Latest news with #RayRomano
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Phil Rosenthal on His Favorite Food Destinations, the Best In-flight Meal of His Life, and How Ray Romano Inspired 'Somebody Feed Phil'
Phil Rosenthal has built a travel career (and following) on his infectious enthusiasm for seeing the world on Somebody Feed Phil, but his first taste of wanderlust didn't come from a passport stamp or a five-star meal—it stemmed from a 7-Eleven in Atlanta. He was just nine years old, sipping on a Slurpee during a family trip, when it hit him: "Wow, I need to travel more." Rosenthal didn't grow up globe-trotting and jet-setting. Instead, his early windows to the world came through pages and screens. "We didn't have a lot of ways to see other worlds; we only saw it on TV, movies, and books," he told Travel + Leisure. Then, at the age of 23, came a life-altering courier flight to Europe. "My first stops were Paris and Florence, and that was when my life was changed forever," he recalled. The trip didn't just expand his worldview; it reshaped his priorities. "I knew this is what my extra money is for: to save up for these experiences, to save my money to travel." At the time, he had no idea travel would one day become his job, but the seed was planted, and it would grow in an unexpected place: the writer's room of Everybody Loves Raymond. During a casual conversation with actor Ray Romano, he asked where the actor was going on vacation between seasons. When Rosenthal learned Romano was going to the Jersey Shore, he asked if he had ever been to Europe. The actor hadn't, and said he wasn't interested in something "different." So Rosenthal did what writers do: he turned the moment into an episode. "I said, 'We're doing that episode. I'm going to send you in the show to Italy as you and you're going to come back as me—someone who's excited about traveling.'" It took three years to make the episodes happen, and it was the only time the series filmed abroad. "I saw what I wrote—this character who didn't want to go and is complaining the whole time, and then suddenly gets it—happen to Ray Romano, the person. When this happened 25 years ago, I thought, 'What if I could do this for other people?'" That question became the foundation for Somebody Feed Phil, but the path to turn his vision into a show wasn't a straight one, even with a hit series under his belt. He wrote other sitcoms before fully pivoting to a show that inspires people to travel. "People think I did Raymond and they just gave me a show and whatever I want. No, it took 10 years. Was it worth it? Yes."What's your go-to plane snack? there anything you won't eat on a flight? If you can eat in the lounge or before the flight, I like that better than plane the best in-flight meal you've had? Korean Airlines made a samgye-tang soup, with the whole baby chicken in a pot. I just thought that was as good as a you have a restaurant red flag? If there's a tourist menu, don't go your favorite food souvenir? Parmesan Reggiano. You can vacuum seal it. I love a food Rosenthal, travel doesn't require luxury—it just requires action. And his advice is straightforward and simple: don't wait. "Go and don't put it off. You're never going to be as young as you are right now. So go while everything still works," he told T+L. "I tell young people all the time that you don't have to have a lot of money. You just got to get there. You can stay on a friend's couch, you can stay in a youth hostel. Doesn't matter; you're there. And just being there, meaning anywhere else on Earth, is everything." His ethos is that travel isn't just a personal journey, but rather an opportunity to quietly shift the world's perspective. "You make the world a little better because you represent where you're from, and people get to see this is what, you know, a real American looks like. Forget the news. If you're a half-decent person, you're spreading a little bit more love in the world. And what you get back is invaluable, because it literally changes your perspective on life, and that's something you bring home with you." Now, Somebody Feed Phil is returning to Netflix, and the season 8 itinerary takes viewers to destinations like Amsterdam; Tbilisi, Georgia; Sydney and Adelaide in Australia; Manila, Philippines; Las Vegas; Boston; and Guatemala. The Guatemala episode, in particular, holds deeply personal value for Rosenthal. "Guatemala is one place I never thought about going, but we had a nanny from there. She would make us little dishes from there that were always delicious. So when the idea of doing Guatemala came up, I said, 'Let's bring Claudia home.' We brought her with us. That's one of my favorite episodes because she's part of the family." Beyond the personal connection, he was blown away by the food scene. "You think you know what the cuisine is going to be like. And then it's really surprising. The young people are doing kind of modern takes on the authentic Indigenous foods. It's like nothing I ever had; it's really great." Another standout this season? Spain's culinary gem: San Sebastián in the Basque Country. "It's so gorgeous, and the food culture seems to have everything." As for his all-time favorite episode, Rosenthal doesn't hesitate to mention the challenge and fulfillment of filming in his hometown, New York City. "I was very nervous to do New York because everyone's done it. It's been more represented than maybe every other city in the world, because it's in every TV show and every movie. So how do I do the definitive New York? I realized I can't. But I can do my New York—and that turns out to be the key, always, you do what means the most to you." The