May 15, 2025 • 29 mins
Billy and Jenny released a cookbook last year featuring tons of food from local chefs called A Taste of Boston. They sat down with Lisa at Joss and Main to chat all about how the book got put together, the chefs they picked and their favorite recipes!
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:04):
Hey, Welcome to Lisa's book Club, a podcast where I
interview best selling authors from the New England area, pulling
back the curtain on what it's really like being a
best selling author. They're guilty, pleasures, latest projects, and so
much more so. Last fall, Billy Coston Jenny Johnson from
Meet Boston launched a cookbook of their favorite Boston chefs,
(00:27):
and I sat down with them for Lisa's book Club.
Speaker 2 (00:29):
Have a listen. I actually prepared questions.
Speaker 3 (00:31):
I love them.
Speaker 1 (00:32):
So what does it feel like not to be the
one asking questions?
Speaker 4 (00:36):
It feels awesome to be to be on the other side.
Speaker 1 (00:40):
That's solebrating, right, yeah, And I could say anything I want.
Speaker 2 (00:44):
Oh boy, so, oh boy, Jenny, how.
Speaker 1 (00:48):
Did you get Billy Costa to agree to write a
cookbook like walk us through how It's happened?
Speaker 3 (00:55):
That was a big feat.
Speaker 5 (00:56):
But first I want to say, we know how much
all of you love this man right here there there.
There are no two people well maybe his wife but
there yes, But but there are no two people that
know more about this guy than.
Speaker 3 (01:10):
These two right here.
Speaker 2 (01:11):
So cheers.
Speaker 1 (01:12):
We have been sitting next to him for over twenty years,
literally collectively for I know every one of his outfits,
of the many that there.
Speaker 5 (01:22):
Are, I know every single one of his pillows.
Speaker 3 (01:24):
In dubets, like you know, just change around.
Speaker 4 (01:27):
And yes, but I gotta tell you, between my wife
and Jenny, I haven't made it a decision.
Speaker 6 (01:34):
You know, years, you know, and it feels great.
Speaker 2 (01:38):
You're a smart man, Yes, smart man.
Speaker 5 (01:41):
Very just laid down and said, I'll you let you
guys do it well.
Speaker 3 (01:44):
I mean, honestly, just like I think.
Speaker 5 (01:46):
You know, the way that you approach Billy with something
is very important, right, So I kind.
Speaker 3 (01:52):
Of did it nonchalantly.
Speaker 5 (01:53):
I said, hey, listen, I was thinking we were maybe
going to do an event to celebrate our twenty years.
But it just doesn't seem like that's enough. I said,
I want you to be able to have some kind
of legacy that you can hold in your hand to
commemorate what we've done together and what you've done on
television for more than twenty years. But we've done together
for twenty and it's a real opportunity to celebrate the
(02:14):
city that we love and the chefs that we love.
And he was I told, I said, it's not going
to take a lot of time. I'll do the majority
of the work and takes a lot of time, and.
Speaker 3 (02:24):
So I can imagine if he actually did all the.
Speaker 1 (02:28):
Work all right, But to your point, I have to say,
behind the scenes, Jenny, he would come into the office
in the morning and he would say, oh, I have
a shoot, you know, another photo shoot for the book.
Speaker 2 (02:38):
But he gave you huge.
Speaker 1 (02:39):
Props, he said, Jenny has done everything for this book.
So he definitely has your back. You guys have a
great partnership, you really really do.
Speaker 6 (02:49):
And you know what's really cool. I'm looking at my
son Chris over there. Wave your hand, that son christ
and he's here with his.
Speaker 4 (02:55):
Beautiful wife Hannah, And how cool is it. He's holding
two books that he bought to that he wants me
to look at that.
Speaker 2 (03:02):
He's a team player.
Speaker 1 (03:05):
So to talk about the book, I know a lot
of you have purchased them already. You guys had a
very famous person right the forward to the book. So
I want you to explain to everyone how that happened.
Speaker 4 (03:20):
Well, Jenny called me one day, and Jenny knows that
I have a long standing relationship with the New Kids
and with the Wahlberg family and with Mark and with
Donnie and Jenny had she not called me on this,
I wouldn't have crossed my mind.
Speaker 6 (03:34):
She said, Hey, why don't you call.
Speaker 4 (03:36):
Your buddy Mark Wahlberg, big time Hollywood star, and see
if he'll do the forward to the book. I don't
know if you've seen it yet, but he told the
very very nice story in the forward to the book.
And I got to tell you something. It's the kind
of people they are. I texted Mark one night, and
you knew at least and I call you.
Speaker 6 (03:55):
Within sixty seconds. He texted me back.
Speaker 4 (03:58):
He said, absolutely, whatever you need, I'm happy to do it.
Speaker 6 (04:01):
So now he's in the book.
Speaker 2 (04:02):
So very special.
Speaker 1 (04:05):
He's such a professional, and he absolutely adores you. I mean, you,
guys go way way, way back.
Speaker 5 (04:13):
And his brother is in the book, so Paul Wahlberg's
in there too. Yeah, and he's another incredibly genuine, incredibly
warm person. You can see his restaurants there in the
Hangham shipyard, and obviously Wahlberger is all over.
Speaker 3 (04:26):
But it's a really amazing family.
Speaker 1 (04:27):
They really are. So I read this book cover to cover.
I have to say you, guys, I've never read.
Speaker 3 (04:34):
A cookbook cover to cover.
Speaker 2 (04:36):
I am not a good cook, as Bill can attest him.
Speaker 1 (04:39):
So this was like, this was great, un Nerd, But
I have to say, so you feature sixty.
Speaker 2 (04:45):
Boston chefs and over your twenty years.
Speaker 1 (04:49):
So you guys started with TV Diner, then you went
to Dining Playbook, and now you've added a third Meet Boston, right,
So how was meat Boston can to this project?
Speaker 5 (05:01):
So Meet Boston is the organization that's responsible for bringing
tourism to the city of Boston, so for all of you,
but also for everyone in the rest of the country
and everyone in the rest of the world. So there's
actually different destination groups that come to say this is
why you should vacation in Boston, that's why you should
come here, this is what you should do when you
get here. So that organization knew that Billy and I
(05:22):
were connected within the hospitality industry and the lifestyle industry
of the region and of the city, and so they said,
let's come up with different ways to be able to
tell the story of Boston. And the culinary scene in
Boston is so important to.
Speaker 3 (05:35):
The vibrancy of the economy and just to.
Speaker 5 (05:37):
The overall flavor of this area. So we partnered together
and we were able to make it happen.
Speaker 1 (05:42):
So over the past twenty years, you have met probably
every chef, chef owner, you know, hospitality guru. How has
it changed over the last twenty years.
Speaker 6 (05:57):
Well, I got to tell you.
Speaker 4 (05:58):
When I started in Food TV, and then when you
and I teamed up in food television, the whole concept
of celebrity chefs was just kicking off, and everybody was
always trying to compare Boston to New York City to
Chicago in terms of the culinary scene, and they never
really gave Boston the credit it deserved. But then the
whole celebrity chef thing exploded in the city of Boston,
(06:21):
and we kept getting more and more fabulous chefs, fabulous restaurants,
and then we ended up, you know, developing friendships with
most of them and growing as we grew, they grew,
and as they grew, we grew, and and that's what
makes this book feel so good. And you'll read some
of the stories and the anecdotal stories that Jenny and
(06:41):
I have had in the past with these chefs, and
it really pulls the whole book together.
Speaker 6 (06:46):
It's really nice.
Speaker 3 (06:47):
One of the things that I love that I know
you'll appreciate. To Lisa is.
Speaker 5 (06:50):
Yes, Boston was a little late on the culinary map
in some ways. But what it has that a lot
of other cities don't is an enormous female chef group
of people and a very very very strong camaraderie among
all of them. And someone asked me, why, why do
you think so? And I believe this is certainly not
(07:11):
a fact, but I believe that it has a lot
to do with Julia Child. So Julia obviously was from here,
and so many of the chefs that she trained went
on to become unbelievable restaurant tours, like Lydia Shire, who's
actually the first.
Speaker 2 (07:23):
Chef, She's the first page of the book. Did you
do that on purpose?
Speaker 5 (07:28):
You know? I wanted someone who had so much brass
and presence, but I don't know what was necessarily on purpose?
Speaker 3 (07:34):
But she Jody Adams, you know, there's Joe Anne.
