In this Kitchen Nightmares episode, Gordon Ramsay visits Borelli's Pizzeria in Chicago, Illinois.
Borelli's Pizzeria is owned by Mark and Lisa Borelli.
It is located in a prime position in Lincoln Square.
Mark bought the building and it had a pizza oven so he decided to sell pizza.
He thought he could cook and that he had nothing to lose.
Elise is Mark’s daughter and works at the restaurant as a server.
She started working at the restaurant when she was just 8 years old.
They are well known in the neighbourhood for helping where they can.
Server Elise says that they are understaffed and overwhelmed.
The kitchen staff are young and inexperienced.
Most the cooks are just 18 and have no formal training.
The cooks feel that Mark is more of a nuisance than a help.
Mark doesn’t handle pressure and disappears downstairs to hide.
Co-owner Lisa stepped away from the business to pursue a career in music.
Lisa owns a music school that operates in the upstairs unit of the building, above the restaurant.
She says that the income from the restaurant isn’t enough to support their family.
If the restaurant closes then she will also lose her business.
Mark says that if the restaurant closes, he will lose $750,000.
He says that he needs Gordons help as he doesn’t have the answers.
Gordon arrives at the restaurant and meets the staff.
Gordon is impressed with the pizza oven, calling it incredible.
He takes a seat in the restaurant and has a look at the menu.
Gordon orders the caprese salad, margherita pizza, mozzarella sticks and a coffee.
He questions if it is a typo on the menu for the $26 margherita pizza.
Gordon comments that it is more expensive than his own pizzas.
The kitchen staff prepare the pizza and are clearly nervous.
Gordons pizza is delivered and someone drops a pan in the kitchen.
The mozzarella sticks are bought in and he can tell them are deep fat fried from frozen.
He thinks that they smell and asks Geoff to smell them, who thinks the oil smells off.
Geoff asks Mark about the oil but he brushes him off, saying he has a thousand things going on.
Whilst Elise’s back is turned someone has taken the caprese salad and given it to another table.
Gordon comments that the food is very slow whilst he is waiting.
He has also noticed that the staff are young, saying it is run by a bunch of teenagers.
The caprese salad has solid tomatoes and bland mozzarella.
Gordon speaks with one table of customers, who have been waiting 45 minutes for their pizza.
He says to Elise that he feels bad getting his pizza before the two ladies who have been waiting a long time.
Gordon offers the two ladies a slice of his pizza whilst they are waiting.
Elise tells her dad that she is embarrassed that he has had to give some customers his pizza due to their wait.
Mark however, just says that it is fine.
Gordon isn’t impressed with the pizza saying that the dough is biscuity and way too thick.
He gives his feedback to Elise who can see the issues with his pizza.
After the lunch service, Gordon calls the staff out into the restaurant for a meeting.
Gordon says that it is embarrassing that they couldn’t get a pizza right, especially as they are in Chicago.
He questions how the pizzas can be so inconsistent.
Gordon asks who makes the dough and Mark says it is him.
Mark says that as he is self taught sometimes he gets it right and sometimes he doesn’t.
Gordon asks Mark to leave so he can speak with the staff.
He asks them what has happened and asks for the truth.
The staff say that Mark is suppose to train them but one cook was thrown in the kitchen with no training.
Elise thinks he is trying and other staff says he does work hard and is a good man but he is getting nowhere.
It is hard on Elise because Mark is her dad.
Gordon returns for an evening dinner service to see how the place functions.
Mark insists on changing the oil, despite the staff saying not to.
He ends up burning a whole in the fryer as the oil was still hot.
Oil ends up all over the floor of the kitchen and the staff pour flour on the mess.
The young staff had advised him not to do it and saw the reasoning as to why it was such a bad idea.
They have lost a lot of prep time and customers are walking in whilst they are still cleaning up.
Gordon arrives and looks through the window and sees the mess in the kitchen.
They explain the process in the kitchen.
Gordon questions why the floor is so slippery and he is told about the oil spill.
Mark is everywhere and leaving mess everywhere.
Gordon questions what Mark is doing and asks why he is only using one shelf of the pizza oven.
Mark says that they got forgotten about so the wait time for pizza is much longer than it could be.
Gordon suggests that he uses the other shelves on a rotation to get them done quicker.
There are pizzas all over the kitchen, waiting to go into the oven.
Some of the dough is pre-cooked and it’s still taking a long time for pizza to go out.
Mark says that he doesn’t even understand his own system.
Mark burns Frank, one of the kitchen staff with a pan and then says “he is fine.”
Gordon has to ask Mark if he is okay after checking on Frank.
He is astounded as it is only pizza and pasta, it should be simple.