episode includes one of his favorite scenes: going to his parents' apartment. When the cameras aren't rolling, Rosenthal finds himself returning to tried-and-true destinations (London, Paris, Japan, and Spain, to name a few), though the age-old travel dilemma remains. "The more I travel, the more I fall in love with places. So you want to revisit the places you love, but you also realize, 'I gotta see the rest of the world.' Who knows what I'm missing? So what I usually try to do is—if it's my own vacation—a place I love with another place I haven't been." When asked about standout food cities, Rosenthal is quick to spotlight Bangkok. "The city has some of the best food I've ever had in my life. Some of the best things I ever ate were in Thailand." Among those unforgettable bites is a $1 bowl of khao soi, the meal he said he still thinks about from his travels in Chiang Mai. The Northern Thai curry noodle soup is typically made with a coconut-based broth, a protein like chicken or beef, and topped with crispy noodles and pickled mustard greens. As for food cities that don't get the culinary credit they deserve, Rosenthal offered up two surprising answers: Orlando and Las Vegas. "They're similar in that they both have these giant tourist attractions—The Strip and Disney World—that were built and maintained by immigrants over many decades. These immigrants came and set up their communities around the big tourist attraction on the outskirts. So they have a fabulous Chinatown, Thai towns, and Indian restaurants—these are microcosms of America, which is made up by immigrants. So yes, there are great restaurants on The Strip and some fun places to eat in Disney World but the real Magic Kingdom is the real world outside. No one thinks of these cities as great food destinations, but they are." Rosenthal's golden rule for travel is not to overplan. He credits these unscripted moments, whether chance encounters or local recommendations, as the key to unforgettable travel experiences. "Leave some room in your schedule, as we do when we make the show, for serendipity, for stuff to happen," he said. Of course, a little research still goes a long way. When looking for restaurants, Rosenthal keeps it simple. "I Google 'best restaurants in Chiang Mai,' and then I don't go by just one review. I look at all the reviews, I start cross-referencing and note the same places start popping up in all the lists. And we have such resources now, like people who blog and Instagram. Instagram is a little dangerous because sometimes you're thinking that the most photographed thing is the best, and it's not. So you can't just go by that." (For the show, though, he credits his production company in New York and their team of fixers around the globe.) And as for the bottomless meals Rosenthal appears to devour on screen, it's not quite what it looks like. "A lot of people think that I ate all that stuff in one day, and it looks like, 'Oh, my God, he eats so much.' But we film for a week and that scene is probably all I ate that day. And if I looked excited, it's because it's the only meal I've had." The show's popularity has taken Rosenthal on the road with his live show, where he gives fans a behind-the-scenes look at his global adventures. And he's doing exactly what he set out to do as a nine-year-old with a Slurpee: see the world—and bring the rest of us along for the ride. Read the original article on Travel & Leisure
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
'Everybody Loves Raymond' Star Addresses Revival Rumors
'Everybody Loves Raymond' Star Addresses Revival Rumors originally appeared on Parade. Over the past decade, television audiences have expressed a greater interest in revival of their favorite past series. Whether looking at Fuller House, The Conners, That '90s Show or the upcoming Malcolm in the Middle miniseries on Disney+, it's clear that TV revivals have become something of a newfound norm in the contemporary entertainment industry, providing viewers a nostalgic look back at their most treasured TV shows. As more and more shows experience a spiritual continuation of some kind, countless fans are wondering whether they'll one day see a revival of certain notable TV series from the '90s and 2000s, be it Seinfeld, Friends or CBS's long-running sitcom, Everybody Loves Raymond. Sadly, in the case of the latter series, one of the original stars of Everybody Loves Raymond has spoken out about the possibility of a future revival series, revealing that the show will likely "never" be rebooted. In an interview with People magazine, comedian Brad Garrett, best known for portraying Ray Romano's goofy on-screen brother Robert in the series, shut down any rumors surrounding a potential Everybody Loves Raymond continuation. "There won't be," the 65-year-old Garrett remarked after being asked whether we could one day see a revival. "And I'm just saying that because that's something that Ray and [showrunner Phil Rosenthal] have always said." According to Garrett, one primary reason the series is unlikely to arrive on our screens has to do with the passing of Peter Boyle and Doris Roberts, who famously played the fan-favorite bickering parents of Romano and Garrett's characters. "There is no show without the parents," Garrett observed. "They were the catalyst, and to do anything that would resemble that wouldn't be right to the audiences or to the loyal fan base. And it was about those two families, and you can't get around that." 'Everybody Loves Raymond' Star Addresses Revival Rumors first appeared on Parade on Jun 16, 2025 This story was originally reported by Parade on Jun 16, 2025, where it first appeared.
