(keep reading to learn what happened)
Season: 6 | View All Season 6 Episodes
Original Episode Air Date: October 26, 2012
La Galleria 33 Address: 125 Salem St Boston, MA 02113
Episode Recap
La Galleria 33 was a Boston, Massachusetts restaurant featured on season 6 of Kitchen Nightmares.
Though the La Galleria 33 Kitchen Nightmares episode aired in October and November 2012, the actual visit from Gordon Ramsay happened earlier in the year in May 2012.
It was a two-part episode that spanned Kitchen Nightmares Season 6 Episode 1 and Episode 2.
In this episode of Kitchen Nightmares, Chef Gordon Ramsay takes us to family-owned Italian restaurant named La Galleria 33.
This is one of my favorite episodes, as I think the owners, sisters Rita and Lisa, are pretty funny.
The La Galleria 33 restaurant is located in the North end of Boston, Massachusetts.
The sisters opened the restaurant back in 2006.
That means the restaurant has been up and running for around six years at the time of the Kitchen Nightmares La Galleria 33 episode.
Gordon Ramsay quickly learns that the staff thinks Lisa and Rita are unprofessional (which is part of why I think they’re funny haha).
Rita smokes too much and Lisa doesn’t seem to have any issues with drinking in front of the customers.
However, Gordon learns from the sisters that they think the staff is the main issue, as they have lost their passion for the restaurant.
Lisa and Rita claim to have tried everything to save the business, from lowering menu prices, changing the menu, and redecorating.
But so far, nothing has worked and the restaurant is still struggling, which is why they needed to ask Kitchen Nightmares and Gordon Ramsay for help.
Soon after arriving at La Galleria 33, Gordon Ramsay sits down to order food:
- Seafood ravioli
- Gnocchi
- Meatballs
- Veal
- Chicken marsala
Since this is an episode of Kitchen Nightmares, you can probably guess that Gordon did not like the food that he was served.
To Gordon’s disgust, the meatballs are bland and rubbery.
The veal is gnarly, bland, overcooked and salty inside.
The seafood ravioli is frozen and disgusting.
The chicken marsala is too sweet and bland.
Basically, all of the food at La Galleria 33 struck out when it came to the quality.
Again – no surprise since we all know the drill by now.
Chef Ramsay then asks for a dessert menu, only to learn that the restaurant offers one option: tiramisu.
That wouldn’t be a huge issue by itself (tiramisu is delicious, after all).
But the big problem is that they’re out of tiramisu…which is the only dessert item.
I guess the La Galleria 33 customers just don’t get dessert – maybe the restaurant is trying to help people lose weight? I don’t know haha.
Gordon Ramsay then meets Doug, the head chef at La Galleria 33.
Doug not only hates Italian food, but he hates preparing it as well.
So…maybe it’s not the best place for Doug to work, right?
Chef Ramsay has Doug walk him through the kitchen during an evening rush on Saturday.
During this, Gordon is shocked to find that Doug has no stations set up in the kitchen.
How can you hope to deliver quality food on time if you aren’t organized inside the kitchen?
Doug then drops chicken on the floor and proceeds to place the dirty chicken in the pan to cook.
This causes an argument to break out between Gordon and Doug and resulting in Doug throwing the chicken away.
Complaints keep rolling in through the night with both Lisa and Rita shifting responsibility and arguing with irate customers.
Gordon inspects the walk-in and discovers rotten onions and dead mussels.
He then inspects the pantry and discovers frozen pasta and rotten food.
Notice a bit of a trend?
The next day Gordon calls a staff meeting to try to get to the bottom of the many issues at the restaurant
During the meeting, the La Galleria 33 owners list off their complaints with the staff.
This results in Sara, their server of 2 years, walking out of the restaurant.
Gordon then tells the sisters that they too must change if they want the restaurant to be successful.
As part of this, Lisa agrees to not drink on the job and Rita promises to give up cigarettes.
With over 80 other Italian restaurants in Boston’s North end, Gordon knows that he needs something to make La Galleria 33 stand out from the rest.
Chef Ramsay then introduces a new Italian menu with homemade meatballs to help the La Galleria 33 Boston restaurant stand out.
Doug is hesitant at first, but Gordon hires Chef Michael to teach Doug how to cook the new menu items.
Gordon and his team then give the restaurant a modern makeover, making it brighter and much more pleasant for diners.
The night of relaunch, the restaurant experiences a computer malfunction, causing the staff to handwrite their tickets.
But once Doug and Mike receive tickets they get to work and food starts heading out the door for customers to enjoy.
Overall the night was a total success once they handled the technical issues and things seem to be looking up for La Galleria 33 when Gordon Ramsay leaves.
So was the La Galleria 33 Kitchen Nightmares episode a long-term success?
Keep reading my update to learn what happened next and if this Boston restaurant is still open in 2024 and beyond.
La Galleria 33 Update - What Happened Next?
