Phil Rosenthal

0:03Hello and welcome to Table Manners, I'm Jessie Ware and I'm here in my house and I'm cooking Yes darling Mum's actually walked in 10 minutes late What are you cooking? What are you doing? What are you thinking about? Just look at Alice twisting her knobs To be honest Are you high? No

0:27Well we have a very important man In the food and entertainment business He has basically the top food travel programme on Netflix six seasons of food and travel his name is phil rosenthal he was the creator of everybody loves raymond a really successful sitcom in the states and now he's become the face of food and travel with his program somebody feed phil it has the best theme tune he's this very kind sweet man who goes around the world and eats at the best places some fancy some places like holes in the Walls, recommended by really excellent people. It is a really heartwarming, gentle watch and also really exciting.

1:16And there's so many recommendations. If you're going on a trip somewhere, just check if Phil's been there for some food recommendations. He has been everywhere from Seoul to New Orleans to Marrakesh, London, a featured brat and Rovi on there. He just seems like a really nice bloke so because he's so interested in eating kind of traditional foods i thought it was a no-brainer to give him an english fry up so what have i got i've got hg walter streaky bacon because hg walter streaky bacon i think is the best bacon ever um and this is not an ad but on the gorillas app you can get hg walter and it's bloody good meat um i've done homemade smoky baked beans which i did this morning i've done some portobello mushrooms done with rosemary and whole grain mustard that you stir for at the end what else have I done bubble and squeak I had some potatoes that I needed doing so I put them in the oven scooped it out had half a cabbage shoved that in onion butter salt pepper thyme and rosemary so that's going in and then I've got black pudding sausages fried egg oh and sourdough from dusty knuckle thank you producer Alice thank you producer Alice it's his birthday so for pudding you know I'm crap at cake so I got him a Colin McCaterpillar.

2:34Yeah. Do you think he's ever had a Colin McCaterpillar? Shouldn't think so, darling. Quintessential British birthday emergency cake. And Babka. Babka is courtesy of Honey & Co. It's a Valentine's special, which when this comes out, probably it won't be Valentine's special, but they should keep it on because it looks so beautiful. It's in a tin. It's rose petals. It's got some kind of cardamom custardy something in there. it looks glorious so you'll have me a bit of that I hope he comes hungry Phil Rosenthal coming up on Table Manners

3:15Somebody feed Phil I'm going to feed you today I'm excited I'm so you are even more warm in real life than you are even on Netflix and you're very warm on Netflix you've got a very kind face kind eyes gentle sweet Phil is that right? It's a big act. It's not. You also remind me of mum's cousin, Michael Gisson. Oh, really? Yeah, there's a kind of... Anyway, thank you for being here and happy birthday. Thank you. As I told you when I came in, there's no place I'd rather be. So what brings you to London? Doing a show tonight, tomorrow night at the Hackney Empire. Have you been to Hackney Empire before?

3:56No. Great places to eat around there. Really? Well, Hackney's the best food. Well, I'm going to Dishon. delicious which one are you going to Shoreditch I've only ever been to King's Cross I think we filmed part of our London episode there did you film Yotam because he's in your book yes we did and you went to Brat as well yes we did and I'm going there tomorrow night for the turbot of course it's unbelievable is that where we had the turbot yeah they spray it with the lemon juice you've got it in your recipe book that book is great because it's recipes but also it's a travel guide. The stories.

4:32It's a hybrid. Yeah, and it really works. I'm so happy. I wrote it with someone named Jen Garby, who's a cookbook expert. Okay. I don't know anything about making a cookbook. I could tell my stories and how the show got started and there's behind-the-scenes photos and all that kind of thing. And then they're the 60 most requested recipes from the first four seasons of the show. So I think that's why people like it. But I don't cook. You cook. I do cook. You don't cook? I don't. Well, you're a New Yorker. You will be able to cook. You eat out all the time, right? All the time. They can all cook.

5:08But I need to know, your parents... Yes, not cooks. Oh, yeah. Well, you talk about your mum not being the best cook. She was good in every other aspect of life. She was so supportive, very sweet, very intelligent, very cultured. Turned me on to the whole world of the arts. and was incredibly supportive. Cooking not her strong suit. So what is a memorable dish that your mum made, good or bad? The worst one. Yeah, let's go there. This is now legendary. For Passover, you can't have flour, right? You can't have bread. So she found this recipe, I think, in an anti-Semitic cookbook. And she made matzah lasagna.

5:53Oh, I've got that. I've got the recipe for that. I do. Have you ever made it? I don't want it. And that is what we're cooking you, Phil. Happy birthday. Goodbye, everybody. Instead of sheets of pasta, sheets of matzah. It was like a cardboard souffle. Oh. It was... Inedible. The cat wouldn't eat it. It was inedible. Did you laugh about it? Oh, yes. For years and years and years. I've got a recipe for matzah misu. Turumisu made with matzah. Oh. Matzah misu. I like the name. I think we're losing every listener that you have. So that was a bad one. Yes. Is there a dish that, you know, even though...

6:32Also with matzo. Matzo ball soup. Her matzo ball soup was very good. Very good. And I know you're going to ask me about my last meal. And that would be the final... No, it wouldn't be the final thing. It would certainly be part of it. Yeah. And then I would have some of her steak and that would finish me off. who would you have with you on your last meal oh what are you doing later okay i'm there i won't go if it's the shoe yeah i won't go if it's the shoe they do good cocktails yes they do do you know what the number one pet peeve of restaurant goers is they did a survey what is it i'm wondering if you can guess well is it that they take away their plates before you're finished like everyone's finished oh no but that's an american thing that you do and it not you we don't get it in england so where if someone if we're all sitting together yes and you finish your plate first and we're still eating they'll take your plate away because they think that's because it's dirty and they think that's what they should do but in england in england you would never do it till everyone's finished.