%3Amax_bytes(150000)%3Astrip_icc()%2FTAL-header-phil-rosenthal-celeb-check-in-PHILROSENTHALCCI0625-517760b4cccf4278af037df67fb1d978.jpg&w=3840&q=100)
Travel + Leisure
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Travel + Leisure
Phil Rosenthal On His Favorite Food Destinations, the Best In-flight Meal of His Life, and How Ray Romano Inspired 'Somebody Feed Phil'
Phil Rosenthal has built a travel career (and following) on his infectious enthusiasm for seeing the world on Somebody Feed Phil , but his first taste of wanderlust didn't come from a passport stamp or a five-star meal—it stemmed from a 7-Eleven in Atlanta. He was just nine years old, sipping on a Slurpee during a family trip, when it hit him: "Wow, I need to travel more." Rosenthal didn't grow up globe-trotting and jet-setting. Instead, his early windows to the world came through pages and screens. "We didn't have a lot of ways to see other worlds; we only saw it on TV, movies, and books," he told Travel + Leisure . Then, at the age of 23, came a life-altering courier flight to Europe. "My first stops were Paris and Florence, and that was when my life was changed forever," he recalled. The trip didn't just expand his worldview; it reshaped his priorities. "I knew this is what my extra money is for: to save up for these experiences, to save my money to travel." At the time, he had no idea travel would one day become his job, but the seed was planted, and it would grow in an unexpected place: the writer's room of Everybody Loves Raymond . During a casual conversation with actor Ray Romano, he asked where the actor was going on vacation between seasons. When Rosenthal learned Romano was going to the Jersey Shore, he asked if he had ever been to Europe. The actor hadn't, and said he wasn't interested in something "different." So Rosenthal did what writers do: he turned the moment into an episode. "I said, 'We're doing that episode. I'm going to send you in the show to Italy as you and you're going to come back as me—someone who's excited about traveling.'" It took three years to make the episodes happen, and it was the only time the series filmed abroad. "I saw what I wrote—this character who didn't want to go and is complaining the whole time, and then suddenly gets it—happen to Ray Romano, the person. When this happened 25 years ago, I thought, 'What if I could do this for other people?'" That question became the foundation for Somebody Feed Phil , but the path to turn his vision into a show wasn't a straight one, even with a hit series under his belt. He wrote other sitcoms before fully pivoting to a show that inspires people to travel. "People think I did Raymond and they just gave me a show and whatever I want. No, it took 10 years. Was it worth it? Yes." What's your go-to plane snack? Nuts. Is there anything you won't eat on a flight? If you can eat in the lounge or before the flight, I like that better than plane food. What's the best in-flight meal you've had? Korean Airlines made a samgye-tang soup, with the whole baby chicken in a pot. I just thought that was as good as a restaurant. Do you have a restaurant red flag? If there's a tourist menu, don't go in. What's your favorite food souvenir? Parmesan Reggiano. You can vacuum seal it. I love a food souvenir. For Rosenthal, travel doesn't require luxury—it just requires action. And his advice is straightforward and simple: don't wait. "Go and don't put it off. You're never going to be as young as you are right now. So go while everything still works," he told T+L. "I tell young people all the time that you don't have to have a lot of money. You just got to get there. You can stay on a friend's couch, you can stay in a youth hostel. Doesn't matter; you're there. And just being there, meaning anywhere else on Earth, is everything." His ethos is that travel isn't just a personal journey, but rather an opportunity to quietly shift the world's perspective. "You make the world a little better because you represent where you're from, and people get to see this is what, you know, a real American looks like. Forget the news. If you're a half-decent person, you're spreading a little bit more love in the world. And what you get back is invaluable, because it literally changes your perspective on life, and that's something you bring home with you." Arco de Santa Catalina Street (Santa Catalina Arch) in Antigua, Somebody Feed Phil is returning to Netflix, and the season 8 itinerary takes viewers to destinations like Amsterdam; Tbilisi, Georgia; Sydney and Adelaide in Australia; Manila, Philippines; Las Vegas; Boston; and Guatemala. The Guatemala episode, in particular, holds deeply personal value for Rosenthal. "Guatemala is one place I never thought about going, but we had a nanny from there. She would