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A
Bobby on the Beat. Welcome to the next episode of Bobby on the Beat. Today I have a very special co host, Katie Parla. A friend and somewhat colleague for many, many years now, and somebody who has a very, very special life. We're all very jealous of Katy Parlor's life. We'll get into that in a second. But if you're liking this or if you don't like it, please subscribe. Katie, so good to see you.
B
I'm thrilled to be here.
A
I love when you speak Italian. I wish I could speak Italian. I really do, as you know.
B
You got a few words in there.
A
I have very few. I've taken tons of classes in Rome, actually. You have to be there.
B
You need like a good grammar base. Watching some movies, listening to music will get you so far.
A
Exactly.
B
You got to be immersed.
A
Yeah. Giada de Lantos used to say to me, just go find a. A girlfriend in Rome and you'll be fine.
B
It has to be a dumb person with a small vocabulary. I'm serious. That's how I learned Italian bio. God bless him. He was so stupid. But the small vocabulary, like two syllables max.
A
I love it.
B
And then you upgrade.
A
That's just amazing. So the first time I called you, Mark Vetri, our friend and. And king of Philadelphia cuisine, I called him and I was like, I really would like to go work in Rome somewhere. You know, do some stage and just like work in some tratteria there. Where should I go? He's like, I don't know. Call Katie Parlour. She knows everything. Of course I called you and you were so, like, welcoming. And you are the person that. That the American chef community calls when we need to know or need to go do something in Rome. And how does that make you feel?
B
It's a dream.
A
Yeah?
B
Yeah. I mean, I like, of course, want everyone to have access to my tips, which is why they're like, free on the Internet.
A
Right.
B
But I'm really. When I'm like, writing or doing anything, I'm thinking of, like, how someone in the industry is going to encounter this information and how useful is it for them. And then how can I support people on the ground in Rome who are doing great things?
A
You moved there in what, 2003 or something like that? Okay. Like, on a lark. Was it a mistake? Was it something that you really decided to do? What happened?
B
No, I decided when I was 16 years old during a Latin school trip in 1996. And instantly, I land in Rome. I'm like, I'm moving here. Like, what did that Even mean. And then everything I did in my life from 96 to the present has been about living specifically in Rome. Like, I love all of Italy, of course, but Rome's my spot.
A
Why Rome? What is it?
B
I love Philadelphia. You know, like, gritty cities, like hooligans. And when I got to Rome, I was like, this feels like an Italian Philly. Like, sign me up.
A
I feel at home. Where are the cheesesteaks?
B
Yeah, exactly. It's easy to love Rome, right? But, like, to feel that you have to spend your life there, like, that's something magnetic, something special.
A
Okay, so you land in Rome, like, lots of people's dream. Most people don't do it, but you decide that you're gonna, like, pack your bag and go, so you land in Rome, and then, like, now what?
B
I had to find illegal work, which was what? I taught history at a boarding school. I was 22. I was deeply unqualified for the interaction with the kids, but I knew the history. They were bored out of their minds. So I was like, I'm bad at this, but I like talking about history, so I'll start doing tours. And so that's the way that I sort of started to support myself initially. And then that grew into writing about Rome and doing all sorts of things, like, first in the archeology space and then the food space. It's gonna sound fake, but I have a master's degree in Italian gastronomic culture. And so.
A
Where did you get that?
B
The University of Rome.
A
Oh, you did?
B
It's real. I can show you my diploma.
A
Really?
B
Yeah. And so I always thought, like, I love food. I grew up in hospitality. I always want to do something in the food realm. But I didn't feel that unless I had some academic chops, that I could, you know, actually do it in a way that was respectful of the culture. So I got that education and then have spent a lot of time just, like, interrogating people. And, you know, when you sit down at a table and show some. Some interest in people's history and their businesses, they want to share with you. And so this way, I've been able to, like, translate the culture through articles and then also recipes. And almost everybody except one person has given me, like, you know, the family recipe for, like, the best gricia, the best braised oxtail. Only one guy gave me a fake gnocchi recipe.
A
Really?
B
Yeah. Dandini.
A
He thought that was a cool idea.
B
He was like, I'm not going to give this to you because it's my recipe and I'm like, dude, who cares? Yeah.
