At their best and worst, reality series often suggest good plots and settings for situation comedies. And we all know sitcoms can use all the help they can get. The fact that the creatively anemic fat-joke effort “Mike and Molly” is the year’s biggest comedy breakout is a sad sign of the times.

Tonight’s promising tryout is “Family Restaurant” (9 p.m., WE), a documentary-style glance at the workplace pressures and family dynamics of running a big Chinese restaurant.

Much like the recently launched Lifetime series “Russian Dolls,” this offers a sympathetic look at immigrant life. Amy and Kinman Quon work as greeters at their vast eating hall and takeout restaurant, The Lingnan. Their westernized son, Miles, is the stern taskmaster in the kitchen, while sister Mandy takes reservations. Both children chafe at their parents’ Old World ways and worry that their adherence to tradition is stifling the business. Not to mention their dating lives.

Like many series set in restaurant kitchens, “Family” unfolds at a desperate, frenzied pace. It could use some quieter moments, or even those contrived reality “confession” segments to get more insight into the characters.

The show strenuously sidesteps the fact that it was shot in Canada, giving “Family Restaurant” a literal sense of dislocation. All the same, these are real working people, too busy to shop or engage in product placements and too polite to complain terribly much, except about each other. And that is done with an undercurrent of affection.

“Family Restaurant” debuts right after the second season opener of “Downsized” (8 p.m., WE), where the Bruces’ plan to purchase their own home takes a backseat to a medical emergency.

• Summer’s extreme heat has taken its first reality TV casualty. The new A&E series “American Hoggers” had to delay production because of the extreme temperatures in central Texas. The boar-wrangling series has been slated to air in the fall.

• In addition to its original run on NBC and its appearance in network syndication, “The Office” (7 p.m. through 10 p.m., TBS) airs six consecutive times on TBS tonight. After canceling “George Lopez” last week, TBS announced that the late night show would soon be replaced with repeats of “The Office.”

Tonight’s other highlights

• A winner emerges on “MasterChef” (7 p.m., Fox).

• “Cupcake Wars” (7 p.m., Food) break out at Comic-Con.

• A silverback primate named Makumba sits down with “The Gorilla Whisperer” (7 p.m., Animal Planet).

• A second chance for 12 contenders on “America’s Got Talent” (8 p.m., NBC).

• A family feud gets violent on “Memphis Beat” (8 p.m., TNT).

• A battle wound seems suspicious on “Combat Hospital” (9 p.m., ABC).

• “Real Sports With Bryant Gumbel” (9 p.m., HBO) looks at the decline of professional tennis in the United States.