A Hot Dog Is a Sandwich - 10 Foods You Need To Try In 2025

Episode Date: January 1, 2025

Today, Josh and Nicole are counting down the food trends that you should try in 2025! Leave us a voicemail at (833) DOG-POD1 Check out the video version of this podcast: http://youtube.com/@mythicalkitchen To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This, this, this, this is Mythical. Get groceries delivered across the GTA from real Canadian Superstore with PC Express. Shop online for super prices and super savings. Try it today and get up to $75 in PC Optimum Points. Visit superstore.ca to get started. Hey Josh, my 2025 resolution is to be on the seafood diet. Oh, I get it. When you see food, you eat it. No, Josh, I'm gonna eat oysters.

Lots and lots of oysters. This is a Hot Dog is a Sandwich. Ketchup is a smoothie. Yeah, I put ice in my cereal, so what? That makes no sense. A hot dog is a sandwich. A hot dog is a sandwich. What?

Welcome to our podcast, A Hot Dog is a Sandwich, the show we break down the world's biggest food debates. I'm your host, Josh Scherer. And I'm your host, Nicole Anayiti. And 2025 is the year that Nicole gets- It's the year of the oyster, the moisture oyster. Don't say moisture oyster. Why not?

That is the most vulgar thing that we have ever said on this show. And we've said a lot of vulgar things. Welcome to 2025, the year of vulgarity and eating oysters. 2025 is the moistest, oistest year that we are possibly going to have. Oyster, oyster, oyster. What we are doing today, we are looking at food trends in 2025, and we are going to distill all of them down into a list of 10 that you should be

participating in. Because Nicole, we here at A Hot Dog is a Sandwich, we actively shape culture. Yes, I would say that we are the movers and the shakers of the food scene. Absolutely. One of our podcasts was actually taught at a UCLA philosophy lecture. What? Yeah, it was The Hot Dog is a Sandwich. You're telling me this now? Yeah, we have made the rounds in college classrooms

and I feel terrible for the youth of America. Wait a second. Go ahead. You went to UCLA. Yep. I had a lot of friends go to UCLA. Yep. So we are being taught at a course in UCLA.

Also recently come to my attention a University of Michigan MBA program Neither of us have college degrees. That's correct, but now we should hear me out real quick We'll get to the trends my mom we have to tell my mom and dad immediately like you don't understand how big of a deal This is that we are being taught in college courses. I want an honorary doctorate from anyway I will Rensselaer Institute of Technology. Please! RIT, reach out. Why Rensselaer Institute of Technology? Why not? That's your new slogan. Reach out. This is so crazy. Wait, wait, you can't just spring this on me. I cannot believe that.

You know, that just springs up. I'll get random DMs from people in like a college lecture Northwestern it happened that to know it dude. My heart is beating like this is a big deal for me I don't know. I got to tell my mommy me as soon as we as soon as this pot I'm not gonna call my mom. She's probably busy someone from Northwestern reached out They were a professor and they were like every year We do like a silly debate within the philosophy department where everyone has like a party and they just kind of get drunk, but they take it like very seriously. Yeah, sure. And they did a hot dog as a sandwich one, one year.

Okay. And they like asked if I'd want to fly out and I was busy. But that's like my dream. My dream is to eventually be able to do something like that. I hope, I hope so. You know what I mean? But in that vein, we are continuing to drive culture forward. Sorry, that was such a tangy tange. Sorry about that.

I live for our tangy tanges. Nicole, do you want to kick it off with our first food trend of 2025? Sure. Why not? That you should be jumping on. So I think, I feel like I say this every year maybe, but you know what? 2025 is the year that it needs to happen. More people need to be eating awful. God dang right they do.

Not A-W-F-U-L-O-F-F-A-L. More people need to be eating awful. God dang right they do. Not A-W-F-U-L-O-F-F-A-L. More people need to be eating all parts of the animal. And you know there are sexy ways to do it. I find kidney to be the sexiest meat out there. I mean have you ever had a steak in kidney pie? Honestly have you ever had one before? I actually have. I certainly have. I had it last time I was in London.

Oh great. And in French kidney sounds even sexier. Rognon. Rognon? Rognon I was in London. Oh, great. And in French, kidney sounds even sexier. Well, I just think people need to just start eating more part... because they are truly delicious. If you're able to divorce the idea that it's a body part, the way that we've been able to with chicken breast, and stew meat, and all these other names, ground beef, all these other words we use for parts of the animal, just the one parts that are a

little bit less attractive. If we just kind of separate it, there's no way you can enjoy it. Yeah, I think I have a technique that might help. So a lot of people, they are averse to organ meats because they think of their own organs, right? They wouldn't eat a pig's pancreas because you think of your own pancreas. But every time you eat, say, brisket, imagine someone slicing off your own chest and braising that for a long period of time. And that way-

You're a vulgarity, baby! Yeah, and that way you'll be a lot more comfortable eating liver because we all have all the parts. If you eat meat at all, you're just eating the musculature of an animal, why not eat its organs as well? I think organs are delicious and aside from like if you want to be more like conscious of what you're eating, being a little bit more aware, there's nothing better than eating parts of the animal you typically wouldn't eat, right?

