Waterbury restaurant gets makeover on Gordon Ramsay show tonight

Host/chef Gordon Ramsay (L) with the restaurant staff in the all-new Vasi's Restaurant and Bar episode of "Gordon Ramsay's 24 Hours to Hell and Back" airing Wednesday, Jan. 16 (8:00-9:00 PM ET/PT) on FOX. © 2019 FOX Broadcasting. less Host/chef Gordon Ramsay (L) with the restaurant staff in the all-new Vasi's Restaurant and Bar episode of "Gordon Ramsay's 24 Hours to Hell and Back" airing Wednesday, Jan. 16 (8:00-9:00 PM ET/PT) on FOX. © ... more Photo: Jeffrey Neira/FOX Photo: Jeffrey Neira/FOX Image 1 of / 9 Caption Close Waterbury restaurant gets makeover on Gordon Ramsay show tonight 1 / 9 Back to Gallery

Vasi's Restaurant in Waterbury was around for about 17 years before it became Vasi's Taverna in late 2018–a re-brand orchestrated by TV's scariest restaurateur, Gordon Ramsay.

The restaurant is the subject of an episode of "24 Hours to Hell and Back" starring Ramsay on FOX; the episode airs Wednesday, January 16 at 8 p.m. The premise of the show is to bring struggling restaurants back to life in just 24 hours.

When Vasilios "Vasi" Kaloidis, who co-owns Vasi's with his mother, signed up for the show, he didn't even know Ramsay was involved. Kaloidis responded to an ad looking for restaurants to star in a new show about renovations. Vasi's, which is a restaurant, banquet hall and bar was seeing a lag in business in its dining rooms. Kaloidis was ready to shut down the restaurant part of the business and keep Vasi's as a banquet hall and bar. This was a chance to save the restaurant portion.

Filming in October 2018 went smoothly for a few days until Ramsay pulled up in an 18-wheeler surprising everyone, Kaloidis said.

"That's when the staff was ready to quit and everything you see on TV started to happen. I had to do damage control and say 'it's one day,' and we all decided to do it," he said.

Kaloidis said Ramsay, who is famous for having a big temper and screaming at people on his TV shows, is just as intense in real life as he is on TV, and he got the brunt of the Ramsay wrath as the TV personality was not as hard on Kaloidis's other employees who are female.

"The chef is 60 year-old-woman and she went back at him right from start," he said. "So I had to play damage control. Usually I'm outspoken, but I was a little bit under control...I went into defense mode all day instead of attacking back. My mother and wife were here. I kind of zoned him out to make sure my staff didn't quit."

A preview of the episode (above) shows the intensity of the day.

In the end, the changes Ramsay made were two full dining room renovations from dark colors and booths to a Mediterranean aesthetic. "It looks like you're on vacation," said Kaloidis. The name was also changed from "restaurant" to "taverna" to reflect Kaloidis Greek roots, and the menu, which was all Italian, now also incorporates Greek cuisine.

So far, customers have responded well to the changes, Kaloidis said. But the true test of whether or not being publicly scolded on TV was worth it will come after the show airs.

"If the show airs and makes us look good and we get bump in business, yes. He renovated our two dining rooms and the place looks great...so yes, it's worth it. But as same time I've built this reputation. I hope it doesn't affect that."

Vasi's will be playing the show tonight in the restaurant and bar. He will be watching from a premier party for family and friends in the banquet hall.

This isn't the first time Ramsay has made an appearance in Connecticut. In 2014, Connecticut's oldest inn, the 1736 Curtis House in Woodbury, was featured on an episode of "Hotel Hell" on FOX.

Connecticut Magazine reported that "over the course of the hour-long show, Ramsay was able to repair a relationship between siblings, restore pride in the inn among all involved, foster a new passion for running it well, and create a new menu of Hardisty family favorites that the kitchen now makes (lovingly) to order."

Back in 2009, the now closed restaurant Sabatiello's Italian Steakhouse in Stamford was featured on "Kitchen Nightmares," a show on the FOX that had Ramsey trying to revive struggling restaurants.