Hotel Hell (2012) s01e05 Episode Script
River Rock Inn
1 Tonight on Hotel Hell, I head to a Pennsylvania Inn Where's the reception? Whose delusional owner I want what I want, and I know what I want.
Has completely neglected it.
Ugh, look at all those bugs.
Cockroach to welcome me, on the toilet, having a number two.
I'm just like, I can't believe it.
And what I discover will make you sick to your stomach.
Un--believable.
Has this thing ever been washed? I don't even like to think of what I'm looking at.
This is truly disgusting.
That's not an inn.
It's a disaster.
so much for the good times so much for the fun so much for vacation I should've brought my gun hotel, Hotel Hell if you think the beer is rotten you should see the clientèle hotel, Hotel Hell Two years ago, chef and restaurateur Ken Pisciotta had a dream.
He bought the River Rock Inn in Milford, Pennsylvania, a charming town nestled in the stunning pocono mountains just two hours' drive from Manhattan.
It was a golden opportunity.
The light shone upon me and said, "come this way.
" But soon after he got the keys, the dream turned into the nightmare.
I was expecting to reach a certain number on room sales, and I didn't hit 1/10 of that.
I don't think Kenny has an idea how to run an inn.
There's nothing in the bathroom, no shampoo, no conditioner, soap, nothing.
We have to go out and buy some.
If I came in, I would probably check right back out.
And it's, like, old.
It's trying to be cozy, but it's not.
It's hideous.
If I wanted to stay at my gram's, I could pack a bag and go stay at my gram's.
I'm not going to a b&b for that.
If you buy an inn, you got to step up and be an innkeeper.
We need to fill these rooms.
We really do.
Facing financial disaster, Ken was forced to move out of his house and into the inn.
I said, "Ken," you're making the biggest mistake.
" And he moved in, and he turned into miserable man.
Ken is now 48, single, living in his crumbling inn, and hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt.
The more the hotel fails $2,868.
The taxes are so good.
The more controlling Ken becomes.
He just takes everything out on us to make our lives feel miserable just like his.
You don't feel very good about yourself as an employee.
Kind of chips away at your sense of self.
I don't know what's going on.
I told you I'd buy you a little time.
Kenny's down here, everybody's walking on eggshells.
Everybody's afraid to do their job.
They don't want to get yelled at.
Flip, come here.
Everybody threatens to quit.
It's a daily event.
If things don't get better here, I'm definitely leaving.
You know what, you really need to grow up and act your age.
You're a 48-year-old man.
Just get the out of my face.
The progression of events has just turned it all into a hot mess.
And it doesn't matter what we do.
It's just a hot flippin' mess.
"River Rock Inn.
An American bistro.
" Wow.
Where's the reception? Jeez.
All right.
Anyone in? It's like a hallway.
Not a check-in desk unless she's behind there.
Hello.
Hello.
Somebody's ashes are down there.
Bloody hell.
Oof.
Just like my granddad's house.
Hello.
Where's the reception? This is it basically.
The receptionist should be out in a minute.
If you'd like, I'll go get her for you.
Okay.
Thank you very much.
Well, hello.
Nice to see you.
It's nice to see you.
I'm Karen Loeshoern.
It's a pleasure to meet you.
I was a little bit nervous there.
You were nervous.
Yeah, honestly, 'cause I was just, like, standing on my own.
Oh, well, I'm sorry.
I apologize for that.
It's confusing.
Where's the reception desk? It's right here.
Right.
This is the reception desk.
Can I just quickly show you something? Yes.
And now I don't mind getting stuck in.
Wow.
Oh, dear.
Oh, dear, that is pretty bad.
Yeah.
That's not very pleasant.
That's not at all pleasant.
Uh, so Would you like to go to your room? Uh, yeah.
Follow me this way.
Okay.
How old is this place? This hotel was built around the 1880s.
I take it it was decorated in 1880 as well.
It kind of looks that way.
For the first time and the last time.
Yeah, it's been a while for the rooms.
There is a closet over here.
There you go.
Special hangers just for me.
Oops.
Ooh.
Yeah.
Wow, wow, wow.
I think the coat will stay.
What is that? Extra Extra carpeting.
We just got new carpeting here.
Okay, so it's "save for repairs.
" Repairs.
I've never had free carpet in my wardrobe before.
Okay.
Just check my view.
Ugh.
What's with all those bugs? And the blue bottle is staying for the week? Ugh.
There's like a little forest of them down here.
Will you give these to your cleaner? Sorry.
Ugh.
It's like an insect funeral home.
Truthfully, in the fall, there was, like, a ladybug problem.
You'd bring in an inn guest, and, oh, my gosh, there'd be, like, you know, 50 bugs in the room.
And so Ken and I would take care of that, to get rid of the ladybugs for the people to stay.
And now they've died.
And look at this here.
I think that's a cockroach to welcome me on the toilet No way.
Having a number two.
I'm just like, I can't believe it.
Look at that.
Never had a cockroach committee welcome me on the John.
Let's get out of here.
Well, what else is on this floor? Well, this is the owner's quarters.
All these bits of furniture here do people literally sit? That seems to work well for internet service out here.
Okay, so this is the wi-fi chair.
Yes, it really is.
I'm gonna bear that in mind if I need to check my emails.
Wow.
It's very sketchy at best.
Okay.
Far worse than I thought.
Through Gordon's eyes, I was like, "whoa.
" It's totally neglected.
Well, I will I'll unpack and get ready for dinner.
Okay.
Welcome to Milford.
It's a joke.
How'd it go? It was horrible.
The place is filthy.
Filthy.
My first impressions of the inn have been dreadful.
At least I can take my mind off things with some TV.
Nothing.
Look at that.
I knew those hangers would come in useful for something.
Come on.
I can't believe I'm gonna miss the Simpsons.
Come on.
Damn.
This is embarrassing.
$110 for this.
Just the general hygiene and cleanliness is just shocking.
The wardrobe's full of crap.
And there's no excuse for dead insects and the filth everywhere.
It's like they've given up.
And no one knows there's a hotel here because it's not fit to rent these rooms out for the public.
I mean, look at it.
If this is what the bedrooms are like, God knows what dinner's gonna be like.
So far at Milford, Pennsylvania's River Rock Inn, I've discovered outdated decor, bugs galore Look at that.
Never had a cockroach committee welcome me on the John.
And a TV that last worked in 1982.
I've heard the owner is a chef, so maybe the restaurant will be the river rock saving grace.
Okay.
Good to see you.
Nice to meet you.
And it's Ken, isn't it? Yes, sir.
It says American bistro outside.
Yes.
Is it a classic bistro? Yes.
Everything made from scratch.
That's nice.
You're a chef by trade.
Yes, I am.
You're not in the kitchen tonight? No, I'm not working on the line.
So you've retired from cooking.
Somewhat.
Running the pass maybe or Running the other side.
I'm just watching over the food and sending everything out.
It's hard to run this whole place by yourself.
I have so many years of experience.
I thought that, when he hired me, he'd be able to let go a little bit, knowing that I could get this job done.
But he just can't seem to let go.
And how would you rate the food, one to ten? Seven or eight.
And if I asked you to rate your rooms out of ten, what would you give them? Four or five.
I'm now myself about dinner.
Let's hope that the food is better than the rooms.
Sure.
The concept of an American bistro serving fresh local food in a country inn makes perfect sense.
But I can't make any sense of this menu.
Um So I'm getting a little bit confused, 'cause we've gone Mexican with the quesadilla, we've jumped down to Thailand, and then gone Italian for the calamari.
What An American bistro? Yes, sir.
Wow.
Um, what would you recommend on the menu? We do a house-smoked trout.
I believe that it's golden trout from northern California.
Comes in frozen.
You're recommending that I eat frozen trout from northern California? You know, chef, it's been only frozen once.
Your head is sweating.
It's a little hot in here, sir.
You're dripping.
It's me.
I'm sorry, chef.
I feel like I've got a leak in my bath.
It's not.
It's your bald head.
Who puts these ideas together? That would be Kenny, chef.
Okay, so give me a thai sampler plate.
Yes, chef.
Yeah.
Entree Dying to see that.
The Valdostana? I'm traveling around the globe in Milford.
Enjoy.
I'm appalled.
I was promised an American bistro.
Instead, I get a sampling from around the world.
I was expecting fresh food, but I get recommended frozen fish.
