Time for Bitchen' in the Kitchen!

Hey, everyone! 

     

I know it's been awhile but in case you haven't heard, Janine's cookbook is coming out this month!!

It's called Bitchen' in the Kitchen and there are 27 mouth watering recipes from her and her family along with beautiful pictures of not only the food, but never before seen family photos as well!  

Janine says technology and just all around busyness has taken us away from an important part of the day to spend as a family: dinner time!  So, turn off your phones and gather around the table to enjoy good food and good conversation with your family. 

 Let's get back to the days where the family was more important over social media and the stresses of the day!  

Take a peek at the video below and then head over to Amazon to preorder yours NOW!! Get it for the holidays! 

Staten Island Hustle Season 1 Episode 5 The Gentleman's Taxi

What hustle will be in this episode? This one was probably my favorite. I was cracking up! Who watched Episode 5? If you missed it, it's on demand, so make sure you see it! Let's recap!

At Angelina's the meeting is already off with Dom talking about Tony D and his meatballs. Tony D claims he makes the best.  Well, that automatically sounds like a challenge to me! Side note: I have had Janine's meatballs. Delish! Not sure I would want to challenge hers! However, Tony D isn't having it. He is hollering about how nobody can beat his! A cook off is scheduled!  Poor Ron isn't paying attention. He's dreaming about meatballs now. 

Down to business. Mike is talking about making a taxi service. However, NYC regulates that a taxi service is required to have a medallion, a type of permit to pick up passengers. His friend has some to use and Ron has friends who has older, classy town cars to use. They want to make a high end taxi service, one with cigars, magazines and other amenities. Dom wants to know who is driving these cabs. They want to see if it would work first, then sell the company.  Tony D loves the idea. The new hustle is born!

At Dom's house, there is a gender reveal party going on. Dom and Janine's son Allie and his girlfriend, Ariel are expecting a baby and the gender of the baby is going to be revealed at the bash. Tony D and the other guys arrive at the party and Mike is confused and here's when I lost it laughing. Ron and Mike are talking for the camera and Ron says how ecstatic he is for Dom. Mike looks at him like he's nuts. He wants to know why Ron is happy that Dom's son is becoming a woman. Ron wants to know what he is talking about and tells him it's a gender reveal party. Mike says Dom's son is male and so now he's becoming female. WHAT?!!!! NO! Ron explains that Dom's son is having a baby, not becoming a female. Mike shrugs it off and asks how he's supposed to know because Dom's house is "crazy." 

At the party, Dom shows off Janine's creation which is a money cake. She makes a "cake" with rolled up dollar bills of the person's choice. Dom sees a money making idea! He says Janine will charge a fee on top of the amount that a potential customer would want and he would get half! Janine isn't happy about that little twist.  Back to the gender reveal....it's a....GIRL!  Dom is emotional. It's a touching moment. Since the episode is a little older, we now know the baby, due in June, is named Savannah. Congratulations, everyone! 

At the garage where Mike works, Ron brings in one of the town cars. They look over it to see if it can be used. Mike says the car needs a lot of work. Adolfo pops the trunk and shows cologne, whiskey, glasses. Mike isn't impressed. Did Adolfo rob a bathroom attendant? :) Ron is convinced they can make it work. 

They fix up the taxi and Mike, Ron and Adolfo take it out for a test run. It's snowing out and they are looking for a potential customer. They find a guy on a bus stop and they offer him a ride. Adolfo explains what they are trying to do. The guy wants to know if there are bodies in the trunk, but the guy likes it! They find a few more potential customers and everyone seems to like riding in the vintage town car! They are excited.  Ron throws some of the cologne on Mike, because you know these two...they don't stop! 

Janine and Dom go to see Maria at Isabella Creations to show her the idea of the money cake to maybe sell them at her shop. At first, Maria is hesitant, but Janine explains there will be a 10 percent commission. Maria agrees and the deal is made. However, Janine sees that the ones in the cake are rolled bigger than usual. There's money missing. Hmmm....a mystery? 