7:42Did you find that in every restaurant you go to in America? In America, yeah. Oh, you know, I never noticed that. And it drives us mad. It feels so rude to us. It doesn't drive me as mad as it drives you. It drives me mad. We haven't quite finished. Okay. Well, that's, I guess, a particular British thing because you're not used to that. So what is it? Waiting for the check. Oh, yeah. No, I can understand that. Because you're done and now you'd like to go. And you can't go. and people hate that feeling I understand that that's not my pet peeve my number one pet peeve the loud music me too I'm here to talk to you if I go out to eat with you I want to be with you also with all the new restaurants with hard surfaces also you've got lots of people talking and you don't hear the music you hear just a banging beat in the background it's not proper music it's not atmospheric it the more trouble I have hearing and so I will actually say the same I have a bit of a hearing problem can you turn it down that's a really clever way of doing it I try but they have pity on me but you could do it with your sweet eyes and then they'll go okay and he's still most like can you turn it down excuse me I can't hear we did that last night and the truth is I don't really have a hearing problem but I do have a hearing problem in this restaurant right now me too so That's what I say.

9:05I love that. Right? I love that. Yeah. Do you know why the music is loud in so many places? Why? You want to guess at that reason? Because they're fighting in the kitchen? Nope. They want you to leave. That's it. What? How did you know that? Producer Alice just said they want you to leave. That's exactly the reason. They can turn over the table. This is my kitchen secrets. Kitchen confidential. Yes. Oh my God. But it's antithetical to the reason we love restaurants, right? It doesn't work for me. You want to feel welcome. Yeah. And you want to feel. But at the same time, I actually invest in restaurants because I'm not very bright.

9:45You're crazy. But I love them so much. But I also understand they have to, the margins are so slim. Yeah, they are. Right? To make any kind of living. Right? That they'll try anything to get an advantage. to try to get one more extra seating if they can per night. So they crank this up because it's a matter of their survival. People can't. But sometimes if I go with girlfriends of my age, we go and I have to say, please, can we not go to that place? I love the food, but I can't hear. Of course, me too. And it's not even just music. They cram so many people in. Do you think it's Jews complaining?

10:23Do you think? No, I don't. I think it's anyone. Where do you live, Phil? I live in Hancock Park in the center of Los Angeles. Oh, I love Hancock Park. You know it? Yeah, I like Larchmont. That's my... I walk there every single day with my dog. Do you come to LA a lot? Yeah, I went... Can we go eat when you come? Oh my God! You'll be my guest. I'm coming in March. Hopefully I'll be there. She's holding Phil's hand as she says this. Phil is locked in. I'm looking into his eyes. I was there in October. Gaga, come on. I was there in October and December. Yeah? I went to Safi's twice. Safi's is so good.

10:57Well, that chef happens to be one of the best chefs in the world. You know his Bestia and Bevel. Yeah, I've been to Bevel, but not Bestia. I did go to Bestia. I think Safi's is better than Bevel. More casual, certainly. But the lamb neck shawarma at Bevel is one of the great dishes in the world. Do you think Yotam is your favourite over him or not? Equal. No, I think... Equal and different. Have you been to Honey & Co.? Oh, yeah, that's when you should eat whilst you're here. Their lamb shawarma is, I promise you, better than the one at Safi's. Honey and Coat. I don't know how long you've got to be here.

11:34I don't have enough time. Oh, you've got to go to. Well, we've got a babka that we're going to give you a bit later. Oh, nice. Basically, I'm giving you a fry-up today, but it's kind of a grill-up. A full English breakfast. You know what a fry-up is. I do. And I know you've got lots of meals to eat today. So you should have a little taste. You have a little taste of everything. I don't want to offend anybody, so I'm going to taste everything. I'll make it very small. I'll taste everything. I'll finish nothing. something okay is that is that part of the secret is that yeah that's what john said as well yeah he's slim but sometimes things are too good to not finish no you know how they make a dog food commercial oh they don't feed the dog until the commercial yeah okay fine so that's how we do the show so i don't eat until the scene and so it looks like i eat a lot i do but it's a week's worth of filming yeah condensed into less than an hour okay so that scene you're seeing that's probably what i ate that day do you think that's why you think everything is so delicious because you're just so famished that's part of it you want to be you want to say oh boy when the food comes not oh no and i've been in that situation too but i feel i feel like you've got you're scared of the fact that i'm feeding you you're gonna be okay you're gonna be okay if you're okay with me not finishing everything i'm okay no she's gonna give you no she's going to she usually overdoes it because we're feeders yeah but you'll put little on his plate jess yes i will yes i will just tell you look how slim he is and he does food you know why mum because we fucking three course meals three times a week doing this podcast we're buggered yeah with champagne i have a podcast too called naked lunch and we eat lunch with no clothes with our guests Oh.

13:13Why, would you like that? No, it's called Naked Lunch. It's from William Burroughs' novel, Naked Lunch. There used to be the naked chef here. The naked part is hopefully the conversation. And how do you find it? Do you cook the meal? No. No, we take away. And does the guest choose the takeaway? Sometimes, if they're interested. Otherwise, they like me to feed them. Okay, fine. And we share everything. Phil, you're the king of eating. I am. What would be your favorite food to eat, kind of, and your favorite restaurant? Do you like Indian food? I love. Because you can't really, it's not great in LA, is it?

