*Check Please!* is hosted by Rose Previte (photo: WETA)

Local PBS station WETA (channel 26) has a new food/restaurant-focused show starting tonight, October 18th at 8pm called Check Please! Local Latin restaurant Ruta del Vino will get reviewed on the second episode on October 25th at 8pm.

Check, Please! DC gives viewers an unfiltered look at the greater Washington restaurant scene through a panel of citizen reviewers sharing their favorite eateries and dining experiences. In each episode, three guests each recommend one dining spot for review by the other two guests. After anonymously trying each restaurant recommendation, the guests join the show’s host in-studio to discuss their experiences together. Hosted by Rose Previte, owner of the Compass Rose restaurant in DC.

Episode 2, premiering on Wednesday, October 25, features Petworth restaurant Ruta del Vino and District residents Meryn Chimes and Jessica van Dop DeJesus.

Ruta del Vino owner Justin Logan is very familiar with the Check, Please! show, having watched it years ago when he and his wife Jessica lived in Chicago. "Obama was on it back in the day. Yelp didn't exist back then. But I'll definitely say, a real-time Yelping -- on television -- is a terrifying concept. I just hope we came out okay."

Spanning the entire District-Maryland-Virginia area, Check, Please! DC covers a wide array of establishments and cuisines from the region’s diverse offerings. From special occasion destinations to strip mall gems, Season 1 takes viewers on a journey of culinary discovery, featuring everything from Laotian "jungle" cuisine to old-fashioned comfort food.

"It's tough to guess what will make it off the cutting room floor," Justin said, "but I was really pleased with the show's effort to focus on our wine program. We've put as much effort as anyone I know into creating one of DC's most innovative, high-QPR, interesting wine lists -- just blocks from your readers' houses! -- and it was nice that they wanted to talk about that quite a bit. We've worked really hard to be a place that demystifies wine and brings more to the table than $5 glasses at happy hour. (There's great value in Latin American wine! Ask your server!)"

Congrats to owner Justin and Ruta del Vino!