Adolfo and Ron have two Gentleman Taxis out and is looking for potential riders. They are getting lucky with customers. People don't mind paying an extra 5.00 for all the extras in the back. One guy is drinking whiskey, another is using the cologne and another is using the shoe shine. Everyone seems to love it. Uh oh, Ron finds a woman to pick up. She has a lot of questions and says there should be things back there for women, too. She has complaints, as well. Oh, well. You can't please everyone. 

Back at the Detore home, Janine says she immediately started receiving orders for her money cakes. She needs some more singles to make the cake she's working on and money is missing again. Dom says he's got seven mooching kids in the house so of course there's money missing. Well, have no fear, Ronnie is going to help out.  Ronnie says it's a loan and is charging a 100% interest rate and that its' due in 2 days. Everyone hustles on Staten Island! 

Back at Angelina's, Adolfo shows up looking sharp in a suit. Ron explains that the runs made with the Gentleman's Taxi were successful. However, Tony D says that they want to see if the idea works outside of Staten Island. So, they are going to try it out in the big city. Off to Manhattan it is! 

Adolfo is riding shotgun while Ron drives. Another part I was laughing at. Ron isn't the best driver. He's getting too close to the curb and other vehicles. Adolfo is getting paler by the minute. He says an eyelash couldn't have fit between their car and the car next to them. He's in fear of his life. We will have to see if they have luck in the city. 

Back at Dom and Janine's, the meatball challenge is happening. Tony D shows up in a tuxedo apron. He's ready to go. He brought his secret ingredient. Mike is there, too. They are off to the races! Everyone is watching, including the Detore dog, Charlee. 

In New York City, Adolfo and Ron find a customer. The guy gets in and he's scared of Ron's driving. He asks to be let out. He didn't like it. They hope the next one will be better. The next customer gets in and seems to like it a lot better than the first guy. The next customers are a couple. The woman is not impressed with the liquor or the pretzels. She thinks they need to upgrade a lot.  They also aren't happy with the fee. They did a lot better on Staten Island than they did in the city and are a little discouraged. 

The meatball challenge is ready to be judged. Ron is more than happy to be a judge. Meatball #1 wins....and the winner is...Janine. I had no doubt about that. They are delicious. Tony thinks that a woman can't be beaten in her own kitchen and this is why he didn't win. 

Back in New York City, Dom is visiting his friend Vinnie who is a private investigator and wants to set up a camera to see who is stealing the money from the money cakes. Dom thinks it is Ronnie, but he wants proof. Dom is on a hustle again to get the camera price lowered.  He gets a good deal and leaves. 

Ron and Adolfo pick up the potential investor for the Gentleman's Taxi. They are fully committed to impress him. The investor, Myron, tries helping them with advice for the business and says it's "nonsensical." Adolfo isn't deterred. He explains about how they are different than other ride services. Then Myron calls them morons and says the idea just isn't profitable.  Adolfo and Ron are bummed. 

The guys are back at Angelina's. Adolfo and Ron have to break the bad news about the Gentleman's Taxi and how it isn't going to fly.  Ron explains that the clientele of Staten Island are different than New York City. Oh, well. There are other ideas to be had. The hustlers woes are soon forgotten when the food is brought out! 

Finally, at the Detore home, Dom is watching the camera to find the money thief. Dom was right all along. Ronnie is  the culprit. But, wait, what's this? Janine is guilty, too! There's one more episode to be discussed. Tune in soon for the blog on Episode 6. 

On a sad note, on May 14, 2018, Tony D passed away after a short battle with cancer. Social media exploded with tributes from all of his cast mates and friends from Staten Island Hustle. Condolences also poured in. I enjoyed Tony D on the show and I was deeply saddened to hear the news. Tony D brought his unique personality and his own "steak and sizzle" to the show. My condolences go out to his friends and family. Rest in peace, Tony D. 

