TV Restaurants

What Happened to Chiarella's After Kitchen Nightmares? (Philadelphia, PA)

Closed verified

As of September 2026, Chiarella's has closed — confirmed via inquirer.com, June 28, 2015.

Primary source
inquirer.com ·
Secondary source
Yelp ·

Last verified

What the source shows: The Philadelphia Inquirer reported that Chiarella's would close after its final day of business on June 30, 2015, with co-owner Dina Chiarella saying the landlord was pushing the business out at the end of its lease; a Yelp listing for the address remains marked permanently closed as of a September 2026 update.

  • Season / episode Season 5, Episode 16
  • Original air date
  • Address 1600 S 11th St, Philadelphia, PA 19148

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What happened after Kitchen Nightmares?

Chiarella's was a homespun Italian BYOB near the Singing Fountain at East Passyunk Square in South Philadelphia, at the corner of 11th and Tasker Streets, run by the DeFino family alongside co-owner Dina Chiarella. Its Kitchen Nightmares episode, which aired March 23, 2012, was, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer, punctuated by heated exchanges between Ramsay and co-owner Tommy DeFino as the show worked through the restaurant's kitchen and service problems and pushed a menu and decor refresh.

What has happened since: nearly a year after the episode, Philadelphia Magazine reported, on February 13, 2013, that of three Philadelphia-area restaurants Ramsay had visited around that time, Chiarella's was the only one still trading normally, while the other two the magazine tracked -- Zocalo and the Hot Potato Cafe -- had already closed. The restaurant continued operating for about three more years past that report. The Philadelphia Inquirer reported, on June 28, 2015, that Chiarella's would close, with its final day of business on June 30, 2015; co-owner Dina Chiarella told the paper the landlord was "pushing" the business out at the end of its lease, adding, "We're not closing because we want to close." The Inquirer noted that the East Passyunk dining scene, a comparatively undeveloped strip when Chiarella's first appeared on the show, had grown considerably busier by 2015, with two other restaurants, Fond and Noord, having since opened on the neighboring corners of the same intersection. The tracker site Kitchen Nightmares Updates, citing the same Inquirer report, logged Chiarella's as the eighth restaurant from the show's fifth season to close. As of that tracker's July 2015 post, Chiarella's had not addressed the closure on its own Facebook page, and it was unclear whether the DeFino family intended to reopen elsewhere. A Yelp listing for the restaurant's former address remains marked permanently closed as of a September 2026 update.

Featured on Kitchen Nightmares

Season / episode
Season 5, Episode 16
Original air date
Episode title
Chiarella's
What was featured
South Philadelphia Italian BYOB with feuding co-owners and an outdated red-gravy menu
Role
Featured restaurant
Name on the broadcast
Chiarella's

Frequently asked questions

Is Chiarella's still open in 2026?

As of September 2026, Chiarella's has closed — confirmed via inquirer.com, June 28, 2015.

What happened to Chiarella's after Kitchen Nightmares?

Chiarella's was a homespun Italian BYOB near the Singing Fountain at East Passyunk Square in South Philadelphia, at the corner of 11th and Tasker Streets, run by the DeFino family alongside co-owner Dina Chiarella. As of September 2026, Chiarella's has closed — confirmed via inquirer.com, June 28, 2015.

Is Chiarella's permanently closed?

As of September 2026, Chiarella's has closed — confirmed via inquirer.com, June 28, 2015. We publish a closure only with a dated source behind it, and we say plainly when it has not been independently confirmed.

Where is Chiarella's located?

1600 S 11th St, Philadelphia, PA 19148. That is the address on the record as of September 7, 2026.

What season and episode of Kitchen Nightmares featured Chiarella's?

Season 5, Episode 16 of Kitchen Nightmares, first aired March 23, 2012. The episode is titled “Chiarella's”.

Did the makeover last at Chiarella's?

The episode first aired March 23, 2012. Our most recent check was September 7, 2026 — 14 years later —: As of September 2026, Chiarella's has closed — confirmed via inquirer.com, June 28, 2015.

Is Chiarella's still using the Kitchen Nightmares menu or branding?

Its Kitchen Nightmares episode, which aired March 23, 2012, was, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer, punctuated by heated exchanges between Ramsay and co-owner Tommy DeFino as the show worked through the restaurant's kitchen and service problems and pushed a menu and decor refresh. Anything newer than our last check on September 7, 2026 may not be reflected here.

Every status on this site carries a confidence label and a date, and names the source it rests on. Read the Editorial & Corrections Policy for what each label means and how quickly we act on corrections. The questions above are generated from this record's own published fields — we never publish a question we cannot answer from the data.

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Visit info

Address
1600 S 11th St, Philadelphia, PA 19148
Venue type
restaurant
Official website
None found

Businesses change fast. Always confirm directly with the restaurant — call ahead, or check its own current website or social media — before making plans around anything on this page.

Sources

  • inquirer.com — https://www.inquirer.com/philly/blogs/the-insider/Chiarellas-on-East-Passyunk-to-close.html
  • Yelp — https://www.yelp.com/biz/chiarellas-ristorante-philadelphia
  • kitchennightmaresupdates.com — https://www.kitchennightmaresupdates.com/2015/07/chiarellas-ristorante-closed.html

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