Restaurant Makeover Explained

Runtime:	30 or 60 minutes (per episode)
Country:	Canada
Num Seasons:	5
Num Episodes:	68

Restaurant Makeover is a television series on HGTV Canada that currently airs as reruns on the Food Network Canada and HGTV Canada, as well as the Fine Living channel and Food Network in the United States, DTour and in over 16 other countries worldwide. The pilot episode starred designer Robin De Groot and chef Brad Long in the Coco's Cafe. Most of the restaurants involved in the series were located in the Greater Toronto Area. The series was rebooted as Restaurant Takeover on Food Network Canada, and aired for 2 seasons in 2012 and 2013.

Synopsis

It is hosted by chefs Brad Long, Rene Chauvin, Lynn Crawford, Massimo Capra, Corbin Tomaszeski, David Adjey, and Susur Lee along with designers Robin De Groot, Meredith Heron, Cherie Nicole Stinson, Jessica Cotton, Glen Peloso, Brenda Bent, Cheryl Torrenueva, Lisa North, and Jonathan Furlong, who perform renovation makeovers on restaurants desiring transformation.

The premise of the show is to challenge two restaurant professionals, one designer and one chef, to overhaul a struggling restaurant with a very limited budget and time. Originally the show would match funds provided by the restaurant owners up to $20,000; however, that decreased to just $15,000 as the show moved into its later seasons.

Criticism

Although the show's premise is to help struggling restaurants, a number of establishments have failed shortly after their makeover — sometimes before the episode of the show featuring the restaurant had aired, thus not allowing them to reap the benefits of added exposure. Some critics held the opinion that participating in Restaurant Makeover was a "kiss of death" for failing restaurants. However, it was noted that given the dire condition of some participants' establishments, even a significant change could not salvage the business.^{[1] [2] [3] [4] [5]}

List of renovated restaurants

Season 1

Restaurant Name	Original Name	Location	Chef	Designer	Still Open?	Notes
Babelfish Bistro	N/A	Guelph, ON	David Adjey	Robin De Groot
Cocoron	N/A	Toronto, ON	Via Oliveto	Rene Chauvin

Season 2

Restaurant Name	Original Name	Location	Chef	Designer	Still Open?	Notes
Aftermath Cafe	N/A	Toronto, ON	Lynn Crawford	Robin De Groot		Renamed "Events Cafe", then closed
Bravi Restaurant	N/A	Toronto, ON	Massimo Capra	Glen Peloso
College Street Bar	N/A	Toronto, ON	David Adjey	Robin De Groot
First Class Delites	N/A	Toronto, ON	Lynn Crawford	Cherie Stinson
High Point Restaurant	N/A	Mississauga, ON	David Adjey	Meredith Heron		Closed and on Lease
Higher Groundz Cafe	N/A	Mississauga, ON	Brad Long	Glen Peloso		Now Raw Aura Organic Cuisine.
Innocenti Restaurant	N/A	Toronto, ON	Lynn Crawford	Meredith Heron		Was KiWe, now Ruby Soho.
Monkey Bar and Grill	N/A	Toronto, ON	Lynn Crawford	Glen Peloso		Re-renovated in 2015
Montana Roadhouse	N/A	Toronto, ON	David Adjey	Lisa North		Now The Ballroom
Old York Bar and Grill	N/A	Toronto, ON	Massimo Capri	Cherie Stinson		Closed Dec 23, 2022
Ossawippi Express Dining Cars	N/A	Orillia, ON	David Adjey	Robin De Groot		Owner declared bankruptcy in 2010.
The Empress Restaurant	N/A	Toronto, ON	Brad Long	Lisa North
The Town Grill	N/A	Toronto, ON	Jason Rosso	Cherie Stinson		Now Omi Sushi.