Staten Island Hustle Season 1 Episode 3 Ron's Rim Repairs

What fresh ideas will we be treated to this week? The guys are meeting at Angelina's and produce two good ones right off the bat! 

First, Ron is thinking of doing a mobile rim repair. Everyone agrees that this sounds like a lucrative idea. He's got it all figured out. He has a truck lined up, a friend that has the repair machine and all he needs is to hire a mechanic. He says it's a no-brainer. Mike is in because he's an experienced mechanic and Ron couldn't be happier. Mike already has a shop and established clientele. They need a box truck. Tony D asks what that is. Mike says, "It's a truck with a box." Tony D accuses them of busting his bananas. Seems like this crew is good at that ! 

Next, Dom brings his idea to the table. He's in with a company called Kids Connect. It's a safety phone with only four buttons on it for kids that are 10 years old and younger. Tony D wants to see a see a business plan, but the best part for me?  Dom is in with a guy named Mikey Goldchains. Why can't I know people with these awesome names?  

Dom, Adolfo and Tony D go to see Mikey Goldchains. Tony D doesn't understand why they pull up to a car lot. Dom explains Mikey's office is in the back of the car dealership. Mikey Goldchians explains the phone can reach three people only and as a bonus, the phone can track where the child is. Mikey Goldchains needs the gang to help with marketing and money to help buy the item in bigger quantities so that the cost can be lower. Dom is going to take some prototypes to see how they work. 

My first favorite part is up next. Mike and Ron head out to see Ron's friend who has a truck for sale. When Mike finds out the person selling the truck is Mike Andrews, he can't believe it. He says he's the biggest shyster on Staten Island. Ron says not to worry, they will negotiate and Mike can see what's wrong with it before a deal is made. Mike asks Ron how much Mike Andrews wants for the truck. Six thousand. Mike is incredulous and wants to know what is wrong with it. Ron hesitates. He says it needs brakes. Mike's not having it. 

They take one look at it and Mike says it's worth three dollars! It's not even starting. It's got all kinds of things wrong with it. They open the back and a swarm of bees fly out. I was cracking up.  




Seems like Mike wasn't wrong when he called Mike Andrews a finagling shyster. The truck is filled with trash, too. So, Mike is going to going to give him the "South Shore Shakedown." He says everything he sees wrong, the price goes down. The light is bad, there's dust everywhere on the motor, brakes are bad, steps are bent. The list goes on and on. Mike offers a thousand dollars. Mike Andrews wants to make a deal involving free rim repair for a certain amount of time. Mike counter offers with twenty rims. Now they are arguing about who is going to tow the truck. To top it all off, when the tow truck comes Mike Andrews calls Mike and Ron suckers, but then does say he shouldn't call them that. The tow truck takes off with the box truck...oh. It has a locked wheel. What a mess! 

At the garage where Mike works, Ron visits to see how the repairs on the truck are going. Mike runs down everything that was done and finds out Ron hasn't gotten the rim machine yet. Mike isn't happy. He is holding up his end of the bargain fixing the truck and so he wants the machine! But, Mike confesses that the truck didn't have plates and it got towed from the street. Ron can't believe the "dopery." All is good. They will fix it. 

At Dom and Janine's home, Dom comes in to find Janine and Ronnie in the kitchen. He wants to show off the Kids Connect phone. He explains to Ronnie what it does. Ronnie isn't impressed. he calls Dom a stalker. Dom leaves the room and Janine tells Ronnie to put the Kids Connect in Dom's pocket so they can track HIS movements. Ronnie makes like a ninja and hides the device in Dom's coat. 

At the tow yard, Ron and Mike go to try and get the truck back. They need proof of ownership. Guess what? The truck isn't registered. One more bump in the road. It's going to cost 400.00 to get the truck out. Ron calls the tow yard guy a scumbag, but Mike is ready to barter. Mike tries to appease to the guy by telling him about his friendship with his uncle. They make a rim deal. So far, with everything, they are out 10,100 before the business is even started. 

