This week on Food Network Obsessed, host Jaymee Sire shares the foods she’s currently obsessed with before diving into a conversation with Food Network star, Robert Irvine. Robert is the host of Food Network’s Restaurant: Impossible and Dinner: Impossible, and talks about how his experience filming is a direct reflection of his lived experience. He talks about the extreme conditions that would actually make dinner impossible and how his passion for the military comes before his passion for food. Robert also shares memorable moments on Restaurant: Impossible that viewers haven’t seen, and why he keeps in touch with every person from the show. Finally, Robert talks about how he met his wife, Gail, while filming and how he wrangled a team of Food Network stars to coordinate a surprise wedding for her.
This week on Food Network Obsessed, host Jaymee Sire shares the foods she’s currently obsessed with before diving into a conversation with Food Network star, Robert Irvine. Robert is the host of Food Network’s Restaurant: Impossible and Dinner: Impossible, and talks about how his experience filming is a direct reflection of his lived experience. He talks about the extreme conditions that would actually make dinner impossible and how his passion for the military comes before his passion for food. Robert also shares memorable moments on Restaurant: Impossible that viewers haven’t seen, and why he keeps in touch with every person from the show. Finally, Robert talks about how he met his wife, Gail, while filming and how he wrangled a team of Food Network stars to coordinate a surprise wedding for her.
Find episode transcript here: https://food-network-obsessed.simplecast.com/episodes/robert-irvine-on-cooking-in-extreme-conditions-why-he-exercises-every-day
JAYMEE SIRE: Hello. Hello, and welcome to "Food Network Obsessed." This is the podcast, where we dish on all things Food Network, with your favorite Food Network stars. I'm your host, Jamie Steyer. And today, I am sitting down with a Food Network host that you all know and love. And he gives a lot of tough love. I'm talking about Robert Irvine.
And I'm so excited to talk to him because I vividly remember my dad coming to visit and watching, I think, it was a "Restaurant Impossible" marathon on Food Network. And my dad was so enthralled by it and so invested in these people's stories. So it's a really nice memory for me.
I did meet Robert briefly at a food festival, very many years ago. He would definitely not remember. But I can tell you that his arms are even bigger than they look on television in person. So I'm excited to talk to him about his fitness regimen as well.
But before I get to my chat with Robert, I want to talk to you guys about five foods that I'm really obsessed with right now. I don't know if anybody else does that. Maybe it's just me. I go through these phases, where I just get completely obsessed with certain foods or certain ingredients.
And usually, I stock up on whatever that thing is right before I get over it. And then I end up with a bunch of one thing. I feel like I do that with, like, canned tuna. But I'm going to share with you guys my list right now. Obviously, it will change over the next few weeks and months. So maybe, we can revisit this as well.
And I love to hear if you guys are obsessed with any of the same things or perhaps just different things that you guys are obsessed with right now. Of course, you can always use the hashtag #FoodNetworkObsessed and tag Food Network. Tag me, so I can see it. I love to have these conversations and repost them in my story or on Twitter as well.
All right, so my five things that I'm super obsessed with right now. Number one is fish sauce. I think it adds such a unique flavor, this umami that you really can't get from anything else. So obviously, I use it in all of the traditional Asian dishes that would call for it, but I also like using it in unexpected ways.
I make a homemade Caesar dressing sometimes, and I'll use that instead of anchovies. And mostly because I generally don't have anchovies on hand. And I think the fish sauce mimics that, but also doesn't have quite the punch that the anchovies have, which I like. I mean, some people would disagree with me on that.
I also used it for a salsa verde, which, traditionally, calls for anchovies as well. So things like that. I love using that, and it just adds like a unique flavor that you really can't get anywhere else. Along those same lines, I love Kewpie mayo. If you've never had it, it's like a Japanese mayo.
I find it at Japanese markets. I've also seen in other places as well. But it's just slightly different than regular mayonnaise. I like it better. And I use it in things like tuna salad, my deviled eggs. I mean, honestly, anything that would call for mayonnaise, I would just sub that out. Kewpie for life.
A really random thing that I'm obsessed with right now is microgreens. And I just thought that they were so beautiful in the sandwich that I made, and then I just started putting them on everything. Like, threw them in some salads and use them as a garnish on some poached fish. I don't know. They add a nice little flavor and also a little pop of color. So I'm all about them.
Another thing that I'm obsessed with right now is Darryl Lee licorice, not exactly sure if I'm saying it right. It's an Australian licorice. So all my Aussie fans out there, let me know if I said it right. But apparently, there's a bunch of different brands of Australian licorice. I didn't know this until recently.
This is the one that we've homed in on. And now, we order them from Amazon. The ones we get have, I think, it's strawberry mango and green apple. I don't know. They're just really good, and I love them. And then the last thing is Calabrian chilis. This is one that I've been obsessed with for a while, so I don't think this one is going anywhere, anytime soon.
