Robert Irvine transforms Edibles into the new Hurley’s American Grille!

If you read my blog post from Thursday, May 9 you already know the backstory on what Robert Irvine and Restaurant Impossible were doing here at the restaurant Edibles in Horsham this past weekend  The crew arrived Thursday evening, and then the makeover of the restaurant and filming of the show began on Friday morning.  I didn’t get a chance to stop by on Friday after work (I was actually visiting my mom and dropping off an early mothers’ day present).  But I did stop by a couple times on Saturday!!

Robert Irvine’s Lexus

I got to the shopping center at about 11:30am on Saturday morning and the first thing I saw was Robert Irvine’s Lexus…you know the one he always drives in with at the beginning of every Restaurant Impossible episode on Food Network!  I knew it was his because it was the only car parked right in front of the restaurant (the rest of the area was blocked off) and also because a woman who was there earlier in the morning said she saw him get out of it.  Of course I had to snap a picture!

A small crowd gathered in Horsham to watch the excitement of Restaurant Impossible!

I hung out for a couple of hours (I know…crazy).  There was a small crowd of spectators while I was there – I would say about 15 – 20 people or so at the most.  I didn’t get to see too much initially.  The restaurant had the doors and the windows covered so no one could see inside and we had to stand a certain distance away from the front door, but even still, I was able to get pretty close!

Carpenters carrying in wood.

Carpenters were sawing wood on tables in the parking lot, but then it started to rain a bit so they had to move inside their tents.  The carpenters did a lot of running back and forth carrying wood from outside into the restaurant.  As soon as they would get inside, they would close the doors really fast to keep the big reveal a secret.

My first sighting of Chef Robert Irvine of Restaurant Impossible!

AND THEN, one time when the door was open, I heard Robert’s voice carry outside (obviously yelling something, haha).  I stayed a little longer, not sure what I was waiting for as all the excitement was going on inside the building and not outside.  But FINALLY, the moment I was waiting for, Chef Robert Irvine stepped outside.  He came out, coffee cup in hand, yelling something like “My time, my time!”

Chef Robert Irvine checking on the carpenters in the tents.

He did a quick walk across the parking lot to check on something in one of the tents, walked back toward the building, yelled something else at someone and pointed at them (another moment caught on my camera!)  And then as soon as he came out, Robert went right back in and I didn’t get to see him again.

Uh oh! Yelling at someone!! haha

After my Robert Irvine sighting, I decided to head home.  I knew the restaurant would be opening at 7pm that night, but because I was not able to get a reservation, I wasn’t planning on heading back over again.  However, a friend from work texted me that she was there at about 8pm, so I decided to go back to check it out!

Edibles name is changed to Hurley’s American Grille!

When I arrived, I was excited to see that the name had been changed from “Edibles” to “Hurley’s American Grille” and they had a brand new sign on the outside of the building.  Very nice!!

Sure I consent to be on TV!! HAHA

While we weren’t allowed inside the restaurant without a reservation, we were allowed to hang out right by the door and even peek in the windows!  From what it looked like, the inside of the restaurant looked like it had been remodeled with an airplane theme.  (Very fitting considering the old Willow Grove Air Force Base, which is currently home to the Horsham National Guard, is right across the street).  There were helicopter blades on the ceiling, and framed pictures of airplanes and helicopters.  The walls looked like they had some type of textured metal on them and the furniture looked really neat!  We even got to see some of the camera crew walking around inside the restaurant interviewing some of the people while they were dining.  I can’t wait to see all of this on the show!!!

Peeking in the windows! Camera crew interviewing the diners!

Overall, this weekend was a fun experience.  I got to talk to a lot of new people in the community that share a love of restaurants, food, and Food Network Chefs!  I got to speak to a production assistant who shared lots of interesting information…like for example most of the crew on the show is local to the Philadelphia area because that is where their production company is based out of!  Another reason why a lot of the restaurants they re-do are in this general area of the country.  I also learned that the next spot they are traveling to next is Bensalem, PA about 15 minutes down the road!

Loving all of the excitement!

By far, the most exciting part of the weekend was having a fun story to report on AND seeing Chef Robert Irvine and getting his picture.  AND I can’t wait to check out the new Hurley’s American Grille sometime soon!  I have high hopes for a great experience and delicious food!  I will definitely let you know my thoughts once I try it out!

PS. my apologies for some of the poor-quality pictures…I didn’t have my camera with me and just used my phone!  I won’t make that mistake again when we have a celebrity in town!