Rage Rooms, Four-Year Cruises, Post-Election Feels | Tom Colicchio

Summary

The Daily Show: Ears Edition – Episode Summary Release Date: December 5, 2024

Host: Ronnie T. (Ronny Chieng and Louis Black)

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I. The Tumultuous Nomination of Pete Hegseth for Defense Secretary

The episode opens with Ronnie Chieng delving into President Donald Trump's efforts to assemble his administration, spotlighting the controversial nomination of Pete Hegseth for Defense Secretary. Chieng humorously critiques the nomination process, likening it to constructing a "Titanic submarine" that's "imploding immediately" (01:15).

Key Points:

• Nomination Challenges: Hegseth faces significant opposition from senators who doubt his qualifications and leadership abilities. Chieng sarcastically remarks, "if Hegseth doesn't get confirmed, this is really going to make people question Trump's strategy" (01:45).

• Allegations of Excessive Drinking: An NBC News report is cited, revealing concerns from former Fox News colleagues about Hegseth's drinking habits before going on air (02:52). Chieng responds with a mix of humor and critique, questioning the validity and relevance of these allegations to his suitability for the Pentagon role (03:15).

• Hegseth’s Personal Struggles: The discussion touches on Hegseth's tumultuous personal life, including his divorces and public image struggles. A significant moment occurs when Hegseth's mother defends him, stating, "He's very smart. He loves his country. He's a good dad" (05:03), which Chieng dismissively counters by highlighting past misconduct (05:15).

Notable Quotes:

• Chieng on Hegseth’s predicament: "This might be for the best. Uh, the first step to sobriety is your co-workers admitting that you have a problem" (04:16).
• Hegseth during humorous banter: "I will not be abstaining from alcohol" (04:20).

II. South Korea's Brief Martial Law and Public Response

Shifting focus internationally, the show covers South Korea's unexpected declaration of martial law followed by its swift retraction. Chieng lampoons the situation, emphasizing the public's dramatic reaction.

Key Points:

• Martial Law Declaration: The South Korean president's brief imposition of martial law led to massive protests and civil unrest, which were quickly quelled as the president reversed his decision (06:46).

• Viral Confrontations: Highlighting viral moments, Chieng describes a woman confronting an armed soldier: "She's grabbing it like it's a thing that doesn't shoot bullets. She's like, is this a vacuum cleaner?" (07:16). Another viral incident involves a protester using Aikido to neutralize a soldier attempting to confiscate his phone (07:27).

• Field Reporting: In a comedic exchange with Josh Johnson reporting from outside the South Korean parliament, the hosts mock the confusion and miscommunication that ensued during the protests, ultimately poking fun at the reporter's lack of knowledge about the situation (08:50 – 11:22).

Notable Quotes:

• Chieng's humorous suggestion: "Trump, if you're paying attention, can we get that guy as Secretary of defense?" referring to the adept protester (07:27).
• Chieng mocking Johnson’s reporting: "I'm not Korean, okay? I'm Malaysian. That's a totally different country" (09:33).

III. American Post-Election Coping Mechanisms

Louis Black takes the forefront in discussing how Americans are dealing with the post-election turmoil. He introduces various unconventional methods people are adopting to release their frustrations.

Key Points:

• Rage Rooms: Following the election, there's a surge in business for rage rooms where individuals can smash items like plates and televisions to vent anger (14:51). Black humorously critiques the conservative and liberal approaches to anger management, juxtaposing physical destruction with internalized stress (15:10).

• Primal Scream Events: Liberal women are organizing primal scream sessions at Lake Michigan to release their fury by "screeching at the top of their lungs" (16:18). Black sarcastically questions the effectiveness of such methods, stating, "screaming doesn't change anything" (16:32).

• Escapist Cruises and International Relocation: To escape the political climate, some opt for long-term cruises or relocating to foreign countries. Black mocks these solutions by referencing the absurdity of leaving America for a "four-year cruise" filled with "pina coladas and freeze-dried scallops" (17:12) and the notion of buying cheap homes in declining Italian villages (18:05).

Notable Quotes:

• On rage rooms: "Democrats can't even get mad correctly" (15:10).
• On escapist cruises: "What better cure for an election hangover than half a decade of pina coladas and freeze dried scallops?" (17:36).

IV. Guest Interview: Chef Tom Colicchio on Cooking and Food Sustainability

In the latter part of the episode, Ronnie Chieng welcomes Tom Colicchio, an eight-time James Beard Award-winning chef and head judge on Bravo's Top Chef. The interview delves into Colicchio's new cookbook memoir, Why I Cook, and broader topics surrounding American cuisine and sustainability.