What is going on here? Your thai sampler, chef.
Are they made in house? No, they are not.
No.
Thank you, James.
Wow.
It's just frozen crap reheated.
How can you make a slice of chicken look so bland? I wouldn't give that thai experience to my dog.
L6 is on the fire too.
James, no struggling.
Yes, sir.
Where's the chef from? Is he a local boy? Yes, he is.
I think, left to his own devices, he'd do very well.
He's very limited on what he can use for ingredient-wise, because he doesn't do the shopping.
Who does the shopping now? Kenny does the shopping.
So it's almost like cut the of the chef off.
Yes, sir.
M6, m14.
The menu at the river rock is pretty much outdated.
It's Kenny's menu.
It's been here for years.
I don't agree with the menu, but he's my boss, he pays my salary, and, you know, you get to that point where you're just kind of burnt out.
Hey, Gordon.
Annmarie.
How are you? Tough on this one.
What do you do here? I bartend, and I help manage.
Ken's the chef.
Correct.
And the chef that's cooking is not allowed to cook his own dishes.
Yeah.
It's almost like he's cut his off.
Well, it's kind of what he does with all of us.
Oh, really? It deflates you.
Strips your confidence.
Won't let you make any decisions, executive or otherwise.
That's crazy.
And it's A lot of micromanagement.
Why would you stay here? I'm a loyal dog, unfortunately.
I'd bend over backwards for him.
But that bone's wearing thin.
The Valdo? That's for chef Ramsay.
That might be the golden ticket.
Wow.
Thank you.
Thank you.
It's like somebody's just dropped a t-Rex foot on my plate.
Holy That's the Valdostana, chef.
Honestly.
In fact, that might be a small Valdostana, chef.
Oh, that's a small one? Yes, sir.
I mean, it's like a meal for eight.
That Valdostana can feed an Ethiopian family of 40.
You know what I mean? Horrific.
This is not what I expect in a country inn.
It's worse than a nasty roadside diner.
I feel like I'm eating a flip-flop with mayonnaise.
Ken, the owner, looks like a zombie sleepwalking towards disaster.
It's time to get everyone together and see if I can wake Ken up.
How much money are you losing per month? Right now, about $5,000 to $7,000 a month.
And that's on the decline? Correct.
If those rooms aren't that busy, why are they so disgustingly dirty? They're dirty because I didn't check them.
It's almost like we're robbing customers.
When I arrived, you gave your food seven or eight out of ten.
Yes.
The food was dreadful.
Seth, how long have you been cooking? Almost 18 years.
As a chef, 18 years in the business, are you proud of what you serve? Personally, it's Kenny's menu, it's on the menu, so I want what I want.
I know what I want.
You can't hold people's hands in this business.
If you don't fix this inn, they've all lost their job.
I honestly think that Kenny needs somebody to open his eyes so that he can see that everybody that works for him is capable, and we're dependable, and we're here to help him increase his business and make it successful, and nobody's here to hurt him.
I'm here to help.
It's impossible 'cause you are not helping yourself.
And it's not as if you're the Captain of the Titanic.
You're the iceberg.
Yet you haven't stared at yourself long enough in the mirror and actually understood where the issues are.
You're looking at them.
Good night.
Me.
I've had about all I can take for one day.
It's time to get to bed.
But, based on how neglected these rooms are, I need to know exactly what I'm sleeping on.
My black light will reveal any bodily fluids previous guests have left behind.
Let's start with the bed.
Oh,.
That has got to be semen.
This is Hotel Hell.
Before my first night sleeping at the River Rock Inn in Milford, Pennsylvania, I decided to check it out with my black light to make sure there was nothing I wasn't seeing.
And I was appalled to discover a vast spread of bodily-fluid stains.
Has this thing ever been washed? People pay to sleep in this bed.
Un--believable.
There is no way I'm sleeping on these sheets tonight.
Luckily, I came prepared.
- Oh,.
- I forgot to turn off the lights.
Oh, man.
That was rough.
Hopefully, a shower will wash away the memories of those awful stains.
Oh,.
Look at this thing.
- Ugh.
- Me.
It's like being in Danny Devito's house.
Look at this shower! Come on.
I feel dirtier now than I did before I got in here.
It's freezing.
I don't think the staff or the owner have any idea how revolting it is to be a guest here.
I want you to come upstairs with me.
I want to show you something, please, all of you.
Time for a wake-up call.
Good morning.
Good morning.
These are the guests that have been staying at the hotel.
Now, you've all experienced over the last 24 hours a sleepover.
And what I'm here to do is to help fix this place.
I can't do it without your feedback.
My biggest complaint was this morning, when I took a shower, I had water up to my ankles before I got out.
My shower had I probably showered from here down because the shower head hit me about here.
There was, like, bugs on the floor.
And then I was sitting on the bed, and then I saw a bug on the door too.
I have back problems, and this morning it was really hard to get out of bed, just 'cause you could feel the springs.
The big question for me is, on the back of last night's experience, who would stay here again? A little raise of hands.
I probably wouldn't come to stay again.
Really? No one? Thank you very much indeed.
Thank you.
I hope Ken is starting to see how his lack of effort at the inn is driving guests away.
There's one more thing I want to show him.
If this doesn't wake him up, nothing will.
I want to sh you something that is pretty horrific.
Come in.
Just stand over there, please, the three of you.
Glasses on.
Brace yourself, Karen.
Oh, my goodness.
I'm disgusted.
It's awful.
I don't even like to think of what I'm looking at.
It's like a galaxy.
This is foul.
Absolutely foul.
I'm shell-shocked a little bit.
It's disgusting.
It's truly disgusting.
Just seeing this makes me sick to my stomach.
Oh, dear.
I don't know what to say.
I mean, I'm just It is.
It's a horror show.
It was horrifying.
I was thinking, "how many times" has this room even been rented without being cleaned "for all that to be there?" Ken, you're running a hotel, not a brothel.
I know.
It is disgusting.
Start taking responsibility.
I've discovered some disgusting things at the River Rock Inn Horrific food I wouldn't give that to my dog.
Dead bugs It's like an insect funeral home.
And I've worked out what the source of all the problems is.
It's Ken.
It's not as if you're the Captain of the Titanic.
You're the iceberg.
He's in way over his head and making everyone's life miserable as a result.
And his incompetence has let the inn fall into a shocking state.
It's like a galaxy.
It's awful.
I don't even like to think of what I'm even looking at.
This is truly disgusting.
It's a true slap in the face.
I apologize to everybody who slept there before That I put you through that.
I think it's horrible.
I hope Ken realizes now that there is more to running an inn than just owning an inn.
The place needs to change and change fast.
Karen? Yes.
Elise just went to get some.
First up, the inn needs to be cleaned so it's a place fit for paying guests to stay in.
I put the whole team to work to clean the inn from top to bottom.
And I'm going to address the worst problem myself.
Hello, madam.
Hi, how are you? Very well, thank you.
Is there any chance I could put this through a wash? Yes, when do you need it by? By tonight, if that's possible.
Yes, definitely.
Would you mind? But could you do a sort of extra-strong cleaning product? It's pretty rancid.
Okay.
So be careful.
Will be done.
Thank you.
Okay, bye-bye.
Be careful you don't catch anything.
Wow.
The place is looking so fresh.
While the staff finish cleaning the inn, I want to have a snoop around the kitchen and see if there are any more clues as to how Ken is running this place.
What are these notes everywhere? Who writes notes like this? "Why do I have to ask weekly for the fish to be iced down? Do not take this sign down.
" "Do not take my pens.
Buy your own.
" "If you use this drill, replace it, or I'll buy a new one with your paycheck.
" Bloody hell.
Charming.
Ken definitely has issues.
Bloody hell.
"If you eat these cookies, take one to your next job interview.
" I mean, my God.
I'm surprised anyone still works here.
This guy Is incredible.
That's not management.
This is insane.
I can't believe Ken is so passive-aggressive with his staff.
I need to talk to him and find out what the hell is going on.
I came across all these little notes about, "don't take this.
" If you do, take it to your next interview.
" You tell me, what's going on? I don't like being taken advantage of.
I have some hard times with things that they do.
Then why aren't you talking to them? Why aren't you leading them? Why aren't you motivating them? Why aren't you getting close to them? The secret of any good management is about communication, understanding, and putting yourself on their level.
Maybe I look at it as they should be on my level.