100%. Like eat every part of the animal, like whenever you buy, it's like taking a Costco rotisserie chicken and using the bones for stock. Yeah, yeah. Like use that same philosophy of taking the and using the bones for stock. Yeah, like use that same philosophy of taking the meat and the bones but instead maybe you buy the meat and eat the tongue of the animal. 100% I am currently filled with a bunch of awful. Did you eat awful? I ate a ton of awful last night

I had somewhere between 8 to 12 ounces probably of sweetbreads from an Argentinian steakhouse. 12 ounces of sweetbreads which is thymus gland right? The thymus gland yes. Sweetbreads though also there's another organ I can't remember what it is that will also be called sweetbreads. Interesting. It's not pancreas I don't believe but yeah but most of the time it's thymus gland but I remember I went to one restaurant and they had sweetbreads and it was a completely different organ I was interesting interesting, but in in Argentina once this lovely Argentinian steakhouse and I Wanted to try all the awful I wanted to try the more seizure the more jeras which are the the sweetbreads

But it was a there was a good price break if we got like the party platter You were gonna get a party platter not a party platter, but it was the party shot and mixed up That's for like four people and I mean Julie got it and I just kept going back to the sweetbreads If I could narrow down one awful for you to try. Mm-hmm find an Argentinian like Barajada restaurant like an Argentinian grill or steakhouse right and get the sweetbreads No one does sweetbreads like Argentinian and they are one of the best meats. It's just simply grilled over wood, lemon and salt on it. You got some chimichurri on the side if you want. But to me it is legitimately one of my favorite things to eat. How do you think, because awful, this could have been written 14 years ago. That's what I'm saying. And it would have been

correct. And it was a big trend. Like we we grew up in the restaurants, where you would go to a restaurant, and they would have like... A fancy restaurant would have pork trotters, like pork feet, and everyone had a chicken liver toast. And they still do. I love chicken liver. But what do you think the new dish, like the chicken liver toast was some sort of balsamiki thing? What is it now? For me, it's gonna be sexy tureens.

No, sexy tureens. So tureens like a layered gelatinize. Yeah, what's wrong with sexy? Well, I love aspects. I've always been a fan of aspects. I send Nicole your aspects. Spelled A-S-P-I-C-S. She doesn't know how to spell.

Well, everybody knows that. I don't know how to count. I don't know how to spell. But no, I think what's wrong with tureens? I just don't know if there is marketable shut up I saw Jeremy Fox who is the chef of rustic Canyon make the sexiest pig ear Tareen I've ever seen yeah and If he can make it sexy so can you like I just so can I so can everybody my favorite sweetbreads were cooked by Jeremy Fox really it was an ode to this freaking steakhouse in Napoma, California called Jocko's

Okay It was an ode to this freaking steakhouse in Napoma, California called Jocko's Okay, it was on the menu at Bertie G's. Julie and I second date there I ate sweetbreads in front of her and that is just one of my favorite dishes You gotta get your hormone levels checked. You're eating a lot of fat. You're eating a lot of glands I love the glands. We're talking about eating glands. Dude, we should be eating the glands You got the liver king out here making millions selling liver pills I'm just out here telling you to eat more Argentinian food dog I just raw dogs caviar out of a sturgeon like water falling copel out of a water bottle Do you remember that disgusting?

Truck cave troll that man is guessing. Okay, what's next? So we got off a lot of the way. What's next? I I want to jump here Hibachi I know what you're saying Josh. She's been around for like Hibachi. I know what you're saying Josh, hibachi. Hibachi's been around for like a billion years. Hibachi's been around forever, but now it's changing. Also, we have to say that when we say hibachi, we don't mean hibachi, we mean teppanyaki. Hibachi is a small Japanese grill. Teppanyaki is cooking on a large flat top.

I did that when I went to Japan. That's incredible. You did teppanyaki or hibachi? I did teppanyaki. That's so fun. Benny Hanna, the largest teppanyakiaki chain actually has on their FAQ on their website like What's the difference between hibachi and teppanyaki and they're straight up like it's actually called teppanyaki But so many people call it hibachi that we just say hibachi. Hibachi is the name of the grill Hibachi is the name of like a small is it a stone grill I believe I don't know

Yeah, and so it's not like the large flat- top cooking where you're flipping the shrimp and doing the onion Volcano, whatever. Interesting. But I think the way that this is changing and I recently went to a restaurant like this It was like a fun fancy French-ish take on hibachi. So you go to like a Benihana and they have their standard menu, right? You're getting the steak, the shrimp, the chicken, there's a sweet soy sauce on it fried rice all that this place was doing like really creative Hibachi dishes where that's awesome. Yeah, it was really cool, and it was a little clunky Well, it's gonna be clunky the first like maybe year Yeah, and in the in the chef though was like super super passionate about it, and he's you know in front of us

I'm asking all these questions, and they'd you know cool oyster mushroom, au poivre with yuzu butter, whatever. Yum! Yeah, it was super fun, but the thing that I really want, my dream here, I want, there's a place called Mexi Hana, it's a Mexican hibachi restaurant, but they don't do exactly what I want, because what I want, somebody should just be making you tacos in front of you and serving you directly, because a taco to me is the best. That's just a street taco. Right off the flat top. Yeah, but it's like a street taco except...

You want it in the house of a hibachi restaurant? A little bit. I guess what I more want is just Korean barbecue with tortillas. You're just saying so many different foods right now. Like, what do you want? I want fresh... Be more direct! I'll tell you what I exactly want. What do you want?

I want a grill in front of me with tasty marinated Mexican meats and then delightful Mexican condiments. We're talking Eskabeche, Jamaica pickled onions. Okay. Eight different salsas, whatever. And I want tortillas I can throw on the flat top because I'm sick of going to restaurants

and you get cold tortillas and tacos. You're bringing your own tortillas? No, but there's a great, there's a video of a Mexican family bringing their own tortillas to Korean barbecue and I've never been more jealous. Hell yeah, I've seen that video. I've seen that. You bring in your own tortillas? No, but there's a great, there's a video of a Mexican family bringing their own tortillas to Korean barbecue, and I've never been more jealous. Hell yeah, I've seen that video. I've seen that.

Of anyone in my life. Brilliant, brilliant. But yeah, what say you? About hibachi? Yeah. I mean, cooking on a flat top in front of people, I think it's fun. Oh, let me tell you.

