Restaurant Impossible to Film at Mama Della's Pizzeria This Week

Mama Della's N.Y. City Pizzeria

Restaurant Impossible, the hit Food Network show hosted by Robert Irvine, will be in Baton Rouge this week to film an episode at Mama Della’s N.Y. City Pizzeria.

Though it won't be released until the fall of this year, the restaurant will be getting 2014 off to an interesting start with a two day makeover that is scheduled to take place January 9th and 10th. If anybody would like to volunteer to be a part of the remodeling crew, you need to email twentz@shootersinc.com TODAY with FN BATON ROUGE VOLUNTEERS in the subject line and include your name, shift or shifts you'd like to work, and a phone number. Work shifts will be 1 p.m. to 8 p.m. Thursday, 8 p.m. Thursday to 2 a.m. Friday and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday. Volunteers will paint, craft, construct, remodel, clean, and decorate. Skilled contractors such as electricians, plumbers and painters are also encouraged to volunteer. Volunteers are asked to wear comfortable clothes and closed toe shoes or boots with no logos.

Mama Della's Margherita Pizza

The Grand Re-opening will be Friday night, but as far as I know all the reservations have been booked for the evening. Don't worry though, you'll have plenty of time to check out the new space before the show actually airs.

I'm optimistic that this will be a great experience for Mama Della's and for Baton Rouge. Mama Della's pizza is truly great. Owner and chef Barry Kalt knows what he is doing with the pie. But he also knows that he needs help with the overall dining experience including the atmosphere and customer service. I'll be interested to see what Robert Irvine says about the pizza and other menu items. I'll also be interested to find out how the restaurant gets renovated and what is done with the front-of-house dining experience. Hopefully more than anything, Mama Della's gets the kind of makeover it needs to become a Baton Rouge pizza joint that we can all be proud of for years to come, and when this episode airs on the Food Network, it will end with a success story of another restaurant saved by Restaurant Impossible.