Last year, on Kitchen Nightmares, Chef Ramsey visited The Queen's Dish, in Philadelphia, PA. The restaurant was a mess, but it wasn't the food or the staff that was responsible for it. It was the owner and his bride tearing the place apart with their fighting. She didn't want to be a part of the restaurant business ["I already have a career. I have no interest in being a restaurateur"] and he was insistent that she do just that. ["I feel that her place is beside me in the restaurant"] Their argument reached a fever pitch over the course of three days when Chef Ramsey granted the stubborn man's wish and we saw that not all wishes should be granted. ["This is all your fault," "I think you'll find that you have no one to blame but yourself, Mr. Anasazi. You insisted on bringing her here. I simply granted your wish."] Things escalated to a fever pitch when Chef Ramsey insisted that the cameras record a shift at Kena's job ["My job is the one place I'm safe, Chef! I will not have that asshole jeopardize that!"] The shift ended on the threat of divorce, ["It's time for a divorce. I'm tired… I'm-I'm just… I'm tired."] and we left the couple on an open ending {Holding the woman firmly in his arms as he took his time caressing her mouth with his, he picked her up off her feet and headed into the house.}
Now, in this highly requested episode, we will go back to the Queen's Dish to see one year later if this stubborn couple turned their restaurant back into a nightmare.
[Ramsey to the camera] "We're back in Mt. Airy, a suburb of sunny Philadelphia, and I am excited. It's been a whole twelve months since my first attempt at marriage counseling on the show. The restaurant was wonderful but the feud between the business owner and his wife was nonetheless tearing the place apart. By the end of the week, it seemed that Tyr Anasazi was in a more willing frame of mind regarding his wife. I've been anxiously anticipating this revisit and according to the viewership, so have you. So let's not waste any more time. Let's see how the Queen's Dish has fared over this last year. I haven't kept in touch with the couple, wanting to be as surprised as you, the viewing audience is. Let's get to it."
He heads down the street, causing a stir with his camera crew. He opens the door, only to find Kena coming out of it. She's lost an incredible amount of weight, her body slim and trim now. Not slim enough to hide her protruding belly. She looks relaxed and happy, there are more laugh lines around her eyes than the last time we saw her. Her jaw drops in recognition.
'"Chef?"
"Hello, Mekena."
"Oh, my gosh, welcome back Chef Ramsey," she exclaimed, reaching forward to hug him. The hug is awkward with her pregnant belly, but Kena doesn't seem to mind. "You're lucky you caught me, I was just about to go home for the day."
"'Home for the day'? I thought you weren't going to work here."
[flash back] "I will never join your restaurant."
"Yeah, well you made a liar of me if I recall. Besides, he pays me once a month to come in and organize the office. No big deal."
"He pays you," Ramsey sputtered.
"Of course he pays me! My organizational skills don't come cheap," she said with a smug grin. "We should come in off the street and have a proper visit. Tyr would love to see you again."
She leads the man and his crew into the restaurant, which still looks the same as the chef left it. There are two jerseys on the wall, as well as a couple of signed pictures of famous actors and actresses. Ramsey is impressed by some of the names.
"You've done well for yourself," he complimented her.
"'Not I said the fly'," she grinned. That would be my Honeybear. Ooh, Candace, could you go get Tyr? Tell him 'the chef is back'."
"No problem," the waitress said, rushing off to do her bidding.
"He'll be out in a minute. Tyr never keeps me waiting long. So how have you-" Tyr sneaks up and wraps his arms around her from behind, laughing when she jumps. Before she can reprimand him, he covers her lips with his. The woman gives a blissful sigh into his mouth.
"Miss me?" he murmured against her lips.
"Terribly," she hummed. "I was going to go home, eat and soak in the tub all afternoon, but we have company."
Tyr looked up at last and noticed the chef sitting across from her. He nods at his former nemesis then settles himself beside his wife at the table.
"I've already told you that you can always eat here on the days you work, Bliss," he chided her.
"I don't like to confuse the issue," she demurred. He tickled her for her trouble and she jerked away from him.
