Somebody Feed Phil: Season 1 (All Episodes)
June 18, 2018 7:23 AM - Season 1 (Full Season) - Subscribe

“My little joke that I make whenever I talk about my show is when I sold the show to Netflix I said I’m exactly like Anthony Bourdain if he was afraid of everything. My show is a take on his type of show but just to say that means that he invented an entire genre. I want to dedicate, not this episode, my entire series to him.” - Phil Rosenthal.

The creator of Everybody Loves Raymond takes his cheerful, boyish enthusiasm on the road trying foods and meeting people from all over the world. He doesn't have the culinary background of your average food show host, just boundless enthusiasm and an open mind. He doesn't have the contextualized perspective of a career journalist, just a neverending supply of cheerful, non-snarky good humor.
posted by DirtyOldTown (15 comments total) 8 users marked this as a favorite
 
Phil is SO MUCH FUN! I want to be his friend and travel around the world and eat food with him.

He also lead me and my wife to discuss where in the world we'd like to live, which was unexpected.
posted by filthy light thief at 7:49 AM on June 18, 2018


He's like a mix of Albert Brooks and the sweetest, most wide-eyed twelve year-old kid.

This is maybe the sunniest, happiest show on Netflix. Watching it is restorative.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 7:58 AM on June 18, 2018 [2 favorites]


Two bits in the opening episode sold me on him for life. The first was him seeing how large the seafood stew he and his on-camera guest were given and pausing the shoot to share it with the entire crew. The second was him finding out that the woman arranging travel for him had never eaten at the restaurant she was getting him a reso for--which is oft-cited as the very finest in Asia--and taking her along with him. His generosity of spirit is irresistible.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 8:01 AM on June 18, 2018 [1 favorite]


The New Orleans episode singlehandedly convinced me to choose that city as the destination for my recent vacation. I tried to hit as many of the eating spots highlighted in the show as possible and every one I tried was absolutely amazing. (In particular, Dooky Chase's and Willie Mae's.) I am now a lifelong fan of this wonderful town and plan to go back as often as possible. Thanks, Phil!
posted by Atom Eyes at 8:41 AM on June 18, 2018 [2 favorites]


There was a previous incarnation of this on PBS called "I'll Have What Phil's Having," if you're interested in more.
posted by dnash at 9:06 AM on June 18, 2018 [3 favorites]


Whenever I feel bad I put this or the PBS show on. I love Phil Rosenthal so much. He's so earnest and so joyful about everything and it's awesome. You cannot be sad while watching Phil. And his parents! They're so adorable.

Phil was recently on Pete Holmes' You Made It Weird podcast and it was as joyous as you can imagine.
posted by elsietheeel at 6:35 AM on June 19, 2018 [1 favorite]


I must be the outlier here, because Mrs Major and I LOVED "I'll Have What Phil's Having" and devoured it quickly.
We were super enthusiastic when this show came out, and man - we absolutely hated it and that saddened us.
To us, it's as if they took everything that was pure and endearing and quirky about "I'll Have..." and deliberately dialed it up to outrageous levels that just seemed contrived.
Maybe it's the writing, maybe it's the editing, I have no idea, but yeah, we were sad.
posted by Major Matt Mason Dixon at 10:06 AM on June 19, 2018 [1 favorite]


I thoroughly enjoyed both series. I think this more recent one tries to push the boat out a little bit more than the original to be maybe a bit more like Tony Bourdain's show (though in a more deliberately amusing way), but I didn't think it took away at all from the overall appeal. I hope there's another season in the works.

Phil is SO MUCH FUN! I want to be his friend and travel around the world and eat food with him.

Seconded. I would be devastated to discover that he's actually a bastard to work with or something.
posted by briank at 12:54 PM on June 19, 2018


I used to listen to Phil on Adam Carolla's podcast. His optimism was a much needed contrast to Adam's beer fueled anger.
posted by riruro at 11:12 AM on June 20, 2018


He appeared in Matt Besser's improv4humans podcast recently and performed in sketches alongside improv greats Andy Daly and Katie Dippold. A fun listen.
posted by Atom Eyes at 2:31 PM on June 20, 2018


Season 2 of Somebody Feed Phil drops on Netflix this coming Friday, the 6th!
posted by elsietheeel at 9:18 AM on July 1, 2018 [1 favorite]


I am loving this. He's like a Lawful Good version of Larry David.
posted by turbid dahlia at 9:45 PM on July 15, 2018 [3 favorites]


I watched this whole series with the family, and we enjoyed it overall, especially the Buenos Aires episode, as we have a bit of a special connection to the city* but I pretty much agree with Eater's take on the show. What were they even thinking with that theme song?

*Possible TMI Warning: It's where our daughter was conceived.
posted by Rock Steady at 12:12 PM on August 6, 2018


I'll definitely look at the PBS predecessor, but I popped in on the NYC and Tel Aviv episodes yesterday and enjoyed them way more than I thought I would! It definitely had a lot less substance (to me) than Parts Unknown, for instance, but I don't think it's going for that.

I don't disagree with any of the points raised by Eater (although the theme song is fine) – for me the charm and lightness of it all pulls it above "rich Hollywood guy with money goes places".
posted by hijinx at 5:11 AM on August 15, 2018


I enjoyed both seasons of Somebody Feed Phil, and I’ll Have What Phil’s Having before it. I appreciated his overall joyful, accepting attitude; he just seemed just delighted to be exposed to new cultural experiences.
And after I finished the available episodes I listened to some podcasts Phil was on; mostly enjoyable. But most recently I listenened to him on “you make it weird with Pete Holmes”. And there was a chunk 45 min in where he talked about the writer’s room at Everybody Loves Raymond and how it was SO hilarious that one writer would feign sex with another who was asleep on a couch. That this was transgressive humor that was OK in a writers room, but maybe wouldn’t have been so OK with a woman. And that this sort of humor was (implied to be) part of why Raymond was so cool.
But it was never cool! (Show OR sort of humor). And what he describes so blithely is very offputting. I can’t help but unfavorably compare to the recent Good Place podcast, which has various writers/actors/etc on the podcast; great show, and all of the people involved describe an interesting, non-abusive working environment.
Anyways. I still enjoy his recent shows, and obviously they are not comparable to The Good Place. But I think it is interesting to compare the showrunning and consider how times are (hopefully) changing.
posted by maryrussell at 6:53 PM on August 22, 2018


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