Now that we’ve recapped Gordon’s visit, let’s dig into what happened to La Galleria 33 after Gordon Ramsay and his crew left Boston, MA.
After the La Galleria 33 episode aired on TV, the restaurant was initially a success and things seemed to be looking up for Rita and Lisa.
The reviews for the restaurant were still mixed, but the restaurant stayed open for years and, at least as a business, it was a success.
It had a 3.5 star rating on its Yelp page.
A lot of the post-Gordon Ramsay reviews were pretty positive, though there were also a solid number of negative reviews mixed in.
I’ll share some real examples of La Galleria 33 reviews below.
Unfortunately, the good times at La Galleria 33 would not last.
But before I talk about La Galleria 33 today, let’s first talk about Gordon Ramsay’s second visit to La Galleria 33.
Gordon Ramsay La Galleria 33 revisit
In addition to the two-part episode from Season 6, Gordon Ramsay also revisited La Galleria 33 as part of Season 7’s Revisited #9, which was the last episode of Kitchen Nightmares to air on TV (before the series was rebooted in 2023).
In this episode, Gordon Ramsay also visited Olde Hitching Post in Hanson MA and Prohibition Gastropub in Everett WA.
The La Galleria 33 revisited episode starts with some funny shots of the sisters outside the restaurant waiting for Gordon Ramsay.
Rita then runs up and hugs Gordon and they both seem excited to see him.
They then show Gordon Ramsay a packed restaurant and talk about how the restaurant is doing.
My favorite quote from the visit comes from Lisa:
Since being on the show, most of the response has been positive.
Though there’s been a little backlash because I called Chef Ramsay a douchebag.
There’s also another funny moment where Rita put a picture of her laying on the floor dressed as the chicken.
It’s supposed to remind Doug of the confrontation with Gordon Ramsay.
If you want to see Gordon’s full second visit to the La Galleria 33 Boston location, you can watch the video below.
I’ve configured the embed to start right at Gordon’s second visit…
Now that you’ve seen that, let’s talk about what’s probably the most important question on your mind…
Is La Galleria 33 still open today?
Though La Galleria 33 was initially successful after Kitchen Nightmares, it eventually closed in November 2018.
This means it survived for around six years after the episode aired on TV (and around 6.5 years since the actual visit from Gordon Ramsay).
That’s not a bad run, to be honest – a lot of other restaurants from the show stayed open for much shorter time periods.
As of my most recent check, the old La Galleria 33 Boston location is occupied by a new restaurant called Libertine.
Reviews for Libertine seem pretty good as it has a 4 star rating on its Yelp page.
If you’re in the Boston area and you want to check out the successor to La Galleria 33, you can learn more at the Libertine website.
And then here’s what the old La Galleria 33 Boston location looks like in the most recent picture from Google Maps street view:
La Galleria 33 reviews after Kitchen Nightmares
At the time that La Galleria 33 closed, it had a 3.5 star rating on Yelp and a 4.2 star rating on Google.
Those ratings are ok but not amazing.
However, the reviews from after the La Galleria 33 Gordon Ramsay visit generally seemed to be more positive than those from before.
Additionally, most of the reviews that mentioned Kitchen Nightmares seemed to be positive.
I think the improvement in reviews is probably part of why Rita and Lisa were able to keep the restaurant open for 6.5 years after the visit from Gordon.
Here’s a sampling of a few La Galleria 33 reviews that were written after the visit from Gordon Ramsay…
Review #1
Review #2
Review #3
Review #4
Why did La Galleria 33 close?
I’m not sure why as the owners didn’t post any public messages, but there were a couple of one star Yelp reviews that suggest there were some issues.
In the negative reviews, people seemed to criticize the food and service.
Though again, there were plenty of positive reviews, as well, so I’m not sure if that played a role.
Who owned La Galleria 33?
La Galleria 33 was owned by two sisters, Lisa Cerundolo and Rita Moran (originally DiPietrantonio).
I’m not sure what happened to either sister after La Galleria 33 closed.
I hope they’re both happy and doing well.
What happened to Sara from La Galleria 33?
A lot of people are wondering what happened to Sara, the server from La Galleria 33 who walked off during the episode.
After La Galleria 33, Sara seems to have gotten out of the culinary industry.
According to her public LinkedIn page, she’s had several different jobs, but it currently working as a Certified Ophthalmic Technician.
If you’re not sure what that means, it basically means that she assists eye doctors to help the doctors care for patients’ eyes.
What happened to Lisa from La Galleria 33?
Unfortunately, Lisa from La Galleria 33 keeps her social media profiles private so I’m not sure what she’s up to.
It does seem like Lisa is still living in Boston, but that’s all that I know.
Hopefully she’s doing well!
Final thoughts on La Galleria 33
Overall, La Galleria 33 had a solid run after the visit from Gordon Ramsay.
It stayed open for around 6 years and the La Galleria 33 reviews were generally positive, though a bit mixed.