Season 3

Restaurant Name	Original Name	Location	Chef	Designer	Still Open?	Notes
Brooklyn's Bar and Grill	N/A	Burlington, ON	David Adjey	Robin De Groot
Cafe Asia	N/A	Toronto, ON	Lynn Crawford	Cherie Stinson
Casa Mendoza	N/A	Toronto, ON	Lynn Crawford	Matt Robinson		soon to be condo development
Quattro 4 Ragazze	Europe Planet	Toronto, ON	Corbin Tomaszeski	Meredith Heron
Forte Restaurant	N/A	N/A	Corbin Tomaszeski	Robin Fraser
Grappa Ristorante	N/A	Toronto, ON	Brad Long	Robin Fraser/Meredith Heron
Peridot Resto Lounge	Ithaca Restaurant	Toronto, ON	Brad Long	Meredith Heron		Closed in 2014, Now Firkin on Bloor
Jeremiah's Bullfrog Cafe	N/A	Toronto, ON	David Adjey	Jessica Cotton
Karma's Cafe	N/A	Peterborough, ON	Lynn Crawford	Glen Peloso
Kokkino Restaurant and Lounge	N/A	Toronto, ON	Lynn Crawford	Meredith Heron		Closed in 2010
Latitude Wine Bar and Grill	N/A	Toronto, ON	David Adjey	Robin Fraser
Le Cafe Vert	N/A	Toronto, ON	Massimo Capra	Cheryl Torrenueva		See Footnotes^[6]
Lüb Bistro Lounge	N/A	Toronto, ON	David Adjey	Glen Peloso
Natchos Thai Thai Cafe	N/A	Toronto, ON	David Adjey	Meredith Heron
Peroni's Pizzeria	N/A	Mississauga, ON	Massimo Capra	Glen Peloso
Phil's Original BBQ	N/A	Toronto, ON	David Adjey	Meredith Heron		Close 2014, now Buster Rhino's Southern BBQ
PJ O'Brien	N/A	St. Lawrence, Toronto, ON	Corbin Tomaszeski	Cherie Stinson
Reliable Fish & Chips	N/A	Leslieville, Toronto, ON	Corbin Tomaszeski	Meredith Heron
Rubicon Grill	N/A	Mississauga, ON	Lynn Crawford	Glen Peloso		Closure due to fire^[7]
Saigon Flower Restaurant	N/A	West Queen West, Toronto, ON	Corbin Tomaszeski	Jessica Cotton
Side Door Grill	N/A	Toronto, ON	Lynn Crawford	Matt Robinson
Six Steps	Spinello	Toronto, ON	Massimo Capra	Meredith Heron		Now The Bowery^[8]
St. Clair Village Cafe	N/A	Toronto, ON	Massimo Capra	Cherie Stinson		Now Pizza e Pazzi
Stoney's Bar & Grill	N/A	Toronto, ON	David Adjey	Glen Peloso
The Boathouse Restaurant	N/A	Woodview, ON	Corbin Tomaszeski	Meredith Heron
The Office Sports Bar and Grill	N/A	Toronto, ON	Corbin Tomaszeski	Meredith Heron		Now The Longest Yard

Season 4

Restaurant Name	Original Name	Location	Chef	Designer	Still Open?	Notes
Aggie Martin	N/A	Brampton, ON	David Adjey	Glen Peloso		Now Green Cup Roastery is in the space.
Bagel World	N/A	Toronto, ON	Corbin Tomaszeski	Robin Fraser
Nook	Bakerberry Caffe	Toronto, ON	Corbin Tomaszeski	Jonathan Furlong
Cork & Cabbage	Bistro Aubergine	Toronto, ON	Lynn Crawford	Cherie Stinson		Closed before show aired. Reopened under new ownership as JAM Cafe^[9]
Bulldog Cafe	N/A	Toronto, ON	Massimo Capra	Meredith Heron		Has expanded to multiple locations.
Calypso Hut	N/A	N/A	Massimo Capra	Robin Fraser
Dhaba Indian Excellence	N/A	Toronto, ON	Susur Lee	Brenda Bent
Konrad Lounge	Di and Gabby's	Etobicoke, Toronto, ON	Massimo Capra	Tracy Kundell
Dooney's	N/A	Toronto, ON ^[10]	Corbin Tomaszeski	Jonathan Furlong		See Footnotes^[11]
The Citizen	Essence	Toronto, ON ^[12]	Lynn Crawford	Brenda Bent		This restaurant was purchased and made over again by Lynn Crawford and Cherie Stinson.^[13]
Golden Flame Restaurant	N/A	Richmond Hill, ON	Massimo Capra	Meredith Heron
Hamar Weyne	N/A	Toronto, ON	Corbin Tomaszeski	Tracy Kundell
Hollingers	N/A	Toronto, ON	Lynn Crawford	Cherie Stinson
Hollywood Panini	N/A	Richmond Hill, ON	Massimo Capra	Glen Peloso		Now Greek Xpress.
Il Papagallo	N/A	Oakville, ON	Corbin Tomaszeski	Tracy Kundell		Now Corks Restaurant.
Jonathan's	N/A	Woodbridge, ON	David Adjey	Glen Peloso
Kensington's	N/A	Toronto, ON	Brad Long	Glen Peloso
La Cabana	N/A	N/A	David Adjey	Glen Peloso
Massimo's	N/A	Toronto, ON	Massimo Capra	Brenda Bent		Was temporarily closed due to fire. New locations on Queen West and also College were renamed Vinny Massimo's,^[14] ^[15] but were closed around winter 2014.
The Olive Branch	Mighty Mike's	Toronto, ON	Lynn Crawford	Jonathan Furlong
Rifca's Mediterranean Kitchen	Pita Stop	Richmond Hill, ON	Brad Long	Glen Peloso
Roma Ristorante	N/A	Toronto, ON	David Adjey	Cheryl Torrenueva		Under new ownership.
Flame Bar & Grill	Seashell Seafood	N/A	David Adjey	Cheryl Torrenueva		Now Pho 88.
The Central	N/A	N/A	Corbin Tomaszeski	Brenda Bent
The Richmond Rogue	N/A	Toronto, ON	Lynn Crawford	Meredith Heron
Waterfall Martini Lounge	N/A	N/A	David Adjey	Jonathan Furlong

