Hotel Hell (2012) s01e03 Episode Script
Cambridge Hotel
1 I've spent the last decade tackling struggling restaurants.
You're screwing the business.
You can't even cook a burger in there! Off.
Ding, ding, round two! But now I'm taking on an even bigger set of problems.
I'm checking in .
To Hotel Hell.
My God! My head is spinning.
I'm gonna be staying in America's worst hotels .
So you don't have to.
I'm not sleeping here.
We're checking out.
No way.
It's bad.
This is the mattress cover.
Oh! me! It's like being in Danny Devito's house.
Look at the shower! Help.
Let me out.
Tonight I'll be trying to bring a haunted hotel back to life.
There's a little girl who supposedly haunts the hotel.
The hotel's ex-military owner I'm the owner, and I'll say that's how we're gonna do it.
Runs the hotel like a dictatorship.
You're like a little around here.
Damn it, he's wrong.
Can I save a marriage in crisis and rescue a hotel on the brink of disaster? We're gonna make it go, or we're gonna shut it up.
Sell the place.
Sell it.
'Cause this is madness.
so much for the good times so much for the fun so much for vacation I shoulda brought my gun hotel, Hotel Hell if you think the beer is rotten you should see the clientele hotel, Hotel Hell in upstate New York.
It's set in stunning countryside, a few hours' drive from Manhattan.
The hotel has 16 bedrooms and a large restaurant and has had its doors open almost 150 years.
Welcome to the Cambridge hotel.
Ex-military man and local lawyer John Imhoff persuaded his family to help him buy the hotel in 2007.
I remember sitting in my hot tub, smoking a cigar, drinking bourbon, and life was good.
And I wanted to take my wife someplace nice for dinner.
So I said to her, "why don't we buy the Cambridge hotel," and then we'd have a place to go.
" He must have hit me at a weak moment because I said "sure.
" Give me a hug.
With zero hospitality experience between them Which one is 827? I don't know the numbers.
The hotel currently falls shockingly short of guest expectations.
It's dingy, and there's hair all in through here.
All over these pillows.
It'd be nice if we had a remote control.
There's just gobs of hair.
We've had remote control since when, the '70s? I'm not sleeping here.
We're checking out.
No way.
It's bad.
When I bought the hotel, I didn't intend to be a hands-on owner.
But I am always at the hotel doing something.
One person has to be in charge.
John is a control freak.
How we doing on that chicken? Working hard.
We can do better, chef.
With this menu, there's a lot of restrictions to it.
Our budget's really tight.
The creativity's kinda gone out the window.
Brit, all the rooms clean? Yeah.
All the rooms coming in.
I am currently the general manager Excellent.
But John takes away my control.
I have no control.
But general John's hands-on approach isn't working.
Nobody wants to stay, and the hotel is losing thousands of dollars every month.
John wants to put every penny that we have into this hotel, and that is something I am no longer willing to do.
We are $750,000 in debt.
But failure's not an option, and I don't intend to fail at the hotel.
Unless I can fix things, and fast, John and Tina will lose their business and their home.
If Gordon Ramsay can't fix us, who the hell else can? Wow.
A real sense of grandeur.
Definitely some history here.
"Cambridge hotel, established 1885.
Home of pie a LA mode.
" I've been across America.
I did not realize it came from here.
Good morning.
Good morning.
Welcome to the Cambridge hotel.
Good to see you.
Uh, Gordon.
And your first name? My name is Brittany.
I'm the manager.
I have you in room 117.
That is $105 during the weekday, and $135 on the weekend.
Okay.
I think Gordon's first impression of the hotel is going to be, "what the are these people doing?" "The Cambridge hotel, R.
I.
P.
" Yeah.
Seriously? Yes.
It's died, you mean? No.
Rest in peace.
Is the ghosts that live here.
We are haunted.
Oh, come on.
There's a little girl who supposedly haunts the hotel.
Alice.
Alice.
Alice.
Oh, my good God, she looks like something out of the exorcist.
She was four years old in 1913.
When she died.
I believe in ghosts at the hotel.
I absolutely believe in them.
Gonna go up the stairs.
They're creaky as well.
And oh, God.
Are they the owners? No.
I don't know who they are.
Those have been here This place is littered with freaky pictures.
Yes.
- What's upstairs there? - That is our third floor.
Why is that roped off? Because it is not accessible to our guests.
Is that where the ghosts are? Well, that's where people say they are.
If he goes up on the third floor, he is going to freak out.
This is your room.
Oh, my God.
Bloody hell.
Look at the wallpaper.
What's the post up there? What is that? It's just there.
So there's no handcuffs? No.
Okay.
So it's not a sex thing? It is not a sex thing.
Just a really weird thing to have in the bed.
I know.
So you stand like that Aah! Oh, .
Oh, .
.
.
Well .
Welcome to the Cambridge hotel.
Thank you.
.
I am not gonna forget this day in a hurry.
Horrible linen.
Rough and nasty.
Holes.
Look at that.
And the bed doesn't even fit the base.
Honestly, I've seen better linen inside hospitals.
Horrible.
My bedroom is dated and uncomfortable.
How could anyone think this was good enough for paying customers? Bye-bye.
Can I meet the owners? Yes.
I'll be right back with the owner look how dead they are.
Gordon, this is Tina and John Imhoff.
Tina, nice to see you.
Gordon.
Nice to see you.
Nice to meet you, sir.
John.
Likewise.
Good to see you both.
It's quite amazing when you drive up and you see this little statue of the building.
Yes, sir.
Isn't it beautiful? It's stunning, until you get inside.
Hotel experience prior to this was what? Very, very little.
I mean, I was No.
None.
None.
So year one, what was the profit? We lost about $350,000 the first year.
Year two? $250,000.
Profit? Loss.
Loss.
So we're in for $600,000 within 24 months of business.
Who's funding this? Well, my mom and dad have put in Us.
Several hundred thousand dollars.
Wow.
Our children.
Our children.
Your children? Yes.
Yes.
Shea has put about $25,000 on credit cards.
Shea is your The oldest daughter.
Your oldest daughter.
Right.
The chef's significant other.
Okay.
And so my youngest daughter just lent us $10,000.
Your youngest daughter? She's in college.
Is your house on the line next? Yes, it is up for sale.
And we would live here.
We would move onto the third floor.
Where do you draw the line and say, "stop, this is not working"? You're standing there like a proud co Very confident, very happy, like nothing's gone wrong.
But taking money from your daughter that hasn't even started one foot on the path of her career? I would never ask her.
I believed that we would be able to turn it around.
I know, but, John, I'm sorry, your parents' money, your family's money, your daughters' money I do have a positive attitude.
There's a difference between sounding positive and sounding full of crap.
He doesn't know me, and he doesn't know the situation.
I'm a military guy.
I'm not gonna take chef Ramsay's .
I've just met the owners of the struggling Cambridge hotel and discovered they've borrowed money from their kids to stay open.
I do have a positive attitude.
There's a difference between sounding positive and sounding Full of crap.
Unbelievable.
Tina, how do you manage? I don't know how I manage.
And I was very close to running away several times.
Wow.
Seriously? Unreal.
Thank you.
I've been frustrated for years with him not listening to me.
When somebody doesn't listen to you for a while, you just give up.
What is it about John that's driven his wife and potential guests away? I need to watch the general in action.
What are you doing with the hoover? Welcome.
Nice to see you.
Sorry about the owner walking through with the hoover.
Are you joining us for a sleepover, or are you joining us for dinner? Dinner.
Excellent.
Damn it! Cambridge hotel, may I help you? John keeps himself constantly busy, but he's busy doing all the wrong things.
His nonstop fussing and fidgeting is killing the hotel's atmosphere.
What's he doing? Oh, my God.
The tables in the bar might be clean, but I've got an eerie feeling the food's gonna be filthy.