Mike calls Ron back down to the garage where he works. Mike has a surprise. He has a huge banner with Ron's face on it and the words say, "For the best rim job in town, call Ron." Ron isn't thrilled. I think the slogan is okay, but Ron looks surprised in the picture. Ron thinks people are going to laugh at him. Mike doesn't get it. He thinks it's great. 

Back at Angelina's, the guys meet up for updates. Ron is still mad. He thinks the banner is a joke. The other guys think it is hilarious once they hear about it. Tony D passes around a picture of the banner. Ron's balls are twisted. He wants to move on. Dom and Adolfo say that the children they tried the Kids Connect out on hated the phone. Tony D has a solution. What about marketing it to senior citizens? Adolfo is beyond impressed. He says senior citizens don't care about looking cool. They are going to try it out on the citizens on a trip to Atlantic City. 

The bus trip takes off! I am not a senior, but I thought this trip looked fun. One thing, Dom admits Janine doesn't know they are going to Atlantic City. That sounds like a problem. On the bus, Ronnie tries rapping to entertain the crowd. It's not working. They explain the Kids Connect to the group. They are going to try it out. They arrive at the Golden Nugget Casino and they all jump off the bus. Adolfo says they scattered like jackrabbits. What a great opportunity to see if the tracker works! Ron doesn't care. He's going to hit a table. The guys are having fun! 

At Dom and Janine's house, Janine has been trying to call Dom and he's not answering. Janine sees by the tracker that Ronnie put in Dom's jacket that he's in Atlantic City. Whoops! 

Back in Atlantic City, Ron is lucky, but the seniors are bugging Dom wondering where the buffet is. Dom thinks they have proved the device works. Janine can hear in the background what's going on through the tracker. She says Dom is dead for not telling her he was going to Atlantic City without telling her....uh oh. Well, the good news, the Kids Connect definitely works! 

Dom comes in the house and I lost it laughing. Janine has the best death stare I have ever seen. She doesn't even hesitate and asks Dom how much he won in Atlantic City and confesses that she and Ronnie put the tracker in his jacket. She threatens him with a spoon and tells him his own idea got him busted! 

Ron takes the truck to get a rim machine and he hits another truck outside. His balls are twisted again. He can't get a break. He goes in to inspect the rim machine. He asks the cost of the machine and it is 3500.00. He's out a lot of money already. Ron is bummed but he's not going down without a fight. Ron says he's doing his friend a favor by removing the machine and will throw in 6 months of rim work for free. The guy says he will take a year of rim work. Ron doesn't understand why his friends have to hustle him back. They go back and forth. Finally a deal is set. A year of rim work gets him the machine for free. They are now up to 23,100 out.

Finally, back at Angelina's, the crew meets up once more to get updates on the business. Adolfo comes in stylin'! He's all dressed up and looks sharp! Dom asks how the rim business is going. Mike and Ron say they are doing good. Ron says they are going to hire someone to run the business because they are busy. Then, they ask Tony D to crunch numbers for the Kids Connect, but for senior citizens. Tony D says they can move this product to the malls and the input will be 100,000 each but if anyone can't put in their share, Tony D will help, "The bank of Tony D is always open." 

Back at the garage with Mike, Ron introduces him to his friend Anthony. Mike sets up a tire obstacle for Anthony to run through for fun. They talk numbers. Anthony wants 1000 a week. Mike offers 500.00. Anthony counter offers with 700.00. They have a deal. Anthony goes out to try the truck.....IT WON'T MOVE FORWARD. Well, it goes backwards. Well, the business is shut down before it starts. Ron isn't too pressed. He won a few thousand in Atlantic City. Oh, well. At least the Kids Connect has potential. 

But wait! Click here to see an update on the rim business: Update on Ron's Rim Repair!

What did you all think of this episode? Comment below! 

Staten Island Hustle Season 1 Episode 2 The Boxinator

Episode 2 of Staten Island aired on Wednesday, April 18th and I thought it was hilarious!