Speaker 5 (07:36):
She there's so many women that are in here that
she really, I think, cultivated something that made it so
the females could say, oh, I can do this in.
Speaker 3 (07:43):
A male dominating business, which is nice.
Speaker 1 (07:46):
But also I feel like, and I don't know if
you would agree. The Boston chef community, the hospitality community,
is so interconnected.
Speaker 2 (07:57):
They all help each other, they've all worked with.
Speaker 1 (07:59):
Each other, they're in different kitchens, and it's such an
interesting map with the roadmap of their careers. But the
biggest thing I got out of the book was how
much they give back to the community.
Speaker 7 (08:12):
Right.
Speaker 4 (08:13):
It's incredible how generous they are, how involved that they
are in the communities.
Speaker 6 (08:17):
I mean, you were talking about the female chefs.
Speaker 4 (08:19):
I think when it came to female chefs, Boston led
the country and just exploded. But yeah, but in terms
of the generosity, I mean, we just mentioned Paul Wahlberg.
I mean, I don't think he's ever said no to
anything ever, I mean, don't gallas and he'll bring dinner
for ten people to people's homes as long as it
raises a lot of money for a really solid cause
(08:41):
and a solid charity. I mean, imagine having a chef
like Paul Wahlberg with his whole staff coming into your home.
Speaker 6 (08:48):
For a holiday celebration.
Speaker 4 (08:49):
You don't lift a finger when the dinner's over, you
just go up to bed, they clean up, and it's.
Speaker 6 (08:54):
Well, you're trying.
Speaker 5 (08:55):
Like the hospitals, the nonprofits, like all of these philanthropies,
these chefs donate their time on a very busy night
where they're taken out of their own kitchens to come
support nonprofits. And you're totally right in saying there is
they are such a strong.
Speaker 3 (09:09):
Unit and they are so unbelievably generous.
Speaker 4 (09:11):
In fact, we recently just did a Whole Meat Boston
episode we did on nonprofits and well.
Speaker 1 (09:17):
You guys have this cute thing in the book called
the Side Dish right, which talks about a lot of
the charities that are also within the Boston area. Do
you want to mention a few of those.
Speaker 3 (09:30):
There's a lot of great ones.
Speaker 5 (09:31):
I mean, we did things like the Greater Boston Food Bank,
which is the largest food bank in New England and
a leader in you know, just the conversation around hunger.
There's one called Love and Spoonfuls, which is a food
rescue service.
Speaker 3 (09:44):
Unbelievable nonprofit.
Speaker 5 (09:45):
The Food Project really helps young kids get literally their
hands and feet and bodies into the ground and educate
them about where their food comes from. So, yeah, we
wanted to make sure because the nonprofits are a big
part of our life too. You know, we try to
fundraise for them as much as we possibly can. I mean,
I always say, no one em sees an event like
this guy in the world.
Speaker 3 (10:03):
I had the pleasure of like learning.
Speaker 5 (10:05):
From the very best, like the very very best that
could ever be. And he's you know, together we've raised
millions and millions and millions of dollars for these nonprofits
alongside these chefs.
Speaker 1 (10:19):
So let's talk about the recipes in the book, because
that's always a thing with cookbooks, right, you want it
to be easy. You want it so that the person
buying the book can make it. So how involved were
you guys in that sort of process?
Speaker 5 (10:35):
I mean, can you imagine how many hours he spent
you just you can't even.
Speaker 4 (10:40):
Well, I do remember you and I did make was
it cottage cheese pancakes.
Speaker 3 (10:45):
And they were very good.
Speaker 2 (10:48):
Made the other day.
Speaker 5 (10:49):
Oh and then we made the catchowe pepe the other
day with the chef.
Speaker 6 (10:51):
No met got your pepe? Yeah, but they.
Speaker 2 (10:54):
Really are they're easy to make, I know.
Speaker 3 (10:56):
I yeah, you're they're approachable.
Speaker 5 (10:58):
They're approachable enough, you know, and I think, but they
also make you work a little bit. It's a little
bit different than some of the things you'd be making
in the kitchen. And one of the things that was
important Lisa you asked about sort of like the how
of putting it together, the recipes. We wanted to show
the diversity of the neighborhoods within Boston. There's twenty three
neighborhoods in Boston, and there's a ton of different flavors
that are coming out of the city. We wanted to
(11:19):
make sure that you could taste all the flavors from
all around the worlds that are all offered in Boston.
Speaker 1 (11:25):
So I want to talk a little bit about you
guys working together on TV for twenty years. Do you
have any standout favorable moments, favorite show that you've done,
favorite shows.
Speaker 4 (11:40):
I know Jenny and I are think another same one,
but we can't talk about it. But I will say
and Jenny and I keep talking about it. We're going
to get back to it hopefully next year. But Jenny
and I have done a lot of traveling with dining
playbog We've done two shows in Italy, one in Sicily,
(12:02):
one in Rome in the Amalfi coast. Jenny, you did
a show in the south of France. You did a
show in Peru, and you actually cooked food in Machia
Picchu in the top of Mancha Picchu we've done Puerto Rico,
We've done New York City, we've done Bermuda, and we
want to get back to that. I know, those were
some of my favorite shows because we brought it all
back to Boston and what.
Speaker 2 (12:21):
About you, Jenny.
Speaker 5 (12:23):
I mean, the travel shows were hilarious because you guys, know,
when you travel, like the unexpected always happens.
Speaker 6 (12:28):
You know.
Speaker 5 (12:28):
There was this time where we were in Rome and
we were at a pits, like a you know, like
a rest stop literally on the side of the highway,
and Billy walks up to someone to ask this guy question.
Speaker 3 (12:37):
Speaks now English.
Speaker 5 (12:37):
The guy's eating a giant sub like he's just sitting there,
walking out of the rest up.
Speaker 3 (12:41):
Billy goes up to starts talking.
Speaker 5 (12:42):
The command does not even speak English or like maybe
a word here and there. He ends up taking the
cameras or obviously their hands up, taking the sandwich out
of the man's hands and literally starts.
Speaker 2 (12:51):
Eating damn it so good.
Speaker 3 (12:55):
Stock and he's like, oh my god, this is the
best time.
Speaker 5 (12:59):
He ate old bag and the guys they're like, who
is this guy?
Speaker 6 (13:05):
I took him inside and boughtom a fresh sandwich.
Speaker 8 (13:07):
Oh god, God, of course, yes, you're right, he's very generous. Yeah, yeah,
you know all that, like, does.
Speaker 6 (13:17):
He know who I am? You know who I am?
Speaker 2 (13:23):
Oh, we can't wait for that, you know what.
Speaker 3 (13:25):
I would say? It was my favorite. And you were
a part of this one.
Speaker 5 (13:27):
When Billy had a big birthday, you know, when he
turned forty a couple of years ago. Yes, we decided,
we decided to do a special birthday show for him.
So many of you guys know obviously all of you
know he grew up here. So we grew up in
East Cambridge. And so what we did was we took
the cameras to a lot of the different favorite spots,
and at each one of the favorite spots, someone from
his childhood or someone special to him was there.
Speaker 3 (13:50):
So his best friend from growing up was in one
of the.
Speaker 5 (13:52):
Places, his you know, other best friend was in another
place that they used to go to.
Speaker 3 (13:56):
I didn't know, but he didn't know, He had no idea.
Speaker 5 (13:58):
So Lisa was at another one, his wife Michelle was
at another one, his kids were at another one, and
so it was to me that was one of the
It took forever to plan, but it was. It was
one of the most special episodes I think we've done it.
Speaker 2 (14:13):
And you had no idea.
Speaker 3 (14:14):
I had no idea, no idea.
Speaker 4 (14:17):
Jenny and the crew blindfolded me once we set off
to do the episode, and I knew we were in Cambridge,
but once they blindfolded me, I didn't know where we
were going. We were crossing streets, cars were beeping horns,
and I couldn't see a thing.
Speaker 3 (14:31):
And it's very confused.
Speaker 6 (14:32):
All of a sudden, we're in Hong Kong restaurant in
the heart of Harvard Square.
Speaker 2 (14:37):
Yeah, it was Hong Kong.
Speaker 3 (14:39):
No John Campbell, Dookie we did at the pizza place.
Speaker 5 (14:43):
Yeah, right at the bottom kitchen something kitchen.
Speaker 6 (14:46):
Charlie's in Harvard Square.
