America's Next Great Restaurant is an NBC reality television show featuring contestants pitching restaurant ideas to a panel of judges, where the winner receives financial backing for their restaurant concept. Three locations were opened across the nation — Los Angeles, Minneapolis, and New York—on Monday, May 2, 2011, the day after the May 1 season finale. The judges included chefs Curtis Stone, Bobby Flay, Lorena Garcia, and Chipotle Mexican Grill founder Steve Ells, who were the investors in the winning concept. The production company behind the show was Magical Elves, the same company that produces Top Chef. The show, which has been described as a cross between The Apprentice and Top Chef, premiered on March 6, 2011. The first season finale aired on Sunday, May 1, 2011, with Jamawn Woods' concept, a soul food restaurant concept called Soul Daddy, judged the winner.
The season finale, which drew a 2.0 viewership rating, was rebroadcast on May 6, as viewers in the Pacific Time Zone did not learn the winner during the original broadcast, due to the breaking news of the death of Osama bin Laden. Due to low ratings, on May 13, 2011, NBC cancelled the show after the first season.
