If you are an eater – avid or not – does Bobby Flay even need an introduction?
Grillmaster, burger connoisseur and co-star of a new Discovery+ travelogue series “Bobby and Giada in Italy,” as well the human mind behind the cat food line recently launched by his beloved cat, Nacho, Made By Nacho, Flay’s job titles run a marathon.
Father is one, and he performs quite exceptionally in yet another fresh venture in food: a podcast with his daughter, Sophie, who is a community journalist for ABC7 in Los Angeles, up-to-date current trends in food, fashion, lifestyle and culture.
Executive produced by Christopher Hassiotis and launched by iHeartRadio, “Always Hungry” debuted on April 27 and the father-daughter duo provide listeners with more than just ways on how to spruce up their cooking.
Bobby has been a staple of The Food Network for over 25 years, continuously hosting iconic television programs like “Boy Meets Grill,” “Brunch at Bobby’s,” and “Throwdown! with Bobby Flay” and as of lately, “Beat Bobby Flay” that bring some of the best cooking ideas to America. His numerous cookbooks ranging in cuisines and restaurants, including Bar Americain, Mesa Grill and Bobby’s Burger Palace, bring his unique culinary skills to the taste buds of countless food lovers worldwide.
The chef is continuing to blend food and popular American culture with “Always Hungry,” but this time with his daughter, who brings her own style to the show, raising its “cool-factor” to new heights. Released weekly, each episode is themed around specific foods like burgers or tacos, or concepts like what to wear when going out to dinner or the elements that make a good restaurant – which truly allows space for the two to share their authentic perspectives.
“We’re definitely going to be talking about burgers,” The Food Network star said in the intro episode of “Always Hungry,” in regards to what listeners can expect from the podcast, only moments before loud sizzles from a burger cooking on a stovetop emerged. “This isn’t fake podcasts sounds, this is real burger sounds,” he added, emphasizing how listeners will be able to access the rawness directly from their home kitchen.
This isn’t the first time fans have seen the father-daughter duo together exploring food and culture. The two co-starred in “The Flay List,” a Food Network series where they explored each other’s favorite places to eat classic dishes. in which they explored each other’s favorite places to eat classic dishes. Bobby takes Sophie to his favorite Bobby Flay-approved spots he has accumulated over the years while Sophie introduces her father to her own discoveries.
In the same episode, it starts off with Sophie introducing herself and her father as Bobby Flay because that is what and who listeners know, but she knows him as her “Dad.”
The chef then introduces himself as “Sophie’s dad, co-host and the person that feeds her.”
The journalist goes on to say, “And we’re cooking.”
“No, Sophie,” her father said playfully. “I’m cooking, you just happen to be eating it all.”
The podcast perfectly channels Bobby’s classic New York way of living (and eating) and Sophie’s millennial west coast perspective on food and culture, setting the tone of the podcast: the generational differences that are the consistent theme of their conversations.
“I’m a man, she’s a woman, I’m really an east coaster, she’s a west coaster. We come from two different generations,” He said. “And while we have lots of things that we have in common in terms of life, there are things that clearly differentiate us in so many ways,” he continues, adding, “I always feel like Sophie brings out the stereotypical ‘guy in his fifties’ attitude [in me].”
The balance between their east coast and west coast personalities pans out perfectly, bringing this podcast to life and animating their discussions.
Later in the episode, Sophie walked her dad through the way she makes breakfast tacos, sharing she either uses a corn flour tortilla or an almond flour tortilla.
“Oh my God, an almond flour tortilla?” The “Beat Bobby Flay” star asked, obviously perplexed. “I have to get you out of LA so quickly.”
The playful banter between the two and the way Bobby shares his “here’s the thing” two cents inevitably as a father throughout the show ranging from his preferences for certain ingredients over others or why he and everyone under the sound of his voice deserve to have a quintessential New York fine dining experience, makes it feel like listeners are perfectly positioned in a barstool in the Flay kitchen or in a chair at their dining room table.
In the official first episode, “Getting Dressed Up,” the pair dives deep into what getting dressed up for dinner means. The recipe of the episode matches the sophisticated theme: potato pancakes with caviar and smoked salmon, a “high brow” meal, according to Bobby, who walks Sophie and listeners through it step-by-step. The sounds of these two savoring their meals towards the end of the episode creates a mouthwatering sensation for listeners, encouraging them to attempt to put their own twist on the recipe.
What seems like listeners are anticipating Sophie, the journalist, to be present the entire duration of the show with the fire reporter-like questions paired with a daughter’s curiosity pointed at her superstar father, it is more of a dialogue between the two about style and their personal thoughts on getting dressed up for a meal as the topic of the episode was fashion.
While Sophie shares her style is dependent upon the occasion, but can most likely be spotted wearing black, white or blue, along with her favorite pair of sneakers that can either be dressed up or down, it is very different from her father, who can either easily be found in a “chef’s coat, apron or jeans in a kitchen cooking somewhere” or rocking his branded plaid shirt on “Beat Bobby Flay,” prefers to almost always dress in a suit for lunch or dinner.
Bobby talks about how he felt he was born in the wrong generation as he praised the New York City scene in the 1940s and 1950s, supper clubs and his love for a Sinatra-esque style of a classic night on the town.
“I like wearing really classic beautiful clothing if I can and I have to make excuses to find experiences to do it,” the chef shared with his daughter and listeners.
A person can never be overdressed, according to the “Beat Bobby Flay” star himself, and while food, service and ambiance all play a role in the fine dining experience, how you dress at a restaurant tells what role you play in that establishment on the same level as those aforementioned elements. Bobby Flay establishments, on the other hand, do not have a specific dress code.
“Do I want people just wearing tank tops, shorts and flip-flops to my restaurants? I probably don’t. Would I ask them to kindly leave? I don’t think I would,” he said.
Amalfi, Bobby’s new restaurant coming soon to Las Vegas is inspired by his many adventures to Italy and the Amalfi Coast. It will be his first Italian restaurant and intends to transport guests to the Mediterranean with its blissful blend of coastal comfort and fresh, vibrant flavors.
“Whatever you want to eat pasta and fish in, that’s what you should come in,” he added.
The father-daughter duo both discuss the phrase, “dress smart”, and how it is subjective to everyone, even the two of them who differ in generation but similarly share a level of class and want to always look nice. Together, they agree on the phrase meaning upholding a level of respect to the establishment and the people around you.
At the end of the episode, listeners learn Bobby needed some extra help from Sophie – who is also the podcast’s engineer – plugging in his microphone to record the first episode. It just demonstrates that while it is known to fans that Nacho is at the top of the list of his loved ones, his sweet daughter, Sophie has a very special place there too – and it shows.
“We don’t think of this as work. This is totally fun. It’s just the two of us. And I think it actually helps our relationship because we get to talk even more about how we feel about things,” he said.
New episodes of “Always Hungry” drop new episodes every Tuesday and are available to stream on iHeartRadio or wherever you listen to podcasts.
