In this Restaurant Impossible episode, Robert Irvine visits Vinny’s Little Italy in Boulder City, Nevada.
Vinny’s Little Italy is owned by Vinny and Tina.
They are husband and wife and run it with their 5 kids.
Vinny learned to cook with his mom and opened his first restaurant at 19 years old.
The restaurant was successful but he got bored.
He has owned and run up to 20 restaurants.
He lost his mother in 2017 and lost his motivation too.
Robert arrives at the restaurant and he notices a lot of fittings and furnishings are mismatched.
He sits with the couple and they tell their history.
Vinny has trust issues and won’t even share his recipes with his immediate family.
The couple disagree on the numbers.
Robert has to get the PNLs to settle the situation.
Robert wants to see a service so he can see their processes.
The customers come in and orders flood the kitchen.
They have no POS system and the ticketing is confusing.
Vinny is disorganised and is making incomplete orders so the servers can’t take food out.
At almost 2 hours Robert shuts it down and sends the customers home.
He asks to sample some dishes from the menu.
The cream in the Alfredo is bad and the pizza is too sweet and the toppings fall off.
The chicken has no seasoning, the lasagne is not good and the meatballs are dry and heavy.
Robert gives feedback to the couple and Vinny is instantly down.
Robert meets his design team Tom and Lynn, who he gives an extra task of extending the small kitchen.
In the main space, there are different ceilings and floors so they must find a way to synchronise it within the limited time frame.
They beg to get started immediately because of the huge workload.
The staff and volunteers empty out the space quickly.
Vinny is emotional at seeing it all go.
Robert meets with Vinny’s brothers, Sam and Peter who give insight into Vinny’s nature growing up.
Robert hears them out on the ideas they have given Vinny on his business.
He has refused to listen to the suggestions, which includes a POS system.
With this information he meets with Vinny to try and teach him some modern concepts on pricing his dishes.
He tries to get through to his old school thinking he has refused to abandon.
Eventually he gets through to him and Vinny admits he needs to implement the new pricing.
Robert drops in on his team and he is apologetic for all the work they have to do but agrees on their plan for the space.
He gives the couple the homework of asking the kids what they want for and from their Dad and what they love about him.
He also tells Vinny to teach Gino their son the recipes because they are family recipes to be passed down to the next generation.
The next day, the work has progressed and Robert is forced to meet the family outside.
They tell Robert and Vinny their list of what they want from Vinny and their mother.
Vinny is moved to tears and they all share a moment.
They have a family group hug with Vinny promising to change.
Vinny then takes Gino to teach him the family recipes.
With 5 hours until relaunch, Robert sees the team are only just starting the painting.
They have a brand new wall and counter with a section of the dining room with a mural to do.
Robert takes Vinny for a surprise, which is his brothers.
He is pleasantly surprised and they give him advice, which he is happy to receive finally.
Robert takes Vinny, Gino and Tina through making a White Bolognese Pasta, Chicken Milanese and a Calamari Pizza.
They love the taste of the dishes.
The team is still hard at work finishing up the space.
They take the family and staff through using the new POS system.
They finish work on the front of the house and the kitchen just in time.
By dusk, Tina and Vinny are taken in to see their new restaurant.
The restaurant is modern and clean with reds, whites and blacks to depict fresh ingredients and Italy.
They are also shown their new kitchen, which is bigger and spacious.
Vinny hugs Robert in delight and then Tom and Lynn when they come in.
Vinny and Tina both let the customers in.
The children come in first and love the new space as does Vinny’s brothers.
They adopt the new POS system which Vinny can read.
Gino is free to work alone without Vinny disturbing him.
On relaunch, the customers love the food and are surprised to see Vinny greeting them.
They love the new look of the restaurant and promise to return.
What Happened Next at Vinny's Little Italy?
After the show, sales are up 30%.
Vinny is embracing the new POS system
He is promoting the best selling dishes and trusting his staff.
He hopes to take Tina on vacation to Hawaii.
Vinny's Little Italy / Vinny's Pizzeria is open.
Reviews are mostly positive and diners praise the portion sizes.
Vinny's Little Italy is Restaurant Impossible season 21 episode 12 and aired on 15th July 2022.
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Previous episode - Steak N Stuff
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