hotelHotel Hell · Season 2, Episode 8 · Aired September 9, 2014
Murphys Hotel
Murphys, California
This one survived. It remains in business.
What happened after
One of California's oldest continuously operating hotels; actively open under the same name with restaurant and saloon.
What happened on the show
Three friends in their thirties, Brian Goss, Kevin Clerico, and Joel Lacitignola, jointly owned the historic Murphys Hotel in Murphys, California and were mismanaging all of it: the hotel, its bar, and Lacitignola's restaurant. Lunch was grim, slimy escargot, an anemic and messy lamb shank, and chewy calamari, and the storage locker held improperly kept food. The restaurant ignored the local winemaking tradition entirely. The front desk closed early, forcing arrivals to check in at the bar, and anyone who stayed had to endure a party atmosphere that ran past midnight. Ramsay pushed Goss to name himself general manager, renovated the historic rooms, added an online guest registry, and improved the restaurant menu so it finally tapped the area's wine culture. For once the fix landed on three owners willing to actually hold to it.
After the cameras left
This is a survival story with deep roots. The Murphys Hotel is one of California's oldest continuously operating hotels, and the trio held to Ramsay's changes, reporting a bump in business after his visit. As of our latest verification pass the hotel is open under the same name in Murphys, with its restaurant and saloon both running posted hours and reservations handled by phone and email. Given how many properties on this show closed within two years, an old California landmark that kept its footing and its name is a genuine bright spot.
Sources
Confidence: high. Last checked 2026-07-19.