Here's What Happened To Burger Kitchen After 'Kitchen Nightmares'
A family business with no shortage of issues, Burger Kitchen had more than its fair share of drama. Calling on Gordon Ramsay from "Kitchen Nightmares" in Season 5 of the restaurant revamp show, the L.A.-based burger spot, Burger Kitchen, required a two-episode slot over Episodes 6 and 7. According to ScreenRant, Burger Kitchen's episodes were some of the craziest in "Kitchen Nightmares" six-season run. Burger Kitchen's saga, unfortunately, doesn't end on a high note.
Starting a business with lies, owner Alan Saffron achieved his dreams of owning a burger restaurant by stealing $250,000 from his son Daniel's inheritance, making him an unwilling partner in the restaurant. Only open for 16 months and already a not-so-successful venture, the restaurant was losing between $5,000 to $6,000 a month. Besides blowing through cash, Burger Kitchen was also blowing through chefs and constantly changing the menu when Ramsay arrived on the scene. In a contentious kitchen, not only is there family drama, but drama with employees with the Executive Chef, David Blaine, fired in the middle of dinner service. The chef explained the restaurant best when he said, "Burger Kitchen is managed by a dysfunctional family."
Bad burgers and mob ties
After two episodes of Ramsay attempting to patch things up with the family and revamp their menu, things ended relatively well with son Daniel as acting owner and his parents promising to step down.
However, the peace didn't last long. According to RealityTVRevisited, shortly after the episodes aired in late 2011, ownership of the spot was reported to have changed. Alan's paranoia that Yelp reviewers were after him and his restaurant was proven wrong when bad reviews continued to come in even after the Saffron's departure. Ultimately, Burger Kitchen didn't last long and closed its doors in 2012. Alan Saffron passed away in 2020.
The trust fund money, Daniel Saffron's quarter million from his grandfather, and Alan Saffron's quarter million that he said he first blew through before stealing his son's inheritance were subject to question after the airing of Burger Kitchen's episodes. Bloggers like TheMillieBlog wondered where the money came from, given Alan's insistence in the show that he and his father no longer had a relationship. The book that Alan Saffron plugged in during the show, "Gentle Satan: My Father, Abe Saffron," claims that his father is a notorious Australian mob boss. According to The Sydney Morning Herald, Abe Saffron was one of the most notorious crime figures in Australian history, known as "Mr. Sin."
Supposed mob connections, family drama, and bad burgers seemed to doom the restaurant. Sadly, Burger Kitchen is not the only "Kitchen Nightmare" alum that failed after Ramsay's departure.