"And what's this?" Chef Ramsey asked with a sly grin. "'Bliss'? 'Honeybear'? I never thought I'd see you two getting along so well."
"Well, a lot can change in a year," Kena grinned, allowing her husband to pull her close. He kissed her forehead and nodded at the chef.
"Obviously," Chef Ramsey agreed. "You've lost a fuck-ton of weight and gained some back in a different way over the past year."
"Oh, well… Tyr helped me slim down after the episode," she said.
"I couldn't have my baby thinking that she was less attractive than she is," Tyr shrugged, squeezing her tight. "We started a rigorous exercise program for her and I helped her change her diet. After that, the weight just fell off and her self-confidence skyrocketed!"
"I'm still sticking to it, as much as this little one will let me," she said, patting her belly.
[flashback] "I wanted a baby when we first married, but Tyr just said that he wanted me all to himself for a few years first. Then this restaurant business came up and he cut me off to try to get his own way."
"Well, obviously something's changed to give you two baby fever."
"I changed. I was being selfish, denying my wife like I was. We've never been happier since I gave up my contraceptive. It took a few tries, but trying is half the fun."
"Stop that," she snapped, looking pleased, but embarrassed.
"Never," he said, rubbing his nose against her temple.
"Well, I'm very happy for you two. Having kids is an exciting time for a couple. Cayetana and I were very excited when we started."
"That must have been a very special time for the two of you," Kena smiled. Tyr hugged her from behind, content to hold his family close for the moment.
"Oh, it was. It still is; even though my children are all grown now, we still have fun together. Just as you'll be having fun with your new little one," he smiled as Tyr caressed her stomach. "You've both grown into yourselves now, the baby will have two strong personalities to choose from."
"She will," Tyr said at the same time that Kena said "He will".
"Oh, don't tell me…"
"Yup," she giggled. "We didn't bother to get the baby sexed. That way we can argue over which gender the baby's going to be."
"You two just live to argue, don't you?"
"No" "Yes" They both started laughing and Kena's stomach gave a mighty growl. Both men chuckled at her mortification.
"I guess that baby wants to be fed," the chef teased her.
"He always wants to be fed. It's crazy how much I eat now!"
"You're fine, Bliss. I think I know what you want," the man said with a charming smile, waving one of his servers over.
"I'd like an order of chicken cacciatore for the lady and I'll have the Sweet Chili drumsticks. Chef?"
"I'll take a bowl of clam chowder and a steak, medium-rare." They ordered their sides and Samantha left to fill their orders.
"So, how are the ladies on unit 54 doing?"
"Busy, but things have been better since the episode. I keep in touch, but I don't work there anymore."
"What?"
"After the episode, we had a long talk about a lot of things. One of them was my stress level. I decided that while I thoroughly enjoyed my co-workers on unit 54, it just wasn't where I wanted to be anymore. I took a part-time job in a cardiac clinic at the hospital a little closer to home. No more crossing the city to get to work!"
"Only part-time?"
"My blood pressure is much better controlled now, but I don't want to push it. It works out well for me, giving me time to recover from my shifts. Plus, it's nice to just live with my patients for a few hours, as opposed to climbing into their lives for days and days at a time like on the unit. This is much nicer, and I still pay for full benefits, so it's no big deal."
"'No big deal' seems to be your theme this time around," Ramsey pointed out.
"You're not wrong," she said, snuggling against her man.
"What about you, Tyr? Is the staff the same, or did you change them too?"
"Well, you'll notice a couple of new faces, but most of the staff is still the same. Juan keeps his pants up and shirt buttoned. Freda has taken care of her low blood sugar. Candace is working on her optimism."
"Then there's Paul, the only one that didn't give me any trouble that night." Kena waved at the waiter, who excused himself from the table he was serving and came over to say hi.
"Hey, Ms Kena. You treating that little one of yours today?"
"Yuppers! I just realized that I never thanked you for being such a great sport the night I expedited. I really did appreciate you not taking advantage of my inexperience."