make us little dishes from there that were always delicious. So when the idea of doing Guatemala came up, I said, 'Let's bring Claudia home.' We brought her with us. That's one of my favorite episodes because she's part of the family." Beyond the personal connection, he was blown away by the food scene. "You think you know what the cuisine is going to be like. And then it's really surprising. The young people are doing kind of modern takes on the authentic Indigenous foods. It's like nothing I ever had; it's really great." Episode 804 of Somebody Feed Phil brings Phil to Tbilisi, Georgia with Chef Guram Baghdoshvili. Another standout this season? Spain's culinary gem: San Sebastián in the Basque Country. "It's so gorgeous, and the food culture seems to have everything." As for his all-time favorite episode, Rosenthal doesn't hesitate to mention the challenge and fulfillment of filming in his hometown, New York City. "I was very nervous to do New York because everyone's done it. It's been more represented than maybe every other city in the world, because it's in every TV show and every movie. So how do I do the definitive New York? I realized I can't. But I can do my New York—and that turns out to be the key, always, you do what means the most to you." The episode includes one of his favorite scenes: going to his parents' apartment. When the cameras aren't rolling, Rosenthal finds himself returning to tried-and-true destinations (London, Paris, Japan, and Spain, to name a few), though the age-old travel dilemma remains. "The more I travel, the more I fall in love with places. So you want to revisit the places you love, but you also realize, 'I gotta see the rest of the world.' Who knows what I'm missing? So what I usually try to do is—if it's my own vacation—a place I love with another place I haven't been." When asked about standout food cities, Rosenthal is quick to spotlight Bangkok. "The city has some of the best food I've ever had in my life. Some of the best things I ever ate were in Thailand." Among those unforgettable bites is a $1 bowl of khao soi , the meal he said he still thinks about from his travels in Chiang Mai. The Northern Thai curry noodle soup is typically made with a coconut-based broth, a protein like chicken or beef, and topped with crispy noodles and pickled mustard greens. Everybody Loves Raymond alum Ray Romano and Brad Garrett dine with Phil Rosenthal in episode 806 of Somebody Feed Phil. As for food cities that don't get the culinary credit they deserve, Rosenthal offered up two surprising answers: Orlando and Las Vegas. "They're similar in that they both have these giant tourist attractions—The Strip and Disney World—that were built and maintained by immigrants over many decades. These immigrants came and set up their communities around the big tourist attraction on the outskirts. So they have a fabulous Chinatown, Thai towns, and Indian restaurants—these are microcosms of America, which is made up by immigrants. So yes, there are great restaurants on The Strip and some fun places to eat in Disney World but the real Magic Kingdom is the real world outside. No one thinks of these cities as great food destinations, but they are." Rosenthal's golden rule for travel is not to overplan. He credits these unscripted moments, whether chance encounters or local recommendations, as the key to unforgettable travel experiences. "Leave some room in your schedule, as we do when we make the show, for serendipity, for stuff to happen," he said. Of course, a little research still goes a long way. When looking for restaurants, Rosenthal keeps it simple. "I Google 'best restaurants in Chiang Mai,' and then I don't go by just one review. I look at all the reviews, I start cross-referencing and note the same places start popping up in all the lists. And we have such resources now, like people who blog and Instagram. Instagram is a little dangerous because sometimes you're thinking that the most photographed thing is the best, and it's not. So you can't just go by that." (For the show, though, he credits his production company in New York and their team of fixers around the globe.) And as for the bottomless meals Rosenthal appears to devour on screen, it's not quite what it looks like. "A lot of people think that I ate all that stuff in one day, and it looks like, 'Oh, my God, he eats so much.' But we film for a week and that scene is probably all I ate that day. And if I looked excited, it's because it's the only meal I've had." The show's popularity has taken Rosenthal on the road with his live show, where he gives fans a behind-the-scenes look at his global adventures. And he's doing exactly what he set out to do as a nine-year-old with a Slurpee: see the world—and bring the rest of us along for the ride.
