The BEST episodes of Mystery Diners

Every episode of Mystery Diners ever, ranked from best to worst by thousands of votes from fans of the show. The best episodes of Mystery Diners!

What happens in the food world when a bad employee starts to take down an otherwise thriving establishment or when restaurant owners suspect someone of not doing their job appropriately? They call in the Mystery Diners. These undercover operatives go into restaurants, bars and food service establishments with hidden cameras to find out what's really going on when the boss isn't around.

Last Updated: 10/31/2024Network: Food NetworkStatus: Ended
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star
8.14
7 votes

#1 - Armed Services

Season 3 - Episode 12 - Aired 7/3/2013

The owner of Buttons Restaurant in Texas asks Charles Stiles to investigate after fielding complaints that his ex-military manager is being too strict. The Mystery Diners discover that the ex-military manager has made one employee (an ROTC trainee who looks up to the manager) do laps around the restaurant for messing up and caused one of the servers to quit. When confronted by the owner and Charles Stiles, the manager states that he was only keeping them in line and to fire him if he must. The owner decides not to fire him since the owner was also in the military, but wants the manager to mellow out on his job. Charles suggests to the owner that he should get the resigned server rehired. The narrator revealed that the manager is taking a positive approach to his job. The server who quit was rehired and promoted to head server.

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star
8.13
8 votes

#2 - Employee Discount

Season 8 - Episode 1 - Aired 10/13/2014

The owner of 55 Degree Wine and Link-n-Hops in Los Angeles, believes discrepancies at both his wine shop and restaurant are somehow related.

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star
8.10
10 votes

#3 - Vintage Scams

Season 7 - Episode 10 - Aired 10/1/2014

Jimmy, owner of Rockabillies in Arvada, Colo., is concerned about a dip in sales, especially during his restaurant's summer vintage car show. Charles sends in Mystery Diners Amber and Kyle to investigate and discovers that his staff is breaking multiple rules.

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star
8.00
12 votes

#4 - Boss Hog

Season 3 - Episode 11 - Aired 6/28/2013

The owner of Stroker's Ice House, a biker bar and grill in Dallas, named Rick Fairless and his mother call in Charles Stiles to investigate a dip in revenue which may be related to Rick's motorcycle shop. The Mystery Diners point to problems with two waitresses that have been stealing money behind the manager Chris's back, and the waitress Sammi is stealing and selling motorcycle parts with her mechanic boyfriend Lobo who works at the motorcycle shop run by Rick. When the couple are confronted, they are both fired by Rick and his mother tells them to take the other waitress with them. The narrator revealed that Lobo, Sammi, and the other former waitress have found new employment. Chris has been demoted to bartender only to resign. The owner's mother has temporary come back to work and is looking for new managers.

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star
7.92
13 votes

#5 - Fired Up

Season 5 - Episode 2 - Aired 1/13/2014

The owner of Looney's BBQ in San Leandro, California asks Charles to investigate his staff when he hears that some of them are pranking customers with the restaurant's Devil's XXX hot sauce. He is shown why by the Mystery Diners when his waiter Matt and manager had been behind the pranks. The manager is disciplined by the owner and asked to be more friendly to the staff while Matt is fired. In his exit interview, Matt stated that he didn't regret his actions in giving some of the customers the XXX hot sauce because they were acting bad around him and he believed they deserved it. The narrator revealed that Matt had found employment elsewhere. The manager has adopted a more friendly approach and no longer hazes the staff.

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star
7.85
20 votes

#6 - Crooked Contest

Season 11 - Episode 13 - Aired 4/20/2016

Rose and Tom of Belcourt Taps in Nashville contact Charles Stiles for help after hearing rumors that their songwriting contest is rigged.

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star
7.84
19 votes

#7 - Too Many Tourists

Season 9 - Episode 9 - Aired 4/1/2015

The owner of Marigny Brasserie in New Orleans notices an influx of rowdy tourists at his bar for locals.

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star
7.82
17 votes

#8 - Mystery Wedding

Season 9 - Episode 7 - Aired 3/18/2015

The owners of Moviesets, in New Orleans, are concerned about theft at their prop house-turned-event center.

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star
7.82
11 votes

#9 - Friends With Benefits

Season 3 - Episode 6 - Aired 5/24/2013

The husband-and-wife owners of N'awlins Café in New Orleans ask for help getting to the root of why their restaurant isn't thriving. Charles and his team discover that the manager has staffed the place with her friends, few of whom are fully qualified as one of the waiters (who happens to be the manager's boyfriend) was incompetent and was shown taking a break instead of working. The matters are made worse when the manager and waiter were shown eating an order that was messed up and being rude to difficult customers. During the confrontation, the manager and the waiter are fired. Charles claims that the bartender that was hired by the manager could be a good employee. While the narrator didn't mention what happened to the former manager and waiter, he did mention that the bartender was offered a full training to be an official bartender only for her to quit. The owners have replaced the former staff with more competent people.

