Failure's at Kitchen Nightmare go all Fundy on their FB page

[SpeshulTaterTot]

That was the most epic TV show I've seen in a long time. Brilliant.

It definitely all screams money laundering. As someone who's been working in the restaurant business for quite a while, I'd never, ever work for a boss who takes my tips. Every boss I've had so far refused to take any kind of tip. And not letting the servers use the POS? Please. A kid could work the POS after a bit of training.

[rward]

That was the most epic TV show I've seen in a long time. Brilliant.

It definitely all screams money laundering. As someone who's been working in the restaurant business for quite a while, I'd never, ever work for a boss who takes my tips. Every boss I've had so far refused to take any kind of tip. And not letting the servers use the POS? Please. A kid could work the POS after a bit of training.

I don't know about that. My boss insists on being the only person to sign checks. There are two other partners legally capable of signing checks for the firm, but he won't let them. This causes enormous problems for the firm and has resulted in missed filing dates, late fees, etc., but he insists. And he's not doing anything illegal, he's just crazypants.

[Dinorah]

Well, keep in mind that criminal minds aren't exactly the brightest; it's clear to me that neither Samy or Amy are the sharpest folks around. They're dumb and they're greedy and they don't know that because they're utterly lacking in some very basic self-awareness. Like most criminals (and remember, he's a self-described gangster and she's a convicted felon), they think they're the smart ones with a great plan. They don't understand or empathize with other people, so they project their own anger, underhandedness, vengefulness, and criminality onto people who just wanted their food cooked right and served in a timely, polite fashion.

Amy said it herself: she fully expected Chef Ramsay to come in, see their attractive, immaculately clean restaurant, eat Amy's delicious, perfectly-prepared food, and announce that he could find nothing wrong with any of it. As far as she belived, the only thing that Amy's Baking Company needed in order to improve business and silence the "bloggers and haters" was for Gordon Ramsay to fully vindicate her on national TV.

And since neither Amy nor Samy have any prior restaurant experience, they don't see the red flags that proclaim, "This is a money-laundering operation!" waving. And even if they do, both have such inflated ideas of their own intelligence and superiority over other people (who don't even know what real food is supposed to taste like) that they assume no-one else can see those flags. What ends up getting people like Samy and Amy busted is the fact that yes, there are people smarter than them--something they never accounted for or anticipated.

I think it was her idea to go on the show. The flipside of her inability to take criticism at all is her relentless desire for acclaim and approval. Rather than silence her critics by fixing the problems with the food and service, she looks for the biggest authority she can find to tell her--and everyone else--that all criticism has been invalid, and that she really is a God-given genius.

Ok, she's not the sharpest knife in the drawer, but has she never seen the show? She should know that Ramsay stays in to see how the restaurant actually works? Otherwise, I find the idea that it's money laundry extremely convincing and intriguing. Though it also looks to me like Amy has a personality disorder of some kind, that behaviour is just not normal.

[SpeshulTaterTot]

I don't know about that. My boss insists on being the only person to sign checks. There are two other partners legally capable of signing checks for the firm, but he won't let them. This causes enormous problems for the firm and has resulted in missed filing dates, late fees, etc., but he insists. And he's not doing anything illegal, he's just crazypants.

... I'm not quite sure why you're quoting me? I'm not saying let someone else take care of bills getting paid, I'm saying let someone else use the POS, which sends the orders to the kitchen. If only one person is allowed to use it, it's no wonder people have to wait over an hour for a pizza.

[Flossie]

As someone who's been working in the restaurant business for quite a while, I'd never, ever work for a boss who takes my tips. Every boss I've had so far refused to take any kind of tip.

