Guy Fieri produces film on COVID-19 impact to restaurant industry

Ferndale native Guy Fieri is the executive producer of a documentary set to air Sunday about the devastating effects of the coronavirus pandemic on the restaurant industry.

The film, titled “Restaurant Hustle 2020: All On The Line,” follows four professional chefs — some of whom regularly appear on Fieri’s Food Network series “Guy’s Grocery Games” — as they navigate the pandemic.

“I’ve traveled coast to coast visiting thousands of restaurants across the country on ‘Diners, DriveIns and Dives,’ and after all the time on the road, it’s clear that restaurants are the heart and soul of their communities,” said Fieri in a statement in October. “When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, the impact on the restaurant industry was immediate. ‘Restaurant Hustle 2020: All On The Line’ provides a real and intimate first-hand look into the lives of four top restaurateurs (as they) navigate through it all.”

Early in the pandemic, Fieri was proactive in helping the restaurant industry. Through the Restaurant Employee Relief Fund, Fieri helped raise more than $21.5 million for restauranteurs to survive the pandemic. The fund was able to help more than 43,000 restaurant workers by providing $500 grants.

A Seattle-based author lauded the Mayor of Flavortown on Twitter in early December for having “done more for unemployed restaurant workers than Congress” to help businesses affected by the pandemic.

A survey by the National Restaurant Association found that 17% of restaurants have closed either permanently or long-term, a figure that represents more than 110,000 restaurants. The association said in September the industry was on track to lose $240 billion in sales by the end of the year.

“Restaurant Hustle 2020: All on the Line” follows Maneet Chauhan, Antonia Lofaso, Christian Petroni and Marcus Samuelsson.

“From pivoting to takeout and delivery orders, to serving food to front line healthcare workers and people in need in their communities, each chef’s life and business will be forever changed by the global pandemic,” a release from the Discovery Channel states.

The film airs on Food Network on Sunday at 9 p.m. Eastern and Pacific times.