"Like I told the others, I knew you couldn't fail. I prefer to stay out of the path of a determined woman." She blushed at the high praise and Chef Ramsey broke out laughing.
"I didn't realize what a charmer you were, Paul," Tyr growled at his blushing wife, snuggling her closer to him in the process. Kena came over willingly enough.
"Table three looks like they could use drink refills," Tyr said, pointing out the table to his employee. Paul nodded at the table and returned to work.
"That was uncalled for," Kena reprimanded him with no real heat in her voice.
"I'm a jealous man when it comes to you. My staff knows it."
"Speaking of, are you still evoking your wife's name in the restaurant like she's a ghost?"
[flash back] "Watch what you're doing, Samantha! Kena would never tolerate a smashed plate."
"Has table six been helped yet? Kena would have taken their drink orders at least by now."
"Table thirty-five's spaghetti order is getting cold; Kena wouldn't appreciate it."
"No, I gave that up once I realized that she didn't belong here."
"Good thing too! I wanted to kick your butt when I found out about that."
"And I'd let you, my beautiful, willful wife," she blushed again, finding something fascinating with her shirt. Tyr smiled gently and lifted her chin, giving her a chaste kiss on her lips. She smiled up at him, glowing with happiness. "No, my wife is very much alive, chef. I take on my staff under my own power now."
"That's good." the multi-Michelin starred chef smiled at the couple. "Ah, the food has arrived. And in good time too."
"My chefs may be primadonnas, but they're fast and efficient," he said, taking a jab at the chef as he ate.
[flashback] "Make sure you keep the chefs in line tonight. They tend to be primadonnas."
"Where is Evelyn? Don't tell me you fired her?" Kena looked up at her husband, bottom lip trembling. He smiles down at her and caresses her cheek.
"Of course I didn't fire her. She'll be here tonight; she'll be sad to have missed you. I hired a second Floor Manager so that she doesn't have to work every service. Rachel is right over there. Rachel, come on over and meet my wife and Chef Ramsey." He wipes a tear from his wife's cheek and kisses her with tender affection as an attractive Latino woman makes her way over to the table. With a fond shake of her head at the kissing couple, she introduces herself to the chef.
"I'm Rosalita Sanders. But the staff here calls me Rachel."
"Which do you prefer? Rosalita or Rachel?"
"I don't really care one way or the other. Either way you call me, I'm likely to answer."
"Well, it's a pleasure to meet you, Rachel," Ramsey said, offering her a seat next to him.
"Hello, Rosalita," Kena said, joining back into the conversation. "My name is Mekena Anasazi. But everyone just calls me Kena."
"Oh, but 'Mekena' is a beautiful name. You should be using it all the time."
"Thank you. But people mispronounce my real name so often and after a while, you get sick of hiding the bodies - I mean correcting people. I correct people when they mispronounce my name," she told the table at large, giving the table an innocuous look. Everyone laughed as they were meant to.
"So, you've all seen the episode, correct? I mean, it was the most popular episode I ever did. Letters and emails poured in afterward, people just wanting an update on your story. But I purposely kept away from your restaurant for the last year. Did you experience any reaction to the episode?
"Oh my gosh, yes!" Kena groaned. "In some ways, we're still dealing with the fallout of that episode." Her phone rings just then. "Excuse me. I have to take this." She turns away from the rest of the table in annoyance. "Hello? Yes, I'm… I'm fine, Jubilee. You don't have to- No, I'm not- Alright! But I have to go, I have company. Jubilee! Alright, goodbye." She looked up at the others in embarrassment. "Sorry about that. My sister-in-law was traumatized from the episode and calls me nearly every day to make sure I'm okay."
"Really?"
"Yeah. Both families haven't quite forgiven my Honeybear. And they are keeping strict tabs on me now. I basically spent three years cut off from all of my family and his because I couldn't tell anyone what was happening to me. I was taught that family business is private and that you don't discuss family business outside of the family."
"And Tyr was your family once you married," Ramsey said in realization, glaring daggers at the man. Tyr, also affected by her words, wrapped her in his arms and kissed her forehead.