Speaker 4 (14:48):
Yeah, because we were in high school, you know, right
after school you ran to Harvard Square and you just
hung out there for hours, and so there were a
lot of regular hangouts.
Speaker 6 (14:56):
So it was a great time.
Speaker 2 (14:57):
That Yeah, that was that was the best.
Speaker 1 (15:00):
Is there anything that you guys haven't done yet, or
you've wanted to do but it hasn't worked out, or
you're still thinking about, or something you've left on the table.
Speaker 5 (15:11):
Yeah, I mean kids, Like now that I've kids, and
now that you know, teaching my kids to cook, you
know how, like they want to crack the egg and
the egg just ends up all over.
Speaker 3 (15:20):
The character and you're like, Okay, here we go again.
Speaker 5 (15:23):
But I think there's something so awesome about teaching young
kids how to cook.
Speaker 3 (15:26):
So I think in some ways it would be nice.
Speaker 5 (15:28):
To be able to integrate a new generation into it.
I mean, that's something I think about from.
Speaker 3 (15:31):
Time to time.
Speaker 2 (15:31):
I think that'd be what do you think bel.
Speaker 6 (15:33):
TV a kid's show?
Speaker 3 (15:36):
You want to bring the girls on the show Girl?
Speaker 4 (15:39):
My TV bucket list is Portugal?
Speaker 3 (15:41):
All right?
Speaker 4 (15:42):
You know, we were supposed to do it back in
June and something came up.
Speaker 5 (15:45):
We couldn't do it, but we're supposed to do it
during COVID and then it's just since you know.
Speaker 1 (15:49):
So, yeah, what is your secret to your long standing
friendship and partnership on the air?
Speaker 2 (15:58):
What do you think or what's what's the secret here?
Speaker 6 (16:03):
Patience that comes to mind?
Speaker 1 (16:06):
I don't know, that's amazing.
Speaker 2 (16:10):
No, yeah, he does have a lot. He does a patient.
You're a saint in some ways.
Speaker 1 (16:15):
It's yeah, and then there's the and then yeah, and
then's justin and then there's like right, yeah, and then
there's the wash.
Speaker 2 (16:23):
Yeah, then it's the other building.
Speaker 6 (16:25):
Listen, you know what I'm talking about.
Speaker 3 (16:26):
Yeah, it's true. It's like it is, you know, it
becomes and you know this so well.
Speaker 5 (16:30):
It is one of the most important relationships of your life,
you know, like whole life. Like it's been twenty years
that we've been we've each been working with him, and
and we've obviously lived more than twenty years. But it
is so paramount and such a fixture in your everyday
thinking that you have.
Speaker 3 (16:47):
You know, like some days are hard, as we both well.
Speaker 5 (16:49):
Know, and then most of the days are just joyous
because you.
Speaker 6 (16:52):
Know, I'm sitting here.
Speaker 3 (16:56):
We can handle it. We can handle it.
Speaker 5 (16:57):
But no, I mean they are hard times, there are
good times. But I think there's loyalty there between both
of us. Like I would do anything for him, and
I know he would do anything for I have to say,
that's the number one loyalty. You you call Billy at
two o'clock in the morning, there he will be there
for you.
Speaker 2 (17:13):
And I think we've probably have done that, right Whinny.
I mean, it's true.
Speaker 9 (17:19):
I know, I'm getting around it.
Speaker 6 (17:25):
It's warming up everybody.
Speaker 9 (17:30):
It was Justine, justin I was just gonna say in
the back and hiding, and he's hiding.
Speaker 4 (17:35):
In the back, he's probably lifting weights back there or
some yeah, lifting couches.
Speaker 1 (17:41):
So I'm glad that we you know, we when he's here,
Justin's here.
Speaker 2 (17:46):
Justin and and producer Riley too.
Speaker 1 (17:57):
But now that we're all here, I want to ask
you guys, and you have to be honest, what is
your biggest restaurant pet? Peeve Jenny first, then Billy and
you have to be honest. Billy and Winning and Justin
know because we hear it all the time.
Speaker 3 (18:14):
What is yours?
Speaker 6 (18:17):
Well, there are a few what's that? Oh, that's a
first date thing? That's a first date. One of them
would be the whole water thing.
Speaker 9 (18:34):
I knew you were going to say that they're honest,
you know, all of a sudden, water is a course,
you know, like you know, they come up and you know,
you've had a tough week, you've had a tough day.
Speaker 4 (18:45):
Maybe a drink, a glass of wine, an appetizer, but
it's like what will you be having for water?
Speaker 6 (18:52):
I'm thinking, I don't know, something.
Speaker 4 (18:54):
Wet, like why is this? And then they disappear like
they're gone getting the water. So that would be mine.
Speaker 5 (19:02):
Well, okay, but I will say that what used to
be mine is no longer because I think one of
the important things this is gonna sound kind of cliche,
but one of the important things about this book for
us doing this was to be able to educate people
about some of the misconceptions about restaurants. Right, So some
people will say it takes a long time, you know,
why is there so much you know, space in between courses.
(19:24):
Why are there tables that aren't filled if I'm waiting
in line?
Speaker 4 (19:27):
You know?
Speaker 5 (19:27):
So those used to be some things that would get
to me, the timing, the you know that, all that
kind of stuff, and now I can't, like, I can't
possibly let it get to me because I have such
a deep appreciation understanding for.
Speaker 3 (19:39):
The chaos and the amount of work that goes into
making a meal.
Speaker 6 (19:44):
So it's a good point.
Speaker 5 (19:45):
And yeah, I think my my peeves have become a
lot less keevy in knowing what it takes to literally
do every piece of what these guys are doing on
a day to day, which, by.
Speaker 4 (19:56):
The way, is one of the key reasons we started
food television because we had such an appreciation for the
incredible hard work these people.
Speaker 6 (20:05):
The hours they put in.
Speaker 3 (20:06):
The margins are very small.
Speaker 6 (20:08):
The life savings.
Speaker 3 (20:09):
It's not a money maker, it's really not. Yeah, it's
a lifestyle.
Speaker 5 (20:13):
And they are doing this to serve us, like that
is literally what they do to come to work, to
do to serve us, and they love it.
Speaker 4 (20:20):
In fact, I always say to a buddy of ours
that's in the restaurant business opening a new restaurant, I'm like,
I'm really curious, like how do you do it? Like
the first morning you open the doors to your new restaurant,
how do you know anyone's coming?
Speaker 6 (20:36):
You know, like it's gonna be.
Speaker 5 (20:37):
So scarycific that comes in and makes them worried.
Speaker 2 (20:42):
All right, So getting back to the book, I again I.
Speaker 1 (20:45):
Read the book cover to cover up and there are
some really interesting tidbits about each chef in the book.
So I have just I'm just gonna mention these and
tell me if well Jenny will know, Okay, fun facts
about the chefs. What chef was People Magazine? What chef
(21:05):
did People Magazine name hottest bachelors in two thousand and two?
Speaker 3 (21:11):
Can Oranger?
Speaker 2 (21:12):
Can Oranger?
Speaker 1 (21:14):
He owns Uni Toro Copa faaaa did not know that and.
Speaker 3 (21:19):
His and his wife does not like when we say
that all the time.
Speaker 2 (21:23):
I love his wife so much. The lean So she
kind of laughed.
Speaker 3 (21:26):
And she's like, really, Jenny again, I have to talk
about this again.
Speaker 6 (21:28):
Andy. It's a new place with his daughter.
Speaker 3 (21:30):
Yes, he does Vervin Bakery. It's a gluten free bakery.
Did I say it right?
Speaker 5 (21:37):
Verven Verven Bakery? And it's amazing in Cambridge, all right.
Speaker 2 (21:41):
Another fun fact I learned. Two sisters are featured in
the book.
Speaker 1 (21:46):
They once owned a spa and salon in Redding twenty
seven years now.
Speaker 2 (21:53):
You want to hear this story.
Speaker 5 (21:54):
So they are the funniest two human beings you will
ever meet. One day Christine was, I mean, just it's
almost worth going to Eba, which is the restaurant. One day,
Christine was cutting someone's hair and the person in the
chair was telling her about how someone died in her family,
and she was completely like she'd been doing this for
so long. She was just like this, Oh, that's so wonderful,
(22:17):
completely not listening, and so she was like she She's
like at that moment, I threw up the scissors.
