Tuesday, January 14, 2020

24 Hours to Hell and Back - Blend on Main Update

On tonight's episode of 24 Hours to Hell and Back, Gordon Ramsay is in Manasquan, New Jersey to try to save Blend on Main.  Blend on Main is owned by Lou Smith who is also the chef of the restaurant.  The restaurant is in a tourist town and Gordon Ramsay needs to figure out how to keep the restaurant busy in the off-season.  While Gordon is there, he finds that Lou's personality is causing a lot of conflicts in the restaurant and with Gordon Ramsay.


Let's take a look at some information, reviews, and updates for Blend on Main since 24 Hours to Hell and Back and Gordon Ramsay made all of the changes to the restaurant (note - all reviews are post-makeover).




Positive Reviews:

  • "Blend had always had amazing food since it was Firefly. This week was my first time back in over 2 years after a bad service and let me tell you Blend is one of the best restaurants i have ever been to. Their food is fresh and delicious and their portions are fantastic. I had the crab cakes for dinner and they were incredible. Chef Lou has always made crabcakes that were mostly crab meat but these were a step above the rest. Fresh, chock full of crab meat, and served with an updated sauce and garnish, I was so incredibly satisfied. All members of my party were extremely satisfied with their appetizers and entrees. The staff was wonderful and the ambiance lovey. I highly recommend giving this place a try!"
  • "This place was all the talk of the town b/c Gordon Ramsey was there last week. I have been a few times. The food has always been good and was again on last Saturday night. The menu seems smaller and it is a BYOB. It is also a pretty large place. The interior has definitely undergone a renovation. Still pretty trendy. I had the steak au proivre and the ring ding desert. Both were excellent. If this place had a bar i would be giving 5 stars."
  • "I have always been a fan of Blend and was surprised when I heard it was getting a Gordon Ramsey makeover, as the food was always creative and tasty. The changes are plus and minus. The room, which was always noisy and dated, has been redone. A definite plus. Though still noisy when full, it is more contemporary and in line with what you would expect at an upscale restaurant....The food itself has always been good, but in the Gordon Ramsey style, his changes have been to simplify the menu. Where we more recently had 4 steak options, they are down to two. Many old favorites have disappeared and their signature crab cakes are reduced to being a special....Overall, I give this restaurant 5 stars and hope that it continues to prosper and again hope that some of my old favorites will reappear in the future."
  • "I was surprised and a little worried that Chef Gordon Ramsay did a remake of Blend a few weeks ago. It was always one of my go to restaurants. Well no worries! We were a party of six and all ordered different menu items. Everything was perfect from appetizers to salads to entrees. And don't worry, they still have the delicious pretzel rolls and raspberry mustard sauce. The decor has been updated as well as the sound proofing In the ceiling. It was as delicious as always with a slightly prettier setting. We will be back !"
  • "Simply amazing. I took my wife for her birthday dinner. I loved the upscale casual atmosphere. The service was wonderful. Not rushed at all but not forgot about. They seem to use a team effort. Our main server knew the menu well and knew how to amend the specials to meet my gluten allergy. The other members of the team were filling water and taking away dishes as needed. This may seem small but it tells me that service is a priority. I don’t know what to say about the food. I haven’t had a better meal out in quite a while. I’m no foodie, but I sure love to eat. The portions were perfect. The seasoning was perfect. I woke up thinking about my meal. It was that good. We had scallops and salad for apps then the duck and risotto for our main dishes. Prices were very reasonable for the quality. I cannot wait to return!!!!"
  • "Excellent! All around great first experience here. Warm ambiance, very good service, and the food is superb. Reasonable prices for very high quality and large portions. I loved my special of maple glazed pork chop with sweet potato purée and asparagus. BYOB which saves so much off the check. Really can’t say enough about how nice it was. Will be our new go-to."
Negative Reviews:


  • "Service at first was very good then slowly throughout the evening never saw the waitress until our bill. She never refilled our glasses nor attended to us just stopped in. Appetizers were good but it went downhill. The filet was tasteless the pork chop was so Smokey it was like eating firewood. Desserts were good not fabulous. Won't return so many better places to try disappointed in Gordon Ramsay fix up sorry Chef Lou I will day the presentation was very nice wish it all tasted as well as it looked"
*Reviews from Yelp, Tripadvisor, Google



Other News and Links:
  • The 24 Hours to Hell and Back makeover happened in October 2019.
  • Here is the Blend on Main website and Facebook page.
    • The website says the menu changes about every two months.  It was also redesigned right before the episode aired.
  • Here is Chef/Owner Lou Smith's Facebook page and he seems to be having fun watching the previews of the episode.  He is commenting on the upcoming episode and answering people's questions.
  • Here are the Blend on Main reviews from Yelp, Tripadvisor, Opentable and Google.  The reviews for Blend on Main were very positive before 24 Hours to Hell and Back came.
    • Lou responds to reviews on the review sites, especially the negative ones.
  • There is an interview with Lou on his website that say the show reached out to him and not the other way around.  He also said he would do it again while his wife Tara said it was too stressful.
  • Lou Smith is also the owner of another restaurant at the same address called The Peach Pit Cafe which serves breakfast and lunch.

Conclusion:

The reviews for Blend on Main since the 24 Hours to Hell and Back makeover are mostly positive with people liking the food, atmosphere, and service.  The reviews for Blend on Main before the makeover were also very positive and people were wondering why the restaurant was chosen for the show.  It seems that the show reached out to the restaurant about filming and not the other way around, which happens often in reality television.  Lou Smith also owns another restaurant called The Peach Pit, which is right next door and serves breakfast and lunch.


*To see how the restaurants from 24 Hours to Hell and Back are doing, visit the 24 Hours To Hell and Back Updates Page. Also, if you are interested in the restaurants from Kitchen Nightmares, visit the Kitchen Nightmares Updates Page.

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