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Episode 78

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Published on:

5th May 2025

WELCOME TO OUR KITCHEN: We're talking about kitchen updates!

Kitchen updates? Or remodels? What's in and what's not? Recently, SOUTHERN LIVING offered a list of ten items that are out of date in kitchens and "need" to be rethought.

We're Bruce Weinstein & Mark Scarbrough, authors of thirty-six (and counting!) cookbook. Here's our take on the list of updates and remodeling ideas.

We've also got a one-minute cooking tip about shopping your own pantry. And what's making us happy in food this week.

Here are the segments for this episode of COOKING WITH BRUCE & MARK:

[00:53] Our one-minute cooking tip: bring a bag or tray into your pantry to help carry stuff to your kitchen.

[02:37] Our take on SOUTHERN LIVING's list of ten kitchen remodels and updates.

[20:05] What’s making us happy (and unhappy!) in food this week? Homemade ketchup and bad pizza.

Transcript
Speaker:

Hey, I am Bruce Weinstein and this is

the Podcast Cooking with Bruce and Mark.

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And I'm Mark Carbo.

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And together with Bruce, we have

written three dozen cookbooks.

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We are publishing our 37th

cookbook this summer, cold Canning.

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We're very excited about that.

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We're not talking about it in this

episode, but we're still very excited

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about this new way to can that

doesn't involve a pressure cord,

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doesn't involve a steam canner.

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It involves none of those.

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Things, it does not make billions of jars.

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Instead, it makes very small batches

that you could put in your fridge or

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your freezer and say that you have

saved back the very best of the season.

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That's our book, cold

Counting Out this Summer.

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But other than that, we've got a one

minute cooking tip as we always do.

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We have got questions about

kitchen updates, something

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that Southern Living has.

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Set us off on.

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We'll talk to you about that

and we'll tell you what's making

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us happy in food this week.

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So let's get started.

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our one minute cooking tip.

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When you are going into your

freezer, your pantry, wherever it

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is, you store food because you're

cooking and you're making dinner.

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Take a big tray or a bowl or a supermarket

bag with you and fill it with all your

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ingredients so that you're not making

five trips back into that pantry.

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You're making one trip.

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You pile it all into the bag.

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Think of it as shopping your pantry

when you're about to make dinner,

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but what happens when I walked

back into the pantry and I can't

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remember why I went into the pantry?

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Well, that is half of my

life ever since I turned 16.

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So am I supposed to make a shopping

list for my pantry when I get

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in there and I go, oh, right.

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Isn, what?

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I came, isn't that called your recipe?

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Well, I don't know, but

uh, I end up walking back.

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We have a back pantry that's off the

garage and I end up walking back there and

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looking around and thinking, what'd I do?

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What we here every single time I walk?

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Back there.

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I step back there and I go, why am I here?

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And it's only when I go

back into the kitchen.

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Oh yeah, of course.

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That's why I'm there.

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Ugh, we're getting old socks.

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Well, anyway, um, you can make a

shopping list for your own pantry you

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know, gather things in one trip.

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It makes things all the more easier.

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Okay, so before we go on to the

big segment about kitchen updates,

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let me say that there are Facebook,

Instagram, and TikTok groups.

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All called cooking with Bruce and Mark.

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You can find us on any

of those applications.

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We've got videos up, we're

cooking, we're talking.

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We're telling you about cookbooks.

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We're telling you about our life together.

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We're telling you about

likes and dislikes.

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If you want more of this, then

go there to TikTok, Instagram or

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Facebook and check out the groups

Cooking with Bruce and Mark, miss.

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Aunt Clever.

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We've named everything the same thing,

and you could find more about us.

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Okay, so Southern Living set

us off on kitchen updates.

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Recently Southern Living ran a piece

and it was all about how to tell

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if your kitchen needs an update.

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So they, what did they, did

they look at my checkbook

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before they asked this question.

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Does my kitchen need an update?

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So they listed 10 of the most

outdated kitchen designs.

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Wait a minute, I have to say, did I

just age myself by saying checkbook?

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Did I just indicate how old I actually am?

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Said you still have a checkbook.

