The Black Pearl is the name of Johnny Depp’s boat… oh wait, that’s not what this is about! The Black Pearl is a struggling seafood restaurant in New York City that needs Gordon Ramsay’s help in order to become a success.

There are three owners at this restaurant. Not necessarily PARTNERS, they each own a portion of the restaurant and are feuding; all have differing ideas of how things should be run.
Owner #1: David – One of the original owners, sauntering into the restaurant clearly dressed up for TV and not for a day of work.
Owner #2: Brian – Also one of the original owners, he would rather not even be at the restaurant the majority of the time.
Owner #3: Greg – The third owner, brought in when they needed more financial backing but he has never been given a lot of respect from the other owners.

Gordon decides to sample some of the menu items. He’s being served by Waiter Steven, who says, “My name is Steven” every single time he comes to the table. Gordon teases him by asking him, “What was your name?” Gordon starts the sampling off with “watery” chowder. Gordon also decides to eat some lobster macaroni and cheese but finds it “chewy”. The final part of his meal is to sample the lobster rolls. They offer 3 different varieties: Connecticut, Maine & New York City. He starts with the CT roll and compares it to eating a “wet diaper”. (Does he do that often?) The Maine one was “piss poor” and “not seasoned.” The NYC roll is on “soggy” bread. When he questions the lack of seasoning, Owner David says salt and pepper are not used in Maine. Gordon states that he lived in Maine for 3 months and they certainly did use the traditional seasonings there.

When Gordon decides to observe a dinner service, all of the owners are there. This is apparently a rarity in the restaurant’s day-to-day operations, the staff says they are NEVER there all together. Yet it came across as a competition between the owners to prove to Gordon their value, but they really end up messing up people’s orders. When a patron complains that their mussels are sandy, Owner David goes out and tells the table that “they are typically sandy” and that is why they “have broth to dip them in.” When he leaves the table, the dinner patrons ask each other, “Were we just reprimanded?”

Gordon is the most horrified to discover that they have a box full of Canadian lobster in the kitchen that are being sold as more expensive Maine lobster. Apparently Canadian lobster is cheaper and tastes different. When the owners are questioned about the fact that they are lying to their patrons the David basically says, “What’s the difference? Same waters… Same animal… Big deal…”

Gordon says the restaurant needs one person to act as the general manager, to give them a single direction and focus. The three try to work out their management plan, but Gordon decides for them that Brian isn’t needed to be there. Then it’s a battle between David and Greg, both of them have to take turns working at the kitchen pass during dinner service to see who can keep the kitchen organized the most efficiently. There wasn’t a clear selection of who was more solid, so the staff get to vote on who they would choose to run the restaurant. The majority choose Greg. Gordon isn’t 100% sold on Greg, but he’s willing to give it a chance.

Like usual, the restaurant gets an overnight makeover. Now the whole design is cohesive, since previously it was broken into three distinct styles reflecting the fact that they had 3 separate owners. Everyone loves it, except David… because he hates everything.

Next Gordon introduces Louie the Lobster, a mascot going to Times Square to hand out marketing materials in an attempt to spread the word. The staff are all enlisted to help and everyone seems excited. Once again, David says it is a stupid idea to market to the tourists and predicts they won’t see any effect from that attempt.

Gordon introduces the new menu. The staff gets to sample each new item and they rave over each item. Except David… who still hates everything. I’m getting tired of him hating everything by this point. Can’t we just write his character out of the show? Oh wait, it’s “reality” and he’s not a character… just a jerk.

Before the final dinner service, Gordon makes the owners sign a document stating that they agree that Greg is the manager and that he will be given responsibility to make daily decisions. As issues arise, they will call a meeting and gather together to come to a consensus on what the solution should be. Seems logical and they all happily sign… well, one of them acts a little ornery. Can you guess who?

During dinner service David is standing in the dining room, complaining about anything and everything he can. He insults the service, the food and calls Greg their “puppet dictator”. Greg struggles while working the pass, he has spent so much time walking on eggshells and not having any authority in the restaurant’s direction that he is unsure how to grab the reins and take charge. As the kitchen is about to reach the “brink of disaster”, Greg and the staff all buckle down to improve their skills. By the end of the evening, Greg has found his voice and is able to make decisions and issue clear instructions.

Gordon’s parting words to Greg were, “F*&# me you have passion, but your partners don’t give a damn.” Brian is told that he is honest but doesn’t make an effort in the restaurant’s success. And what pearls does he have for David? Gordon says that he pretends to care, but he is “abusing and using” the restaurant and that he is more “full of sh*#” than anyone Gordon’s ever met. Then he proceeds to describe David in a way that requires so much bleeping, that I’m not even entirely sure what was said.

David snidely tells Gordon he appreciates everything he’s done, as we see clips flashing back to contradict every polite thing David is saying, in an effort to send Gordon on his way. Gordon leaves and confesses he has mixed feelings about this experience and he’s not sure about the future of the restaurant as long as David is involved.

Jill blogs at GlossyVeneer where she rambles about her daily life and reviews random things/places she encounters. She also writes at JillWillRun, as she trains for a marathon while raising money for cancer research.