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Oh, the whole surface is on my tongue. The whole surface.
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Oh, this is on that wing.
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Hey, what's going on everybody?
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For First We Feast, I'm Sean Evans and you're watching Hot Ones.
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It's the show with hot questions and even hotter wings.
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And today we welcome Adam Richman back to the hot seat.
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He's the Travel Channel legend you know from shows like Man v.
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Food and the best-selling books America the Edible and Straight Up Tasty.
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These days you can catch him on UK TV's Supper Man and the Adam Richman's Quest for the Best YouTube channel.
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Adam Richman, welcome back to the show. What's going on, buddy? Good to see you. Good to see you, too.
0:41
And you know, you've taken on some of the spiciest challenges in the world including Hot Ones a time before.
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Is it like riding a bike or you feeling some trepidation coming in here?
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No, like some of these sauces are like riding a bike without a seat.
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It's It's tough and in fact, I want to let everybody know that last dab, I thought I could just use like a little bit cuz the one that we did was really flavorful.
1:04
This newest one was like that'll take paint off your house.
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So, I am legit terrified about this season's last dab.
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This This joint right here. Oh boy, scary. Okay, the classic.
1:30
How much How much is like the amount you you say to add, Sean?
1:36
Well, you know, in uh these quarantine episodes, guys have been just dumping sauce all over the wing.
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So, my only like piece of advice is for the love of God, be careful. Okay, I respect that. Oh, Jesus Christ.
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Well, this one's now going to be a component in all the rest of the wings. Okay.
2:02
We're getting slathery, people. We're slathered. Mhm.
2:13
So, the pandemic has been a monumental challenge for pretty much every sector, but especially the hospitality industry, which has not only had to fight to survive, but also serve as de facto public health officials trying to figure out how to reopen.
2:24
As someone who understands the restaurant business better than most, are there things that stand out to you that maybe the public doesn't fully understand when it comes to the problems facing restaurants right now?
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Um I think that people don't realize how many factors go into the restaurant.
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They think that, you know, the point of sale is where the restaurant experience kind of begins and ends, but it starts at the supply chain.
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There was an issue in Upstate New York where farmers who were used to restaurants buying their produce, buying in bulk, and then suddenly, you know, things go to waste.
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So, there's a lot and the restaurant owners are really up against it.
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And so, any initiative you can find to help the hospitality workers, I say go for it.
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And then this next question is not so much about picking favorites, but more about supporting indie restaurants in general.
3:16
As a Brooklyn OG, are there three iconic Brooklyn establishments that you think need to be protected at all costs because of their cultural significance? Can I give five? Can I give five?
3:27
Sharon, I I know I did this with you with my hip hop Mount Rushmore, and I'm always like give this guy a foot, takes a mile, but um I'm going to say Brennan and Carr, the roast beef spot on Nostrand Avenue, Randazzo's for the best calamar on Emmons Avenue, Junior's Junior's cheesecakes, you got to protect Spumoni Gardens, and uh Nathan's.
3:53
I'm feeling very, very good, which means that by the time I hit the sauces at this end, I'm in very big trouble. Also really good. Sour.
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It's almost like I got a pickle juice vibe. But I'm into it.
4:13
So last time you were on the show, we talked about some of the obvious parallels between Man v.
4:16
Food and Hot Ones, but what's been even more fascinating to me is the way the Adam Richman name has been woven through the fabric of Hot Ones in the time since.
4:24
As an Anglophile, how big a deal was it for you that Noel Gallagher gave you a cosign?
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That's not a guy who hands out compliments very easily.
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That was and then you were kind enough, thank you.
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It meant a lot that you were like, "Shout out Adam Richman, he's a friend of mine."
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And I remember he goes, "Is he?" Oh, the [ __ ] dude.
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And like, What's the Story Morning Glory?
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was a huge album for me personally.
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So the fact that you exist in the consciousness of the mind of someone who's affected your life so profoundly, just I don't know I was I was I was chuffed to bits. I was really proud.
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And I have to say the fact that he sort of it's unfortunate he, you know, maybe threw shade on the reboot, but the fact that he was more with my version of MVF than the newer meant a lot to me, too.
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Especially because Man v.
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Food was such a personal project for me that the notion of someone else doing it kind of hurts sometimes.
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Hey, I understand what you're saying exactly.
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When uh Complex inevitably replaces me with like Peter Rosenberg or some [ __ ] I'm going to be dancing on the grave, too. Come on, man.
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I'm I'm going to be and then I start a band with my imaginary Mancunian brother.
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I'm going to come on and go, "Yeah, I don't really care for the new guy.
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No No No respect, you know, disrespect whoever you are, but Mhm.