13:52Oh, we have some good places. Do you now? But London wins, I think. Yeah. By the way, I haven't been to India. Have you? Yeah. I'm dying to go. That's next on the list. I've been to, yeah, I have. I've been to Karel. It's delicious. I can't wait. It's wonderful. I can't wait. I always say, if you love a food, you go to the source. Yeah. You know where they have really great Italian food? Italy Italy, it's true Yes So Indian food Is your favourite No, it's only one of the favourites Italian is amazing I think Number one food That I could live on The rest of my life Is probably pizza Could you? It would be the last thing That I could live on Why?

14:33I must eat it twice a year Really? That is such a lie, mum You had it at the weekend With my children Because of your children And that was already in January But because of your children, I wouldn't eat it normally. You're so selfish about chocolate in your fridge for my son. But I would never go out to a pizza place with friends. Would you? Or would you order in pizza? Yes, he would. He's saying it's his favourite place. No, he said it's one of the things he could live on. So listen, listen. There are now pizza places in New York and LA, all over. I'm sure they're here too. Where it is world class.

15:09where you can't believe how delicious. Yeah, Mozza. Nancy Silvertone. Mozza, yes. How about pizzana from Daniele Uditi, who used to be the pizzaiola in Naples at the most famous pizzeria in the world. And then he came to America, and his pizzas are phenomenal. When it's great, I think, you know, it's one of the great pleasures in life. Speaking of the last meal, my last meal would be childhood favorites. okay so you're having lots of ball soup complete the cycle right if it is my last meal go back and i think my favorite food in life yeah i've had all the fancy meals okay i think when you have comfort food the food you loved as a child growing up and you have it elevated to a level where it's the best okay like i just had the best cheese toasty yeah let's talk about that cheese toasty where was it from cap casein it's a it's a word for for melt for melted i think it's a it's a word for melt i've never heard that sounds like it's a bar market we featured it on the london episode bill oglethorpe is the proprietor he used to work at neil's yard dairy and he was a grilled cheese fanatic so he experimented with all types of cheeses to find the right ones that would melt perfectly and tastes great.

16:34Then he puts little leeks and onions in it. Oh, wow. And he found the ideal bread as well. This was years of trial and error. Poilin Bakery from Paris. Oh, that's my favorite. So it's thin. Fabulous, fabulous. So here's what happens. You're going to love this. He shreds the cheese. He puts in the leeks and onions, between these two slices of bread, and he starts warming it on one panini press. There's no butter because the cheese melts through the bread and becomes the butter of the bread. Then he moves it to the hotter panini press to finish it and crisp the... I can't believe you haven't had this.

17:12I can't believe I haven't either. Borough market. This is actually quite stressful for me that I haven't had this. Because I thought I knew about the best cheese toastie, which is this one at the Towpath Cafe, which you should eat at if you've ever been. Well, listen, you might prefer it. Everybody's different. I might, but it's got quince jelly in it, and I love that. John Tarota says, We should put a mayonnaise on the outside. I heard that too. To crisp it up. I heard that too. I'm with you. Somebody said base a turkey in mayonnaise. Coat the turkey with mayonnaise. That would be a good idea.

17:42Before you roast it because it gets this gorgeous brown skin. You'll never know because you won't be cooking it. No, but I'll advise. I love this.

17:55So who lives with you in Hancock Park? My wife and my dog right now. Your wife and dog. And the kids are grown. The kids are 28. How many children have you got? Two. My boy is 28, Ben, and Lily is 25. Oh, lovely. And they're always, I put them on the show as much as I can. And where do they live? Nearby. Nearby. You know, I always said that one of the blessings of COVID, right? Yeah. If you didn't have tragedy. Yeah. Was that we were thrown together more with the family. Because that was your pod. Did they come and... Yes. They didn't live with us, but they were, you know. They were allowed to be in your, yeah.

18:34Exactly. And we were together almost every day. And so when your kids are in their 20s, well, they don't want to be with mom and dad. They should be out living their lives. Yeah, yeah. But, you know, my wife and I would evilly look at each other and go, hey, they can't go. We'd get them a little longer. But you know what happened? What? That feeling stuck. and people you're still you're very very close we got closer yeah and it's a gift and you were close to your own parents i was yeah yeah so what was that when you did you move away when they were still living in new york i did yeah so so we broke your parents heart no doubt they would come and visit us often i would visit them often yeah and we would travel together the whole family with the parents so where did you go uh they loved uh we came to london once we came to paris once we went to italy a couple of times yeah and then they we went up the coast of california with them we did all kinds of things you know why would they were still able i recommend it i recommend it to people whose parents might be a little older because the sad truth is none of us last forever i thought the special about your parents was so beautiful and you've got all your friends and family around to reminisce yes it must have been really hard I mean of course it's hard losing your parents yes they were such a part of the show as well you know and how that changed things for you because I loved how you talked about them being like it being like a postcard that's right and and just the fact that your mom could never really use that like when her eyes would be right up against It was just amazing.

20:20But, you know, it's been such a... You lost your parents. It's awful. But also them being part of this journey with you as well. I'm sorry that I'm still cooking. No, you're fine. It was a joy to do, to be honest. My brother and I are so happy that we had the opportunity to do it, that we had an excuse to do it, right? Yeah. Wouldn't you do it for your parents? I always say, if you had a deal with Netflix, you know what I mean? Yeah. I mean, I recommend... You deal with your brother as well. I mean, it's a full family. It is. But I realized when we finished it, we should have done this on our own.

