Restaurant Impossible Follow-Up — Michele’s (Corry, Pa)

Michele’s formerly known as Perry’s was purchased at an auction by it’s owner who had no experience in the business. A couple say a sign that restaurant for sale and just causally decided to buy it. Sounds like a disaster waiting to happen. Sounds like a typical Restaurant Impossible episode.

Michele’s | No restaurant website available

Where to begin with this place? Inexperience is the perfect word to describe it. They don’t know what they are doing really in any aspect of the restaurant. Particularly the food. You have an owner cooking, who really doesn’t know how to cook. She was being too picky when it comes to hiring a chef, but she didn’t have the chops herself. But you can learn to cook without having to head off to some fancy school. I have learned what I know about food and cooking not from show but from watching shows like Good Eats and reading books. I am not planning on being a chef anytime soon.

There was a lot of talk in the show about cooking steaks. The owner thought she could cook a steak better than people she had in to be cooks. But in fact when Robert visited she send out a steak that was still mooing when it needed to be medium well. Cooking steaks to perfection isn’t easy. Steaks aren’t always the same shape and thickness. You need to practice.

Lesson for Home
If you are having trouble cooking a steak to your liking, buy an instant read thermometer. This will help take the guest work out. Do this for a while and you will eventually getting a feeling for when your steak is done and you won’t need it anymore.

The Recipes

Pan Seared Chicken, Strawberry Avocado Relish | Click here for the recipe

This recipe is for a pan seared chicken that is finished off in the oven. Served with a strawberry and avocado relish, not something I would have ever thought of doing.

Follow-Up
Before the show I read numerous reviews of this place before Robert came. Lots of complains about the service and there were people missing the previous restaurant. They are still in business as they hosted a party for the viewing of the show with finger foods served to the guests. According to Food Network’s website, sales are now up a whopping 40%! Jessie, the chef they hired during the show is no longer working there. They did manage to find a permanent chef with 16 years of experience. But will this place survive long term? The popularity of the show seems to also boost sales but eventually that will fade away and I don’t know if the ownership can keep this up. We will see.

If you want more Robert Irvine recipes, here are some of his available cookbooks:

This cookbook contains 111 recipes many with complete timelimes and several that are gluten free. An example of the kind of recipes you will find are Lime-Cured Shrimp and Roasted Corn Chowder, Porcini-Dusted Pork Chops with Cremini Mushrooms and Golden Raisins over Horseradish-Scented Potatoes.

In this book Robert shares his personal stories (including cooking for First Lady Laura Bush) and cooking philosophy. There are also recipes to be had like Black Angus Beef Tartare with Toasted Brioche and Fried Quail Egg, Roasted Duck with White Bean Ragout.