"Eat, Bliss. Your food is getting cold." She snuggled against him but did as he commanded. "Oh my gosh, this is so good!"
"I had the chefs add some extra garlic to your order," Rosalita grinned, watching the woman dig into her bowl with appetite.
"How did you know that I-"
"You are still your husband's favorite topic of conversation." Kena looked down in embarrassment. Tyr lifted her chin and smiled at her, slow and sexy. He then directed her next bite of her food to her mouth. She finished her meal without delay as the men ate with gusto.
"Dessert?" The woman blushed but nodded.
"So, I guess we need an order of ice cream and pickles, eh?" Chef Ramsey laughed.
"What? Ew," she exclaimed. "I've never understood that combination and now that I'm pregnant I really don't get it. I'll just stick to the vanilla bean cheesecake, please." Samantha appeared as if by magic to the stunned woman and took her order. The men followed suit and soon the server was scurrying off to the kitchen to get their orders.
"What else has changed since the episode aired?"
"I had to close my social media accounts to get away from the people who wanted to friend me just so they could say that they knew me. Random women will walk up to me and offer support and emergency shelter information to me," she grumbled. "People I don't even know will try and hug me and tell me to 'hang in there' as if my life stopped at the end of the episode. People tend to act like they know me because they've seen that episode. Then there were the protests…"
"When the episode first aired, a group of concerned church women organized a boycott of my business," Tyr filled in as his wife growled. "They would harass my customers, showing clips of the episode and shaming people out of eating here. They would cite my horrific treatment of women and tried to get my business license revoked."
"I had to step in on that one. They were using me as some kind of symbol and I didn't appreciate it. After a few altercations with the head of the protest group, she and her people backed off of The Queen's Dish. I think Kelly lost a lot of face with me opening the restaurant those next few weeks and demanding that they leave my husband alone and basically mind their own business and stay out of mine. I was supposed to be the abused, downtrodden wife and there I was, standing tall and strong-" Tyr whispered something in her ear that made her gasp and giggle breathlessly. "Tyr!"
"Let's talk about Darryl," Ramsey smiled.
"Again?" she said, rolling her eyes. "For the last time, he said that he was leaving and he left. What's the big deal?"
"The big deal is that I've never seen a service continue so smoothly after the loss of a staff member before. You held your team together admirably after sending him away."
"I didn't send him away, he left!" The woman said, clearly upset about reviewing the situation yet again. "And I don't know how I was supposed to keep him around once he decided to leave. I mean, what was I supposed to say?"
Rosalita decided to step in and answer as this was upsetting the pregnant woman. "You were supposed to say 'Darryl, I know that you're having a hard time this shift, we all are. But you're a good cook and I know that you can do this. I believe in you and your abilities. The restaurant needs you. Now, please return to your workstation and make those burgers and fries I asked for." She'd taken the younger woman's hand when she was speaking and was looking deep into her eyes as she spoke.
"Wow, you're good," Kena said in awe. "So, wait a minute. He wanted his ego stroked? That's why he was being such a pain in my butt that night?"
"Basically, yes."
She looked down, dejected as their desserts arrived. "Well, now I feel like a major-"
"No, don't beat yourself up about him, Bliss." Tyr stepped in. "Darryl was angling for more screen time. You were trying to run a restaurant for the first time in your life. It's understandable that you might have missed his signals in the midst of the storm."
"But don't you see, Honeybear? If I'd just been paying more attention, maybe he would have stayed that night. That's why he was hanging around after he said that he was leaving! He wasn't looking to be evaluated, he was waiting for me to convince him to stay! I never meant to mess up so spectacularly on your big night! Why didn't you say something! I-"
Tyr leans in and kisses the now crying woman. He doesn't stop until she is pliant against him. She moans into his mouth and relaxes.
"Don't worry about Darryl, Mekena," Rosalita told her. "Everyone saw just how selfish and uncooperative he was being that night. Even knowing what you should have done and said, I wouldn't have been so quick to flatter him or tell you to coddle him like he wanted. You were much better off with three good chefs. And it let the rest of the staff know that you meant business."