Who are you kidding? Come with me.
I want to show you something.
Take a seat here.
Ken thinks he's managing his staff, but I think he's bullying them.
He needs to see how he's making them feel.
I've set up a monitor in one of the bedrooms, and I'm going to force Ken to watch his staff meeting.
I think this might bring about the change this place desperately needs.
Stay here.
I'll be back in five.
I came here to help.
What I'm frustrated about is what I'm discovering.
I snooped around the kitchen.
I come across this A cookie jar.
"If you eat these cookies, take one to your next job interview.
" We call those Kenny's nasty-grams.
I mean, is this a joke? No.
That's him.
I put those notes up because my staff needs reminders from me to tell them to do the simplest tasks.
They can come off as degrading.
But I don't know if they get the hint any other way.
What in the hell is going on? Look at this one.
"Don't take my pens.
Buy your own.
" I think he hides behind He's afraid of confrontation.
It's passive-aggressive.
How does that make you feel? He causes us all to be discouraged in the jobs that we have.
There are so many people here that really know their jobs well, but we have become discouraged, and when people become discouraged, they don't do the things that are necessary.
There's no gratitude.
Like, so, when you say to us, why are we like this? We're just spiritless.
He's really just sucked the soul out of every one of us.
He's just a spirit sucker, honestly.
I've locked Ken, the owner of Milford's River Rock Inn into a bedroom where he can watch his staff meeting on TV.
"If you eat these cookies, take one to your next job interview.
" The staff have told me his management style has destroyed their morale.
Is this a joke? No.
That's him.
Every day.
There's no gratitude.
Like, so when you say to us, why are we like this? We're just spiritless.
He's really just sucked the soul out of every one of us, individually, over the period and length of time.
He's just a spirit sucker, honestly.
Annmarie's comments about me brought tears to my eyes Her especially because she's one of my closest friends.
It hurt me.
What do you want to see change from him? Let the people on his team do the work that he's hired us to do.
This place can succeed, providing that you stay on track.
You've got to stand up to him.
Let me go and get him.
I hope that seeing that finally got through to Ken.
It's time to reveal to the staff that he was upstairs watching every word.
Wow.
Of what my staff thinks about me It's awakening.
It really saddens me, because I would do anything for them, and I feel that they don't see that.
I need to change.
I watched everything you said.
And I apologize.
I never wanted to suck the life out of any of you.
And I think I can control this place, but realize maybe I don't need to control.
You have a good team here.
And if we are gonna move forward, you have to give them ownership of their own areas.
Seth.
Yep.
You've got to get that mojo back Falling back in love with what you're employed to do.
Karen You care, and that's what being a good innkeeper That little personal touch.
You should have a hold on the inside of this business as sort of filling the place, like the inn hotel manager.
So I want you to have that level of responsibility.
I think what I learned the most was that I need to give people the opportunity to run this place.
I can't micromanage like I always did.
And I really hope that he backs off and lets us all do our job.
He just has to put the faith in us, and I know that our team can accomplish anything.
I think Ken's warming to the idea of change.
But I don't feel I've got to the heart of why he looks like a man under such extreme pressure.
Kenny? Have you got two minutes? Sure thing.
Can I come in? Come on in.
There's got to be more to this than money.
Yesterday, in many ways, I started to believe you'd given up.
Today we turned the corner.
We've got to stay on that track.
I thought I could control this place, and it didn't work.
Mm-hmm.
It's not working.
It seems like the pressure you're under is not just financial, right? In order to buy this place, I borrowed from my brother.
I said, "I think I can really make this work," "and the price is affordable.
Would you help me?" After we met with the owners, he went to the truck and says, "how much do you want me to write the check out for?" Wow.
He's my idol.
And my mother too.
My mother, it wouldn't happen without her help either.
I said, "I could move to this restaurant," "to this place, "and the only way I could do it is I need some money from you.
" I needed $50,000.
And she also said, "just take it.
".
So both their houses are tied into here.
So, if this place fails You have let them down and yourself.
This entire place wouldn't be here without my brother and my mother's help.
I want the business to succeed so that they don't have to have a worry.
I don't want to ever let them down.
And you can't do it alone.
Yeah.
I know.
Do you have a girlfriend in here or? No.
No.
Don't take this the wrong way, but it needs It needs a woman's touch.
Yep.
It needs a bit of a feminine approach.
It needs that kind of love, no? Yes.
It's been kind of rough.
There's been no lady in my life because I haven't had a chance to go out there and even meet or date women.
I just want to meet that special person.
And just hoo Big, deep breath.
That's the first time I smiled in a while.
Good.
The river rock inn has come a long way from where we started.
The once filthy inn is now clean, and Ken, the owner, has seen the error of his ways.
I apologize.
I never wanted to suck the life out of any of you.
But before this place is ready to welcome guests, the staff need to understand the true meaning of hospitality.
This place is definitely on the road to recovery, but I think this team needs some training, so I've asked a very special friend, Ramesh Sadhwani from Caesars Palace To actually show them how it's done.
Hi, Gordon.
Good to see you.
How are you? How are you? I'm great.
Please take a seat.
It's so nice to see you.
It's great to see you.
So the customer focus is critical, isn't it? Very much so.
And in your mind, what are the golden rules? In the first 60 seconds.
You have to approach a guest with a big smile on your face, because it just opens all kinds of doors.
Find little ways to make a lasting impression on that guest and let them know that their comfort and their enjoyment is your primary objective.
It sounds simple, but it's not that simple, is it? If you practice all the basics, the rest of it will just fall into place.
It has to be natural.
People know when you're not being sincere.
The good news is the team here, you know, their heart is in the right place, but they are clearly lacking training.
The owner doesn't smile that often.
Oh, okay, all right.
Let me go get the team.
Okay.
Thanks, Ramesh.
Kenny, I've got someone very special I want to introduce you to.
Please come through.
I'd like to introduce you to a very dear friend of mine.
Please.
My name is Ramesh.
Ramesh.
Very nice to meet you.
My name's Karen.
He's from Caesars Palace.
He's flown in from Vegas.
I asked ramesh to come and teach you how to greet customers.
Holy mackerel, here's the guy that runs Caesars Palace coming to teach my staff.
How lucky of a guy am I? He's here to help you and to show you within 60 seconds of those guests arriving through that door what we need to hit.
First impressions go wrong, they never forget it, okay? Why don't we have a look at what they normally do, stop straight away, and we restart? Okay.
Stop.
As soon as you see a guest coming through there, you can come out here and reach for the door, open the door, and have a big smile on your face.
It looked like you just lost your arm.
Here we go.
Bollocks.
Okay, put a lot more into it.
Okay.
It's got to be, "good afternoon.
It's great to have you here.
Welcome.
" It was kind of hard.
I'm gonna work to get better at greeting people.
Good afternoon.
Nice to have you here.
Welcome to the River Rock Inn.
Thank you very much.
Stop.
Before he extends his hand out to you, you should have extended your hand out to him.
I feel like I'm being yelled at by a drill sergeant.
You're out.
On the stairs.
Karen, your turn.
Karen, you have an incredible smile.
I was a little nervous.
Gordon's in the back, and he's chanting, you know, "you can do this.
You can do this," you know, and giving a pep talk.
Here we go.
Good afternoon.
I'm Karen.
Welcome to the river rock.
Good afternoon.
My name's James Sanfillipo.
I'm here to check in.
Welcome, Mr.
Sanfillipo.
Come right this way.
I see that you'll be staying with us for the next week? Yes, ma'am.
Possibly more.
Of course.
That would be wonderful.
We have you staying in our king-sized room, which is on the second floor.
Absolutely lovely room with a pretty view out the front of the house, so that's a nice place to be.
Nice.
Finally! Amazing.
Karen is a superstar.
She really is.
That was very well done.
Gordon helped me realize that I have people that I can rely on and instead of being the hands-on owner, I should be more of the overseeing owner, which I really need to be.
Very well done.
Very well done.
Right.
Now that ramesh has taught the staff how to make the right first impression, I'm gonna try and help Ken boost his self-esteem, which will make him a much better innkeeper.
Ken, meet Barbie.
Barbie, meet Ken.
Hi.
Pleased to meet you.
I've flown in Barbie hatch, a Hollywood stylist, to give him a new look.
This one's a little bit too big for you.
In a different shirt maybe? While Barbie gets to work on transforming Ken, I want to check out the inn's website and see if that's also in need of a makeover.
