The professional foodie talks season 5 of his Netflix show, plus his new podcast and upcoming book.
It’s a big, big world.
Somebodys gotta eat it.
‘Somebody Feed Phil The Book’ published by Simon & Schuster.
Speaking withPhil Rosenthal, even just over the phone, is like receiving a warm hug.
And boy does he meet a lot of people.
ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: Why did you want to start this jot down of travel and food show?
‘Naked Lunch’ podcast hosted by Phil Rosenthal and David Wild.
What sparked your interest?
PHIL ROSENTHAL:When I was a kid, we never went anywhere.
And it was my first time on a plane from New York.
And this was the most delicious, fantastic thing I’d ever had in my whole 9-year-old life.
We got them every day and that awakened a sense of traveling in me.
It was just that simple, stepping out of your neighborhood to try something else.
What’s your favorite place that you’ve traveled to?
I’m going to say Italy.
I went to Paris and then took an overnight train to Florence.
They barely spoke English.
Especially these kids, who I remained friends with my entire life!
And that was 1983.
The best part of traveling is meeting people and making friends, that’s everything.
This season you travel to Oaxaca, Maine, Helsinki, Portland, and Madrid.
Viewers are in for a treat with the Oaxaca episode; you ate lots and lots of bugs.
Oaxaca is one of my absolute favorite places that I’ve been.
It’s the most colorful, beautiful, spectacular place with amazing food.
But yes I was a little scared.
Now I’m not seeking out bugs to eat, this is not my idea of a great time.
I never want to insult or act like I’m not appreciative of somebody’s cuisine.
This is their cuisine, they grew up with this and they love it.
You went to a Russian restaurant in Portland called Kachka, and met the chef Bonnie Morales.
Isn’t that incredible?
This is what you get.
You start talking about the food and of course it goes into family and tradition and stories.
And I got that wonderful story from her.
The other thing, I know it’s not fashionable right now to like anything Russian.
But the Russian people aren’t attacking Ukraine, this is their government.
These nice Russian people don’t condone this war or anything about it.
We had a wonderful time, we just didn’t have time for it in the show.
But these are now bonus scenes that I put onphilrosenthalworld.com.
Let’s say you wanted to go to Portland on a vacation.
You wouldn’t have to sit there and write down everything you see in the show.
It’s all listed there for you with links to every place, their websites and their phone numbers.
So you could make reservations right there.
I haven’t been to India yet.
I’m dying to go there.
I haven’t been to Australia or New Zealand on the show yet.
It’s a big, big world.
Somebody’s gotta eat it.
You know, I’m a terrible liar.
I’m blessed or cursed with this face.
I can’t even play poker.
I’m always polite when I don’t like something, unless it’s so awful.
It’s not really a thousand-years-old, it just tastes that way.
The first thing you taste is very, very, very rotten egg.
And then you taste ammonia.
The theme song for your show is incredibly catchy.
How did that song come to be?
I said I have this show and I would love a theme song from you.
They said yes, what do you want to do?
So, I wrote down some lyrics and then they made them better.
And then they added that tune and I think it’s the best song ever written.
You have a new podcast calledNaked Lunch.
What can listeners expect from it?
So my friend, David Wild, is a journalist withRolling Stone.
Him and I have been having lunches for like 25 years.
And because we’re having lunch, let’s call itNaked Lunch.
AndSomebody Feed Phil The Bookis available for pre-order now and will be released on October 18.
Yes, it’s a companion book to the show with behind the scenes stories and photos.
Everything from four-star dining down to street food.
What can fans expect from the new season ofSomebody Feed Phil?
I just want to turn you on to the stuff I like and I want you to travel.
Somebody Feel Philis streaming now on Netflix.