Speaker 3 (22:22):
I was like, we're done. I can't do that. Do
you know what she just told you.
Speaker 6 (22:27):
What did you think she said? You said, that's wonderful.
Speaker 5 (22:30):
The person died, right, Christine like fell on the ground
and was like, I'm so sorry.
Speaker 3 (22:34):
I'm clearly burnt out. It's over. Literally it was over.
And they opened a restaurant two years later.
Speaker 1 (22:38):
Great story, right, This is another one I think I
had read but was reminded in your buck. Ryan Reynolds
and Blake Lively fell in love in Boston.
Speaker 2 (22:52):
What restaurant you know?
Speaker 5 (22:56):
Oh yeah, oh yeah, oh yeah, so oh yeah, is
a very special shoal dining experience. It's like it's a
you know, it's kind of a very special occasion. It's
a little price, yes, but it's but it's but it's
been voted one of the best restaurants in the world
a couple of times by a couple of those different lists.
Speaker 3 (23:13):
And yes, they fell in love there. And you know,
the other one that's fun is the Tom.
Speaker 5 (23:16):
Brady's favorite bolonnais when he used to eat Bowlonni's not
sure that he does anymore.
Speaker 3 (23:21):
Was from Lamora.
Speaker 1 (23:23):
Oh interesting, Okay, what chef was a Hollywood stunt woman
before she got into the restaurant business.
Speaker 2 (23:33):
Oh did you stump me Asia may oh.
Speaker 3 (23:37):
Asia may A.
Speaker 2 (23:39):
Yeah she was yes.
Speaker 6 (23:41):
Oh, she's so much cooler now, like.
Speaker 2 (23:43):
So cool, and she's strong.
Speaker 3 (23:47):
Did he not write.
Speaker 1 (23:48):
The book.
Speaker 6 (23:52):
Word for word?
Speaker 4 (23:55):
I knew that I forgot.
Speaker 2 (23:58):
She looks very he's so strong.
Speaker 6 (24:01):
Okay, I thought it was going to be Karen A Kunowitz.
Speaker 3 (24:03):
But she could kick her but too.
Speaker 1 (24:05):
Yeah, most of these female chefs, all right, last one?
Who makes the best damned chicken and waffles in the city?
Speaker 3 (24:17):
Oh, oh, Jesus Santas.
Speaker 2 (24:20):
Have to It's Jason Santas.
Speaker 6 (24:22):
She has bright blue hair like blue leg buttermilk and bourbon.
Speaker 3 (24:26):
Yeah, and he's and.
Speaker 5 (24:26):
He's also got a restaurant Citrus and Salt, which is
another amazing one to check out.
Speaker 3 (24:30):
Citris and Salt and buttermilk and bourbon.
Speaker 4 (24:32):
Oh, I will say Brewers, Fork and Charles sound also great.
Speaker 6 (24:35):
Chicken and waffle. He may want me.
Speaker 3 (24:37):
He's like going against the stats of the book over there,
all right, the next book.
Speaker 2 (24:43):
I want you to finish this sentence.
Speaker 1 (24:45):
Best thing about Boston is.
Speaker 3 (24:50):
Is there one word? Or can I say a something?
Whatever you want?
Speaker 5 (24:52):
I mean, I would I would say hospitality. I would
say I would say that this industry is so.
Speaker 3 (24:58):
Loyal, so hospitality I would give all.
Speaker 2 (25:00):
Right, Billy. Best thing about Boston chefs.
Speaker 4 (25:02):
Is the camaraderie. I wanted to tell that story earlier.
I've never seen anything like it no matter where you
travel in America. I know there were some great restaurants,
some great culinary cities. But in Boston, the friendships, the camaraderie,
the support that the chefs and their staffs all give
each other, and they all work together at charity events.
Speaker 6 (25:22):
The camaraderie is second to nobody in the country.
Speaker 1 (25:24):
So there, I like Harry Matt, Billy, what is one
thing people wouldn't suspect about Jenny?
Speaker 3 (25:40):
Where do your store?
Speaker 6 (25:42):
Very good point? Oh god, I just had it too.
Oh okay.
Speaker 4 (25:48):
When I first met Jenny, she was the most aggressive
eater I've ever seen. And I site one example where
we still talk about it.
Speaker 6 (26:03):
We were in Mama Las.
Speaker 3 (26:05):
Yeah, it was a year ago, though.
Speaker 6 (26:08):
It's very memorable.
Speaker 4 (26:10):
She's she had five total breakfast dishes in front of
her and none of it was for me, Like, she
ate every one of them, and I'm like, oh.
Speaker 2 (26:20):
It's impressive.
Speaker 5 (26:22):
I have a voracious appetite and it doesn't always make
sense like it doesn't you know I eat a lot.
Speaker 3 (26:30):
I think it's because I think a lot, and so
I burn all these calories with all my thoughts. But yeah,
I have it.
Speaker 5 (26:35):
It's like I'm like a garbage disposal. I mean, what
what's funny about him saying that? Is what I was
gonna say. The thing that people don't know about him
is he eats.
Speaker 2 (26:44):
He well, he eats more. Now, Oh, he eats way more.
Speaker 5 (26:48):
Now we talked about this right when he Billy actually
eats more.
Speaker 2 (26:52):
Now, let me tell you.
Speaker 3 (26:53):
Talk about Billy Costa.
Speaker 7 (26:55):
This man is a closet of foodie who will let
no one know that he secretly loves food but wants
to get food with them.
Speaker 3 (27:01):
Well, if you don't get food, I won't get food.
Speaker 7 (27:03):
I'm like, just get the freaking.
Speaker 2 (27:04):
Food so that I order food.
Speaker 7 (27:06):
So he gets food because he needs to feel secure
in his food.
Speaker 6 (27:11):
Everybody is afraid to eat around me.
Speaker 2 (27:12):
Yes, again, yeah it's very odd, but he is who
he is.
Speaker 5 (27:16):
But Lisa, it's you're you're right, You're right in saying
it's completely different.
Speaker 2 (27:22):
Frien years ago it was not that, but like.
Speaker 5 (27:25):
Very recently, eating has become something that he enjoys much
more right.
Speaker 2 (27:28):
We don't have shrimp cocktail anymore more.
Speaker 6 (27:31):
Try the other day you want to split a shrimp cocktail.
Speaker 2 (27:34):
I was just out of respect.
Speaker 1 (27:37):
All right, last question, then we'll take a few from
the audience because we're coming up against the line here.
If you could go out to dinner with anyone, who
would you sit at your table? If you had a
table of four, who would you just sit with?
Speaker 3 (27:48):
Billy?
Speaker 4 (27:50):
Oh, oh uh, my wife, you and Jenny.
Speaker 6 (27:56):
There we go. We gotta foursome.
Speaker 2 (28:01):
Good Ever, I love that.
Speaker 5 (28:05):
I mean I was gonna say my girls, which is
so cliche, but yeah, my family. But I mean I'd
like to have a dinner with Billy Joel.
Speaker 3 (28:11):
That would be something I would like.
Speaker 2 (28:12):
Yeah, I like that.
Speaker 3 (28:13):
He's the king we have.
Speaker 1 (28:15):
Like we can take two questions anyone Michelin.
Speaker 5 (28:26):
Okay, So this is a this is an interesting one.
So the Michelin Stars are based on something that's actually
paid for. So there are services throughout the world where
organizations like me Boston or other trade organizations pay a
certain sum of money to Micheline. And it's not that
they pay to get those restaurants in it, but it's
(28:47):
that they pay to have Micheline presence, so it didn't
It wasn't always like that, but that's how it is now.
Obviously in Europe it's a very different story than the
United States or in the United States. A big sum
of money we're talking like to one hundred and fifty
thousand dollars is paid to this organization and then they
kind of come in and do things with it.
Speaker 3 (29:06):
So it's really unfortunate.
Speaker 5 (29:07):
But our city has decided it's not something we're forking
over money for.
Speaker 4 (29:11):
It's the same thing with the Sexiest Man Alive. Otherwise,
Justin from the Billy and Lisa Show would be sexiest
Man Alive.
Speaker 2 (29:20):
Every single year.
Speaker 3 (29:22):
All right.
Speaker 1 (29:22):
Coming up next week, we have Gregory Maguire from Wicked
Fame and his new book Elphie, which is the prequel.
Speaker 3 (29:30):
I just read it.
Speaker 2 (29:31):
It's amazing.
