The 'Restaurant Impossible' Episode That Broke Robert Irvine's Heart
After filming 161 episodes of Restaurant Impossible over six years, Robert Irvine's seen it all-broken equipment, broken relationships, very public breakdowns-but one episode nearly broke him. It's been two years since the show was filmed, though it's as fresh in his mind as the day it happened.
"Abudanza in Massachusetts," Irvine replies. "We did the restaurant, and the day we gave the restaurant back, the [restaurant owners] got a notice of eviction from their house-the house they shared with their son LJ, who's autistic and one of only 70 or 80 people in the world to have a rare genetic disease-and their seven other kids."
Irvine's then 16-year-old daughter, who was on set with him, burst into tears when she heard the news.
"The owner said, 'we're getting evicted,' and she handed me the note," Irvine recalls. "This is supposed to be the happy time-you're getting the restaurant back, you know-so I called my executive producer and said, 'Stop a minute. Give me 10 grand.'"
It wasn't an easy ask, given the whole budget for that episode's kitchen revamp was $10,000. When the executive producer reminded him of that, Irvine persisted.
"I said, 'I'll match the $10,000 out of my own pocket. Don't ask why,'" he said. With the funds, they were able to pay the family's mortgage for six months, giving them a cushion-and peace of mind-as they worked to get the restaurant back on track.
"The show started out as me helping people, then it turned on me."
It also helped the family give their home a necessary upgrade.
"I was able to order LJ's stair lift now that I know we will not be foreclosed on," restaurant owner (and LJ's mom) June Maravilha told Food Network in a post-show update in 2014.
Irvine isn't shy about how emotional the episode was; not just the news of the eviction notice, or handing the family the check, but also one final gift they gave LJ, without knowing just how much it'd mean to the then 12-year-old boy.
"I burst out in tears the whole show," Irvine says. "I was a mess, but seeing his face meant so much."
Irvine's team noticed a blank wall in the restaurant, so they quickly hung up one of LJ's paintings. When LJ came in for the big reveal, he was ecstatic, climbing out of his wheelchair to see it closer.
"Autistic kids tend to stay to one person, but he jumped over to me and hugged me when he saw the picture," Irvine says.
Sadly, LJ passed away earlier this year, and the primary Abudanza location has since closed, but Irvine will never forget his experience there, especially LJ and his family.
"He made a profound impact on my life," Irvine says. "The show started out as me helping people, then it turned on me."
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