5:46
Habanero is the one that always you up a little bit, though.
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And yeah, you're not just having a meal with your buddy Sean, dude.
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You're doing an episode of Hot Ones.
5:52
Habanero's always the one that's like, "Hi, remember me?
5:58
See you in a little bit with that hickory hole."
6:01
From a culinary perspective, is the food in British soccer stadiums ahead or behind what they serve here in the United States? It's very much behind.
6:08
I think the dining sensibilities of an American sports goer or the dining sensibilities of the average football fan are a little different.
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Cuz when it's like pie and chips or like burgers and stuff like that, it's really all that's wanted. Maybe fish and chips. Oh, the drool is coming. The drool is coming.
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Um in America, we have restaurant tours curating everything.
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We've got the Danny Meyers of the world.
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Oh, I went to see a ball game in San Francisco, and they have like hydroponic herbs growing.
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Denmark's national soccer team houses the world's only stadium restaurant that has a Michelin star.
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It's called Geranium, and it dishes out new Nordic cuisine.
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What do you think about that?
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Like, is that visionary or is that pretentious? I think mhm. It's a great question.
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I think if it brings in new fans to the game, it's visionary.
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If it's just like, "Oh my god, this place is so elite and then so whatever."
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and then ignoring the match, then I feel it's like pretense.
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But when you have great players like Christian Eriksen who's like a once-in-a-life once-in-a-generation type player, why would you why would you piss off piss off an opportunity to to see him play, you know?
7:26
All right, hotter than L.
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I will say once again, shouts to Hot Ones and First We Feast.
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These are like all flavor and then the heat.
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Like the flavor on that's really really really good.
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But now that one's like a lower heat.
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That one's sort of like right in here.
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Ironically enough, it's right below the skull. Woohoo!
7:47
You know how a Noel Gallagher compliment means more cuz it's coming from Noel Gallagher?
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A hot sauce curation compliment from Adam Richman means more because it's coming from Adam Richman.
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Show Nevin's the [ __ ] dude.
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So in 2019, you took part in History Channel's non-fiction mini-series The Food That Built America, which highlighted the food barons and empire builders that for better or worse shaped the way our country eats.
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Is there a historical event or movement that you think disproportionately affected the way Americans eat today? That's a great question.
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I think to a degree World War II because you had canning was so prevalent for rations.
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Um famously in Cleveland, uh Chef Hector Boyardi, yes, Chef Boyardee, whose facilities had gone initially canning sea rations for military, suddenly, you know, was using it to make canned shelf-stable pasta.
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And little-known fact, Cheetos, the way those were created, the guy bought a for a song powdered cheese from the army.
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When the war ended, they had an abundance of this powdered cheese.
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So he made an extruded puffed corn snack and then tossed it in like government powdered cheese.
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So I think that the rapid industrialization of the World War II era and I think the surplus of canning, shipping lanes, even things like powdered cheese, I think is a pretty big thing.
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But also, I got to tell you, I think this quarantine is going to change a whole lot of things.
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I think as people move out of urban centers, people like I'm grow I have a garden now, people growing their own thing, baking their own bread.
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I think shit's going to be very different.
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You know it's good cuz it's got the logo on it. It's very tasty.
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You guys did a great job. It's really good. Thank you, Adam.
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It felt like a Caribbean one. All right, Adam.
9:50
As you're acutely aware, we have a recurring segment on our show called Explain That Gram where we do a deep dive on our guest's Instagram, pull interesting pictures that need more context.
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I'll keep my answers shorter this time.
10:01
What was it like chatting about motorcycles with Keanu Reeves? Woah. Woah. So cool.
10:08
He was incredibly kind and incredibly sweet, and he liked my jokes about comparing his bikes to Voltron, and asking if he was a fan of Eero Saarinen's architecture cuz of the lines of the bike.
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And literally, he would do things like I was saying, "Cuz your bike reminds me of Eero Saarinen."
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And he would turn around, look at me, and look away, and go, "Architecture." That was so dope.
10:30
But he was really lovely, and he was really patient.
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And then I think people were like taking advantage with the pictures, and he was like, "Hasta la pasta."
10:42
Why was meeting Jeff Goldblum one of the best days of your life? Oh. Yeah, Sean. Oh, I mean.
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No, he is the [ __ ] I did a lot of research on him.
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So when I was walking off stage, I'll never forget this.
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I had, you know, checked my mise en place, make sure the stove was good.
11:00
I came down off the stage, and there's there's Jeff Goldblum like coming up.
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And he goes, "Oh, if it isn't my friend Mr. Adam Richmond."
