Hotel Chester has become one of Hotel Hell’s biggest successes because of its central location, great service and friendly atmosphere.
Avid reality television fans, or just fans of the business-rescue genre in particular, will already know that the famed chef and restaurateur, Gordon Ramsay, has not always had the best track record with his shows in the past.
While shows like Kitchen Nightmares, which started airing in 2007, and Hotel Hell, which aired its first season in 2012, have proved to be incredibly popular with viewers fans who tune in to watch, only a fraction of the businesses featured on these shows are still around today.
Fortunately though, a select few businesses still managed to beat the odds in this regard.
The Hotel Chester success story
When Ramsay first arrived at Hotel Chester in the second season of the series, which aired all the way back in 2014, it was difficult not to feel sympathetic for the hotel’s owners, David and Sukie Mollendor.
Although the hotel was thriving when they first purchased it, David’s severe injuries, which resulted from a car crash, had forced the couple into a downward spiral, and they ultimately lost their home.
Fortunately though, this couple took all of Ramsay’s changes and ideas on board and Chester Hotel has now become one of only a few lodging establishments from Hotel Hell which is still open today.
And, when you take all of the hotel’s glowing reviews into account, this success seems to be attributable to its prime location, its vintage flair and the general welcoming atmosphere that is maintained by the Hotel’s friendly staff.
The history of Hotel Chester
Construction on the building, which Hotel Hell fans will recognize as the modern Hotel Chester, first began in 1924, and the hotel officially opened its doors in 1925, with 35 rooms ready to fill.
Although David and Sukie only purchased the hotel several decades later, this couple’s more than two-decade long tenure at the Hotel Chester has become one of the most important stretches in this historic building’s almost 100-year history and, it can be summed up as follows:
| Date | Event |
| 1999 | David and Sukie Mollendor purchase Hotel Chester |
| June 2013 | Ramsay and the Hotel Hell team shut down Hotel Chester for filming |
| August 11, 2014 | The “Hotel Chester” episode of Hotel Hell premieres |
What happened at Hotel Chester after Gordon Ramsay left?
When Mollendor spoke to the Clarion Ledger just before the “Hotel Chester” Hotel Hell episode premiered for the very first time, he jokingly said that even Ramsay and his notorious temper was “just a puppy in relation to me, isn’t he?”.
In the end, Mollendor really seemed to have appreciated the effort that Ramsay had put into saving Hotel Chester (even going as far as paying for the executive chef’s apartment until the owners could recover financially).
He also added that Hotel Chester continued to use Ramsay’s menu even after filming had wrapped. In fact, the Hotel Chester website homepage still proudly pays homage to their time on Hotel Hell, to this day.
What the Hotel Chester reviews have to say
Hotel Chester has truly become one of Hotel Hell’s biggest success stories. The hotel currently has an excellent 4.5 out of 5 star-rating on TripAdvisor and 4 out of 5 stars on Yelp.
One of the most recent 5-star reviews on TripAdvisor even went as far as to give the hotel full marks in the “value”, “service” and “location” categories.
Furthermore, the reviewer even took the time to mention that they “Will absolutely stay again” in their review.
And it seems like tourists are not the only ones who have enjoyed their stays at Chester Hotel in the past decade, as this hotel has had the honor of being voted the “Best Hotel in Mississippi” by the Mississippi Magazine every year from 2013 to 2019.
Do David and Sukie Mollendor still own Hotel Chester?
Avid fans who still cry whenever this episode of Hotel Hell plays on TV to this day will be happy to hear that David and Sukie Mollendor are still happily married and that they have stuck around to see all of this success at Hotel Chester.
The Reflector even did a piece on Hotel Chester in 2022. In this interview, David, along with some of the current and former staff members of the hotel, shared some of their favorite memories about the space.
In this interview, Kendall Hill, who is one of Hotel Chester’s newer employees, confirmed that the hotel’s atmosphere was just as friendly behind the scenes, saying “My time here has been a really good experience for me.”
