Robert Irvine swooped into Seabrook, Texas, to help owners John and Laura Walker save their breakfast and lunch spot, the Pelican Grill. The Walkers filled us in on how business is going a few months after their Restaurant: Impossible makeover.

Three months later, the Pelican Grill is thriving with a 40 percent increase in business and expanded hours that include dinner service.

The success comes on the heels of a bizarre setback. One month after the renovation, a car crashed through the front door of the restaurant in the middle of the night, causing $6,000 in damages. Thanks to the generosity of friends and family, repairs were made quickly and the Pelican Grill remained closed for only eight days.

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As of February 2012:

Three months later, new General Manager Kelly says the freshness of the new dining room has not waned for her.

Kelly now holds employee meetings to train staff on food safety and proper customer service. She and Kim also meet weekly with their newly hired chef, Matt, to go over any kitchen issues.

Chef Matt has become Kim’s right-hand man. He’s helping to bring in more fresh ideas, and today there are very few frozen items on the menu. Kelly is excited for Chef Matt’s new menu to roll out — she can’t wait to see customers’ reactions.

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Next Iron Chef judge Simon Majumdar joins us on the FN Dish each week to share his insider’s take on what went down Sunday night.

I have only been to a handful of ballgames during my short time living in the U.S. So, I was pretty certain, as we strolled into Petco Park, home of the San Diego Padres, that I would be the person present who knew the least about ballpark food.

I was wrong.

The Chairman’s Challenge for the nine remaining super chefs was one of transformation. He asked each of them to take classic ballpark dishes and re-create them in a Kitchen Stadium-worthy manner. It was no easy task, and the fact that each chef approached the challenge in very different ways showed that some of them, thankfully, knew even less about ballpark food than their British judge.

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The fourth season of The Next Iron Chef: Super Chefs is in full swing with 10 new chefs fighting it out for a grand prize that so many would-be chefs covet: joining the ranks of Iron Chefs Marc Forgione, Bobby Flay, Masaharu Morimoto, Cat Cora, Jose Garces and Michael Symon. Each chef will try to pull out all their tricks to stay in the competition but, ultimately, one chef must go home each week. Every Monday, FN Dish brings you exclusive exit interviews with the latest Super Chef to get the boot.

Find out who was sent home »

Robert Irvine recently shared his rules for balancing food and fitness with Gourmet Guy on MensHealth.com. Maintaining his chiseled physique isn’t always easy with his busy schedule, which includes traveling, filming his shows and running a restaurant. Regardless, Robert follows a simple guide to keep him motivated. Find out what his routine includes, as well as the four easy rules he strictly follows, Robert Irvine’s 4 Rules of Food and Fitness.

Bobby Flay has opened a new location of Bobby’s Burger Palace on K Street in Washington, D.C. The restaurant opened for lunch with a crowd of approximately 400 hundred people waiting outside. Bobby spent opening day taking pictures with fans and signing autographs. According to The Washington Examiner, Chef Flay has hopes that President Obama will stop by for a burger and share his thoughts on what should top the local Washington, D.C., burger.

Alton Brown’s book tour »

Rachael Ray cooked with Graham Kerr, host of The Galloping Gourmet, on a recent episode of the Rachael Ray Show. Graham is known for launching one of the first classic cooking shows and has inspired many television chefs (including Rachael) to follow in his footsteps. Try some of his classic recipes and see the video on AOL TV.

Guy Fieri dished out tips in a video with Extra revealing his three simple rules to follow when dieting. He cites, “Moderation, exercise and eating in courses to ensure that even when surrounded by food you don’t give in to temptation.” Guy makes sure that the food he consumes is “really good” since he doesn’t count calories and tries not to waste them — his guilty pleasure is anything salty. Watch the video on ExtraTV.

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The Los Angeles Times and Food & Wine Magazine will join forces as they host The Taste, a culinary event that will take place Labor Day weekend. Nine signature events will be held throughout Beverly Hills, Hollywood and Downtown Los Angeles featuring Duff Goldman, Giada De Laurentiis, Scott Conant and Claire Robinson. Tickets are on sale now.

Watch this week’s videos after the jump »

Our sister site, GACtv.com, announced today that the Celebrity Chef Pavilion Stage at the first-ever Show Me Music and Arts Festival will feature three Food Network stars: Chefs Robert Irvine, Ellie Krieger and Aaron McCargo, Jr.

According to the site, “Chef McCargo, the 2008 winner of Food Network Star and host of Big Daddy’s House will start things off.  Chef Krieger, host of Healthy Appetite will be up next and chef Irvine, host of Dinner: Impossible, Worst Cooks in America and Restaurant: Impossible, will close things out.”

Visit GACtv.com for more information about the event.

The Monterey Bay Aquarium will host a Cooking for Solutions celebration May 20-22, featuring great chefs, gourmet cuisine and fine wines. On Saturday May 21, the event will feature presentations from Alton Brown and Robert Irvine, highlighting the use of sustainable seafood while saving the oceans and helping home cooks discover new and delicious ways to serve seafood dishes. Visit Montereybayaquarium.org for details and ticket prices.

On May 22, Montage Laguna Beach will host Share Our Strength’s Taste of the Nation event. Share Our Strength is a charity that hopes to eliminate childhood hunger in our country and 100% of ticket sales go to the cause. Scott Conant of 24 Hour Restaurant Battle is one of the participating chefs this year and a VIP ticket offers a chance to meet him, along with other chefs while enjoying food, wine and specialty cocktails. Visit Taste.strength.org for information on this and other events across the country.

Paula Deen launches a line of home accessories »

Our Food Network fans are full of great ideas. In a comment on our blog after an episode of Chopped All-Stars, fan Eric Londergan suggested that we post a list of all of the contestants’ charities. We took him up on it and pulled together this rundown of the organizations that each All-Star chef played for — plus, we asked host Ted Allen to weigh in with his own charity pick. Thanks, Eric!

Of course, there are only four left standing to compete in the All-Stars finale this Sunday night: Aaron Sanchez, playing for the Greater New Orleans Foundation; Anne Burrell, supporting the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation; Michael Proietti, competing for the Jed Foundation; and Nate Appleman, representing the Kawasaki Disease Foundation. All are beyond worthy causes, to be sure, and all four chefs are hungry to win for their causes.

Which charity will get a hefty $50,000 donation, and who will walk away with bragging rights? You’ll have to watch and see! Don’t miss the super-charged Chopped All-Stars finale this Sunday at 9pm/8c.