"Bowlero with Allan McLeod" is Episode 451 of Doughboys, hosted by Nick Wiger and Mike Mitchell. "Bowlero with Allan McLeod" was released on June 20, 2024.
"Tomorrow… with Allan McLeod" - @doughboyspod
Synopsis[]
Allan McLeod aka "Molasses Boy" (@allanmcleod, Walkin' About) joins the 'boys to talk walking, U.S. Presidents, and to revisit an old video before a review of Bowlero. Plus, a special edition of Slop Quiz.
Nick's intro[]
"Is he pleased to hear his music? You cannot tell. What an odd fellow." - this was French socialite Madame René de Saint-Marceaux writing in her diary on a performance she witnessed by Basque composer, Maurice Ravel.
Considered part of the early 20th-century French impressionist school along with Claude Debussy and Erik Satie — though Ravel himself disliked the label — his career, despite staggering critical and commercial success, is considered to have been something of a waste of potential; at least, by the composer himself. Ravel’s best remembered work, a commission for a Russian ballerina titled Boléro, was a dance in the 3/4 time signature that loops variations on its same simple melodic phrasing for its entire fifteen-minute runtime.
The piece has an intoxicating and seductive quality that has made it endure for a century — though Ravel agreed with an elderly woman who heckled the piece’s premiere by shouting “rubbish, rubbish!” According to Maurice’s brother, the composer responded, “That old lady got the message”. In pop culture, Ravel’s Boléro was most famously used to romantic effect in the 1979 Dudley Moore/Bo Derek film Ten, a timeless tale about a horny old guy who dreams of railing a hot, young beach babe.
And it is the surprising durability of Ravel’s ballet that led to its use as a brand name for a sprawling U.S. bowling-alley chain. The company began its current life in 1997, after business-school graduate, Tom Shannon, retrofitted a stodgy Manhattan bowling center into a trendsetting glow-in-the-dark lane with high-end food and cocktails. Shannon’s NYC hotspot would grow into a ten-pin empire, and in 2013, its parent company merged with flailing industry dinosaur AMF Bowling, overtaking its 300-plus locations and modernizing them with standardized menus, faux neon lighting, and Dave & Buster style arcades. With the merger came the rebrand to the punny bowling/Bolero portmanteau, which no doubt would’ve been as annoying to Ravel as the success of its namesake composition.
So is the nature of brands: that a famously fastidious French composer’s ballet could become such an oversaturated pop-culture touchstone that it’s reappropriated as the name of an American bowling-alley chain, where Ravel’s languorous compositions would never commingle with its dated dad-rock playlist.
And so is the nature of creativity itself: that an artist’s most enduring, singular work can be one they personally disdain; that massive success many dream of can be considered a crushing disappointment. As Ravel said himself, “I’ve written only one masterpiece, Boléro. Unfortunately, there’s no music in it.”
This week on Doughboys… Bowlero.
Fork rating[]
| guest / host | ordered | rating |
|---|---|---|
| Nick Wiger |
|
3 forks |
| Mike Mitchell |
|
3.5 forks |
| Allan McLeod aka Molasses Boy |
|
3.5 forks |
| shared |
|
They all met at the Bowlero in Pasadena, CA.
Spoonman's Bite of the Night went to the Monster Cookie Melt. Nick also agreed it was the best thing they had.
Nick, Mitch, and Allan also bowled after their meal; Mitch was the big winner.
Allan also offers some clarity on his Waffle House rating from this episode, updating his score to 5 forks, officially putting it in the Platinum Plate Club. (Previously, Nick had just ignored Allan's score and placed it there anyway.)
Slop Quiz: Ice Try[]
In Slop Quiz, Nick presents a food-related exam (pop quiz) and Mitch and the guest compete for superiority.
The theme for this episode's quiz is ice.
| clue | Mitch's guess | Allan's guess | correct | score (MM-AM) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| What is the freezing point of water in Celsius? | 0 | - | 0 | 1 - 0 |
| [Blank] is the scientific study of low temperatures and the behavior of materials in low temps. | cryogenics | cryogenics | 2 - 0 | |
| Why are clear ice cubes better for cocktails than cloudy ones (looks aside)? | melt slower | 2 - 0 | ||
| A Bostonian with what nickname is credited with popularizing ice beverages and establishing ice trade: a) Ice Man b) Frost Bite c) King Cube d) Ice King? | - | Ice King | 2 - 1 | |
| Which famous Hollywood actress used ice water to keep her face looking youthful? | Joan Crawford | 2 - 1 | ||
| Which cocktail associated with the Kentucky Derby is traditionally served with crushed ice? | Mint Julep | - | Mint Julep | 3 - 1 |
| Does use Taco Bell cubed or nugget ice? | cube | cube | 4 - 1 | |
| Does use Del Taco cubed or nugget ice? | nugget | cube | 4 - 1 | |
| Does use Mod Pizza cubed or nugget ice? | pellet | nugget | 5 - 1 | |
| Does use Jack in the Box cubed or nugget ice? | cube | cube | 6 - 1 | |
| Does use Dunkin Donuts cubed or nugget ice? | cube | cube | 7 - 1 | |
| Does use Zaxby's cubed or nugget ice? | cube | nugget | 7 - 1 |
Nick gave them each extra points for different reason, but Mitch won 8 - 2.
Roast Spoonman[]
Lou Diamond Phillips
| “ | Blue Diamond Phillips | ” |
–Liz | ||
Quotes[]
| “ | Mango big, or go home. | ” |
–Allan McLeod | ||
| “ | As children, we're so eager to walk, then we take a few steps, we sit right in the gaming chair. This pisses me off. These gifts God gave us? And we spit in his face with our charging devices? | ” |
–Mike Mitchell | ||
| “ | How about for Joan Crawfish: "I'm ready for my gumbo, Mr. Deville"? Is that pretty good? | ” |
–Mike Mitchell | ||
#hashtags[]
- #HolySoupBatman
- #MovieMyAthalon
The Feedbag[]
| “ | A movie triathlon could involve a movie and a food/drink and an activity. What would you choose? | ” |
–Jonathan from Chicago | ||
| guest / host | movie/show | food | event |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nick Wiger | Frasier | tossed salad and scrambled eggs | fight your bother |
| Nick Wiger | Rocky | hunk of meat | run up steps |
| Nick Wiger | Sideways | don't drink Merlot | walk through a vineyard |
| Mike Mitchell | GoodFellas | Italian dinner | wack off |
| Mike Mitchell | Fried Green Tomatoes | fried green tomatoes | go on a Sunday drive |
| Mike Mitchell | Forrest Gump | chocolates or Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. | go for a long run |
| Allan McLeod | Top Gun | have an ice cold drink | fly a jet |
Drops and Plugs[]
| reference | notes |
|---|---|
| Allan McLeod clips | in Mitch's drop (by the Drop King) |
|
Allan's plugs |
Related Episodes[]
| Waffle House episodes | Allan McLeod episodes |
|---|---|
|
|
Photos[]
