Somebody Feed Phil Season 5: Info We Know So Far
He's like Anthony Bourdain, but a lot goofier — and for some, more relatable, too. The Netflix trailer for Season 1 of Phil Rosenthal's "Somebody Feed Phil" (as seen on YouTube) might lead you to think for a moment that you're getting another travel show about a serious chef diving boldly into parts unknown to unearth culinary treasure. The illusion is quickly broken, though. An artsy shot of a Vietnam pond under a purple pre-dawn sky cuts to Rosenthal in mud waders, leaning heavily on his guide, nervously asking if there are any snakes in the water. His guide assures him there are.
"I'm exactly like Anthony Bourdain — if he was afraid of everything," Rosenthal told the Houston Chronicle. "He was brave. He went to Borneo and got a tattoo from drunken tribesmen pounding nails into his chest. ... I thought maybe there should be a show for people like me." It turns out that, well, everybody loves the show Rosenthal came up with. In fact, he was just named Male Star of the Year at the Critics Choice Real TV Awards in June.
After the run of his hit sitcom "Everybody Loves Raymond" was over, executive producer and writer Rosenthal found his niche in the food travel genre — his spin: funny guy who doesn't get out of the house much travels the world to see and taste new things. Fans of "Somebody Feed Phil," and Rosenthal himself, should be happy to know that Netflix has picked up the show for a fifth season, according to The Hollywood Reporter. And it turns out, there are still a lot of places Rosenthal wants to go.
What locations will Phil Rosenthal visit in Somebody Feed Phil Season 5?
Phil Rosenthal has criss-crossed the globe multiple times already in four seasons of "Somebody Feed Phil." He's dined in Saigon, Tel Aviv, and New Orleans in Season 1 (via Netflix). He's also been to Venice, Buenos Aires, Montreal, and Morocco. In Season 4, Rosenthal highlighted many spots in the United States, with stops in Hawaii, San Francisco, and the Mississippi Delta.
"I was taking into account the fact that not everyone can afford to travel overseas, but for another reason, America's fantastic," Rosenthal told the Houston Chronicle. "I think you can travel in your own town, even." While he has a point, travel outside the confines of our own homes was largely restricted for more than a year, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Given that case numbers are on the rise again internationally (via The New York Times), where in the world might Rosenthal go to film Season 5?
The new season is reported to have 10 episodes, per The Hollywood Reporter, and while no locations have been announced, Rosenthal gave Fine Dining Lovers a short list of places he'd like to go, including India; Australia; Kyoto, Japan; and Oaxaca, Mexico. "That's like one of the great centers of cuisine in the world," Rosenthal said of the Mexican city.
If COVID-19 limits international travel, then Rosenthal could land in some more US cities he's said he'd still like to explore: Philadelphia, Boston, and Portland — as he told TheWrap, all are "great food cities in America."
What food will appear in Somebody Feed Phil Season 5?
Since Netflix hasn't yet announced locations for Season 5 of "Somebody Feed Phil," we can only speculate on where Phil Rosenthal will go and what he'll eat. Restrictions due to COVID-19 will need to be in cooperation over the coming months, but if so, Rosenthal would love to sample the cuisine in a number of places where the show hasn't gone yet, including Australia, Oaxaca, and Boston. "The world is opening up again and so is my mouth," he said in a statement to Hollywood Reporter.
Based on Rosenthal's travel wish list, we can make some guesses about the kinds of food he'll get to try. For Americans, Australian cuisine might bring to mind Vegemite and "shrimp on the barbie" (although Australians actually call them prawns, per Culture Trip). But the Land Down Under also offers chicken Parmigiana as pub food, sausages on the barbie, and, yes, grilled kangaroo (via Skyscanner).
Rosenthal would truly be in for a treat — many treats, in fact — if he makes it to Oaxaca. The city in southwest Mexico is known for things familiar north of the border, including tacos, carne asada, and chile rellenos (via Uncornered Market). Rosenthal may also want to sample goat's head soup and corn fungus to really get the authentic Oaxacan experience.
If Boston makes Rosenthal's Season 5 itinerary, he'll surely dine on lobster — maybe even mixed into macaroni and cheese that has become a modern staple. Then there's the city's namesake baked beans and cream pie. Plenty of Boston restaurants also serve up what many might think of as a make-at-home dish: Yankee pot roast.
What is the release date for Season 5 of Somebody Feed Phil?
Netflix has yet to announce when we can start streaming a new season of "Somebody Feed Phil," but it's a safe bet that Season 5 won't air until 2022. We don't even know when the season will be filmed, and it seems clear that shooting hasn't yet started. Rosenthal was still musing on places he'd like to visit as recently as March (via Fine Dining Lovers), and a photo posted on Twitter revealed that he was in his home city of Los Angeles as recently as June 15.
The show's producers need to film 10 episodes, which is the biggest order of episodes in the show's history. Under normal, non-COVID circumstances, it took the team five months to shoot the 10 episodes that, in total, comprised seasons 3 and 4 — from August 2019 to January 2020 (via TheWrap).
Having shot two seasons back-to-back before airing either one, Netflix decided May of last year was a good time to offer up Season 3 of "Somebody Feed Phil." Season 4 was already in the can, and it dropped in October 2020, as TheWrap reported in a separate article. Of course, Netflix's scheduling in 2020 should not be considered a barometer for anything the streaming service does now or in 2022 — assuming there's no upcoming lockdowns, of course. But if fans of "Somebody Feed Phil" want to be optimistic, keep hope alive for a spring 2022 release of Season 5.