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That I have, oh gosh, that's

a whole different segment.

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I still pay bills with checks, but

that's a whole different matter.

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Um, duh.

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I am, I'm ancient, I'm decrepit.

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I walk with a walker.

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You know the whole thing.

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Don't walk with a walker.

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I have people chew my

food before I eat it.

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Whole thing.

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And spit it into your mouth, baby bird.

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Mm.

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Nice.

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Yeah, it's a whole thing.

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So anyway, checkbooks.

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Yes.

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You did said living Check my budget.

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Oh, before they suggested updates.

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So we're gonna go through their bulleted

list and tell you what they said were

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things to look out for that might

be outdated and that you might want

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to consider updating and we'll tell

you whether we agree or don't agree.

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The first.

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Thing they said.

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And wait, I wanna go back and say I did

walk with a walker when I broke my leg.

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Okay.

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So how dare you impugn me for

not walking with a walker I had.

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You don't anymore.

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I had the tennis ball walker.

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I know.

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We should have just taken your mom's

when we got her apartment for two.

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That's so sad.

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It is sad.

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Don't bring up My mom's death

in a food podcast would've

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saved us renting a walker.

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Oh, come on.

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Okay.

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Well anyway, I did walk

with it and I gained a.

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Brand new appreciation for how incredibly

difficult it is to manipulate those cages

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well, but you are hopping in the walker.

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Doesn't matter what you're doing

with it, your broken legs, it's hard.

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It is hard.

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It's not intuitive.

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It looks like it should be intuitive

to be able to walk in that cage.

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My mother always called the

walker like that, the cage.

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It's looks like it should

be intuitive, but it's not.

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Okay.

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Now on onto, and I'm gonna start

this off since I digressed as often.

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Okay.

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What is the first point

Southern Living said?

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So Southern Living says

to get rid of your.

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Busy granite countertop.

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Mm.

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And um, I wanna tell you that Bruce

and I have a busy granite countertop.

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Oh gosh.

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It's really busy.

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And we loved it when we

installed it 18 years ago.

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Yeah.

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These 18 years ago.

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It's got, uh, it's got garnets mm-hmm.

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In it, it's a piece of granite that

actually has a little, uh, uh, what

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do I say, rivers of Ritz of mm-hmm.

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It's, it's strewn through with little

streaks of garnets and it's dark.

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Green as its background.

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It's so you really only see the

garnets when the overhead and

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the halogen are spotlight on.

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It's true.

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Or if you flying a flashlight.

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It's true, but I will say that.

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Busy or not?

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I think granite has had its day and I

think there is some, well, there is some

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stone countertops that are timeless.

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And personally I think marble is timeless.

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I couldn't do it.

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And I would love a marble countertop.

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I I could do it.

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I know.

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Because we get stained.

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It's the stain and see, I like that.

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To me that's patina.

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That just looks like the worn.

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Oh no, it just, the first two

stains would be like, look at that.

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I understand if you have lots of stains.

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Yeah.

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Then the marble carries something.

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Mm-hmm.

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But.

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Those first two stains.

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Okay.

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They would just be ridiculous.

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You'd be just staring

at them the whole time.

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You couldn't do it.

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Well, you could buy used marble

and that's full of lots of stains.

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Really?

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I want other people's

stains on my counters.

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Really?

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Really?

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Mm-hmm.

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You could buy used marble, I bet.

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Is that like used toilets is,

I mean, what is used marble?

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I bet you could go like to a

restaurant thing that's going outta

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business and buy their marble slab.

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I bet.

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It seems unsanitary to me.

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I don't know why it seems gross.

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Like somebody's done something on

that that I don't wanna know about.

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Okay.

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I wanna say that granted like.

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I wanna say, alright, I like

the granite and I don't care

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what Southern Living says.

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And the reason I like the granite

is because when I first got granite,

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when we first got granite, I

thought it was super temperamental.

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I mean, they were like, oh my gosh,

don't put anything acidic on it,

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and blah, blah, blah, blah, blah.

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Mm-hmm.

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Well, over the years we've

kind of blown all that off.

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Mm-hmm.

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And now we just clean it.