Speaker 1 (29:32):
He's joining me at Lisa's book Club at Joson, Maine
on May twenty first.
Hey, Welcome to Lisa's book Club, a podcast where I
interview best selling authors from the New England area, pulling
back the curtain on what it's really like being a
best selling author. They're guilty, pleasures, latest projects, and so
much more so. Last fall, Billy Coston Jenny Johnson from
Meet Boston launched a cookbook of their favorite Boston chefs,
(00:27):
and I sat down with them for Lisa's book Club.
Speaker 2 (00:29):
Have a listen. I actually prepared questions.
Speaker 3 (00:31):
I love them.
Speaker 1 (00:32):
So what does it feel like not to be the
one asking questions?
Speaker 4 (00:36):
It feels awesome to be to be on the other side.
Speaker 1 (00:40):
That's solebrating, right, yeah, And I could say anything I want.
Speaker 2 (00:44):
Oh boy, so, oh boy, Jenny, how.
Speaker 1 (00:48):
Did you get Billy Costa to agree to write a
cookbook like walk us through how It's happened?
Speaker 3 (00:55):
That was a big feat.
Speaker 5 (00:56):
But first I want to say, we know how much
all of you love this man right here there there.
There are no two people well maybe his wife but
there yes, But but there are no two people that
know more about this guy than.
Speaker 3 (01:10):
These two right here.
Speaker 2 (01:11):
So cheers.
Speaker 1 (01:12):
We have been sitting next to him for over twenty years,
literally collectively for I know every one of his outfits,
of the many that there.
Speaker 5 (01:22):
Are, I know every single one of his pillows.
Speaker 3 (01:24):
In dubets, like you know, just change around.
Speaker 4 (01:27):
And yes, but I gotta tell you, between my wife
and Jenny, I haven't made it a decision.
Speaker 6 (01:34):
You know, years, you know, and it feels great.
Speaker 2 (01:38):
You're a smart man, Yes, smart man.
Speaker 5 (01:41):
Very just laid down and said, I'll you let you
guys do it well.
Speaker 3 (01:44):
I mean, honestly, just like I think.
Speaker 5 (01:46):
You know, the way that you approach Billy with something
is very important, right, So I kind.
Speaker 3 (01:52):
Of did it nonchalantly.
Speaker 5 (01:53):
I said, hey, listen, I was thinking we were maybe
going to do an event to celebrate our twenty years.
But it just doesn't seem like that's enough. I said,
I want you to be able to have some kind
of legacy that you can hold in your hand to
commemorate what we've done together and what you've done on
television for more than twenty years. But we've done together
for twenty and it's a real opportunity to celebrate the
(02:14):
city that we love and the chefs that we love.
And he was I told, I said, it's not going
to take a lot of time. I'll do the majority
of the work and takes a lot of time, and.
Speaker 3 (02:24):
So I can imagine if he actually did all the.
Speaker 1 (02:28):
Work all right, But to your point, I have to say,
behind the scenes, Jenny, he would come into the office
in the morning and he would say, oh, I have
a shoot, you know, another photo shoot for the book.
Speaker 2 (02:38):
But he gave you huge.
Speaker 1 (02:39):
Props, he said, Jenny has done everything for this book.
So he definitely has your back. You guys have a
great partnership, you really really do.
Speaker 6 (02:49):
And you know what's really cool. I'm looking at my
son Chris over there. Wave your hand, that son christ
and he's here with his.
Speaker 4 (02:55):
Beautiful wife Hannah, And how cool is it. He's holding
two books that he bought to that he wants me
to look at that.
Speaker 2 (03:02):
He's a team player.
Speaker 1 (03:05):
So to talk about the book, I know a lot
of you have purchased them already. You guys had a
very famous person right the forward to the book. So
I want you to explain to everyone how that happened.
Speaker 4 (03:20):
Well, Jenny called me one day, and Jenny knows that
I have a long standing relationship with the New Kids
and with the Wahlberg family and with Mark and with
Donnie and Jenny had she not called me on this,
I wouldn't have crossed my mind.
Speaker 6 (03:34):
She said, Hey, why don't you call.
Speaker 4 (03:36):
Your buddy Mark Wahlberg, big time Hollywood star, and see
if he'll do the forward to the book. I don't
know if you've seen it yet, but he told the
very very nice story in the forward to the book.
And I got to tell you something. It's the kind
of people they are. I texted Mark one night, and
you knew at least and I call you.
Speaker 6 (03:55):
Within sixty seconds. He texted me back.
Speaker 4 (03:58):
He said, absolutely, whatever you need, I'm happy to do it.
Speaker 6 (04:01):
So now he's in the book.
Speaker 2 (04:02):
So very special.
Speaker 1 (04:05):
He's such a professional, and he absolutely adores you. I mean, you,
guys go way way, way back.
Speaker 5 (04:13):
And his brother is in the book, so Paul Wahlberg's
in there too. Yeah, and he's another incredibly genuine, incredibly
warm person. You can see his restaurants there in the
Hangham shipyard, and obviously Wahlberger is all over.
Speaker 3 (04:26):
But it's a really amazing family.
Speaker 1 (04:27):
They really are. So I read this book cover to cover.
I have to say you, guys, I've never read.
Speaker 3 (04:34):
A cookbook cover to cover.
Speaker 2 (04:36):
I am not a good cook, as Bill can attest him.
Speaker 1 (04:39):
So this was like, this was great, un Nerd, But
I have to say, so you feature sixty.
Speaker 2 (04:45):
Boston chefs and over your twenty years.
Speaker 1 (04:49):
So you guys started with TV Diner, then you went
to Dining Playbook, and now you've added a third Meet Boston, right,
So how was meat Boston can to this project?
Speaker 5 (05:01):
So Meet Boston is the organization that's responsible for bringing
tourism to the city of Boston, so for all of you,
but also for everyone in the rest of the country
and everyone in the rest of the world. So there's
actually different destination groups that come to say this is
why you should vacation in Boston, that's why you should
come here, this is what you should do when you
get here. So that organization knew that Billy and I
(05:22):
were connected within the hospitality industry and the lifestyle industry
of the region and of the city, and so they said,
let's come up with different ways to be able to
tell the story of Boston. And the culinary scene in
Boston is so important to.
Speaker 3 (05:35):
The vibrancy of the economy and just to.
Speaker 5 (05:37):
The overall flavor of this area. So we partnered together
and we were able to make it happen.
Speaker 1 (05:42):
So over the past twenty years, you have met probably
every chef, chef owner, you know, hospitality guru. How has
it changed over the last twenty years.
Speaker 6 (05:57):
Well, I got to tell you.
Speaker 4 (05:58):
When I started in Food TV, and then when you
and I teamed up in food television, the whole concept
of celebrity chefs was just kicking off, and everybody was
always trying to compare Boston to New York City to
Chicago in terms of the culinary scene, and they never
really gave Boston the credit it deserved. But then the
whole celebrity chef thing exploded in the city of Boston,
(06:21):
and we kept getting more and more fabulous chefs, fabulous restaurants,
and then we ended up, you know, developing friendships with
most of them and growing as we grew, they grew,
and as they grew, we grew, and and that's what
makes this book feel so good. And you'll read some
of the stories and the anecdotal stories that Jenny and
(06:41):
I have had in the past with these chefs, and
it really pulls the whole book together.
Speaker 6 (06:46):
It's really nice.
Speaker 3 (06:47):
One of the things that I love that I know
you'll appreciate. To Lisa is.
Speaker 5 (06:50):
Yes, Boston was a little late on the culinary map
in some ways. But what it has that a lot
of other cities don't is an enormous female chef group
of people and a very very very strong camaraderie among
all of them. And someone asked me, why, why do
you think so? And I believe this is certainly not
(07:11):
a fact, but I believe that it has a lot
to do with Julia Child. So Julia obviously was from here,
and so many of the chefs that she trained went
on to become unbelievable restaurant tours, like Lydia Shire, who's
actually the first.
Speaker 2 (07:23):
Chef, She's the first page of the book. Did you
do that on purpose?
Speaker 5 (07:28):
You know? I wanted someone who had so much brass
and presence, but I don't know what was necessarily on purpose?
Speaker 3 (07:34):
But she Jody Adams, you know, there's Joe Anne.
Speaker 5 (07:36):
She there's so many women that are in here that
she really, I think, cultivated something that made it so
the females could say, oh, I can do this in.
