For Amy and Samy Bouzaglo, it looks like the nightmare is over.
The couple behind the notorious Amy's Baking Company, which made international headlines in 2013 after a disastrous appearance on "Kitchen Nightmares," closed their Scottsdale restaurant this week, The Republic has learned.
Amy announced plans to close the space in July, telling the Associated Press she would instead sell desserts to restaurants and produce digital cooking videos. She denied the business was in financial trouble or was closing because of negative publicity.
The shopping center that housed the restaurant, at Scottsdale Road and Shea Boulevard, recently got a new landlord, East Village at Shea LLC, a company formed by Bob Parsons' YAM Properties.
Two years ago, the Bouzaglos secured their spots as pop-culture pariahs. Their TV appearance was bad enough — scene after awkward scene showing them swearing at customers, taking tips left for servers and fighting host Gordon Ramsay, who, for the first time in the show's history walked away from the restaurant before making any changes.
Indignant people took to social media to criticize the couple, who lashed back. Buzzfeed called it "the most epic brand meltdown on Facebook ever."
Then the Lindsay Lohan-style train wreck really started. The Bouzaglos hired a PR agency to contain the crisis. A news conference was called. On the day of, it was canceled. The agency, which has represented high-profile businesses and political figures, stopped working with the couple within a week.
Sordid skeletons came out: Amy had served time in prison for misuse of a Social Security number. Sam had served prison time on drug and intimidation charges overseas and had been banned from France and Germany.
Since May 2013, the Bouzaglos popped in and out of the public eye. They've been on local and national TV for such acts as accusing Ramsay of sexually harassing Amy and allegedly brandishing a knife at a customer. It's made for great TV.
Doubtful the pair will ever completely shed meme-status (how could we forget such gems as Amy's "I speak feline MEOW!" and Samy's "Here's your pizza, go (expletive) yourself!"). But, lately at least, they've been trying to rebrand.
It's been months since any shenanigans. On the contrary: Amy wrote a cookbook and they participated in a Phoenix food festival. The couple has been positively well-behaved.
Perhaps they've finally woken up.
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