Key Points:

• Kitchen Culture and Toxicity: Chieng probes into the traditionally harsh environment of professional kitchens, questioning whether such toxicity is necessary. Colicchio responds by acknowledging past issues like misogyny and the over-reliance on intimidation, asserting that modern kitchens are evolving: "Things have changed. We don't need to be yelling in kitchens anymore" (24:00).

• Sustainable Food Practices: The discussion shifts to the importance of sustainable food systems. Colicchio emphasizes grassroots movements and community-driven initiatives as essential for improving food sustainability, rather than relying solely on governmental intervention (31:25).

• American Food Quality: Chieng critiques the quality of American food, lamenting its reliance on junk food due to affordability issues. Colicchio agrees, highlighting economic barriers to accessing nutritious food and the prevalence of food waste: "Roughly a quarter of what is purchased at home gets wasted" (30:24).

• Educational Reforms: Both hosts agree on the need for better education around cooking and nutrition. Colicchio advocates for reintroducing home economics in schools and promoting programs where professional chefs contribute to school lunch systems to enhance the quality of food served to students (32:24).

Notable Quotes:

• On kitchen environment: "The idea of getting someone to do something through intimidation doesn't really work. I think it's a matter of 40 years ago, the chefs that were working in kitchens... they thought that was the way that you had to motivate people" (24:46).
• On food sustainability: "If you want better food at home, learn how to cook. And you don't have to learn how to cook fancy food. You have to just learn the basics" (30:37).
• On American food waste: "We're talking about food waste, which is another big problem" (30:24).

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Conclusion

This episode of The Daily Show: Ears Edition offers a blend of political satire, international affairs, and insightful discussions on societal issues. From scrutinizing political nominations and international protests to exploring how Americans cope with political dissatisfaction and delving into the nuances of American cuisine and sustainability, the hosts provide a comprehensive and entertaining overview of contemporary topics.

For Further Listening: Explore more episodes of The Daily Show: Ears Edition on Comedy Central's ParamountShop.com and stream full episodes on Paramount+.

Transcript

[Jon Stewart]

Jon Stewart here. Unbelievably exciting news. My new podcast, the Weekly Show. We're going to be talking about the election economics, ingredient to bread ratio on sandwiches. Listen to the Weekly show with Jon Stewart. Wherever you get your podcasts, you're listening to Comedy Central.

[Ronny T.]

From the most trusted journalists at Comedy Central, It's America's only source for news. This is the Daily show with your host, Ronnie T.

[Ronny Chieng]

Hey, welcome to the Daily Show. I'm Ronny Chang. We got so much to talk about tonight. South Koreans sample martial law and say no thanks. Louis Black tells you how to survive the next four years. And Pete Hegseth is on day three of his newsbender. So let's get into another edition of Trump 2.0. Coming for the White House.

[Jon Stewart]

I'm going to come.

[Ronny Chieng]

Donald Trump is still constructing his next administration, but he seems to be doing it the same way that that billionaire built that Titanic submarine, because it's imploding immediately.

[Louis Black]

Pick in peril Pete Hagset back on.

[Pete Hegseth]

The Hill with his bid for defense secretary. Will another Trump nominee be forced out? A growing number of senators have signaled they are not behind Trump's defense secretary nominee, Pete Hegseth, who is the president elect considering to replace him. Will Pete Hegseth's nomination survive the day? It's a real question.

[Ronny Chieng]

Wow. This would be very sobering news for Pete Hegseth if he wasn't shitfaced right now. I mean, if Hegseth doesn't get confirmed, this is really going to make people question Trump's strategy of giving the most unemployable people on earth the hardest jobs that ever existed. And honestly, I kind of feel bad for this guy. I mean, he had it made. A cushy job on Fox News, a side hustle selling macho garbage on right wing Instagram, a loving third family. And then Trump comes along and offers him a job and now his life is kind of up. I mean, who could have seen that coming other than Matt Gaetz, Mike Pence, Rudy Giuliani, Michael Cohen, and everyone else Trump has ever come into contact with. He anyone heard from Herman Cain lately? He's dead. Google it. And maybe one of the reasons why Pete Hegseth can't seem to extinguish this dumpster fire of his nomination is because more people keep throwing garbage into the dumpster.

[NBC News Reporter]

Yesterday, new allegations of excessive drinking also emerging about the decorated combat veteran. NBC News spoke with 10 current and former Fox News employees who worked with Hegseth on one of the network's morning shows. And say the former co host drank in ways that concerned them. Two sang on more than a dozen occasions. They smelled alcohol on Hegseth before he went on air.