So the first time I went to hibachi was when I was working at Lush Cosmetics, and this was, I've never been to a hibachi restaurant before, so I didn't know how to eat hibachi was when I was working at Lush Cosmetics and this was I've never been to a hibachi restaurant before so I didn't know how to eat hibachi so I thought the second the food lands on your plate you have to eat it but it's a show so you thought it was like omakase like you're taking it directly out of the show yeah yeah I agree literally every time they put something in my plate I'm like okay okay I'm just gonna eat it cuz it's on my plate but then everyone was just watching the show very thoughtfully and like waiting to like eat so they had a full plate of food and I was just like,

oh, oops. But other than that, I don't really, I'm not a hibachi teppanyaki person. I just, I mean, every once in a while it's great, but I don't know. I think putting a twist on it would be nice. Maybe refining the twist, but it's not something I actively search for

when I'm going out to eat. I think this sort of speaks to this like nostalgia mongering of the 90s. You know how I got cargo pants recently? Teppanyaki Hibachi is the cargo pants of food in a way. Right, where it's like it seemed outdated in the last 10, 15 years, but now it's so outdated that it's like really cool again

because people remember the simple pleasures of being able to carry a can of cola in your cargo pocket. What's in this McDonald's bag? The McValue meal. For $5.79 plus tax, you can get your choice of junior chicken, McDouble, or chicken snack wrap plus small fries and a small fountain drink. So pick up a McValue meal today at participating McDonald's restaurants in Canada. Prices exclude delivery.

Wait until I tell you about what I think is the next food trend. Speaking of nostalgia. Sand it, man. So I always grew up, this is a very like deep cut memory that I have, when I was little, me and my sister's 13 years older than me. So she was kind of like my pseudo mom. So she would like take me to the mall and then we would go to, not its sugar, it was called Sweet Factory. And we would go and just have like bags and we would fill it with candy

and walk around the mall and that was like a thing we would do. Yeah, that is nostalgic as hell. And I don't know about you, but they don't do that. Like they don't have those stores anymore. Like It's Sugar kind of is similar, but not really. But Swedish candy, the self-serve Swedish candy, has made such a crazy jump. Like, I live very close to one called Soccer Bit. Don't find out where my address is, please.

And it's like, it's called Soccer Bit and it always has a line outside. And it's just Swedish candy and it has all these delicious candies, and you just go in and you just do it. It's a little bit classier and fancier than like the sugar factories of yesteryear, but it's still, I think it hits like this part in the back of like people's head of nostalgia where they're like I remember doing this too when I was a kid. Let's do it again as an adult Just a little bit more refined. So I think that is gonna make a heat. It's gonna be like the Build-A-Bear Now I really do think that so you're talking about the self-serve candy where you get a bag and you and there's just

Hundreds of giant vats of enemies and you fill it up and you weigh it and you pay for it. Have you ever been to Sugarfina? Have you ever? I was about to say Sugarfina was the millennial version of that. Yes, yes it was. But it wasn't self-serve. So Sugarfina, super fancy in all the fancy malls. They'll have like champagne flavored gummies or something or rosé gummies. The packaging is very twee, it's very beautiful. It's like $12 for a little thing of champagne gummies. And I think that was what the millennial core culture was. Now Gen Z

looping back on this, everything that's old is new again, they just want a slightly updated version that speaks more to them. So like the Swedish candy thing makes a little bit of sense, right? And that I think it's a pretty accurate prediction every time I see those are sugarfina reminds you of baby showers Yeah, it's such a baby shower ass thing. It's so ridiculous there was one of those self-serve pay-by-weight candy spots near UC Santa Barbara and I Was on this specific diet called carb cycling. Oh, what's that? Where the idea is you take your heaviest workout of the week and you make that your heaviest

carb day of the week and then like your lightest workout for energy purposes. So like basically put your put all the carbohydrates to work and it has something to do with insulin blah blah. I don't freaking know it probably doesn't work but I was just lifting weights constantly and eating a lot of carbs But one day you would like load up on a crazy amount of carbs Mm-hmm and so for dinner that day I would go I would get two and a half pounds of Gummy candies before all my teeth went and the crown started flying out a lot of gummies This is maybe why but I would just say that's why dog I would drink a two liter of Mountain Dew and I would eat two and a half pounds

of gummies. And I would never have a better time of my life. The candy coated grapefruit wedges are like my favorite, you know? I've never had those before. Oh my god, dude. I was a sour belt girl. Sour belt. I was a sour belt and chocolate covered gummy bears girl.

And also nonpareils. You ever have nonpareils? Nonpareils are, it's just like little sprinkles covering dusty chocolate. And? What is your problem with it? Fair point. Josh, how do you not have dentures right now? What the hell? My teeth are actually doing really good. A lot thanks to the dentures that you hooked me up with. Oh, okay. Good, good, good. He's probably going to recommend dentures for you.

No, what do you mean dentures? See, these, the... And I don't eat the candy. I get more of the grapefruit slices candy Haruba makes them. Okay, I never I never really had those but I'm glad you have a good memory to talk about. Peach rings, sour apple rings, French burnt peanuts, Boston baked beans. Boston baked beans are good. Bulk candy is coming back but it's gonna take a different form in like the I like a like a Swedish hyper pop you love Swedish hyper pop You had that silly little party with the what was it? Oh, you're a vision. You're a vision on my Spotify wrapped

I did get a lot rim Tim taggy dim the Croatian song baby lasagna baby lasagna You remember I have to rimmed him tagging him sixth most played song this entire year It's you do Julia's her top like 20 songs are all Eurovision. Well, she's a fan It's Eurovision and Lawrence the band. It's cool when she does it's cringing you and you it's awesome It's Chewbacca when you do it, but it's cool. Chewie's F man. Okay, uh Okay, so we have a personal I have a personal connection to this one Robot restaurants okay, we got talk about this. I love robot restaurants. I what robot restaurants You know of robot restaurant

Incredible that was truly spectacular what you did there This is about to be a call-out podcast So this is about to I a call out podcast. What? So this is about to, I'm about to call someone out here. Who are you gonna call out? I've had a lot of history with these people. We're talking about Cali Burger. Oh, the fake one?

Cali is not fake, it's real, they're real burgers. Is it? I thought it was fake. No, they've been sued by In-N-Out for copyright infringement. That's why I thought it was fake. But what they do have is, so as people, they're from LA, but they opened their first several restaurants in China

that is like very much evocative of in and out. And they tried to use the term animal style and they ended up getting sued. But they're opening California now and they now have something called Cali Express where they have a burger flipping robot called Flippy. Oh, okay. And I once challenged Flippy to a race.