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I clean it on a regular basis.

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I've had a clean our granite

countertops every day.

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Other day maybe.

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Mm-hmm.

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Let's say, and we keep it fairly

clean, but I like it because you

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can put anything burning hot.

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Yes.

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On top of it.

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I agree.

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And nothing happens.

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When we installed our granite, the

guy's like, he won't kill this.

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And then he brought out this

giant blowtorch and blowtorched

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our granite counters.

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Well.

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I liked it.

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I maybe I'm just tired of it.

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Also, it's gotten chips and nicks.

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It has, it does chips, and

that's the thing about it.

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So it does have chips and it does have

nicks, and I'm not crazy about that.

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And I think if I could

go do it all over again.

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Okay.

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I would try and talk you into

marble, because I think marble

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is just absolutely stunning.

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I mean, beautiful.

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I mean, if it left in my own devices.

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I love stainless steel countertops,

but I do know they turn a home

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kitchen into a restaurant.

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They make your kitchen look like

a restaurant, and most people

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don't wanna walk into a restaurant

kitchen worse than a restaurant.

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It makes it look like a school cafeteria.

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Yeah.

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And I love stainless steel because

it's basically indestructible.

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Yeah.

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And it's got that.

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Ion problem where it keeps

bad bugs kind of floating.

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Mm-hmm.

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Right above its surface.

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And it's, as I say, indestructible and

you know, you can clean it and it looks

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beautiful even when it's scratched up.

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Mm-hmm.

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Like a stainless steel bowl.

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But at the same time, I get

it, most people would never

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put that in their house.

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Right.

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I don't know what I would do for a

countertop, to be honest with you.

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So we have mixed reviews on the first

of, uh, southern living's ideas.

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The next thing they say is if your

cabinets are finished in like a

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raw pine or hickory and have gold,

brass hardware, you are out of date.

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Uh, I disagree.

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Okay.

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I, I'm just gonna disagree.

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It's very country vibe.

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It is.

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And I live in the country.

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God give it moose in my backyard, so

I live in the country, so I like it.

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I like that natural wood.

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I don't know, know that I

would like unfinished pine.

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Mm.

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I'm suddenly in the movie.

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Raising Arizona.

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Unfinished.

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Arizona.

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Unfinished huffines.

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No.

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Would you buy furniture

from unfinished Huffines?

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That's why I changed my name to Arizona.

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Unfinished.

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Arizona.

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Right?

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So sorry, Arizona.

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Um, so, uh, I like that.

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Look.

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I don't want it raw, but I wouldn't

mind nicely stained hickory cabinets.

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Well, okay, but I do.

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Personally, I don't like gold or

brass or that kind of shiny hardware.

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Okay, I'll give do that.

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I would, I would change that

to black or even wooden knobs.

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Look at that.

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I think that, uh, so we'll

disagree with their hickory pine.

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We're good with that.

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But we will agree that if you have

gold or brass hardware, time to update

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at least your hardware and, you know.

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Here's a funny thing about the hardware

that I think is funny and it's a really

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easy update for your house, is to

update the hardware in your kitchen.

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And Bruce, I have not done it in 18

years, and sometimes I do look at, uh,

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we have, um, you know, sea glass, the

stuff that watches up on the beach.

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We have like sea glass poles mm-hmm.

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On every counter.

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And I mean every cabinet and every drawer.

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And I look at them sometimes and I think,

Hmm, we should probably change this out.

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And that's such an easy update.

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It really is.

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It is.

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But.

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I also can say that I go to people's

houses that have the cutesy ones

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that are like spoons or hands, and

I actually like it in their house,

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but I would never put it in my house.

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Oh, house.

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Oh, thank you.

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Thank you.

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I afraid when you, you said you like

it, other people's houses or they

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have little smiley faces or what?

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I, I don't know.

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I think it's kind of cute.

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So look, it's cute in

other people's houses.

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I think it's cute.

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I would do it, but uh, I

agree with the gold thing, no.

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Okay.

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So the third thing they talk

about is ceramic tile counters.

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And here's the funny thing, they say that

ceramic tile counters are out and I was.

