Hungry Detective Premieres!

[Bobby 2 Shakes]

Gnaw some. How about gnaw some?

[scubadoo97]

Chris, congrats on the new show. I have seen both of them now and appreciate the off the beaten path direction you are taking. Now I have a few places to try while the wife is at the casino. Man the gnocchi looked so good and I was envious you got to lick the gelato spoon. Look forward to the shows to come.

[Chris Cognac]

The Gnocci was amazing... my fav was the red pomodoro which just burst w flavor....that was not a fake tasting, with the exception of the white sauce, I had not tasted the others prior to the camera turning on....my crew made short work of all 3 plates when the lights went off after the shot....

[Kent D]

Chris,

great show -- I loved how after always hearing "Geno's vs. Pat's - which steak sandwich is the best?", you go and find the REAL best steak, although let's face it, they're all head and shoulders above anything that could be obtained here on the lonesome prairie.

I'm sorry I missed the first one -- I dropped the ball setting my VCR, although I'm sure I'll catch a repeat. Good luck with the continued success!

[KatieLoeb]

Chris:

Loved the final edited Philly show! You definitely hit some of my favorites and pointed me toward a couple of new places I didn't know about! Gotta go try that gnocchi! Ohmigosh that looked good. :drool:

Some of the places you showed have more than one outlet. I'm a very regular customer at the Bitar's in South Philly, since that's closer to my house than the Mt. Airy outlet you showed. Their Lebanese grub is the best. I'm surprised that Mr. Bitar didn't point you to their grilled felafel, which they are well known for. Delicious, fluffy and not greasy, and makes the best felafel sandwiches ever. The combo platters rock. I love those fluorescent pink pickled turnips garnishing the hummos. Capogiro is indeed the gelateria that we PhilleGulleteers wax poetic about. Chris visited the Rittenhouse branch on 20th Street. Most of the photos you all have seen in the PA forum are from the original branch at 13th Street. No matter. It's good at either store.

I definitely caught the back of Sandy's head at one point, and a little bit of my hair in another shot over Chris' shoulder. I was hoping you would all see us through the window sitting next to Chris in the last shot as they pulled away from Steve's Prince of Steaks, but I guess our 15 minutes still remains to be tapped.

So Chris - when are you coming back for round 2???

[Chris Cognac]

I give all the credit on the cheesesteak to Holly Moore and his help, he was a valuble assest for the production in Philly...

Holly, Sandy and Katie....thanks again for everything...

[KatieLoeb]

Chris:

I was happy to help! It was fun seeing how one of these things actually comes together. Sort of sucked all the glamour out of it, I must confess. You and your fabulous crew were keeping some crazy hours to get all that film. And it's a shame that both Freddie & Tony's and our own Holly Moore ended up on the cutting room floor.

[Holly Moore]

Not necessarily in that order.

Was out of town yesterday so didn't get a chance to see the Philadelphia segment until earlier this evening. I thought the city came off great. Also Chris seemed much more comfortable this time than in the pilot which makes sense. A lot less stress when it is not the first time and the show has been sold.

My favorite segment - Steve's, but liked them all. Didn't realize there were other Bitar's.

My TiVo's set for a season pass. Looking forward to them all.

[JanMcBaker]

Chris:

Loved the final edited Philly show!  You definitely hit some of my favorites and pointed me toward a couple of new places I didn't know about!  Gotta go try that gnocchi!  Ohmigosh that looked good. :drool:

So Chris - when are you coming back for round 2??? 

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Hear, hear! I second that second visit! Can't believe that I didn't think of this before you came to Philly, Chris, but I could have let you know about this egg pizza at a place further north from Steve's Prince of Steaks.....

and Katie, let me know when you're going for gnocchi! They looked fabulous!

[Chris Cognac]

Egg Pizza...as in a topping? Is it scrambled or hard boiled...interesting! We did deviled eggs in Charelston, they were tasty!

Now for the Gnocci...I prefer the red sauce but the white sauce is a must...but really rich...the crew was pretty evenly split among the 3 sauces....Asides from the cheesesteak, I would hit Mezzaluna again if/when I get back to Philly...its a must!

[JanMcBaker]

Egg Pizza...as in a topping? Is it scrambled or hard boiled...interesting! We did deviled eggs in Charelston, they were tasty!

Now for the Gnocci...I prefer the red sauce but the white sauce is a must...but really rich...the crew was pretty evenly split among the 3 sauces....Asides from the cheesesteak, I would hit Mezzaluna again if/when I get back to Philly...its a must!

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Yep-- egg pizza as in two eggs cooked on top of a pizza crust, with cheese! It's pretty good too. No tomato sauce. It's at an Armenian pizza and kebab place. I tried to find a picture on eG cause I thought there was one on the Pennsylvania board. If I can work the connections, I'll try to send the picture that I have on my PC at home.

[dls]

Egg Pizza...as in a topping? Is it scrambled or hard boiled...interesting! We did deviled eggs in Charelston, they were tasty!

Now for the Gnocci...I prefer the red sauce but the white sauce is a must...but really rich...the crew was pretty evenly split among the 3 sauces....Asides from the cheesesteak, I would hit Mezzaluna again if/when I get back to Philly...its a must!

