Jay is often at a disadvantage in Hetty’s date with Sunil, Jay’s cousin.

Ghosts season 4 had an opportunity to give Jay a more substantial storyline, but instead it was glossed over in favor of following the shenanigans of the ghosts in CBS’ Ghosts. In underserving Jay, Ghosts is also wasting Bela’s potential. Largely off-screen, Jay has been preparing to fulfill his dream of opening his own restaurant. Ghosts should have spent some time showing Jay and other living humans preparing to open his restaurant, Mahesh.

Ghosts Season 4 Didn't Show Jay's Recruitment Process For Mahesh

Most Of Jay’s Preparations For Mahesh Happened Off-Screen

While we meticulously followed the journey of opening the Woodstone Manor Bed & Breakfast for two full seasons of Ghosts, the process of opening Jay’s restaurant was never shown on screen. In Ghosts season 4, episode 11, Jay’s sister, Bela, comes to help Jay with the final preparations for the restaurant’s opening. Given Bela’s history of making mistakes at work, Jay is skeptical of her abilities. Despite Trevor’s well-intentioned meddling with Bela's food order, she proves to be a very capable restaurant manager.

The very next episode, Jay’s restaurant is ready for its grand opening in Ghosts season 4, episode 12. Everything would have gone smoothly if Flower didn’t use the Basement Ghosts’ disturbing ghost power to give the restaurant employees cholera. Luckily, in one of Ghosts’ most clever uses of Sam’s ability to hear the spirits, the ghosts - who have been watching Jay cook for months - allow Sam to run the kitchen with supernatural attention to detail.

In a rare moment spotlighting Jay, he announces at the opening that the restaurant is named Mahesh, after his and Bela’s father. The menu features Jay’s modern spin on the Indian dishes he grew up eating.

A mere three episodes later, in Ghosts season 4, episode 15, Jay’s restaurant is destroyed by a body falling through roof, leading to a new spirit at Woodstone Manor, however briefly. It is confirmed in Ghosts season 4, episode 16 that the restaurant is indefinitely closed when Jay is disappointed he can’t show Mahesh to his cousin Sunil. Jay and Sam brace for steep repair costs after their longtime contractor, Mark, insists on delivering his estimate in person rather than over the phone.

Why Mahesh's Hiring Story Would Have Been A Fun Ghosts Plot

Isaac And Trevor Would Definitely Have Opinions On Who Jay Should Hire

Jay’s ability to communicate with most of the main characters in Ghosts is nonexistent, so any opportunity to bring in more living people benefits the show. The ghosts themselves are also nosy and love nothing more than invisibly observing living people, so introducing a mix of new characters would provide opportunities for them as well. This makes it all the more curious why Ghosts did not make more of a meal out of Jay’s hiring process for the cooks and servers at Mahesh.

Ghosts still has the chance to rectify this missed opportunity going forward.

Given that Isaac is Jay’s financial backer and Trevor is Isaac’s money manager, the ghosts already have a say in the restaurant as Jay’s “silent partner." Isaac was micromanaging the tile selection in Ghosts season 4, episode 10, but it would have been even funnier to see him meddling in the hiring process. Imagine Trevor advocating for an attractive but unqualified waitress for his own self-interest, or Isaac vetoing a perfect candidate for a petty reason like not knowing about the Revolutionary War. Ghosts still has the chance to rectify this missed opportunity going forward.

Ghosts Season 4 Can Make Up For It By Focusing On Mahesh's Crew

Jay Is Friends With His Prep Cook, Gabe, From New York City

Working in a restaurant attracts an interesting mix of personalities - just look at The Bear, Sweetbitter, Two Broke Girls, or Party Down. In Ghosts season 4, episode 12, Jay introduces “the best that the Hudson Valley has to offer:” Gabe, a stoner friend from his days in New York; Cobra, who would die for the Chef; Neel, who asks about Sam’s relationship status; and Amanda, who seems anxious. Unfortunately, we haven’t seen Jay’s staff since that episode. With Mahesh closed while the hole in the roof is repaired, it’s unclear when they will return.

However, there are six more episodes in season 4, after Ghosts returns following CBS’ March Madness hiatus, so there is time to return to Mahesh’s crew. Knowing that Gabe has a preexisting friendship with Jay is especially exciting, as it opens a chance for Ghosts to use Jay even better, by exploring what his specific background brings to the show.

New episodes of Ghosts air Thursdays at 8:30 p.m. ET and stream next day on Paramount+. Season 4, episode 17, "His Girl Shiki" will air April 3, 2025.

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