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star
7.80
5 votes

#10 - Crazy Hearts

Season 3 - Episode 9 - Aired 6/14/2013

The owner of Poppy's The Crazy Lobster in New Orleans fields complaints about constant fighting between the cooks. He also has a problem with his nephew bringing wild animals into the restaurant. The Mystery Diners point to a waitress who is playing the grill supervisor and cook against each other since she is dating the cook, and having an affair with the supervisor. The nephew has been bring wild animals in the bar to impress a Mystery Diner posing as a customer by showing off a baby alligator. During the confrontation, the cook lashes out against the grill supervisor upon what was revealed as the owner breaks up the argument. The waitress and grill supervisor are both fired while the cook and nephew are suspended. The narrator revealed that the former waitress and grill supervisor have stopped seeing other. The cook is training to be the grill supervisor. The nephew no longer brings wild animals into the restaurant.

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star
7.79
14 votes

#11 - Magic Hassle

Season 6 - Episode 11 - Aired 6/16/2014

Rosele, owner of Sergio's Italian Gardens in Las Vegas, is concerned about a conflict between her longtime pianist and recently hired magician. Charles sends in Mystery Diners Hollie and John to find out which performer needs to go.

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star
7.77
13 votes

#12 - Cabin Fever

Season 9 - Episode 11 - Aired 4/15/2015

The owners of the Gateway Restaurant and Lodge, located near Sequoia National Park in California, hear complaints of unauthorized parties taking place inside their vacant cabins.

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star
7.76
25 votes

#13 - Tables Turned

Season 11 - Episode 10 - Aired 1/27/2016

In this special episode of Mystery Diners, Charles Stiles and his undercover team risk it all to bust the boss! For the first time ever, the sting is conducted from inside the restaurant to see if the horrifying accusations against the boss are true.

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star
7.75
20 votes

#14 - Dining in the Dark

Season 3 - Episode 1 - Aired 4/19/2013

The owner of Catharsis in Miami, Florida receives complaints about inappropriate touching and theft of items during the restaurants "Dining in the Dark" event. The targets are three newly hired servers (two waiters, and one waitress). The Mystery Diners head into the restaurant and discover that the new waitress and waiter have created a game by screwing with both the customers and food and stealing from them. The waiter and waitress are both fired during the confrontation. The narrator revealed that the former servers have gone their separate ways. The remaining new server has been promoted to head server.

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star
7.75
4 votes

#15 - Cafe Coup

Season 7 - Episode 12 - Aired 10/6/2014

After purchasing Cafe Aldente in Studio City, Calif., and retaining most of the previous owner's staff, the new owners believe their employees are still practicing old policies. Charles sends in Mystery Diners Annalisa and Kiel to find out if anyone is ignoring the new rules.

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star
7.73
56 votes

#16 - Lobster Looting

Season 11 - Episode 9 - Aired 1/20/2016

Brother-sister owners Richard and Marilyn of Langosta Lounge in Asbury Park, N.J. contact Charles Stiles after noticing a discrepancy in their lobster supply. Mystery Diners Megan and Natale go undercover to discover where the lobsters are going.

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star
7.72
18 votes

#17 - Too Many Cooks

Season 4 - Episode 6 - Aired 8/21/2013

The owner of Bistro Bordeaux in Evanston, Illinois investigates several complaints about his new executive chef. The Mystery Diners discover that the new executive chef is not responsible for the actions that the complaints were about. It was discovered that a disgruntled sous chef who believes that he should've been the executive chef. As a result, he bad-mouths him to the whole staff when he turns his back, telling guests that he is the executive chef, and tainting the food so the executive chef can be fired and he can step into the position. When both are confronted, the sous-chef tried to defend his actions. Stiles points out that he is the last person who should be executive chef after he was caught on tape sabotaging the chef's orders, making negative comments to the wait staff and lying about it to cover up his scam. The sous-chef is fired by the owner and is told to get off his property. He remained unremorseful in his exit interview, claiming that the executive chef should've been fired for being angry at him. The owner apologizes to the executive chef and tells him to work on his anger issues. The narrator revealed that the former sous-chef was unable to get rehired. The executive chef no longer has anger issues at work.

