Maximizing the benefit of tv shows (or movies) for tourism: Top Chef, Kentucky

It's been a few years since I've watched Top Chef or Project Runway, reality shows about restauranting/cooking and fashion design respectively.

Typically such shows get some sort of financial support from local economic development and/or tourism sources.

-- "Movies and tourism and touristification ," 2009
-- "Cities and states need to extract more from tax incentive deals with television and movie productions: get ad credits ," 2014
-- "Historic Preservation Tuesday: Critical mass of rehabilitation and a big dose of tv exposure sparks community revitalization in Waco, Texas," 2016

But for me, often the shows don't adequately promote the local areas concomitant with the financial support they've received.

Cheftestants get a tour of the Maker's Mark distillery on episode 2 of "Top Chef" season 16. (Photo: Courtesy of Michael Hickey/Bravo)

According to an article in the Louisville Courier-Journal, "'Top Chef' may be over but food interest in Kentucky is just beginning," the State of Kentucky seems to have done a much better job of getting particular places shown in the Top Chef series. From the article:

For 12 weeks, between December and February, the Bravo show highlighted the state's tourism opportunities, taking viewers on a whirlwind journey through its central and southern regions as 15 chefs competed for the national title.

Episodes pointed viewers to iconic attractions like Churchill Downs in Louisville and Keeneland in Lexington. But they also introduced people to hidden gems like the Rathskeller room at the Seelbach Hotel and the houseboats of Lake Cumberland.

Tourism officials previously said they expected "Top Chef" to boost visits to and interest in the state once the season ended. But leading up to last week's finale, in which Alabama native Kelsey Barnard Clark was crowned the "Top Chef," local places featured throughout the season reported they'd already seen an uptick in business, with customers both new and old asking about their time on the show.

In Paducah, farm-to-table restaurant Freight House, owned by runner-up contestant Sara Bradley, has been taking reservations for out-of-town visitors from as close as Nashville and as far as Chicago.

In Lexington, chef Ouita Michel's family of restaurants have stayed busy through their dead season, with customers braving the cold to ask about her turn as a guest judge.

And in Loretto, Maker's Mark distillery has seen an increase in customers at its restaurant, Star Hill Provisions. A new common question for the distillery's tour guides: "Were you there when they filmed?"...

To accommodate "Top Chef," a Kentucky tourism board last year approved up to $3.5 million in production incentives for the show, promising to refund the production company a portion of any eligible costs it spent in the state.

At the time, the incentive marked a drastic jump from sponsorship or rebates the show had reportedly received in other filming locations.

Seems like it will be worth watching the programs to see how local attractions and places have been covered, and to use that as a model for communities negotiating with tv and movie producers in the future.

Another thing the State of Kentucky Tourism agency has done was to create a webpage focusing on the program and the places they visited. 

-- Better in the Bluegrass

That's one of the best ways to leverage the exposure, along with working with various attractions, restaurants, etc. for specific promotions.  Such as these (via the LCJ):

• Mint Julep Tours — The Louisville-based tour company will run a special "Top Chef"-inspired tour on three dates in 2019: June 13, Sept. 12 and Oct. 17. The tour takes guests on a progressive dinner to three restaurants connected to the show. It costs $119 per person, plus taxes and fees. 
• Stone Fences Tours — The Lexington-based company has a Culinary Trail of the Commonwealth tour that takes guests to seven stops connected to the show, including Keeneland in Lexington, Maker's Mark in Loretto and Decca in Louisville. The tour lasts approximately 12 hours and costs $225 per person.