Let's recap for those who missed it! 

We start and Dom and Janine's home. Dom is practically blocked out of his home what with all the boxes that have arrived for the day. Jeannie gets a lot of orders due to her online business. He says enough is enough and he's upset that he cant get through the door. Jeannie explains she's having a pop up shop in the home. Dom doesn't know what that is and Jeannie tells him he's too old to know! Jeannie is very successful with her online business. See the items for sale for yourself! Click here: The Daily Slay.

Next up is the meeting at Angelina's Ristorante to hear the new ideas of the week. Since Dom sees so many boxes at his house, he wants to turn that into money! He says they get 30 to 50 packages a day! He thinks he can turn it into paper or toilet paper. The guys think he's nuts. Tony D says the idea has no "steak or sizzle" meaning money potential or excitement. Nobody is impressed. However, Adolfo pipes up and says that he knows about a company overseas that makes big money dealing in cardboard, so now, Dom really isn't discouraged. He wants the guys to go to a company he knows: Gaeta Recycling to see how much cardboard is really used! 

Ron shows up at the company wearing white. They don't know why he's wearing white to a recycling factory. Let me tell you, Ron is a character and a half! He hears that they are going to go and help pick up the cardboard around the neighborhood. He is not happy. Mike tells Ron to calm down. Then, Ron and Mike get on the back of the recycling truck and Dom says Ron looks like King Kong hanging off the back of the truck! 

Ron's got game. As he rides past a woman, he yells, "Hey cutie, got any cardboard?" This guy! They start to see how much cardboard is stacked up around the area. The truck pulls down a street and stops to pick up a load. A woman comes out and says to get off her fu**ing street! The company guy says they will be out of her way in a minute. The woman keeps running her mouth and Ron tells her to relax, adding that she's wearing slippers outside and that should be a crime. He kills me, he really does. 

Back to Dom's house. The guys attempt to chop up cardboard and make paper. This goes wrong on so many levels. First off, Ron is hungry and cranky.  Dom chops up some cardboard and Ron thinks it looks like french fries. Dom thinks if he could find a way to make cardboard into french fries, he could get a million from Ron alone. They try to make pulp but what they really make is a mess. Ron isn't impressed and says they'll have to use 40 boxes to make one sheet of paper. Dom is still not discouraged. He wants to go to another plant to see how the recycling part is actually done. 

Later that night, Jeannie's pop up shop is in full swing in the basement. Fireball is going around and everybody is having a good time! Janine is helping at the pop up shop. The guys show up and Jeannie isn't happy they are crashing the party. She says she turns around and sees the "five goons." She adds that it is a pop up shop not a "fat and bald guy convention." She's trying to get her hustle on! Banter goes back and forth and it is mentioned that Dom might have to live in a box now. 

Ron and Adolfo are heading up to the recycling plant. They need to see how the cardboard is actually made into something. Uh, oh. Ron eyes up Jackie, a worker at the company. Ron is hustling and it's not for money! This trip is a bust because they thought they would see the cardboard made into something, but in reality, it's compressed and baled at this location. Is Dom giving up? NO WAY. The hustle is still on. 

Back at Dom and Janine's, Janine is cleaning up after the pop up shop. Dom is relieved because he thinks now that the shop is done and over with, the boxes will be gone. Wrong! MORE boxes are shoved into the screening room. Dom gets more bad news. Jeannie is having ANOTHER pop up shop. He's not happy. 

At Angelina's, before going upstairs, Ron asks the employee at the restaurant for her number.  He never quits! Upstairs, they come up with another idea. If they can't grind up the cardboard for use, Adolfo tosses out the idea of burning it for energy. Dom says you can't burn paper....well, he says you can't burn purper in the city limits. That's it! They all lose it! See for yourself! It was hilarious. Ron is ON THE FLOOR! 





