Chef Brian left The Keating Hotel shortly after Gordon Ramsay did, but he ended up becoming the executive chef at another restaurant named Pirch, years later.
The combined stress and long filming hours that the owners and staff of the lodging establishments featured on Hotel Hell have to go through when Ramsay and his film crew arrive often lead to some funny reactions.
But few of these reactions hold a candle to Chef Brian Rutherford from The Keating Hotel’s restaurant – who fainted and then cried over a plate of scallops later on.
Fortunately, it turned out that Brian’s fainting spell was brought on by dehydration and anxiety, and not by a more serious health issue.
And this fan-favorite chef could return to The Merk Bistro (The Keating Hotel’s restaurant, which was in a different building) before the end of this season one episode, newly inspired to make this restaurant the best that it could possibly be.
What really happened to Chef Brian after Ramsay’s visit
However, although it seemed like Ramsay’s brutally honest intervention had turned things around at The Keating Hotel around, Brandon Hernández from the San Diego Reader revealed that not everything was as smooth sailing when the end of the episode revealed that Brian had left the business.
Apparently, Brian was nowhere to be found when The Keating Hotel hosted its very own viewing party for friends, family and a select few members of the press, to celebrate this episode’s premiere.
However, Brian did not attend – and what was even worse was that no one at the party could agree on whether he had chosen to leave or had indeed been fired from the role.
What happened to the Keating Hotel’s restaurant after Ramsay’s visit
“The Keating Hotel” episode from Hotel Hell is certainly one of the most dramatic and entertaining episodes in the show’s history.
But it seems like neither Ramsay’s makeover, nor the publicity that this episode generated, were enough to save the hotel’s struggling restaurant.
Unfortunately, The San Diego Union-Tribune confirmed that The Merk Bistro restaurant closed down just a month after this episode premiered (and just a few months after Brian’s mysterious departure).
All in all, this Hotel Hell restaurant’s timeline can be outlined as follows:
| Date | Event |
| December 2011 | Ramsay and the Hotel Hell team arrive to film the episode |
| August 27, 2012 | “The Keating Hotel” episode premieres and Brian has already left the restaurant |
| September 2012 | The restaurant is renamed ‘Brick+Mortarand’ and The Merk Bistro is no more. |
What happened to The Keating Hotel after this episode aired?
Besides confirming that Brian had left The Keating Hotel (apparently not too long after the Hotel Hell crew packed their bags) the last few seconds of this episode also revealed that the hotel’s occupancy and average rate had improved after Ramsay’s visit.
However, Brennen Taylor (a YouTube reviewer) visited the hotel in 2019 and his video disclosed that the hotel’s lobby had been returned to its original red color, and the overly-expensive tubs had remained in the rooms, even after Ramsay’s visit.
The 2019 Yelp reviews for the hotel also swing between excellent 5-star ratings and horrible 1-star ratings. And at the very least, it seems like The Keating Hotel really struggled to deliver consistently good service after its big Hotel Hell makeover.
The Keating Hotel now
The Keating Hotel, like many other lodging establishments across the world, announced in March of 2020 that it would be closing its doors temporarily during the COVID-19 pandemic.
And while the world has largely returned to normal now, there seems to have been quite a few changes at The Keating Hotel in the last few years.
The Keating Hotel’s Facebook page had not been updated since 2020, and its old website is now inactive.
However, the most recent 2023 reviews for the hotel suggest that it is in fact still open for business, but that it is now being run as an Airbnb.
What Chef Brian ended up doing after leaving The Keating Hotel
The only thing that “The Keating Hotel” episode revealed about Brian’s departure was that he had started working at a “gourmet food store in San Diego” after leaving the hotel.
And even though Brian ended up leaving The Keating Hotel, it seems as though he kept the passion for the culinary arts that Ramsay had reignited. Brian eventually went on to work at Baker & Olive and then as the executive chef at Pirch.
Unfortunately, Brian’s social media pages have not been updated since 2018, and there are some concerning, but unconfirmed rumors that this talented chef may have passed away, floating around on some corners of the internet.