"I never meant to terrorize the staff! I was only trying to-" Tyr once again silences her panic with a deep kiss, not stopping until she relaxes against his muscled body.
"What's done is done, Bliss. I was proud of you that night and saw nothing wrong with your actions. That's why I didn't say anything. Darryl was an egotistical bastard even before that disastrous shift. You showed me definitively that my business could survive without him. And now we have Sandra back there in his place, who's been an excellent addition to the crew. We also have two professional expediters on staff now that I've seen the importance of that role in the kitchen. Up until you came along, Evelyn or I would deal with expediting in a half-assed way, simply trusting the chefs to plate things correctly. But things were missed and customers left unsatisfied at times. We implemented your amazing system of 'one table at a time' after Relaunch Night. I'm proud of you. Please don't cry."
The woman looks around the table and relaxes at the encouragement she sees there. She digs into her dessert without prompting and snuggles against her husband.
"Well, I'm glad you finally got it, Kena," the Chef said with an uncomfortable shrug, stirring his creme Brule to break the glaze on it before digging in.
"Why are you trying to upset my wife again?" Tyr said in a furious tone, ignoring his apple crumble.
"Honestly, I'm looking to get a laugh out of the woman. I mean, the look on Darryl's face was pretty funny when she dismissed him. Does anyone know what he's doing now?"
"Well, he's not working in the food industry anymore. After the episode aired, he couldn't give his skills away. Last I heard he was working down at the docks, hauling cargo to pay the bills."
"That's horrible," Kena said after swallowing her bite of the creamy concoction.
"What's horrible, Bliss?"
"It's horrible not to be able to do what you were meant to do."
"You would know, Bliss," he said with a flirtatious smile, kissing her yet again. She surrenders to his kiss without complaint, leaning into him with a sigh of contentment.
"Now, this is what I wanted to see the last time I was here." Chef Ramsey grinned at the young couple. "I take it that you tore up those divorce papers of yours, Kena?"
"Actually…"
"I kept them," Tyr told the chef with an absent air about him, feeding his wife a bite of his ice cream.
"What? You kept them?"
They're actually framed and hanging in the office," he nodded. "They serve as a reminder of how close I came to losing my Bliss through my own stupidity. I won't make that mistake again." By now, Kena is all but in his lap, eating his apple crumble. She is ignoring the others as she is eating and Tyr strokes her braids gently. "She's my life. I won't lose her to the past or any imagined fear. I'll do whatever it takes to keep her heart at ease." He cuddles her happily as she continues eating, snatching a bite of her cheesecake as she finishes his dessert. She looks up at him guiltily once she realized that she's finished his dessert and he smiles at her so tenderly that she blushes almost red and looks down in her lap. The man feeds his wife a bite of her cheesecake and soon that was gone as well.
"Well, I'm sure our viewers will be happy to know how well the two of you are doing. Before I go though, may I have a tour of your kitchen? I remember that there was nothing wrong with it before, but this is a show called Kitchen Nightmares after all."
"Of course, I've got nothing to hide. Let's go," the restaurant owner says, helping his wife to her feet. She cringes as she comes to her feet. "The baby's kicking?"
"Like a mule," she cringed.
"Don't worry. I'll be coming home with you. I'll get our daughter under control."
"Our son," she insisted with a smile.
"Come on," Rosalita laughed, "the kitchen is this way, lovebirds." The two follow her and the chef to the kitchen where the chefs are working hard to finish the afternoon service.
"Next up is an order of chicken tacos, a lettuce wrap with- Oh, hello, Tyr. You've brought guests."
"I have, Roger. This is my wife, Kena and Chef Ramsey. They were in here a year ago. You know Rachel."
"Hello," he says with an elegant sniff, shaking hands with the new people before finishing his order for the chefs. "I'm Roger. I'm the Expediter for the afternoon shifts. I keep things running smoothly in the kitchen. The idea was actually yours if I recall, Mrs. Anasazi."