Dom's got a guy to help figure out how to use the cardboard for energy instead of the whole making it into paper or toilet paper idea. They go and see Tom Spinelli who does all kinds of work in LED lighting. Dom says he's the builder and Tom lights it up! They also say Tom does the lights on Air Force One. They want to convert the heat from the burning of the cardboard into an energy source, but they need a containment unit. Tom says he has a unit that they can use already, but it is more geared towards bigger buildings, like companies. He starts to show how the unit works, but guess what Ron wants? LUNCH! 

Here comes a pizza delivery girl. What? Yes, a pizza delivery girl is coming into the lab looking for Ron. Adolfo wants to know if Ron can go an hour without eating pizza. Ron may not be impressed with all this technology, but Adolfo is. Ron then throws out an idea about using the units in homes since everyone's electrical bill is through the roof. The group is excited and Dom says now that Ron has a good idea they should order him two more pizzas!  Tom agrees to try to scale down the unit to use in a home. 

One week later, Tom brings the unit over to try at Dom and Janine's. Walking downstairs, Adolfo sees a pink tent. What is it? It's a spray tan tent, but he doesn't know that. Jeannie has another side hustle doing spray tans. She can't believe Adolfo hasn't ever had a spray tan. She does one for him. Placing a plastic shower cap on Adolfo's head, Dom loses it. He says Adolfo looks like Chef Boyardee! 

The good news is the unit is now installed and they are going to see if it actually lowers the electric bill in the house. Here's to hoping it works. 

At the Country Mouse, Janine's store, Jeannie and Janine are discussing the success of Jeannie's pop up shops. Janine tells Jeannie how proud she is of her. Jeannie wants to have another pop up shop but this time they won't tell Dom. 

So, back at the house, Dom wants to check the new electrical unit by turning on everything in the house to see if the electrical surge is registered on the box. The guys help him out and go around flipping light switches and cranking the air conditioning up. Whoops. The lights go out. 

Back at Angelina's one month later, Dom has his electric bill. Did the box do its job? Sure did! The bill is several hundred dollars less. The group is impressed. Tony D starts crunching numbers right away and they realize the possibilities are endless. They all share their ideas where these can be sold. The sky's the limit! 

Finally, back at Dom and Janine's house. the new pop up shop is in full swing. Dom comes in and has no idea what's going on. He sees another shop is going on and decides to try and freeze everyone out. He goes to the air conditioning unit and sets in on 50 degrees. He's convinced everyone will start leaving. Nobody does. He goes into the basement to see what's happening. He tells Jeannie and Janine he turned the air on and admits what his intention was. Well, this time Jeannie is selling scarves, gloves and sweaters. It's a winter sale! Dom has been out-hustled! 

Oh, well! There's always next week and the next big idea! Leave your comments and thoughts below! 

Staten Island Hustle Season 1 Episode 1 The New York Water Maker

The wait is over! On April 11, 2018, Staten Island Hustle premiered on CNBC and it came in with a bang! There was a fabulous party at Angelina's Ristorante in Tottenville, and we all finally got to see the show we've been waiting for! 

Recap:
The show starts off with the guys, Dom, Ron, Mike, Adolfo and Tony D meeting at Angelina's to discuss the week's ideas. Adolfo has some suits he thinks he can sell. The others don't seem too enthralled with this idea, but hey, you never know, because as Adolfo said, these suits are "dope!" 

Dom pitches an idea of franchising Angelina's restaurant. It does well in Staten Island, so why not take it to other parts of the country? Tony D is all for it. He thinks it's a great idea. He agrees to back Dom on his idea. 

Ron waves bread around to say he's got an idea. Ron is hilarious. He says you can't duplicate New York pizza, bread or bagels because of the dough which is made with New York water. Sounds a little off beat, but, wait. The group thinks he has a point. The big idea is to find a way to make New York water
 anywhere. Dom's got a guy and he wants Adolfo, Mike and Ron to go have a meeting with a water filtration system company to see what can be done.   