21:04Or we would have done it on our own had we not had the deal with Netflix, right? And I recommend that people do something like that. some kind of filming of your folks telling their story for the grandkids, right? Yeah, definitely. I've served you up, Phil. Yes. And I've done like a half a sausage and I've done a half a black pudding. Look at that bread. That bread looks incredible. Oh, this is the most best. Have you ever been to Dusty Knuckle Bakery? No. You need to go. It's great. It's in Shoreditch. The greatest bakery in London, I think. Wow. Well, it came to me, didn't it? Yes, it did. I gotta try this hot bread while it's hot.

21:42But I have, I have... Oh, it's very hot. You're not kidding with the hot. Okay, that is like... Oh, look at that! That is very small. A full English. A full English. Have you had HP sauce before? I love it. Oh, great. Help yourself start eating relax.

22:04I've just thought I'd balance out the fact that I'm having Shabbos dinner later. Yes. With loads of pork. Jessie did her bat mitzvah just before Christmas. Oh! Age 38. My wife did her around that age. Really? She converted. Oh, right. Okay. Was it important for you to have her convert? No. It was important to my grandmother, who she became great friends with. Oh, that's lovely. My grandmother didn't want to meet Monica. Oh. Because... Less lovely. I told her I had a girlfriend. Yeah. First question. Is she Jewish? That's right. I said, no, not exactly. She says, oh. I said, I'd love for you to meet her.

22:48She said, I'd rather not. I said, really? You know, Oma, German for grandmother, I understand where you came from, and I understand you having this feeling, but that was a long time ago, and this is someone special to me, and I would love for you to meet her. and she really agonized over this and even talked to her daughter my mother about it and my mother told me later that she said do you want to lose your grandson over this she said no and so she met monica now i bring monica over for for dinner to my grandma's house i lived her apartment was around the corner from me in new york in washington heights i bring her i bring monica within five minutes she's enough i could have jumped off the roof they wouldn't have cared they were so close so fast and when my grandmother died i was in california working i had to work and the only person in the room with her holding her hand was monica that's how close they were yes very beautiful so my wife converted for her and she never asked her to convert and And how proud was your grandma?

24:06She was a little afraid for Monica. Why? She literally said, don't you know the world will hate you? Anti-Semitism. Yes. And she said, I love the religion. I love you. I love what you stand for. I love what you've been through. Right? So it was very meaningful. And, of course, I always say that the converts, they're the worst because they really get into it. and if you're raised in it you rebel against it because it was forced on you and they chose it so they are into it. That's such a... Yeah, it's like Gaga. My grandma was called Gaga and she converted and she had the biggest mug and dovid around her neck.

24:50She like wore it. You know, badge of honour. Proud. Proudly. Used the most Yiddish words out of anybody I knew. She used to say how do you say it in English? And she was, you know, born in Birmingham. Yeah. does monica ever get a bit resentful that she doesn't get to come away with you not at all in fact uh she comes when she can yeah i want her to come as much as she can i want the kids to come as much as they can i like the family feeling of the show i feel like it's a kind of a research library for you planning a vacation with your family absolutely and so i want to show that these are not exclusive vacations that only i can take once in a while i get some special treatment And it's obvious in the show that I'm getting into an experience that maybe not everyone can have.

25:39But most of the things are doable, not just for you, but with your family. That's what I like about it, because I was in Marrakesh at the weekend. So I watched the Marrakesh one, and it was really great. I've been to Marrakesh before, and sadly, I didn't get to eat as much of the food in the kind of soup in the Medina. Yeah. And then I watched yours after. Yeah. And I'd heard about Nomad, which is where you went and ate. Yes. But I loved the bit when you went and ate in the soup and you had the husband and wife. Yes. And you had the sandwich. It was mackerel. Yes. Or was it sardine? I think it was sardine.

26:14Yeah. And she was like, it's never going to work. And he was like, trust me. And everyone loved it. That's right. And I think the program is so brilliant because, yes, anyone can go to that place. Absolutely. However, you do have the more elevated dining experiences as well. Once a show, we like to show a splurge because I believe that's what a lot of people do on their vacation. They set aside one night for the splurge, right? Yeah. I mean, I just, you have the greatest job in the world. Oh, yeah. I'm so jealous of you. Yeah, we are. You should be. I slightly resent you, but you're really nice, so.

26:47But the whole point is, you can do it. I tell kids, this is what your money's for. After rent and food, save your money so that you can travel. and when I was 23 I had my first trip to Europe I got a courier flight I maybe had$200 to spend a courier flight people do that you carried something over and you got a free ticket yeah can you take this to England and needed to be looked after it's a little more formal than that this was a company called DHL which is yeah a giant company but before they were a giant company they would send their stuff as a passenger's excess baggage. Yeah. You would find out where you were going that week.

27:32You get a free flight, let's say, to Zurich. You get luggage tags. You never touch their stuff. You have luggage tags, and then you hand it off to the DHL guy at the end of the line. So when was your first trip? I think landed in Frankfurt, got right on a train, and went to Paris, met friends, and then took an overnight train to Florence. And in that cabin with us in third class was a couple named Dania and Dario, and they worked in the family bakery in Florence. And we stayed up all night with a cheap bottle of wine and talking, and I had the time of my life. They drew pictures in my journal of where I should go in Florence.

