Last Friday, Rigby native Ryan Pickett’s fate was revealed on national television during the premier of CBS Entertainment’s new reality-TV show, “The Job.”

    Pickett owned and operated Pickett’s Bambino in Rigby and Idaho Falls for a few years until a bout with testicular cancer forced him to close down his businesses. The restaurants are now operating as The Great Bambino. Pickett said during the show he’s “two years cancer-free.”

    Pickett was one of five candidates vying for an assistant manager job with the prestigious Palm Restaurant Group. The fine-dining steakhouse chain has been in business for 87 years and has 25 locations in the U.S., as well as restaurants in Mexico City and London.

    After undergoing a series of challenges and questions, the number of candidates dwindled down to 32-year-old Pickett and a 38-year-old woman from Alabama, Jann Robinson.

    When Executive Vice President Bruce Bozzi Jr. of PRG revealed the contestant’s name who would soon be working as assistant manager at the Palm’s New York location, Pickett said in a phone interview Monday, “My heart dropped.”

    “I definitely felt like I was one of the top contenders the entire time,” he said. “I wanted to see my name on the other side of the card.”

    However, it was Robinson’s name on the card, not Pickett’s. Soon after the congratulatory hug, Pickett found he was in for another surprise of his own. As he was explaining post-show ambitions of completing his MBA, Bozzi interrupted with an offer Pickett couldn’t refuse.

    Now Pickett will soon be working at a new location of the Palm in Boston, Mass., as assistant manager.  Currently under construction, the newest Palm Restaurant will be located at Boston’s International Place complex. Pickett said the grand opening should be sometime late spring.

    “I’ve visited Boston before and absolutely loved it,” he said. “I’m very grateful for this opportunity.”

    In the upcoming months, Pickett will spend his time in Las Vegas and Washington D.C. “learning the system and learning the culture and polishing up” so he can be ready for opening day.

    “Having a chance to reignite my restaurant passion at a prestigious place like the Palm is great, so really my long-term goal is to make the most of this opportunity,” he said.

    Pickett was unemployed and living in Boise when he answered an online job listing for the reality TV show, he told the Idaho Statesman. His appearance on the first episode of “The Job” was his last, as every episode of the “The Job” will feature a different set of 5 contestants who are competing for a job with nationally-known companies such as Cosmopolitan, Epic Records and Major League Soccer. “The Job” airs Fridays at 7 p.m. on CBS.