Unfortunately, it would not last and La Galleria 33 closed in 2018.
As of my most recent check, the old La Galleria 33 Boston MA location is occupied by a new restaurant named Libertine North End.
Rita and Lisa don’t have much of an online presence, so I’m not sure what the sisters are up to in 2024 and beyond.
If you want to see some other Massachusetts Kitchen Nightmares episodes, you can check out my updates for Olde Hitching Post in Hanson MA and Barefoot Bob’s in Hull MA.
And if you want to join a lot of other people in sharing your thoughts on the La Galleria 33 episode, you can do so using the comments section below.
As always – thanks for reading!
More Information
https://www.yelp.com/biz/la-galleria-33-bostonhttps://twitter.com/lagalleria33
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Last updated: 2024-03-10 09:56
I wonder what happened to Sara?
Yeah.. Wonder how Sara’s doing.
At the time of filming, Sara attended Sanford Brown College and earned her associates degree to become a medical assistant. In 2023, Sara went to the University of Phoenix and get her Bachelor of Science in health care administration/management. Sara is currently a certified ophthalmic technician.
La Galleria 33 is actually replaced by a restaurant called Libertine
Thanks! I just added that to the update.
where is sara now, i miss her also
For everyone who wants to know what happened to Sara, here’s her LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/sara-el-arif-53043860
I notice there was no mention of La Galleria 33 in her LinkedIn profile.
Lmao Sara reminds me of myself when I was waiting tables and I always being accused of hoggin tables, the “good section” etc… Not her fault if other servers are slow lol get that money girl!
Lisa and Rita were fabulous…
…they were both funny and beautiful…I have to admit: I had a small crush on Lisa 😉
Perhaps they entered the restaurant of their parents (they were allready older in 2012) , replaced them as owners and managers and closed the “La Galleria 33”.
Sara betrayed her colleagues…this is a 100% no go…she had to go…she was not a teamplayer
You’re the one who sent the shoes aren’t you?
This restaurant’s problems would have been solved if Doug, Rita and Lisa had had a threesome. That would have cheered everyone up and got them working together as a team. Sadly Gordon refused to film them doing it. Too bad!
Also, with over 80 other Italian restaurants in Boston’s North end, Gordon needed to do something to make La Galleria 33 stand out from the rest, and what he chose was too expensive: buy ten dinners and get a free trip to Rome.
It was a casting coup, though, for Gordon to get Jennifer Connolly to play the part of one of the sisters.
Even better when he got her to his hotel room to play for part 2 and some free remodeling of the restaurant. As Gordon said, “I hope the clam is better this time.”
Ngl that was my favorite episode, the whole place was crazy & hilarious to me. Especially with pat who was a shoes salesman in the past but was a general manager/host/waiter/busboy in la galleria 33🤣🤣. I mean he was such a character & I loved the two sisters. They remind me of me & my sister when we’re together. Yeah the place was a hot mess but I loved the episode & the sisters were too funny. I hope they’re doing well too, sucks it closed & that we don’t have an update of the two of them. By all means I still have a ball watching this episode, I can never get tired of the shenanigans in there & I wish Sara & Rita nothing but the best.
When Rita asked Sara why Sara told Gordon about the seafood ravioli and Sara just stood there with a shit eating grin on her face I lost it.
Hey Lisa
I saw you on TV and find you very interesting and would like to write with you
I’m Adrian from Switzerland and I’d be happy to hear from you
Greetings Adrian
Gordon lambasts the chef and owners for dropping chicken on the floor and cooking it, to be served to a customer. When he stood there and watched a chef drop chicken on the floor in the Finn McCool’s episode, cook it and let him serve it to a customer.
Also, what was going on with that cold ravioli complaint? Rita sticks a finger in it and says it is hot. Then Gordon sticks a finger in it and says it is cold… and puts his fingers in his mouth. The Rita takes it back to the table?
Gordon’s hygiene standards are pretty terrible, no?
Rita moved to Florida and opened Rocco’s Italian Deli & Market, found in Cocoa Beach. I think her family went with her too, I’m pretty sure that they no longer own L’Osteria because the website no longe mentions them. But, Rocco’s has an Instagram page and there is a picture of Mamma Lina helping out in the kitchen.
https://www.instagram.com/p/C2sKvdhuSBq/
The place is described as being family run too, so I think that Rocco’s is owned by Rita and her parents.
There’s also a picture of Rita being featured on the cover of a local magazine that featured Rocco’s.
https://www.instagram.com/p/C38HjA6OWIH/
It has great reviews on Yelp, so it seems to be doing well.
https://www.yelp.co.uk/biz/rocco-s-italian-market-and-deli-cocoa-beach
I love how much this page is updated. I just started watching KN and am obsessed. I watch the episode and then come here to see what happened after. Of all of the episodes I’ve seen so far, Lisa and Rita were the most likeable. I hope they are well.