Only one way to find out.
Hello, sir.
How are you? Good.
My name's Phillip.
I'll be your server.
Do you want to Thank you.
I'm a little nervous.
So am I.
What would you recommend? Well, the soup du jour today is a vegetarian lentil.
A vegetarian lentil? Yep.
And what was the soup du jour yesterday? It was also the vegetarian lentil.
So soup every two days? Actually, it's longer than two days.
Um, I'll go for the pork and beans Duck confit Yeah.
And pie a LA mode.
Okay.
Okay, I think we're done.
Okay.
Thank you.
Thank you very much, chef.
Okay, thank you.
Chef, order's up.
Okay, thank you.
Get 'em going, brother.
Get 'em going.
I think that Gordon is gonna love the food.
Chef rich is great.
We put out excellent food.
Chef.
Wow, look at that! This is the pork and beans.
Holy mackerel! It's cold in the middle.
Both of you, yeah.
Just touch then meat there, please.
Ice cold.
Touch that.
Ice cold.
I can see why we've got "R.
I.
P.
" On the front of the reception.
Those are two medium rares.
Right, scooter, Chuck 'em in the oven, please.
Chef, ice cold in the middle.
Tell 'em it's a sous-vide product.
We cook it to order.
It disappoints me a little bit that we are boiling bags, putting stuff in the microwave.
I wish we could actually cook with fresher food.
Duck confit.
And chef said the pork and beans was a sous-vide product, and it's cooked to order.
Sous-vide? Oh, cooked in a bag? Yes.
They're frozen.
Frozen.
Yes.
And this plate is frozen? I think that's a sous-vide product as well.
Do we have anything that is homemade? Are the apple pies made here? The apple pies are made here.
Okay.
Can you help me with desserts, please? Sure thing.
Thank you.
So far, everything has been terrible.
Surely the hotel's signature dish is going to be better.
How's the apple pie? I just told him we don't want to complain anymore.
Ha! I'm sorry.
This is the home of apple pie a LA mode.
Okay.
Wow.
Pie a LA mode, Gordon.
So this is it? This is the That is the pie a LA mode.
, this plate is absolutely roasting in the center Has it been microwaved? It has.
The apples are raw.
If there's one thing I was expecting, it was a decent apple pie, and that is gross.
I need to find out who's responsible for terrible food here.
Hello.
If chef Ramsay criticizes chef's food Where is the Where is chef? I think rich will blow up because rich does take things personally.
I don't know where to start, to be honest.
What the is going on? Well, tell me what you don't like.
Can you be a little bit more constructive? Should we start from the pork and beans? Stone cold! It's a sous-vide product.
So you don't even cook that? No.
It's sous-vide.
No.
And can you cook? Yes.
So why buy that in? Uh, price? You'd buy a store-bought frozen piece of pork boiled in a bag, and serve it to me stone-cold in the center? You're not even cooking.
So you were just too lazy to do it? That's not true.
I am not lazy.
This menu could be run now without you being here.
Yes.
That's the way I designed it.
That's the way you designed it? So you are lazy, then.
I'm not lazy.
If Gordon calls me lazy one more time, it could cause a problem.
He might be going back to Britain in a body bag.
I just tasted the food at the Cambridge hotel, and it was awful.
I think it's because the chef is lazy.
But he's adamant he's not.
That menu stinks of laziness.
I'm not lazy.
I'm here 80, 90 hours a week.
Yeah.
You can't call yourself an executive chef.
Come on.
Do you know it's store-bought? I did.
Why would you employ a chef if 2/3 of the menu is store-bought? I think Gordon believes that I'm incompetent in running a hotel, but what I'm doing is right.
Your hotel became famous for this apple pie, right? This is the dish that is trying to stop your house being put up for sale to keep this place going.
What I'm trying to say is there are so many basics wrong, I could cry.
I could seriously cry.
I could cry too.
And look at the apples.
Look, the apples are raw.
They're not even baked.
I could scream when I see that.
I'm not happy either.
This was invented here! There's thousands of restaurants across the globe that have copied what you originated.
Have you any idea how lucky you are? And it resolves to that Soggy, undercooked, soaking wet pie.
Can I have a quick word with you for few seconds, please.
Sure.
I'm struggling to understand what's going on here.
I need to hear a woman's perspective.
John is smart in what he does as a lawyer.
Mm-hmm.
He's awful here.
I can't get it in his head.
But between the two of them, they're about to take your house down.
I know.
Him and John go back and forth.
When I give suggestions, it's pretty much, you know, oh And then it's pushed aside.
And then John is making decisions.
You're about to lose your house.
I know! And he says, "we are going until I haven't got another penny to put in it.
" He's never run a business before.
No, no.
And he's never done anything in his life but be a lawyer and a soldier, that is it.
He may have won lots of battles, but he's definitely losing this war, let me tell you.
Finally, a stranger is seeing what I've been seeing, and I'm hoping that John is gonna take something from this.
And either we're gonna make it go, or we're gonna shut it up.
I've seen about as much as I can stand at this hotel The outdated rooms, the cheap linens, and the prepackaged food.
How have things got this bad? I've got to get some answers.
What's wrong with this place, and who's to blame? The problem here is that we have to ask to do something.
We're not allowed to make a decision.
We're not allowed to make a decision.
Yeah.
General manager, executive chef.
We have to run everything through John.
Everything.
Make sure everything We can't make a decision.
John's a lawyer! So why do you have to ask someone who doesn't know how to run a bath, let alone a hotel? That's what he wants.
When he took over more control, that's when I put up my hands.
"Okay, you wanna run it? You run it.
" It's soulless.
It's littered with antiques that are broken.
It's got horrendous pictures all over the place, disgusting rooms, food that comes out of a bag! And I don't control any of that stuff! I'm not making decisions.
I told rich that I thought we should cut our food costs.
Have you got the respect from the owners to do your job properly Yes or no? No.
Brit, I have absolut Can she talk? I definitely do not make the decisions that I think I should be able to though.
And she's telling you that.
And that's what the problem is.
It's not the ghosts, John, that's scaring the regulars away.
It's you.
A chef needs to be a chef, and the general manager needs to general manage.
I'm not a micromanager.
When we first started this place, and the ideas I had were all shot shot down That's the kind of stuff.
Now it's coming out.
You've handicapped the chef, the general manager's dysfunctional, and you're calling all the shots.
I'm not calling the shots.
You're a lethal weapon! Well, you may think that No, I don't think that, I know that! You just heard from your wife, your general manager, your chef.
That I'm controlling.
I I Over-controlling! You're like a little Hitler around here! And if you don't stop doing what you're doing, you'll lose your family and the business.
I finally got to the truth at the Cambridge hotel.
You're like a little Hitler around here! The place is sinking because John the owner's meddling ways have made everyone's jobs impossible.
I'm not a micromanager.
They're not puppets! They're your team.
And if you don't stop doing what you're doing, you'll lose your family and the business! Work it out, your honor.
I'm going to bed.
Good night.
This is all stuff that I've been trying to get across to John for 20 years.
What's the matter? What's the matter? Seriously? Yeah.
What's the matter? With you right now.
You have a headache again or what? I've had it.
I have had it.
I was feeling squashed, and I don't have to feel that way anymore.
I'm not gonna feel that way anymore.
Bedtime, and I'm not looking forward to sleeping in a haunted room.
I've never seen such a delusional owner, and staff that are so desperate to do their jobs.
And now I sleep in this.
.
Oh, .
What was that? This bed is so comfy.
What was that noise on the stairs? Alice.
Alice! I had a sleepless night, and believe me, it wasn't a ghost that kept me awake.
It was something far more frightening.
Time to give John and Tina a wake-up call.
After you, please.
Hi.
These are the guests that have been staying in the hotel.
