"IKEA with Dave Thomason" is Episode 105 of Doughboys, hosted by Mike Mitchell and Nick Wiger. "IKEA with Dave Thomason" was released on May 25, 2017.
Synopsis[]
Comedian and @midnight writer Dave Thomason joins the Doughboys and breaks his vegan diet to sample the food of Swedish furniture megastore IKEA. Do Dave, Mitch, and Wiger respond favorably to its ultra budget friendly Nordic delights? Plus, the most competitive Pie in This Guy yet, and a truly harrowing email from the Feedbag.
Nick's intro[]
Simo Häyhä
"The White Death": that was the nickname the Red Army gave to Finnish sniper Simo Häyhä, who, with 259 confirmed kills against the Soviets, remains the deadliest marksman in military history. During the Winter War of 1939 through '40, Häyhä, standing at just 5'3", was an expert at keeping his position concealed, reportedly holding snow in his mouth to hide his breath.
As World War II spread, Finland would also fight the Continuation War of 1941 through '44 against the Soviets, receiving material support from Nazi Germany during the conflict. This spoke to the confounding alliances of the Nordic States during the Second World War, as Denmark and Norway would be occupied by the Axis, while Iceland and Greenland belonged to the Allies, and Finland's neighbor remained neutral: Sweden, whose complex internal politics made it both a sanctuary for fleeing Jewish refugees and a harbor for a homegrown fascist movement.
One of those Swedish fascists was a teenager named Ingvar Kamprad, an active member of far-right leader Per Engdahl's New Swedish Movement. Contemporaneous with the War and his fascist involvement, a 17-year old Kamprad used the financial gift from his parents to open a business, first selling staple goods and expanding after the War to offer what would build his empire, furniture. Over the decades, Kamprad expanded worldwide, constructing an array of budget-friendly home-furnishing stores with theme-park interiors in both size and aesthetic, become one of the world's richest men in the process.
While Kamprad has publicly disavowed his past fascist affiliation, his right-wing politics remain obvious in his business' labyrinthine corporate structure specifically designed to evade taxes, and oddly paralleling the maze-like floorplans of his stores.
And at the end of the stores' winding paths of furniture?
A dining area which serves Swedish favorites, as well as local fare attuned to the taste of its market, at stunningly cheap prices.
But does the food of this furniture megalith stand on its own merits? Or does it collapse like a clumsily assembled Bromf* bookshelf?
This week on Doughboys: IKEA.
(*I searched but was unable to locate an IKEA product called 'Bromf'. -ed.)
Fork rating[]
| guest / host | ordered | rating |
|---|---|---|
| Nick Wiger |
|
4 forks |
| Mike Mitchell |
|
3 forks |
| Dave Thomason |
|
5 forks |
They did all seem to sample each other's dishes. First meals listed are from the IKEA Restaurant; second meals were from the Bistro, IKEA's snack bar.
Pie In This Guy 🥧[]
Peanut Butter Cup Pie
This segment is when Nick presents a mystery pie and a series of clues, and Mitch and the guest try to guess the flavor. To aid their guess they are allowed to phone a friend or smell the pie without seeing it.
Today's mystery pie was a peanut butter cup pie.
| host / guest | clue / guess | result |
|---|---|---|
| Clue 1: You'll love this sweet pie as long as you're not allergic. | ||
| Mike Mitchell | Guess 1: |
incorrect |
| Clue 2: George Washington chopped down a tree that grows a common pie ingredient. George Washington Carver on the other hand... | ||
| Dave Thomason | Guess 2: peanut butter pie | incorrect |
| Clue 3: Reese's comes in pieces, but this pie comes intact; though it shares a name with a different Reese's treat. | ||
| Mike Mitchell | Guess 3: peanut butter cream pie | |
| Clue 4: It's not a walnut cup pie. It's a [BLANK]nut cup pie. (Hint: rhymes with "Bee") | ||
| Dave Thomason | Guess 4: peanut butter cup pie | WINNER |
Roast Spoonman[]
Kirby
| “ | Kirby that sucked up a grizzly bear but only obtained its size, body hair, and appetite | ” |
–Big Boy Baby Guy | ||
Quotes[]
| “ | Personally, Dave Thomas is a hero of mine. | ” |
–Mike Mitchell | ||
| “ | Does Ray Romano have a restaurant? He must. | ” |
–Nick Wiger | ||
| “ | Nick: There's that idiom, "treat your body like a temple." I feel like you and I - we treat our bodies like landfills. Mitch: When we walk down the street, seagulls do fly around our heads. |
” |
–The Doughboys | ||
| “ | Meatballs are worse than Groundhog's Day, but they're about the same as What About Bob?. And they're a little better than Scrooged. | ” |
–Nick Wiger re: actual meatballs (not the movie Meatballs) | ||
#hashtags[]
- #PlainJane vs. #PutOnACondiment (for how you like your hot dogs)
- #TheGreatCouchSearch
- #SpoonmanBackToSchool
The Feedbag[]
| “ | I wanted to relay my own story about lifting an Escort after listening to Mitch's.
A good friend of mine had a late '80s or early '90s Escort when we were in high school. We always gave him a hard time about it and he was always a good sport. One night, we were at a friend's house and five of us tried to lift his car. We were able to not only turn it around, but carry it into the front yard at the house. The car is actually pretty light. We were all more on the Doughboys spectrum than the Dumbbells spectrum. Depressing fact: six months later, he drove under a school bus and was decapitated in that car. Anyway, go #BurgerBrigade. |
” |
–Dan Fry | ||
Restaurants[]
| official visits | location | notes |
|---|---|---|
| IKEA | Burbank, CA | Nick, Mitch, and Dave went together to this location |
| restaurants referenced | location | notes |
|---|---|---|
| Wendy's | - | lots of talk about Dave Thomas |
| Ike's Sandwiches | - | this is one of Dave's NorCal recommendations; Nick wasn't familiar with it |
| Fat Sal's | - | the SoCal version of Ike's |
| Taste Chicago | Burbank, CA | Joe Mantegna's restaurant |
| Jon & Vinny's | Los Angeles, CA | Mitch loves their meatball appetizer |
| Bake n Broil | Long Beach, CA | Nick got the pie for Pie In This Guy segment from here |
Plugs and Themes[]
| reference | notes |
|---|---|
| @midnight | Dave's plugs |
| Soundgarden "Spoonman" | Mitch didn't play a drop, but instead played this as tribute to Chris Cornell who died that week |
| Warrant "Cherry Pie" | Pie in This Guy theme |
Photos (via @doughboyspod)[]