A
I always find that to be the funniest thing when somebody says, I'm not giving you my recipe. Like, it doesn't really matter. Like, I mean, to me, the one. And that's a very rare moment in our business. One of the things I love about our business is the generosity between each other. It makes it a very rare industry.
B
I did get that recipe in the end.
A
You did get.
B
I trapped him. I went to his kitchen, which had one in and one way out.
A
I love the COVID of this book because. And I know you have a couple of covers, but this is like the sultry Katy parlor. I mean, look at you with, like, your pasta. It's very. It's very sassy.
B
I mean, would it be sultry if I told you that the sauce clinging to the fettuccine was chicken gizzards, hearts, and livers?
A
Totally.
B
Yeah, absolutely. That's.
A
That's true. That's true. Rome. The recipes in this book are. They are. There are these things that you cook? Are these things that you've gotten people to give you? Like what? Like sometimes you do a little bit of both.
B
Yeah. I mean, it's a panorama of Roman food. So if you can think of a classic Roman recipe, it's probably in there. Some of the things I cook all the time, some of the things I don't cook at home because no one in Rome cooks that stuff at home anymore. Especially like pa. The intestines of milk fed veal, people go out for that. The long braises, tripe, people go out for that. It's not that no one cooks that stuff, but it's just not as common anymore. And so a lot of the sort of more trattoria dishes are given to me by chefs or home cooks and adapted as needed for an American audience.
A
Well, since you're my co host today, instead of just giving you a cocktail, I made you a snack. And thankfully, it's not Italian food.
B
I appreciate that.
A
I'm not doing that.
B
Thank you.
A
This dish actually is a little bit of my history. This is one of my signature dishes from mesa Grill in 1991. It's a tuna tostada with black bean and mango salsa. And I was joking around with. With. With my girlfriend Brooke the other day. I was like, you know, I invented the tuna tostada. She's like, yeah, sure you did. And I was like, I probably didn't, but I. I remember being one of the first ones to make it. And then I looked it up on, of course Chat. You know, and it said that the tuna tostada was invented by a chef in Mexico City in 1998. I was serving them in 91, so I don't know.
B
I'm not.
A
I'm not. I'm not taking credit for it, but I know I was. I was one of the early adapters of tuna tostada, but I want to show you how I made it. Bobby on the beat. Okay. Tuna tostada, one of my signature dishes from the early days at Mesa Grill. We're gonna start by making a black bean and mango salsa. Gotta taste the mango first. Yes, it's nice and ripe. Dice up the mangoes about the same size as the black beans, equal parts black beans to mangoes. And we're gonna season it with some fresh jalapenos. And then we're gonna take some red onion. Chop those finely as well. Get that nice sort of crunch in there. And they're pretty as well. So some fresh lime juice, of course, and then some fresh cilantro to finish off the salsa with some salt and pepper and a splash of olive oil. Let that hang out in the side while we do the rest. Now we're going to make the avocado crema. So ripe avocados, jalapenos. And then we're gonna add a little bit of water, some lime juice, and just a kind of like a splash of honey. Puree the entire thing until it gets nice and creamy like, and, you know, it's like a vinegar. And then we're gonna cut out some flour tortilla to the size we want. And then we're gonna fry em in some cooking oil so they get really nice and golden brown and crispy. Put a little salt on as they come out, and they can hang out. They'll be totally fine. Then we're gonna cut the tuna out a little bit smaller than the tortilla, season it with some salt and pepper, throw it on the grill, and we're gonna sear the tuna on the grill so it's rare inside. Seared nicely on the outside. Now let's stack this tostada, flour tortilla, the salsa, the tuna avocado, a little bit of hot sauce, and some fresh cilantro. And there you have it, the famous tuna tostada. Bobby on the beat.
B
Talk to me about the mango.
A
The mango and black bean. To me, it's like, it's very obviously very old school, but I love the sweetness of the mango and the fruitiness of it. And the black beans, obviously, a very big part of this kind of Southwestern cuisine, sort of cooling effect against the heat, like from the chilies that kind of run through it.
B
It's so good. Also, I need jalapeno in my life, so I appreciate.