I've asked them in my room this morning just to help you understand how difficult it has become for guests to actually stay here.
Who would like to go first? I took a shower this morning and used what I thought was a clean towel, and there was hair in the towel.
Yeah.
The bed itself was actually very uncomfortable.
And the pillows.
Yeah, we left our room last night and couldn't lock our door, so we had to leave our hotel room door unlocked.
Hand on hearts, how many of you would return here? No.
Anyone? Not unless you pay me to stay here.
John and Tina, are you aware of so many problems inside these rooms? Some of them we are aware of, yeah.
- Some of them? - Some of them, yeah.
What I'm more pissed off about than anything is that last night I went downstairs In fact, let me show you.
It's easier if I do it this way.
I forgot my toothbrush.
I went down to the car And I cannot believe this.
Just watch carefully.
I went outside.
So I step down the stairs, and all of a sudden, damn, I've locked myself out.
I've got no key to get back in.
The bloody front door is not locked at night.
Now there's no night Porter.
There's no security.
And then shock horror I went behind the reception desk, and every one of your keys is hanging, replicated, in the pigeon box.
Wow.
That's terrible.
Oh.
Duplicate key for every room.
Oh, my God.
Credit card details, personal cell numbers It's all there.
That's really scary.
That's scary to think about.
Why is the door not locked? There's no good reason.
We haven't locked it in a long time.
No, about two years.
In this community, you have eight major burglaries within the last 12 months.
Three registered sex offenders locally in this community.
I mean, how does that make you feel that we were sleeping in this hotel last night, and each and every one of us was vulnerable? That's not okay.
It's so irresponsible.
Thank you.
Thank you, guys.
Thank you all.
Can you stay here with me? Ladies and gentlemen, thank you.
Thank you.
John and Tina have broken the first law of hospitality Keep your guests safe.
John's so busy interfering with other people's jobs, he's lost sight of what really matters.
I'm not joking around in the burglaries The sex offenders.
I know.
I know.
Your reputation could be over in seconds on one incident in this hotel.
Because you're not gonna walk around this town as a prosecutor, a chief lawyer, and then be responsible for a serious rape taking place inside here.
Wake up! You're running a business, not a courtroom.
And they're here for an experience, not a sentence! Sell the place 'cause you're not fit to run it.
Sell it 'cause this is madness.
Sell it And keep your house.
, it's not worth it.
.
I've just discovered that John has lost sight of the big picture at the hotel.
The bloody front door is not locked at night.
And his incompetence is putting the guests' safety in jeopardy.
That's not okay.
If John doesn't change his interfering ways, he and Tina will lose their home and be forced to live in the hotel's top floor.
It's time to find out what it's like up there.
hello? Anyone there? Hello? It's like someone Oh, .
Bloody hell.
Who in the hell put is here? This really is Hotel Hell.
Oh, my God! What happened to her hands? This place is genuinely disturbing, freaky.
That top floor is no place to live.
But I've got a plan.
If I force John to see how different things could be here, maybe he'll get the message.
So I'm going to need Brittany's help.
If we can prove to John and Tina if you take charge, and you hold those reins, that you can make money for this hotel, trust me, they back off and you step up.
Mm-hmm.
Okay? Yeah.
Absolutely.
I hear you.
Yeah? I'm hoping to prove to John that it can be busy, it can be fun here.
Tonight we are serving.
We are doing a bar night.
Oh, my God, this is terrible.
We're not a rowdy, kids doing shots, going crazy bar.
What? It's a party, party, party! We're gonna do drink specials.
We can get people in the room.
A ladies' night tonight.
I have to pack the place.
Thanks.
Bye.
This is the first step to change.
As last-minute preparations take place in the bar and the kitchen, there's a new energy in the hotel.
This is chef rich's chance to prove he can cook with fresh ingredients Nothing out of a bag.
Please, no preheated.
All fresh, chef.
Great.
All fresh.
Rich, it's your responsibility to teach these guys how to cook.
Absolutely.
Not to reheat.
Is that right, scooter? Yeah.
Yeah? Absolutely.
He's just out of culinary school.
Oh, good man.
Who inspired you to be a chef? I had relatives everywhere pushing me to join the culinary field because I wasn't physically able to do any other things, like sports and stuff.
What's the disability? I've had two heart surgeries and two back surgeries.
How old are you? You move fast.
That's a big asset.
You haven't been taught properly yet, have you? No.
That's incredible.
So what do you want to be when you grow up? I would like to have my own bakery and be a professional executive pastry chef.
Wow.
We're ready to roll.
Brittany has gotten the word out that she's in charge tonight, and people are flocking into the hotel.
There you go.
Okay, let me ring them up.
Ladies' night is going really well tonight.
There's a mixed crowd of ages here and everyone hanging out together and having fun.
What can I do to help you? - Nothing.
- Get out.
Out.
Out! All right.
The night's going great, but I don't think John quite understands how important nights like this are because I don't think this guy gets the message.
John.
I want to show you something.
Come with me.
That thing spooks me every time I come in here.
Here's the situation.
Downstairs currently, there's a buzz.
And that got put together by your general manager, Brittany.
That's her vision.
But if you carry on running the Cambridge the way you have been, this is what you're gonna have.
This is what's your destiny.
This on your own.
So stay up here and sort of enjoy your surroundings.
I'll come and get you when I'm ready.
All right.
He's so wrong, he has no clue.
And I'm thinking when he comes back up, he's gonna ask me, what did I learn? And I'm gonna say I really didn't learn anything.
It's locked.
Damn it! I've locked John, the hotel's interfering owner, on the top floor.
I need to demonstrate to him how well the hotel can run without him.
I'm not happy sitting there waiting because I know my guests are downstairs having a party, and I kinda felt that I needed to be downstairs.
Gordon wants me to sit up here and think that he's all right about all this stuff.
And, damn it, he's wrong about me being a control freak.
Good one.
With ladies' night in full swing, the chef's fiancée Hi, love.
And John and Tina's daughter Shea arrives to join in the fun.
Hey! Hi, mama.
I think she's my last chance of getting through to John.
Hi, Shea.
How are you? You got one minute? Got a second? Excuse me.
Thank you.
All right.
Time's running out for your dad, for your mother, and for their house.
I can't get through to your father.
I asked him to go upstairs and just sit and ponder and think that this is your future.
Mm-hmm.
If you think he's ready to change, by all means, bring him down.
And if he's not, I don't care.
Keep him out of there Okay.
And keep him up there.
Hey, pops.
Hey, Shea.
What's going on? I'm just up here sitting down and waiting.
Waiting To go back downstairs.
I think the point was to try and visualize what could potentially be the future.
Oh, no, I've been doing a lot of thinking too.
Okay.
I've been doing a lot of thinking.
I thought my role was about the same all along.
I feel like it's changed a lot.
And I think a lot of it is A fear of trusting.
You don't have to be here all the time.
When was the last time you sat down at home and had a dinner with mom? You know? Yeah, I feel guilty when I'm not here.
Do you know what's going on downstairs? No.
It's awesome.
There is a restaurant full of people that are thoroughly enjoying themselves.
It's hopping.
And it's working without you.
Yeah.
Yeah.
I'm I'm getting it, okay? I mean, I'm It's gonna be tough for me to back off of the working.
I think it's important for you.
I think it's important for you and mom.
Yeah, you make a good point, Shea.
I think you would be able to spend more time with your granddaughter.
Oh, I'd love that.
It's possible.
You don't want this to be your future.
No.
You don't want to live here.
No, I don't.
You have to commit to change.
Yeah.
Yeah.
I I understand.
If mom will put up with me being home more.
I love you.
I love you too, Shea.
Oh.
I've It's an epiphany.
I've just now realized my control is what is dragging the hotel down.
Now I need to make a change in order for my personal life to improve and for my business to get better.
