Robert Irvine steps back in time at a struggling retro joint in Escondido, Calif., called Rosie's Cafe; the owner of the ugly, disorganized restaurant is a young woman who has the passion but lacks experience.

Robert heads to Costa Mesa, Calif., to help turn around the struggling Filomena's Italian Kitchen and Market; despite a clean kitchen, organized dining room and allegedly good food, the owner hasn't been able to pay herself one dime since opening.

When Robert arrives at Incredible Cafe in San Diego, he finds a restaurant that is anything but incredible; the kitchen is an abomination and the woman who runs it is in crippling debt; Robert helps to reignite her passion.

Robert arrives in Safford, Ariz., to help turn things around at the Copper Steer Steakhouse; the restaurant was the dream of Parrish and Maureen, but it turned into a nightmare as they started losing money with no clue how to turn things around.