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Thinking as we were talking about

the cabinet finishes, about,

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well, exactly, mark, what kind of

countertop would you in fact put in?

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And I think I liked my ceramic

tile counters in Austin, Texas.

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When I, before I met Bruce, I

lived in the house in Austin,

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Texas where I had off white.

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Tiles.

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They were large square tiles and the grout

between them and what I liked about them

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is I could get the comet out and return

it all to its original color every time.

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Can you tell 'em a cleaning tree?

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But the problem with that is you

have to get the comet out 'cause

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grout absorbs sauce and stains.

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It does like tofu.

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It does.

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And who?

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Oh, no, no, no, no.

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I don't.

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Grout does not belong on my countertops.

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Yeah.

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I don't know.

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I kinda like that.

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And the other thing about ceramic dog

counters is you have to have a cutting

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board and all that kind of stuff.

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I mean, they, it's 'cause it's.

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Uneven surface.

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Mm-hmm.

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So you have to even it out in some way.

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I don't know.

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I kind of like ceramic tiles.

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I don't think I would like them busy.

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Mm-hmm.

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But single colors, I'm not sure.

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Okay.

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So I agree with them.

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They're out.

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We don't want it.

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Okay.

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Not agreeing yet.

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Um, okay.

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Outdated colors is, I haven't

agreed with anything yet, so.

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Okay.

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They outdated colors are the

things they say next and what

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they're putting in that list.

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Okay.

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Is.

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Anything that is stark white is out.

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I agree.

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Anything bright and shiny, anything

neon, saturated yellows and bright

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reds, they say those are all out.

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Wow.

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A saturated yellow.

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I kinda like that.

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We have a friend who did her kitchen

in, uh, Provence, salt yellow, and

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I think it's really attractive.

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I don't well, but she needed to, she

had given up a house in Provence,

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salt to move here in province,

salt in province to move here.

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So she needed a little bit of that

public, but I know that that's a

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saturated, I think they're meaning

like a highlighter yellow, don't you?

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Oh, we used to have

highlighter yellow in our.

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Front foyer and hallways.

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It was a mistake.

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We moved in here and I did it.

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We wanted a butter yellow and it

ended up being, being school bus.

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No, I wanted a New

England Colonial yellow.

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Yeah.

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That didn't work though.

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No.

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I ended up getting a highlighter

yellow and it was wrong.

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Colors rarely come out the way you hope.

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Well, I don't think that's true, but okay.

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Um, I But a bright red kitchen,

uh, I think that's terrible.

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I never do that.

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I would agree and I would agree

that Stark White is definitely out.

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It's definitely a look from like.

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20 15, 20 10, and I am not sure about it.

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So with this, I'm gonna give them Yes.

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Okay.

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The fourth one I finally got to

when I agreed with out the fifth

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thing they say, oh, and I'm gonna

agree with this one completely.

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Is, uh, window treatments faded,

dusty, worn out window treatments.

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Yeah.

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No window treatments in a

kitchen are hard for me because.

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They get greasy and then the

grease atta attacks dust, and

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then they suddenly look hairy.

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You should, oh God, disgust.

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It's just like a no disgust.

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It's a big no.

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There should be no window

treatments in your kitchen.

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Let's start with that.

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So they're saying, I kind of buy that

over the top Florals, ated, I'm sorry.

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Anything is dead.

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You should not have window

treatments in your kitchen period.

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Now, I wanna say, uh, just to make this

clear, we have a west facing window

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over our sink, and in the summer the

sun beats in through that window and

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it makes the kitchen oh, about the

temperature of the surface surface.

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And so did I solve that?

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Well, you said how you fixed it.

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Well, I put a window

treatment on the outside.

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I bought one of those,

you know, Ratan bamboo.

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Kind of rolls that you

can roll down and roll up.

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So most of the day it's rolled

up and you don't see it.

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And I can roll it down to block

that sun in the afternoon,

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but it, it's on the outside.

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And believe it or not, that thing has

lasted through New England winters.

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It has.

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It's great.

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Which is great.

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I assumed we were gonna

take it down every winter.

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So that thing has lasted a long time.

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Okay, so that's the fifth thing.