This is supposed to be the wi-fi chair, and I can't even get any signal.
One bar.
There's amazing competition in this town, so, in order to stand out and sort of be somewhat different, you do need a great website.
My goodness.
The only page on the website looks as old and frumpy as the interior of the bedrooms.
I mean, it's so dated.
It's like it's been put together on a $20 budget Shocking.
He also doesn't realize that 80% of hotel bookings are done online today, so, if you've got no decent website to follow, then you're absolutely screwed.
Ah, , come back to me, signal.
Let's see.
It's great.
It really works.
You don't have to put on a parka.
Just throw this around your neck, you're done.
Let's do it.
Thank you so much.
You're so welcome.
Ken's makeover is finished, and I'm gonna take him out on the town.
But first let's see what his staff think.
Whoa! Your new innkeeper.
Nice.
Very, very nice.
Yeah? Yes.
Very handsome.
Let's go.
I'm taking Ken to a local bar.
I think that meeting the right girl will give him a great confidence boost The sort of positive energy that will light up the river rock and make Ken a pleasure to deal with.
Quite a lively little place.
Take a seat.
How dapper does Kenny look? He looks very dapper.
He does, doesn't he? Thank you.
New Newly-designed.
New man, right? Very good.
How could that man still be single? Who's single? Kenny's single.
We got to find you a milf.
Dude, we know someone.
Seriously? Come on.
We really do.
Invite her for dinner tomorrow at River Rock Inn.
Tomorrow? Yes, tomorrow night.
Oh, yes.
Relaunching tomorrow, yeah.
Relaunching the inn tomorrow night.
It's gonna be awesome.
Yes.
So can we have a little toast to Kenny finding a girlfriend in Milford? To Kenny.
Yay! It was really a great ego boost.
I felt like the king.
Boy, he really set me up.
Thank you very much.
If I fail now, I'm really a loser.
Big day tomorrow.
See you tomorrow.
See you in the morning.
Best wishes.
Good night.
Thank you.
Good night.
Honestly, I've never seen a man change so much.
Let's just hope he's not late for breakfast in the morning.
Cheers to Kenny.
Cheers to Kenny.
My design team worked through the night to transform Milford, Pennsylvania's River Rock Inn, and now it's time to reveal the changes to Ken and his team.
Good morning.
Good morning.
How are we? Very good.
Good.
Seth, how you feeling? Great.
Excellent.
All of you this week have really put so much effort into get this inn back on track, so I'm greatly appreciative for your efforts.
It's only fitting, okay, that we start the relaunch with a proper sign.
Take a look at this.
It's not Wow.
The old sign from the old restaurant.
- It's a beautiful sign - "River Rock Inn and restaurant.
The best food and lodging in the poconos.
" How cool is that? That's very cool.
Does it look nice? Beautiful.
It's wonderful.
Thank you.
Okay, ready to go inside, yeah? I'm excited.
Let's go.
Come through.
Are you ready? It's a beautiful place to live and stay Wow.
Oh, my goodness.
Not a place you're gonna come and die.
Beautiful.
First off, we have a stunning color on the walls.
Gone is that hideous paper.
So now it's in keeping with a rustic charm.
And all the bugs are gone too.
The changes are just incredible.
I'm a bit overwhelmed by them.
I'm blown away.
Totally blown away.
We replaced that dinosaur TV with a new flat screen.
Yay.
Guess what.
It works.
It works? Okay? Replacing the mattresses - Stunning linen.
- Oh, my goodness.
New table lamps.
- And guess what.
- Gone are the stains.
Karen, the only milky way from the skies above.
Yes? Karen, what do you think? I think it's absolutely beautiful.
It's still a country inn, but it's a country inn of the year 2012.
Unreal.
Let me show you the room next door, please.
This is incredible.
This is just amazing.
Gordon just did wonders here.
Oh, by the way What? I've updated your router, okay? So you can have wi-fi.
In the room? Inside the room.
Oh, my God! How cool is that? Amazing.
Hello.
I'm blown away.
You're blown away? I'm just blown away.
Excellent.
Oh, wow.
Please, come in.
Wow.
Look at this.
Come in, come in, come in.
Oh, man! Wow! When I first arrived, the check-in was so confusing.
Now the guests come in, they sit down, we offer them a coffee, glass of water, and then we'll go to actually booking them in online.
Wow.
How cool is that? It's crazy.
Now, how much do you spend on linen a month? A fortune.
A fortune.
Underneath the tablecloths, you have these stunning natural tables, which were just being hidden at a ridiculous expense.
Focus on the linen upstairs in the room.
Before Gordon was here, I just had a restaurant.
Now I have an inn.
I have a destination.
I can't wait.
I'm looking forward to the relaunch tonight.
We're gonna have a lot of fun.
You like it? Yeah? You like it? Good man.
Thank you.
With a new decor and Ramesh's expert training Hello.
Welcome to the river rock.
I'm Karen.
Along with a newly-inspired Ken Nice to see you.
How you been? Enjoy your dinner.
Thank you.
The river rock is in a much better place.
Time to go.
When I got here, Ken, honestly, that guy was a hopeless innkeeper.
Almost like someone who'd given up.
But, you know, we've turned him around.
It's almost like he's sort of He's got his mojo back.
And now the river rock has every chance of succeeding.
I'll tell you what I've seen a lot of skies, but not quite a milky way like that.
Me.
As I prepare to leave, guests are arriving for the relaunch.
And I notice some familiar faces from the bar last night.
And as promised, they've brought a friend.
How are you, my darling? Nice to meet you.
- Oh, you're the da - Oh,.
He's over there.
Have a little peep.
Have a little peep.
Have a little peep.
First impressions? He looks cute.
He looks cute.
Nice.
I can feel a good night coming on.
Wow.
Joey, I need three onion soups, two fish cakes, and fish fingers.
With Ken trusting his staff and not micromanaging, he's able to spend more time on the floor.
Salud, my friends.
Leaving time to charm the milfs of Milford.
Hello.
How's everyone tonight? Hi, Kenny.
And this is Hi, Kenny.
Very nice to meet you.
Pleasure.
Ken.
Nice to meet you.
Follow me.
Come on, wake up.
I was excited to see them.
She was very pretty.
I look forward to talking with her.
Here we go, ladies.
Thank you so much.
Salud.
My first impressions of Ken, he looks cute, very gentleman-like.
We'll see how the night goes.
Salud, ladies.
Thank you very much.
Whoo-hoo! The inn is buzzing.
And Ken has invited some very special guests to see the place at its best.
This is my brother.
Oh! How are you, sir? Nice to meet you.
Likewise.
Good to see you too.
And my mother.
Hello, madam.
How are you? Hi.
How are you? Very well, thank you.
Nice to meet you.
There's no words to express how proud I am of Kenneth.
Upstairs, the guests are loving the new rooms.
And downstairs they're loving the fresh local menu that chef Seth and I put together.
Really, really good.
Delicious.
It's really good.
Before I can leave, there's one last thing I need to take care of.
Can I have your cell number, please? Not for me.
For Ken.
Come on.
Thank you.
Amazing.
And, listen, thank you so much for coming tonight.
I really appreciate it.
Thank you.
Ken, come here.
Okay.
Now, how are you feeling? I feel wonderful.
Honestly, at the beginning of the week, I thought you were gonna sort of almost, I suppose, fall to the wayside, but you bounced back, and I'm grateful for that.
Thank you.
I'm grateful for you.
Oh.
And one more thing.
Kim's cell number.
It's for you.
Can't have a better wingman than Gordon Ramsay.
Holy.
He gave me her number.
It's in my pocket.
No more sticky notes, nothing.
Let them do it.
Yeah? Yeah, yeah.
Okay.
I love you.
You're the greatest.
Thank you so much.
Gordon made me realize that I should be less of the hands-on owner who can't see the forest through the trees.
From here on, I'm empowering my staff to make their own decisions.
And I'm gonna support them.
No more micromanaging for me.
What a week.
What a galaxy.
Me.
Next time on Hotel Hell, I'm checking in to an outdated bed and breakfast Whose owner is more interested in joking and dressing up Brilliant.
Than he is in fixing this failing hotel.
Just talk to my hand.
Can I get through to this buffoon who thinks he's a gourmet chef but can't even boil an egg? It's raw.
You're a joke.