I reached out to the people of Caliburg. What? And I said, I make a YouTube show. I would like to challenge your burger flipping robot, Flippy, to a race. A real modern John Henry type story. And then... Who's John Henry? And then they were like, well, you don't know John Henry?

No. Is this like, the only thing I know is like the robot Watson versus other Jeopardy. Okay, that's the modern, yeah, it's a more modern John Henry, but but John Henry It was like the the what steam steam powered Railroad spike driver. Oh steam powered hammer came out and John Henry said I can drive Railroad spikes faster than the steam hammer and he raced the steam hammer and he lost and no he won But he died of exhaust. This is a tall tale, right? He doesn't exist. He's a folk hero.

And he died of exhaustion afterwards. And looking at that, I don't know what the lesson is supposed to be. Let the robots take over? Maybe you let the steam hammer? Yeah, but- Let the robots take over? Sorry, I didn't interrupt. Continue.

And so Calliburgr was like, well, yeah, but like, what if you win? And I was like, what if I win? Huh? What if I prove that the ingenuity of the human spirit can still transcend that of machine? Oh my gosh Okay, and they and what happened? No, we just never never I think actually probably like COVID Actually happened. Okay. This was in the early days But we're gonna start seeing this more and more do we give in do Do we accept it? Because I kind of teeter on the maybe,

because I do think the fact that it it like allows for cheaper food costs and stuff like that. But also, I would like a human to make my food. It's never going to be cheaper food costs. It's just going to be people losing their jobs. You're right. You're 100% right. I'm just not looking at it from like a deeper perspective.

As it stands now, it's just a novelty. This is the very like 1980s vision of the future. Like if you watch like Rocky IV. Or like, what's that one? The Jetsons? The Jetsons, yeah, right. It's like flying cars and like robot servers at restaurants and stuff like that. I will say you go to Kura Sushi, the revolving conveyor belt sushi bar. Is that not a robot? Well that and then you order a drink at Kura Sushi. Know what comes out? The little robot, dude.

The little robot comes out, stops next to you, it beeps, you take your drink, you go, thank you. Dude, Annalise and I went to Denny's and a robot came and brought our food, but then a human being put it like down. They got robots at the Denny's now, dude. They got robots at Denny's, it was crazy. Me and Annalise were like, are we in the future or Japan? Where are we?

It was crazy. Are they any different? The future in Japan. Yeah, I'm not going to give in. I'm not going to give in. I have tried the one on Sautel, the Chinese restaurant on Sautel. I think it's one bowl of food is $3. Two bowls of food are $5.

And then three bowls of food are nine dollars. I think, I think that's the price breakdown. And it tasted fine, it was just weird to see robots making my food. Yeah, it was a little bit weird. It was like one of those candy, you know those candy, ow, sorry, sorry, it got really dramatic. You know those like, the sugar plum makers,

the rolling thing, why are you breaking so much? Nicole's just waving her hand in a circle saying, sugar plum makers. No, I don't know what you're talking about. You ever seen candies be made and they change colors? Okay, whatever. I hate you. Nicole hates me now. 2025, year of hating Josh.

Is it my turn? Yeah. Oh, so this is something I've been saying. You're gonna laugh at this. So every now and I have a cousin who's like a food blogger and she's great. Every single month on the first, she posts foods in season. You know what I mean? Fruits and vegetables to eat in season.

And she posts this on her story and I screenshot, I'm like, all right, we're eating cabbage this month. All right, we're eating tangerines. You're saying that for the last, let's say 15,000 years of human agriculture, where you had to eat food that grew then, you're saying that now in 2025 is finally the year that you're gonna do it.

No, let me tell you. So because we live in California and we have access to fruits and vegetables pretty much year round. Like we can eat a tomato in July and we have access to fruits and vegetables pretty much year round. Like we can eat a tomato in July and a tomato in like February. We got tomatoes in Ohio too. They can eat them. Shout out to Columbus, you're out here. We live in the United States of America where, is that better than California?

Where we just have veggies and fruits are available year round. Sure there are times when they're better and worse, but we have it. Like if we need to make a tomato sauce with tomatoes, we can go, like, January through December and get tomatoes, and they're fine. Yeah, yeah, yeah. But eating with the seasons, I think, is something that I personally need to implement more, instead of just going to the grocery store and saying, I'm gonna make whatever.

No. No more. In 2025, I'm gonna start actively caring about the fruits and vegetables that I will be putting into my body a little bit more. Fine, I'll do the same. I'll do it. Like, will I always eat carrots? Probably. I probably always have carrots like in my pantry. Will I always have an apple? Probably. But will I try to make it more seasonal when I can? Why not? I have the ability to do so, right?

Yeah, I was pretty inspired by talking to Dan Barber on the podcast. Yeah, he was pretty legit. I'm joining a CSA, Community Supported Agriculture. You are cutie. If you have the means to do it, you should do that. Josh, that's really cute. Support local farmers. They deliver you seasonal vegetables, but then sometimes you realize the shortcomings

of it. I remember I used to be part of a CSA, and you just get a box dropped off of seasonal vegetables every week or whatever. And I'll never forget just getting eight types of onions. It was like spring, it was like coming out of winter I'll never forget just getting like eight types of onions. It was like spring, it was like coming out of winter to spring, and it was like eight kinds of onions. And I was like, oh, it's going to be an oniony week for Josh. I made French onion soup with all of them.

It was good. That's right. See, like, I guess also it allows, I don't know, it kind of allows for like less control, because I always make menus Monday through, well, Monday through Thursday because of Shabbat. Like maybe it'll just make me feel less like in control. Like hey, I'm just gonna go to the grocery store and see what's in season, I remember what's in season, and just pick those things instead of like,

giving into like my typical expectation of what I'm gonna eat. Yeah, it's a fun, it's you know, it's a good exercise. So a little creativity exercise. I think so, yeah. I gotta go on. What's up man? So this is something, I went sober for all of July,

I didn't have a sip of alcohol. Good for you. And I was like, I still want to feel different. Cause here's the thing, I was sober, but I wanted to not be. No, I was looking up alcohol-free spirits and I love drinking fun things. I love cooking.

