Despite receiving some much-needed help on celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay’s “Kitchen Nightmares” last year, a family-owned brick-oven pizzeria in Bergen County is closing.
In a social media post , Da Mimmo in Dumont announced plans to shut its doors Sept. 30.
“Launching and growing this family restaurant in such a wonderful community has been an incredible experience, Gordon Ramsay and all! We are so grateful for the support we’ve received and the memories we’ve created here,” the restaurant wrote.
Featured during an October 2023 episode of the popular Fox show , Da Mimmo was struggling to stay afloat just six months after the Gigante family opened their business. In response, Ramsay stepped in with some changes to the menu, operations and dcor, as well as to make some attitude adjustments.
When Ramsay visited, Melissa Gigante, a retired Hoboken police lieutenant and mother of five, told him the eatery had already racked up nearly $500,000 in debt since its November 2022 grand opening. She added she'd begun paying staff out of her own pocket while her husband worked double shifts as a police detective to help cover costs.
Melissa Gigante’s oldest son, 22-year-old Antonio, was stressed out as he tried to manage his roles as pizza maker and manager at the restaurant. Meanwhile TikTok-famous Vito, 21, and Vincent, 20, admitted they were more focused on their social media presence which boasts a combined 3.5 million followers than doing much at Da Mimmo.
Another door opens
As part of the turnaround, Ramsay connected the restaurant with an expert chef so they could learn the right way to cook brick oven pizza with fresh ingredients. He also urged Vincent and Vito to begin taking the family business more seriously and to use their social media influence to help make Da Mimmo a success.
Shortly after the episode aired, the family said they saw an uptick in business and were continuing to heed Ramsay’s advice.
https://www.instagram.com/p/Cybm4a3OWmn/?img_index=1
At the time, Melissa Gigante told NJBIZ the experience was valuable because it taught her “different aspects of the back end of the business” and showed her sons the need to step up and help.
In their farewell post, the family said, “This journey has opened new doors for our talented pizza chef Antonio, allowing him to flourish and explore exciting new opportunities. While we’re sad to say goodbye, we’re excited for what’s ahead.”
Da Mimmo was the third New Jersey restaurant featured on the latest season of “Kitchen Nightmares,” following Woodland Park’s Bask46 and Wayne’s In The Drink Bar & Restaurant.
During “Kitchen Nightmares” initial run between 2007 and 2014, several Garden State eateries made it onto the show, including Blackberry’s in Plainfield, Campania in Fair Lawn and Leone’s in Montclair.
See also:
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