Daily Mail
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Patricia Heaton and Ray Romano reunite to celebrate 30 Years of Everybody Loves Raymond at special event in New York City
Patricia Heaton and Ray Romano reunited at PaleyLive: 30 Years of Everybody Loves Raymond in New York City on Monday. Patricia and Ray, who played the lead roles in the American sitcom, appeared in high spirits as the special event. The actress, 67, looked typically chic in a black satin midi dress with a large collar and quirky belt detail. She completed the look with chunky angle books and a stylish handbag, while keeping accessories to a minimum with just a few rings. Meanwhile Ray, 67, looked smart in a cream blazer, teamed with a grey T-shirt, trousers and trainers. The event, which also included other cast members like Brad Garrett and Maggie Wheeler, saw them reminiscing about the show and its enduring popularity. Maggie opted for a gold blazer and trouser co-ord, with a sheer white blouse underneath as she cuddled Patricia in on snap. Before the event, Patricia wrote on Instagram: 'Taking a moment to reflect. On my way to the Paley Center's 30 year tribute to Everybody Loves Raymond. 'Tonight I'll be with old coworkers -but more importantly, old friends. The cast and crew of Everybody Loves Raymond was rare. We weren't just punching the clock together -we were telling stories, raising kids and growing in so many ways. 'I'm also reminded of the ache of those we've lost. I know Peter, Doris and Sawyer are will be sharing this moment with us in spirit, smiling. 'I'm sure I'll be posting a bunch of the behind the scenes photos this week. Indulge me ;-) this was a wonderful group and a wonderful time. I thank God every day for this blessing.' Everybody Loves Raymond followed successful sports writer Ray (Romano) and wife Debra (Patricia) as they tried to cope with living across the street from his domineering mother Marie Barone (Doris Roberts), gruff father Frank (Peter Boyle), and jealous brother Robert (Brad Garrett). Ray and Debra also had three children on the series - daughter Ally (Madylin Sweeten), and twin boys (played by Madylin's real-life younger brothers, Sawyer and Sullivan). But any hope for an Everybody Loves Raymond reboot was recently extinguished by star Brad Garrett. The event, which also included other cast members like Brad Garrett and Maggie Wheeler, saw them reminiscing about the show and its enduring popularity Everybody Loves Raymond followed successful sports writer Ray (Romano) and wife Debra (Patricia) as they tried to cope with living across the street from his domineering mother Brad, who appeared in the sitcom as Robert Barone, addressed rumours of a reboot while attending the premiere of his new film Disney Pixar's Elio. Garrett said the reason the show could never return is due to the deaths of Peter Boyle and Doris Roberts, who played Romano's parents in the series. Veteran actor Peter passed away in 2006 at 71, and Sawyer Sweeten, who played one of Ray and Debra's twin sons, died in April at just 19. He told People: 'There is no show without the parents. 'They were the catalyst, and to do anything that would resemble that wouldn't be right to the audiences or to the loyal fan base. And it was about those two families, and you can't get around that.'
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Merciful Brad Garrett swears we'll be spared an Everybody Loves Raymond revival
In a world where literally anything that made anyone any money ever is considered fair game to be fed into the ever-hungry maw of the Reboot Industrial Complex, we'd like to take a moment to formally thank Brad Garrett. The veteran comedy actor was walking the red carpet for the premiere of his new Pixar movie, Elio, when someone—moved, we assume, by the spirit of Satan, who is the devil—went ahead and asked him when he was going to get around to bringing back Everybody Loves Raymond, the sitcom that transformed him into a household name. (And was, almost uniformly, better, smarter, and funnier than the imitators that followed in its wake.) After all, that same voice of sin in our own brains cackles, we just passed the 20-year anniversary of the series going off the air. Isn't it time to drag it, screaming, back in front of the masses? Maybe hire some young adults born years after the series first started airing to play Ray and Roberts' kids, now being annoyed by their own living-too-close parents? (It genuinely sucks how easy this stuff has become to generate, solely due to years of training by the assembled forces of TV.) But Garrett, to his genuine credit, shot the whole idea down immediately—noting that he, Ray Romano, and series creator Phil Rosenthal have discussed the idea at least in passing, and concluded that it was simply impossible to do Raymond without Peter Boyle and Doris Roberts, who died in 2006 and 2016, respectively. 'There is no show without the parents,' asserted Garrett, echoing sentiments Romano expressed back in 2023. 'They were the catalyst, and to do anything that would resemble that wouldn't be right to the audiences or the loyal fan base. And it was about those two families, and you can't get around that.' To be fair, everybody involved in the series seems to be appearing on TV pretty steadily, so it's not like any of them are hurting for work. (Romano, Garrett, and Patricia Heaton still regularly star in things, and Rosenthal has, bizarrely, become an insanely successful food show host thanks to Somebody Feed Phil.) And so the gods of TV have decreed we will be spared this particular indignity. Thanks, Brad. It's a genuine load off our minds in troubled times. [via Variety] More from A.V. Club Growing up and falling out couldn't keep Danny Boyle and Ewan McGregor apart Duster gets to the fireworks factory Michael Sheen breaks silence on making Good Omens after Neil Gaiman accusations
