HACKENSACK, N.J. -- Some people watch "The Real Housewives of New Jersey" for the fights. Some watch it for the fashion. And a growing number of New Jersey businesses watch it to see it to see if they received any airtime.

They're the real businesses of North Jersey, the restaurants, doctor's offices and retail stores that are supporting cast members on Bravo's hit reality show.

Just as the housewives vie to get the most air time each week, North Jersey businesses are angling for a chance to reach a national audience of more than 3 million viewers per episode, as well as fans around the world.

"I have friends [with businesses] calling me up saying, 'You've got to film here. You've got to film here,'" said Albert Manzo, husband of "Housewives" star Caroline Manzo, and an owner of the business featured most prominently on the show, The Brownstone banquet hall in Paterson. "Everyone wants to be on."

For the businesses that make it on the show -- the places where the housewives and their families are seen eating, shopping or having parties -- the potential reward is great. They reap the kind of TV time that would cost millions if it was a paid commercial. But public relations experts warn there are risks as well as rewards when businesses enlist reality shows to boost their bottom line.

"You should be familiar with the show first," said Stan Steinreich, head of a public relations agency with offices in Hackensack, Washington, D.C., Tel Aviv and other cities. His firm is increasingly using reality TV placements along with more mainstream media to promote clients. But, Mr. Steinreich said, "I don't believe all publicity is good." Sometimes, he said, "it's a far better thing to say, 'No, we'll pass.'"

The North Jersey Country Club wishes it had said no when Bravo asked in November if it could film during the now-infamous fashion show that ended in a physical confrontation between dueling cast members.

"Being somewhat naive, and not aware of the true nature of the TV show, permission was granted," club manager John Stanley explained in a letter to members, in which he said the "Housewives" cast and crew are no longer welcome. The club "clearly made a mistake in signing the release," wrote Mr. Stanley. Reached by telephone, Mr. Stanley did not want to comment on the letter but confirmed its contents.

But for most of the businesses that have appeared on the show, the experience has been positive. When the housewives visit a restaurant, the name of the eatery usually is shown first, in an establishing shot. Some of the restaurants won air time because the housewives really do eat there. Positano Restaurant in Wayne, for example, has been serving meals and takeout food to Danielle Staub, Caroline Manzo and other cast members before they were reality stars.

Other businesses offered their locations to Bravo in exchange for publicity. The Westin Hotel offered a hotel room and room-service meal that Bravo decided to use to portray housewife Teresa Giudice and husband Joe's 10th-anniversary celebration. The hotel did, however, request in advance that there would be no table flipping, please, a publicist for the hotel said.

Bravo declined to comment on arrangements with the businesses that appear on the show, but a spokeswoman denied that any scenes were staged.

"The show is absolutely not scripted. You can't make that kind of stuff up," she said.

Albert Manzo said his family wasn't looking for publicity for The Brownstone when they made the decision to appear on the show. Rather, he said, the program was viewed as a fun job for Caroline, who was facing an empty nest.

However, the show has turned out to be a publicity bonanza, said Mr. Manzo. The show, he said, has helped create a national reputation for The Brownstone. The banquet facility already was booked at capacity before the show, so it hasn't really brought in more event business. But the Manzos are hoping to use The Brownstone's new fame to launch their brand of tomato sauce.

"If you have a little bit of an aura about you because of a certain thing, like a television show, people are going to give you at least a try," Mr. Manzo said.

Kim DePaola, owner of the Poscheboutique in Wayne featured in several key episodes, said the show has boosted sales on her ShopPosche website to fans all over the world. "We had a customer from Australia that bought something," Ms. DePaola said. "Who's going to know about ShopPosche in Australia" without the show, she asked.

Ms. DePaola hosted the fashion show at the North Jersey Country Club that ended with housewife hysterics, hair-pulling and assault charges. The day after the episode aired last month, "people were coming into the store in droves," she said. Many of her new customers are curiosity seekers, interested more in taking a picture with Ms. DePaola than trying on or buying clothes. But "they all buy at least a T-shirt" -- shirts decorated with the Posche name that sell for $38 to $42. A year ago, she said, summer Saturdays were slow, with sometimes as few as two customers all day. "Now," she said, "Saturdays are insane."

Ms. DePaola has been rumored to be in the running to be a regular cast member on the show, but she said such a move might not be in her best interests as a store owner. "There are lots of things that the show kind of wants you to do that are good TV but not good for me as a businesswoman, so it's a Catch-22," she said, referring to the show's fondness for drama.

The only downsides thus far have been visits from obsessed fans and a visit from the local authorities who informed her that she could no longer serve mimosas to the TV housewives and other shoppers.

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