All The Rules Restaurants Have To Follow on 'Diners, Drive-Ins And Dives'

For more than 30 seasons, we've watched Guy Fieri drive coast-to-coast visiting the country's greatest Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives. It's become one of the biggest shows on the Food Network since it debuted in 2006. But what does it take to become a Triple D-featured establishment and how does it all work? We're breaking down all things Flavortown and what happens when Guy rolls into town to rate your favorite restaurants.

Per the Food Network's website, if you want to suggest a location for the next episode of Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives, it's as easy as reaching out to the show the directly. Simply email storyideas@tripledinfo.com and include your contact information.

Before the show became well-known, restaurant owners were being pitched by producers. "I was not familiar at all," Niki Stavrou, owner of Victor's 1959 Cafe in Minneapolis told Twin City Business magazine: "They were interested in featuring us, possibly. They emphasize that. So I did two or three phone interviews and eventually they sent a producer out in person."

Although a lot of the show's scouting is done by producers, they also listen to online opinions from fans. "You know, we like to listen to our viewers, and there were about four states we have never visited, and I said, man, we have to get up to Delaware," Guy told the Town Square Delaware.

Whether a restaurant was submitted online or found by producers, there's an extensive vetting process. Not only are there multiple phone interviews and meetings prior to filming, but restaurants have to share recipes in advance.

The production team compiles all their research and puts it into a list of options about two months before filming starts — then Guy makes the final decision about where to go.

After a restaurant is chosen, the show works with the owners and chef to build a storyline; it's often the background of the establishment that makes each place so unique.

Sorry, but it's just not an option. Production makes its choice purely on the quality of food.

Production knows the value of free publicity, which is why they don't pay restaurants for their time.

There's a lot of lag time between interview rounds, but once your restaurant is picked by production, things move fast. According to restaurant owner Andrea Wakefield, she was informed of her filming dates about a week beforehand.

One of the things that really piques production's interest is the story behind an establishment. From restaurants that have been passed down through generations to a unique passion project, those kinds of stories are Triple D's bread and butter.

With so many restaurants clamoring for a spot on the hit show, many wonder what it takes to catch Guy's eye. "Guy will spot a unique ingredient or a way of preparing a dish that's different and chooses that," executive producer Frank Matson told PEOPLE.

The show loves spots that cook from scratch, so restaurants that follow this method are more likely to be featured on the show. Painstaking barbecue methods and secret family recipes have been known to entice Guy as well.

When Guy and the Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives team arrive on the scene, it's a smaller group than you might expect from a hit series. The show operates with two 10-person crews and often films at multiple locations at a time.

The research and planning process take months, but once it's time to shoot the show, the crew hits the road and films nonstop. Executive Producer David Page told Heavy Table that they usually shoot seven restaurants in every city that they visit.

Eateries aren't reimbursed for the ingredients they use while filming their segment. Some restaurants have said they calculated spending as much as $12,000 to $15,000 in total expenses.

The show typically films for two days, although some establishments have also said they were closed for as long as four days. During this time, the crew captures B-roll and films the cooking segments with Guy.

Despite all of the painstaking research and countless interviews done beforehand, producers have been known to axe an eatery upon arrival. "We have gotten to town and canceled places because the key to the show is that they have to meet that bar," producer David Page told Heavy Table.

According to Ted Casper, co-owner of Casper and Runyon's Nook in St. Paul, Minnesota, he cooked more items for Guy than what was seen on the show: "He wanted to try everything on the menu, just about. Then they decided what to feature."

Since Guy can sometimes film at three or four restaurants in one day, he only drinks vegetable or fruit juice when he's not tasting menu items. Gotta save room for the important stuff!

Although the crew can be holed up in your restaurant for days, setting up equipment, capturing footage and filming the cooking segment with Guy on takes about half a day.

When it's time to film with Guy, everything must be ready to go. The production team asks the restaurants to prep all of their ingredients in advance and sometimes to have multiples available.

