Getting that first phone call or email from a television producer is just the beginning of the transformation a restaurant can take by appearing on the small screen.
After receiving a detailed email about the blow-by-blow of filming, the eatery will have to close for a few days to accommodate the process. Film crews then invade the space with people, boom mics and cameras before shooting take upon take. The result though, is priceless for so many restaurants — especially those without a hefty marketing budget. Most places see a noticeable increase in foot traffic when a show airs, and even for years after in reruns.
According to tvfoodmaps.com, 123 Colorado restaurants have appeared on shows like Guy Fieri’s “Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives,” Anthony Bourdain’s “No Reservations,” Andrew Zimmern’s “Bizarre Foods,” Travel Channel’s “Food Paradise,” Sundance’s “Ludo Bites America,” and the Cooking Channel’s “Vinny and Ma Eat America.”
Area chefs have been competitors on both “Chopped” and “Top Chef,” and the current season of the latter was filmed across Colorado, featuring competing chefs Carrie Baird (Bar Dough) and Brother Luck (Four), as well as Denver culinary darlings Alex Seidel, Troy Guard, Lachlan Mackinnon-Patterson, Keegan Gerhard and Hosea Rosenberg among the guest judges.
Many Mile High locales that have made their screen debuts are those that residents already frequent, like speakeasy Williams & Graham and eateries Steuben’s, Vesta, Colt & Gray, Parisi and Comida. Some are beloved old-school favorites, like The Fort, Beau Jo’s, Cherry Cricket, Chubby’s and the Buckhorn Exchange. Each has appeared at least one program; some have appeared on several.
And while it’s always a thrill to see one of your hometown haunts featured on national television, how does an appearance on national television really affect business?
Guy Fieri has been quoted as saying that being on his show would augment traffic “like 200 percent.” The actual number is probably closer to a 20 percent bump every time a show airs or re-airs, but “Diners” does have some 675,000 viewers for each 20-minute segment.
So does something special happen after Fieri pulls up in his red ’67 convertible Camaro?
“Without a doubt,” said Colorado’s doyenne of soul food, Priscilla Smith, when asked if she has noticed an increase in business after appearing on Triple D in 2013. “Every time we do a show (she also has appeared on several local news outlets and in a PBS documentary), there’s an instant reaction; sometimes within the same day or the next day.”
In fact, part of the decision to move her restaurant, Cora Faye’s, from its longtime Denver location to Aurora was for more spacious digs. Smith was pressed to accommodate the sheer number of guests eager for her tasty soul food; tour buses full of people would show up without advance warning. The lack of space in the previous location left hungry diners frustrated, given the show’s popularity.
“It’s amazing,” she said. “Some people have logs of which restaurants on ‘Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives’ they’ve been to; some only want to order what Guy Fieri ate; some want a photo taken with the chef; or they only eat where he eats. They come from all over. We even had a guy here from Ireland!”
For some chefs calling Denver home, a TV appearance is another building block in their career. Shahin Afsharian-Campuzano, chef/partner at Stapleton’s Salati Italian Street Food, began his globetrotting career cooking with culinary celeb Joel Robuchon in Italy and Monte Carlo (where he earned a coveted Michelin star) before moving to St. Thomas, Virgin Islands, and then to Denver as Salati’s founding chef.
Afsharian-Campuzano appeared in 2016 on “Chopped,” where he beat out other contestants, advancing to the final round of the episode. Appearing on the show, he said, opened the door to even more opportunities.
“I was immediately approached by Elway’s at the Ritz-Carlton to do consulting work,” he said, “and TC Clark, Salati’s founder, invited me to be a partner in the restaurant, so now I’m part owner.”
Though Salati had already found a niche in the Stapleton neighborhood as one of the few family-owned restaurants in the area, its regulars were excited about the chef’s TV debut.
“We had a viewing party, of course, and our followers came in and wanted photos and everything,” the chef says. Today, their following remains as strong as ever, drawn to the eatery offering from-scratch, gourmet Italian dishes at affordable prices — and the publicity from being featured on a TV program never hurts.