I'm gonna kill him.
Before he destroys both his business You're into $1 million of debt.
And his marriage.
It's just so embarrassing.
Has completely neglected it.
Ugh, look at all those bugs.
Cockroach to welcome me, on the toilet, having a number two.
I'm just like, I can't believe it.
And what I discover will make you sick to your stomach.
Un--believable.
Has this thing ever been washed? I don't even like to think of what I'm looking at.
This is truly disgusting.
That's not an inn.
It's a disaster.
so much for the good times so much for the fun so much for vacation I should've brought my gun hotel, Hotel Hell if you think the beer is rotten you should see the clientèle hotel, Hotel Hell Two years ago, chef and restaurateur Ken Pisciotta had a dream.
He bought the River Rock Inn in Milford, Pennsylvania, a charming town nestled in the stunning pocono mountains just two hours' drive from Manhattan.
It was a golden opportunity.
The light shone upon me and said, "come this way.
" But soon after he got the keys, the dream turned into the nightmare.
I was expecting to reach a certain number on room sales, and I didn't hit 1/10 of that.
I don't think Kenny has an idea how to run an inn.
There's nothing in the bathroom, no shampoo, no conditioner, soap, nothing.
We have to go out and buy some.
If I came in, I would probably check right back out.
And it's, like, old.
It's trying to be cozy, but it's not.
It's hideous.
If I wanted to stay at my gram's, I could pack a bag and go stay at my gram's.
I'm not going to a b&b for that.
If you buy an inn, you got to step up and be an innkeeper.
We need to fill these rooms.
We really do.
Facing financial disaster, Ken was forced to move out of his house and into the inn.
I said, "Ken," you're making the biggest mistake.
" And he moved in, and he turned into miserable man.
Ken is now 48, single, living in his crumbling inn, and hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt.
The more the hotel fails $2,868.
The taxes are so good.
The more controlling Ken becomes.
He just takes everything out on us to make our lives feel miserable just like his.
You don't feel very good about yourself as an employee.
Kind of chips away at your sense of self.
I don't know what's going on.
I told you I'd buy you a little time.
Kenny's down here, everybody's walking on eggshells.
Everybody's afraid to do their job.
They don't want to get yelled at.
Flip, come here.
Everybody threatens to quit.
It's a daily event.
If things don't get better here, I'm definitely leaving.
You know what, you really need to grow up and act your age.
You're a 48-year-old man.
Just get the out of my face.
The progression of events has just turned it all into a hot mess.
And it doesn't matter what we do.
It's just a hot flippin' mess.
"River Rock Inn.
An American bistro.
" Wow.
Where's the reception? Jeez.
All right.
Anyone in? It's like a hallway.
Not a check-in desk unless she's behind there.
Hello.
Hello.
Somebody's ashes are down there.
Bloody hell.
Oof.
Just like my granddad's house.
Hello.
Where's the reception? This is it basically.
The receptionist should be out in a minute.
If you'd like, I'll go get her for you.
Okay.
Thank you very much.
Well, hello.
Nice to see you.
It's nice to see you.
I'm Karen Loeshoern.
It's a pleasure to meet you.
I was a little bit nervous there.
You were nervous.
Yeah, honestly, 'cause I was just, like, standing on my own.
Oh, well, I'm sorry.
I apologize for that.
It's confusing.
Where's the reception desk? It's right here.
Right.
This is the reception desk.
Can I just quickly show you something? Yes.
And now I don't mind getting stuck in.
Wow.
Oh, dear.
Oh, dear, that is pretty bad.
Yeah.
That's not very pleasant.
That's not at all pleasant.
Uh, so Would you like to go to your room? Uh, yeah.
Follow me this way.
Okay.
How old is this place? This hotel was built around the 1880s.
I take it it was decorated in 1880 as well.
It kind of looks that way.
For the first time and the last time.
Yeah, it's been a while for the rooms.
There is a closet over here.
There you go.
Special hangers just for me.
Oops.
Ooh.
Yeah.
Wow, wow, wow.
I think the coat will stay.
What is that? Extra Extra carpeting.
We just got new carpeting here.
Okay, so it's "save for repairs.
" Repairs.
I've never had free carpet in my wardrobe before.
Okay.
Just check my view.
Ugh.
What's with all those bugs? And the blue bottle is staying for the week? Ugh.
There's like a little forest of them down here.
Will you give these to your cleaner? Sorry.
Ugh.
It's like an insect funeral home.
Truthfully, in the fall, there was, like, a ladybug problem.
You'd bring in an inn guest, and, oh, my gosh, there'd be, like, you know, 50 bugs in the room.
And so Ken and I would take care of that, to get rid of the ladybugs for the people to stay.
And now they've died.
And look at this here.
I think that's a cockroach to welcome me on the toilet No way.
Having a number two.
I'm just like, I can't believe it.
Look at that.
Never had a cockroach committee welcome me on the John.
Let's get out of here.
Well, what else is on this floor? Well, this is the owner's quarters.
All these bits of furniture here do people literally sit? That seems to work well for internet service out here.
Okay, so this is the wi-fi chair.
Yes, it really is.
I'm gonna bear that in mind if I need to check my emails.
Wow.
It's very sketchy at best.
Okay.
Far worse than I thought.
Through Gordon's eyes, I was like, "whoa.
" It's totally neglected.
Well, I will I'll unpack and get ready for dinner.
Okay.
Welcome to Milford.
It's a joke.
How'd it go? It was horrible.
The place is filthy.
Filthy.
My first impressions of the inn have been dreadful.
At least I can take my mind off things with some TV.
Nothing.
Look at that.
I knew those hangers would come in useful for something.
Come on.
I can't believe I'm gonna miss the Simpsons.
Come on.
Damn.
This is embarrassing.
$110 for this.
Just the general hygiene and cleanliness is just shocking.
The wardrobe's full of crap.
And there's no excuse for dead insects and the filth everywhere.
It's like they've given up.
And no one knows there's a hotel here because it's not fit to rent these rooms out for the public.
I mean, look at it.
If this is what the bedrooms are like, God knows what dinner's gonna be like.
So far at Milford, Pennsylvania's River Rock Inn, I've discovered outdated decor, bugs galore Look at that.
Never had a cockroach committee welcome me on the John.
And a TV that last worked in 1982.
I've heard the owner is a chef, so maybe the restaurant will be the river rock saving grace.
Okay.
Good to see you.
Nice to meet you.
And it's Ken, isn't it? Yes, sir.
It says American bistro outside.
Yes.
Is it a classic bistro? Yes.
Everything made from scratch.
That's nice.
You're a chef by trade.
Yes, I am.
You're not in the kitchen tonight? No, I'm not working on the line.
So you've retired from cooking.
Somewhat.
Running the pass maybe or Running the other side.
I'm just watching over the food and sending everything out.
It's hard to run this whole place by yourself.
I have so many years of experience.
I thought that, when he hired me, he'd be able to let go a little bit, knowing that I could get this job done.
But he just can't seem to let go.
And how would you rate the food, one to ten? Seven or eight.
And if I asked you to rate your rooms out of ten, what would you give them? Four or five.
I'm now myself about dinner.
Let's hope that the food is better than the rooms.
Sure.
The concept of an American bistro serving fresh local food in a country inn makes perfect sense.
But I can't make any sense of this menu.
Um So I'm getting a little bit confused, 'cause we've gone Mexican with the quesadilla, we've jumped down to Thailand, and then gone Italian for the calamari.
What An American bistro? Yes, sir.
Wow.
Um, what would you recommend on the menu? We do a house-smoked trout.
I believe that it's golden trout from northern California.
Comes in frozen.
You're recommending that I eat frozen trout from northern California? You know, chef, it's been only frozen once.
Your head is sweating.
It's a little hot in here, sir.
You're dripping.
It's me.
I'm sorry, chef.
I feel like I've got a leak in my bath.
It's not.
It's your bald head.
Who puts these ideas together? That would be Kenny, chef.
Okay, so give me a thai sampler plate.
Yes, chef.
Yeah.
Entree Dying to see that.
The Valdostana? I'm traveling around the globe in Milford.
Enjoy.
I'm appalled.
I was promised an American bistro.
Instead, I get a sampling from around the world.
I was expecting fresh food, but I get recommended frozen fish.
What is going on here? Your thai sampler, chef.
Are they made in house? No, they are not.
No.
Thank you, James.
