Shields explores the cuisine of six United States coastal regions: the shores of the Gulf States, New England, the Mid-Atlantic, the Pacific Northwest, the West Coast, and Hawaii. He is joined in the kitchen by guests including Nathalie Dupree, Steven Raichlen, and Michelle Bernstein, who specialize in each area's regional culinary and cultural traditions. Organized like a meal, every 30-minute episode features a three informal, yet information-packed recipes, plus an easy-to-prepare snack.