Good job.
You're doing great.
Thank you.
Thanks.
Tonight has been a real success.
Seeing Brittany in charge and rich cooking fresh food gives me real hope.
But is John capable of letting go? My goodness, it feels weird.
It's sounding so quiet now, right? Well done behind the bar.
Well done in the kitchen.
Scooter, well done.
Ladies, great.
I mean, you couldn't get a seat at the bar within 20 minutes.
That's how it should be.
How much did we take? Just under $1,400 in two hours.
$1,400? In two hours We made more than the last four wednesdays or four thursdays combined.
John, you spent the majority of the night upstairs.
How was your night? It was a very good night, actually.
In what way? My daughter Shea opened my eyes to some things.
I'm here every night because I feel that I need to be here, that that is my role as the owner to wave the flag, as a military term.
But when it came from Shea, as she said, "you know, dad" "I know how hard you work" And I promised I wasn't gonna tear up.
And this all happened without me.
You trust your subordinates.
As a commander, the most important person you have are your NCOs.
And chef and Brittany are my NCOs.
I can't tell you how good it is to hear that.
'Cause you were a tough nut to crack.
We have got one hell of a day tomorrow.
But I need everybody, everybody at their best.
Good job.
Thank you.
Great job, Brit.
Thank you.
What a day.
I'm hoping that John has finally got the message, but is it all a load of crap? Tomorrow we'll definitely find out.
Oh, God.
It's freezing! Coming up I drag the Cambridge hotel into the 21st century.
And one of the hotel's staff gets some shocking news.
My design team worked all night to bring the hotel into the 21st century.
Now it's time to reveal the new Cambridge hotel to the staff.
Good morning.
Good morning.
John, how you feeling? I can't wait to see what you've done in there.
Right, are you ready to go in? Yes! The only way we're getting in is with this A key.
Let's go.
Let's go.
The door is locked, so your guests can sleep safe and sound.
Come in.
It unlocks.
Good, good.
Right, come upstairs.
I'm hoping that you're gonna love my room.
I think it's absolutely gorgeous.
Oh, my God, look at the floor! Wow.
Taking the carpet out and putting that flooring in absolutely transformed it.
The wallpaper was expensive.
In order to enhance it, we worked with it.
So we've got the back drapes above the bed.
We have this amazing new floor.
Perfect furniture that fits the room.
We've upgraded every room with brand new linen and towels.
$75,000 worth of linen, thanks to our friends at the online retailers, the company store.
Oh, my God.
My God.
We could have never afforded that.
That is so wonderful.
I feel kinda like a kid that comes down Christmas morning, and there's so many things under the tree that you're in overload.
I can't really comprehend everything yet.
I mean, I'm just kind of looking at it, saying, "wow!" Ready for one more room? Oh, my God, I don't know if I can take it.
Wow.
Wow, wow, wow.
I can't wait to actually show a guest upstairs to a room.
I love it.
I love it, I love it.
Um, there's one more little thing I want to show you downstairs.
Come with me, please.
In the 1890s, the Cambridge hotel gave birth to world-famous pie a LA mode.
And I think that dish can put the hotel back on the map today.
Something I thought was a huge missed opportunity.
I've been working on an amazing, very special apple pie recipe that I'm gonna give to you that you own and will become the best apple pie in America.
And on the back of that, we've transformed this room through here to the "a LA mode" room.
Come through.
Oh, my God.
Morning, everybody! How are we? We can sell our own pie that's homemade that Gordon is giving us his recipe for.
Oh, my God.
This hotel invented pie a LA mode.
And the ice cream is made fresh, here, with a brand new ice cream maker.
And it's locally sourced cream.
- I can't wait to try it.
- I know.
Come with me, please.
Enjoy the apple pie.
Nice to see you.
Please, come through.
Beautiful pie a LA mode.
Dig in, dig in.
Come on, guys.
If anybody wants this, you better get on it.
Oh, my God, that's awesome.
The world-famous Cambridge hotel apple pie a LA mode.
That is the best crust I have ever had on a pie.
Welcome to the Cambridge hotel.
We now have the best apple pie a LA mode in, I'd say, the world.
People are gonna be excited.
- Scoot, what do you think, bud? - I'm shocked.
You're shocked? Are you happy? I don't know what to say.
Oh, man, don't get upset, buddy.
What's the matter? I'm so happy.
Oh, good.
I'm happy too as well.
You know that? Okay? Thank you.
Come on, buddy.
Seeing how much he changed the hotel was very overwhelming.
I can feel a change.
I'm a lot more inspired.
Right now I feel like I can accomplish anything in the kitchen.
I am proud now.
There's a new pride in me to say, "this is where I work.
" Time to go.
I never thought I'd say this, but I'm actually quite sad to leave this place because no longer is John in denial.
He can now stand back and watch his team run the Cambridge properly.
As I'm getting ready to leave, guests are starting to arrive at the new hotel.
Hello.
Welcome, guys.
How are you? Hi.
And the biggest change of all is not the new decor.
It's the fact the guests are loving it at the Cambridge.
This is beautiful.
The restaurant is buzzing.
The Cambridge burger with the pork belly.
Guests are enjoying the new home-cooked menu that I put together with chef rich.
Good.
Yeah.
Yeah.
And you better save room for the pie 'cause it's totally different.
And the hotel's signature dish, pie a LA mode, is a big hit.
That ice cream is worth driving for.
Fantastic.
Great buzz in there.
I mean, it's electric, and it's the sound of the new Cambridge hotel.
My only hope now it that they keep it up and keep those customers excited.
'Cause when it's like that, it's phenomenal.
Is that good? Can I have a bite? I think tonight went incredibly well.
The fact that I could stay and sit with Shea and Addison and Bonk! It was really, really nice.
Wow to see you smiling is incredible.
You know that you light this place up.
But I don't want you living here.
No, I'm not.
I don't want to live here.
I do not want you living here.
I won't live here.
Okay, tell him that.
- I'm not living here.
- I hear you.
Give him a hug.
He deserves one.
He hasn't interfered tonight.
And you sat down and spent time with your granddaughter.
I had a blast.
Yeah? My job is done.
Let me tell you No longer R.
I.
P Okay.
For the Cambridge.
It has a bright future.
Long live the Cambridge.
Right? Long live, that's absolutely right.
Good night, my darling.
Before Gordon came, I didn't know where to go anymore with the hotel.
And getting Gordon here and having him show us what the problem was, now I can see that the things can be fixed.
I will tell you Okay.
Colin Powell says, "optimism is a force multiplier.
" I'm optimistic.
Stay optimistic, but don't get too involved, okay? Okay.
Look after yourselves.
Thank you very much.
Stay together.
Thank you, thank you, thank you.
Before I leave this place, there's one more person I want to talk to.
What up, big man? So you've got three more years left at college, right? About four.
Okay.
Hear me out, okay? I want you to keep in touch with me.
Okay.
I'm gonna give you my email address.
'Cause I want to finance those next four years of college personally and help you.
Okay? Do it for you.
And keep that dream alive, one day, of owning your bakery.
And then, when your bakery's open, all I want back is a loaf of bread.
Okay? It's pretty unbelievable that he He's gonna be able to finance my four years of school.
Well done.
Good job.
Thank you so much.
Well done.
I can't wait to finish school and pay him off with that big loaf of bread.
You have an amazing pair of hands and lovely smile.
Don't stop, okay? You got it.
And God help you if you fail that college.
Thank you.
You won't though.
I know you won't.
Well done.
Okay? Thank you so much.
When I go to school, I'm gonna push myself 200 times harder.
I'm gonna show Gordon what I can do, and how fast I can do it.
Good night.
Well done.
Thank you very much.
Take care.
Thank you.
Thank you.
Well done.
Oh, good job, man.
Awesome job.