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And I, we agree.

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I both agreed.

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We both agreed and we both

agreed about the colors.

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Now I'm gonna say the sixth one that they

say is a clashing back splash and counter.

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And I don't even know what they mean.

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I think they mean mean that when they

don't match that you did your counter

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and your back splash don't match.

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So, so you put Winnie the pool

on your backsplash and you put

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Martha Stewart on your counter.

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I don't get this.

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I don't get what?

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What does that mean?

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Clashing?

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No clashing is out.

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So like if you have marble on your,

your counter and then you have some

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Oh, Italian mosaic on the backside.

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Oh, I think what they're

suggesting is you have the same Oh.

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Or something that matches.

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No, I don't think I agree.

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Back splash encounters.

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Okay.

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No, I, no, that seems to fall.

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So if you like it to clash.

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No, I don't like it to clash.

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I'm just trying to think if I had.

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Let's say I went with your idiotic

mar marble counters, sorry.

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And, um, that were used and had

people's butt prints all over them.

433

:

Well, then we can have a mosaic.

434

:

We can have this beautiful Italian mosaic,

and it could look just like the floor

435

:

above where Francis has been entombed.

436

:

Exactly a, her culin backsplash with

naked men and naked women all across it.

437

:

Oh, sure.

438

:

I, no, I think that you, that I

can imagine the backsplash not

439

:

matching the counter, and I can

imagine your marble counters with a

440

:

very, very tiny mosaic gold beige.

441

:

Brown backsplash.

442

:

See, I can imagine that.

443

:

Mm.

444

:

And so I don't think that

that's such a bad idea.

445

:

Yeah.

446

:

I think they want you to go matchy

matchy and we don't like that.

447

:

So we disagree with them there too.

448

:

Match.

449

:

No match.

450

:

Matchy.

451

:

Matchy match.

452

:

Okay.

453

:

And the next one is busy

wallpaper prints always been out.

454

:

Sorry.

455

:

Always.

456

:

I never like them.

457

:

Bruce.

458

:

Bruce is a wallpaper hater.

459

:

You're a anti wallpaper.

460

:

I am an anti wallpaper wite.

461

:

I have been since I have been a child.

462

:

Yeah, I'm not exactly because

I grew up in the seventies with

463

:

a giant, when did I grow up?

464

:

Wallpaper and a grass paper

wallpaper is just what?

465

:

What did I have in my bedroom?

466

:

Grass paper wallpaper.

467

:

Here's, here's where I'm gonna

contradict myself because I do believe.

468

:

That the style of the seventies

was probably one of the highlights.

469

:

Gross of the last hundred years.

470

:

Gross.

471

:

In terms of design and style?

472

:

Gross.

473

:

Mostly ENC clothes.

474

:

Gross.

475

:

Not in wallpaper.

476

:

Gross.

477

:

Oh, clothes from the seventies.

478

:

The best, I think.

479

:

I think a really beautiful ol.

480

:

Wallpaper in a kitchen

can be very attractive.

481

:

And I think a delt blue kind of Dutch

scene wallpaper, that's very subtle.

482

:

I think they could be very

attractive in a kitchen.

483

:

So I'm not gonna go with no wallpaper.

484

:

This is like something some

committee came up with, but they're

485

:

saying they're busy wallpaper.

486

:

Then what are you gonna do?

487

:

Just put up plane.

488

:

What's the difference of busy?

489

:

Okay, well I'll tell you what

the definition of busy is.

490

:

You're busy.

491

:

Ready?

492

:

Okay.

493

:

My grandmother loved wallpaper

and she did her kitchen.

494

:

I'm not making this up with a big, giant

seventies floral wallpaper on the walls.

495

:

And then she chose a second completely

different busy floral seventies wallpaper.

496

:

For the ceiling.

497

:

I'm not making this up.

498

:

And she wallpapered the ceiling

of her kitchen at this tiny, tiny

499

:

little kitchen and the walls.

500

:

And then she took the wallpaper

that was on the ceiling and she had

501

:

extra of it, and she cut out the

flowers from it and she glued them

502

:

on top of the already busy wallpaper.

503

:

That was different.