Speaker 3 (07:43):
A male dominating business, which is nice.
Speaker 1 (07:46):
But also I feel like, and I don't know if
you would agree. The Boston chef community, the hospitality community,
is so interconnected.
Speaker 2 (07:57):
They all help each other, they've all worked with.
Speaker 1 (07:59):
Each other, they're in different kitchens, and it's such an
interesting map with the roadmap of their careers. But the
biggest thing I got out of the book was how
much they give back to the community.
Speaker 7 (08:12):
Right.
Speaker 4 (08:13):
It's incredible how generous they are, how involved that they
are in the communities.
Speaker 6 (08:17):
I mean, you were talking about the female chefs.
Speaker 4 (08:19):
I think when it came to female chefs, Boston led
the country and just exploded. But yeah, but in terms
of the generosity, I mean, we just mentioned Paul Wahlberg.
I mean, I don't think he's ever said no to
anything ever, I mean, don't gallas and he'll bring dinner
for ten people to people's homes as long as it
raises a lot of money for a really solid cause
(08:41):
and a solid charity. I mean, imagine having a chef
like Paul Wahlberg with his whole staff coming into your home.
Speaker 6 (08:48):
For a holiday celebration.
Speaker 4 (08:49):
You don't lift a finger when the dinner's over, you
just go up to bed, they clean up, and it's.
Speaker 6 (08:54):
Well, you're trying.
Speaker 5 (08:55):
Like the hospitals, the nonprofits, like all of these philanthropies,
these chefs donate their time on a very busy night
where they're taken out of their own kitchens to come
support nonprofits. And you're totally right in saying there is
they are such a strong.
Speaker 3 (09:09):
Unit and they are so unbelievably generous.
Speaker 4 (09:11):
In fact, we recently just did a Whole Meat Boston
episode we did on nonprofits and well.
Speaker 1 (09:17):
You guys have this cute thing in the book called
the Side Dish right, which talks about a lot of
the charities that are also within the Boston area. Do
you want to mention a few of those.
Speaker 3 (09:30):
There's a lot of great ones.
Speaker 5 (09:31):
I mean, we did things like the Greater Boston Food Bank,
which is the largest food bank in New England and
a leader in you know, just the conversation around hunger.
There's one called Love and Spoonfuls, which is a food
rescue service.
Speaker 3 (09:44):
Unbelievable nonprofit.
Speaker 5 (09:45):
The Food Project really helps young kids get literally their
hands and feet and bodies into the ground and educate
them about where their food comes from. So, yeah, we
wanted to make sure because the nonprofits are a big
part of our life too. You know, we try to
fundraise for them as much as we possibly can. I mean,
I always say, no one em sees an event like
this guy in the world.
Speaker 3 (10:03):
I had the pleasure of like learning.
Speaker 5 (10:05):
From the very best, like the very very best that
could ever be. And he's you know, together we've raised
millions and millions and millions of dollars for these nonprofits
alongside these chefs.
Speaker 1 (10:19):
So let's talk about the recipes in the book, because
that's always a thing with cookbooks, right, you want it
to be easy. You want it so that the person
buying the book can make it. So how involved were
you guys in that sort of process?
Speaker 5 (10:35):
I mean, can you imagine how many hours he spent
you just you can't even.
Speaker 4 (10:40):
Well, I do remember you and I did make was
it cottage cheese pancakes.
Speaker 3 (10:45):
And they were very good.
Speaker 2 (10:48):
Made the other day.
Speaker 5 (10:49):
Oh and then we made the catchowe pepe the other
day with the chef.
Speaker 6 (10:51):
No met got your pepe? Yeah, but they.
Speaker 2 (10:54):
Really are they're easy to make, I know.
Speaker 3 (10:56):
I yeah, you're they're approachable.
Speaker 5 (10:58):
They're approachable enough, you know, and I think, but they
also make you work a little bit. It's a little
bit different than some of the things you'd be making
in the kitchen. And one of the things that was
important Lisa you asked about sort of like the how
of putting it together, the recipes. We wanted to show
the diversity of the neighborhoods within Boston. There's twenty three
neighborhoods in Boston, and there's a ton of different flavors
that are coming out of the city. We wanted to
(11:19):
make sure that you could taste all the flavors from
all around the worlds that are all offered in Boston.
Speaker 1 (11:25):
So I want to talk a little bit about you
guys working together on TV for twenty years. Do you
have any standout favorable moments, favorite show that you've done,
favorite shows.
Speaker 4 (11:40):
I know Jenny and I are think another same one,
but we can't talk about it. But I will say
and Jenny and I keep talking about it. We're going
to get back to it hopefully next year. But Jenny
and I have done a lot of traveling with dining
playbog We've done two shows in Italy, one in Sicily,
(12:02):
one in Rome in the Amalfi coast. Jenny, you did
a show in the south of France. You did a
show in Peru, and you actually cooked food in Machia
Picchu in the top of Mancha Picchu we've done Puerto Rico,
We've done New York City, we've done Bermuda, and we
want to get back to that. I know, those were
some of my favorite shows because we brought it all
back to Boston and what.
Speaker 2 (12:21):
About you, Jenny.
Speaker 5 (12:23):
I mean, the travel shows were hilarious because you guys, know,
when you travel, like the unexpected always happens.
Speaker 6 (12:28):
You know.
Speaker 5 (12:28):
There was this time where we were in Rome and
we were at a pits, like a you know, like
a rest stop literally on the side of the highway,
and Billy walks up to someone to ask this guy question.
Speaker 3 (12:37):
Speaks now English.
Speaker 5 (12:37):
The guy's eating a giant sub like he's just sitting there,
walking out of the rest up.
Speaker 3 (12:41):
Billy goes up to starts talking.
Speaker 5 (12:42):
The command does not even speak English or like maybe
a word here and there. He ends up taking the
cameras or obviously their hands up, taking the sandwich out
of the man's hands and literally starts.
Speaker 2 (12:51):
Eating damn it so good.
Speaker 3 (12:55):
Stock and he's like, oh my god, this is the
best time.
Speaker 5 (12:59):
He ate old bag and the guys they're like, who
is this guy?
Speaker 6 (13:05):
I took him inside and boughtom a fresh sandwich.
Speaker 8 (13:07):
Oh god, God, of course, yes, you're right, he's very generous. Yeah, yeah,
you know all that, like, does.
Speaker 6 (13:17):
He know who I am? You know who I am?
Speaker 2 (13:23):
Oh, we can't wait for that, you know what.
Speaker 3 (13:25):
I would say? It was my favorite. And you were
a part of this one.
Speaker 5 (13:27):
When Billy had a big birthday, you know, when he
turned forty a couple of years ago. Yes, we decided,
we decided to do a special birthday show for him.
So many of you guys know obviously all of you
know he grew up here. So we grew up in
East Cambridge. And so what we did was we took
the cameras to a lot of the different favorite spots,
and at each one of the favorite spots, someone from
his childhood or someone special to him was there.
Speaker 3 (13:50):
So his best friend from growing up was in one
of the.
Speaker 5 (13:52):
Places, his you know, other best friend was in another
place that they used to go to.
Speaker 3 (13:56):
I didn't know, but he didn't know, He had no idea.
Speaker 5 (13:58):
So Lisa was at another one, his wife Michelle was
at another one, his kids were at another one, and
so it was to me that was one of the
It took forever to plan, but it was. It was
one of the most special episodes I think we've done it.
Speaker 2 (14:13):
And you had no idea.
Speaker 3 (14:14):
I had no idea, no idea.
Speaker 4 (14:17):
Jenny and the crew blindfolded me once we set off
to do the episode, and I knew we were in Cambridge,
but once they blindfolded me, I didn't know where we
were going. We were crossing streets, cars were beeping horns,
and I couldn't see a thing.
Speaker 3 (14:31):
And it's very confused.
Speaker 6 (14:32):
All of a sudden, we're in Hong Kong restaurant in
the heart of Harvard Square.
Speaker 2 (14:37):
Yeah, it was Hong Kong.
Speaker 3 (14:39):
No John Campbell, Dookie we did at the pizza place.
Speaker 5 (14:43):
Yeah, right at the bottom kitchen something kitchen.
Speaker 6 (14:46):
Charlie's in Harvard Square.
Speaker 4 (14:48):
Yeah, because we were in high school, you know, right
after school you ran to Harvard Square and you just
hung out there for hours, and so there were a
lot of regular hangouts.
