bar24 Hours to Hell and Back · Season 2, Episode 9 · Aired March 6, 2019
Social
Costa Mesa, California
Yes. This one is still open.
On the show
Season 2, Episode 9 · March 6, 2019 · bar and bistro
Aired same night as S2E10 (M'Dears).
What happened after
Bar and bistro at 512 W 19th St continues operating; expanded to a second Huntington Beach location after its 2019 episode.
What happened on the show
Costa Mesa handed Ramsay a modern bar and bistro that looked the part and still did not work. Opened in 2015 in an affluent stretch of Orange County, Social had a tidy room and a dysfunctional crew, and the surveillance traced the trouble to a power struggle between two executive chefs. One was back for a second stint after taking personal leave for burnout, and the cooks were split over whose directions to follow, with the current chef running overbearing. New competition nearby had sharpened every crack. Across the twenty four hours Ramsay sorted the chain of command, rebuilt the food around what the room actually did well, and delivered the renovation reveal. His argument was that good bones and a nice address mean nothing when two chefs are fighting for the same kitchen and the line does not know who to trust.
After the cameras left
Social came out ahead. As of our latest verification pass the bar and bistro at 512 West 19th Street was still operating, and it had gone further than survival: after the 2019 episode the owners opened a second location in Huntington Beach. Reviews have run mostly positive, with the Brussels sprouts and the chicken and waffles singled out. Expansion rather than closure puts Costa Mesa's Social firmly among the show's success stories.
Sources
Confidence: high. Last checked 2026-07-19.