Hey, you deserve it.
Definitely.
What a week.
What a place.
You're screwing the business.
You can't even cook a burger in there! Off.
Ding, ding, round two! But now I'm taking on an even bigger set of problems.
I'm checking in .
To Hotel Hell.
My God! My head is spinning.
I'm gonna be staying in America's worst hotels .
So you don't have to.
I'm not sleeping here.
We're checking out.
No way.
It's bad.
This is the mattress cover.
Oh! me! It's like being in Danny Devito's house.
Look at the shower! Help.
Let me out.
Tonight I'll be trying to bring a haunted hotel back to life.
There's a little girl who supposedly haunts the hotel.
The hotel's ex-military owner I'm the owner, and I'll say that's how we're gonna do it.
Runs the hotel like a dictatorship.
You're like a little around here.
Damn it, he's wrong.
Can I save a marriage in crisis and rescue a hotel on the brink of disaster? We're gonna make it go, or we're gonna shut it up.
Sell the place.
Sell it.
'Cause this is madness.
so much for the good times so much for the fun so much for vacation I shoulda brought my gun hotel, Hotel Hell if you think the beer is rotten you should see the clientele hotel, Hotel Hell in upstate New York.
It's set in stunning countryside, a few hours' drive from Manhattan.
The hotel has 16 bedrooms and a large restaurant and has had its doors open almost 150 years.
Welcome to the Cambridge hotel.
Ex-military man and local lawyer John Imhoff persuaded his family to help him buy the hotel in 2007.
I remember sitting in my hot tub, smoking a cigar, drinking bourbon, and life was good.
And I wanted to take my wife someplace nice for dinner.
So I said to her, "why don't we buy the Cambridge hotel," and then we'd have a place to go.
" He must have hit me at a weak moment because I said "sure.
" Give me a hug.
With zero hospitality experience between them Which one is 827? I don't know the numbers.
The hotel currently falls shockingly short of guest expectations.
It's dingy, and there's hair all in through here.
All over these pillows.
It'd be nice if we had a remote control.
There's just gobs of hair.
We've had remote control since when, the '70s? I'm not sleeping here.
We're checking out.
No way.
It's bad.
When I bought the hotel, I didn't intend to be a hands-on owner.
But I am always at the hotel doing something.
One person has to be in charge.
John is a control freak.
How we doing on that chicken? Working hard.
We can do better, chef.
With this menu, there's a lot of restrictions to it.
Our budget's really tight.
The creativity's kinda gone out the window.
Brit, all the rooms clean? Yeah.
All the rooms coming in.
I am currently the general manager Excellent.
But John takes away my control.
I have no control.
But general John's hands-on approach isn't working.
Nobody wants to stay, and the hotel is losing thousands of dollars every month.
John wants to put every penny that we have into this hotel, and that is something I am no longer willing to do.
We are $750,000 in debt.
But failure's not an option, and I don't intend to fail at the hotel.
Unless I can fix things, and fast, John and Tina will lose their business and their home.
If Gordon Ramsay can't fix us, who the hell else can? Wow.
A real sense of grandeur.
Definitely some history here.
"Cambridge hotel, established 1885.
Home of pie a LA mode.
" I've been across America.
I did not realize it came from here.
Good morning.
Good morning.
Welcome to the Cambridge hotel.
Good to see you.
Uh, Gordon.
And your first name? My name is Brittany.
I'm the manager.
I have you in room 117.
That is $105 during the weekday, and $135 on the weekend.
Okay.
I think Gordon's first impression of the hotel is going to be, "what the are these people doing?" "The Cambridge hotel, R.
I.
P.
" Yeah.
Seriously? Yes.
It's died, you mean? No.
Rest in peace.
Is the ghosts that live here.
We are haunted.
Oh, come on.
There's a little girl who supposedly haunts the hotel.
Alice.
Alice.
Alice.
Oh, my good God, she looks like something out of the exorcist.
She was four years old in 1913.
When she died.
I believe in ghosts at the hotel.
I absolutely believe in them.
Gonna go up the stairs.
They're creaky as well.
And oh, God.
Are they the owners? No.
I don't know who they are.
Those have been here This place is littered with freaky pictures.
Yes.
- What's upstairs there? - That is our third floor.
Why is that roped off? Because it is not accessible to our guests.
Is that where the ghosts are? Well, that's where people say they are.
If he goes up on the third floor, he is going to freak out.
This is your room.
Oh, my God.
Bloody hell.
Look at the wallpaper.
What's the post up there? What is that? It's just there.
So there's no handcuffs? No.
Okay.
So it's not a sex thing? It is not a sex thing.
Just a really weird thing to have in the bed.
I know.
So you stand like that Aah! Oh, .
Oh, .
.
.
Well .
Welcome to the Cambridge hotel.
Thank you.
.
I am not gonna forget this day in a hurry.
Horrible linen.
Rough and nasty.
Holes.
Look at that.
And the bed doesn't even fit the base.
Honestly, I've seen better linen inside hospitals.
Horrible.
My bedroom is dated and uncomfortable.
How could anyone think this was good enough for paying customers? Bye-bye.
Can I meet the owners? Yes.
I'll be right back with the owner look how dead they are.
Gordon, this is Tina and John Imhoff.
Tina, nice to see you.
Gordon.
Nice to see you.
Nice to meet you, sir.
John.
Likewise.
Good to see you both.
It's quite amazing when you drive up and you see this little statue of the building.
Yes, sir.
Isn't it beautiful? It's stunning, until you get inside.
Hotel experience prior to this was what? Very, very little.
I mean, I was No.
None.
None.
So year one, what was the profit? We lost about $350,000 the first year.
Year two? $250,000.
Profit? Loss.
Loss.
So we're in for $600,000 within 24 months of business.
Who's funding this? Well, my mom and dad have put in Us.
Several hundred thousand dollars.
Wow.
Our children.
Our children.
Your children? Yes.
Yes.
Shea has put about $25,000 on credit cards.
Shea is your The oldest daughter.
Your oldest daughter.
Right.
The chef's significant other.
Okay.
And so my youngest daughter just lent us $10,000.
Your youngest daughter? She's in college.
Is your house on the line next? Yes, it is up for sale.
And we would live here.
We would move onto the third floor.
Where do you draw the line and say, "stop, this is not working"? You're standing there like a proud co Very confident, very happy, like nothing's gone wrong.
But taking money from your daughter that hasn't even started one foot on the path of her career? I would never ask her.
I believed that we would be able to turn it around.
I know, but, John, I'm sorry, your parents' money, your family's money, your daughters' money I do have a positive attitude.
There's a difference between sounding positive and sounding full of crap.
He doesn't know me, and he doesn't know the situation.
I'm a military guy.
I'm not gonna take chef Ramsay's .
I've just met the owners of the struggling Cambridge hotel and discovered they've borrowed money from their kids to stay open.
I do have a positive attitude.
There's a difference between sounding positive and sounding Full of crap.
Unbelievable.
Tina, how do you manage? I don't know how I manage.
And I was very close to running away several times.
Wow.
Seriously? Unreal.
Thank you.
I've been frustrated for years with him not listening to me.
When somebody doesn't listen to you for a while, you just give up.
What is it about John that's driven his wife and potential guests away? I need to watch the general in action.
What are you doing with the hoover? Welcome.
Nice to see you.
Sorry about the owner walking through with the hoover.
Are you joining us for a sleepover, or are you joining us for dinner? Dinner.
Excellent.
Damn it! Cambridge hotel, may I help you? John keeps himself constantly busy, but he's busy doing all the wrong things.
His nonstop fussing and fidgeting is killing the hotel's atmosphere.
What's he doing? Oh, my God.
The tables in the bar might be clean, but I've got an eerie feeling the food's gonna be filthy.
Only one way to find out.
