24 Hours to Hell and Back - Shanty on 19th Update

On tonight's episode of 24 Hours to Hell and Back, Gordon Ramsay is in Allentown, Pennsylvania to try to save Shanty on 19th. Shanty on 19th is a restaurant in the theater district of Allentown and a feud between the restaurant owner and staff is negatively impacting the business and everyone's personal lives.  The owner's father is a source of a lot of the drama and Gordon is going to need to change a lot of things in 24 hours for this restaurant to get turned around.


Let's take a look at some information, reviews, and updates for Shanty on 19th since 24 Hours to Hell and Back and Gordon Ramsay made all of the changes to the restaurant (note - all reviews are post-makeover).

Positive Reviews:

• "First time back since the secret camera crew was at the Shanty for a week... ssshhhThe new decor was really nice and I'm glad they improved the lighting. The space is more open and contemporary but still welcoming. We got the burger and two of pastrami sandwiches. It was all delicious! The fries were hot and crisp and tasty with a little fresh parsley. $3 lagers make every meal better!"
• "Gordan Ramsay recently went to the restaurant and changed the place completely. It has a completely new look/feel to it! It has been moderately and beautifully decorated! Gordon also helped them create a new menu and taught the chef's a few things! This place is great I would highly reccomend it!"

Negative Reviews:

• "Well it's seems that after 2 strikes there's no reason to keep coming to bat. After ordering an Asian salad where it was obvious all the ingredients came out of a can, I had to write this place off! Supposedly they did a redo, but except for the decor, the menu was the same old same old. Burgers just ok but overpriced!... No it's not the Shanty of old. Service ok but food a failure. It can't last much longer."
• "Terrible food! Three items ordered all well below par. Mussels undercooked and tasted rotten, sent them back. We're told manager will stop over, never happens. Four scallops on a huge plate served as a 20 dollar entree with no vegetable or side dish, were coated in a caraway seed paste...not good. How can one ruin fish and chips? Ask whoever prepared that entree at the shanty..fish tasted old and I've had Mrs Paul's that was better. Menu limited to five or six entrees total, and two of them are bad?! Not sure what Gordon Ramsey advised but it made things worse."
• "Since we had attended a performance at the Civic Theatre, we decided to try the "new" Shanty. It had been many years since we've dined there and were looking forward to giving it a try. Unfortunately, we were not impressed and probably won't return. In addition to the very high noise level and just an adequate server, only three of our four dishes arrived together."
• "Godson Ramsey “re-did” the Shanty last week so we decided to try it. The decor was pleasing. However, the menu was extremely limited.....Another family cane in, sat down, read the menu and left. We should have joined them. The manager apologized and said Gordon Ramsey had made them throw out most of their food and things would get better once they developed their full menu again. Good luck to them"

*Reviews from Yelp, Tripadvisor, Google

Other News and Links:

• The 24 Hours to Hell and Back makeover happened in late October 2018.
• Here is the Shanty on 19th website and Facebook Page.
• The Shanty was a landmark restaurant in Allentown that closed in 2005.  The Shanty on 19th opened in 2014.
• Shanty on 19th was at one point listed for sale, but the listing is currently off the market.  The gross revenue for the restaurant in the listing says $925,000.

Conclusion:

The reviews for Shanty on 19th since the 24 Hours to Hell and Back makeover with Gordon Ramsay are more negative than positive.  People seem to like the look of the interior, but there are complaints about the limited menu, the service and the food.  The makeover happened just a few months ago, so perhaps there is a bit of a learning curve for all of the changes.

UPDATE - Joe Tatasciore said in an interview that they didn't apply to be on the show and they were not in debt or in danger of closing.  His wife is not in the manager role as she works at their other businesses.  He claims they are busy and hire additional staff due to an increase in business.

*To see how the restaurants from 24 Hours to Hell and Back are doing, visit the 24 Hours To Hell and Back Updates Page. Also, if you are interested in the restaurants from Kitchen Nightmares, visit the Kitchen Nightmares Updates Page.