If you want to know of an industry where tips are often stolen, think of motels. Many years ago I worked at a motel that was considered by the other maids to be the best place to work. Not only did the management allow us more than 15 minutes to clean the rooms, the head maid didn't take our tips. In many motels, especially the smaller ones, the head maid comes in the earliest and is the first person to check out the rooms once the guests leave. Her job (has there ever been a maid that wasn't a woman?) is to quickly assess whether the room needs more than the usual cleaning and to grab the sheets and towels. In many places, the head maid also takes any tips that are left for the maids. Where I worked, the head maid stated that she always resented cleaning rooms and having someone who spent less than five minutes there stealing the tips, so when she made head waitress, she didn't take the tips.

After that, I always hide my tips in a place where the head maid won't go. I usually take the garbage can in the bathroom and move it to the top of the toilet with the tip hidden underneath. The head maid doesn't empty the garbage, but when the person who does all the real work is there, they'll have to move the garbage can into it's proper location, thus finding the tip.

[FeministShrew]

I've always seen a little tip envelope on the nightstand with the maid's name on it.

BTW, think we could get reservations for xgaygregg & Demented Delusional DeDe?

[SpeshulTaterTot]

Flossie, I'll remember that!

[GolightlyGrrl]

Katy, the staff member who got fired during this episode, answers people's questions at Reddit:

http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/1 ... mys_baking

Some poor guy had to wait over two hours for his pizza:

http://blogs.phoenixnewtimes.com/bella/ ... taping.php

[RachelB]

... I'm not quite sure why you're quoting me? I'm not saying let someone else take care of bills getting paid, I'm saying let someone else use the POS, which sends the orders to the kitchen. If only one person is allowed to use it, it's no wonder people have to wait over an hour for a pizza.

Yup. Miranda, the server, said she had used POS before in previous jobs, so she wouldn't even have needed training. Samy's either being a control freak when he has no reason to be or there's something he doesn't want his employees to see. Or possibly both.

Yikes.

[Maggie Mae]

I watched most of the episode last night (at the gym. Hulu + is probably one of the better investments I've made. Yes, there are problems, but it's SO convenient.) At first I thought - wow - what jerks. Then I remembered that they are on TV so they have an agenda, and I still think this is a way for them to drum up some business.

I almost feel sad for them, if they aren't doing something shady. It's obvious she has some sort of issue - insecurity maybe - and coupled with the lack of business sense, it's just a sad affair. Maybe she IS a good cook, for her and samy and the cats. But it's too big for her to handle it on her own, and she's insisting that they handle it on their own, and she doesn't have the skills to manage the line. She's cooking one dish at a time, poorly, can't handle the criticism + a lot of the complaints are being hidden by her enabling husband. He seems to not want to hurt her feelings (plus maybe he's a little frightened) and she seems to be jealous of the wait staff. The cat stuff is just typical for reality tv personalities, IMO. I didn't think it was THAT weird, plus she was smiling while she did it.

So weird.

And they are now internet famous for time being.

[Lillybee]

This is the one restaurant that I would love to leave that religious tract that looks like a hundred dollar bill. Sami so deserves it.

[Lillybee]

There is an online petition to have them investigated for keeping the servers tips.

https://www.change.org/petitions/the-us ... e_petition

[Alice_Fraggle]

If you want to know of an industry where tips are often stolen, think of motels. Many years ago I worked at a motel that was considered by the other maids to be the best place to work. Not only did the management allow us more than 15 minutes to clean the rooms, the head maid didn't take our tips. In many motels, especially the smaller ones, the head maid comes in the earliest and is the first person to check out the rooms once the guests leave. Her job (has there ever been a maid that wasn't a woman?) is to quickly assess whether the room needs more than the usual cleaning and to grab the sheets and towels. In many places, the head maid also takes any tips that are left for the maids. Where I worked, the head maid stated that she always resented cleaning rooms and having someone who spent less than five minutes there stealing the tips, so when she made head waitress, she didn't take the tips.

After that, I always hide my tips in a place where the head maid won't go. I usually take the garbage can in the bathroom and move it to the top of the toilet with the tip hidden underneath. The head maid doesn't empty the garbage, but when the person who does all the real work is there, they'll have to move the garbage can into it's proper location, thus finding the tip.

