Although a lot of news has come out about her brother over the years, Tina Pellegrino from Peter’s Italian Restaurant seems to be doing just fine.
Peter’s Italian Restaurant, which was located in Babylon, New York, was the center of attention of the very first Kitchen Nightmares episode which premiered in the United States back in 2007.
This episode was shot way back when the US-version of the celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay’s business-rescue show was still finding its feet.
But the episode did not fail to live up to the high-drama and confrontation stakes which have become beloved tropes for the show all these years later.
Peter’s Italian Restaurant behind the scenes
Unfortunately though, it seems like things behind the scenes of Peter’s Italian Restaurant were even more chaotic than the Kitchen Nightmares cameras captured during Ramsay’s visit (which included a street-side brawl with a so-called “bill collector”).
And years after the “Pete’s” episode first aired, Gang Land News‘s Jerry Capeci reported that the eatery’s owner, Tina Pellegrino’s brother, Peter “Pasta” Pellegrino, had acted as an up-and-coming bookmaker for the Bonanno family whilst she was busy trying to keep this restaurant’s doors open.
Ultimately, all Tina of and Ramsay’s efforts to transform the failing Peter’s Italian Restaurant failed, and the restaurant closed down just a few months after the Kitchen Nightmares episode first aired.
However, it seems like Tina has moved on from this chapter in her life, and no longer has to deal with her brother’s antics.
What happened after Gordon Ramsay left Peter’s Italian Restaurant
At this point, it is no longer news that the Kitchen Nightmares restaurants have a pretty horrible track-record when it comes to surviving when the cameras stop rolling and Peter’s Italian Restaurant (along with all of the news about Peter over the years), is no exception to this rule.
The restaurant’s full Kitchen Nightmares timeline can be summarized as follows:
| Date | Event |
| March, 2007 | Gordon Ramsay and the Kitchen Nightmares production team arrive to film the ‘Peter’s” episode |
| September 19, 2007 | The “Peter’s” episode premieres |
| December, 2008 | Peter’s Italian Restaurant closes its doors permanently |
Why did Peter’s Italian Restaurant close down?
Whenever new stories of crime connections to one of the Kitchen Nightmares restaurants come out, rumors about why and how the restaurant closed down tend to start spreading fairly quickly.
For instance, many sources have insisted that Peter’s Italian Restaurant may have closed down due to the continued bad publicity associated with its namesake’s apparent mob-ties.
But though Peter’s presence in the restaurant certainly did not help matters, it is much more likely that this Italian restaurant (which the show explained was owned by Tina, not her brother), simply fell victim to the rising economic pressures of the recession, like so many other restaurants did during this time.
What happened to the space where Peter’s Italian Restaurant used to be?
With so many rumors swirling around that Peter’s Italian Restaurant may have actually just been a front for the mob all along, longtime Kitchen Nightmares fans should be able to rest assured knowing that it does not seem like the show unwittingly assisted the Bonanno family with their extra-legal activities.
When Peter’s Italian Restaurant first closed down, the restaurant next door quickly seized the opportunity to move into the space and as of 2022, this double-the-size location has been occupied by the Post Office Café.
Jack and Larry Lessing (who are the Founders of Lessing’s Hospitality Group and do not seem to have any connections to the mob) own this eatery.
This café seems to be fairly popular and has earned a 4 out of 5-star rating on TripAdvisor (from 159 reviews) and a 3.7 out of 5-star rating on Yelp (where the restaurant has 380 reviews).
What Tina Pellegrino has been up to since Peter’s Italian Restaurant closed down
Unfortunately, the ex-owner of Peter’s Italian Restaurant has kept her personal life fairly private since this episode of Kitchen Nightmares aired.
This is understandable, given the news that has surfaced about her brother’s connections to the mob and the possible backlash from the episode, and there has not been any real update about what she has been up to since the restaurant closed down.
However, Tina’s Facebook page does disclose a few select details about what her life is like now. Tina seemingly moved away from her old home to Queens, New York around a decade ago in 2014 and she also seems to be in a new relationship.
All in all, it seems like she has moved on with her life since the “Peter’s Italian Restaurant” episode initially aired and is now living a seemingly happy life away from the public eye.