I love, you know, that sort of mixology spirit. Yeah. Alcohol-free spirits, but not in the mocktail sense, alcohol-free spirits still get you inebriated. Cause this is happening folks. Have you seen that place in Santa Monica? That's what I'm talking about. They serve, what is it?

It's called Cava, but not the Japanese. C-A-V-A. Not the Spanish sparkling wine. No. It's like a root. They're making drinks with this root. It doesn't have any alcohol in it, but it still, quote, gives you a buzz.

It makes you social. So it's like, are we out of the fryer, into the frying pan? Why can't Josh just drink a nice juice and have a good time? Who knows? But I think we're gonna start seeing this a lot more. Like, drinks that don't have alcohol in them

or cannabis, that still get you buzzed. And I think it's gonna be an explosion. Whatever buzzed means. What does buzzed mean? Buzz can mean like you're a little lightheaded, or like you feel a little... What does buzzed mean? I don't know! And I don't know. A lot of these are... What's that term?

Adaptogenic based, right? Where they say they give you a little euphoria, but then I just drink it and I'm like, It tastes like mushrooms a little bit. You know what I mean? Chaga and all that. Yeah But I don't know I think I think this is about to explode a lot less people are drinking alcohol Yeah, people are sort of finally wising up to the fact like oh, it's bad for you I'm drinking more non-alcoholic beers. Good for you. And you know, that's awesome making some chicken wings watching football You still want to feel like you're cracking open a cold one, but you don't want the alcohol?

That's just, you're just drinking malt? I guess. I don't know, it's pretty good, man. Yum, I like malt. Yeah, do you love a good Heineken Zero? Well, I'm down. I mean, why not? This sounds like fun.

Yeah, experiment. Why not? I mean, I know that there's like a bunch of like, new like zero-proof alcohols, like there's gins that are like zero-proof alcohol, and that's fun. Seed lip, fun little... That's fun.

Yeah. I'm down. I mean, I just like drink, to be honest, I just love a good drink. I love drinking as well. It's bad. It's bad. But I love it. That's good.

It's a vice. It's a vice. It's thousands of years of history. It's not a vice. It's a vice. You know, without alcohol, humans wouldn't have been able to collectively come together and share stories and be cooperative with each other. Alcohol made society.

Okay. I got a good one. Do it. Okay. I got a good one. Do it. Okay. So, in 2024, we saw a lot of people eating cucumbers. Why? Because sometimes you need to eat an entire cucumber. That is what Logan Moffat has said. That's right. Logan Moffat has said that.

So, I say we start masquerading eating normal foods as content. You know what I mean? Let's just make it cool. Let's make eating normal food cool. Whatever, like more fruits and vegetables, more like lean proteins, just like, but make it cool. Like sometimes you need to eat a chicken breast. Yeah, that's pretty good.

Well, I think the thing that you're getting at is like turning normalcy into an aesthetic. And I think we've seen this. Yeah, well, okay. With like Caesar salad, people being like, ooh, Molly Bawes, Molly Bawes is a great example. Caesar salad, french fries. Caesar salad became an aesthetic.

Yeah, okay. If that gets more people to eat more salad, I think that's fantastic. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. You know, we've already turned a lot of other things into an aesthetic, like barbecues, such an aesthetic, you know. Barbecue is aesthetic? A lot of dude bros have the like, steak guy,

like the steak guy aesthetic, you know? Okay. They sort of like make it their personality. See, I the steak guy aesthetic, you know? Okay. They sort of like make it their personality. See I'm saying, see we have two different, we have two different trends going on. Yes. So you want, you want normalcy to be content and I'm saying more people need to eat normal foods as content. Is that the same thing?

Are we in a fight right now? Seaside! Are we in a fight right now? No, I think we're saying the same thing. Are we? Maggie, are we saying the same thing? You're gamifying. You're gamifying eating normal healthy foods.

Maggie, what are we saying? You're gamifying eating normal healthy foods by making... Make it cool to eat blank again, you know what I mean? But do it with content to trick everybody. It's like hiding butternut squash in the mac and cheese so your kid eats a vegetable. We're doing that, but for Instagram addicted adults. Yes, yes, yes.

So basically make the action of eating a food cool via content machine algorithmically. Does that make sense? Be like, I'm a fennel girlie. Yeah, like, oh, like hot girls like soup, wasn't that something? Yeah, and soup is nutritious. Yeah, like oh like like like hot girls like soup was wasn't that something? Yeah, and soup is nutritious. Yeah people hot girls or broth girls or whatever hot brothy beans Brothy beans, hot girl like soup sometimes needs an entire cucumber like I like stuff like that

You're saying like speed run the entire vegetable cannon with just commodifying it all into packageable aesthetic Josh we've reached we reached a middle ground. I love that Nine hours not 50 disabled dogs first one conservative veteran All right, I got I got one I got one we got a speed run the last couple. Oh sorry. Vegetables that aren't potatoes. What the heck does that mean? Rutabagas. Parsnips. They're always at the grocery store and I always wonder who's buying them. I buy them. No one yet.

I buy them. Right. Two rutabagas last year. How many rutabagas you eat? Like six. No way. You ate six rutabagas? Yeah. Get out of town. I don't believe it. A rutabaga is a shalgam in Farsi, right? Okay, it. Well, a rutabaga is a shalgham in Farsi, right? Yeah, okay, yeah.

You got me there. It is a shalgham in Farsi. People are like, eat it when I'm sick. I eat shalgham all the time. And I like, I make a parsnip puree sometimes. It might shock you, but I do. I think more people should explore the canon of root vegetables. Eventually someone's got to make rutabagas, parsnips, what's, salsafie, start boiling radishes, hell.

Wow, salsafie? Underrated. Salsafie. Underrated. Anytime you go to the grocery store, you see the weird looking roots that are kinda like near the potato. For me, they're next to the endive for some reason at my grocery store.

