TV Restaurants

Is Max's Still Open? Kitchen Nightmares Update (Long Branch, NJ)

Open reported

As of September 2026, Max's is listed open on Yelp, reviewed by our team on September 7, 2026; not yet independently confirmed through direct contact.

Primary source
Yelp ·
Secondary source
mashed.com ·

Last verified

What the source shows: A Yelp listing for Max's Bar & Grill, updated August 2026, shows an active five-day weekly schedule and reviews; an earlier Mashed update from February 2025 had described the restaurant as surviving but operating only three days a week, indicating the schedule has since expanded.

  • Season / episode Season 8, Episode 9
  • Original air date
  • Address 25 Matilda Ter, Long Branch, NJ 07740

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What happened after Kitchen Nightmares?

Max's Bar & Grill, previously known as Max's Hotdogs, has served the Jersey Shore community from Matilda Terrace in Long Branch, New Jersey since 1928 and is owned by Jennifer Maybaum, according to coverage of the episode by the entertainment site Mashed. The restaurant was featured in Kitchen Nightmares Season 8, Episode 9, filmed in June 2023 and airing December 4, 2023 as part of a two-episode season finale paired with the Diwan episode in Port Washington. At the time of filming, Maybaum was said to be more than $1 million in debt and worried that the restaurant, then five years from its hundredth anniversary, would not survive to reach it. Coverage ahead of the episode described Ramsay mediating between the restaurant's divorced co-owners as they worked through personal frustrations that were affecting day-to-day operations, in addition to addressing the restaurant's finances and menu. As part of the relaunch, Ramsay updated the restaurant's menu and operations while retaining its signature hot dogs, the dish that built its reputation over nearly a century in business. The Long Branch episode closed out Kitchen Nightmares' first stretch of revived-season restaurants outside Manhattan and Brooklyn proper, following stops earlier in the season at Bel Aire Diner in Astoria, El Cantito in Yonkers, and South Brooklyn Foundry in Bay Ridge, according to trade coverage tracking the season's geography. Max's history as a nearly century-old, family-associated hot dog stand made it something of an outlier among the season's newer businesses, most of which had opened within the preceding several years. According to a Mashed update published in February 2025, Max's had survived beyond the show, though Google's business listing showed the restaurant operating only three days a week at that point, a reduction from a fuller weekly schedule. A Yelp listing for the restaurant, updated in August 2026, shows an expanded schedule of five open days a week and describes the business as celebrating 97 years in operation, offering the same hot dogs alongside a fuller bar and grill menu, live music, and karaoke.

Featured on Kitchen Nightmares

Season / episode
Season 8, Episode 9
Original air date
Episode title
Max's
What was featured
Century-old hot dog stand; over $1 million in debt, co-owner strain
Role
Featured restaurant
Name on the broadcast
Max's

Frequently asked questions

Is Max's still open in 2026?

As of September 2026, Max's is listed open on Yelp, reviewed by our team on September 7, 2026; not yet independently confirmed through direct contact.

What happened to Max's after Kitchen Nightmares?

Max's Bar & Grill, previously known as Max's Hotdogs, has served the Jersey Shore community from Matilda Terrace in Long Branch, New Jersey since 1928 and is owned by Jennifer Maybaum, according to coverage of the episode by the entertainment site Mashed. As of September 2026, Max's is listed open on Yelp, reviewed by our team on September 7, 2026; not yet independently confirmed through direct contact.

Where is Max's located?

25 Matilda Ter, Long Branch, NJ 07740. That is the address on the record as of September 7, 2026.

What season and episode of Kitchen Nightmares featured Max's?

Season 8, Episode 9 of Kitchen Nightmares, first aired December 4, 2023. The episode is titled “Max's”.

Did the makeover last at Max's?

The episode first aired December 4, 2023. Our most recent check was September 7, 2026 — 3 years later —: As of September 2026, Max's is listed open on Yelp, reviewed by our team on September 7, 2026; not yet independently confirmed through direct contact.

Is Max's still using the Kitchen Nightmares menu or branding?

Coverage ahead of the episode described Ramsay mediating between the restaurant's divorced co-owners as they worked through personal frustrations that were affecting day-to-day operations, in addition to addressing the restaurant's finances and menu. Anything newer than our last check on September 7, 2026 may not be reflected here.

Every status on this site carries a confidence label and a date, and names the source it rests on. Read the Editorial & Corrections Policy for what each label means and how quickly we act on corrections. The questions above are generated from this record's own published fields — we never publish a question we cannot answer from the data.

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Visit info

Address
25 Matilda Ter, Long Branch, NJ 07740
Venue type
restaurant
Official website
None found

Businesses change fast. Always confirm directly with the restaurant — call ahead, or check its own current website or social media — before making plans around anything on this page.

Sources

  • mashed.com — https://www.mashed.com/1488874/maxs-bar-grill-kitchen-nightmares/
  • tapinto.net — https://www.tapinto.net/towns/long-branch/sections/food-and-drink/articles/max-s-bar-grill-to-appear-on-kitchen-nightmares-tonight
  • Yelp — https://www.yelp.com/biz/maxs-bar-and-grill-long-branch

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