504

:

That was on the walls.

505

:

Now that's.

506

:

Busy.

507

:

Oh, that is busy.

508

:

That is super busy.

509

:

Just imagine the color of

saturation going on there.

510

:

That is, you could not walk in that

kitchen in a bad mood, which is really

511

:

a problem with me in the morning.

512

:

So I had to basically

stay outta the kitchen.

513

:

So how do you go in that kitchen

and not like get vertigo?

514

:

My God.

515

:

I mean this.

516

:

Ceiling was done and the ceiling

flowers were cut out and shoved

517

:

onto the incredibly busy orange

red lime green flower on the walls.

518

:

Typical seventies flower.

519

:

We had it too.

520

:

Yeah.

521

:

Had to the, the ceiling was in gold

and browns and flowers and big flowers.

522

:

And those gold flowers got

shoved onto the other walls.

523

:

It was, we have, it was a thing.

524

:

I have a picture of the kitchen in

the seventies when I was growing up.

525

:

With a giant floor liner it.

526

:

I'm gonna post that in our

Facebook group cooking remarks.

527

:

So you can see the wallpaper that

I had to look at every time I made

528

:

my fettuccine Alfredo for dinner.

529

:

Oh, another bad thing about the

seventies fettuccine Alfred.

530

:

Okay, so we're spending too much time.

531

:

So the next one they say is wood paneling.

532

:

Oh, wood paneling should

never be in a kitchen.

533

:

No, I think wooden water are

probably not the best match.

534

:

Yeah.

535

:

And grease and all that.

536

:

No.

537

:

So I'll agree with that

on practical matters.

538

:

Okay.

539

:

But, uh, okay.

540

:

And the nine, what they're

saying is no recessed or.

541

:

Overhead lighting.

542

:

They want to go for carefully

placed pendants or spotlights.

543

:

And I'm gonna tell you, don't kill us.

544

:

That that is what our kitchen has is

carefully placed pendants and spots.

545

:

We do, we have spots all over our kitchen.

546

:

We have tracks.

547

:

So we have been, we have

these really tight cans.

548

:

We don't have the big like

seventies cans or these little.

549

:

Tight cans that hang just a little

bit down from the tracks and Well,

550

:

I, I have to tell you that that's me.

551

:

Mm-hmm.

552

:

The minute I moved in with Bruce

in New York City, I changed all

553

:

the lighting in the apartment.

554

:

He ripped my ceiling fan out and

made me put in a track light, a

555

:

gay man putting in track lighting.

556

:

What I, I'm like, you cannot

be gay and have a ceiling fan.

557

:

I'm sorry, that's just not possible.

558

:

You have to have good lighting.

559

:

So, um mm-hmm.

560

:

It's really important.

561

:

Okay.

562

:

So we, listen, I don't moisturize

to not have good lighting, so.

563

:

So there you, you go.

564

:

So we agree on that and we

have been trendy for 18 years.

565

:

And the last thing they claim, if you

look around your kitchen and you see

566

:

old appliances, it's time to update.

567

:

You know what, if they still

work, you do not need to update,

568

:

then they're too expensive.

569

:

Yeah.

570

:

Again, this one too expensive.

571

:

When I saw this list, old appliances,

this is the one that really got

572

:

me irritated because I thought to

myself, Don, everybody ugh, has

573

:

the money to run out and buy a new

refrigerator or buy a new oven.

574

:

I know that we would scrap

together money to buy a new oven.

575

:

Oh my goodness.

576

:

So I.

577

:

Just the, the whole idea, oh, you

got old appliances, get rid of them.

578

:

Come on, be real.

579

:

Um, if they still work, hold onto them.

580

:

They're very expensive.

581

:

And they are very expensive.

582

:

And hold onto your money.

583

:

Yeah, exactly.

584

:

Especially in this economy.

585

:

Hold onto your money.

586

:

So that seems to me to be out of

touch with the current moment.

587

:

Right.

588

:

I agree.

589

:

So there's our take on the Southern

living top 10 most dated kitchen ideas or

590

:

how to update your kitchen or whatever.

591

:

I think we agreed with.