A
Of course, in Rome, can you find other cuisines that are really good?
B
Oh, yeah.
A
Really?
B
The book has a whole section on non Italian cuisine. So you can go to a place like Sino City for regional Chinese cuisine. There are a bunch of very good hot pot places. Ethiopian cuisine, really, really excellent because there.
A
Is like an Ethiopian community in Rome.
B
Yeah, Ethiopian and Eritrean going back to the colonial period and. And a growing number of very good Korean spots.
A
Obviously, people go there, especially tourists, and they're looking for, like, the four classic pastas and they're eating pizza. I mean, that's one of the things that I'm surprised that people don't know more about, which is, like, what the Roman style pizza is versus the rest of the world. Like, how do you describe it?
B
Well, it's a thin, barely rimmed rolled, thin, crispy, chewy, textured flatbread.
A
And usually with a rolling pin.
B
Often with a rolling pin, absolutely. Or a sheeter. And. And it's. It's crispy and chewy. It's not like, you know, paper thin, but it's not Neapolitan at all. And it's deeply, deeply satisfying.
A
What's happening with the restaurants in Rome these days? Rome has been overrun with tourists, obviously, for 27 centuries. How do you find new places? And I know you love, like, Banci, Armando and those kinds of places. Like, how do they get on Katie's list?
B
The way that. Yeah, the way you get on the list and stay on the list is you care about ingredients, you care about the people that are making those ingredients, and you're devoted to making good food. It doesn't have to be super traditional Roman. It just has to be, like, very thoughtful and delicious.
A
When I think about Rome, like, in the most classic sense, obviously you think about, like, you know, the four classic pastas, of course, but. And then of course they're, you know, the Roman pizza. And then there's like the Jewish ghetto that has its own cuisine. Like, what's. What's happening in that community?
B
So the Jewish quarter of Rome is pretty interesting. It had this sort of big boom in culinary tourism maybe starting 10 years ago. And that's when I think a lot of people started traveling for food. And because people heard that, like, Roman Jewish cuisine is very impactful in the history of the city, a lot of restaurants opened. They tend to Be very tourist oriented. There are a couple that I recommend, Casalino and Nona Betta. But you have to be very selective in what you order, just as in any place that's, like, really geared towards tourists.
A
Right.
B
To have the perfect Jewish ghetto experience, you just have to go to the unmarked bakery at number one on Via del Portico de Otavia, where the ricotta cake is going to be one of the best things you have in your life.
A
Speaking of lists and restaurants and critiques and stuff like that, are there influencers in Rome like that? Like. Like. Like we have in the States. Are they. Are they as. As sort of as influential as they are here?
B
I mean, maybe not to the same extent, just because the market's a little bit smaller. Especially the places that are, like, more into image than quality food. They're investing more in, like, influencer dinners or invites and stuff. I mean, I think it's the same everywhere. And I often find that the people who are the worst at PR make the most delicious food.
A
It's an. It's an important part of driving business to certain restaurants.
B
And.
A
And there are some people who do it really, really well. And so, like, we're always on the lookout for people who we think are good, and we give them a quiz and we see what they got, you know, so we're gonna see a woman named Carly from Sister Snacking, who is very, very popular. And so I said to her, I was like, are you up for the test? And she's like, give it to me. So let's see how she does. Bobby on the beat. Sister Snacking. You guys have become, like, this crazy phenomenon. I love it. It feels like there's about 35 sisters. I mean, you guys, like, multiply every time I turn around. Sister. Just. Just. Let's get this out of the way. How many sisters are there, really? And can you provide documentation?
C
Yeah, there are. There are four sisters.
A
Were you guys sitting around one day and just decided to start this thing, or did it just happen organically?
C
Big Jewish family, a lot of girls. Everything is centered around a table. We made an Instagram. I think I was a sophomore in College. It was 2015. Madison was like, let's just make a page and we'll post, like, whatever you're eating. Whatever I'm eating kept increasing and increasing, and by the time it was 2022, we were like, oh, we take a salary right now.
A
You could actually monetize this. Yeah. I love when young people create a new approach to things and create awareness and this and that. But sometimes you don't like stuff.
C
Yeah.