28:15They drew the Duomo. As if I was going to miss it. as if anyone could miss it when they walk into the center of Florence. But they also gave me the address to the family bakery. So, of course, the very first thing I did, because I love these two, he spoke no English, she spoke a little. But we had so much fun. All night. Yes. I love that. That I, by the way, that train ride from Paris to Florence, you go through the Alps. Oh, wow. And so the picture windows are just breakfast, watching the Alps go by. I mean, I recommend, when you're 23 and you come from New York City, You have no conception of what the world is and how beautiful it is outside.

28:52And I get to Florence, first stop, that bakery. And the father, who owns the bakery, he loved that I came from America. This was 1983. He says, America, John Wayne. John Wayne. Thumbs up, right? And he starts feeding me everything from the bakery. Then he tells his neighbors, the lady from next door at the trattoria, she comes with a bowl of pasta. Because why? Because an American boy is here. I mean, I couldn't believe that I was treated like a prince. They set up a table. They brought me chocolate. They brought me dessert. They brought me all this amazing food. I was treated like a king. And I was nobody.

29:29I was just a kid. How do you not fall in love with travel after that? Right? Donnie and Dario are my friends for 40 years. That's so wonderful. And it kind of feels like it was written in the stars for you, this whole your career and how it's ended up. Have you had any bad meals? Yes, of course. And that you haven't been able to put in the show. People say, it looks like you like everything. I say, yeah, I like everything I put in the show. Yeah, exactly. Right. Okay. Right? Yeah. So the things that I'm not crazy about, first of all, I'm not there to critique. I'm not there to ruin someone's business.

30:00No. I don't want to say this is bad. First of all, it's just one stupid guy's opinion. You might love it. So who am I to say this is bad? Yeah, it's true. There are occasions when I taste something that is terrible to me and my brother will keep it in because it's funny. Right. He thinks it's hilarious anytime I suffer in any way. So if I eat something like there was this thing, and I know it's a delicacy, and I would never want to insult a culture or offend anyone. But? But there's something in Chile called puree. Do you know what this is? Puree is a sea creature, and the chef who had given me fantastic food, he's one of the best chefs in South America, he cuts open this diseased-looking coral and pulls out the beating heart of this thing.

30:46It's an orange glop. And because he'd given me all this great food before... Yeah, come to mama. I put it right in my mouth. I'm not very smart because I couldn't even describe how powerful and terrible. And he says, it's like a punch in the face, isn't it? And I said, yes, it is. Thank you. I learned later because people wrote to me on Instagram that flavor that you can't describe, that animal, that sea creature, is very rich in iodine. In what? Iodine. So, of course, you're only supposed to have a tiny bit, and you're supposed to douse it in lime and chilies and salt and all these other things to mess the...

31:26I don't know. How cool. I don't know if he... Maybe it was such a delicacy. I guess it is, but in very small quantities. I also was stupid enough to do the same thing with a thousand-year-old egg in Hong Kong. Oh, she had that. I popped that in my mouth. A thousand-year-old. It's not really a thousand. It just tastes that way. The first thing you taste is very, very rotten egg. And the next thing you taste is ammonia. And I couldn't understand the appeal of this thing. Well, you're supposed to take a sliver of it and put it into the hot pot with 50 other ingredients. So it just has a touch of funkiness.

31:57Did they do that for you? No, they didn't. You ate it. So it's a hot pot restaurant. All these things are sitting on the table. And I thought we're supposed to taste them like appetizers. Oh, shit. So this one Chinese lady, she said, I'm not touching that. And she's Chinese from Hong Kong. Didn't that give you like a bit of a... Well, it's my job to taste. So I said, if you try it, I'll try it. And she was so tentative about... She put it on what looks like half a hardballed egg, except the white is a brownish orange and the yolk is a bluish green. Okay. And it looks radioactive. and she had half of it on her spoon and she wasn't going to eat it and I just took it and I said, here, I'll do it.

32:43And I put the whole thing in my mouth because I'm hilarious. Do you ever get stomach up sex? Yeah, sure. It made you feel bad. But the only time I ever got sick was in San Francisco. Oh. Going all over the world. Going to Bangkok street markets and Vietnam. What did you eat? You know, I don't know because I ate so many things that day And I think I didn't want to say where I got food poisoning in the show. I left it in my experience because that can happen. So I cut the place that I think I got it from. Listen, that's not fun. You've had it. Where do you stand on oysters? Love. I couldn't even put one in my mouth.

33:26No. I'd rather die. Really? An oyster. Oh, no. I've had some acid conditions. Jessie, you used to not like them and you've let me down now. Yeah, because my taste buds have matured, Mum. Jesus. You know, I believe that your taste buds change over time. And it's something you didn't like years ago, you might like now. Yeah, I used to not like watermelon. And now? I love it. Oh, that's great. I used to not like beets. And now? What child likes beets? Yeah. Right? And now I like them. Phil. Yes? I'm really enjoying having you here and I feel like I need to go on a trip with you or just come to LA and hang out with you.

34:04That'd be nice. Because that, I really, I trust you. Thank you. Did you ever meet Anthony Bourdain? I did. I had dinner with him once. How was that experience? I'll tell you, I was, I was, he's one of my idols. He's a superhero to me. He obviously reinvented an entire genre. And my show is, you know how I sold my show? I read what you said. I said, I'm exactly like Anthony Bourdain. if he was afraid of everything. And so my show is merely a take on the kind of show that he pioneered. But when I met him and got to have dinner, he was so much warmer than his on-screen persona. Yeah. He's very cool, right?