Mike, Adolfo and Ron go to see Dr. Moya and Paul at the company in Jersey. Dr. Moya explains water Ph and alkaline levels in water. Adolfo (The Professor) is the one who is keeping up on all the science that Dr. Moya is talking about. Ron is bored. He wants to get to the nitty gritty of the deal. Mike doesn't look fascinated either. Dr. Moya shows the group New Jersey water and it smells. They know they have something with their idea. The prototype is going to be 60K! Ron isn't worried and says that between the five of them, it shouldn't be a problem. Can you guys throw some my way (ha ha)? They want to be sure it's the water, though. They want to do a taste test on water in other areas. They are covering all their bases. 

Next up, we get to see Janine and some of the kids at Dom and Janine's home! Janine is busy in the kitchen and what better way to introduce Dom's next big idea? He wants to promote and sell Just Add Lettuce, a "3D" salad dressing. The family is going to be the guinea pigs to taste it. Janine says when she hears 3D you think of a movie, not salad dressing. She promptly calls Dom a dumb ass (lol). 

Dom shows a video advertisement for the Just Add Lettuce and Jeannie, Dom and Janine's daughter, thinks a better job can be done. Dom questions whether or not he can do it, saying he's in good shape for the shape he's in. Janine says, "Round's a shape." lol  All the spices and ingredients are in the jar ready to make a salad. Janine hates it. None of the kids like it.  Janine says there's too much oregano in it and she would rather have her eighth child than have oregano. Well, so much for that! 

Adolfo, Mike and Ron are headed to Lancaster County to try and get water from Amish Country for their experiment. They are met with some resistance. They can't get well water from anyone. They go into a store and look around and they are told to be careful with well water because there is lead in it. They decide to leave and go to a truck stop restroom in Jersey to get a sample of water. 

Dom gets bad news. He finds out from the head of the Formaggio Cheese company who is backing Just Add Lettuce that it is not doing well. He's not quitting yet. He wants the opinion of the public before he totally scraps the idea. 

Adolfo, Mike and Ron go to Mikey Bagels who used the New Jersey water to make bagels. They want to make sure it is definitely the New York water that makes the dough great in New York. They definitely see the difference in the New Jersey water bagels. It was evident to customers that the bagels made with New York water were better.  They are convinced to put their money in the New York Water Maker.

They all meet up at Angelina's to discuss the numbers. Tony D lays it all out for them and they are excited about projected profits. Adolfo is back with the suits. He convinces the others to at least look at them. Tony D thinks they are from the 70's and says the lapels are the size of Bayonne. Because Adolfo put the money in the suits, he is short on his portion of the investment on the water maker. The guys chip in to cover Adolfo's share.  They are family to one another. 

On to the public taste test for Just Add Lettuce. Dom wants the public's opinion. He and Janine go to Family Fruit in Staten Island to give it a whirl. The customers love it and Janine can't believe it. Dom is so happy he brags about the customers reaction and Janine says he's making her eyeball and false lashes hurt! 

Back to the water plant and it isn't good. I thought Ron was going to go off. The head of the company explains that he already filed the patent for the machine. The guys can't believe it but Paul says the money isn't in the patent. They feel betrayed because now they have to buy the machine that was THEIR idea from this guy now. It's all good. Adolfo makes lemonade out of lemons and they make plans to make a deal. 

On to Dom and Janine's home where they are filming a new commercial for Just Add Lettuce. We get to see outtakes of the commercial and more mishaps that occur. Those two are hilarious! 

We now visit Denino's Pizza in New Jersey where the owners are convinced to use the water maker. Success! The guys are thrilled! 

Back at Family Fruit, Dom convinces the manager to display 10 cases of the Just Add Lettuce. The manager is not ready to commit...until Dom produces some of the manager's favorite cheese as a bargaining tool! More success! Just Add Lettuce is now for sale in Family Fruit! 