A
And I would say most of the time, you're talking about the stuff that you do like, but sometimes you don't. How do you feel about that?
C
We are just not in the business of bashing small businesses and restaurateurs. And we always tell a restaurant, like, we're coming in, we're paying. We don't guarantee anything. Honestly, we wrestle with whether to give feedback or not. If we. A really terrible experience, there should be feedback.
A
Yeah. But you know what happens is, if somebody doesn't like what you say, they're like, who do these people think they are?
C
What do they know about my state? And, yeah, that's hard because I am not a trained chef. I don't. I don't have a. I didn't go to culinary school.
A
You say you're a food influencer, you're a food critic. Like what? Content creator. Like what, What. What's the proper term for citrus snacking?
C
Food influencer and content creator.
A
Yeah. I created this, like, very short sort of pop quiz of things that are, like, menu related.
C
All right?
A
Things that you think that you know or should know, because you see it all the time on menus, and you're like, oh, wait a second. These are fun. Define wagyu.
C
Oh, my God. Wagyu is.
A
Okay. See, this is what I'm talking about. Where is it from?
C
Japan.
A
You know where a rib eye steak comes from? On the cow?
B
Yeah.
C
The center of the ribs.
A
Grab a lentil, a legume. You know the three ingredients in a Negroni?
C
Yes, I do.
A
Okay.
C
I learned last night that it's all alcohol, and I've been drinking them for years. It is a perfect cocktail, as Anthony Bourdain would say, because it's three equal parts. Gin, sweet, vermouth, campari.
A
What's the difference between parmigiano, Reggiano, and pecorino?
B
I should know this.
A
Exactly. Parmigiano is aged at least 12 months. Pecorino's aged less, like five to eight months. But it's really about the milk. Tacos al pastor.
B
Yeah.
C
Pork layered on the spit with the pineapple dripping down.
A
France says creme brulee. What's Spain's version?
C
Spain's version of creme brulee is. That is a tough one.
A
A French dip sandwich. Your boy Salt Hank has made this famous lately. What is the dip made of?
C
Beef stock, essentially.
A
What's the predominant fresh herb in bearnaise sauce?
B
Correct.
A
Winner. That's it. We're out. Awesome job.
C
Do I get Bobby's like a plus from Bobby's.
A
Totally accredited.
C
Do you want to buy enough tomato and burrata?
A
I do.
C
We'll get out of here.
A
Do you know what burrata is? Bobby on the Beat. I always say, like, if you're a chef of an Italian restaurant, you're probably going to be pretty well versed at Italian food, but that doesn't mean you're going to know everything else. But as a restaurant critic, right, if you want to be a critic. And I think. I think one of the things that she said was important, which is that she goes in and she pays for every meal.
B
That's rare.
A
As opposed to saying, pay me and I'll talk about your restaurant. That's.
B
Here's my rate sheet.
A
That's payola. Yeah, I mean, that's just total payola. I've been out with them. They go and they. They pay for every single thing and they decide what they want to talk about, which is actually a nice way to go about it. Just the simple kind of buzzwords on menus. They should know, for the most part. Nobody knows everything.
B
Romana is important to know guys.
A
I love that. That was the one that she didn't get because you were like, what? How dare you? Yes, exactly. I mean, and obviously Pecoming is important for Rome, right? Of course. Are you going to live the rest of your life in Rome? Are you going to be living in some.
B
That's the plan.
A
Some place in Tuscany at some point.
B
Never.
A
No. Really? No.
B
Tuscany? Who?
A
Wow. Tuscany's not a bad place, is it?
B
No. I mean, it's not my favorite, but Rome is my spot.
A
We were talking about before that you thought that Rome is like having a really moment right now. What's happening there?
B
The local government invested in infrastructure projects and pedestrian islands and bike paths. It's a much more livable city now. Now, of course, not everything's changed. There's still like traffic and it's chaotic, but it just feels like the 21st century, which is a huge improvement. New museums are opening and there's just. There's an overall, I think, positivity about the city.
A
People must ask you, like, literally a couple times a day, where to eat in Rome. Like, where do you telling people to go these days?
B
I mean, Cesar, el cazaletto is my number one.
A
Is it?
B
Oh, always super classic trattoria, excellent classic.