Hello, sir.
How are you? Good.
My name's Phillip.
I'll be your server.
Do you want to Thank you.
I'm a little nervous.
So am I.
What would you recommend? Well, the soup du jour today is a vegetarian lentil.
A vegetarian lentil? Yep.
And what was the soup du jour yesterday? It was also the vegetarian lentil.
So soup every two days? Actually, it's longer than two days.
Um, I'll go for the pork and beans Duck confit Yeah.
And pie a LA mode.
Okay.
Okay, I think we're done.
Okay.
Thank you.
Thank you very much, chef.
Okay, thank you.
Chef, order's up.
Okay, thank you.
Get 'em going, brother.
Get 'em going.
I think that Gordon is gonna love the food.
Chef rich is great.
We put out excellent food.
Chef.
Wow, look at that! This is the pork and beans.
Holy mackerel! It's cold in the middle.
Both of you, yeah.
Just touch then meat there, please.
Ice cold.
Touch that.
Ice cold.
I can see why we've got "R.
I.
P.
" On the front of the reception.
Those are two medium rares.
Right, scooter, Chuck 'em in the oven, please.
Chef, ice cold in the middle.
Tell 'em it's a sous-vide product.
We cook it to order.
It disappoints me a little bit that we are boiling bags, putting stuff in the microwave.
I wish we could actually cook with fresher food.
Duck confit.
And chef said the pork and beans was a sous-vide product, and it's cooked to order.
Sous-vide? Oh, cooked in a bag? Yes.
They're frozen.
Frozen.
Yes.
And this plate is frozen? I think that's a sous-vide product as well.
Do we have anything that is homemade? Are the apple pies made here? The apple pies are made here.
Okay.
Can you help me with desserts, please? Sure thing.
Thank you.
So far, everything has been terrible.
Surely the hotel's signature dish is going to be better.
How's the apple pie? I just told him we don't want to complain anymore.
Ha! I'm sorry.
This is the home of apple pie a LA mode.
Okay.
Wow.
Pie a LA mode, Gordon.
So this is it? This is the That is the pie a LA mode.
, this plate is absolutely roasting in the center Has it been microwaved? It has.
The apples are raw.
If there's one thing I was expecting, it was a decent apple pie, and that is gross.
I need to find out who's responsible for terrible food here.
Hello.
If chef Ramsay criticizes chef's food Where is the Where is chef? I think rich will blow up because rich does take things personally.
I don't know where to start, to be honest.
What the is going on? Well, tell me what you don't like.
Can you be a little bit more constructive? Should we start from the pork and beans? Stone cold! It's a sous-vide product.
So you don't even cook that? No.
It's sous-vide.
No.
And can you cook? Yes.
So why buy that in? Uh, price? You'd buy a store-bought frozen piece of pork boiled in a bag, and serve it to me stone-cold in the center? You're not even cooking.
So you were just too lazy to do it? That's not true.
I am not lazy.
This menu could be run now without you being here.
Yes.
That's the way I designed it.
That's the way you designed it? So you are lazy, then.
I'm not lazy.
If Gordon calls me lazy one more time, it could cause a problem.
He might be going back to Britain in a body bag.
I just tasted the food at the Cambridge hotel, and it was awful.
I think it's because the chef is lazy.
But he's adamant he's not.
That menu stinks of laziness.
I'm not lazy.
I'm here 80, 90 hours a week.
Yeah.
You can't call yourself an executive chef.
Come on.
Do you know it's store-bought? I did.
Why would you employ a chef if 2/3 of the menu is store-bought? I think Gordon believes that I'm incompetent in running a hotel, but what I'm doing is right.
Your hotel became famous for this apple pie, right? This is the dish that is trying to stop your house being put up for sale to keep this place going.
What I'm trying to say is there are so many basics wrong, I could cry.
I could seriously cry.
I could cry too.
And look at the apples.
Look, the apples are raw.
They're not even baked.
I could scream when I see that.
I'm not happy either.
This was invented here! There's thousands of restaurants across the globe that have copied what you originated.
Have you any idea how lucky you are? And it resolves to that Soggy, undercooked, soaking wet pie.
Can I have a quick word with you for few seconds, please.
Sure.
I'm struggling to understand what's going on here.
I need to hear a woman's perspective.
John is smart in what he does as a lawyer.
Mm-hmm.
He's awful here.
I can't get it in his head.
But between the two of them, they're about to take your house down.
I know.
Him and John go back and forth.
When I give suggestions, it's pretty much, you know, oh And then it's pushed aside.
And then John is making decisions.
You're about to lose your house.
I know! And he says, "we are going until I haven't got another penny to put in it.
" He's never run a business before.
No, no.
And he's never done anything in his life but be a lawyer and a soldier, that is it.
He may have won lots of battles, but he's definitely losing this war, let me tell you.
Finally, a stranger is seeing what I've been seeing, and I'm hoping that John is gonna take something from this.
And either we're gonna make it go, or we're gonna shut it up.
I've seen about as much as I can stand at this hotel The outdated rooms, the cheap linens, and the prepackaged food.
How have things got this bad? I've got to get some answers.
What's wrong with this place, and who's to blame? The problem here is that we have to ask to do something.
We're not allowed to make a decision.
We're not allowed to make a decision.
Yeah.
General manager, executive chef.
We have to run everything through John.
Everything.
Make sure everything We can't make a decision.
John's a lawyer! So why do you have to ask someone who doesn't know how to run a bath, let alone a hotel? That's what he wants.
When he took over more control, that's when I put up my hands.
"Okay, you wanna run it? You run it.
" It's soulless.
It's littered with antiques that are broken.
It's got horrendous pictures all over the place, disgusting rooms, food that comes out of a bag! And I don't control any of that stuff! I'm not making decisions.
I told rich that I thought we should cut our food costs.
Have you got the respect from the owners to do your job properly Yes or no? No.
Brit, I have absolut Can she talk? I definitely do not make the decisions that I think I should be able to though.
And she's telling you that.
And that's what the problem is.
It's not the ghosts, John, that's scaring the regulars away.
It's you.
A chef needs to be a chef, and the general manager needs to general manage.
I'm not a micromanager.
When we first started this place, and the ideas I had were all shot shot down That's the kind of stuff.
Now it's coming out.
You've handicapped the chef, the general manager's dysfunctional, and you're calling all the shots.
I'm not calling the shots.
You're a lethal weapon! Well, you may think that No, I don't think that, I know that! You just heard from your wife, your general manager, your chef.
That I'm controlling.
I I Over-controlling! You're like a little Hitler around here! And if you don't stop doing what you're doing, you'll lose your family and the business.
I finally got to the truth at the Cambridge hotel.
You're like a little Hitler around here! The place is sinking because John the owner's meddling ways have made everyone's jobs impossible.
I'm not a micromanager.
They're not puppets! They're your team.
And if you don't stop doing what you're doing, you'll lose your family and the business! Work it out, your honor.
I'm going to bed.
Good night.
This is all stuff that I've been trying to get across to John for 20 years.
What's the matter? What's the matter? Seriously? Yeah.
What's the matter? With you right now.
You have a headache again or what? I've had it.
I have had it.
I was feeling squashed, and I don't have to feel that way anymore.
I'm not gonna feel that way anymore.
Bedtime, and I'm not looking forward to sleeping in a haunted room.
I've never seen such a delusional owner, and staff that are so desperate to do their jobs.
And now I sleep in this.
.
Oh, .
What was that? This bed is so comfy.
What was that noise on the stairs? Alice.
Alice! I had a sleepless night, and believe me, it wasn't a ghost that kept me awake.
It was something far more frightening.
Time to give John and Tina a wake-up call.
After you, please.
Hi.
These are the guests that have been staying in the hotel.
I've asked them in my room this morning just to help you understand how difficult it has become for guests to actually stay here.