Wow.
It's just frozen crap reheated.
How can you make a slice of chicken look so bland? I wouldn't give that thai experience to my dog.
L6 is on the fire too.
James, no struggling.
Yes, sir.
Where's the chef from? Is he a local boy? Yes, he is.
I think, left to his own devices, he'd do very well.
He's very limited on what he can use for ingredient-wise, because he doesn't do the shopping.
Who does the shopping now? Kenny does the shopping.
So it's almost like cut the of the chef off.
Yes, sir.
M6, m14.
The menu at the river rock is pretty much outdated.
It's Kenny's menu.
It's been here for years.
I don't agree with the menu, but he's my boss, he pays my salary, and, you know, you get to that point where you're just kind of burnt out.
Hey, Gordon.
Annmarie.
How are you? Tough on this one.
What do you do here? I bartend, and I help manage.
Ken's the chef.
Correct.
And the chef that's cooking is not allowed to cook his own dishes.
Yeah.
It's almost like he's cut his off.
Well, it's kind of what he does with all of us.
Oh, really? It deflates you.
Strips your confidence.
Won't let you make any decisions, executive or otherwise.
That's crazy.
And it's A lot of micromanagement.
Why would you stay here? I'm a loyal dog, unfortunately.
I'd bend over backwards for him.
But that bone's wearing thin.
The Valdo? That's for chef Ramsay.
That might be the golden ticket.
Wow.
Thank you.
Thank you.
It's like somebody's just dropped a t-Rex foot on my plate.
Holy That's the Valdostana, chef.
Honestly.
In fact, that might be a small Valdostana, chef.
Oh, that's a small one? Yes, sir.
I mean, it's like a meal for eight.
That Valdostana can feed an Ethiopian family of 40.
You know what I mean? Horrific.
This is not what I expect in a country inn.
It's worse than a nasty roadside diner.
I feel like I'm eating a flip-flop with mayonnaise.
Ken, the owner, looks like a zombie sleepwalking towards disaster.
It's time to get everyone together and see if I can wake Ken up.
How much money are you losing per month? Right now, about $5,000 to $7,000 a month.
And that's on the decline? Correct.
If those rooms aren't that busy, why are they so disgustingly dirty? They're dirty because I didn't check them.
It's almost like we're robbing customers.
When I arrived, you gave your food seven or eight out of ten.
Yes.
The food was dreadful.
Seth, how long have you been cooking? Almost 18 years.
As a chef, 18 years in the business, are you proud of what you serve? Personally, it's Kenny's menu, it's on the menu, so I want what I want.
I know what I want.
You can't hold people's hands in this business.
If you don't fix this inn, they've all lost their job.
I honestly think that Kenny needs somebody to open his eyes so that he can see that everybody that works for him is capable, and we're dependable, and we're here to help him increase his business and make it successful, and nobody's here to hurt him.
I'm here to help.
It's impossible 'cause you are not helping yourself.
And it's not as if you're the Captain of the Titanic.
You're the iceberg.
Yet you haven't stared at yourself long enough in the mirror and actually understood where the issues are.
You're looking at them.
Good night.
Me.
I've had about all I can take for one day.
It's time to get to bed.
But, based on how neglected these rooms are, I need to know exactly what I'm sleeping on.
My black light will reveal any bodily fluids previous guests have left behind.
Let's start with the bed.
Oh,.
That has got to be semen.
This is Hotel Hell.
Before my first night sleeping at the River Rock Inn in Milford, Pennsylvania, I decided to check it out with my black light to make sure there was nothing I wasn't seeing.
And I was appalled to discover a vast spread of bodily-fluid stains.
Has this thing ever been washed? People pay to sleep in this bed.
Un--believable.
There is no way I'm sleeping on these sheets tonight.
Luckily, I came prepared.
- Oh,.
- I forgot to turn off the lights.
Oh, man.
That was rough.
Hopefully, a shower will wash away the memories of those awful stains.
Oh,.
Look at this thing.
- Ugh.
- Me.
It's like being in Danny Devito's house.
Look at this shower! Come on.
I feel dirtier now than I did before I got in here.
It's freezing.
I don't think the staff or the owner have any idea how revolting it is to be a guest here.
I want you to come upstairs with me.
I want to show you something, please, all of you.
Time for a wake-up call.
Good morning.
Good morning.
These are the guests that have been staying at the hotel.
Now, you've all experienced over the last 24 hours a sleepover.
And what I'm here to do is to help fix this place.
I can't do it without your feedback.
My biggest complaint was this morning, when I took a shower, I had water up to my ankles before I got out.
My shower had I probably showered from here down because the shower head hit me about here.
There was, like, bugs on the floor.
And then I was sitting on the bed, and then I saw a bug on the door too.
I have back problems, and this morning it was really hard to get out of bed, just 'cause you could feel the springs.
The big question for me is, on the back of last night's experience, who would stay here again? A little raise of hands.
I probably wouldn't come to stay again.
Really? No one? Thank you very much indeed.
Thank you.
I hope Ken is starting to see how his lack of effort at the inn is driving guests away.
There's one more thing I want to show him.
If this doesn't wake him up, nothing will.
I want to sh you something that is pretty horrific.
Come in.
Just stand over there, please, the three of you.
Glasses on.
Brace yourself, Karen.
Oh, my goodness.
I'm disgusted.
It's awful.
I don't even like to think of what I'm looking at.
It's like a galaxy.
This is foul.
Absolutely foul.
I'm shell-shocked a little bit.
It's disgusting.
It's truly disgusting.
Just seeing this makes me sick to my stomach.
Oh, dear.
I don't know what to say.
I mean, I'm just It is.
It's a horror show.
It was horrifying.
I was thinking, "how many times" has this room even been rented without being cleaned "for all that to be there?" Ken, you're running a hotel, not a brothel.
I know.
It is disgusting.
Start taking responsibility.
I've discovered some disgusting things at the River Rock Inn Horrific food I wouldn't give that to my dog.
Dead bugs It's like an insect funeral home.
And I've worked out what the source of all the problems is.
It's Ken.
It's not as if you're the Captain of the Titanic.
You're the iceberg.
He's in way over his head and making everyone's life miserable as a result.
And his incompetence has let the inn fall into a shocking state.
It's like a galaxy.
It's awful.
I don't even like to think of what I'm even looking at.
This is truly disgusting.
It's a true slap in the face.
I apologize to everybody who slept there before That I put you through that.
I think it's horrible.
I hope Ken realizes now that there is more to running an inn than just owning an inn.
The place needs to change and change fast.
Karen? Yes.
Elise just went to get some.
First up, the inn needs to be cleaned so it's a place fit for paying guests to stay in.
I put the whole team to work to clean the inn from top to bottom.
And I'm going to address the worst problem myself.
Hello, madam.
Hi, how are you? Very well, thank you.
Is there any chance I could put this through a wash? Yes, when do you need it by? By tonight, if that's possible.
Yes, definitely.
Would you mind? But could you do a sort of extra-strong cleaning product? It's pretty rancid.
Okay.
So be careful.
Will be done.
Thank you.
Okay, bye-bye.
Be careful you don't catch anything.
Wow.
The place is looking so fresh.
While the staff finish cleaning the inn, I want to have a snoop around the kitchen and see if there are any more clues as to how Ken is running this place.
What are these notes everywhere? Who writes notes like this? "Why do I have to ask weekly for the fish to be iced down? Do not take this sign down.
" "Do not take my pens.
Buy your own.
" "If you use this drill, replace it, or I'll buy a new one with your paycheck.
" Bloody hell.
Charming.
Ken definitely has issues.
Bloody hell.
"If you eat these cookies, take one to your next job interview.
" I mean, my God.
I'm surprised anyone still works here.
This guy Is incredible.
That's not management.
This is insane.
I can't believe Ken is so passive-aggressive with his staff.
I need to talk to him and find out what the hell is going on.
I came across all these little notes about, "don't take this.
" If you do, take it to your next interview.
" You tell me, what's going on? I don't like being taken advantage of.
I have some hard times with things that they do.
Then why aren't you talking to them? Why aren't you leading them? Why aren't you motivating them? Why aren't you getting close to them? The secret of any good management is about communication, understanding, and putting yourself on their level.
Maybe I look at it as they should be on my level.
Who are you kidding? Come with me.
I want to show you something.
Take a seat here.
Ken thinks he's managing his staff, but I think he's bullying them.