←

Yep-- egg pizza as in two eggs cooked on top of a pizza crust, with cheese! It's pretty good too. No tomato sauce. It's at an Armenian pizza and kebab place. I tried to find a picture on eG cause I thought there was one on the Pennsylvania board. If I can work the connections, I'll try to send the picture that I have on my PC at home.

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Jan - Are you referring to Zeps? I had a small egg pizza there the last time I was in Philly. Pretty good.

[Jen Keenan]

Chris,

Congrats on the show! I have spent a LOT of time in Philadelphia; yet you managed to show me four places I had never even heard of and one place I had been dying to see (Capogiro).

Part of me is going, "when the hell am I ever going to get to Mt. Airy?" (although I have indeed seen Germantown) and part of me is going, "oh, that's good advice". Believe it or not, you put me in mind of the time I went to Paris with my sister. We had come out of the Musee Picasso starving, wandering the side streets, and we walked into the first cafe that Looked Good. We were lucky enough to have a waiter who wanted to practice his English, a neighbor who loved her dog, and some quiches that made our day.

So if it's not obvious, what I really like about your show is your advice to follow your instinct. I sincerely hope that the Food TV audience appreciates this twist on your show - the idea that if you find yourself in a strange place, just follow your gut. It's new for them, and I hope it resonates!

[Chris Cognac]

I really do try to get people to follow thier instincts....I mean how many of us have thought "man I bet that place is just great, but I dont know it doesnt look like much on the outside" and then kept on going.....If there is one thing I want people to get from the show, its to go out and try something new!

[JanMcBaker]

Jan - Are you referring to Zeps? I had a small egg pizza there the last time I was in Philly. Pretty good.

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That would be the place..... But I can't figure out how to get the picture from my desktop to here..... So I guess use your imagination!

[MarketStEl]

I'm re-watching it as I type here, and you're right.  That guy is a more than Joe Pesci, he's a characature of Joe Pesci like the old SNL skits.  At first I had to check I wasn't watching "Easy Money".  Is the Cheese Whiz part of the legit Philly cheese steak?  Everyplace around here uses melted cheddar.

←

I will answer that question in my foodblog over in General Food Topics shortly.

BTW, Chris: I spied my back in one shot and the side of Katie's face at the edge of another. Hey, you take your 15 minutes where you can get 'em, but this certainly won't go into my video clip portfolio.

[MarketStEl]

That would be the place..... But I can't figure out how to get the picture from my desktop to here.....  So I guess use your imagination! 

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I can walk you through the rather cumbersome ImageGullet uploading process if you like. PM me and I will send back a step-by-step guide.

[srhcb]

Just watched the Atlanta episode, and I still love the program's premise and production. Oh, and star!

Are the shows being aired in the order they were shot?

SB (only caught one "awesome", and it was well placed and effective)

[Chris Cognac]

That was show #4 that we shot....they are not in order per se...we have to reshoot a segment in Charleston and boston 2 weekends from now..so those will air last....we shot NYC around #7 and DC just after that....the last shows are L.A. (finishing next weekend at Ragin Cajun and a killer taco stand) Chicago/Houston was the last trip we took and that was a few weeks ago....

Glad only 1 awesome made it in!....whew! so what did you think of the Panahar segment? We had to push to get that one in the show...

Chris

[srhcb]

That was show #4 that we shot....they are not in order per se...we have to reshoot a segment in Charleston and boston 2 weekends from now..so those will air last....we shot NYC around #7 and DC just after that....the last shows are L.A. (finishing next weekend at Ragin Cajun and a killer taco stand) Chicago/Houston was the last trip we took and that was a few weeks ago.... 

Glad only 1 awesome made it in!....whew! so what did you think of the Panahar segment? We had to push to get that one in the show...

Chris

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I was going to guess that the Arlanta episode was shot much later in the series. You looked remarkably poised for having so little experience!

I think the Panahar segment fit in well. I've always been intrigued by the way naan is made. How many do you suppose fall of the inside oven wall?

SB

PS: I appreciate the way you always work a cop into the show.

[moosnsqrl]

How many do you suppose fall of the inside oven wall?

We had the exact same conversation at our house. It does seem to defy gravity, doesn't it?

Once again, CC, I went to bed hungry thanks to you.

[Chris Cognac]

I was wondering it myself....but none fell off while we were filming....although we took too long on a few takes and some got fried pretty bad on the inside....it was really good...so was that Chicken Tikka!

[franktex]

You had me at the yeast rolls!! Mmmmmm!

FM

[Kim Shook]

Loved the Atlanta show, too! I was interested in what you had to say about strip mall ethnic places. I agree, you can find some wonderful meals in a truly nondescript strip mall. I was drooling over Mary Mac's - I have wanted to go there since I read the description in one of the Stern's books. And I loved the fact that I was watching an Atlanta show without yet another tour of the freaking Coca-Cola museum!

Can't wait for Washington - I am an actual native and was raised in Alexandria, VA.

[Bombdog]

Loved it Chris. They just keep getting better every week!