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And I went, "If it isn't 412's finest," which is Pittsburgh's area code.
11:13
I go, "If it isn't 412's finest." He goes, "Oh, 412. I mean, Pittsburgh. Yes. Yes."
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And he couldn't be warmer, couldn't be nicer, said, "Take my number, responds to my text."
11:27
And ironically enough, I don't know if you can see it in this camera but that right there.
11:33
It's not like I had a gang tattoo removed from my former my former gang career.
11:40
That is a burn that I sustained during that cooking demo because someone had turned the heat up.
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And I refer to it as my Jeff Goldblum tattoo.
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So he references it in the text he sends me and stuff.
11:51
But a nicer guy there is none.
11:53
An unbelievable piano player and the guy's got fashion sense to burn to burn. Best.
12:06
I I still talk about it like what an honor it was to give you your very well deserved Webby Award.
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And ironically enough subsequent to your well deserved win you know cuz think about it.
12:17
You were winning on the same night as Hasan Minhaj and Issa Rae and Desus and Mero and That was a nice night.
12:24
And you're a very sweet you're a very sweet to give the speech Adam. I I appreciate it. I was honored to do it. And it it was funny.
12:31
I've I've become somewhat friendly with the kid Mero and I told him I said I was backstage to give you know your your award and there's Michael Douglas and stuff and I you know [ __ ] Gordon Gekko and I'm like "It's the Bodega boys."
12:43
I was so that night was amazing and then I got to meet the great Tierra Whack which I no complaints. Okay. This is SeaFire Gourmet.
12:55
SeaFire come out of my ass.
12:58
Who's Who thinks I'm sexy and I All right. Oh boy.
13:08
Yep, things are changing around here.
13:11
So since the Travel Channel and Food Network wave that you were a part of there's been an absolute explosion in food programming from celebrities launching their own YouTube channels to shows like Ugly Delicious and Salt Fat Acid Heat trending on Netflix.
13:22
As an OG in this space, what excites you about the current landscape of food entertainment, and what makes you want to roll your eyes? Okay, whoa.
13:33
I want to be able to talk This is like the first time I'm legitimately like How many more do I have left? Three? This was rough, Sean. I ain't going to play.
13:47
I'm trying to do the too much milk like a little [ __ ] Okay, what excites me?
13:52
To me, I've always felt that if food becomes the domain of the well-heeled, the hyper-educated, then we're all kind of hopelessly screwed.
14:03
Action Bronson doing [ __ ] That's Delicious, the great Reina Scully who's on First We Feast doing Gochi Gang, having new voices provides different access points.
14:12
You bring a new audience in.
14:16
If you get, you know, someone that lives in Washington Heights that's of Dominican or Puerto Rican descent seeing Reina breaking down tonkatsu and um the intricacies and the wonderfulness of Japanese flavors that can be found in Manhattan, and it makes this person expand their culinary horizons, dope.
14:37
And especially if it's done in the way that Reina does it, in the way that Action does it, where it's fun and it's a celebration.
14:44
What makes me roll my eyes is when it's this rich person or this influencer is now just trying to diversify their platform.
14:52
Like, "I'm known for makeup tutorials, but I also really love food."
15:00
Oh, that's the whole half without my huh. The whole surface. Oh, that's not fun. Huh.
15:12
Oh, this is such a bad idea. That's a lot.
15:16
That's That's a That's a too much? Well, you tell me.
15:21
been saying that people have been drenching it.
15:22
How are people going to be like, "Yo, Adam Richmond's a little bitch."
15:25
Yeah, yeah, but but we but but I feel like it's been too Ooh.
15:41
So, urban gardening has been all the mode in recent years and in these quarantine times, having that outdoor space, it's really a premium.
15:47
And it seems like you've been really embracing the green thumb these days.
15:52
What are you growing in your garden?
15:55
I'm growing basil, two kinds of basil, spearmint and peppermint, oregano, rosemary, jalapeño peppers, which I'm going to I'm going to burn every single one of them when this is finished.
16:09
Man, this is a [ __ ] show right here, right now.
16:12
Ooh, it's like Deontay Wilder just like teed up a actually more like What uh Ooh, like it's There are a lot of bizarre do-it-yourself gardening tips that range from, you know, giving seedlings a spot of chamomile tea tea to prevent fungi or leaving a can of beer out to attract slugs away from the plants.
16:31
Are you doing anything outside the box with your garden?
16:37
It may be a little [ __ ] up, but I think it's actually quite holistic.
16:41
I found a a dead bird in my garden and I felt I was like traumatized by it.
16:47
Like I felt horrible that it had happened and um I dug up one of the pots and I had just gotten a bunch of bulbs.