Because the story arc is sculpted before production rolls in, there's a tight script to follow. But Guy is known to improv and say things off-the-cuff to keep the show interesting.

Since Guy is (both figuratively and literally) the tastemaker of the show, there are a few ingredients that will automatically be on the chopping block. He avoid dishes with liver and eggs, hence why they're rarely on the show.

Throughout the seasons, fans have learned how to decode Guy's true feelings about a dish. The dead giveaway is whether or not he takes an immediate second bite, which is the unofficial sign of an A+ dish on the show.

Guy's red convertible Chevy Camaro makes an appearance in every episode, but the car, which is worth more than $100,000, is off-limits to everyone on set — even Guy! The host doesn't drive the car to locations, it's shipped in a trailer and he's only filmed opening and closing the car door.

Guy is closely linked with the Make-a-Wish non-profit and includes a family from the organization at many tapings. "I know that heartache and I see that, and if there's anything I can do to help enlighten or empower those kids, I want to do it," Guy told Delish.

Some restaurant owners have said that they waited for as long as a year before their episode finally made it to TV.

Restaurant owners are sworn to secrecy about which menu items will be featured on the show until the episode airs. Because ... spoiler alert!

There's a term for the boost in business a restaurant gets after being featured on the show: It's called the Triple D Effect. "They told us to get ready," said Josh Thoma, founder of Smack Shack in Minneapolis. "I was like, 'I got it.' I did not get it." Thoma told Twin City Business magazine that his sales and customer counts were up by 500 percent a month after the show aired.

The Triple D Effect is real — even the very first restaurant featured on the show (Bayway Diner in Linden, NJ) saw a massive surge in customers. So much so that the owner, Mike Giunta, was able to add an outdoor seating area, a food truck and a catering business.

Guy advises restaurant owners to be prepared for an influx of business after the episode airs. "We can always tell the day after our episode has been re-run," Sarah Sanneh of Brooklyn's Pies 'n Thighs told Thrillist: "Like, all of a sudden we'll be slammed on some random Tuesday, then we'll realize, 'Oh, they just replayed our show ... that makes sense.'"

A number of devoted fan sites have popped up over the years, including ones that organize restaurants by city, state, and region, making Triple D road trips easy and fun. "People come here about once every other week that are on these restaurant crawls across the country. They roll up in their RVs and pile out," Adam Sappington, owner of The Country Cat in Portland, told Thrillist.

No, he's not trying to be rude. The Food Network host simply prefers to introduce himself to the staff and chef right before the shoot, so that their interactions are as realistic and authentic as possible.

The best on-screen interactions are with chefs who can serve up witty banter right along with Guy. But mind his catchphrases, like "Flavortown" to "funkalicious." Those are for the host to bust out when appropriate.

"I've been around forever doing this, so I know where they're going to miss it. And, I'm not there to tell them how to change their restaurant — that's not my job," Guy said on The Moment with Brian Koppelman in 2018: "But if they ever ask, I always want to offer advice to them if I can, and help them out. I mean, as we all do as chefs, we all support one another, and we all try to help each other grow."

You know those customers who sing the restaurant's praises? They're loyal patrons who've been invited by the restaurant to film those scenes, not just random people. Makes sense!

The show kind of makes it seem like Guy sits down with every customer, but he doesn't have time for that. The host only interviews a few few of them, and the rest of the sound bites are pulled from interviews conducted by producers.

In what some may call a badge of honor for being featured on Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives, Guy leaves behind a stencil of his head that says "Guy Fieri Ate Here" at every restaurant.

Throughout all of the seasons, Guy has visited countless establishments — but only his favorite make it into his book. Earning a spot in his book is not only an honor, but can make sure business continues to flow.

Despite the influx in customers, there are a number of the restaurants featured on Triple D that have closed permanently. There's nothing the show can do about it, and it just goes to show that there's no guarantee to success, even if you make it on the show.