Customers are left waiting for food with no timescale of when it’ll be coming out as Mark has lost control.
Gordon thinks that there is something not right with Mark at all.
He decides to meet with Lisa to try and get to the bottom about what is going on.
Lisa tells Gordon that the restaurant was his dream.
Gordon is very concerned about Mark as he is all over the place.
Lisa says that there is a strain on the marriage as they spent little time together.
He asks for her support and she pledges her full support.
Back at the restaurant Gordon finds Mark sending out an overcooked garlic bread with the burnt bits pulled off.
The producers pull Gordon out of the restaurant to see some footage they think he urgently needs to watch.
The footage shows Mark going downstairs into the basement and drinking from a liquor bottle.
Gordon pulls him in close, smells his breath and asks him if he has been drinking.
He tells Gordon that he had half a beer earlier in the day.
Gordon tells him he is out of his depth and that he is drinking heavily.
Mark says that he is absolutely not and denies it.
Gordon tells Elise to stop serving food and takes Mark down to the basement.
The customers leave the restaurant.
In the basement, Gordon takes him straight to the bottle of liquor in the basement and shows him the footage.
Mark says is that it doesn’t look good before finally admitting that he has a problem.
He says that he has been trying to cut back and says that it is a stressful environment.
Gordon asks how long it has been going on and Mark says it has been years.
The stress of the restaurant has caused the drinking as it takes the edge off the stress.
Gordon wants to get help for him but he needs to stop drinking and get a programme for him.
Gordon says that he will train the staff and put systems in place.
He tells Mark about his younger brothers problems with addiction.
Gordon makes some calls and removes the bottles from the basement.
Mark says he is embarrassed by the situation.
Gordon meets with the staff and tells them he has a plan in place.
He tells the staff that he loves their energy and his team are going to come in and train them intensively.
Baden says that they do all know he has been drinking during service.
Overnight, the restaurant is given a makeover.
Mark has agreed to start a sobriety meeting and Gordon picks him up to take him to his first meeting.
Gordon wants to shift the focus from the restaurant to Mark.
Lisa says that it is a significant step for him and she isn’t sure he has opened up to her as much.
Gordon meets with the staff before starting training.
They are going to have an intensive culinary program for their new menu.
They will be serving 12 inch pizzas that are consistent.
The kitchen has a dough roller to make the bases consistent.
They have a new oven that is working better.
Gordon receives a call from Mark and they meet outside the restaurant.
Marks says that it went good but it was tough.
Gordon shows him the new mural that has been painted on the side of the restaurant.
He shows Mark the new restaurant and he loves the new look.
The furnishings and lights have been updated and upgraded.
The kitchen has all new equipment including a stand mixer and dough roller.
There is a new fryer and double fridge, new pots and pans and crockery and cutlery.
Mark breaks down in tears after seeing the new place.
Gordon calls the team together to sample the new food.
It is a simple menu and the pizzas take just minutes to cook.
On relaunch night, Gordon gives the team a pep talk.
Mark is running the front of house and he is nervous.
He greets the customers and sits them at their tables.
Gordon has invited Jonathan Porter, who runs Chicago Pizza tours, to the relaunch to get the word out quickly.
The orders start to leave the kitchen quickly but the staff get confused.
The kitchen is disorganized and the pressure starts to get to the staff.
The pizza was overcooked and had to be recooked.
Some of the food wasn’t going out together and they are confused about the tickets.
Mark is looking lost and the tickets are confused.
Jonathan is left waiting for his pizza but the staff make sure to check in with them.
Gordon personally delivers his pizza and he is impressed by the look and taste of the pizza.
He says it was worth the wait.
Lisa arrives at the restaurant and is overwhelmed by the changes.
The kitchen recovers with speed and quality and the customers love the food.
The staff feel like the kitchen runs better without Mark.
Mark thinks that the dinner service has been fantastic and is enjoying being front of house.
He jokes about opening a franchise and Gordon says to get the one restaurant right first.
Lisa can see the difference in Mark and think it will change their family.
He calls Lisa and Mark together to wrap up the relaunch.
It is only because Mark has accepted his help has made it possible.
What Happened Next at Borelli's Pizzeria?
Three months later, the new menu has been a big success.
The staff has stepped up allowing Mark to step away from the restaurant.
Borelli's Pizzeria is open.
Reviews are mostly positive.
The service is praised.
There are some complaints about customers finding the place unexpectedly closed.
Borelli's Pizzeria was aired on 4th August 2026.
The episode was filmed in May 2025 and is Kitchen Nightmares season 10 episode 4.
Next episode - Renate's German Restaurant
Previous episode - Love on the Blu
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