592

:

I agreed with maybe.

593

:

Four of them, I don't even know, but we

together agreed with maybe three of them.

594

:

I, I don't know, four of

them, I don't, I don't know.

595

:

So whatever their, their consultants can

go away and think about us and come up

596

:

with another list sometime in the future.

597

:

Let's just say that it would be

great if you could like this podcast

598

:

and if you could subscribe to it.

599

:

It's always great to help out in

this Otherwise Unsupported podcast.

600

:

And if you can write a review on what.

601

:

Ever platform You're listening to this

on and in whatever nationality you are

602

:

listening to this podcast, it helps

on those podcast platforms to support

603

:

this otherwise unsupported podcast

and we appreciate that so very much.

604

:

Okay, moving on to the last segment.

605

:

What's making us happy in food this week?

606

:

Homemade ketchup.

607

:

Every month, mark and I do a food

segment on Portland, Oregon Morning tv.

608

:

If you wanna see us, you can go to

their YouTube channel AM Northwest.

609

:

It's Portland, Oregon morning tv, and

we're on once a month and we do it from

610

:

our kitchen with two iPhones and Zoom.

611

:

And yeah, we zoom it through two iPhones.

612

:

We did it last week and we made a

homemade mustard and a homemade ketchup.

613

:

And that homemade ketchup is right out

of our book, cold Canning, and it is.

614

:

So delicious.

615

:

And it is my favorite ketchup and

I have a pint of it in the fridge.

616

:

And I cannot wait to have

hamburgers and french fries this

617

:

week so I can have my ketchup.

618

:

Okay.

619

:

And I'm gonna change this up, and

I'm gonna tell you what's making

620

:

me unhappy in food this week.

621

:

Mm.

622

:

Okay.

623

:

And that's what's making me unhappy

in food this week is piss poor pizza.

624

:

Oh.

625

:

Oh, yeah.

626

:

And you know what I'm talking

about making me unhappy too.

627

:

Oh my gosh.

628

:

So last night.

629

:

Uh, Bruce and I last night is

recording this last night, Bruce and

630

:

I decided we wanna go out somewhere

for dinner, and we both kind of

631

:

thought, oh, let's go for pizza.

632

:

Mm-hmm.

633

:

There's a pizza player stunt that we

love up here who make, they make, I mean,

634

:

super thin crust pizza, which is my thing.

635

:

Like, I mean, matza thin,

like, like really thin.

636

:

And then I want them to burn it.

637

:

So I like really crunchy, burned

thin pizza crackers basically,

638

:

and with stuff on top of it.

639

:

And so we went.

640

:

And they were closed

for mud season vacation.

641

:

And did they put it on their,

on their Facebook page or did

642

:

they put it on their website?

643

:

No, I checked their website.

644

:

I checked everywhere and

we, we drove 30 minutes.

645

:

We did, because we live so rural, we gotta

drive 30 minutes and so it wasn't there.

646

:

So then I checked around for local

towns and I found this really highly

647

:

rated pizzeria in this large town,

in the Berkshires, in Massachusetts.

648

:

So we went and drove another

20 minutes and went there.

649

:

And man was the pizza crappy.

650

:

I mean, we walked in

and it all seemed right.

651

:

There was a big, beautiful pizza oven.

652

:

Mm-hmm.

653

:

With a big a log inside of it on fire.

654

:

And you know, he was shoving the

pizza in off the peel into this

655

:

thing and it, man, did it look right.

656

:

And it was the, oh, here we go.

657

:

Stainless steel counters.

658

:

And it was open to the dining room.

659

:

And so I thought, oh my

gosh, this is gonna be.

660

:

Fabulous.

661

:

And what gave it away?

662

:

First we ordered a Caesar salad.

663

:

It was, and it was topped with

pre granulated, what I can only

664

:

say canned Parmesan cheese.

665

:

It was, and

666

:

it set on the menu.

667

:

Parmigiano ano.

668

:

No, it was out of a can.

669

:

No way.

670

:

No way.

671

:

It was out of a can.

672

:

It was.

673

:

It was canned Parmesan cheese, which is

mostly wood shavings if you don't know.

