Nick DiGiovanni wants to be the #1 culinary content creator on YouTube. And his channel is in fact one of the biggest: It has over 22 million subscribers, brings north of 400 million views a month, and its library includes collaborations with dozens of celebrities and fellow creators, including Gordon Ramsay, Ryan Trahan, and the late Lynja.
So why did he choose to launch a new channel?
Last Friday, Nick’s Kitchen popped up on YouTube with a 10-minute video showing viewers how to make the perfect mac and cheese. This upload is different from DiGiovanni’s usual content; it’s slower-paced and softer-lit, lingering on the moment-by-moment details. It looks more like a Food Network program, with an aproned DiGiovanni moving gently around a meticulously decorated kitchen set.
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The shift is similar to what we’ve seen from other longtime creators like Rhett & Link, who recently launched their high-production series Wonderhole. The show was a risk, since it was a breakaway from their usual content, but the duo figured they had enough experience in making videos and fan support for their usual content to try something different.
DiGiovanni figures that, too.
“I chose to launch Nick’s Kitchen as a separate channel because I know the possibilities are endless for this new concept,” he tells Tubefilter. “My main channel was created out of my love & passion for cooking and food and overtime it transformed into ‘food entertainment’ videos which I have so much fun making and I’m excited to continue to push boundaries there. In tandem, I want to get back to the basics and prove that anyone can cook.”
For the foreseeable future, all Nick’s Kitchen videos will follow the easygoing, recipe-focused format set by its debut upload. DiGiovanni’s goal here is to make a “hub” of dependable recipes for people who not only want to watch culinary content, but get in the kitchen themselves.
“When you search for a recipe online, you receive millions of results, which can be extremely overwhelming. With Nick’s Kitchen, I want to create a one-stop hub for high-quality, easy-to-follow recipes for any night of the week,” he says.
He adds that new videos will go up every week at noon EST. “With a Friday release, my hope is that people can watch on a Friday and gather their grocery lists and ingredients to cook a delicious meal for a weekend date night, a Saturday hang with friends or even meal prep on Sunday ahead of the week,” he says.
DiGiovanni says he expects to see some crossover with the audience for his main channel and this new channel, but also thinks that “both channels will have independent audiences and demographics.”
“Some viewers watch for the joy of the entertainment and others for the genuine desire to grow in the kitchen but my hope is to deliver high-quality, inspiring videos that reimagine culinary content,” he says.
In three days, DiGiovanni’s mac and cheese video has netted over 400,000 views, and Nick’s Kitchen has grown to more than 2.2 million subscribers.
During our conversation, DiGiovanni’s team mentions Nick’s Kitchen is planned to premiere on YouTube “and beyond.” Could that mean a partnership with a streaming service or TV network? Will he launch his own service or over-the-top channel? Does he view Nick’s Kitchen as a potential competitor for outlets like the Food Network?
No details yet—but “the sky’s the limit” DiGiovanni says.