Buy them, eat them, see what happens. Boil it, salt, pepper, start there. I'm making a parsnip puree tonight. With half a can of leftover pumpkin from Thanksgiving. You know what you should do? Dehydrate the pumpkin. Have you been seeing that on the internet a lot? Where people take the pumpkin puree and they put it in the oven to dehydrate it so it concentrates

the pumpkin flavor and it's not as wet. I did that recently. I did that recently too. I did that recently. Stop copying me. Josh has been copying me all day today. He literally copied my lunch order. Yeah you just have good taste. Well I copied your lunch order but I said double chicken. You added more protein. Yeah yeah yeah. Okay I got okay this is my last one. So more collab foods in

2025. Hell yeah. Dolly Parton collabed with cake, cake mixes, everybody was eating cake. Fred Durst frozen french fries. Get him out there. I want to see more, like I want to see like Antonia Banderas like hawking barbecue sauce. Mike Shinoda dumplings and Trader Joe's. Yeah, yeah, exactly. I want to see like the most odd,, exactly. I wanna see the most odd, random people collabing with the most odd, random,

who's like, Kefir Water by, I don't know. Jake from State Farm. Yeah. Jake from State Farm, Kefir Water. Bulgarian Mountain Yogurt, but with one of those Dagestani MMA fighters. Tyrese, Tyrese. Or, what's his name, Israel Makachayev or something?

Get him on my yogurt, damn it. Like, I'm down. Like, I'm down. Why not? And I think we should come up with some collab ideas, like three right now. Like, what should the Mythical Kitchen collab with? Oh, Mythical Kitchen? Um, um, um... Like, weird, like, out there foods. Like, just out there products.

Yeah, butter-flavored nonstick cooking spray. 100%. Yeah. That's great, because you can just add instant hit of butter and spray it on your hot dogs. We have to call it spray marge. Spray marge. Spray marge. Okay, I'm gonna think of another,

it's gonna be like an item, like an egg cracker. What about a Mythical Kitchen egg cracker? Oh, that's pretty good. Yeah, yeah, and it can help people like who can't crack eggs with their hands. Yeah, Vicks Vapo rub. That's a lot of food. You're not supposed to, wait. You're rubbing it onRub. You're not supposed to wait you rub it on your tongue.

You spread it out on toast. Like the jelly. That was actually an episode of my strange addiction. She like would take Vapo-Rub and like put it on her mouth. Oh boy are those addictions strange. Tell you what. You know what my addiction is? Hanging out with you. Oh my god. I can stop anytime I want. I just don't want to. Finally, Smash Burgers, but with the name of a country in front of it. That's right, Smash Burgers, but with the name of a country in front of it. You wrote this down? I did. I wrote Smash Burgers, but with the country adjective, which is to say the name of the country in front of Smash Burgers. Name a country right now. Uzbekistan. Uzbek Smash Burgers coming to a street corner near you.

Sri Lanka. Sri Lankan Smash Burgers. Oh my God, that would be incredible. San Marino. Make like string hoppers, San Marinese. That's right, that is the adjective of San Marino, San Marinese. Oman.

Omanite, no it's a Pokemon. But I'm saying, like I've had a Pakistani Smash Burger this year. Oh no way. I've had an Indian Smash Burger, I've had a Thai Smash Burger, I've had a Pakistani smash burger this year. Oh no way. I've had an Indian smash burger, I've had a Thai smash burger, I've had a Laotian smash burger. Oh yeah.

I had a Argentinian Mexican collab smash burger that was birria de chivo, but chivo cooked over the asador. Oh yum. And then broke it, it was incredible. I ate smash burgers, they're blank canvas, but everyone's just been doing the ketchup, the mustard, whatever.

Put a country in front of a smash burger, let me eat it. The Thai smash burger I had that was at Infatuation's Eats Con, a collab between Shake Shack and Thai Diner is one of the better things I've had this whole entire year. And more of that in 2025. Dad gummit. Okay. That's all I have to say about that. All right, Nicole, before we get to the opinions, we like cast roles.

We are going to do everyone's fourth favorite segment. That is review a review. No, I want to get to the opinions. No, not yet. We have to review the reviews because you know why, Nicole, this is where we go to people into giving us more views because it really helps keep us up in the charts. you add reviews to Apple podcasts. This one is from Brayden G. We gave this five stars titled, Good. This is the only reason I wake up in the morning. It's just so darn good. Smiley face. Well Josh, the best part of waking up is

Josh and Nicole's voice in your ear saying, welcome to the podcast. Yay! Another one of the biggest debates. Um, Brayden, I give you five stars. Short, sweet, and earnest. I would say I hope you get more reasons to wake up in the morning. But if it's just us, that's perfectly fine. At least you got one. That's perfectly fine. At least you got one.

Thanks for listening. It means a lot. Some people don't have one. Alright, Nicole. That hurt you and I to say. Now it's time to find out what other wacky ideas are rattling around the universe. It's time for another segment we call... Opinions are like casserole.

We kinda sounded like a beat poet from the 1950s. War is bad. Were we in a war in the 50s? Yes, the Korean War. Cynthia died for our Cynthia's. All right, let's get to that opinion. Hi, I am Erin from Missouri and I was wondering if there are different types of caffeine and if they affect you differently or if caffeine is just caffeine and there's not a difference between coffee being caffeine or Green tea caffeine or like energy drink caffeine or if it's all just the same

But then if it's all just the same, why do I feel different after drinking tea? drinking coffee I don't have an answer. I'm here to learn as well with Erin. Okay, so I am not an expert in this. I have written about it a little bit in the past because Rockstar came out with their first ever purely organic energy drink.