Season 5

Restaurant Name	Original Name	Location	Chef	Designer	Still Open?	Notes
A Catered Affair's Cafe	N/A	Milton, ON	Lynn Crawford	Cherie Stinson		now Grill Daddy
Cocina Lucero	Arre Burrito	Toronto, ON	Lynn Crawford	Cherie Stinson
Bacchus Roti	N/A	Toronto, ON	Brad Long	Meredith Heron
Bon Vivant	N/A	Toronto, ON	Massimo Capra	Glen Peloso		Closed in 2013
Church Street Diner	N/A	Toronto, ON	Lynn Crawford	Glen Peloso		For reasons which have never been publicly clarified, the restaurant remained closed for over a year after the renovation before finally reopening in 2010.^[16] They have since closed the restaurant according to their Facebook page.
County Fish and Chips	N/A	Port Credit, ON	Corbin Tomaszeski	Meredith Heron
De Great Iron Pot	N/A	Scarborough, ON	Corbin Tomaszeski	Cheryl Torrenueva
Earth Indian	N/A	North York, ON	Brad Long	Jonathan Furlong
Attilio's 1957	Gippino's	Toronto, ON	Michael Bonacini	Meredith Heron		Closed after a fire.
Joe Boo's Cookoos	N/A	Thornhill, ON	Michael Bonacini	Glen Peloso
Cluck, Grunt and Low	Riviera	Toronto, ON	Lynn Crawford	Brenda Bent		Now Puck 'N Wings.
Locavore	Slippery Boot	Toronto, ON	Brad Long	Meredith Heron		Became Trillium Bistro, now La Cascina.^[17]
Tresca Trattoria	N/A	Richmond Hill, ON	Corbin Tomaszeski	Tracy Kundell		New ownership and called 'Bathurst St. Deli' which was later renamed 'Bathurst St. Bistro', which was later sold and is currently 'Capital Pizzeria and Grill'

External links

• Episode list from Food Network Canada
• Episode list from HGTV

Notes and References

1. http://torontoist.com/2008/01/villain_restaur.php Villain: Restaurant Makeover
2. http://www.macleans.ca/culture/lifestyle/article.jsp?content=20080122_094626_5624 The Curse of The Restaurant Makeover
3. http://www.chowhound.com/topics/105414 Restaurant Makeover
4. http://www.tribemagazine.com/board/showthread.php?t=137506 Tribe Magazine: Restaurant Makeover Curse
5. http://www.tasteto.com/2007/08/06/to-tidbits-monday-august-6th/ Restaurant Makeover
6. http://www.blogto.com/deadpool/2009/01/le_cafe_vert_in_the_deadpool/ "Le Cafe Vert in the Deadpool?"
7. http://www.mississauga.com/article/27843 "Fire closes Lakeshore Rd."
8. http://totastings.blogspot.com/2011/06/bowery-launches-on-colborne-street-in.html "The Bowery Launches on Colborne Street in Toronto"
9. http://www.macleans.ca/culture/lifestyle/article.jsp?content=20080122_094626_5624 The Curse of The Restaurant Makeover
10. 511 Bloor St. W on check
11. http://network.nationalpost.com/np/blogs/toronto/archive/2008/06/19/end-of-an-era-for-dooney-s-caf-233.aspx "End of an era for Dooney's Café"
12. 790 Queens St. W can be seen in front window during reveal, CN Tower seen in background of road shot
13. http://www.nowtoronto.com/food/story.cfm?content=174358 Lynn Crawford’s makeover
14. http://www.blogto.com/eat_drink/2009/09/after_fire_massimos_to_reopen_on_queen/ Massimo's To Reopen on Queen
15. http://vinnymassimos.ca/ Vinny Massimo's
16. http://www.xtra.ca/public/Toronto/Church_St_Diner_reopens-8298.aspx "Church St Diner reopens"
17. http://ellidavis.com/2009/08/locavare-becomes-trillium-bistro "How Locavore became Trillium Bistro: The Death of a Fine Restaurant"