[Ronny Chieng]

Okay, before you judge, yes, his show starts at 6 in the morning, but he was still drinking from the night before. Okay, so it's not sad. It's awesome. I will say it's weird that we're arguing about the drinking, because even if he was stone cold sober, um, he's a TV host who ran two veterans organizations into the ground. He's not qualified to run the Pentagon anyway. Okay, this is. This is like saying, hey, yo, this cat can't be pilot. He has a drinking problem. Okay, then maybe this cat can be your pilot. It's very cute. But you know what? This might be for the best. Uh, the first step to sobriety is your co workers admitting that you have a problem. And look, we don't have any hard evidence that Pete Hegseth was drinking before work. But if you watched his show very carefully, you might have picked up some subtle clues that he liked to knock him back.

[Pete Hegseth]

I've always wanted to do this. Give it a good shake. Oh, look at that.

[Ronny Chieng]

Look at that.

[Pete Hegseth]

Look at that. I will not be abstaining from alcohol.

[Ronny Chieng]

Possession is 9, 10 of an hour.

[Louis Black]

We have three more hours.

[Pete Hegseth]

And maybe if I do well, I'll get a pint.

[Ronny Chieng]

A little bit of champagne.

[Josh Johnson]

There you go.

[Pete Hegseth]

I'm gonna get another refill. Hold on.

[Louis Black]

Champagne is my problem when it comes to hangovers. It just.

[Pete Hegseth]

It's bad, but it fixes the problem.

[Louis Black]

In the morning, because then you have.

[Pete Hegseth]

A little bit more champagne, and then your problem goes away.

[Ronny Chieng]

Again. The show airs at 6am but as Pete Hegseth always says, hey, it's 11am somewhere. So Hegseth is losing the president. He's losing the senators. He's losing his co workers. I mean, does he have anyone left on his side?

[Pete Hegseth]

This just end. Pete Hegseth's mother just sitting down for an interview.

[Louis Black]

He's very smart. He loves his country. He's a good dad. He's an amazing son and father. I wouldn't be sitting here if I didn't believe he's the man for the job.

[Ronny Chieng]

What kind of parent teacher conference are we watching right now? Because the future secretary of defense needs his mom to come out and defend him. I thought you were against women in combat roles. And besides, I never saw Donald Rumsfeld be like, hey, I have a warning for the Taliban. Mom, you tell him. Now, the reason Pete's mom is part of the story is because a few years ago, during his second divorce, his mom sent him an email where she called him his own. Her own son, a habitual cheater, liar, and abuser of women. But now she's saying, eh, don't worry about it.

[Louis Black]

Let's go back seven years. Which if we all went back seven years, we would see that maybe we were not the people we are today. I want people to look at Pete, understand him for who he. He is today, and to disregard the media. That was seven years ago. And most of it is misinformation.

[Ronny Chieng]

What misinformation? You wrote the email. You're the one who told us he's a piece of shit. And by the way, seven years ago wasn't ancient history, okay? We, we still have the same Spider Man. Like, overall, things don't look good for Pete Heseff. But the good news is he has the perfect solution, because then you have.

[Pete Hegseth]

A little bit more champagne and then your problem goes away.

[Ronny Chieng]

Okay? But then Buddha, let's move on to a story that doesn't involve Trump right now. Yesterday, out of nowhere, the incredibly unpopular president of South Korea declared martial law. And then a few hours later, after everyone got mad, he was like, you know what? Forget it. That was a stupid idea. How about, how about that rose song? To me, the craziest thing about this whole episode is what happened in South Korea during the few hours of martial law.

[Pete Hegseth]

The announcement sparking massive protests in Seoul. This woman's confrontation with an armed soldier going viral as she screams, aren't you embarrassed at him?

[Ronny Chieng]

Holy shit. She knows that's a gun, right? She's grabbing it like it's a thing that doesn't shoot bullets. She's like, is this a vacuum cleaner? What's this button? Do I want to see? This wasn't the only time a protester stood up to the military in South Korea. Check out this dude when a soldier tries to take his phone. I know everyone thinks all Asians know martial arts, and let me be clear, stereotypes are harmful, but did you see that shit? That dude single handedly aikidoed the soldier into surrendering. I mean, that uncle is either really protective of democracy or very concerned about what people are gonna see on his phone. By the way, Trump, if you're paying attention, can we get that guy as Secretary of defense? I mean, his def. His defense is incredible. He just. For more on the fallout in South Korea, let's go live outside the South Korean parliament with Josh Johnson.

[Pete Hegseth]

Josh. Josh.

[Ronny Chieng]

Josh. What's going on? Over there?

[I]

Uh, yeah. Look, you seriously asking me? I. I feel like you might know more about this than me.

[Ronny Chieng]

Why?

[I]

Come on, Ronnie, you know why.