A
What do you order there? Like, what's it. What's your go to thing?
B
I start with fried gnocchi on a cacio e pepe pool eggplant croquettes fried totanetti, which are little flying squid. A lot of fried stuff at the beginning. And a pizza Rosa, super thin crust. Delicious. And I get cacio e pepe again with tonnarelli, right? And then fried lamb chops or oxtail or meatballs. Man, it's a carby. It's a gouty meal at the end, but it's great. And then Armando, of course. Classic. But good luck getting in. I love sitting at the bar at Baccano where Nabil, who used to be the chef at Silamari Roscioli, cooks excellent pasta. So you go there, get a carbonara cacio pepe.
A
Is that a new restaurant?
B
No, it's been around for a long time, but he's only been there for a few years. And it's 30ft from the tribute fountain. It's like the most annoying place to find a meal, right? But it's really, really good. Like, I write the Eater 38 list for Rome, right. I have a website with 1 million free recommendations. So I. I'm like, I always feel bad just dropping a link, but I don't keep secrets. There are no, like, secret places that I don't talk about. Everything I recommend that's vetted, pay for everything when I do my research. And it's all there.
A
And what's the website, Katie?
B
Parla.com.
A
Easy to remember. And then what about pizza? I'm army love.
B
But I also love arroz, which is an ex bonchy guy who was doing sheet pan pizza. That's no doing the rolled thin crust pizza. It's amazing. Gelato, you know?
A
I know. Just spell it back exactly.
B
It's perfect.
A
You spell gelato backwards and that's how you remember it. It's so good. I remember you told me once, you like, I go there every day. Well, yeah, because you can get one scoop.
B
One little scoop. Also, they open a new location.
A
I live your daily gelato.
B
I live between two oto legs. It's incredible.
A
Any tacos in. In. In Rome?
B
Yeah.
A
You got really?
B
Yeah.
A
Good ones?
B
I would say pretty good. Okay, we're not gonna go crazy here.
A
Okay. Okay. I went to a taco shop that just opened in New York and everybody's kind of talking about it, and I think they do a really good job. Let's check it out. Bobby on the beat. I haven't been here before. Obviously this place has a great reputation. Everybody loves these tacos here. Looking for a little help. What should I have?
B
Oh, my gosh.
C
The Stanti steak taco is phenomenal.
D
So I just had one of every taco on the menu, which I am not embarrassed about.
A
Okay.
D
I consider it part of my R and D process.
B
I had the one with mushroom and the, like, regular one with steak.
A
Okay, and which one did you like the best?
B
The mushroom one was really surprising, but.
C
The steak cake, one, way better.
B
So good.
A
Got everything on the menu but the zucchini. I like the mushroom the most. What about you?
B
A little more basic. The steak taco.
A
That's not basic. What was your favorite?
B
The steak.
A
I love it.
D
I had an amazing steak taco.
C
It was fantastic.
D
All the ingredients are super fresh.
C
This is the second time I've been.
D
Here, actually, and I came back because it's amazing.
A
So there's a lot of steak tacos in New York City. What's different about this one?
D
Well, actually, I think the tortilla is the standout. It's very simple ingredients, but you can really tell that it's fresh and homemade, and it's wonderful.
A
What about the tortilla? You can definitely tell, like, the corn and the flavor of it, like, shines with the steak.
B
It's, like, homemade, and you can see them in the morning, like, watching them make it in the corner.
A
Yeah. You feel like you're eating really authentic tacos.
B
Yeah.
A
Okay. 100%.
D
The chicken is the sleeper hit. I have come here many, many times. I know everyone's obsessed with the trompo, but the chicken, they marinate it in some kind of, like, pineapple sauce to get pickled onions on top. Every other taco place in town has a chicken taco. It's kind of the throwaway option, but here I think it really, really stands out.
A
What was the mushroom taco like?
B
The mushrooms were really tasteful. I don't really usually eat mushrooms that often, but it was really good. It was surprising. Recommend the mushroom. Underrated.
D
The reason I keep coming back is because I can eat five tacos, and I still feel great afterwards. And I think because they don't add that much, it's literally just chicken, some onions, and amazing marinade. You can add all of your own salsas on top.
