"Ben's Chili Bowl with Christine Nangle & Carl Tart (LIVE)" is Episode 219 of Doughboys, hosted by Mike Mitchell and Nick Wiger. "Ben's Chili Bowl with Christine Nangle & Carl Tart (LIVE)" was released on September 5, 2019.
"Tomorrow..." - @doughboyspod
Synopsis[]
For the first show of the 2019 Feast Coast Tour, we're joined onstage in DC by Christine Nangle (Inside Amy Schumer, The Simpsons) and Carl Tart (Comedy Bang! Bang!, Brooklyn Nine-Nine) to review a long-standing cornerstone of DC chains, Ben's Chili Bowl. Plus, a live edition of The Wiger Challenge.
Recorded live at the DC Improv in Washington DC on September 4th, 2019.
Nick's intro[]
In the early 1950s, while studying to be a doctor at the University of Nebraska, Trinidadian-American immigrant Ben Ali fell down an elevator shaft and broke his back, an instant that would set a theme for the man and his eventual restaurant: survival against the odds.
Ben and Virginia Ali
Ali's horrific injury led him to transfer to Howard University in the nation's capitol, the city in which he'd meet, date, and propose to Virginia Rollins. In 1958, the now-engaged couple opened a dine-in burger and hot-dog joint not far from Howard's campus on DC's U Street, then known as "Black Broadway." The diner's indulgent fare loaded with spicy chili and based on a recipe from Ali's native Trinidad and Tobago led to developing a fervent following among locals. Its signature dish remains to this day the Chili Half-Smoke, a half-beef/half-pork sausage (which, due to his Islamic faith, Ali never tasted).
In 1968, after Martin Luther King Jr., coincidentally a former customer, was assassinated, riots destroyed much of the surrounding neighborhood, but the restaurant not only survived, it remained open during the crisis. And the riots were just one of a series of disruptions that threatened its existence, including the Drug War and subway construction which shuttered surrounding businesses while the Ali's chili institution endured.
The eatery boasts an impressive list of celebrity clientele, including Miles Davis, Anthony Bourdain, and Barack Obama. And another of its famous fans was formally paid tribute by an unfortunate sign that read "List of Who Eats Free: Bill Cosby and nobody else."
Ali died in 2009, but his restaurant, of course, survived. Today managed by one of his three sons, who were all given the middle name Ben in anticipation of them one day taking control.
Now with four area locations, this small chain is surviving yet another change in the DC landscape: gentrification.
This week on Doughboys: Ben's Chili Bowl.
Stormy's intro[]
Stormy Daniels
| “ | Hi Nick! I just want to say congrats on the start of your tour, and that I hope you really enjoy DC. But hey, please stay away from Comet Ping Pong, ok? Mitch told me what you like to do to yourself and I'm not sure what's more disturbing: thinking about you doing that, or, you know, that Orange Buffoon. | ” |
–Stormy Daniels | ||
Fork/Spoon/Star rating[]
| guest / host | ordered | rating |
|---|---|---|
| Nick Wiger |
|
5 spoons |
| Mike Mitchell |
|
5 forks |
| Christine Nangle |
|
4.5 stars |
| Carl Tart |
|
5 forks |
| shared |
|
With these scores, Ben's Chili Bowl makes the Golden Plate Club!
The Wiger Challenge[]
Diet Coke
In The Wiger Challenge, Nick has a mystery beverage and the others try to guess what it is.
For this episode, live in DC, he gives them regular Diet Coke (because of its initials).
| guest / host | guess | result |
|---|---|---|
| Mike Mitchell | Diet RC Cola | |
| Christine Nangle | Congressional Cola | |
| Carl Tart | Diet Pepsi | winner! |
Roast Spoonman[]
Marion Barry Mayor For Life
| “ | Mayor for Life, Marion Crunchberry | ” |
–Robert Winship | ||
Quotes[]
| “ | Mitch: I made a joke that I lost track of you, when I looked up you were between Lincoln's legs, going down on him. Nick: And that the statue was smilling. |
” |
–The Doughboys visit the Lincoln Memorial | ||
| “ | When I was a young boy, I liked to collect trash. I had a Hi-C grape fruit-juice box and every time my parents tried to throw it away, I cried. My dad put it in his back pocket and then went to the Supreme Court and we went through the metal detector and it kept going off. My dad was like "I don't know what the fuck is going on!" They were like, "Sir, we're going to have to search you." They pulled him over to the side and patted him down and he was like "it's the fucking juicebox!" | ” |
–Mike Mitchell | ||
| “ | I like ass, but I don't like thick-ass milkshakes. | ” |
–Carl Tart | ||
| “ | It's fine. You're canceled, but it's fine. | ” |
–Nick Wiger, to Mitch | ||
| “ | The Veggie Hot Dog was very thin like Mitch's dick. | ” |
–Christine Nangle | ||
| “ | I pledge allegiance to the bowl of the Ben. Oh say can you see by the bowl of chili! | ” |
–Mike Mitchell | ||
The Lettuce Rap (DC remix)[]
| “ | Lettuce rap, it's the lettuce rap DC, DC, the President's home |
” |
The Feedbag[]
| “ | What historical president would you want to have a fast food dinner and where would you take him? | ” |
–Michael Thies | ||
| “ | My friends and I play this game called Rank the Carbs. I'm wondering if you'll rank pasta, rice, potato, bread. | ” |
–Beth Wang | ||
| “ | What's the best fast food restaurant for a good first date and a bad first date? | ” |
–Terrance Murphy | ||
Related Episodes[]
| Carl Tart episodes | Christine Nangle episodes |
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Photos[]