34:44He looks like a cool French film star. Right, he does. Where did you eat? We ate at a place in Greenwich Village, I believe, with the notorious Mario Vitale at the time. Yes. Oh, okay. Yes. That was my introduction to him. Did he order well? Did you let him order? Did you order? What happened? That's a good question. Is the food that memorable or more just the fact that he was just a rock star and really lovely? When you're with a hero like that, I think the food was secondary. I don't even remember. I know it was an American restaurant. I think there was steak involved. I honestly don't remember the food.

35:23Are you a big steak eater? I love it. I love everything. if i were to order yes or buy state what would you recommend to buy oh the most flavorful cut might be ribeye yeah i love ribeye yeah i love right but i love have you ever been a peter lugers in new york no oh but lots of people have talked about this in fact i think maybe in traeger talked about it yeah i hear it's amazing that's they bring porterhouse for two or three four or six people it's it's uh magnificent that's it we put that in the show too i brought massimo bottura and nancy silverton there oh no in the show yeah that was fantastic massimo went crazy mass and massimo turned me on to something that i didn't even know i should order there and it's their lamb chops they're the best i've ever okay that's the next stop it is a good stop so brooklyn have we talked about the places that you adore in los angeles to eat or they're like the regular places that your go.

36:20I love Mozart. We just mentioned that. I love Bevelle, Bestia. I love Pizzana. I love Republic. Have you been there yet? No. It might be the best overall restaurant because you can get the best breakfast, the best lunch, the best dinner. There's a diner in Maine. Have you been to Maine? No. Gorgeous part of the world. Yeah. New England. Is that where you get your lobsters? Your clam chowders. That's where you get your lobsters and you get it. But there's a diner that was an old railroad car from 100 years ago. And the conductor of the train loved the dining car so much that when the train went out of commission, he bought the dining car, put it in a vacant lot, and he had the chef from the train keep the same exact menu that was on the train.

37:02Oh, how funny. And it's basic American staples like eggs, bacon, omelets, French toast, pancakes, tuna sandwich, hamburger. Yeah. Okay, the basics. and when he died, a couple of chefs from the Gramercy Tavern in New York, fancy restaurant, they came, they bought the dining car, they kept the menu and elevated everything just through the best ingredients. Like the egg you just gave me, that yolk like that. Imagine that in an American dining car menu, right? To get that with just your bacon and eggs, it's unbelievable to have that. That's one of my favorite restaurants I've ever been to in my life.

37:43I would like to know your last supper. We got massive ball soup in there. Good. I think it would be these childhood favorites. So my childhood favorites are hot dogs. Hot dogs. Where from? Oh, I have a butcher that I found. It's called European Sausage Kitchen. It's on Olympic Boulevard. And it's like going to... My family came from Germany. And so when they settled in New York, they found a German butcher that was just like when they were kids. The sausages. And some of the meats are very unappealing, especially to children. I'm talking about large slices of bologna with blotches of fat in it, right?

38:23That's what we used to eat, vorscht. We called it vorscht, but it wasn't called that. It's like puce-colored. Yes. You ever had that color? It's almost like a... We call it vorscht. Okay. But that's just a bit. It's kosher. It's kosher. It's kosher. It's kosher. It's kosher. Yeah, but this is kosher salami we had. Yeah. It's very bright pink. Okay. No, I think he's... I like mortadella, but mortadella is the beautiful version of what I'm talking about. Okay, right, got it. And, you know, tongue, my dad's favorite. Me too. I like tongue. I've come to like it too. With a good, like, an American mustard in there, tongue sandwich.

38:59Delicious. It is delicious. And it's the stuff of delis, right? If you just forget, it's tongue. Well, that's most of the world's food culture. I can do a pressed tongue, you know. Yes. I've made it, yeah. it's really weird because you have to curl it round into like a basin and you put a weight on top to press it but the thing is you have to take off all that the taste buds it's revolting I think you're losing viewers by the second but I found a butcher in LA that makes turkey franks homemade so there's none of the guilt of the beef or pork and God knows what's in there. This is, you know, turkey's a very clean meat and it has a natural casing, so it has a snap, which is the most important thing in a hot dog.

39:51And these are my favorite hot dogs, actually. And not just because they're healthier than regular hot dogs, because they taste fantastic. Great. I love it. And what sort of bun do you have? And that's what I make for myself on the nights when I'm not going out or I'm just home by myself. Say, have a hot dog. Monica's working or something. Would that be your comfort food? Absolutely. I think once a week I have this. Really, I love it. Put sauerkraut on it. Mustard. A beautiful potato bun. I was going to ask you about your bun, whether you like a brioche bun. I like a potato bun. I've never heard of a potato bun.

40:28They're very soft, and they almost melt. Are they made with potato flour? I think they are. There's a famous company called Martin's. They make buns. for burgers and hot dogs. So you're not worried about your five a day of vegetables and fruit? I drink a green juice in the morning. Like, you know what the athletic greens are? No. They're sponsored by them. Is that true? We have them, yeah. Yeah. Hey, athletic greens, you could sponsor my podcast too, you know. I like you. You're welcome, Phil. Yes. We love athletic greens. I have it every morning. I'm not even kidding. And I'm not getting paid to say this.

41:05I'm used to the taste now. I think it tastes a little like a pineapple. Me too. Yes. But it's when you forget about the spirulina. Is it a powder? Do you buy it as a powder? Yeah, it's a powder. And you shake it up in their little bottle. What are you doing now? Okay, so listen. It is your birthday. Uh-oh. I'm going to move this away. Did I eat enough? I love this enough. Look, I finished a lot. This is Honey & Co. Where you should absolutely go and eat next time you're here. Israeli. It's Israeli. Yeah, there are a couple. Sarit. Sarit and Itamar. They're a couple and they have a beautiful restaurant and they have a deli.

