“Food Network Star” winner Justin Warner is set to make his debut

What’s life like after “Food Network Star”? Just ask Justin Warner.

Back in July of last year, the 29-year-old from Hagerstown, Md., emerged as the Season 8 winner. Mentored by Alton Brown throughout the competition, the self-taught cook set himself apart from the rest of the competitors with his unique spin on each dish and his witty presence on-camera.

Now, he’s set to step out into the Food Network limelight on his own with the upcoming one-hour special “Rebel Eats.” According to an official news release, the special follows Warner as he drives throughout the South with only $300 in his pocket to find the most “unconventional food and eccentric people.”

Considering that Warner was crowned the winner back in July, it seems like a long time to have fans wait until Saturday, March 30, for the special’s premiere.

Another surprise came in January when Brown revealed via Twitter that he would not, in fact, be producing Warner’s special, due to having “a lot on his plate.” It was later revealed that it was because he was already hard at work on the next season of “Food Network Star.”

Once the special airs, the verdict will be in on whether Warner has some longevity on the Food Network. And if history is any indication, there’s a good chance he will.

Aaron McCargo, Jr. (“Big Daddy’s House”), Melissa d’Arabian (“Ten Dollar Dinners With Melissa d’Arabian”), Aarti Sequeira (“Aarti Party”) and Jeff Mauro (“Sandwich King”) continue to be featured on the Food Network and its sister station, The Cooking Channel. Meanwhile, Season 2 winner Guy Fieri is arguably the poster boy for the success of “Food Network Star.” He’s gone on to host numerous shows for Food Network and even NBC’s “Minute to Win It,” and there can be no bigger sign that you’ve made it in this business than being spoofed on “Saturday Night Live.”

Other winners, however, haven’t had quite the same longevity in the spotlight.

Season 1 winners Dan Smith and Steve McDonagh hosted “Party Line With the Hearty Boys” for a few seasons on Food Network before moving onto projects that were further away from the national spotlight. As of 2011, they were operating a Chicago restaurant and catering business.

Season 3 winner Amy Finley had a six-episode run of her series, “The Gourmet Next Door,” before (literally) moving away from the camera by relocating her family to France. She’s since made an appearance in a 2012 episode of “Chopped,” and chronicled her journey in the 2011 memoir “How to Eat a Small Country: A Family’s Pursuit of Happiness, One Meal at a Time.”

However Warner’s special fares with viewers, the future still looks bright for this edgy and passionate young cook, who also happens to be the owner/chef of the Brooklyn eatery Do or Dine.