La Roche Students Pitch in to Help Air Wednesday's "Restaurant Impossible"

An episode of the Food Network's Restaurant Impossible filmed in Pittsburgh with the assistance of students from La Roche College's interior design program aired Wednesday night.

The show, which gives its star, Robert Irvine, and a local crew a chance to rescue a struggling restaurant, featured Del’s Bar and Ristorante in Bloomfield.

From the show's description:

When Chef Robert Irvine visits Del's in Pittsburgh, PA, it's clear that the biggest issue with this failing 62-year-old icon is not the food or décor but owner Marianne. Under the stress of losing the family heirloom, Marianne lashes out at her staff, driving away customers and earning a terrible reputation in the neighborhood. Can Robert save Marianne from herself and the restaurant from its imminent closing?

Chelsea Constantino, a La Roche student from Butler, said she worked about eight hours the first day on the set. 

"When I first arrived, I was told to assemble around 70 chairs. Then I moved furniture from the main floor into the basement," she said, adding that she continued doing similar tasks. 

"My last job of the day was to spray paint different types of light fixtures and the ceiling fan blades," she said.

It was what she expected, she said.

"I knew I would have to complete many different tasks, fairly quickly." 

Ashley Solomon, a La Roche student from Upper St. Clair, said she worked on the project for just 12 hours. 

"It honestly was not what I had expected," she said. "I had an idea of what TV personalities were like, and they positively suprassed my expectations. The TV personalities were kind and happy and seemed to enjoy the quick pace of the work." 

"I think I was most surprised at how hectic it actually was," Solomon said. "I was under the impression that some of what you see on the show was acting,but it seemed the chaos was legitimate and not staged." 

Melanie Highberger, of Beaver Falls, said she loved the chaos. 

"It surprised me that there were not more volunteers. I thought since it was only two days that there would be a whole team helping with the design, but it is really based on who volunteers in each the city."

- Submitted by Sally Wood, on behalf of the La Roche Interior Design program. Have news you'd like to share with Patch readers? Email information and photos to at amyjo.brown@patch.com.

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