A
We can't wait to get in there. So thank you so much for talking with us.
B
Thank you.
A
I want two of everything.
B
Two of everything?
A
Yeah. I guess we have to try this, the steak taco first, right? Yeah. I mean, look how beautiful that is. So this is the fan favorite. Crusty meat on the outside, and it's incredibly tender on the inside. You know, these are tacos by a chef I want to check out this black habanero sauce.
C
Ooh, that's the spiciest one.
A
Yeah. When's the last time you saw a hot sauce that color?
C
That's, like, a lot.
A
It's good, though.
B
That's so delicious.
C
This is delicious.
A
I love the sauce. Me too. Should we check out the chicken?
B
The sleeper?
A
I love the pickled onions here.
B
Oh, my God, that's so good.
A
That one woman that we talked to about this might be right. Fruitier. Still spicy, but definitely has that dried fruit kind of like background to it. It's really nice. Oh, beautiful. Oh, the crunchifying. The tacos.
B
Oh, my gosh.
A
I love it. My burger place, we put potato chips on hours to crunch it. By this case, we got the pork chicharones.
B
That's.
A
Yeah. These are really good tacos.
C
I like the crunchified.
A
This is cool. Zucchini with salsa matcha. Those are beautiful.
C
I love a taco tasting.
A
Me too. Yeah. Who doesn't want a taco tasting? Great vegetarian taco. And also, this is the way you should be eating tacos, like standing up a steak and potatoes. One more quick bite. Vegetarian.
C
A lot of people said they love this one.
A
And the mushrooms have texture to them. Yeah. Like a really good bite. I love the crispy shallots in there. Look, the steak trompo. I get why it's so popular, why everybody comes here for this. It looks beautiful. It definitely has, you know, a point of view. It's kind of like al pastor, but with steak. All of them are really well put together. I love the chicken with the pickled onions. I love the pork, especially with the chicharrones on top. I mean, fantastic. Yay, New York. We now have amazing tacos. Bobby on the beat. Like, when did you ever see, like, a black hot sauce like that? You know, it's been a minute.
B
I know.
A
So no tacos in Rome?
B
There's a place certainly in the back of the book, and the same owners open a new taqueria that's, like, in pratine or the Vatican. It's, like, very hipster vibes. It looks like it's going to be terrible, but it's good.
A
What's the street food of Rome?
B
And pizza. Pizza. The, like, sheet pan pizza?
A
Yeah. Like, every Roman trattoria claims they make the best cacio pepe or they make the best carbonara. Every single one of them. Like, how do they separate themselves?
B
I mean, I think using superior ingredients goes a long way. If you're using some, like, intensively farmed egg, it's not going to taste as good as, like, you know, like, Rochelle uses Palo Parisi eggs. They're from.
A
What does that mean?
B
Livorno hens that are fed goat's milk by a guy called Paolo Parisi.
A
A guy.
B
And they're $20 a dozen or more. But, like, the richness of the yolk, the color, all of these things, like, change the flavor, but also the experience. People see, like, a bright orange yolk, and they think that's quality. So I think it depends kind of on people's tastes.
A
What's the workforce like in Rome these days? Like, when you go to a trattoria, who's cooking the food?
B
I mean, for generations, non Romans, whether they're from other parts of Italy or from other parts of the world, are the back of house workforce. In Rome, it's mainly Sub Saharan or North African men, and then many, many people from Bangladesh and people who work extremely hard with not a lot of praise. Same story everywhere, of course. And I think it's important to acknowledge also that you don't have to be Roman or Italian to cook these dishes really, really well. And you can do it with dignity, whether you were born on the Tiber island or not.
A
I'm working on a cookbook now that's really kind of like an American chef's obsession with Italy, because, as you know, I love Italy so much. Rome is probably my favorite city in the world, but I like other places, too. One of the things I love about Italy in general is the culture and the lifestyle. I always say, like. Like only somebody in Italy can drink an espresso for three hours. It's. It makes me feel, as an American, that I need to slow down and smell the roses a little bit so that I can enjoy my life. And because I'm trying to do the next thing and the next thing and the next thing and the next thing. Have you adapted that lifestyle? Do you feel more.
