S07.E01: Dante's

[silverspoons]

Season 7 Premiere. Marcus visits a struggling restaurant in New Jersey where he tries to teach the owner Dante management skills. 

At first I wondered why Marcus wanted to invest in this business because there seemed to be nothing that could be grown or a special product or service. 

I wonder if this is the way the show is going to go from now on. Marcus has said he can;t keep up with all the businesses he has invested in and  he has  said he has had  to start to sell off some. So will he change at least some of the episodes to more fell good with a small loan to help rather then investing and owning?

With his big time square premiere I wonder why he did not have his wife with him. On social media he is obviously very proud of her and does not seem to care about the age difference at all. Why not bring her to the event? I would like to see them interact more then just pictures. He seems happy and not everyone version of happiness is the same. 

[atlantaloves]

Marcus got married? I need all the scoop!

[healthnut]

5 hours ago, atlantaloves said:

Marcus got married? I need all the scoop!

Marcus Lemonis gets Married

[Gregg247]

I thought this would have been a better episode for Robert Irvine or Gordon Ramsey.  I'm not sure why Marcus showed up at a local pizza joint.  I appreciated his lessons on how to calculate food costs and such, but I felt like he was just looking for something to do with his spare time rather than working on an actual business venture.

Maybe its just me, but I found Marcus' continued use of the death of Dante's mother on 9/11 as a hook to bring in more customers was ghoulish and in poor taste.  Maybe if this had been HER restaurant at some point, it would have made (a little) sense.  But this was a case of, "15 years after her death on 9/11, her now-grown son decided to open a pizza place.  Please come eat here so he doesn't go broke and fail his dead Mom's memory."  That's awful.

[toodles]

4 hours ago, Gregg247 said:

I thought this would have been a better episode for Robert Irvine or Gordon Ramsey.  I'm not sure why Marcus showed up at a local pizza joint.  I appreciated his lessons on how to calculate food costs and such, but I felt like he was just looking for something to do with his spare time rather than working on an actual business venture.

Maybe its just me, but I found Marcus' continued use of the death of Dante's mother on 9/11 as a hook to bring in more customers was ghoulish and in poor taste.  Maybe if this had been HER restaurant at some point, it would have made (a little) sense.  But this was a case of, "15 years after her death on 9/11, her now-grown son decided to open a pizza place.  Please come eat here so he doesn't go broke and fail his dead Mom's memory."  That's awful.

Ghoulish is right.  I don't really care why a business came to be.  Is the food good and a place I enjoy.  I couldn't care less about the backstory.  I don't know why Marcus decided to go Oprah with this show.  I liked the old way better.

[hurrrz]

I think it's fine to mark 9/11 as the inspiration/legacy for this business. I would've done it differently though. That non-profit with the stars seemed super random to me. What is the connection? 

I'd put in a desert, like Apple Pie or whatever, and donate parts of the proceeds of that item to a 9/11 charity. That way you have a hook to the story, you drive sales, and can feel good about yourself. 

Apart from that - this episode was really boring. I second the notion that restaurant businesses should be in Ramsay/Irvine's court. There's no reason for Marcus to go in and save a small mom and pop shop at this point. 

[sskrill]

On 11/7/2019 at 9:37 AM, Gregg247 said:

Maybe its just me, but I found Marcus' continued use of the death of Dante's mother on 9/11 as a hook to bring in more customers was ghoulish and in poor taste.  Maybe if this had been HER restaurant at some point, it would have made (a little) sense.  But this was a case of, "15 years after her death on 9/11, her now-grown son decided to open a pizza place.  Please come eat here so he doesn't go broke and fail his dead Mom's memory."  That's awful.

Yes! This bothered me too.  I said the exact same thing to a friend - if it had been the mom's restaurant I could see bringing that aspect in, but kid with insurance/victim money picks "food" as a career. 

It was a really boring episode.  The interior makeover wasn't all that either.

I wish the kid well, but I could do without episodes like this.

[TVbitch]

Um, is Marcus gonna come back and lend Dante more money when he runs the place toward being a bankrupt shambles again? It's all fine for Marcus to insist Dante "make his own decisions," but who does Marcus think is going to have to help support him if he isn't successful? 

I don't know if I will last the season if it's gonna continue to be Marcus finding someone with a trajedy or bad relationship that he can go all Dr. Phil on. That is not why I watch, and it comes across as so staged and uncomfortable for the poor people who are forced to exploit their pain for his financial aid. 

Wow, Marcus married a chick 20 years older. That's refreshing. ...unless she is a beard, then not so much.