"I… I didn't..."
"Oh, right. It was yours, Chef Ramsey. I must admit, I'm a little star-struck right now," he says, sounding anything but. "You're so famous. What are you doing in our little bistro?"
"The Anasazis are old friends of mine. I just came to check on them. Hello, Bishop, Danny, Linda. And you must be Sandra," the chef said, shaking hands with all of the chefs in turn. "Lunch was delicious, by the way."
"It's an honor to meet you, Chef," Sandra gushed. "When I saw the episode last year, I honestly couldn't believe that I was in the same place as-"
"Don't worry about that," Ramsey said, used to the flattery. "Whatever you've cooked up here smells amazing!"
"Oh, that's my fiery buffalo wings," she grinned. "Table 16 ordered them. They'll be done in one minute."
"Thanks, Sandra," Roger said. "What's the word on the Meatloaf and rice? Singapore-style noodles?"
"Two minutes on the meatloaf!"
"The noodles are coming out now," Bishop put in with a wink at the pregnant woman. She giggles and his smile widens. He nods at the wall behind her and she turns only to have her jaw drop. Over the door, in great, big cartoony letters is 'Plate it nice and I won't ask you twice'.
"You… You put that stupid rhyme of mine on the door?" she squeaked.
"It was too cute to resist," Tyr hugged her close and kissed her temple.
"Tyr!"
"It's been there for a year now and I'm not taking it down. Anyone have a problem with the quote on the door lentil?"
"No, sir," the chefs all said at once.
"Oh, that was you?" Roger asked, determined to embarrass the woman so that he could have his boss to himself. "I just thought that was some cute little nursery rhyme or something. It's so simple-"
"Simple but true. And relevant," Tyr said in a forceful voice, holding his woman tighter when she squirmed to get away. "My wife coined that phrase and it has made your job that much easier, has it not?" He glared at his expediter until he looked away. "Chef Ramsey is going to inspect our kitchen. I trust that nothing is out of order back here?"
"No, sir," the group of chefs said again as Samantha came and collected the latest order from Roger. Ramsey looks around the kitchen and finds nothing out of order just like the last time he was here. The walkins are organized correctly, the place is sparkling with as much cleanliness as can be expected of a group of cooks in the middle of a busy service, and there are no bugs or vermin droppings in sight.
"As always, this place is an absolute dream to inspect." he pronounced as the expediter went back to announcing tickets and the crew got back to work.
"Credit goes to my chefs. They bust their butts to keep this place clean and sanitary."
"Indeed, and they're doing an amazing job. Well, I'm going to go; my work here is obviously done. Thank you for having me here for the afternoon."
"Feel free to come back when the baby's born in a few months. You can see which one of us is right," Tyr offered graciously. Kena smiled and nodded, pulling free of her husband to hug the chef that had saved their marriage.
"I didn't get the chance to say 'thank you' properly the last time you were here," she said as she hugged him.
"'Thank you' for what, dear lady?" he asked.
"If you hadn't come along, we would still be feuding over those divorce papers I served him. I would never have experienced the joy and peace I've found with my man and I certainly wouldn't be having his baby, making the prenup I have more complicated."
"She's agreed to get rid of the prenup altogether on our twenty-fifth wedding anniversary," Tyr informed him. "I'll tear up the divorce papers at the same time." He reached out to shake the hand of the man who saved his marriage. "Thank you… for helping me when I needed it most, Gordon Ramsey."
"You're welcome, Tyr Anasazi," the man returned. "You take care of that family of yours. Maybe I'll come back with my family someday."
"I'd like that." Tyr agreed. He hugs his woman to him and she molds herself to the man as best she can with her pregnant belly. The two wave as Chef Ramsey leaves the building.
Aww, so sweet! Well, that wraps up this little jaunt into insanity. Thanks for joining me. I very much enjoyed the Kitchen Nightmares series and I'm happy to have made something that was - admittedly - different. But I hope it was respectful and in the spirit of the tv show. I'll be back with another of the many stories I have just waiting to be posted, people! See ya then ^_^