[Ronny Chieng]

Because I'm the host?

[I]

No.

[Ronny Chieng]

Because I'm more well read than you.

[I]

That's not it.

[Ronny Chieng]

Cause I'm better looking?

[I]

No, because it's a career story and you're from around there.

[Ronny Chieng]

What the, man? I'm not Korean, okay? I'm Malaysian. That's a totally different country.

[I]

Calm down. Malaysian has Asian in it, okay? It's closer than me. I'm clearly out of my depth here. The politics, the language, even the food. They offered me some of their soul food. And not one candied yam or collard green.

[Ronny Chieng]

Joce, I don't expect you to just know what's going on there. We sent you there to do a report, okay? So just do your job and ask around.

[I]

And what do you think I'm doing? I found an Asian person and I am asking around right now.

[Ronny Chieng]

That's racist, dude. All right? What? You're black. So what? I'm supposed to ask you about what's going on in Zimbabwe.

[I]

Oh, Zimbabwe. Going through it, Ronnie.

[Ronny Chieng]

All right.

[I]

They just had to raise interest rates to 36% to keep the currency from an inflation crisis, which could collapse President Managua's government.

[Ronny Chieng]

Okay, well, that's a lucky. That's a lucky guess. Okay. Economy's collapsing. That's all of them.

[I]

That's racist.

[Ronny Chieng]

No, you're racist. Look, just give me your best analysis of what's going on in Korea right now, all right?

[I]

Well, frankly, I'm not surprised at all. We've all known for years that Kim Jong Un is crazy. Of course he's gonna pull some shit like this.

[Ronny Chieng]

Josh, that's North Korea, okay? You're in South Korea. It's a different country.

[I]

Damn, Ronnie, the Asian guy seems to know a lot about Asia. I guess I'm racist and right.

[Ronny Chieng]

God damn it. Forget it. Josh Johnson, everybody. All right, when we come back, Louis Black will help you do with the election. So don't go.

[Jon Stewart]

Hey, everybody, Jon Stewart here. I am here to tell you about my new podcast, the weekly show. It's going to be coming out every Thursday. So exciting. You'll. You'll be saying to yourself, tgit, thank God it's Thursday. We're going to be talking about all the things that hopefully obsess you in the same way that they obsess me. The election, economics, earnings calls. What are they talking about on these earnings calls? We're going to be talking about ingredient to bread ratio on sandwiches, and I know that I listed that fourth, but in importance it's probably second. I know you have a lot of options as far as podcasts go, but how many of them come out on Thursday? I mean, talk about innovative. Listen to the Weekly show with Jon Stewart wherever you get your podcasts.

[Ronny Chieng]

Welcome back to the Daily Show. When a news story falls through the cracks, Louis Black catches it for a segment we call Back in Black.

[Louis Black]

It's already been a month since the election. I guess time flies when I'm not ripping out what's left of my pubes. Since Trump's victory, half the country is excited and the other half is still at home in the fetal position. Me, I'm coping by shutting off the news for a while and watching something a little cozier like who killed JonBenet Ramsey? Baby, it's cold outside. And so is this case. But for those Democrats able to leave the House, this is what they're doing.

[Pete Hegseth]

An art installation on the walls of a 14th street subway stop is encouraging people to put their thoughts on Post it notes. It invites everyone to leave their feelings about this week's presidential election.

[Louis Black]

Things like I'm so scared, but I love this life more than I fear darkness.

[Pete Hegseth]

What the is this?

[Louis Black]

Call me old fashioned, but if you have a breakdown on the subway, you're supposed to jump in front of it. Subway walls are for only two mysterious piss stains and ads for Shen Yun. Sure, it's a culture, but those concubines sure can boogie. And who are these people riding their deepest feelings on a train platform? The only subway thoughts I have are Is that guy shitting? And why am I being stabbed? In that order. But if writing post its is a little too subtle, you can react to the election loss the American way.

[Pete Hegseth]

Violence rage rooms have seen a spike in business since the election. It's a place where you can go in, smash plates, televisions, anything else you can find to let off steam. In fact, in the immediate days after the election, they say the number of reservations have tripled. A unique way to smash away that stress.

[Louis Black]

Look out everyone. The libs are pissed and they're coming for Grandma's fine China. Democrats can't even get mad correctly. Conservatives storm the Capitol. Meanwhile, Democrats are like, are these crowbars ethically sourced? When shit gets bad, you don't smash things like a toddler. You let it eat away at you from the inside, like a big boy with stress related hemorrhoids. Which reminds me, this segment is brought to you by Preparation H. Preparation H I'm old, I'm angry, and I'd like some free Preparation H. But if you'd like to be sad without getting a shard of glass in your retina, you could always venture outdoors and get in touch with your inner coyote.