Interesting. And so I went down this rabbit hole, this is a long time ago, so like it's probably gonna be filled with some scientific inaccuracies, but I can add a little bit of color here. This was a trend that was started, I believe, the first time I saw it, by Starbucks refreshers,

probably like 15 years ago when they came out. But it was using caffeine from green coffee beans. So Starbucks, they're in the business of caffeinating people via coffee, but coffee beans typically are roasted, which when you roast coffee beans, the caffeine quality goes down. So a dark roast, eight ounces of a dark roast is going to have less caffeine than eight

ounces of say a blonde roast. No way. He kills caffeine. And so the green coffee beans, they are just chock full of caffeine and you turn them into a tea or liquid or whatever, and then add that to fruit flavors and they don't have that dark, roasty, toasty flavor. Rockstar was adding green coffee bean caffeine to stick with the organic label into this drink and I remember drinking it and I felt different. So I started looking it up and then a lot of caffeine, I believe, is made synthetically by combining urea.

Like from pee? I think it's not from pee but I believe it has something to do with it. I don't really know. I'm not a scientist. They combine urea with like methyl chloride, ethylacidate but like effectively you can make caffeine in a lab so if you're drinking like what is it caffeine and hydrous I think Google caffeine and hydrous because I had a buddy. Can Meggie do it? I'm listening. Meggie Google caffeine and hydrous if you can had a buddy- Can Meggie do it? I'm listening. Meggie, Google caffeine and hydrous if you can. Because I had a buddy that just would take scoops of caffeine and he was doing it in water, but caffeine is-

How do you spell that? A-N-H-Y-D-R-O-U-S. What is this? Because I had a buddy that used to just take this. So it was a dehydrated form of caffeine. But yeah, it is made from- Salad and baggies. It is made from plants like tea, coffee, and dark chocolate.

So I don't 100% know, but I will say the caffeine that gives me the biggest jolt, because I track my milligrams of caffeine pretty much every day, and the caffeine that gives me the biggest jolt is Celsius. And Celsius is, I believe, made from green coffee beans. David loves Celsius. Yeah, it's only 200 milligrams of caffeine, but for whatever reason, I get a little bit more whacked out on that

than I do on coffee, than I do on an energy drink, than I do on like five hour energies or things that I travel with all the time. Nothing hits me quite like a Celsius. 200 milligrams of Celsius feels like I have more energy than 300 milligrams of like a bang energy. Do you think that it's because Celsius adds other things

that amplify the experience? That could be the case. So it's not just the caffeine, not just what the caffeine is derived from, it's the caffeine, it's own molecule. It's like alfionine and chlorine. That adds to the experience. Potentially.

I think that might be what's happening. I think caffeine is like the only substance that's really proven to increase energy on like a concrete level, which is to say increasing heart rate, metabolic function, stuff like that. Interesting. And then everything else is sort of a bit of like, you know, like kind of pseudoscience here, but also in the way that like, yeah, you're, if you're feeling different, something's

working. So caffeine from guarana is different than caffeine from caffeine from coffee beans or it's the same. it's the same. It's the same. Because if you're extracting, I'm thinking about this like extracting silk. Like extracting silk from silkworms gives you silk, but you could also make silk in a lab and it's the same thing, right? Okay, so guarana is where Celsius' caffeine comes from apparently.

The smell of guarana makes me sick. Or just the smell of like, we should talk about this more in depth, this is so interesting. Yeah, this is really fun. We should do this on the podcast. Cause I thought guarana was banned at some point, no, is that not true? Sorry, I'm looking up.

It was another thing that was banned. What was it? I don't remember it, we need to sit down and just make sure. Yeah, we should do a lot more on this, but that's a really fascinating topic. This is very interesting, Aaron, guess what? you just came up with a new podcast idea. So well done Sorry, we couldn't answer your question

But thank you for the for the brain juice ideas. Yeah, I agree with her All right. What's up? My name is Mike. I'm from upstate New York. And my food hot take is the best Philly cheesesteak I've ever had. Where's he going with this? Where's he going? It's still worse than the worst burger. I'm willing to throw hands over this. Oh. For the show. Thanks. How could that be? The best cheesesteak is, I don't understand. The best cheesesteak is still worse than the worst burger. So burgers are better than cheesesteaks? Yeah, but like to a logarithmic degree here.

Logarithmic? Like an exponential degree. Words I know, please. There is no, there is no cheese steak. He's speaking hyperbolically because you're wrong. I'll give you, you want a worse burger than the best cheese steak? I'll give you a worse burger. Come to my house.

Stop inviting people over your house all the time. I love entertaining. I have had, I'm trying to think if the best cheesesteak I've had is better than the best burger, but I don't think so. I don't think I've had the best cheesesteak before, but the cheesesteak eating experience as perfected by you is better than burger experiences that I've had with you and elsewhere. I've had some pretty transcendent burgers and I guess guess, yeah, but I would put cheese steaks still above burgers, but let's look at like how much you can screw up both.

I've had awful, awful, awful cheese steaks. I haven't had, I've had less cheese steaks than I have burgers. Same here, and I think that's true for the entire world, except for some Philadelphians go-birds. But like I've had cheese steaks where it's like a crappy piece of Topp Sirloin that somebody is just like thick slicing, sweating until it's gray,

putting on like mozzarella cheese and undercooked peppers into like a soft roll and it's just terrible. And so I would agree with that. But going to Philly, going to a place like Angelo's, John's Roast Pork, Ishkabibble's, Dallas Andro's, Jim's, but specifically Angelo's to me. They have perfected the cheesesteak in terms of architecture, flavor, cookery, baking, dude.

So I don't know, I wonder where you've gotten your cheesesteaks, like I wanna see the best cheesesteak you've ever had. I do agree that it's easier to screw up than a burger. I just need to, I haven't had the best cheesesteak in the world I don't think but I also don't think I've had the best burger in the world But I think I can make a burger better than I can a cheesesteak But I enjoyed the cheesesteak eating experience biting into the pieces of meat

more so than biting into the puck of ground beef, so I Will disagree with you as someone who my favorite food is cheeseburgers. It just is, but a really well-constructed cheesesteak is almost better than a really constructed burger in my opinion. Damn, I kind of want to make cheesesteaks this weekend now. So good. There's that expensive cheesesteak at Matu's steak.