He needs to see how he's making them feel.
I've set up a monitor in one of the bedrooms, and I'm going to force Ken to watch his staff meeting.
I think this might bring about the change this place desperately needs.
Stay here.
I'll be back in five.
I came here to help.
What I'm frustrated about is what I'm discovering.
I snooped around the kitchen.
I come across this A cookie jar.
"If you eat these cookies, take one to your next job interview.
" We call those Kenny's nasty-grams.
I mean, is this a joke? No.
That's him.
I put those notes up because my staff needs reminders from me to tell them to do the simplest tasks.
They can come off as degrading.
But I don't know if they get the hint any other way.
What in the hell is going on? Look at this one.
"Don't take my pens.
Buy your own.
" I think he hides behind He's afraid of confrontation.
It's passive-aggressive.
How does that make you feel? He causes us all to be discouraged in the jobs that we have.
There are so many people here that really know their jobs well, but we have become discouraged, and when people become discouraged, they don't do the things that are necessary.
There's no gratitude.
Like, so, when you say to us, why are we like this? We're just spiritless.
He's really just sucked the soul out of every one of us.
He's just a spirit sucker, honestly.
I've locked Ken, the owner of Milford's River Rock Inn into a bedroom where he can watch his staff meeting on TV.
"If you eat these cookies, take one to your next job interview.
" The staff have told me his management style has destroyed their morale.
Is this a joke? No.
That's him.
Every day.
There's no gratitude.
Like, so when you say to us, why are we like this? We're just spiritless.
He's really just sucked the soul out of every one of us, individually, over the period and length of time.
He's just a spirit sucker, honestly.
Annmarie's comments about me brought tears to my eyes Her especially because she's one of my closest friends.
It hurt me.
What do you want to see change from him? Let the people on his team do the work that he's hired us to do.
This place can succeed, providing that you stay on track.
You've got to stand up to him.
Let me go and get him.
I hope that seeing that finally got through to Ken.
It's time to reveal to the staff that he was upstairs watching every word.
Wow.
Of what my staff thinks about me It's awakening.
It really saddens me, because I would do anything for them, and I feel that they don't see that.
I need to change.
I watched everything you said.
And I apologize.
I never wanted to suck the life out of any of you.
And I think I can control this place, but realize maybe I don't need to control.
You have a good team here.
And if we are gonna move forward, you have to give them ownership of their own areas.
Seth.
Yep.
You've got to get that mojo back Falling back in love with what you're employed to do.
Karen You care, and that's what being a good innkeeper That little personal touch.
You should have a hold on the inside of this business as sort of filling the place, like the inn hotel manager.
So I want you to have that level of responsibility.
I think what I learned the most was that I need to give people the opportunity to run this place.
I can't micromanage like I always did.
And I really hope that he backs off and lets us all do our job.
He just has to put the faith in us, and I know that our team can accomplish anything.
I think Ken's warming to the idea of change.
But I don't feel I've got to the heart of why he looks like a man under such extreme pressure.
Kenny? Have you got two minutes? Sure thing.
Can I come in? Come on in.
There's got to be more to this than money.
Yesterday, in many ways, I started to believe you'd given up.
Today we turned the corner.
We've got to stay on that track.
I thought I could control this place, and it didn't work.
Mm-hmm.
It's not working.
It seems like the pressure you're under is not just financial, right? In order to buy this place, I borrowed from my brother.
I said, "I think I can really make this work," "and the price is affordable.
Would you help me?" After we met with the owners, he went to the truck and says, "how much do you want me to write the check out for?" Wow.
He's my idol.
And my mother too.
My mother, it wouldn't happen without her help either.
I said, "I could move to this restaurant," "to this place, "and the only way I could do it is I need some money from you.
" I needed $50,000.
And she also said, "just take it.
".
So both their houses are tied into here.
So, if this place fails You have let them down and yourself.
This entire place wouldn't be here without my brother and my mother's help.
I want the business to succeed so that they don't have to have a worry.
I don't want to ever let them down.
And you can't do it alone.
Yeah.
I know.
Do you have a girlfriend in here or? No.
No.
Don't take this the wrong way, but it needs It needs a woman's touch.
Yep.
It needs a bit of a feminine approach.
It needs that kind of love, no? Yes.
It's been kind of rough.
There's been no lady in my life because I haven't had a chance to go out there and even meet or date women.
I just want to meet that special person.
And just hoo Big, deep breath.
That's the first time I smiled in a while.
Good.
The river rock inn has come a long way from where we started.
The once filthy inn is now clean, and Ken, the owner, has seen the error of his ways.
I apologize.
I never wanted to suck the life out of any of you.
But before this place is ready to welcome guests, the staff need to understand the true meaning of hospitality.
This place is definitely on the road to recovery, but I think this team needs some training, so I've asked a very special friend, Ramesh Sadhwani from Caesars Palace To actually show them how it's done.
Hi, Gordon.
Good to see you.
How are you? How are you? I'm great.
Please take a seat.
It's so nice to see you.
It's great to see you.
So the customer focus is critical, isn't it? Very much so.
And in your mind, what are the golden rules? In the first 60 seconds.
You have to approach a guest with a big smile on your face, because it just opens all kinds of doors.
Find little ways to make a lasting impression on that guest and let them know that their comfort and their enjoyment is your primary objective.
It sounds simple, but it's not that simple, is it? If you practice all the basics, the rest of it will just fall into place.
It has to be natural.
People know when you're not being sincere.
The good news is the team here, you know, their heart is in the right place, but they are clearly lacking training.
The owner doesn't smile that often.
Oh, okay, all right.
Let me go get the team.
Okay.
Thanks, Ramesh.
Kenny, I've got someone very special I want to introduce you to.
Please come through.
I'd like to introduce you to a very dear friend of mine.
Please.
My name is Ramesh.
Ramesh.
Very nice to meet you.
My name's Karen.
He's from Caesars Palace.
He's flown in from Vegas.
I asked ramesh to come and teach you how to greet customers.
Holy mackerel, here's the guy that runs Caesars Palace coming to teach my staff.
How lucky of a guy am I? He's here to help you and to show you within 60 seconds of those guests arriving through that door what we need to hit.
First impressions go wrong, they never forget it, okay? Why don't we have a look at what they normally do, stop straight away, and we restart? Okay.
Stop.
As soon as you see a guest coming through there, you can come out here and reach for the door, open the door, and have a big smile on your face.
It looked like you just lost your arm.
Here we go.
Bollocks.
Okay, put a lot more into it.
Okay.
It's got to be, "good afternoon.
It's great to have you here.
Welcome.
" It was kind of hard.
I'm gonna work to get better at greeting people.
Good afternoon.
Nice to have you here.
Welcome to the River Rock Inn.
Thank you very much.
Stop.
Before he extends his hand out to you, you should have extended your hand out to him.
I feel like I'm being yelled at by a drill sergeant.
You're out.
On the stairs.
Karen, your turn.
Karen, you have an incredible smile.
I was a little nervous.
Gordon's in the back, and he's chanting, you know, "you can do this.
You can do this," you know, and giving a pep talk.
Here we go.
Good afternoon.
I'm Karen.
Welcome to the river rock.
Good afternoon.
My name's James Sanfillipo.
I'm here to check in.
Welcome, Mr.
Sanfillipo.
Come right this way.
I see that you'll be staying with us for the next week? Yes, ma'am.
Possibly more.
Of course.
That would be wonderful.
We have you staying in our king-sized room, which is on the second floor.
Absolutely lovely room with a pretty view out the front of the house, so that's a nice place to be.
Nice.
Finally! Amazing.
Karen is a superstar.
She really is.
That was very well done.
Gordon helped me realize that I have people that I can rely on and instead of being the hands-on owner, I should be more of the overseeing owner, which I really need to be.
Very well done.
Very well done.
Right.
Now that ramesh has taught the staff how to make the right first impression, I'm gonna try and help Ken boost his self-esteem, which will make him a much better innkeeper.
Ken, meet Barbie.
Barbie, meet Ken.
Hi.
Pleased to meet you.
I've flown in Barbie hatch, a Hollywood stylist, to give him a new look.
This one's a little bit too big for you.
In a different shirt maybe? While Barbie gets to work on transforming Ken, I want to check out the inn's website and see if that's also in need of a makeover.
This is supposed to be the wi-fi chair, and I can't even get any signal.