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star
7.72
18 votes

#18 - Train Robbery

Season 9 - Episode 12 - Aired 4/22/2015

Missing supplies and unauthorized passengers are a concern for the owner of the Fillmore and Western Railway in California.

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star
7.71
17 votes

#19 - Menu Mayhem

Season 3 - Episode 10 - Aired 6/21/2013

Francesco, the owner of Zio Cecio in Dallas, begins hearing rave reviews about Tex-Mex food being served in his Italian restaurant. He had a right to be concerned with the head chef and floor manager running a side business serving Tex-Mex food. The floor manager also told the wait staff to push the Tex-Mex menu so they can get a cash incentive and was also poaching customers with plans to open their own restaurant in six months. During the confrontation, the head chef and floor manager are fired by Francesco. The narrator revealed that there is no indication if the former floor manager and head chef were successful in starting their own Tex-Mex restaurant or not.

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star
7.69
16 votes

#20 - Very Bad Bosses

Season 9 - Episode 3 - Aired 2/18/2015

The wait staff of a California restaurant contacts Charles to do a reverse sting on their employer.

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star
7.67
12 votes

#21 - Paranormal Activities

Season 5 - Episode 10 - Aired 3/10/2014

The owner of Taverna Mazi in Seattle believes his staff are getting too carried away with ghost stories and "haunted tours." The Mystery Diners shows him why with his waiter and busboy pulling pranks. During the confrontation, the waiter and busboy are fired for their actions. The narrator revealed that the former waiter and busboy have found employment elsewhere. Unfortunately, Taverna Mazi has closed down due to increased paranormal activities.

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star
7.67
12 votes

#22 - History Mystery

Season 10 - Episode 9 - Aired 7/29/2015

When Lee, owner of Old Vinings Inn in Atlanta, hears rumors of unauthorized "Civil War Tours" taking place inside his historical restaurant, he contacts Charles Stiles to investigate. Mystery Diners Kendall and Eliot go undercover to see how authentic the tours really are.

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star
7.65
17 votes

#23 - Bringing Down the Haus

Season 1 - Episode 2 - Aired 5/25/2012

Brett and Rose, the husband and wife owners of German restaurant Haus Murphy, disagree on almost everything, particularly the hiring of Rose's nephew as their new restaurant manager. Fearing he is unqualified for the job, the couple hires Charles Stiles and Mystery Diners Danny, Chris, and Deanna to go undercover and show them just how incompetent their nephew truly is. After the proof is shown, this leads to the confrontation where Rose ends up having to let her nephew go from his employment.

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star
7.65
17 votes

#24 - Strange Brew

Season 4 - Episode 3 - Aired 7/31/2013

Michael, the owner of Newport Beach Brewing Company in Newport Beach, California, asks Charles to investigate his onsite brewmaster who is suspected of running a side business. The Mystery Diners go undercover and discover that his brewmaster is not behind the side business. Instead, they discover big problems with his bartender Mike who is running a side business with a waiter. The bartender admits to brewing his own flavor brands of beer from his own home and promoting it in the Newport Beach Brewing Company. During the confrontation, Michael fires Mike. In his exit interview, Mike remained unremorseful for his actions claiming that Michael lost an opportunity to market and sell his flavor beer brands that could've helped his business. The narrator revealed that Mike has been unsuccessful in promoting his own beer. The waiter has also been terminated for his involvement and has found employment elsewhere. The brewmaster continues to be a valuable employee.

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star
7.64
11 votes

#25 - Oktobertheft

Season 5 - Episode 5 - Aired 2/3/2014

Cindy, the co-owner of Speisekammer is Alameda, California believes the "Dirndl Girls" hired by her ex-husband, Peter, are the source of many problems. Peter disagrees and thinks it's her recently hired waiter named Tim that behind the problems. They Mystery Diners show Cindy why she had a right to be concerned when they point to big problems with two of the Dirndl Girls named Angela and Shana. They are not only speaking poorly of her behind her back, but are also drinking on the job, stealing tips, and rigging the mass holding competition to allow their friends to win. Only one Dirndl girl named Danielle, is actually a model employee. Bigger problems are exposed when Tim is revealed to be involved with Angela and Shana's scheme. Knowing that both Cindy and Peter often disagree about the work ethics in the restaurant, he takes advantage of it by pitting the two against each other. After firing Angela and Shana during the confrontation, Peter reluctantly apologizes for not trusting Cindy earlier and agrees to help her deal with Tim in the morning. The narrator revealed Angela and Shana found employment elsewhere. Danielle continues to work as a Dirndl Girl part time. Tim was confronted for his involvement by Cindy and Peter and has made amends for his actions.

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