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About Last Night: The Layover in Philadelphia

Posted by Foobooz on December 4th, 2012

So that was fun. Anthony Bourdain finally came to Philadelphia and last night The Layover showed the country that yes, Philadelphia is a lot more than cheesesteaks and Rocky. The show captured our spirit, our accents and our many tattoos. It was good television and enjoyable to see our city in such a good light.

Peter McAndrews had us shaking our heads with his impassioned case for Jerry Blavat being the most recognizable living Philadelphian. Mike Solomonov and Marc Vetri were shown to be excellent tour guides and better chefs. We dug seeing George Sabatino multiple times and smiled when he gave a shout-out to his former employers and Lolita. We laughed out loud when Bourdain told us that Han Chiang thinks Americans are too stupid to mix together their own dan dan noodles. We even enjoyed Bourdain’s dig that we have a statue to a fictional boxer but not to Joe Frazier. But not for long, not for long.

Did you notice? 

  • Anthony Bourdain genuinely blushed when he realized a young boy was listening in on the 18th century sex trade discussion.
  • A graphic had The Mütter Museum in Mantua, not Center City?
  • Point Breeze received two shout-outs in the A block (American Sardine Bar, Hardena)?
  • Bourdain seemed to be a slurring a bit during dinner at Zahav? The Pappy must have done a number on him.
  • Has Ben Franklin ever been called a “Wienie Wagger” before?
  • Did you see North Philadelphia’s urban cowboys made an appearance?

What were your thoughts? And one final question, who was the guy who polished off that Irish Bus Bomb?

More The Layover coverage on Foobooz [f8b8z]


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    This entry was posted on Tuesday, December 4th, 2012 at 10:45 am and is filed under Drink, Events, Food. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.

    • TooSnarky

      Sorry but have to disagree. I think it was over-the-top snarky and much too alcohol obsessed.

    • We Got Noise

      They made us look like Detroit with Ben Franklin. The most genuine scene was the one in Mount Airy.

    • Frank

      Peter McAndrews, a non-native, glorifying Jerry Blavat was embarrassing. Other than that, it was nice to see some great local places get the national exposure, even if Bourdain treated the whole trip like it was a chore. (Sorry we’re not in Thailand or on the banks of the Seine!)

    • itstunk

      I didn’t like it at all, maybe it’s just Anthony Bourdain that I don’t like. Talking graphically about sex in front of a tour gourp and an 8 year old kid. OH! HE’S SO BRASH AND SHOCKING.

      Geator is an asshole. I’ve never seen or heard Peter McAndrews before, and now I wish I hadn’t. He came off terribly and I might not go to Paesanos for a while as a result of watching this.

    • LayOVER

      Thought it was decent. Would have liked to see more in Center City, specifically the 13th street corridor. LOVED the digs on the PPA. The layover is the poor child of No Reservations though and I think a No Reservations would have more adequately and correctly described the culinary highlights of Philly.

    • Philly Ray
    • tonyjlive

      I know The Geator is as much of a regular as can be at Modo Mio… I didn’t catch the show last night, and am kicking myself for it today.

    • http://FooBooz PPABootSquadVinnie

      Truly enjoyed watching Bourdain enjoying Philadelphia, although I woulda preferred someone Other than Peter McAndrews explaining things ‘Philadelphian’. I always love someone else’s opinion, especially a seasoned traveler, on Philadelphia, for no other reason than to get us to pull our collective heads out of our a$$es and to also appreciate ourselves. The Rocky vs Joe Frazier statue is a prime example. I thought Tony did a good job, and I think there s enough ‘stuff’ in Philadelphia to qualify for a a ‘No Reservations’ episode. I really thought The Layover coulda been 2 hours. Shout Out to The P&P, the best spot to watch this episode. Thanks for the pizza And the hotdog water chaser! Great time had by all, and I’m a little disappointed More Philly places didn’t get ‘on board’ with viewing parties. Bourdain was RumorTwittered@Zahav. Hey to Lou ‘Capp’ Capozzoli.

    • Liz

      I agree that watching Bourdain getting drunk lost it’s charm a long time ago. This city is so much more than what was shown. But, it it’s always good to see Philadelphia get some recognition. I love my home town!

    • Handel

      It was horrifying watching so many disgustingly tatted up and pierced hipsters represent our city.

    • serafinadellarosa

      I wasn’t crazy about the episode at all. Bourdain didn’t seem all that thrilled about his visit to the City of Brotherly Love. The whole Ben Franklin thing was just plain inappropriate but that’s Bourdain’s schtick…along with the Mutter Museum stuff. I wish it had been more about food. But then again, it is called “The Layover”. I’ll watch it again and see if I change my mind about the episode. As the episode goes, I don’t think anyone would really want too much of a layover in Phila. Except for a trip to S. 9th St and dropping a paycheck at DiBruno Bros. And the Barnes, of course!

    • Food Phan

      Anyone else think Solomonov came off as an insufferable douche. Couldnt sneak a smile or emotion bud?

    • John T

      According to Yelp – the Mutter Museum IS in West Philly.

