Gordon pays a visit to Oscars in Nantwich. On the surface this place seems idyllic - an Irish family-run restaurant in the heart of beautiful countryside. Owner Maura runs the front of house and her son Lenin is head chef, but it's not happy families. With her life savings on the line Maura is in big trouble. She constantly bickers with her son whilst the customers are forced to wait hours for their fluorescent crab stick paellas, and stodgy carbonaras from Oscar's 'bit of everything' menu. The place is losing £2,000 per week, but that isn't the worst of their problems - Lenin has got a serious drink problem and during service collapses and has to be rushed off to hospital. It's Gordon's toughest challenge yet. Can he bring the Irish heart back to Oscars, stop mother and son fighting, and get Lenin to face up to his problems?

Gordon travels to the seaside in aid of hotel and restaurant the Sandgate. This is happily married couple Lois and Peters' first venture into the catering industry. They used to enjoy eating in restaurants, so thought it might be fun to own one. A year and a half later their dream has turned into a nightmare - they're losing £4,000 a month. In the kitchen, their head chef Stuart is on the brink of a nervous breakdown. He's forced to cook for four restaurants, including fine dining upstairs and Japanese fare in the basement. But it's when he loses his coveted AA award that he really hits rock bottom. Eccentric, overstaffed and on the point of collapse, can Gordon bring this real life Fawlty Towers back from the edge?

Despite being voted Restaurant of the Year by Blackpool's tourist board, Clubway 41 is in dire straits. Owners David and Dawn are breaking every rule in the book, and Gordon has his work cut out getting a demoralised team back on track.

La Gondola - a hotel and restaurant in Derby - strikes Gordon as being stuck in the past, and indeed its glory days were back in the 1970s. The challenge is to haul the staff, decor and cuisine into the 21st century and once again fill the dining room with happy customers.