'The Profit' Puts Struggling Rockaway Business On National TV

ROCKAWAY, NJ — "The Profit," which airs nationally as a reality show focused on business but which typically contains all the true personal intrigue and high drama that exceeds levels found in quality fictional programming, will feature a struggling Rockaway business that host Marcus Lemonis will try to save on his season premier Tuesday.

The show is scheduled for broadcast at 10 p.m. on CNBC.

Dante’s Italian Cuisine & Brick Oven Specialty Pizza, as seen in the broadcast, is in need of help. Owner Dante Alario runs the restaurant, or tries to, but father Jimmy Alario is a constant presence. While people love the food, the business owner is in serious need of some management skills, which his well-meaning father is unwittingly preventing.

"I am stunned by how good the food is, given how poor the environment is," Lemonis says on the show. "Like, if we could move this restaurant to New York City, we'd be millionaires."

In to save the business, and the father-son relationship, comes "The Profit's Lamonis, now hosting the show's seventh season.

From CNBC:

"At a struggling Italian restaurant in New Jersey, Marcus Lemonis will try to teach owner Dante management skills. But if his loving father Jimmy can't learn to stay out of the way, Dante may never grow up and this business could be cooked."

Past episodes of "The Profit" have featured struggles between owners and employees, struggles between owners and their families and struggles between owners and themselves. Sometimes, the featured people are hard-working entrepreneurs facing personal loss, unrealized growth or pending failure. Sometimes, they are facing all three.

“'The Profit’ is a show about business, but it’s also about the people in business,” Lemonis said in a CNBC news release. “For me, it’s not just a financial investment, but rather an opportunity for a real transformation that helps set these business owners up for success.”