Man v. Food star Adam Richman will be hunting for the best sandwich in America in a new series greenlit by Travel Channel.
The Scripps Networks Interactive outlet -- seen internally as the parent company's "biggest growth opportunity" -- greenlit two new series and discussed some shows in development Wednesday.
Along with Adam Richman's Best Sandwich in America (working title), the channel greenlit Toy Hunters, starring toy collector Jordan Hembrough, who scours basements and warehouses and toy chests for hidden collectible treasures.
Andy Singer, Travel Channel's senior vice president of programming & production, also said Anthony Bourdain's original series The Layover will be back for a second season (10 episodes). His tour of short stays will take him to Taipei, Sao Paolo and Chicago, among other cities, Singer said.
In development are Mile High, also a working title for a show about David Arquette and friend Mike McGuinness racking up mileage on spontaneous adventure trips, guided by Twitter and other suggestions from the Web; and Aloha Gold (working title), about an independent tour company in Hawaii.
At a press gathering, channel officials also showed early video from previously announced new shows including Baggage Battles (debuting April 11), Hotel Impossible (April 9) and Trip Flip. They also provided a glimpse at an in-production show about a company that does pizza tours in Brooklyn, with the working title Slice of Brooklyn.
SNI bought control of Travel Channel in 2009 and has been investing in new programming to build around aging mainstays such as Man v. Food (revamped slightly as Man v. Food Nation its last go-round, allowing Richman to ease back on the pig-outs).
Travel Channel Media president Laureen Ong said Richman still has a big following -- his show Amazing Eats will lead into Best Sandwich, she said -- and the channel is pleased to be developing new programs with him.