Speaker 6 (14:56):
So it was a great time.
Speaker 2 (14:57):
That Yeah, that was that was the best.
Speaker 1 (15:00):
Is there anything that you guys haven't done yet, or
you've wanted to do but it hasn't worked out, or
you're still thinking about, or something you've left on the table.
Speaker 5 (15:11):
Yeah, I mean kids, Like now that I've kids, and
now that you know, teaching my kids to cook, you
know how, like they want to crack the egg and
the egg just ends up all over.
Speaker 3 (15:20):
The character and you're like, Okay, here we go again.
Speaker 5 (15:23):
But I think there's something so awesome about teaching young
kids how to cook.
Speaker 3 (15:26):
So I think in some ways it would be nice.
Speaker 5 (15:28):
To be able to integrate a new generation into it.
I mean, that's something I think about from.
Speaker 3 (15:31):
Time to time.
Speaker 2 (15:31):
I think that'd be what do you think bel.
Speaker 6 (15:33):
TV a kid's show?
Speaker 3 (15:36):
You want to bring the girls on the show Girl?
Speaker 4 (15:39):
My TV bucket list is Portugal?
Speaker 3 (15:41):
All right?
Speaker 4 (15:42):
You know, we were supposed to do it back in
June and something came up.
Speaker 5 (15:45):
We couldn't do it, but we're supposed to do it
during COVID and then it's just since you know.
Speaker 1 (15:49):
So, yeah, what is your secret to your long standing
friendship and partnership on the air?
Speaker 2 (15:58):
What do you think or what's what's the secret here?
Speaker 6 (16:03):
Patience that comes to mind?
Speaker 1 (16:06):
I don't know, that's amazing.
Speaker 2 (16:10):
No, yeah, he does have a lot. He does a patient.
You're a saint in some ways.
Speaker 1 (16:15):
It's yeah, and then there's the and then yeah, and
then's justin and then there's like right, yeah, and then
there's the wash.
Speaker 2 (16:23):
Yeah, then it's the other building.
Speaker 6 (16:25):
Listen, you know what I'm talking about.
Speaker 3 (16:26):
Yeah, it's true. It's like it is, you know, it
becomes and you know this so well.
Speaker 5 (16:30):
It is one of the most important relationships of your life,
you know, like whole life. Like it's been twenty years
that we've been we've each been working with him, and
and we've obviously lived more than twenty years. But it
is so paramount and such a fixture in your everyday
thinking that you have.
Speaker 3 (16:47):
You know, like some days are hard, as we both well.
Speaker 5 (16:49):
Know, and then most of the days are just joyous
because you.
Speaker 6 (16:52):
Know, I'm sitting here.
Speaker 3 (16:56):
We can handle it. We can handle it.
Speaker 5 (16:57):
But no, I mean they are hard times, there are
good times. But I think there's loyalty there between both
of us. Like I would do anything for him, and
I know he would do anything for I have to say,
that's the number one loyalty. You you call Billy at
two o'clock in the morning, there he will be there
for you.
Speaker 2 (17:13):
And I think we've probably have done that, right Whinny.
I mean, it's true.
Speaker 9 (17:19):
I know, I'm getting around it.
Speaker 6 (17:25):
It's warming up everybody.
Speaker 9 (17:30):
It was Justine, justin I was just gonna say in
the back and hiding, and he's hiding.
Speaker 4 (17:35):
In the back, he's probably lifting weights back there or
some yeah, lifting couches.
Speaker 1 (17:41):
So I'm glad that we you know, we when he's here,
Justin's here.
Speaker 2 (17:46):
Justin and and producer Riley too.
Speaker 1 (17:57):
But now that we're all here, I want to ask
you guys, and you have to be honest, what is
your biggest restaurant pet? Peeve Jenny first, then Billy and
you have to be honest. Billy and Winning and Justin
know because we hear it all the time.
Speaker 3 (18:14):
What is yours?
Speaker 6 (18:17):
Well, there are a few what's that? Oh, that's a
first date thing? That's a first date. One of them
would be the whole water thing.
Speaker 9 (18:34):
I knew you were going to say that they're honest,
you know, all of a sudden, water is a course,
you know, like you know, they come up and you know,
you've had a tough week, you've had a tough day.
Speaker 4 (18:45):
Maybe a drink, a glass of wine, an appetizer, but
it's like what will you be having for water?
Speaker 6 (18:52):
I'm thinking, I don't know, something.
Speaker 4 (18:54):
Wet, like why is this? And then they disappear like
they're gone getting the water. So that would be mine.
Speaker 5 (19:02):
Well, okay, but I will say that what used to
be mine is no longer because I think one of
the important things this is gonna sound kind of cliche,
but one of the important things about this book for
us doing this was to be able to educate people
about some of the misconceptions about restaurants. Right, So some
people will say it takes a long time, you know,
why is there so much you know, space in between courses.
(19:24):
Why are there tables that aren't filled if I'm waiting
in line?
Speaker 4 (19:27):
You know?
Speaker 5 (19:27):
So those used to be some things that would get
to me, the timing, the you know that, all that
kind of stuff, and now I can't, like, I can't
possibly let it get to me because I have such
a deep appreciation understanding for.
Speaker 3 (19:39):
The chaos and the amount of work that goes into
making a meal.
Speaker 6 (19:44):
So it's a good point.
Speaker 5 (19:45):
And yeah, I think my my peeves have become a
lot less keevy in knowing what it takes to literally
do every piece of what these guys are doing on
a day to day, which, by.
Speaker 4 (19:56):
The way, is one of the key reasons we started
food television because we had such an appreciation for the
incredible hard work these people.
Speaker 6 (20:05):
The hours they put in.
Speaker 3 (20:06):
The margins are very small.
Speaker 6 (20:08):
The life savings.
Speaker 3 (20:09):
It's not a money maker, it's really not. Yeah, it's
a lifestyle.
Speaker 5 (20:13):
And they are doing this to serve us, like that
is literally what they do to come to work, to
do to serve us, and they love it.
Speaker 4 (20:20):
In fact, I always say to a buddy of ours
that's in the restaurant business opening a new restaurant, I'm like,
I'm really curious, like how do you do it? Like
the first morning you open the doors to your new restaurant,
how do you know anyone's coming?
Speaker 6 (20:36):
You know, like it's gonna be.
Speaker 5 (20:37):
So scarycific that comes in and makes them worried.
Speaker 2 (20:42):
All right, So getting back to the book, I again I.
Speaker 1 (20:45):
Read the book cover to cover up and there are
some really interesting tidbits about each chef in the book.
So I have just I'm just gonna mention these and
tell me if well Jenny will know, Okay, fun facts
about the chefs. What chef was People Magazine? What chef
(21:05):
did People Magazine name hottest bachelors in two thousand and two?
Speaker 3 (21:11):
Can Oranger?
Speaker 2 (21:12):
Can Oranger?
Speaker 1 (21:14):
He owns Uni Toro Copa faaaa did not know that and.
Speaker 3 (21:19):
His and his wife does not like when we say
that all the time.
Speaker 2 (21:23):
I love his wife so much. The lean So she
kind of laughed.
Speaker 3 (21:26):
And she's like, really, Jenny again, I have to talk
about this again.
Speaker 6 (21:28):
Andy. It's a new place with his daughter.
Speaker 3 (21:30):
Yes, he does Vervin Bakery. It's a gluten free bakery.
Did I say it right?
Speaker 5 (21:37):
Verven Verven Bakery? And it's amazing in Cambridge, all right.
Speaker 2 (21:41):
Another fun fact I learned. Two sisters are featured in
the book.
Speaker 1 (21:46):
They once owned a spa and salon in Redding twenty
seven years now.
Speaker 2 (21:53):
You want to hear this story.
Speaker 5 (21:54):
So they are the funniest two human beings you will
ever meet. One day Christine was, I mean, just it's
almost worth going to Eba, which is the restaurant. One day,
Christine was cutting someone's hair and the person in the
chair was telling her about how someone died in her family,
and she was completely like she'd been doing this for
so long. She was just like this, Oh, that's so wonderful,
(22:17):
completely not listening, and so she was like she She's
like at that moment, I threw up the scissors.
Speaker 3 (22:22):
I was like, we're done. I can't do that. Do
you know what she just told you.
Speaker 6 (22:27):
What did you think she said? You said, that's wonderful.