Liberal women are holding what they call primal scream events to release their fury screeching at the top of their lungs at Lake Michigan.

Okay, let me get this straight. Plan A for the Democrats was to vote and plan B is to scare the out of sturgeon? I don't know about you, but I'm feeling optimistic about 2028. Trust me, screaming doesn't change anything. I've been doing it for 40 years and I'm still at the same desk. God, I've wasted my life. But if screaming beside a lake doesn't cure your election blues, maybe riding on a boat will.

And did the presidential elections make you want to jump ship from America for a little while? Well, Villa Vie Residences is a cruise line that actually lets you take up long term dwelling aboard its odyssey ship. Now there's a one year escape from the reality or a two year midterm selection. And if your election hangover is just really, really bad, well, there's a three year everywhere but home and a four year skip forward option.

Ooh, a four year cruise. Sign me up. What better cure for an election hangover than half a decade of pina coladas and freeze dried scallops? Trump's gonna slash Medicaid just in time for me to get super herpes from a Swiss widow. Now that every country in the world can see that liberals are terrified, the smart ones are cashing in.

[Pete Hegseth]

Well, a small Italian village is offering cheap homes to Americans who want to leave the U.S. yes. So the town of Olay has move in ready homes for up to 10,000 bucks. Homes that need a little TLC. They're available for just over a dollar. Village officials hope this will revive it after its population declined.

[Louis Black]

Oh great. An Italian village whose population disappeared. That doesn't sound ominous at all. I'm happy to buy an abandoned home and find out what disemboweled all the cattle. Listen, America may be, but that doesn't mean I'm moving into Luigi's haunted mansion. Plus plus, America already has a creepy Italian shithole. It's called New Jersey. Wow. Not what I expected. But hey, if you're willing to spend good money to avoid these next four years, I'm willing to take it to you. Okay, Take it from you. That's why I'm offering a product of my own.

[Ronny Chieng]

Ha ha.

[Louis Black]

I call it the forever sleepy time brick. Just shackle it to your foot and find the nearest body of water. Screaming optional. Ronnie.

[Ronny Chieng]

All right. Thank you, Lois. Louis Black, everyone. We come back. Tom Colicchio will be joining me on the show, so don't.

[Jon Stewart]

Hey, everybody. Jon Stewart here. I am here to tell you about my new podcast, the weekly show. It's going to be coming out every Thursday. So exciting. You'll. You'll be saying to yourself, tgit, thank God it's Thursday. We're going to be talking about all the things that hopefully obsess you in the same way that they obsess me. The election, economics, earnings calls. What are they talking about on these earnings calls? We're going to be talking about ingredient to bread ratio on sandwiches. And I know that I listed that fourth, but in importance it's probably second. I know you have a lot of options as far as podcasts go, but how many of them come out on Thursday? I mean, talk about innovative. Listen to the weekly show with Jon Stewart wherever you get your podcasts.

[Ronny Chieng]

Welcome back to the Daily Show. My guest tonight is an eight time James Beard award winning chef, restaurateur, and head judge on Bravo's hit series Top Chef. He's the author of a new cookbook memoir called why I Cook. Please welcome the great Tom Colicchio.

[Josh Johnson]

Wow.

[Ronny Chieng]

The most respected chefs in America. Thanks for coming on the show. Great to meet you.

[Josh Johnson]

Likewise.

[Ronny Chieng]

Great person as well. Your book, cookbook and memoir.

[Josh Johnson]

Right.

[Ronny Chieng]

You've managed to trick us into reading about your story in between. You kind of hide it in between these recipes here. And very. It's well written. I encourage everyone to go read it. You know, for a chef, the stereotype is everyone's very angry. But you write this with so much love. What is the real you? Is it this?

[Josh Johnson]

It's this. This is it. Yeah, that's it.

[Ronny Chieng]

Because I know this is kind of like a hacky question, but I just gotta ask it. Cause you also bring up in the memoir, when you are up and coming, you're being trained by these legendary chefs. The training in the kitchen was pretty hardcore.

[Josh Johnson]

Yeah, it was.

[Ronny Chieng]

People were yelling at you.

[Josh Johnson]

People were yelling. But I think there's a reason for that. Especially when I was in France working, I got a sense that they couldn't communicate any other way. That was the only way they could actually get a point across.

[Ronny Chieng]

Right.

[Josh Johnson]

The French yelling and screaming. Yeah. And so you got used to it.

[Ronny Chieng]

Right? But I mean, even in America, you're training America Same thing. The American chef.

[Josh Johnson]

Same thing, though.

[Ronny Chieng]

So I guess my question to you.