For Pittinger of Biker Jim’s Gourmet Dogs, who first appeared on Anthony Bourdain’s show “No Reservations” in 2010, the resulting kudos were just the beginning.
“We were kind of a phenomenon in the food cart business, we were doing something unique and interesting. Exciting street food at that time was just starting in Denver,” he says.
Pittinger had been running his creative hot dog cart on the 16th Street Mall for about five years, garnering praise from several local outlets, when he was approached by the show.
“Oh, my God, how exciting that was!” he said.
Bourdain’s episode aired the day Pittinger signed the lease on his Ballpark neighborhood’s brick-and- mortar location, which now employs 20 people. He’s since appeared on “Bizarre Foods” (Zimmern ate the ubiquitous Elk and Jalapeño Cheddar Brat with cream cheese and caramelized onions) and its sister show, “Delicious Destinations,” as well as “Vinny and Ma Eat America” (featuring “Jersey Shore” star Vinny Guadagnino and his mother) and “Ludo Bites America.” Pittinger also received write-ups in publications like The New York Times, Esquire, Maxim and The Wall Street Journal.
Pittinger notes that his dogs were popular already, but there was an uptick in business each time a show debuted or re-aired. “With the amount of shows out there, we didn’t notice a giant flush of business from being on TV,” he said. “But people will mention that they saw us on a show, and little by little, those planted seeds grow your business.”
At El Chingon, Chef David Lopez said, “We’ve had a great response from all our television appearances. When our guests walk in and say they saw us on TV … we know the shows absolutely had a positive impact on how the public has perceived us. It kind of puts you on a little higher level in peoples’ eyes.”
El Chingon has been featured on various programs — on CNN for a segment on family-owned businesses, and on several live episodes locally on 9 News with anchor Belen de Leon, who champions area Latin businesses. Most recently, in 2017, El Chingon was featured on “Vinny and Ma Eat America.”
Being given the exposure, Lopez said, was worth the inconvenience of production. “The restaurant has to close for a number of days for filming,” Lopez said, “but it allowed us to showcase our craft to a whole new audience.”
Though the development of his new project, Cultura, was already underway (and it’s considered one of this year’s most anticipated openings), Lopez agreed that the appearances have been a boon to business. “It’s generated interest in what we do, for potential future sites, and has given us additional exposure.”
For some restaurants, appearing on a show has ensured their success.
“When we opened our doors, we were young, we were really small, and we didn’t have extra money for marketing,” said Ben Jacobs, owner of Tocabe. When they were selected for “Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives,” “It was like winning the lottery,” he said. “Business exploded, it was huge. It put us on the map, not just locally, but nationally, too.”
Tocabe opened its doors in late 2008 with just 11 employees, but when the show aired in 2011, they had to double that number. Jacobs estimates the show has run at least 100 times, and seven years later, the restaurant is still getting guests who mention that they saw the clip on TV.
“It’s amazing the following Fieri has,” said Jacobs. “People like him, he’s relatable. They come in and want to know what he was like and want to take a photo with the stencil on the wall.”
Jacobs has taken to visiting restaurants from “Diners” on his own travels. “It’s created this cool little community across the country, he said. “I’ve made multiple friends — restaurateurs who have been on the show, too.”
What does the future hold for Denver’s restaurants with regards to upcoming television spots?
Savvy spots are hosting viewing parties for their debuts with themed dishes created by the chefs on the show. LoDo’s Bavarian-style beer hall, Rhein Haus, now features a special, the “Top Chef Wurst,” in honor of the Jan. 11 episode. In the show, the collaboration between “Top Chef” contestant Brother Luck and Rhein Haus’ own Pete Fjonse featured house-made cheddarwurst topped with bacon jam, dill pickles, sour cream and a fried egg, and will be available through the show’s final episode in mid-March.
Today, there’s no doubt that the future of Denver is fit for foodies.