Yes, I've had it, yeah. And I thought it was delicious. Someone had it, man. It's pretty good. I gotta cross the four or five more. We can go on a double date if you want. Or it's okay, we don't need to. Yeah, well, we can have our separate time too.

Why? Well, I don't know. So mean. Social batteries drain, bro. Josh is gonna be my friend. Hey, Josh and Maggie. This is Phil from Idaho. And my personal opinion is that, well, as you know,

the Krabby Patty collab burger just came out. Collabs, collab, collabs. My personal opinion is it's basically just a Dave's single with like this very peppery fry sauce. There, I said it. SpongeBob fans, hate me if you want to, but literally that's all it is. Yeah. Yeah.

This is, so when you talked about collab foods, if you want to, but literally that's all it is. Yeah. Yeah. This is, so when you talked about collab foods, like the BTS collab at McDonald's was so, so, so big. And they introduced entirely new sauces with entirely new flavor profiles to McDonald's because of it. And I think like that's what you need to do with these collabs.

There needs to be some actual value add to the people here. Otherwise, I think they're going to completely water down like the meaning of these collabs. No, I'm down for it to be watered down. You're down for it? You like the crab. I didn't even have the Krabby Patty collab. I didn't need it either. I like seeing it and I don't think the... listen, it's about trying new things and maybe under the guise of a character or a group or a celebrity. Why not? But the Krabby Patty, he's absolutely correct. It was just a quarter pound beef patty with American cheese, lettuce, tomato, pickle, onion, and then a top secret Krabby Patty

sauce. But like, there's not like a... like a BTS is Korean introduce a Korean flavor to McDonald's in America. That's that's pretty cool. That's really big We want to put kelp on the burger. I don't know some man I think anybody would have eaten the kelp on the but you know what I would have done You know what I would have done I would have put a pineapple ring on there because who lives in a pineapple under the sea Sponge Bob Squarepants they did do a pineapple mango vanilla frosty. No, it's not the same. Sounds really nice. They have a new salted caramel frosty that I want to try. But yeah, I mean, I'm down. I like it. It's fun and you are correct. I don't, no lies detected.

I guess what else would you have done? Because a Krabby Patty, is it made, I've never watched SpongeBob, is it made from crabs? Because the owner of the restaurant... I can neither confirm nor deny it for it is secret. It's a secret recipe. So they are animals. Which are they slaughtering and to put into their hamburgers? You know, it's almost like if I told you how the Sopranos ended, it wouldn't be fair. So I think you need to just watch the series in entirety

and just enjoy the ride. You know what I mean? Gabba goo Yeah, I feel your frustrations though Maggie one more Hello, this is a little family meal choice that I grew up with and I still stand by it family meal choice that I grew up with and I still stand by it. Alfredo dishes, you know, like a chicken alfredo, are made significantly better with a splash of soy sauce. Okay. Hey, that's some.

It's grossed out some of my friends, but I find that little bit of salt in the mommy really brings out flavors. Yeah. That's all. It's like putting, please go ahead. No, no, no, I insist, Nicole, please. At least I can do- No, no, Nicole. No, I insist, please. No, honestly, you held the door for me.

I think, stop, you're being silly. It's like whenever you put like a little bit of Worcestershire sauce in your Caesar salad dressing, it's like making it a little tang, a little umami, a little salt. I have no problem with it. I think it sounds really good. I'm trying to think if I've ever, because when you're talking about Alfredo sauce, you're kind of talking about a cream sauce, right?

Maybe you put garlic in it, you probably put Parmesan cheese in it. Yeah. Are there any of those creamy sauces that like have a brownish element mixed in? You know what I mean? Not typical, like how Bernay sauce is like from another sauce.

Well, maybe. I'm saying like, like how Bernay sauce is like from another sauce? Well, maybe. I'm saying like, unlike a bunmi, right? You'll take the mayonnaise, and the mayonnaise will typically be mixed with Maggie sauce. Okay, sure. Maggie sauce is kind of like a soy sauce, but it's got like a deeper, funkier flavor. It's like an MSG caramel color.

Yeah, and it's good, but you're taking that creamy white and adding deep, dark, dank brown. Good. It's good, no, I'm saying it's good, but I'm trying white and adding deep dark dank brown good. It's good No, I'm saying it's good But I'm trying to think if I've ever had a flavor like they're describing well have like a cream sauce That's interesting my brain is saying yes spiring yes You've had this before, but I don't have like an exact I don't have like a dish or like a plate I'm thinking like shot bull. Oh

Shut up. Oh, yeah, I know exactly what that is. Those are those are from IKEA. Those are those are Swedish meatballs. Yeah. Tak tak, Nicole. Does that mean good job? Tak tak means thank you. Oh, yeah.

Yeah. And then come in. Come in means like, come here. And then vafan. That's a curse word. What the heck? Yeah. In a light way.

But like that's like a creamy like a creamy sauce that has the stock and then you can stud that with Worcestershire or something. Gravy? Yeah, but it's gravy, but there's a dairy component to the gravy. It's like a cream gravy. Yeah. Yeah, but this is interesting.

I'm really fascinated to try this. I would love to eat this. I feel like it'd be good on veg too. Those flavors sound great. Yeah, tell your family that we approve. We're part of your family now. Hi family When's when's where we have in Christmas this year? Let me know what the political drums is Let me know which and we hate let us know which cousin has a drinking problem. Yeah, we're going to brunch

Let's let's brunch. Let's brunch about it That was genuine inspiring inspiring stuff there Nicole. We're truly And on that note, thank you for listening to a hot dog is a sandwich We got new audio only episodes every Wednesday and a video version here on YouTube every Sunday This isn't a video though. No, there's no video. That's fine. Well, we look so good. We generally have videos Yeah, yeah If you want to be featured on opinions are like cast roles hit us up at eight three three dog pod one We'd love to hear ya and if you like the things that we do in general,

check out our videos over at the Mythical Kitchen YouTube channel and go there buy an apron. We got a really sick apron. We got two sick aprons. Two sick aprons. Two sick aprons, one sick and the other, if we're being honest.