[Josh Johnson]

Is, like, they were yelling at you in different languages.

[Ronny Chieng]

Yeah, yeah.

[Josh Johnson]

It doesn't matter.

[Ronny Chieng]

Exactly. Yeah. Because I feel like I don't know enough about cooking at all. But with comedy, I feel like there is a certain amount of toxic toxicity that you need to endure to get good at this, you know? And so do you feel the same way with cooking? You know, I guess. What would you say to all these woke sissies who are complaining about being mistreated in the kitchen? Like, really? Are you, like, hey, like, tough enough? Or are you, like, hey, something?

[Josh Johnson]

Not anymore. No, we don't do that anymore. No. No, we can't do that. No. Things have changed. When I was coming up, it was 40 years ago. It was a very different world that we lived in. And it was, you know, there wasn't a whole lot of, you know, in your face, screaming and yelling, but it was a lot of hard, long hours, and there was a lot expected of you. But it wasn't the yelling and screaming that you think about, but the misogyny was obviously there. The sort of machismo, you know, kitchen, you know, you burnt yourself. That was a badge of honor, how many times you burnt your arms and things like that. And so. But I think that's a lot of that's going away.

[Ronny Chieng]

Right? But I guess the question again to you is, like, is it going away for the. Is it good that it's going away, or do you feel like something's missing in the transfer of knowledge or.

[Josh Johnson]

No, I don't think anything's missing in transfer of knowledge. I think that it's going away for the right reasons. You know, the idea of getting someone to do something through intimidation doesn't really work. I mean, maybe it works in the military. I have no idea. But it certainly isn't necessary to get your point across. And I think also if you look back, you know, chefs that were running Kitchen.

[Ronny Chieng]

So, Jim Trump. Actually, I spoke to a military guy about this because as a Asian person who grew up in Singapore, Malaysia, I've been yelled at my whole life to where learning was being yelled at. And I asked the military guys about this in the U.S. i mean, small sample size, but one of the U.S. military guys said that when you're yelling, you've already lost control.

[Josh Johnson]

You lost them. Exactly.

[Ronny Chieng]

You lost control, meaning you shouldn't be in that situation in the first place.

[Josh Johnson]

You don't have to be. I think it's a matter of 40 years ago, the chefs that were working in kitchens, they weren't able to communicate exactly what they were looking for. And so they were running around and screaming the whole day because they thought that was the way that you had to motivate people, because that's the way they were motivated. And at. Somewhere along the lines, I mean, for me. And I think I mentioned this in the book.

[Ronny Chieng]

Yeah. With Thomas Kelly.

[Josh Johnson]

Well, that was different. That was more.

[Ronny Chieng]

Don't interrupt you.

[Josh Johnson]

That was more psychological nonsense that he was playing. He played a lot of games. I mean, he was a great chef, but I just had an issue with the way he was talking to me. I promised myself at a certain point, if I got a restaurant, that I wasn't going to sort of the things that. The way I was treated, I was gonna break, that I was gonna do something different. And, you know, did I lose my temper at times? Absolutely. But nowadays, you kind of walk away before you lose your temper. You walk away.

[Ronny Chieng]

Okay, okay. No, I'm genuinely interested in this because you're arguably the most respected chef in America. If you're saying that, hey, hey, we don't need to be yelling in kitchens, then I guess everything that's happening in the Bear is completely unnecessary. Cause those guys. You watch how he's going, like, what are you guys doing?

[Josh Johnson]

I don't know, but know if. I don't know if you saw the third season. Went a whole lot of yelling in the third season, and it wasn't that good.

[Pete Hegseth]

Oh, okay.

[Ronny Chieng]

Well, I mean, that's. I get. I. That's something I can't speak to. But you speak to the kitchen stuff.

[Josh Johnson]

I. I think there's a lot of people who think that the third season.

[Ronny Chieng]

Was a little slower. I. That. Yeah. I. I love. And the critics say, not me.

[Josh Johnson]

It's the critics that say, well, it's not me.

[Ronny Chieng]

I'm still available for guest appearances on the Banner. Yeah. And they're gonna take my cookbook.

[Josh Johnson]

I have a cookbook on the shelf there. They're gonna take it off now.

[Ronny Chieng]

No, they won't.

[Josh Johnson]

Season four, my bookstore.

[Ronny Chieng]

No, see, you don't yell at it anymore. You just say that they suck. Quietly.

[Josh Johnson]

Very quietly.

[Ronny Chieng]

That's what you're doing. You're not in the kitchen going, you suck. You're on the Daily show going, you suck. Like, I moved to New York City when I was 30 years old from Australia. I was living in Australia at the time. When I moved here, I was just kind of. What struck me about the food in America was that it tasted like shit.

