Somebody Feed Phil is a hidden gem among Netflix’s vast collection of original food documentaries. Phil Rosenthal is the titular host who takes the audience along with him on his food adventures across the globe and in the United States. The food and travel documentary series currently has four seasons, including its most recent episodes which premiered in October of this year.
Phil Rosenthal is no novice when it comes to television, as he is a television writer who created and served as executive producer of hit sitcom Everybody Loves Raymond. In fact, he also has experience in the food documentary scene as he was part of PBS’s 2015 six episode series, I’ll Have What Phil’s Having. Later in 2018, Phil joined with Netflix to create Somebody Feed Phil.
Somebody Feed Phil is a delightful show that follows Phil as he goes around a new city looking for famous foods in the area. In every episode, Phil meets with multiple guides who take him around and introduce him to not only must try dishes but also important or cultural sites. At the end of every episode, Phil video calls his parents as his father tells a joke, and Phil discourses about his experiences.
This season in particular was more meaningful considering the current health climate keeping everybody at home. Being able to vicariously experience the foods and travel in Rio de Janeiro, San Francisco, Singapore, the Mississippi Delta, and Hawaii in a time when we can’t is a nice way to distract from current issues.
I wish I was introduced to this show earlier because of how fun and enjoyable it is. Even though this wasn’t a part of this new season, I found Phil’s trip to New Orleans the most interesting. He showed multiple aspects of the city’s foods such as a Jewish Cajun hybrid, the importance of music in their culture, the meeting with the legend Leah Chase, and how the city recovered after the tragic event of Hurricane Katrina.Overall, Somebody Feed Phil is an underrated docu-series that everyone with a Netflix account should see.
