Chodorow and others did so, which satisfied the USDOT, and the airline was granted permission to operate. Braniff International began flights on July 1, 1991, but filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy a mere 37 days later. CEO Gregory Dix resigned in early September and was replaced by Chodorow. The bankrupt airline was able to secure sufficient financing to continue flying, only to shut down permanently on July 2, 1992. By this time, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and USDOT were investigating Chodorow and Spencer over an alleged money laundering scheme designed to conceal Spencer's continued management of the airline. Investigators determined that Spencer had been "heavily involved" in airline operations and had been paid $351,411 in secret kickbacks from commissions paid to an advertising agency. On July 19, 1994, Chodorow and Spencer were indicted for bankruptcy fraud, fraudulently concealing the bankrupt airline's property from creditors, defrauding the USDOT during the airline's certification, and obstructing a pending proceeding of the agency. In a plea bargain, the U.S. government dropped the bankruptcy fraud charges against Chodorow, in return for his guilty plea to the USDOT charges. On May 23, 1996, Chodorow was sentenced to four months in prison and four years' supervised release and was ordered to pay a $40,000 fine; he had earlier agreed to pay the airline's bankruptcy trustees $1.25 million in restitution over five years. During Chodorow's prison term, Jack Polsenberg and Neil Faggen kept the restaurants open and ran them until Chodorow was released from jail. Chodorow was involved with the program "The Restaurant", a reality TV show that aired on NBC in 2003, with a second season broadcasting in 2004. The show was produced by Mark Burnett and starred celebrity chef Rocco DiSpirito. The show portrayed the opening and running of a Manhattan restaurant as well as ongoing conflicts between DiSpirito and Chodorow, usually revolving around the lack of the restaurant's profitability. The show was canceled and DiSpirito was successfully sued by Chodorow, the restaurant's financier, to have the restaurant shut down and DiSpirito banned from entering the premises. Chodorow opened the Asia de Cuba restaurant at the Schrager Morgans Hotel, He also owns China Grill Management, a collection of restaurants, a number of which are also in Schrager hotels. In a full page ad taken out in the February 21, 2007 dining section of the "New York Times", Chodorow declared figurative war on critic Frank Bruni for giving him a poor review.