RRT | Season 2 Media + Promotion Kit

What is Restaurant Road Trip?

Restaurant Road Trip is a series that showcases the fantastic restaurants and eateries around the state of CT. Season 1 premiered in Spring of 2022 featuring 12 restaurants In Fairfield County. Season 2 will premiere beginning February 2023 on Connecticut Public’s platforms with a focus on New Haven County, in a series of digital shorts on the web (www.ctpublic.org/roadtrip) plus a 4-episode TV series on CPTV. Each episode is fun, educational, inspiring and delicious, with a few laughs along the way.

Who’s the Host of the Show?

Chef Plum has hosted Seasoned since its launch in 2020 and is the host and executive producer of Restaurant Road Trip.

Originally from Virginia, Chef Plum has lived in Connecticut since 1999 and is a graduate of The Culinary Institute of America. He’s been a professional chef for more than 25 years.

Chef Plum has been featured on The Food Network, ABC's The Taste, Ehow.com, Jamie Oliver’s Foodtube, The Hallmark Channel, and The New York Times. He spearheaded the Dinner Underground restaurant pop-up in Connecticut, and he’s been the host and executive producer of multiple video series, including Random Acts of Cooking, On the Road (with Edible Magazine), Elite Chef (with Eli’s Restaurant Group), and Restaurant Road Trip.

He hosts his own podcast, Plum Luv Foods Live and is a contributing chef on WTNH’s “CT Style,” WFSB’s “Great Day Food,” and Star 99.9.

When he’s not on the air, you can find Chef Plum judging food competitions like the New York Hot Sauce Expo; the Bacon and Beer Classic; The World Food Championship; the New York Best Wings Festival, and most recently, the New York Mac & Cheese Fest. He’s also a featured chef at the Sun Wine and Food Festival at Mohegan Sun and Cuisines of the Sun at La Estancia.

About Connecticut Public

Connecticut Public is Connecticut’s only state-wide, community-supported public media service. We are a member station of national public media services PBS and NPR, and parent company for three television stations: Connecticut Public Television (CPTV); CPTV Spirit; and PBS Kids 24/7; and Connecticut Public Radio (WNPR). We serve one million people each month through our television, radio and digital platforms. Through our mission to inform, educate and inspire the people of Connecticut, we connect people of all ages to high quality journalism, storytelling, education and experiences, and amplify the voices of our diverse communities.

TV Episodes

Each episode premieres on CPTV:

#1 - Corner Brunch, Artistic Lunch, and wings a bunch!

Premieres: Thursday February 2, 2023 at 8pm
Featuring: Corner Brunch Restaurant, The Art of Yum, Dew Drop Inn
Description: We head over to Corner Brunch in Milford, then make our way to Mattituck Museum’s Art of Yum in Waterbury, then we meet our friend Chef Michel Ragussis from the Food Network to have wings at the Dew Drop Inn

#2 - Bagels, Soul Food and Naps

Premieres: Thursday March 23, 2023 at 8pm
Featuring: The Bagelry at Olmo, Sandra’s Next Generation, Home
Description: We visit The Bagelry at Olmo in the heart of Yale, then down the road a bit to some great old school soul food at Sandras Next Generation, then off to Branford for the comfort that is Home (Restaurant)

#3 - Oysters and Hot Dogs = Surf and Turf?

Premieres: Thursday April 6, 2023 at 8pm
Featuring: The Hidden Kitchen Rt 80, Blackie’s Hot Dogs, Lucas Local
Description: We start our day in North Branford on Rt 80 at the Hidden Kitchen, then we make our way to the legendary Blackies in Cheshire, and finally have dinner in Southbury at Lucas Local.

#4 - Coffee, a vegan detour, and a BBQ mecha

Premieres: Thursday May 4, 2023 at 8pm
Featuring: Poppy’s, Wild Alchemy Café, Hindsight BBQ
Description: Every morning needs a great coffee so Poppys in New Haven was our starting point, for lunch we head to Wallingford to eat vegan at Wild Alchemy Café, and finally head to the BBQ mecha that is Hindsight BBQ in Waterbury

Digital Shorts

Starting February 2, the first 3 digital shorts will premiere on our official Restaurant Road Trip web page at 12pm. Thereafter, new digital shorts will post each Thursday for the following 9 weeks (Feb. 2 - Apr. 6).

How will the Show be Promoted?

The show will be promoted across all CT Public media channels:

• TV
• Radio
• Digital platforms
• External partners (paid digital/social)

Our marketing campaign will include distribution of digital assets:

• Organic social posts
• Website banners
• Newsletter banners
• Mobile banners
• Video promos as preroll
• OTA radio promos and as digital podcast preroll
• Paid media (social + programmatic display)

Window Clings

• We have created window clings that we hope you will proudly hang in your front door or window to let folks know that you were featured on our broadcast and that they can watch any time at ctpublic.org/roadtrip. You should receive these in the mail by the end of January.

Please reach out to Lauren Komrosky if you do not receive it.

When will this Campaign Start

Beginning Jan. 12 - 25, General :30 promo with RRT series-level graphics will run. Marketing collateral will start for specific episodes as per below schedule.