41:40Anyway, they're fantastic. Because you're in London for your birthday, this is just like what every person has when they're in the office or if you've run out of time to make a cake. It's a Colin the Caterpillar. Where's the candle? I will get the candle and we will sing happy birthday in one second. I'm very familiar with this because I just did Chris Evans show. Don't say he just gave you a Colin the Caterpillar. Fuck off! Today! Today. Oh my god! Right before I came here. That is hysterical. And also how unoriginal of me. No, it was my first meeting with Colin. Do you want to take him home?

42:14No, because I'm not living here. But I got to get a picture. I didn't get a picture there. But this is Colin the Caterpillar. The children love it. You want to take either the head or the tail of the Caterpillar because that's where the chocolate is most concentrated. That's where my grandchildren fight to get the head or the thing. I've got a P for Phil. Oh, aren't you sweet. Look at that. Are we going to sing? Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday, dear Phil. Happy birthday to you. Make a wish, Phil. Did you make a wish? He's wishing he never sees a Colin the Caterpillar again.

43:00Wait, come here one second. What are you going for? Bend over. Oh, you're so sweet I love you Would you like a smidge of the babka then? Yes Take Colin away I miss her smidge You know what, I want the kids to have it Phil, you're so polite at declining food It's really amazing It's an art that you've obviously learnt how to do Because I want the kids to have it Do you think you maybe take out the Tim, darling? It might help Help yourself, Phil Thank you And you do not have to eat all of it Here I go How is it? Come on. Is it babka? I love babka. Okay, so here's the thing. It's a sexy babka, isn't it?

43:41Because most babkas I've had in my life are dry. No, this is not dry. You've been to Israel? Yes, I have. When you get the ruggler there. This is the best babka. It's moist like this and gooey and chocolatey. Oh, my God, Jesse. It's so fantastic, right? It's so yeasty. This is, I'm eating this whole thing. This is delicious. I mean, I'm thrilled, but, you know, I just sliced over. Well, you've got to go to their restaurant. It's the most delicious food. I'm not eating this whole thing. I want to eat this whole thing. So we've got, I want to know a really nostalgic taste of your childhood or somewhere that can transport you back to somewhere.

44:18Because mom wasn't a world-class chef. That's so sweet. We used to beg to go to McDonald's. We used to beg for fast food. I would come home after school. Let's say it was 3 o 'clock, 3.30. My mother wouldn't get home until 5.30, 6 o 'clock. So I had a couple of hours to eat cookies and donuts. First of all, I loved it, but it was also a bit of self-preservation because I knew dinner was going to be not very easy to eat. Is that why your program is called Somebody Feed Phil? You know, psychologically that might be why, but I just thought it was a funny title as if it denotes a character that needs to be taken care of.

44:58Also, the theme tune is beautiful. It's the best. It's the best. You know Lake Street Dive? Do you know the band? No. Oh, well, you're a singer. You have to know this band. I just love her. Her voice. You never heard of Rachel Price? No, I'm so sorry, Rachel. That's okay. You please go on iTunes or Spotify today, everyone listening, and look up Lake Street Dive, because it's not just my theme song, which I think is the best song in the world. Yeah. They are phenomenal. They met in music school and they formed a pop group. But Rachel can sing literally anything. She's a favorite of Stephen Colbert's on all the time.

45:39She does jazz albums with somebody else. Rachel Price, everybody. Okay. Back to cookies and donuts. Cookies and donuts. You knew you weren't going to get a good meal from your mom. So that's a nostalgic thing. Do you have the brand Entenmann's here? No. No, but I've seen it. Baked goods in a box. in a box. Every Jewish home has a box of Entenmann's on the top of the refrigerator. And I used to covet their chocolate-covered donuts. Absolutely delicious. So that's a memory. I'm saying all the things. Not only is it the meal that you're talking about, but it would be the last meal. Hot dogs, hamburgers, pizza, fried chicken.

46:20Where's your favorite fried chicken? I think the best I ever had was at Dookie Chase's in New Orleans. People talk about Willie Mays. That's very good. But my favorite is Dookie Chase's because it's not as much batter. It's quite fast food-y, that last supper. Hot dogs, hamburgers, pizza, fried chicken. Pudding? I mean, dessert? I love anything chocolate. I love anything chocolate. And drink of choice? We'll let you have the head if you want. What's your drink of choice? I love tequila. Any type? Have you had a drink yet for your birthday? I haven't, but I'm good. Are you sure? Jesse's got great tequila.

46:56I have so much work to do after this. I don't want to be saying you like tequila too. I've got into it. I talked about them before in the last season, but there's a South London, which absolutely should not make sense, that a South London bunch are doing a really nice tequila. No kidding. They suggest it with tonic and a slice of grapefruit, and I really like that. It's like a gin and tonic. What's the name of the tequila? El Rayo. Never heard of it. Have you heard of Tepezon? No. So I learned about this, that a lot of the tequilas that we love, the flavors are added. The flavors are, yeah, there's additives in it.

47:31And it happens in wine as well. They just don't tell you about it because if it's less than a certain amount, they don't have to. And so almost everything we like is fake. Isn't that terrible to learn? It's not fake. But there is a website where you can go on and see which tequilas are additive free. And so I look for those now. Yeah, Tepozan. Can I just ask you, when you came in, you said don't put milk in tea because it ruins the... No, it kills the polyphenols. I learned this in Hong Kong. Why do you want polyphenols in your life? These are the nutritive and medicinal properties of tea. That's why it's like one of the world's healthiest drinks is tea.