Adolfo, Mike and Ron head out to California to try and sell businesses the water maker. Ron barters tickets to L.A. by fixing then selling a broken meat slicer! Talk about a hustler! The guys explain to the businesses in California that they can try the water maker out for a certain period of time and then once they love it, they will buy it. They take over 20 pre-orders! CHA-CHING! 

After the guys get back to Angelina's and tell the good news about the pre-orders, they worry that people who won't be able to afford the machine will be left out. Tony D has the solution. They can LEASE it! They will leave nobody out!  And, more good news. Adolfo has sold two of his suits! 

Finally, the new commercial for Just Add Lettuce is shown. Let's just say that for the Greek option, Dom is shown in a toga. What else is there to say after that? Janine and Dom's son, Ronnie, age 10, is not impressed.  

I was impressed with the show, though! Talk about good ideas and getting your hustle on! The show was very entertaining and funny. I would love to hear your thoughts. The plan on here is to talk about the episodes and also learn more about the cast. Leave your comments below! I look forward to the next episode!

Staten Island Hustle!!

Hello, everyone! 

It's been a long time since the last post about the Detore Family and I am here with some good news! Dom is in a new show starting in April. The show is called Staten Island Hustle and will feature Dom and a group of his friends coming up with one great idea after another to get their hustle on and make that money! 

You can watch the new promo here: 

I can't wait for this show. It looks like it is going to be a lot of fun and we need a decent, fun, upbeat show nowadays. Don't you agree? 

We all wish Dom the best with his new show! Tune in to CNBC on April 11th! And stay tuned here for all the latest! 

Port Richmond High School Needs Your Help!

Hello, all! 
This blog is a little different than the others, but it is about a cause close to Janine's heart. 

Her daughter, Sonnie, goes to Port Richmond High School. Any caring parent wants a successful, safe, productive and professional school environment. 

Port  Richmond was all those things and more.  The school had a great reputation. The school's principal, Tim Gannon was keeping the school moving in the right direction. But, what happens when you do a great job? Well, in this case, you get picked for promotion. He got moved to a position in the Department of Education to mentor principals, assistant principals and other administrators. 

The person picked to replace Gannon as interim principal is Oneatha Swinton and parents haven't been happy since. I have it on good authority that the first thing Ms. Swinton did was claim that she was sent to Port Richmond because the school wasn't doing well  and that she was picked to make improvements. 

Improvements? The first thing she cut was the honors program. How is that an improvement? Parents were outraged. Some commented on a blog that Port Richmond's Honors Program were why they sent their children there in the first place. 

Also discovered were comments about how Ms. Swinton referred to herself as "Mathtarded." Parents and other witnesses took great offense at this term asking what kind of professional educator speaks like this?  She also has referred to students with disabilities as "SpEds (Special Eds)". Does she have any clue how insulting and hurtful that is?

You can read more outrage and comments about the Ms. Swinton by clicking here: Comments.

There are other complaints about her, too and not just at Port Richmond.  The parents feel that Port Richmond has been used as a dumping ground by how the Department of Education has put her there. I found many complaints just by Googling her name. Janine has had problems with her directly. Janine has tried three times to call Ms. Swinton in reference to the Honors Program being taken away. Janine couldn't make the PTA meeting covering the issue, so she made a point to contact Ms. Swinton to discuss it. 

Janine's daughter, Sonnie, was upset that the programs were being discontinued. Sonnie is due to graduate this year and was anticipating having these courses on college resumes. Janine has called three times to try and have a conversation and has not received any response back. When the superintendent was contacted, the solution offered was to contact Ms. Swinton directly. How can parents contact her if she's not responding to calls?

You will probably see stories about this on NY1 and in other media outlets soon. Hopefully, the community can rally together and have a more appropriate and competent individual take over as principal. 

If you are in the Staten Island area, it is time to rally together. On October 3, from 6:30 to 7:30 at P.S. 048 there will be a town hall meeting to address concerns. Join Janine and other parents to voice concern. 

There is also a Facebook group to join and keep up to date. Look on Facebook for "Save Port, Get Your Raider Spirit Going" and join!