16:57
My mom and I actually gave it a little bit of a bird funeral over FaceTime.
16:59
I planted soil and fertilizer over it and put the bulbs in and I must say those plants, those flowers are growing at an exponential rate to everything else. Ooh, boy.
17:12
Oh, man, is this the same [ __ ] that we had the last time? Yep. Yep.
17:18
Be careful with that one now.
17:20
Isn't this the one that like Neil deGrasse Tyson was like This one's bad.
17:25
This one There are so many experiences on this one on the way.
17:31
Neil deGrasse Tyson knows what he's talking about with that one.
17:33
Be very careful with that one. this one.
17:35
This was the one that I was just like This has no flavor. This is just penance.
17:47
Oh, [ __ ] All right, whatever. I'm in it. I'm in it. Here we go. Yep. That was a lot.
18:13
So, you've cooked with E-40, you've cooked with Mike D, and you understand the cooking bonafides of people like Action Bronson and Trick Daddy.
18:19
Which rapper do you think has the best real deal chops in the kitchen? That's a great question.
18:25
Probably Action though, cuz he was an actual chef.
18:29
And um he's got you know, he's got a lot of um culinary experience. He has a cookbook.
18:40
And um he also picks up on a lot of details as he travels. Oh, wow.
18:46
That one That one's really [ __ ] after the other ones. Um Oh, man. Ooh.
18:55
Action, like he's aware of things like you need to put a cork in with the octopus cuz it works enzymatically to tenderize it.
19:02
Little things like that might escape uh someone that isn't a culinarian's eye. Oh.
19:09
That was really bad, dude.
19:11
A hot debate throughout the history of First We Feast has always been about the best rap food lyrics.
19:17
I know your brain's on fire right now and your mouth is a blaze, but under these conditions, are there any that stand out to you as especially excellent?
19:25
Me and Eric B ate a great big plate of fish, which is my favorite dish, but without money is still a wish.
19:33
That one is the first one to come to mind. I would say um Gosh. Oh, wait a minute. Uh Oh, my favorite one. Lil Wayne.
19:43
Real G's move in silence like lasagna. The Beastie Boys.
19:49
I went to White Castle and I got thrown out.
19:51
White Castle burgers only come in one size.
19:54
Do you remember that guy Gerardo? Gerardo?
19:59
Yeah, he had that one song Rico. Suave. Yeah.
20:04
an actor in the movie Colors.
20:04
He's the guy who shoots Robert Duvall at the end.
20:08
He has a terrible lyric in that song.
20:11
It It's like No woman that can handle a man like me.
20:14
I eat them raw like sushi.
20:18
And I'm very mad at myself that that has somehow occupied space in my brain.
20:20
I don't like that at all. Oh, [ __ ] in a hat.
20:36
I didn't realize your [ __ ] came out like that. Is that too much?
20:41
Yes, every every wing for you is too much.
20:43
But then at the same time, you're Adam Richman, so there's I I don't know what to do.
20:47
I got I got to like I got a reputation to protect.
20:50
You know, and to me, I always take on sort of like a guardian role when it comes to Hot Ones with celebrities.
20:53
Like I never want anybody to get hurt necessarily.
20:57
So, I'm always trying to protect them.
20:58
But I guess with you, I should just witness greatness. Yeah, okay.
21:03
But you're pushing the envelope. Oh.
21:11
So, one of my favorite Adam Richman fun facts is that you graduated from the Yale School of Drama and actually had a little bit of a short-lived acting career before you broke through on Travel Channel.
21:19
Between appearances on Law & Order, All My Children, and Joan of Arcadia, which particular performance are you most proud of from an acting perspective? Joan of Arcadia.
21:30
And the character was butcher god.
21:34
So, I was a butcher at the supermarket and I was I was god.
21:37
And so, very often, you know, if you have an under five role on a show, you're very seldom talking to a principal character.
21:48
And if you are, you have two lines.
21:54
You have two lines, but I had a scene with Amber Tamblyn.
21:56
For someone who had just come out of school, it was just like super validating. In the end, who won? Man or food?
22:07
I think the By virtue of the fact that I'm still here and been able to sustain a career in food television for 11 years after making my name with like 8-lb burgers and 7-lb burritos and stuff and being able to show I could do more than that, you know, I feel that much like Khaled, all I do is win, win, win, no matter what.
22:28
By the way, I'm really upset with myself for not calling out collard greens for my rap lyric. It was Kendrick. Okay. Too much for a last dab?
22:44
For all my fans and for Hot Ones fans that enjoy seeing me in pain.
22:46
And and I know you you're a great interviewer.
22:49
You know, again, our friendship aside, I've always appreciated your talent.