Who would like to go first? I took a shower this morning and used what I thought was a clean towel, and there was hair in the towel.
Yeah.
The bed itself was actually very uncomfortable.
And the pillows.
Yeah, we left our room last night and couldn't lock our door, so we had to leave our hotel room door unlocked.
Hand on hearts, how many of you would return here? No.
Anyone? Not unless you pay me to stay here.
John and Tina, are you aware of so many problems inside these rooms? Some of them we are aware of, yeah.
- Some of them? - Some of them, yeah.
What I'm more pissed off about than anything is that last night I went downstairs In fact, let me show you.
It's easier if I do it this way.
I forgot my toothbrush.
I went down to the car And I cannot believe this.
Just watch carefully.
I went outside.
So I step down the stairs, and all of a sudden, damn, I've locked myself out.
I've got no key to get back in.
The bloody front door is not locked at night.
Now there's no night Porter.
There's no security.
And then shock horror I went behind the reception desk, and every one of your keys is hanging, replicated, in the pigeon box.
Wow.
That's terrible.
Oh.
Duplicate key for every room.
Oh, my God.
Credit card details, personal cell numbers It's all there.
That's really scary.
That's scary to think about.
Why is the door not locked? There's no good reason.
We haven't locked it in a long time.
No, about two years.
In this community, you have eight major burglaries within the last 12 months.
Three registered sex offenders locally in this community.
I mean, how does that make you feel that we were sleeping in this hotel last night, and each and every one of us was vulnerable? That's not okay.
It's so irresponsible.
Thank you.
Thank you, guys.
Thank you all.
Can you stay here with me? Ladies and gentlemen, thank you.
Thank you.
John and Tina have broken the first law of hospitality Keep your guests safe.
John's so busy interfering with other people's jobs, he's lost sight of what really matters.
I'm not joking around in the burglaries The sex offenders.
I know.
I know.
Your reputation could be over in seconds on one incident in this hotel.
Because you're not gonna walk around this town as a prosecutor, a chief lawyer, and then be responsible for a serious rape taking place inside here.
Wake up! You're running a business, not a courtroom.
And they're here for an experience, not a sentence! Sell the place 'cause you're not fit to run it.
Sell it 'cause this is madness.
Sell it And keep your house.
, it's not worth it.
.
I've just discovered that John has lost sight of the big picture at the hotel.
The bloody front door is not locked at night.
And his incompetence is putting the guests' safety in jeopardy.
That's not okay.
If John doesn't change his interfering ways, he and Tina will lose their home and be forced to live in the hotel's top floor.
It's time to find out what it's like up there.
hello? Anyone there? Hello? It's like someone Oh, .
Bloody hell.
Who in the hell put is here? This really is Hotel Hell.
Oh, my God! What happened to her hands? This place is genuinely disturbing, freaky.
That top floor is no place to live.
But I've got a plan.
If I force John to see how different things could be here, maybe he'll get the message.
So I'm going to need Brittany's help.
If we can prove to John and Tina if you take charge, and you hold those reins, that you can make money for this hotel, trust me, they back off and you step up.
Mm-hmm.
Okay? Yeah.
Absolutely.
I hear you.
Yeah? I'm hoping to prove to John that it can be busy, it can be fun here.
Tonight we are serving.
We are doing a bar night.
Oh, my God, this is terrible.
We're not a rowdy, kids doing shots, going crazy bar.
What? It's a party, party, party! We're gonna do drink specials.
We can get people in the room.
A ladies' night tonight.
I have to pack the place.
Thanks.
Bye.
This is the first step to change.
As last-minute preparations take place in the bar and the kitchen, there's a new energy in the hotel.
This is chef rich's chance to prove he can cook with fresh ingredients Nothing out of a bag.
Please, no preheated.
All fresh, chef.
Great.
All fresh.
Rich, it's your responsibility to teach these guys how to cook.
Absolutely.
Not to reheat.
Is that right, scooter? Yeah.
Yeah? Absolutely.
He's just out of culinary school.
Oh, good man.
Who inspired you to be a chef? I had relatives everywhere pushing me to join the culinary field because I wasn't physically able to do any other things, like sports and stuff.
What's the disability? I've had two heart surgeries and two back surgeries.
How old are you? You move fast.
That's a big asset.
You haven't been taught properly yet, have you? No.
That's incredible.
So what do you want to be when you grow up? I would like to have my own bakery and be a professional executive pastry chef.
Wow.
We're ready to roll.
Brittany has gotten the word out that she's in charge tonight, and people are flocking into the hotel.
There you go.
Okay, let me ring them up.
Ladies' night is going really well tonight.
There's a mixed crowd of ages here and everyone hanging out together and having fun.
What can I do to help you? - Nothing.
- Get out.
Out.
Out! All right.
The night's going great, but I don't think John quite understands how important nights like this are because I don't think this guy gets the message.
John.
I want to show you something.
Come with me.
That thing spooks me every time I come in here.
Here's the situation.
Downstairs currently, there's a buzz.
And that got put together by your general manager, Brittany.
That's her vision.
But if you carry on running the Cambridge the way you have been, this is what you're gonna have.
This is what's your destiny.
This on your own.
So stay up here and sort of enjoy your surroundings.
I'll come and get you when I'm ready.
All right.
He's so wrong, he has no clue.
And I'm thinking when he comes back up, he's gonna ask me, what did I learn? And I'm gonna say I really didn't learn anything.
It's locked.
Damn it! I've locked John, the hotel's interfering owner, on the top floor.
I need to demonstrate to him how well the hotel can run without him.
I'm not happy sitting there waiting because I know my guests are downstairs having a party, and I kinda felt that I needed to be downstairs.
Gordon wants me to sit up here and think that he's all right about all this stuff.
And, damn it, he's wrong about me being a control freak.
Good one.
With ladies' night in full swing, the chef's fiancée Hi, love.
And John and Tina's daughter Shea arrives to join in the fun.
Hey! Hi, mama.
I think she's my last chance of getting through to John.
Hi, Shea.
How are you? You got one minute? Got a second? Excuse me.
Thank you.
All right.
Time's running out for your dad, for your mother, and for their house.
I can't get through to your father.
I asked him to go upstairs and just sit and ponder and think that this is your future.
Mm-hmm.
If you think he's ready to change, by all means, bring him down.
And if he's not, I don't care.
Keep him out of there Okay.
And keep him up there.
Hey, pops.
Hey, Shea.
What's going on? I'm just up here sitting down and waiting.
Waiting To go back downstairs.
I think the point was to try and visualize what could potentially be the future.
Oh, no, I've been doing a lot of thinking too.
Okay.
I've been doing a lot of thinking.
I thought my role was about the same all along.
I feel like it's changed a lot.
And I think a lot of it is A fear of trusting.
You don't have to be here all the time.
When was the last time you sat down at home and had a dinner with mom? You know? Yeah, I feel guilty when I'm not here.
Do you know what's going on downstairs? No.
It's awesome.
There is a restaurant full of people that are thoroughly enjoying themselves.
It's hopping.
And it's working without you.
Yeah.
Yeah.
I'm I'm getting it, okay? I mean, I'm It's gonna be tough for me to back off of the working.
I think it's important for you.
I think it's important for you and mom.
Yeah, you make a good point, Shea.
I think you would be able to spend more time with your granddaughter.
Oh, I'd love that.
It's possible.
You don't want this to be your future.
No.
You don't want to live here.
No, I don't.
You have to commit to change.
Yeah.
Yeah.
I I understand.
If mom will put up with me being home more.
I love you.
I love you too, Shea.
Oh.
I've It's an epiphany.
I've just now realized my control is what is dragging the hotel down.
Now I need to make a change in order for my personal life to improve and for my business to get better.
Good job.
You're doing great.
Thank you.