    • Jay Grace

      He’s a loser

    • Jackie Knoff

      Agree with the comments on Peter McAndrews, dude came across pretty douchey. Jerry Blavat?? Please. That was the first time I’ve seen the show and thought it showed our fair city in a good light. And it was nice to get beyond cheesesteaks, Starr, and Perrier. Of course there were plenty of great eateries that didn’t get a mention, but there’s only so much time. Enjoyed Bourdain’s schtick, thought he was a great tour guide.

    • http://swarthmore.coop Marc BG

      As a 50 year resident and food professional in the city of Philadelphia, I think this was a poor representation of the Philly food scene and the city itself.

      If we want to be portrayed as a bunch of drunken miscreants then so be it. Solomonov and Vetri have so much more to offer than hot dog water shots, there is nothing wrong with a good cheesesteak , and there is a lot of charm and class in my city. We are not a city of hipsters.

    • Matt

      Geez…so much negativity. I thought the episode was entertaining and a good representation of a small part of our city. What did you expect, for Bourdain to hit every spot in philly in two days? McAndrews, Vetri and Solomonov are the big dogs right now in our city whether you agree with that or not. They had every right to be on a show about the Philly food scene. Considering most people I talk to think Philly is the same place it was 15 years ago, I thought it did a good to show that we are on the up swing as a great city.

    • Mike H

      Comcast info says Tony checks out Vetri’s take on isreali cuisine, c’mon research people

    • Lindsay

      Loved the episode and seeing our city on the national stage, but they spelled “Schuylkill” wrong on the map!

    • Montgomery Burns

      I agree, why would I want to see the best places in philly to get dinner and a drink? all you douchebags are absolutely correct, what a poor representation of philly. they only hit the best restaurants and highlighted the best bars in the city. what were they thinking?

    • Alimentarian

      Decent representation, though it’s a crime that Bourdain didn’t at least order a snack while at Stateside. It seemed like more of a chore for Bourdain than on most of his other shows. McAndrews, Vetri, Han Chiang and Solomonov all came off as a bit loserish compared to cehfs on his other shows. Rock, paper, scissors? Anyway, at least it was finally done.

    • Renegade88

      McAndrews was annoying and Solomonov seemed a bit too full of himself. Vetri seemed to strike the best chord. The show itself was decent enough, and I really appreciated the man-on-the-street pieces — although folks outside Philly will get the impression that everyone in 215 is heavily tattooed. It was nice to see a couple guys tell the world that the cheesesteak thing is for tourists and that locals don’t eat them every day.

    • Randall

      For me, it was lukewarm.

      City looked good. Vibrant
      .
      Twice in the show Bourdain mentioned this “we don’t fuckin” need you preception…what’s that about.
      No one calls is City Center, Bourdain did 3 or 4 times.
      Mutter Museum is not in Mantua.
      Some bad fact checkin…but it’s travel channel…budget prolly sucks.

      Is it possible that the we’re not gonna mention cheesesteak stance is becoming more cliche than who’s got the best the cheesesteak?

      Dibruno’s was good…Mignucci is true philly.

      McAndrew talking about Blavat, a guy who is in his spots 4 days a week, with blank and generalized admiration, was a kind of pathetic. everything about him seemed phony,
      down to how he held his shot glass…”down the hatch”…give me a break. Cosby has been here in 5 years…could be true, but c’mon, grasping at straws.

      Solo came off as a nerd…which he may be. But not a hip cool, groundbreaking chef. Rock Paper Scissors…are you the same dude the segment before said, talk shit and we’ll kick ur ass….weak dude.

      Vetri came off as a geniune guy…highlight for me. Too bad he charges $175 for dinner with his mother in law or some shit.

      No one cares about Han.,,

      the dumb debauchery founding fathers tour…whatever.

      I think Bourdain could have done better at finding personalities to dine with…Ken Kweder, Don Russel, Rendell.

      Hard to remember that this is for a national audience…not just self serving us philadelphians…but it seemed like Bourdain wasn’t really excited to be here….like he’d rather be in Brooklyn.

    • Norma Stitz

      I was surprised that Garces wasn’t mentioned at all, or did I miss this?
      Overall a good show.

    • Alimentarian

      Garces has probably become too corporate for Bourdain, though at least a mention that he’s a big player in Philly might have been in order.

    • Duke

      Watched it with Han at Eulogy……I care about Han, he’s the most unique thing to come out over the last few years. I thought it was pretty decent. The FU we don’t need you were well placed and he did a good job in his synopsis saying as much. It covered salot of ground in just an hour.

    • ZManPhilly

      Nice to see Philly on the show, but I don’t think it was a good representation. We’re one of the best beer drinking cities in the country and the only beer shown was Yards ,PBR, Yuengling, and Guiness. REALLY??? He made no mention of Philly beer culture

    • london fawley

      Good show…felt on the edge of my seat watching my town under the light. Agree with most that there is so much more to Philly than what was put out there. Also agreed with comments about McAndrews hosting Bourdain…real pity, worked for the dude and he is just like what he came across on the show. A real douchebag especially with his employees.

    • roma258

      I thought Philly came across pretty well. He did hit some of the better restaurants/drinking spots. McAndrews didn’t win himself any favors and seemed a little too eager to please, but Paesano’s is still awesome. I dunno, I enjoyed it, and Bourdain seemed to have a pretty good time. Could’ve done without the drunk suburban douche in the end, but I mean it is part of the Philly experience, so it’s accurate in that sense.

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