22:53
So, whatever you ask me, I really want to be able to make a proper [ __ ] of myself during it. Cheers, my man. I actually don't, bro.
23:09
Appreciate the technique.
23:12
Okay, Adam Richman, here we are at the end of your Hot Ones sequel, and we've explored your polymath sensibilities over nine wings, and we just have one more to go.
23:21
And to close things out, what we want to do is combine your deep food expertise with a bit of Hot Ones history.
23:29
You were one of our first famous fans, and then now you're a fan favorite.
23:34
And me sitting over here, I've heard a lot of crazy [ __ ] from the other side of the table when it comes to food and takes.
23:41
So, what I want to do here is bounce some of the craziest food takes that I've ever heard while doing interviews on Hot Ones to get the perspective from Adam Richman himself.
23:53
So, we're coming full circle here.
23:55
I'm going to have to let let out the quarantine long hair don't care vibes. All right.
24:00
All right, on the topic of burritos, just last week, T-Pain said, "If you eat a burrito sideways, it turns into a taco eventually."
24:09
It's a great theory, and it sounds like it's a good bumper sticker, but like maybe if you ate it like a corn on the cob, like typewriter style.
24:18
My nose is on [ __ ] fire, by the way.
24:20
But like, if you went cart like maybe it's like a little bit of like a dough canoe.
24:25
Post Malone gave the nod to Whataburger over In-N-Out saying, "Please, bro, In-N-Out is like a frilly little patty.
24:32
I need something with some hair on its chest, cuz animal style or not, I just can't [ __ ] with their fries, but their burgers are outstanding.
24:39
And I I I got to think like one and this musical profound musical talent aside, you need to check yourself a little bit, cuz you are taking a lot of advice from a guy with a lot of face tattoos.
24:56
All right, despite being from Staten Island, Pete Davidson claimed that L&B in Brooklyn is the best pizza in New York.
25:04
It's the best Sicilian slice. I'll say that. If you want Woo.
25:10
Sorry, I just got that little lava drip.
25:14
But also Staten Island, there's that place that he works in in King of Staten Island, Denino's, that's supposed to be pretty good.
25:21
And they were they're a great restaurant, too.
25:22
The best in the all of the city.
25:26
Within Sicilian, I'll say yes, but there are other great pizzas. Well, there you have it.
25:30
The final word from Adam Richman, and look at you, you champion, taking down the wings of death.
25:37
Please let me do the honor of rolling out the red carpet for you, my friend.
25:41
This camera, or possibly a camera B if you set one up, let the people know what you have going on in your life. Thank you, Sean.
25:48
Always a great time being here. Thank you to Chris.
25:50
Thank you to everyone at Complex and First We Feast.
25:53
You guys have always treated me with like lots of love and respect.
25:56
And to the viewers there, um that's everyone who ranks these uh Hot Ones episodes, I better make the [ __ ] top 10.
26:03
And whoever handles the social media account, I was super bummed I didn't make that whole cafeteria meme.
26:09
Brett Baker, Brett Baker, he's coming for you. Broke my heart.
26:12
Um I have a brand new YouTube channel.
26:14
Um Adam Richman's Quest for the Best.
26:16
The first series is um the biscuit biscuit reviews from an American that you didn't even ask for, where I review British biscuit biscuits from around the world, actually.
26:26
Um and uh take them through a dunk test.
26:29
Also, catch History Channel.
26:31
And for those of you in the UK, Adam Richman's Supper Man will be airing on Dave.
26:35
And my brand new series, which we'll be shooting hopefully in November, if all goes well, if all y'all wear masks, it is called American Made.
26:45
And that's also on the History Channel. Great job, Adam. Great job. Thank you, buddy.
26:54
Right now, I'm probably going to just have a really, really rough night and and be very grateful for moist moist towels. WHAT IS UP, Kim fam?
27:09
TIS I, VAMPIRE GUY BILL, for another Heatonist Hot Ones unboxing video. LET'S SEE WHAT'S INSIDE. OOH, A STICKER.
27:18
Perfect for DECORATING ONE'S COFFIN. AND WHAT'S THIS?
27:26
HOT ONES Classic Blue Label Garlic Fresno Edition now with 10 ha ha ha times more garlic. I can do this. I can do this. Can we cut? I can do this.
27:40
Do you see the problem with me doing this?
27:42
Sound guy, do you see the problem?
27:42
I'm a vampire and it's garlic.
27:47
You can do this, Vampire Guy Bill. You can do this. Hey, that's delicious.
28:10
Hot Ones Classic Garlic Fresno Sauce, so good even a vampire will try it. Only at heatonist. com.