CLOQUET, Minn. - The eyes of the world will be on Cloquet on July 26 when the Food Network's "Diners, Drive-ins and Dives" turns the spotlight on Gordy's Hi-Hat.
Filmed in May, the program will feature interviews with some of the restaurant's many fans who nominated Gordy's for the popular Food Network program, as well as segments with the Lundquist family who started it 50 years ago.
Perhaps the highlight of the program will feature personable host Guy Fieri cooking at the grill alongside head chef Marilyn Lundquist, as well as conversations with Gordy.
According to second-generation owner Dan Lundquist, the family first "got an inkling" three weeks ago that the segment might air sometime in July. He didn't get confirmation of the actual date until early July, however, when he was notified by the producers of the program via e-mail.
"Back when we first started talking with the program's producers, they told us a segment usually takes about eight weeks to produce, though we later heard that some can also take as long as six to eight months, so we weren't sure just what to expect," Dan Lundquist said.
ADVERTISEMENT
Since the Gordy's feature was a "Customer Choice" segment -- meaning it was nominated by far more fans than most that are featured on the program -- it was given more air time for interviews and diner interaction. The Lundquists thought it might require more production time and weren't expecting it to be scheduled to air so soon.
Dan Lundquist said the show's producers were in touch with him almost daily during the first month after filming the local segment to gather additional information and check the accuracy of Fieri's voiceover script that will be dubbed into the portions of the food preparation that were filmed the week before his arrival.
The upcoming Gordy's Hi-Hat segment of "Diners, Drive-ins and Dives" will air as part of the 9-10 p.m. time slot on July 26, with possible reruns to be scheduled later.
A segment on Northern Waters Smokehaus in Duluth, one of the other Northeastern Minnesota restaurants filmed this spring for "Diners, Drive-ins and Dives," aired nationally in late June.
Producers qualified the scheduled air date for the Gordy's segment, saying there's always a chance things may change due to unforeseen circumstances. They urged viewers to continue checking their local TV listings for the latest updates.
The Lundquist family is in the planning stages of a special "Premiere Night" event to welcome the community in to share the much-anticipated program. Dan Lundquist said more details of the event will be made public as they become available.
In the meantime, it will be business as usual for the Lundquist family, since the week of July 26 is also the same week as the annual Sunnyside Health Care Center ice cream outing at Gordy's, as well as the restaurant's annual classic car show.
"We're keeping plenty busy," Dan Lundquist said.
ADVERTISEMENT
The Cloquet Pine Journal and the Herald are Forum Communications Co. newspapers.
