Plot Synopsis

Chef and restauranteur Brian Duffy guides first-time restaurant owners through the pivotal days leading up to the moment they've been dreaming of: opening night. From menu development and branding to staffing and price points, Brian helps owners and chefs make the critical decisions that can turn their restaurant into the next big thing or force it to close too soon. In each one-hour episode, Brian helps a different restaurant owner. Food Network premiered OPENING NIGHT in September 2019 on two consecutive Sunday afternoons:

"Family-Style Italian" (Sunday, September 1, 2019 at 4pm): In Boston, restaurant consultant Brian Duffy helps sports reporter-turned-chef Jen Royle open her dream Italian restaurant. Brian guides her through the tricky task of opening in the North End neighborhood -- the heart of Little Italy, where there's competition on every corner. Jen envisions a family-style concept, but what to serve, how much food to make and how much to charge are just some of the things she needs to figure out before opening her doors to guests.

"Italian-German-Irish Mashup" (Sunday, September 8, 2019): In Detroit, restaurant consultant Brian Duffy helps executive chef Matt McGrail execute a tricky concept for his first restaurant, Cork and Gabel. Combining Matt's Italian and Irish roots with his co-owner's love for German food is a unique challenge. With an evolving menu, improvised dishes and no written recipes, Matt is heading toward a disastrous opening night. Brian works with Matt to create a new signature dish and finalize a menu that merges all three cuisines.
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On Thursday, May 14, 2020 at 10pm ET/PT, Food Network debuted OPENING NIGHT in primetime, re-airing the show's first two episodes on back-to-back Thursday nights.