Restaurant: Impossible

Chef Robert Irvine travels to Fishkill, N.Y., to help Joe and Dena save their floundering restaurant, Joe Willy's Seafood House. While experienced in purchasing seafood, Joe's skills as a head cook leave a lot to be desired, and the stress of the failing business is taking its toll on Dena and their three kids. Robert must force Joe to get past his pride in order to save his restaurant -- and his family.

Chef Robert Irvine heads to Murrells Inlet, S.C. to help George and Theresa save their 16-year old family-run Old World Italian Restaurant. Despite growing health and financial problems, George and Theresa can't seem to hand over control to their culinary-trained son, George, Jr. Will Robert's tough love approach be able to fix 16 years of old habits in two days?

Gus and Evi, the owners of Smitty's Restaurant in Clearwater, Fla., don't just have one problem, they have hundreds -- problems that only an exterminator can fix. The exterminator costs chef Robert Irvine and his design team precious money and time, and pulling all the pieces together will truly be a race to the finish.

Chef Robert Irvine has faced many stubborn owners in the past, but he may have met his match in Carolyn, the owner of Mom & Dad's Italian Restaurant in DeFuniak Springs, Fla. Carolyn and her husband George bought the restaurant 24 years ago, but now, six years after George's death, Carolyn refuses to make any changes, despite the ill-prepared food and mounting debt. Can Chef Robert get Carolyn to accept that embracing change and saving the restaurant is the best way to honor her late husband?

Chef Robert Irvine travels to Smyrna, Del., to meet three generations of women fighting to keep the Wagon Wheel Family Restaurant open for business. While restaurant is in mayhem over the frozen food, outdated decor, dysfunctional family and disrespectful staff, the only thing keeping the restaurant alive right now is muskrat. Robert has just two days to repair a broken family, or even the popularity of the muskrat won't be enough to keep the wheels on this restaurant any longer.

Lynn has owned Bryan's Smokehouse in Lufkin, Texas for 15 years: Business was great at first, but now an oversaturated market and a staff of misfits have put Lynn further and further into debt. Can Chef Robert Irvine overhaul the poor service and lackluster barbecue recipe in two days to save Bryan's Smokehouse?

After losing his successful corporate job, an inexperienced restaurant owner purchased the Pinehurst Country Lodge in Greeley, Pennsylvania, and is now $350,000 in debt and on the verge of losing everything. Chef Robert Irvine has just two days to give him the tools and authority to lead his staff towards success.

Chef Robert is off to Twin Lakes, Wis., to Pier West Restaurant, which has a scenic view and a boatload of problems. As Chip's restaurant falls deeper and deeper into debt, his family is getting angrier and angrier. No one has Chip's back except Robert. He has just two days to give Chip the tools he needs to run this restaurant and reunite the family.

This special episode dishes out real time trivia about Chef Robert Irvine and behind the scenes stories as Robert helps cousins Angelo and Angelo and their diner, Angelo's. Their fathers started the restaurant 40 years ago but every day has been the same — the same menu, the same decor and the same family drama. Robert has two days to unravel the issues of this Greek restaurant and figure out why the cousins are dangerously close to ruining their namesake restaurant and all their fathers' hard work.

Chef Robert travels to Douglas, Mich., to save the Kalico Kitchen and longtime owner Catherine. Catherine is boisterous and blunt, with a vocabulary so colorful that it's turning the staff against her ... including her own son, Donny. Despite all the yelling, cursing and put downs, the staff hasn't been whipped into shape -- the restaurant is failing, the food is subpar and the kitchen is absolutely filthy! Robert has just two days to get the place cleaned up, the staff back on track and the owner to shape up.

Chef Robert makes his way to Edible's Restaurant & Pub in Horsham, Pa., to find a 26-year-old family restaurant suffering from a complete lack of inspiration and motivation. In order to fix this restaurant, Robert must spend precious time letting the family air their grievances and motivate them to take responsibility for their restaurant before he can tackle the inedible menu, dirty kitchen and drab decor.

Dorothy and Thom, owners of Benner Street Restaurant in Bethlehem, Pa., should be close to retirement but they are so far in debt, they may never be able to stop working. This is Dorothy's second foray into the restaurant business and the first one ended with her living in her car -- she is determined to not let that happen again. Unfortunately, she's headed down that road again with an outdated decor, a lack of alcohol at the bar and a husband/chef with whom she fights constantly. It's up to Chef Robert to open Dorothy and Thom's eyes and get their restaurant back on the road to success.

Chef Robert Irvine heads to Mason, Ohio to try to save Aponte's Pizzeria. Owner Tony has worked in restaurants since he was 11 years old and is a Jersey boy through and through -- complete with the attitude and edge. Eight years ago, despite already being in debt, and sacrificing precious time with his three daughters, he bought the pizzeria with the hope that this time he'd make it! With only two days and $10,000, can Robert turn the lackluster Aponte's Pizzeria around and save Tony from financial ruin or will all the lost family time be for nothing?