Kitchen Nightmares Sneek Peak: j. willy’s bar & grille, South Bend


The next season of Kitchen Nightmares starts in the Fall, but we’ve got a tip about one of the places that will be featured.

Gordon will be visiting j. willy’s bar & grille in South Bend, Indiana. A local paper covered the news.

What did Gordon think once he got there?

“This is a dynamic team,” Ramsay said, pointing to the j. willy’s crew. “We have the most amazing decor, the most amazing ribs, and the most amazing barbecue sauce.”

(Thanks to John)

8 thoughts on “Kitchen Nightmares Sneek Peak: j. willy’s bar & grille, South Bend”

  1. J Willy’s is a sports bar. Unfortunately, the atmosphere is gone, the kitchen is poorly managed and the food is overpriced now and tasteless.

  2. Danetta must have an axe to grind or be working for a local competing restaurant because my wife and myself (we’re from out of state) ate at J Willy’s when we were in South Bend and it was outstanding. When we arrived we had no idea that Ramsey had been there. The coleslaw was the freshest I have ever had. The ribs were “fall off the bone tender” and had a great flavor. The waitress was very friendly and told us about their Ramsey experience. He demanded that all the ingredients be fresh and you could taste it. Don’t take my word, try it.

  3. WELL it sounds great, but I have been away from South Bend for many years. My aunt lived just down the street on California……could someone send me some ribs to try??? Please…. Good luck to
    J Willy’s and I’ll let you know when I try the ribs.

  4. Well I am biased because not only have I worked there and know all the staff. My Dad is the Chef and my mom in charge of the books… The resturant has great food and atmosphere and if Danetta hadn’t had her head so far up her fourth point of contact she would have been able to appreciate and enjoy the food. The whole crew that have worked their butts off, in the transition from Damons to J. Willeys. They have put in considerable extra hours making it all work. If you get a chance to eat there, enjoy the food is delicious

  5. i ate there after chef gordon went and helped. the menu had few choices, the chicken i ordered was bland bland bland and way overpriced. i was really rooting for you guys. oh and the wonderful decor? was vinyl tablecloths and tea light candles. it didn’t look anything like it used to as damon’s though. so props for that…and glad to see they got rid of the onion straws.

  6. We had th epleasure of dining there BEFORE chef Gordon was there…it was so disgusting!! It’s like everything was cooked in the same deep fryer at the same time! I’m scared to give it another chance! I’ll have to watch the show and maybe give it another try.

  7. I just can’t wait to see this episode since a family member has already forcefully commented on how good it is here.

    Kim, that was a bad move. Attitude like that will only turn people away. Let us decide for ourselves whether or not your food is any good. Chances are, if your restaurant was on K.N. it wasn’t.

  8. I had the pleasure of eating a few weeks ago, long before the airing of Ramsey but long enough after he left for things to settle down. I was very pleasent, the coleslaw, Baked beans, and oh my goodness cream corn were delicious! It was for lunch so i ate lightly. But cant wait to visit again. Good LUCK

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