Thanks.
Tonight has been a real success.
Seeing Brittany in charge and rich cooking fresh food gives me real hope.
But is John capable of letting go? My goodness, it feels weird.
It's sounding so quiet now, right? Well done behind the bar.
Well done in the kitchen.
Scooter, well done.
Ladies, great.
I mean, you couldn't get a seat at the bar within 20 minutes.
That's how it should be.
How much did we take? Just under $1,400 in two hours.
$1,400? In two hours We made more than the last four wednesdays or four thursdays combined.
John, you spent the majority of the night upstairs.
How was your night? It was a very good night, actually.
In what way? My daughter Shea opened my eyes to some things.
I'm here every night because I feel that I need to be here, that that is my role as the owner to wave the flag, as a military term.
But when it came from Shea, as she said, "you know, dad" "I know how hard you work" And I promised I wasn't gonna tear up.
And this all happened without me.
You trust your subordinates.
As a commander, the most important person you have are your NCOs.
And chef and Brittany are my NCOs.
I can't tell you how good it is to hear that.
'Cause you were a tough nut to crack.
We have got one hell of a day tomorrow.
But I need everybody, everybody at their best.
Good job.
Thank you.
Great job, Brit.
Thank you.
What a day.
I'm hoping that John has finally got the message, but is it all a load of crap? Tomorrow we'll definitely find out.
Oh, God.
It's freezing! Coming up I drag the Cambridge hotel into the 21st century.
And one of the hotel's staff gets some shocking news.
My design team worked all night to bring the hotel into the 21st century.
Now it's time to reveal the new Cambridge hotel to the staff.
Good morning.
Good morning.
John, how you feeling? I can't wait to see what you've done in there.
Right, are you ready to go in? Yes! The only way we're getting in is with this A key.
Let's go.
Let's go.
The door is locked, so your guests can sleep safe and sound.
Come in.
It unlocks.
Good, good.
Right, come upstairs.
I'm hoping that you're gonna love my room.
I think it's absolutely gorgeous.
Oh, my God, look at the floor! Wow.
Taking the carpet out and putting that flooring in absolutely transformed it.
The wallpaper was expensive.
In order to enhance it, we worked with it.
So we've got the back drapes above the bed.
We have this amazing new floor.
Perfect furniture that fits the room.
We've upgraded every room with brand new linen and towels.
$75,000 worth of linen, thanks to our friends at the online retailers, the company store.
Oh, my God.
My God.
We could have never afforded that.
That is so wonderful.
I feel kinda like a kid that comes down Christmas morning, and there's so many things under the tree that you're in overload.
I can't really comprehend everything yet.
I mean, I'm just kind of looking at it, saying, "wow!" Ready for one more room? Oh, my God, I don't know if I can take it.
Wow.
Wow, wow, wow.
I can't wait to actually show a guest upstairs to a room.
I love it.
I love it, I love it.
Um, there's one more little thing I want to show you downstairs.
Come with me, please.
In the 1890s, the Cambridge hotel gave birth to world-famous pie a LA mode.
And I think that dish can put the hotel back on the map today.
Something I thought was a huge missed opportunity.
I've been working on an amazing, very special apple pie recipe that I'm gonna give to you that you own and will become the best apple pie in America.
And on the back of that, we've transformed this room through here to the "a LA mode" room.
Come through.
Oh, my God.
Morning, everybody! How are we? We can sell our own pie that's homemade that Gordon is giving us his recipe for.
Oh, my God.
This hotel invented pie a LA mode.
And the ice cream is made fresh, here, with a brand new ice cream maker.
And it's locally sourced cream.
- I can't wait to try it.
- I know.
Come with me, please.
Enjoy the apple pie.
Nice to see you.
Please, come through.
Beautiful pie a LA mode.
Dig in, dig in.
Come on, guys.
If anybody wants this, you better get on it.
Oh, my God, that's awesome.
The world-famous Cambridge hotel apple pie a LA mode.
That is the best crust I have ever had on a pie.
Welcome to the Cambridge hotel.
We now have the best apple pie a LA mode in, I'd say, the world.
People are gonna be excited.
- Scoot, what do you think, bud? - I'm shocked.
You're shocked? Are you happy? I don't know what to say.
Oh, man, don't get upset, buddy.
What's the matter? I'm so happy.
Oh, good.
I'm happy too as well.
You know that? Okay? Thank you.
Come on, buddy.
Seeing how much he changed the hotel was very overwhelming.
I can feel a change.
I'm a lot more inspired.
Right now I feel like I can accomplish anything in the kitchen.
I am proud now.
There's a new pride in me to say, "this is where I work.
" Time to go.
I never thought I'd say this, but I'm actually quite sad to leave this place because no longer is John in denial.
He can now stand back and watch his team run the Cambridge properly.
As I'm getting ready to leave, guests are starting to arrive at the new hotel.
Hello.
Welcome, guys.
How are you? Hi.
And the biggest change of all is not the new decor.
It's the fact the guests are loving it at the Cambridge.
This is beautiful.
The restaurant is buzzing.
The Cambridge burger with the pork belly.
Guests are enjoying the new home-cooked menu that I put together with chef rich.
Good.
Yeah.
Yeah.
And you better save room for the pie 'cause it's totally different.
And the hotel's signature dish, pie a LA mode, is a big hit.
That ice cream is worth driving for.
Fantastic.
Great buzz in there.
I mean, it's electric, and it's the sound of the new Cambridge hotel.
My only hope now it that they keep it up and keep those customers excited.
'Cause when it's like that, it's phenomenal.
Is that good? Can I have a bite? I think tonight went incredibly well.
The fact that I could stay and sit with Shea and Addison and Bonk! It was really, really nice.
Wow to see you smiling is incredible.
You know that you light this place up.
But I don't want you living here.
No, I'm not.
I don't want to live here.
I do not want you living here.
I won't live here.
Okay, tell him that.
- I'm not living here.
- I hear you.
Give him a hug.
He deserves one.
He hasn't interfered tonight.
And you sat down and spent time with your granddaughter.
I had a blast.
Yeah? My job is done.
Let me tell you No longer R.
I.
P Okay.
For the Cambridge.
It has a bright future.
Long live the Cambridge.
Right? Long live, that's absolutely right.
Good night, my darling.
Before Gordon came, I didn't know where to go anymore with the hotel.
And getting Gordon here and having him show us what the problem was, now I can see that the things can be fixed.
I will tell you Okay.
Colin Powell says, "optimism is a force multiplier.
" I'm optimistic.
Stay optimistic, but don't get too involved, okay? Okay.
Look after yourselves.
Thank you very much.
Stay together.
Thank you, thank you, thank you.
Before I leave this place, there's one more person I want to talk to.
What up, big man? So you've got three more years left at college, right? About four.
Okay.
Hear me out, okay? I want you to keep in touch with me.
Okay.
I'm gonna give you my email address.
'Cause I want to finance those next four years of college personally and help you.
Okay? Do it for you.
And keep that dream alive, one day, of owning your bakery.
And then, when your bakery's open, all I want back is a loaf of bread.
Okay? It's pretty unbelievable that he He's gonna be able to finance my four years of school.
Well done.
Good job.
Thank you so much.
Well done.
I can't wait to finish school and pay him off with that big loaf of bread.
You have an amazing pair of hands and lovely smile.
Don't stop, okay? You got it.
And God help you if you fail that college.
Thank you.
You won't though.
I know you won't.
Well done.
Okay? Thank you so much.
When I go to school, I'm gonna push myself 200 times harder.
I'm gonna show Gordon what I can do, and how fast I can do it.
Good night.
Well done.
Thank you very much.
Take care.
Thank you.
Thank you.
Well done.
Oh, good job, man.
Awesome job.
Hey, you deserve it.
Definitely.
What a week.
What a place.