'Restaurant Impossible' begins filming in Woodstock

WOODSTOCK – A relentless storm quieted the outdoor crowd, but activity around the Woodstock Square was cooking Wednesday as "Restaurant: Impossible" crews filmed at Angelo's Restaurant.

"I've been here since 7 a.m. and it's been packed," Shannon Levine, who works at the nearby Starbucks, said Wednesday afternoon. "It's a big thing. ... Everybody who comes in is talking about it."

Filming continues today for the Food Network show that attempts to – on a $10,000 budget – turn around the fate of one restaurant each episode. Curious community members gathered to watch the operation Wednesday morning before the storm forced many indoors. The production team had a tent set up on Dean Street between the restaurant and the Woodstock Opera House.

Cars continued creeping by the set into the afternoon. Several slowed long enough for passengers to snap cellphone photos out rain-streaked windows.

Wanda "Woo" Gatsis, of Woodstock, said she'd been several places Wednesday morning and that the town was "buzzing."

She said she was hoping that "Restaurant Impossible" host Robert Irvine keeps in mind the Square's history when deciding on renovations. She's talked to several people who want to see the restaurant redone in the likeness of Tip Top Café, the famous restaurant from "Groundhog Day."

"We just think it should be nostalgic and represent the Square," Gatsis said.
Arlene Lynes, owner of the Square's Read Between The Lynes book store, agreed that the restaurant could benefit from such a move.

"It would make great sense," Lynes said. "It would still need to serve the local clientele, but so many people come year round and want to eat at a place like the Tip Top Café."

Lynes said the weather drove some people away in the afternoon, but her store was busy throughout the morning.

They also were fielding calls from people inquiring about Irvine's cookbooks.
Crews will wrap up shooting today, and Angelo's will have a grand reopening at 7 p.m. today. The episode featuring Angelo's is scheduled to air early this summer.

Judy Pelinski, who went by the restaurant Wednesday morning with her husband, Bill, said she was eager to see the changes.

"I think it's really exciting when Robert comes in," Pelinski said. "Not everybody might be a fan of the way he does things, but I think it's really exciting to give a business a new chance."