[Josh Johnson]

Yeah.

[Ronny Chieng]

Like Is that, is there a reason for that?

[Josh Johnson]

But where were you going?

[Ronny Chieng]

I was eating out of toilets most. No, I was like. It was. No, I mean, like, in general, I do feel like there's something in the American psyche that, like, where for most people the junk food is the norm.

[Josh Johnson]

Right.

[Ronny Chieng]

The idea of nutrition is very skewed and the produce is weird. And so I don't know if you. Am I being a stuck up asshole or is there something to this?

[Josh Johnson]

No, no, you're not. But I think what you're experiencing in this country, nutrition is expensive, but calories are cheap.

[Ronny Chieng]

Yes.

[Josh Johnson]

So you can go out and buy a bunch of junk and it's cheap, but it's not nutritious. But you try to go to the farmer's market and buy great produce and stuff. It's very expensive. So that's part of the problem here with this country.

[Ronny Chieng]

So is there a way to overcome that kind of financial access to nutrition? No, no, no, no. Okay.

[Josh Johnson]

No, it can. It's complicated because it's, you know, the average person who doesn't really quite understand would say, well, subsidize, subsidize fruits and vegetables. You really can't do that. There's really no subsidies for fruit and vegetables. There's subsidies for corn and soy. That's about it. And the subsidies are in. They're all about crop insurance and not insurance. The way we know insurance, it just guarantees a price. Sure. So some people say that maybe what we can do is if you put enough research and development behind figuring out ways to grow more fruits and vegetables on the same acreage, then actually you'll have more in the system and prices will come down. But that's not happening.

[Ronny Chieng]

That's not happening.

[Josh Johnson]

No, no. The government looks at fruits and vegetables and they're actually labeled specialty crops.

[Ronny Chieng]

Okay.

[Josh Johnson]

They don't pay attention to them at all.

[Ronny Chieng]

Okay. So we do eat like shit. And there's no way to change this in the near future.

[Josh Johnson]

No. But what is America. But what is American food? Right. Because when you came to America, you thought you were eating American food, but what were you. You were eating a. I was eating.

[Ronny Chieng]

Food by the pound at a bodega, which was. Well, I was amazed that you. That Americans eat. When I came here, I was like, oh, New Yorkers are American.

[Josh Johnson]

A lot of chives, cheese for you, huh?

[Ronny Chieng]

Right? And I was like, you know, these guys eat food by the pound. They measure it by the pound. No respect for how they cook it. They just dump it out.

[Josh Johnson]

But in restaurants, you'll find something different.

[Ronny Chieng]

Sure.

[Josh Johnson]

So it all depends.

[Ronny Chieng]

No, I agree. I mean, obviously I've been more educated in American food now, and like I said. But I guess the thing is I'm on tv. I can go to a restaurant.

[Josh Johnson]

Well, that's what I'm saying. So as you're economic.

[Ronny Chieng]

But what about this?

[Josh Johnson]

As your economics change, started going to better restaurants and all of a sudden the food got better, Right?

[Ronny Chieng]

Yeah.

[Josh Johnson]

So the system works exactly the way it's set up to work. I'm not saying this is a good system, but it's set up where if you have money, it works. If you don't, you struggle and it's the same food. It's a bad system that we have.

[Ronny Chieng]

Someone applauded that. No, no. And someone was like, the system works.

[Josh Johnson]

No, what I'm saying, it's not a good system, but it works the way it's set up to work.

[Ronny Chieng]

Unfortunately, I don't know enough about this, and that's why I want to ask you about it. From what you're saying, it sounds like the only way kind of people who are less financially successful can eat well is they have to make choices in their life to go, hey, I'm going to buy less iPads and I'm going to eat. I don't know what the answer is that.

[Josh Johnson]

But also part of it is cooking. If you can cook for yourself, you can probably do a lot more for your family. If you're relying on fast food and you're relying on someone making the food for you and be delivered to your house, that's a different story. And then also learning how to stretch that food, you know, learning how to use it all. Learning how to use leftovers. And so you can. You can. I mean, I think, I think the numbers now, roughly a quarter of what is purchased at home gets wasted. 25% of what you purchase at home goes in the garbage.

[Ronny Chieng]

Okay.

[Josh Johnson]

And so that's a good start. So we're talking about food waste, which is another big problem.

[Ronny Chieng]

That's a. That's a bad thing. And it's a good place to start. Is a good place.

[Pete Hegseth]

Right.

[Josh Johnson]

I mean, listen, I think if they started teaching home economics in school again, that would be great.

[Jon Stewart]

Okay.

[Josh Johnson]

That would really be great.

