Ali Khan is back on the pod! The Food Network and Cooking Channel star debates perfect pairings with Rob Petrone -- everything from the best food to eat with White Claw to the best beverage to drink with Texas-style BBQ Brisket. Ali's new dog also makes a few appearances, plus Ali shares details about his new podcast, "Eat This. Drink That."

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Gene Weingarten is a humor columnist for the Washington Post. In a recent piece titled, "You can't make me eat these foods," he attempts to make fun of his palate by listing the foods he hates, which include Balsamic vinegar, anchovies ... and "Indian food," which he describes as "the only ethnic cuisine in the world insanely based entirely on one spice." On this Hot Takes on a Plate, I confront Gene about the inaccuracies in his statement, the insensitivity in his stance, the editorial process for getting this approved and if he has any regrets.

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Rob Petrone chats with food journalist and podcaster Howie Kahn about the whiplash so many of us are facing this summer with the emergence of the Delta variant and what this all means for restaurants.

For more on Howie: https://freetimemedia.world/

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Rob Petrone worries about how potential future lockdowns would impact restaurants -- and how easily avoidable that fate would be if everyone just got vaccinated. Rob also shares big news about his documentary, 86'd: How A Global Pandemic Rocked The World's Culinary Capital, premiering on the big screen. (For more on that, visit longbeachfilm.com)

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Jaymee Sire went from local news to being an ESPN SportsCenter anchor to now a food world star (he credits include Iron Chef Showdown, Beat Bobby Flay and the podcast Food Network Obsessed). Rob Petrone went from being a sports anchor to local news to a food TV host and -- yes -- podcaster. The timelines and level of success are different, but the career path similarities are striking considering most don't wind up in food media coming from where they came from. On this Hot Takes on a Plate, Rob talks with Jaymee about career pivots, facing adversity and how having been a sports anchor helps immensely when talking food.

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Eli Sussman is the food world meme king (seriously, go follow @thesussmans on Instagram). He also owns Samesa, a fast-casual Middle Eastern restaurant in Midtown Manhattan (30 Rock, to be exact) with his brother, Max. Rob Petrone chats with Eli about the inspiration for his memes and quickly realizes that great visual jokes are very difficult to make as funny without the visuals.

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Bars are back -- now what? Esquire Lifestyle & Culture Director, Kevin Sintumuang, joins Rob Petrone to discuss the making of the magazine's annual Best Bars in America list, how the pandemic has changed his relationship with drinking and what bars provide us during this unique moment in time.

Read the Esquire list: https://www.esquire.com/food-drink/bars/a36439312/best-bars-america-2021/

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In the wake of the Seattle Times publishing a thorough investigation where 15 women accused two-time James Beard Award-winning chef and restaurateur Eduardo Jordan of sexual misconduct or unwanted touching over a five-year period that began in 2012 (and his entire restaurant staff quitting over the allegations the following day), Rob Petrone vents about how food media members often look the other way while propping these figures up.

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