Speaker 5 (22:30):
The person died, right, Christine like fell on the ground
and was like, I'm so sorry.
Speaker 3 (22:34):
I'm clearly burnt out. It's over. Literally it was over.
And they opened a restaurant two years later.
Speaker 1 (22:38):
Great story, right, This is another one I think I
had read but was reminded in your buck. Ryan Reynolds
and Blake Lively fell in love in Boston.
Speaker 2 (22:52):
What restaurant you know?
Speaker 5 (22:56):
Oh yeah, oh yeah, oh yeah, so oh yeah, is
a very special shoal dining experience. It's like it's a
you know, it's kind of a very special occasion. It's
a little price, yes, but it's but it's but it's
been voted one of the best restaurants in the world
a couple of times by a couple of those different lists.
Speaker 3 (23:13):
And yes, they fell in love there. And you know,
the other one that's fun is the Tom.
Speaker 5 (23:16):
Brady's favorite bolonnais when he used to eat Bowlonni's not
sure that he does anymore.
Speaker 3 (23:21):
Was from Lamora.
Speaker 1 (23:23):
Oh interesting, Okay, what chef was a Hollywood stunt woman
before she got into the restaurant business.
Speaker 2 (23:33):
Oh did you stump me Asia may oh.
Speaker 3 (23:37):
Asia may A.
Speaker 2 (23:39):
Yeah she was yes.
Speaker 6 (23:41):
Oh, she's so much cooler now, like.
Speaker 2 (23:43):
So cool, and she's strong.
Speaker 3 (23:47):
Did he not write.
Speaker 1 (23:48):
The book.
Speaker 6 (23:52):
Word for word?
Speaker 4 (23:55):
I knew that I forgot.
Speaker 2 (23:58):
She looks very he's so strong.
Speaker 6 (24:01):
Okay, I thought it was going to be Karen A Kunowitz.
Speaker 3 (24:03):
But she could kick her but too.
Speaker 1 (24:05):
Yeah, most of these female chefs, all right, last one?
Who makes the best damned chicken and waffles in the city?
Speaker 3 (24:17):
Oh, oh, Jesus Santas.
Speaker 2 (24:20):
Have to It's Jason Santas.
Speaker 6 (24:22):
She has bright blue hair like blue leg buttermilk and bourbon.
Speaker 3 (24:26):
Yeah, and he's and.
Speaker 5 (24:26):
He's also got a restaurant Citrus and Salt, which is
another amazing one to check out.
Speaker 3 (24:30):
Citris and Salt and buttermilk and bourbon.
Speaker 4 (24:32):
Oh, I will say Brewers, Fork and Charles sound also great.
Speaker 6 (24:35):
Chicken and waffle. He may want me.
Speaker 3 (24:37):
He's like going against the stats of the book over there,
all right, the next book.
Speaker 2 (24:43):
I want you to finish this sentence.
Speaker 1 (24:45):
Best thing about Boston is.
Speaker 3 (24:50):
Is there one word? Or can I say a something?
Whatever you want?
Speaker 5 (24:52):
I mean, I would I would say hospitality. I would
say I would say that this industry is so.
Speaker 3 (24:58):
Loyal, so hospitality I would give all.
Speaker 2 (25:00):
Right, Billy. Best thing about Boston chefs.
Speaker 4 (25:02):
Is the camaraderie. I wanted to tell that story earlier.
I've never seen anything like it no matter where you
travel in America. I know there were some great restaurants,
some great culinary cities. But in Boston, the friendships, the camaraderie,
the support that the chefs and their staffs all give
each other, and they all work together at charity events.
Speaker 6 (25:22):
The camaraderie is second to nobody in the country.
Speaker 1 (25:24):
So there, I like Harry Matt, Billy, what is one
thing people wouldn't suspect about Jenny?
Speaker 3 (25:40):
Where do your store?
Speaker 6 (25:42):
Very good point? Oh god, I just had it too.
Oh okay.
Speaker 4 (25:48):
When I first met Jenny, she was the most aggressive
eater I've ever seen. And I site one example where
we still talk about it.
Speaker 6 (26:03):
We were in Mama Las.
Speaker 3 (26:05):
Yeah, it was a year ago, though.
Speaker 6 (26:08):
It's very memorable.
Speaker 4 (26:10):
She's she had five total breakfast dishes in front of
her and none of it was for me, Like, she
ate every one of them, and I'm like, oh.
Speaker 2 (26:20):
It's impressive.
Speaker 5 (26:22):
I have a voracious appetite and it doesn't always make
sense like it doesn't you know I eat a lot.
Speaker 3 (26:30):
I think it's because I think a lot, and so
I burn all these calories with all my thoughts. But yeah,
I have it.
Speaker 5 (26:35):
It's like I'm like a garbage disposal. I mean, what
what's funny about him saying that? Is what I was
gonna say. The thing that people don't know about him
is he eats.
Speaker 2 (26:44):
He well, he eats more. Now, Oh, he eats way more.
Speaker 5 (26:48):
Now we talked about this right when he Billy actually
eats more.
Speaker 2 (26:52):
Now, let me tell you.
Speaker 3 (26:53):
Talk about Billy Costa.
Speaker 7 (26:55):
This man is a closet of foodie who will let
no one know that he secretly loves food but wants
to get food with them.
Speaker 3 (27:01):
Well, if you don't get food, I won't get food.
Speaker 7 (27:03):
I'm like, just get the freaking.
Speaker 2 (27:04):
Food so that I order food.
Speaker 7 (27:06):
So he gets food because he needs to feel secure
in his food.
Speaker 6 (27:11):
Everybody is afraid to eat around me.
Speaker 2 (27:12):
Yes, again, yeah it's very odd, but he is who
he is.
Speaker 5 (27:16):
But Lisa, it's you're you're right, You're right in saying
it's completely different.
Speaker 2 (27:22):
Frien years ago it was not that, but like.
Speaker 5 (27:25):
Very recently, eating has become something that he enjoys much
more right.
Speaker 2 (27:28):
We don't have shrimp cocktail anymore more.
Speaker 6 (27:31):
Try the other day you want to split a shrimp cocktail.
Speaker 2 (27:34):
I was just out of respect.
Speaker 1 (27:37):
All right, last question, then we'll take a few from
the audience because we're coming up against the line here.
If you could go out to dinner with anyone, who
would you sit at your table? If you had a
table of four, who would you just sit with?
Speaker 3 (27:48):
Billy?
Speaker 4 (27:50):
Oh, oh uh, my wife, you and Jenny.
Speaker 6 (27:56):
There we go. We gotta foursome.
Speaker 2 (28:01):
Good Ever, I love that.
Speaker 5 (28:05):
I mean I was gonna say my girls, which is
so cliche, but yeah, my family. But I mean I'd
like to have a dinner with Billy Joel.
Speaker 3 (28:11):
That would be something I would like.
Speaker 2 (28:12):
Yeah, I like that.
Speaker 3 (28:13):
He's the king we have.
Speaker 1 (28:15):
Like we can take two questions anyone Michelin.
Speaker 5 (28:26):
Okay, So this is a this is an interesting one.
So the Michelin Stars are based on something that's actually
paid for. So there are services throughout the world where
organizations like me Boston or other trade organizations pay a
certain sum of money to Micheline. And it's not that
they pay to get those restaurants in it, but it's
(28:47):
that they pay to have Micheline presence, so it didn't
It wasn't always like that, but that's how it is now.
Obviously in Europe it's a very different story than the
United States or in the United States. A big sum
of money we're talking like to one hundred and fifty
thousand dollars is paid to this organization and then they
kind of come in and do things with it.
Speaker 3 (29:06):
So it's really unfortunate.
Speaker 5 (29:07):
But our city has decided it's not something we're forking
over money for.
Speaker 4 (29:11):
It's the same thing with the Sexiest Man Alive. Otherwise,
Justin from the Billy and Lisa Show would be sexiest
Man Alive.
Speaker 2 (29:20):
Every single year.
Speaker 3 (29:22):
All right.
Speaker 1 (29:22):
Coming up next week, we have Gregory Maguire from Wicked
Fame and his new book Elphie, which is the prequel.
Speaker 3 (29:30):
I just read it.
Speaker 2 (29:31):
It's amazing.
Speaker 1 (29:32):
He's joining me at Lisa's book Club at Joson, Maine
on May twenty first.
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