674

:

And it was disgusting.

675

:

And the pizza came and, um, let's just say

my pizza needed Viagra because it was just

676

:

disgusting and, and I don't understand

how it could be that disgusting.

677

:

And it had no wood flavor.

678

:

No smokiness to it?

679

:

No, no.

680

:

And I ordered a prosciutto pizza

and I assumed, now it's my fault.

681

:

I assumed that the prosciutto

would be frizzled on top of it

682

:

in that wood oven, but it wasn't.

683

:

The pizza was made and then it was the.

684

:

Proto was just put on

cold and delivered to me.

685

:

Yes.

686

:

On top of it, disappointment.

687

:

It was a disappointing thing, and that

really is sucky when you go out and you

688

:

spend, oh my gosh, Bruce had a beer.

689

:

We had a couple bottles of Sand Pellegrino

and we spent a hundred bucks mm-hmm.

690

:

On this meal, and it was crappy pizza.

691

:

Mm-hmm.

692

:

So it's just so disappointing

when that happens.

693

:

When it's possible for it to be

better, it's given that they've got.

694

:

All the right ACC malls

that are coming around them.

695

:

This should be much better.

696

:

I think that I could do a better pizza.

697

:

No, I think my dog could make a

better pizza in that pizza oven.

698

:

Wow.

699

:

That's really for sure.

700

:

I don't know, I just, it's just

so unfortunate and I can only

701

:

believe that there are five.

702

:

Point zero rating on Google.

703

:

Must be all employees, owners,

and the children of the owners.

704

:

Because I'm like, there is no way

anyone would write this as five stars.

705

:

Well, well, well, there was a couple

sitting two tables away from us.

706

:

Oh God.

707

:

And I mean, yes, he did look

like Aaron Copeland and.

708

:

I don't know about his wife, but he did.

709

:

Bruce said it's the son of Erin

Copeland, and I said, no, it's the

710

:

father of Erin Copeland and they shared

a pizza and she did say that that was

711

:

the best pizza she'd had in months.

712

:

What did they know?

713

:

They're New Yorkers.

714

:

What do they know?

715

:

Listen, honestly, I think that

she's used to rays in the original

716

:

rays and the famous original rays.

717

:

Okay.

718

:

Anyway, I don't like that pizza either,

but that's a whole different matter

719

:

about how I don't like New York slices,

but that's a whole different matter.

720

:

Those also need Viagra.

721

:

So, um, no.

722

:

Okay, so that's what's making

me unhappy in food this week.

723

:

That's our podcast for this week.

724

:

Thanks for listening.

725

:

Thanks for being a part of our podcast.

726

:

We appreciate your support and your

participation in this podcast, and you

727

:

can participate further by going to,

as I have said, TikTok, Instagram or

728

:

Facebook or all of 'em together and

finding cooking with Bruce and Mark

729

:

and becoming part of our community.

730

:

Yeah.

731

:

And do that like Mark said, and

share with us what's making you

732

:

happy in food this week, or what's

making you unhappy in food this week.

733

:

That's actually a great idea.

734

:

'cause we wanna know, we want to

talk about it and we wanna share

735

:

all these food stories with you

on cooking with Bruce and Mark.

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About the Podcast

Cooking with Bruce and Mark
Fantastic recipes, culinary science, a little judgment, hysterical banter, love and laughs--you know, life.
Join us, Bruce Weinstein and Mark Scarbrough, for weekly episodes all about food, cooking, recipes, and maybe a little marital strife on air. After writing thirty-six cookbooks, we've got countless opinions and ideas on ingredients, recipes, the nature of the cookbook-writing business, and much more. If you've got a passion for food, we also hope to up your game once and a while and to make you laugh most of the time. Come along for the ride! There's plenty of room!

About your host

Profile picture for Mark Scarbrough

Mark Scarbrough

Former lit professor, current cookbook writer, creator of two podcasts, writer of thirty-five (and counting) cookbooks, author of one memoir (coming soon!), married to a chef (my cookbook co-writer, Bruce Weinstein), and with him, the owner of two collies, all in a very rural spot in New England. My life's full and I'm up for more challenges!