B
No. I live in a country where everyone inherits property and everything's paid for somehow. So, no, I'm like, an anomaly in a way. I would actually say that a lot of people who are my age and younger, they don't have the job stability that was kind of, like, promised to them. So there are a lot of hustlers out there. Everyone's very good at making it seem like they're chillaxed, but they're working and they're grinding.
A
Are you touring your book? Like, how does. How is. How is it? What's happening?
B
I just wrapped up the second leg of my book. Tour. I'm launching the next one January 4th until the 23rd, going nationwide.
A
You're doing this on yourself, on your own.
B
I do this myself. This is self published, independently published. I'm running the the book tour. I'm so tired, Bobby. Well, very tired.
A
That's what happens, right? These books, they, they take a lot of effort to make them and they take a lot of effort to sell them.
B
They don't sell themselves.
A
No. And where can people find out about you and all these wonderful tours that you're on?
B
KatyParla.com events has the whole book tour. KatyParla.com just generally has all the Rome, Italy and beyond free eating recs.
A
It's always so nice to see you. Congratulations on this amazing book. 11th book.
B
11Th cookbook.
A
11Th cookbook. It's a lot of cookbooks. Thanks for watching everybody. Please like and subscribe and of course check out Katie@katyparlo.com and all her social media and go see her on tour because very special person and congratulations on your book.
B
Thank you.
A
Thanks for watching everybody. Bobby on the beat.
Podcast: Bobby on the Beat
Host: Bobby Flay
Episode: Santo Taco, Influencer Sistersnacking, Tuna Tostada with Katie Parla
Date: January 12, 2026
Co-host: Katie Parla
In this dynamic episode, Bobby Flay welcomes food journalist, Rome insider, and cookbook author Katie Parla as co-host. They dig into the making of an expat food expert in Italy, dissect the current dining scene of Rome, chat with the influencer quartet Sistersnacking about food critique ethics, and embark on a taco trail in New York. The conversation is fast-paced, humorous, and revealing, with personal insights, insider tips, and hands-on food tasting.
“Everything I did in my life from ‘96 to the present has been about living specifically in Rome... Rome’s my spot.”
— Katie Parla [02:06]
“Only one guy gave me a fake gnocchi recipe.”
“He was like, ‘I’m not going to give this to you because it’s my recipe’ and I’m like, dude, who cares?”
— Katie Parla [04:12]; Bobby Flay [04:15]
“I want to show you how I made it. Bobby on the beat.”
— Bobby Flay [06:33]
“Roman Jewish cuisine is very impactful in the history of the city.”
— Katie Parla [10:34]
14:00–15:24)Bobby quizzes Carly on food basics—a fun, lighthearted bit that exposes how even the most visible influencers are still learning, echoing food’s ever-evolving nature.
“We are just not in the business of bashing small businesses and restaurateurs.”
— Carly, Sistersnacking [13:11]
Katie’s can’t-miss restaurants:
Street food in Rome: Especially pizza al taglio (sheet pan pizza) ([13:15]).
“Should we check out the chicken?”
“The sleeper!”
— Bobby Flay & Katie Parla [21:44–21:45]
“Everything I recommend that’s vetted, I pay for everything when I do my research. And it’s all there.”
— Katie Parla [18:26]
Bobby on learning Italian:
“Giada de Lantos used to say to me, just go find a girlfriend in Rome and you’ll be fine.”
— Bobby Flay [00:39]
Katie’s first impression of Rome:
“I was like, this feels like an Italian Philly. Like, sign me up.”
— Katie Parla [02:21]
On recipe sharing:
“One of the things I love about our business is the generosity between each other. It makes it a very rare industry.”
— Bobby Flay [04:22]
On Roman pizza:
“It’s thin, barely rimmed, rolled, thin, crispy, chewy, textured flatbread... it’s not Neapolitan at all.”
— Katie Parla [09:25]
On touring and hustling:
“I do this myself. This is self-published, independently published. I’m running the book tour. I’m so tired, Bobby.”
— Katie Parla [26:03]
This episode is a flavorful fusion of tradition, contemporary trends, and the ever-blending worlds of chef, critic, and influencer—tied together by Bobby’s signature warmth and curiosity.