In this Restaurant Impossible episode, Robert Irvine visits Z Fish House in Loudon, Tennessee.
Z Fish House is owned by Ed and Melissa.
Key West holds a special place in Ed’s heart.
He cherished every moment he had in Key West and wanted a fish restaurant.
He met his wife, Melissa, there and they decided to move to Tennessee.
They didn’t have the money to start the restaurant and Ed didn’t go to culinary school.
Ed says he has the connections to get almost anything you could think of.
He says that this is his biggest problem.
They have invested around $120,000 to $130,000 into the restaurant.
There hasn’t been a month since they opened that they made a profit.
Ed and his wife haven’t taken a paycheck since July 2016.
Ed’s restaurant is filthy and in despair.
His food is driving customers away.
If Ed can’t reignite his passion, his restaurant and his livelihood will never survive.
Melissa says they have gone into foreclosure about four different times.
Melissa says this hasn’t been easy because they live in the house that she grew up in.
She purchased the house when her mother passed away.
She wants her grandchildren to grow up in the house that she did.
She says it’s overwhelming at times and Ed feels hopeless.
He says he is stuck in the middle of nowhere.
Ed is responsible for everything in the restaurant.
He doesn’t have anyone he can depend on.
He says you lose your motivation after a while.
Melissa says that if they close the doors for good then Ed will go into a deep depression.
He would feel like he failed as a husband and a chef.
Robert arrives at the restaurant.
The outside of the restaurant looks very shabby.
There is junk everywhere and the restaurant is not clean.
The ceiling tiles are dirty.
Robert calls Ed and Melissa into the restaurant for a brief.
The landlord lent Ed $7,500 to start the restaurant.
Ed tells Robert his experience as a chef.
The restaurant appeared on TV and they went from doing $1,000 a week to doing $10,000 a week.
Ed says that there were lines out the door.
They had no plates and had little staff.
Things went downhill very fast.
They’ve had lots of maintenance issues that have been very expensive.
Melissa had to get another job in order to survive.
Robert tells them he wants to see the service.
They are only able to fill to 50% capacity due to state restrictions.
There is no energy or excitement in the kitchen and no system for taking orders.
Robert says there is tremendous lack of organization and leadership from Ed.
The customers have been waiting way too long for their food.
There is fish that was bought fresh but is now three days old.
They have never cleaned out the grease trap.
The kitchen is so dirty that Robert tells them to stop the service.
Ed says he is confident that Robert will like the food.
Robert says that there wasn’t a dish he tried that he liked.
The soup was too spicy and the food is over seasoned.
Robert tells Ed that he isn’t as good as he thinks he is.
Robert says he is going to start from scratch with the restaurant.
Ed says that Robert is right.
Robert meets with his design team of Taniya and Tom to discuss the design concept.
The staff begins taking everything out of the restaurant.
Ed says change isn’t easy and this isn’t easy for him.
He says things have to change because it isn’t working.
The bathroom is leaking into the restaurant.
Robert has one of the producers call a plumber to fix the toilet.
Robert writes down all of the tasks that Ed does and puts them on chains.
He puts the chains onto Ed to show him that doing everything around the restaurant is weighing him down.
Robert says that Ed takes on too much, and that’s why the restaurant is the way that it is.
Robert asks what’s the point in coming into work every day if Ed isn’t excited to do so.
If Ed doesn’t start delegating, he’s not going to make it.
He gives Ed homework that he must find someone to take some of the workload off him.
Ed tells his staff to deep clean the kitchen.
Melissa says that this has been needed for quite some time now.
Robert says it is promising to see Ed take control but he still has a lot of work to do.
The next morning, the kitchen is a lot cleaner.
Ed presents his recipe ideas to Robert.
Robert likes his ideas but shows Ed his way of making the recipes.
Robert meets with Ed and the staff to let Ed explain the new procedures for the relaunch.
Ed tells his staff how much he appreciates them.
There are plumbers trying to fix the leaking issue but if it doesn’t get fixed they can’t open the restaurant.
Robert shows Ed three dishes he believes compliments what the dishes from the morning.
They begin putting the finishing touches to the restaurant.
The tables are being set.
They are late opening but the plumbing issues have been repaired.
The restaurant is finally ready for Ed and Melissa to see.
When Robert showed up, Ed had almost completely given up.
He was complacent and going through the motions.
Robert had stripped him down and brought the fight back.
He brought Ed’s passion back.
Robert takes Ed and Melissa into their new restaurant.
Ed says he can’t believe that they managed to pull this off.
Melissa says this is beyond anything she could have ever imagined.
She hugs Robert and says thank you.
Ed invites the customers into their new restaurant.
On relaunch, the customers love the food.
One customer says it’s worth the forty-minute drive.
They also love the new look and promise to return.
Ed says he feels complete.
What Happened Next at Z Fish House?
A month later, Z Fish House has doubled their monthly revenue.
The restaurant is back to having lines around the corner.
Ed has re-introduced some dishes that fit with Robert’s new menu.
Ed now cleans down his kitchen thoroughly at the end of each day.
Z Fish House is closed.
They closed in January 2022 after they couldn't afford to renew their lease, buy the building or move location.
Z Fish House is Restaurant Impossible season 19 episode 3 and aired on 3rd June 2021.
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This post was last updated in June 2023.