This is TOTALLY OT but - I was never aware I was supposed to tip the maid at hotels. I'm old enough to know better, but was never told that! I know to tip servers at restaurants, the woman that cuts my hair, and cab drivers (? never taken a cab, but from what I've seen on TV you tip them), but I'm sure there are more I don't know about. Please enlighten me! I don't want to be an asshole!

[JMarie]

From their website:

http://amysbakingco.com/about-us/

Amy’s Baking Company is an upscale full service Retail Patisserie as well as a full service European Bistro , Pizzeria and bar. Specializing in house made desserts, Artisan Gourmet Pizzas, Farm Fresh Organic Salads, house made Artesian Pastas fine wines and custom Martinis. We make all our food from scratch using only the highest quality ingredients to ultimately produce a superb product.

We are best known for our fanciful cakes and desserts, elaborately decorated with homemade butter cream frosting and edible flowers and glitter.We have a European philosophy when it comes to dinning, and we truly appreciate when our guest come to enjoy a relaxing dining experience and are not in a mad rush.

As with our food all good things come to those who wait.

[RachelB]

From their website:

http://amysbakingco.com/about-us/

Amy’s Baking Company is an upscale full service Retail Patisserie as well as a full service European Bistro , Pizzeria and bar. Specializing in house made desserts, Artisan Gourmet Pizzas, Farm Fresh Organic Salads, house made Artesian Pastas fine wines and custom Martinis. We make all our food from scratch using only the highest quality ingredients to ultimately produce a superb product.

We are best known for our fanciful cakes and desserts, elaborately decorated with homemade butter cream frosting and edible flowers and glitter.We have a European philosophy when it comes to dinning, and we truly appreciate when our guest come to enjoy a relaxing dining experience and are not in a mad rush.

As with our food all good things come to those who wait.

Wow. They may have hired a PR specialist, but they have not hired a copy editor.

Artesian Pastas, eh? Are those harvested from the well they've dug out back?

About their "dinning"-- if they'd stop shouting at patrons and each other, there might be more dining and less dinning.

I cannot make sense of what they've capitalized and what they've left in lower case. Nor can I make sense of what they mean by full service, since they seem to have a problem with alienating customers.

That's even before I call bullshit on their use of the words "house made."

[sparkles]

So much for "house made desserts." Was her camera broken? Because the pix in her photo gallery come straight from Martha Stewart, Bakers Royale and Pretty Sweet in the UK. Amy must spend all day on google images looking for things to swipe and pass off as her own.

I haven't watched KN in ages but had to check this one out. The crazy was on overload.

[Mommy22alyns]

Nothing says Fundy like throwing out FUCK in capital letters.

[church_of_dog]

Artesian Pastas, eh? Are those harvested from the well they've dug out back?

:lol: I picture pasta just flowing from the well, spraying up into the air like a geyser... :lol: :lol:

[GodsKnickers]

house made Artesian Pastas

That's where the Flying Spaghetti Monster came from? :(

[watchdog]

Does anyone else think this woman looks and acts eerily like Kate Gosselin? :shock:

[mlady]

They still have their FB page up? Haven't bothered changing the settings so people can't post or tag the photos? Didn't close the account for being "hacked"? I'm not buying it.

[DifferentGurl]

Does anyone else think this woman looks and acts eerily like Kate Gosselin? :shock:

I did! Glad I'm not the only one that thought so!

[RachelB]

The Department of Labor has said the owners of ABC may have violated the law by confiscating tips: http://ktar.com/22/1635012/Dept-of-Labo ... ion-of-law

I really hope they will be investigated. Cheating your employees out of money that they've earned is pretty low.

[AVENues]

I have to be honest I couldn't laugh. OK I did laugh at the beginning but after that I was like... omg, omg, omg... god no... no... no... no they di-int! I'm not a sourpuss, but I just could not laugh the whole thing was so shameful. So very shameful.

[Lillybee]

Amy announced somewhere (not sure if it is her facebook or their blog ) that she and her husband are pregnant with a non furry child.