One bar.
There's amazing competition in this town, so, in order to stand out and sort of be somewhat different, you do need a great website.
My goodness.
The only page on the website looks as old and frumpy as the interior of the bedrooms.
I mean, it's so dated.
It's like it's been put together on a $20 budget Shocking.
He also doesn't realize that 80% of hotel bookings are done online today, so, if you've got no decent website to follow, then you're absolutely screwed.
Ah, , come back to me, signal.
Let's see.
It's great.
It really works.
You don't have to put on a parka.
Just throw this around your neck, you're done.
Let's do it.
Thank you so much.
You're so welcome.
Ken's makeover is finished, and I'm gonna take him out on the town.
But first let's see what his staff think.
Whoa! Your new innkeeper.
Nice.
Very, very nice.
Yeah? Yes.
Very handsome.
Let's go.
I'm taking Ken to a local bar.
I think that meeting the right girl will give him a great confidence boost The sort of positive energy that will light up the river rock and make Ken a pleasure to deal with.
Quite a lively little place.
Take a seat.
How dapper does Kenny look? He looks very dapper.
He does, doesn't he? Thank you.
New Newly-designed.
New man, right? Very good.
How could that man still be single? Who's single? Kenny's single.
We got to find you a milf.
Dude, we know someone.
Seriously? Come on.
We really do.
Invite her for dinner tomorrow at River Rock Inn.
Tomorrow? Yes, tomorrow night.
Oh, yes.
Relaunching tomorrow, yeah.
Relaunching the inn tomorrow night.
It's gonna be awesome.
Yes.
So can we have a little toast to Kenny finding a girlfriend in Milford? To Kenny.
Yay! It was really a great ego boost.
I felt like the king.
Boy, he really set me up.
Thank you very much.
If I fail now, I'm really a loser.
Big day tomorrow.
See you tomorrow.
See you in the morning.
Best wishes.
Good night.
Thank you.
Good night.
Honestly, I've never seen a man change so much.
Let's just hope he's not late for breakfast in the morning.
Cheers to Kenny.
Cheers to Kenny.
My design team worked through the night to transform Milford, Pennsylvania's River Rock Inn, and now it's time to reveal the changes to Ken and his team.
Good morning.
Good morning.
How are we? Very good.
Good.
Seth, how you feeling? Great.
Excellent.
All of you this week have really put so much effort into get this inn back on track, so I'm greatly appreciative for your efforts.
It's only fitting, okay, that we start the relaunch with a proper sign.
Take a look at this.
It's not Wow.
The old sign from the old restaurant.
- It's a beautiful sign - "River Rock Inn and restaurant.
The best food and lodging in the poconos.
" How cool is that? That's very cool.
Does it look nice? Beautiful.
It's wonderful.
Thank you.
Okay, ready to go inside, yeah? I'm excited.
Let's go.
Come through.
Are you ready? It's a beautiful place to live and stay Wow.
Oh, my goodness.
Not a place you're gonna come and die.
Beautiful.
First off, we have a stunning color on the walls.
Gone is that hideous paper.
So now it's in keeping with a rustic charm.
And all the bugs are gone too.
The changes are just incredible.
I'm a bit overwhelmed by them.
I'm blown away.
Totally blown away.
We replaced that dinosaur TV with a new flat screen.
Yay.
Guess what.
It works.
It works? Okay? Replacing the mattresses - Stunning linen.
- Oh, my goodness.
New table lamps.
- And guess what.
- Gone are the stains.
Karen, the only milky way from the skies above.
Yes? Karen, what do you think? I think it's absolutely beautiful.
It's still a country inn, but it's a country inn of the year 2012.
Unreal.
Let me show you the room next door, please.
This is incredible.
This is just amazing.
Gordon just did wonders here.
Oh, by the way What? I've updated your router, okay? So you can have wi-fi.
In the room? Inside the room.
Oh, my God! How cool is that? Amazing.
Hello.
I'm blown away.
You're blown away? I'm just blown away.
Excellent.
Oh, wow.
Please, come in.
Wow.
Look at this.
Come in, come in, come in.
Oh, man! Wow! When I first arrived, the check-in was so confusing.
Now the guests come in, they sit down, we offer them a coffee, glass of water, and then we'll go to actually booking them in online.
Wow.
How cool is that? It's crazy.
Now, how much do you spend on linen a month? A fortune.
A fortune.
Underneath the tablecloths, you have these stunning natural tables, which were just being hidden at a ridiculous expense.
Focus on the linen upstairs in the room.
Before Gordon was here, I just had a restaurant.
Now I have an inn.
I have a destination.
I can't wait.
I'm looking forward to the relaunch tonight.
We're gonna have a lot of fun.
You like it? Yeah? You like it? Good man.
Thank you.
With a new decor and Ramesh's expert training Hello.
Welcome to the river rock.
I'm Karen.
Along with a newly-inspired Ken Nice to see you.
How you been? Enjoy your dinner.
Thank you.
The river rock is in a much better place.
Time to go.
When I got here, Ken, honestly, that guy was a hopeless innkeeper.
Almost like someone who'd given up.
But, you know, we've turned him around.
It's almost like he's sort of He's got his mojo back.
And now the river rock has every chance of succeeding.
I'll tell you what I've seen a lot of skies, but not quite a milky way like that.
Me.
As I prepare to leave, guests are arriving for the relaunch.
And I notice some familiar faces from the bar last night.
And as promised, they've brought a friend.
How are you, my darling? Nice to meet you.
- Oh, you're the da - Oh,.
He's over there.
Have a little peep.
Have a little peep.
Have a little peep.
First impressions? He looks cute.
He looks cute.
Nice.
I can feel a good night coming on.
Wow.
Joey, I need three onion soups, two fish cakes, and fish fingers.
With Ken trusting his staff and not micromanaging, he's able to spend more time on the floor.
Salud, my friends.
Leaving time to charm the milfs of Milford.
Hello.
How's everyone tonight? Hi, Kenny.
And this is Hi, Kenny.
Very nice to meet you.
Pleasure.
Ken.
Nice to meet you.
Follow me.
Come on, wake up.
I was excited to see them.
She was very pretty.
I look forward to talking with her.
Here we go, ladies.
Thank you so much.
Salud.
My first impressions of Ken, he looks cute, very gentleman-like.
We'll see how the night goes.
Salud, ladies.
Thank you very much.
Whoo-hoo! The inn is buzzing.
And Ken has invited some very special guests to see the place at its best.
This is my brother.
Oh! How are you, sir? Nice to meet you.
Likewise.
Good to see you too.
And my mother.
Hello, madam.
How are you? Hi.
How are you? Very well, thank you.
Nice to meet you.
There's no words to express how proud I am of Kenneth.
Upstairs, the guests are loving the new rooms.
And downstairs they're loving the fresh local menu that chef Seth and I put together.
Really, really good.
Delicious.
It's really good.
Before I can leave, there's one last thing I need to take care of.
Can I have your cell number, please? Not for me.
For Ken.
Come on.
Thank you.
Amazing.
And, listen, thank you so much for coming tonight.
I really appreciate it.
Thank you.
Ken, come here.
Okay.
Now, how are you feeling? I feel wonderful.
Honestly, at the beginning of the week, I thought you were gonna sort of almost, I suppose, fall to the wayside, but you bounced back, and I'm grateful for that.
Thank you.
I'm grateful for you.
Oh.
And one more thing.
Kim's cell number.
It's for you.
Can't have a better wingman than Gordon Ramsay.
Holy.
He gave me her number.
It's in my pocket.
No more sticky notes, nothing.
Let them do it.
Yeah? Yeah, yeah.
Okay.
I love you.
You're the greatest.
Thank you so much.
Gordon made me realize that I should be less of the hands-on owner who can't see the forest through the trees.
From here on, I'm empowering my staff to make their own decisions.
And I'm gonna support them.
No more micromanaging for me.
What a week.
What a galaxy.
Me.
Next time on Hotel Hell, I'm checking in to an outdated bed and breakfast Whose owner is more interested in joking and dressing up Brilliant.
Than he is in fixing this failing hotel.
Just talk to my hand.
Can I get through to this buffoon who thinks he's a gourmet chef but can't even boil an egg? It's raw.
You're a joke.
I'm gonna kill him.
Before he destroys both his business You're into $1 million of debt.
And his marriage.
It's just so embarrassing.