Hosts of food shows are constantly stuffing their faces on camera, and while there have been a few exceptions, few gain as much weight as one would think they should doing that so often. This is especially true in the case of food and travel host Phil Rosenthal, whose Somebody Feed Phil: The Second Course arrives on Netflix Sunday, July 6. Rosenthal talked to CinemaBlend about the new season of the show, and shared the secret of eating on television without overdoing it or letting all that delicious food affect his waistline:
You ever see a dog food commercial? You know how they make those? They starve the dog before the commercial. I try not to eat until I'm on camera because I do want to be excited, and they say the best appetizer is hunger and so it makes everything better. I'm not crazy, I know I have a lot to eat on camera so I do have to pace myself on camera. I don't eat a full anything on camera unless it's a one-bite thing, I always share it with the crew. As I'm eating there's 16 people looking at me with their tongues hanging out. It would be cruel not to give them some!
Phil Rosenthal said he's able to stuff his face on Somebody Feed Phil because, like a dog cast in a dog food commercial, he's not eating unless those cameras are rolling. Additionally, Rosenthal told CinemaBlend that if the thing he's eating takes more than a bite to finish, he's going to hand some of it off to the crew. When one realizes that means he's often splitting a gourmet meal between 16 people, the mystery of Rosenthal's thin physique is no longer a mystery!
Rosenthal also added that another key that keeps him from staying stuffed on the Somebody Feed Phil set is scheduling. Rosenthal said each episode is filmed over the course of 10 days, and that he and the crew have perfected the art of knowing just how much great food they can handle in a day:
We also have figured out not to over-schedule meals. I'm eating maybe twice a day, maybe a snack or two along the way. There's an art to it, to not overdoing it so that you retain some of the enthusiasm. I've done it where they overbook you, and you want to be able to say 'Oh boy' and not 'Oh no here comes more food'.
Phil Rosenthal's explanation is certainly welcome to Somebody Feed Phil fans, who may have assumed he was just some magic eating machine. Rosenthal's repeated joy every time a dish comes to the table is much more understandable when that lunch date may be his first meal of the day, and the next location wasn't necessarily filmed on the same day. Of course, there are surely exceptions, although it appears Rosenthal and the crew have accounted for every scenario that keeps his enthusiasm high each time a plate comes out, and his eyes lit with joy every time he takes that first bite.
Somebody Feed Phil: The Second Course is out on Netflix Friday, July 6 at 12:01 a.m. PT. For a look at other things headed to Netflix in the near future, visit our Netflix premiere guide. Those looking for summer shows will find just what they need with our summer premiere guide.
