"The Capital Grille with Negin Farsad" is Episode 327 of Doughboys, hosted by Mike Mitchell and Nick Wiger. "The Capital Grille with Negin Farsad" was released on November 18, 2021.
"Tomorrow… with Negin Farsad" - @doughboyspod
Synopsis[]
Negin Farsad (Fake The Nation) joins the 'boys to discuss Insomnia Cookies and Palm Springs before a review of Capital Grille. Plus, a knockoff brand edition of Slop Quiz.
Nick's intro[]
"Enjoy life, eat out more often."
The Green Frog
This phrase was emblazoned on the menu for The Green Frog Restaurant, a luncheonette founded in Waycross, Georgia in 1938 by a 19-year old entrepreneur named Bill Darden. Offering "service with a hop" and selling a cryptically-named Swamp Boy Breakfast, The Green Frog was a local hit and notably featured an integrated diner (particularly bold for the era in the American South).
And while The Frog didn't grow beyond a single location, its success enabled Darden to first invest in chain restaurants by opening a network of regional Howard Johnson's and, ultimately, to launch his own: a landlocked seafood house opened in 1968 called The Red Lobster Inn. The brand name was simplified, Facebook-style, and Red Lobster became such a sensation that it was purchased by processed-food megalith General Mills within a decade, with Bill Darden still managing the brand. The Darden-stewarded restaurant subsidiary opened The Olive Garden in 1982, doing for Italian fare what Red Lobster did for seafood, and both brands grew nationally and internationally up through Darden's death in 1994. But Darden Restaurants outlived the man himself, spawning other brands such as LongHorn Steakhouse, Cheddar's Scratch Kitchen, and Yard House.
And in recent years, Darden has outgrown its more casual roots and graduated into the high-roller, white-tablecloth, fine-dining sector, acquiring and replicating an upscale Austin seafood restaurant called Eddie V's, as well as a steakhouse first opened in 1990 in Providence, Rhode Island. Intended as a revitalization project for the city's depressed downtown, the chop shop was a hit with well-heeled Rhode Islanders, featuring dry-aged steaks and the obligatory extensive wine list.
After Darden's acquisition, the concept went national, attempting to "meat compete" with sector stalwarts like Morton's and Ruth's Chris, and while it doesn't yet have the market or mind share of those historic brands, with twenty-eight Eddie V's Prime Seafood outlets and sixty-two locations of the Providence-founded steakhouse, it's fair to call Darden's dalliance with fine dining a success.
And as a business lunch for high-powered finance types, and a special occasion dinner for the rest of us, though it couldn't be more different than The Green Frog, Darden's company's fine-dining steakhouse compels you to "enjoy life, eat out more often."
This week on Doughboys, The Capital Grille.
Fork rating[]
| guest / host | ordered | rating |
|---|---|---|
| Nick Wiger |
|
4.5 forks
4.1 forks [David's rating] |
| Mike Mitchell |
|
5 forks |
| Negin Farsad |
|
4.5 forks |
Nick went to The Capital Grille in downtown LA with past guest, David Phillips (who gave it 4.1 forks; his score was used in final averages), and Mitch went to the same location with Mrs. Mitchell. Negin went to the location at Rockefeller Center in Manhattan.
With these scores, The Capital Grille joins the Golden Plate Club!
Slop Quiz: Knock It Off[]
Panburger Partner
In this segment, Nick has a food-related exam (pop quiz); Mitch and the guest compete for superiority.
For this episode, the category was knock-off brands.
Nick offers the name of a knock-off brand, and the others guess which more famous item it is trying to be.
| clue | Mitch's guess | Negin's guess | Wolly's guess | correct | score (MM - NF - W) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Panburger Partner | - | Hamburger Helper | Hamburger Helper | 0-1 | |
| Cheddar Cheese Guppies | Cheetoes | Goldfish Crackers | Goldfish Crackers | 0-2 | |
| Butter It's Not | I Can't Believe It's Not Butter | - | I Can't Believe It's Not Butter | 1-2 | |
| Thick Mints | - | Thin Mints | Thin Mints | 1-3 | |
| Square Shaped Rice | Rice Krispie Treats | Rice Crisps | Rice Chex | 1-3 | |
| Energade | Gatorade | - | Gatorade | 2-3 | |
| Cream Betweens | Oreo | - | Oreo | 3-3 | |
| Scandinavian Swimmers | - | Nilla Wafers
Swedish Fish |
Tuna Fish | Swedish Fish | 3-3.5-0 |
| Nutmaster | Nick Wiger | Nutter Butters | Tuna Fish | Nutella | 3-3.5-0 |
Negin Farsad wins!
Roast Spoonman[]
The QAnon Shaman
| “ | The Chew Anon Shaman | ” |
–Jake in Oakland | ||
Quotes[]
| “ | Negin: I was a waitress at a Pizza Hut in London. Nick and Mitch: WOW! |
” |
–Negin Prazad re: Doughboys | ||
| “ | I wasn't dipping a stick of butter into soup. That never happened. | ” |
–Mike Mitchell | ||
| “ | Mitch: I got a little Oreo right here myself! (leans over to grab something) Nick: Mitch just picked up his mom. |
” |
–Mike Mitchell (he picked up Wolly) | ||
#hashtags[]
- #TheStuff
The Feedbag[]
| “ | I just got back from the COP26 Climate Change Conference in Glasgow. At one event, I was served haggis-stuffed chicken. (Not bad!) What are your picks for the best and worst things-stuffed-into-other-things dishes? | ” |
–Adam in Portland | ||
| guest / host | best | worst |
|---|---|---|
| Nick Wiger |
|
|
| Mike Mitchell |
|
|
| Negin Farsad |
|
Photos[]
