Kitchen Nightmares (US) Season 4 Episode 07: Downcity, Providence, RI – CLOSED UPDATED : 26 December 2019 In this episode of the Kitchen Nightmares, Gordon visits Downcity, Providence, RI. Two best friends Abby Cabral and Rico Conforti bought this restaurant in 2005. Rico has a full-time job as mortgage advisor in a financial institute. Abby …
After conferring with Rico, Chef Ramsay explains to Abby he’s made mistakes with failed businesses in the past, and only by admitting those mistakes and learning from them has gotten him to where he is now.
When Abby reveals a lack of faith in Jimmy, Chef Ramsay calls in one of his chefs to help get the kitchen staff in order.
When the staff get Abby to admit the menu is unbearably large, she begrudgingly admits to changing it.
As the night gets underway, the food is being sent out quickly, the customers love the new menu and the new food.
Their encounter did not start well, as Ramsay reveals the food provided by his hotel’s room service was disgusting, which offended Abby.
On Saturday, December 10, DownCity closed, apparently for good. It’s been a long and tumultuous ride for the restaurant, which began as Downcity Diner in 1990. It survived a 2006 fire which forced it to vacate its original Weybosset Street home and moved to its current location at 50 Weybosset. It endured a true nightmare when celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay came to town for an installment of his hit show Kitchen Nightmares that aired last February. The episode chronicled Ramsay’s attempts to turn the struggling restaurant around while butting heads with current owner Abby Cabral. (She bought it from the original owner in 2005.) Now, the ride is over. Over the years, DownCity established a loyal and passionate following, particularly among the LGBT community, as is to be expected of a restaurant that often posted a drag queen in full regalia at the hostess stand and featured a popular “Drag Brunch.” DownCity was not just a niche restaurant, however – it was also a good value. Known for huge portions and its signature meatloaf, it had for years delivered comfortingly familiar food with some creative touches at fair prices. The atmosphere was what large, downtown restaurants in any city should be: spacious, chic, lively but not too loud, hospitable for a full dinner or a quick drink. In short, it offered a sophisticated night out without breaking the bank. That is why it’s so difficult to understand DownCity’s demise. In all the times I had been there throughout the years, I never once saw the place empty. I never heard any bad reviews beyond the garden variety complaints that every restaurant gets. I never had a bad meal there. So what happened? In an
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