48:09But when you add milk, it destroys that. However, if you like it with milk, you should have it that way because it makes your life better. Is there any other way to get these poly thingy boxes? Probably a supplement. Okay. And do we need them? What do they do for you? I have no idea. Does it make you look young forever? You don't need it. Okay, thanks. Me and Gaga. Yeah. Me and Gaga. Yeah. Listen, enjoy your dinners out in Los Angeles. Have you been to Greece yet? No, I'm dying to go. You've got to do that. That's our favourite. Come meet me there. Oh, yeah. Let's talk about you investing in...

48:46Are you allowed to talk about it or not? I'll talk about it. Which ones are you invested in? Many, many. I'm in over 25 restaurants. I can't even keep track. I'm not very bright. That's like the most stressful industry. It is. Do you feel kind of a responsibility because you've enjoyed so many good meals that you felt like... I was doing this before the show. Oh, wow. Okay. Listen, I'm very lucky. Raymond was successful. I have some extra money to share. And my wife and I have a foundation where we support the arts. the arts in schools music theater dance the visual arts everything and for me what you just did is one of the arts right thanks mate it's true and why should our sense of taste be regarded as anything less than our sense of sight or hearing right yeah i mean i nothing brings me more joy than food right music and food but when i travel yes i love going to the museums yes i love the culture on the streets i love the street art i love everything i love everything about what i do but the food is you are literally taking in the culture and the spirit of the people right and the love that goes into that and i think when it's great it affects all the senses i always tell this story about and i bet you can relate to this you have a bottle of wine in italy over over dinner and you and your husband let's say this is the best wine we ever had can you believe how great this wine is right let's buy a case and we'll take it home we'll have it at home and you take it home and you're saving it for a special occasion and now you pop open that bottle of wine you pour it and here we go we're back to it's okay yeah i know because why everything that you're feeling seeing hearing smelling the air the temperature the what you're looking at who you're with affects literally your taste right so you can have a have it as a souvenir but it will never be as good or as beautiful as the time you had it when you were there.

50:50That's why you have to go. That's why you have to travel. There is nothing better than some rosé wine, at-hagnandus eating grilled fish. When are you filming the next season? I don't know if there is a next season. What do you mean? We don't know everything. You need to go to Greece. Of course I do. You need to go to India. The good thing is I can go on my own if they cancel my show. That's true. And so can you, everybody. You can all go. That's what life is for. Listen, people who don't travel, I'm talking to you. Let's say you were given a house as a gift, a whole house. Would you stay in one room at a house?

51:26Okay. We want to see all the rooms, right? So we have this gift. It's called the world. Go check it out. It's true. While you're still here. Phil, thank you so much for being on our podcast. I love you guys. I love you. Now we're friends. and now I think at the very least I owe you a meal. That is absolutely calling you up. We're with you on that. Thank you for being here. I loved meeting you guys. That was the best part. As good as all the food was, the best part was meeting you. Thank you, Phil. Thank you.

52:13I feel healed. I feel hugged. I feel hugged. I feel, ah, that was a really good dose of Phil Rosenthal. He's a kind, warm man. He's very, very lovely. And I love the fact that kind, sweet people can be on television and be very successful. Very positive. Positive, generous, but quite honest, you know, also has the best tips. He's like my dream husband, my dream person to go out with. I'm not sure that you'd like his last meal, though. No, that was... Hot dogs, it was a bit disappointing. But I do want to go to that place now. Which place? The place he talked about, the turkey frankfurter place.

52:55Oh, where you can get them? And a potato bun I'd like to try one. Does anybody in London do a potato roll? Or a turkey frankfurter? You can buy turkey sausages. I wonder if there's anyone doing turkey frankfurters. Because frankfurters are slightly cooked, aren't they, before you eat them. They are a good little nifty thing to have. I think you can get kosher turkey frankfurters. Okay, great. I'll go to Kosher Kingdom this weekend. Okay, great, thanks. Phil has not only done Chris Evans, who pipped me to the post with the column of the caterpillar, which I'm very gutted about. Did you think you were a little original, darling?

53:28I just thought... He didn't have a pee on his, though. He set me up, though, Phil, because he went, what is this? And then he fucking knew what it was. He'd had it two hours earlier in the bloody radio. But he's not eaten any. He didn't actually eat any. He's very good at not eating. His willpower is unbelievable. I couldn't. But he's very slim, Jess, for someone with a food programme. I wouldn't be. I'd eat everything. I'd be like Pavarotti. But me too. But he is someone who's eating about five meals a day. So he'd start off at breakfast. He'd gone for a cheese toastie. Which he probably had one mouthful.

54:04But you know what? I think we all need to try that cheese toastie now. it sounded like caramelized leeks mixed i'm not quite sure that you get cheese that oozes right through the bread when you melt it i think you've got to trust phil okay we'll trust phil better trust phil somebody feed phil better better cool so you're getting all your okay so what's the other raymond everybody loves raymond everyone loves the cheese toasty everyone loves phil everyone loves Phil because Phil really doesn't eat anything and his lovely agent is gluten intolerant celiac I have enough fry up for we can have it tomorrow really do you think just heat it up yeah fine just microwave it I have a lot of beans do you think little chef made everything fresh it's all done I did think they did no were you wrong please send in your recipes I'm really I mean I did a fry up today I'm running out of ideas please send them to hello at tablemannerspodcast.com we will do one on this series we may even do two thanks for listening and we'll see you next week we won't see anyone Jessie we'll be talking to you next week it's just a bloody sign off ok darling