Bar Rescue is back from a well-deserved summer break and this week Jon Taffer and crew are in Yucaipa, California, to help out the owners of the Celebrities Sports Grill.
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During the Bar Rescue makeover, Jon Taffer changed the name from Celebrities Sports Grill to The Victory Bar and Restaurant.
This Bar Has Permanently Closed – Bar Rescue Fail?
The Bar Rescue makeover took place earlier this spring in April, 2016. The following month, on May 20, the owners hosted a grand opening party. Since that time, and before the episode made it to air, the bar permanently closed. The episode premieres on Spike on Sunday, September 18, 2016.
San Bernardino Celebrities Sports Grill
We understand that Max Zahir (family) also owns the Celebrities Sports Grill in San Bernardino, California. That establishment remain open for business.
How We Got Here
Brothers Max and Ryke Zahir supposedly invested $485,000 in the bar back in early 2015. They did well in the beginning, pulling in up to $200,000 per month. However, things quickly went south after Max bought a homeless veteran a meal and posted the video of his good deed on YouTube.
The video went viral, and that inspired Max to help even more vets, so he set up this gofundme page, and raised $20,000 to help homeless vets. There was only one problem – the man he originally helped in the video turned out not to be a veteran. The backlash on social media was almost immediate and Max found himself being called a crook, and a thief. Max didn’t take the criticism well, and responded by lashing out at his accusers on social media. That created a second problem – his accusers were also patrons of his bar. Needless to say, business at the bar took a dive. At the time the episode was being shot, Max indicated the bar was in debt to the tune of $750,000 and was in desperate need of help.
A Closer Look
- Here’s the Facebook page for Sabrina, a bartender that appears in the Bar Rescue episode
- Here’s the Victory Bar and Grill Unofficial Facebook page
- Here’s the Victory Bar and Restaurant Grand Opening Facebook page
- Here’s the Celebrities Sports Grill Facebook page (San Bernardino)
The Reviews Are In….
Online reviews of the establishment on Yelp – Here and Here – since the Bar Rescue makeover in April – and before the bar shut down – are overwhelmingly bad. Check out just a few below:
- Bar Rescue came to help the restaurant????!!!! No way, there is no evidance this place is a mess. Bar Rescue should be ashamed to mentioned they “helped” this place.
- I heard Bar Rescue was here but what did they do other then change the sign which actually looks kinda cheesy. The place is still a dump.
- Can we go no stars? Hope everybody found a new job. This place is odd. It’s a big ass chunky cheese type area, with a. Bar in the back.
- Worst dinner I’ve had in a long time. My boyfriend and i came in here for the very first time on a Saturday night. The place was empty, and still our waitress managed to forget us..
- A sports bar that is clueless about sports. We walked in to watch the NCAA Final Four and it wasn’t on any of their dozen + TVs. What was on? Spring training baseball, women’s basketball, sportscenter.
Episode Promotional Videos
Social Media Threatens California Bar
Call Security, Jon Taffer!
Images – YouTube