It’s safe to say the “Keith Lee Effect” isn’t just a fleeting TikTok trend. From the start of his journey, the internet sensation and food commentator has been intentional about spotlighting local restaurants, knowing his reviews can transform businesses overnight. Many owners have had to juggle the surge in customers while maintaining their personal lives, a challenge Lee understands as his own business and family continue to grow.

It was a natural fit for him to team up with Microsoft once again for Season 2 of The Reheat. This time, he surprised three Chicago restaurant owners who had experienced the “Keith Lee Effect” and had been sustaining that momentum for over a year.

Season 2 continues Lee’s mission as he and Microsoft highlight Cleo’s Southern Cuisine, Soul Prime, and Tacotlán, which are restaurants with both promise and growing pains. Each episode takes viewers behind the kitchen doors, revealing the highs, lows, and everything in between as Lee works alongside the owners to help them not just survive, but thrive.

At Cleo’s Southern Cuisine, Kristin Harper shares that she was inspired by her grandmother’s cooking as a young girl. Since Lee’s initial visit, she has expanded her Black-owned restaurant from one location to three across Chicago. Scaling while managing staff, product distribution, and marketing on her own is no small feat. While on set, she learned how to integrate Microsoft 365 and Copilot into her workflow. “I’ve utilized other AI models, but I’ve appreciated the simplicity of Copilot’s interface. The fact I don’t have to prompt it with so much detail is ideal,” she says. Harper’s growth is rooted in her team, and adding this tool to her repertoire is set to be a game-changer.

Chef Royce Williams at Soul Prime first met Lee when her restaurant was only four months old. She remains deeply hands-on: cooking the meals herself, creating content, and personally greeting every customer as her way of thanking them for being part of the Soul Prime community. “It was such a full-circle moment to see Keith Lee again. I had just created content about what I’d cook for him if he came back to Soul Prime, and now I get to do that,” she says. In Episode 2, viewers see her delight and surprise when Lee walks in while she’s sharing Soul Prime’s journey. She also expresses excitement about Copilot: “I’m looking forward to working on my inventory and knowing exactly what I need to make the dishes that are performing best based on the previous month.” 

Each of the owners receives live demonstrations on tailoring Copilot and Microsoft 365 to their exact needs. Lee’s collaboration with Microsoft shows that technology and tradition can coexist in meaningful ways. While food remains at the heart of the show, the partnership underscores how digital tools, marketing strategies, and community support are just as essential to a restaurant’s success as the recipes they serve. By combining his influence with Microsoft’s resources, Lee helps these businesses find balance both in the kitchen and on the bottom line.

For Lee, the broader mission is clear: amplifying voices that might otherwise go unheard and ensuring they have the tools they need to succeed in business and beyond food. “I often use Copilot in my day-to-day life outside of the partnership because it’s a great tool for direction and feels like an added team member,” Lee said. “I personally use it to expand on storytelling, because that’s what’s important to me.”

You can watch the stories behind Soul Prime and Cleo’s Southern Cuisine unfold on Microsoft, out now.