[Ronny Chieng]

Oh, did they stop doing that?

[Josh Johnson]

No, no. In fact, they're gonna get rid of the whole education system nowadays.

[Ronny Chieng]

Education.

[Pete Hegseth]

Exactly.

[Josh Johnson]

It doesn't matter.

[Pete Hegseth]

Yeah.

[Ronny Chieng]

So nothing matters anyway, I guess everyone's gonna be. Everyone's gonna be dumb and unhealthy.

[Josh Johnson]

Exactly.

[Ronny Chieng]

In how long do you think four years, you have over four years before. I mean you touched upon this just now. But like, is there any, you know, like I like eleven Madison, one of the most famous restaurants in the world and your friend.

[Josh Johnson]

Vegan restaurant.

[Ronny Chieng]

Yeah, yeah, it became vegan. And I think they're not just vegan, but they also push sustainability in food and restaurants and commercially. So I mean, where do you think the future of sustainability, you know, of food in America is going? Do you think it's trending in a good place or are we in a.

[Josh Johnson]

Listen, there's plenty of people talking about it. There's plenty of work that has to be done. I mean, I know for years I did a lot of work up on Capitol Hill. I've co founded an organization called Food Policy Action. I spent a good amount of time on the Hill looking at issues about sustainability. And you know, it's a complicated problem, but it almost as if it's such a non issue for our government to try to figure out that this stuff has to happen through grassroots and sort of in your own communities. And it starts at home, it really does. If you want better food at home, learn how to cook. And you don't have to learn how to cook fancy food. You have to just learn the basics. Learn the basics so you can actually cook for your family. And that's, that's sustainable because you're buying produce that is sustainable. You're not relying on food that's over processed, with too much sugar, too much salt, too much fat in it. And you're gonna end up with a healthy America too. And so. Yeah, but it's a complex problem because our system isn't set up to actually get fresh food to the masses. It's set up to get processed food to the masses.

[Ronny Chieng]

So yeah, that's bad.

[Josh Johnson]

It is bad. Yeah, yeah, yeah. But you can, I don't know if government's going to fix this problem. I think this has to happen in communities and in your homes, in your actual homes and communities. I think a great place would be school lunch. I mean that's one place that I think we could do a lot better. And there are some great chefs that, I mean, the chef had one of the most famous restaurants in the world in Copenhagen, Noma, one of the chefs there decided that he didn't want to cook in fancy restaurants anymore and started cooking in school lunch programs and started a whole program called Brigade where he's trying to get professional chefs into schools. I mean, right now everything that's in school is all mass produced. And so I think we need to start there also. I think school lunch should be universally free across the board.

[Ronny Chieng]

Okay. Yeah. All right, cool. That guy's not doing it in America, right? He's doing it in. Where is he doing it in?

[Josh Johnson]

No, he's doing America.

[Ronny Chieng]

Oh, he's doing it in America.

[Josh Johnson]

Yeah, he's doing it.

[Ronny Chieng]

Where is he doing it? I want to go to school.

[Josh Johnson]

I believe he started in Connecticut, but then he's branching out.

[Ronny Chieng]

Okay, free lunch in Connecticut. I got hit down there. I got enrolled. But. But, Chef, listen, I really appreciate you coming on the show. You're American legend. Thanks for trying to help everyone eat properly. I'm sorry no one's listening to you. I wish we could all eat better.

[Josh Johnson]

That's all going to change after tonight.

[Ronny Chieng]

Thank you for all that you do. Hey, everybody. Why I Cook is available now. Chef Tom Colicchio, everybody. We're going to take a quick break. I'll be right back after this. Hey, that's our show for tonight. Now, here it is, your moment of Z.

[Louis Black]

A new survey by online magazine intelligent reveals nearly 20% of Gen Z applicants brought their mom or dad with them to a job interview.

[Pete Hegseth]

Is that how you got this job?

[Louis Black]

You brought your aunt?

[Pete Hegseth]

I brought my aunt and my mom. They can vouch for me.

[Ronny T.]

Explore more shows from the Daily show podcast universe by searching the Daily Show. Wherever you get your podcasts, watch the Daily show weeknights at 1110 Central on Comedy Central and stream full episodes anytime on Paramount plus.

[Pete Hegseth]

Paramount Podcasts.

[Jon Stewart]

Hey, everybody. Jon Stewart here. I am here to tell you about my new podcast, the weekly show coming out every Thursday. We're going to be talking about the election earnings calls. What are they talking about on these earnings calls? We're going to be talking about ingredient to bread ratio on sandwiches. I know you have a lot of options as far as podcasts go, but how many of them come out on Thursday? Listen to the weekly show with Jon Stewart. Wherever you get your podcast.