme makeover" show for restaurants in need of an intervention.
“Thousands of restaurants apply nationally [to be on the show],” says Lindsay Kuglar, Co-Executive Producer of the show. “Every restaurant is different, but we look for businesses that are passionate about their food.”
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Going into their fifth season, the popular series had a casting call for the next round of restaurants last March. Typically, about ten restaurants are featured each season, with filming lasting about three days for each episode.
Starting today, the Leone’s shoot will run July 5th – 8th. During this time, diners need to make reservations through the show’s special reservation line (323-251-8129). Patrons may not get the full effect of Ramsay from the dining room, however, as most of the heat takes place in the kitchen.
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Ramsay, known for his colorful language (and his aptly named British food magazine and cooking show, The F Word), lets it fly while trying to whip these restaurants into shape. Whoever is in charge of “bleeping” for the final air-versions of the show has no shortage of work.
The producers say that, however difficult the experience, the restaurateurs are ultimately grateful when they see the final result. “We want the owners to get the full experience,” says Kuglar. “They may have a hard time embracing it at first, but in the end, they love the changes we make.”
No air date is set yet for the Montclair episode; the (fifth) season premiere is on Friday, September 23rd at 8/7c on Fox.