It's probably due to the fact that I've been listening and hanging out with Bobby Flay for too many years. I'm just kidding. Love you, Bobby. But I do love them. I can understand why he puts them in everything. They're delicious. They add some really nice spice and flavor.
So those are my five things. Let me know if you guys have similar or different ones. And speaking of Bobby Flay and Calabrian chilies, I don't know if you guys had a chance to watch last night's episode, a brand new episode of "Beat Bobby Flay," featuring yours truly, as one of the guest co-hosts, along with Michael Vultaggio.
And it was so much fun. We actually taped that episode back in fall of 2019. So they have a lot of episodes ready to go that have been recorded quite a while ago. So it was fun to take that trip down memory lane and remember that episode. And always have so much fun on that show, always thankful to Bobby and Rock Shrimp for having me on.
So I'm not going to do any spoilers. I know, maybe, people haven't had a chance to catch up and watch it, but we'd love to hear what you think about that episode. But in the meantime, let's get to today's episode on the podcast. We have a world class chef, entrepreneur, and hands down the most muscular person on Food Network. You know him best as the host of both, "Restaurant Impossible" and "Dinner Impossible." Friends, it's Robert Irvine.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
Robert, welcome to the pod, again, a second time. Thanks for joining us.
ROBERT IRVINE: Listen, if you can't get the technology right, I mean, just let me know, and I'll help you. I'm kidding. Hi. Thanks.
JAYMEE SIRE: Yeah. No, I just have to call myself out and set the scene for everybody because we were actually scheduled to interview you yesterday. And right as Robert sits down, my internet goes out, and I reboot my computer. And then my computer decides to update, literally, every Adobe program, all at the same time.
So I could have actually used your tactical problem solving skills. Well, speaking of which, you have two impossible shows on Food Network right now. And I want to talk first about "Dinner Impossible" because this is back after a long hiatus. What does it feel like to be back doing "Dinner Impossible?"
ROBERT IRVINE: We started "Dinner Impossible" 14 years ago, went on hiatus 11 years ago. And last night, through thundering applause across all social media networks, it was weird, in a way, because that was my first television show, period.
And that's where I met my wife. So it was a double whammy for me. But amazing to be back and to see-- you know, I think, 14 years ago, it was a cult following, right? People didn't know it, but it was on the cusp. And it was the first show on Food Network, which was really action.
And then they teach you how to cook, then went to "cooking channel," quote, unquote, and all the adventurous stuff came to Food Network many years ago. So it was weird to start it again because I'm 11 years older, and things I would do then we're still doing, but they hurt a little bit more.
JAYMEE SIRE: Well, it seems like such a great fit for you. Because you're essentially combining military and culinary experience. It's basically, if "Man Versus Wild," I think, and "Iron Chef" had a baby, it would be this show.
ROBERT IRVINE: So it's basically, the whole show "Dinner Impossible," which actually started out-- and I don't think this-- but it was actually called "Fit for a King," and it was a license plate on my black BMW. And I used to get the mission originally in the console, in the front, and said, Robert, your mission today-- just like James Bond. And it was really cool.
I know it's not any cool now because it is. But I would say, the simple answer to your question is, hey, listen, I get given a challenge. I know nothing about the challenge. I have no food, no equipment, except my knives. I have two helpers, two chefs that are my chefs, and a series of hours, a number of hours to complete the task and get it done the best I can possibly do.
The most we've cooked for in the old season was 6,000 in 17 hours and be having to move it 3 miles from where I cooked it and serve the first 1,000 at a certain time, and four hours later, the other 5,000. And I got to tell you, it's not for the faint hearted, for sure.
JAYMEE SIRE: So you literally get dropped in a location, and you have to make it work. And you have no idea the situation, where you're going to be, any of that, until like the second that they drop you there?
ROBERT IRVINE: When I wrote this show, and this is-- and I wrote it recently because it was based on a year of my life, what I would do in aircraft carriers, with the White House, and all the other things I was doing back then. And I never knew what I was going to do until I got there.
So I didn't want to change that. Just like "Restaurant Impossible." I don't know the owners. I don't know the stories. Because I want you to really understand what I actually go through and take that journey with me. And it's much-- technology has become so amazing now.
When you see a camera shot of where we were, for example, in Hawaii, you're seeing it like a cinematographer would see it shooting it. And you're literally there on my shoulder, taking the whole journey with me. So it's become a lot more real than it was many years ago, 11 years ago, when we stopped. So yeah, it's intense.
JAYMEE SIRE: It certainly is. I can't personally imagine being put into a situation like that. I am pretty much a planner. I need to have my ingredients ready, everything mapped out. How do you prepare with such limited information? And what's your strategy going in?
ROBERT IRVINE: I don't have a strategy. And I'll tell you for why. Just like the military, one thing that has allowed me to be good at doing what I do is the training I had when I was in the military-- adaptability, not forming a plan because it changes so frequently, the terrain, the weather.
When I know that we're doing a "Dinner Impossible," and we go to the hotel-- And again, I don't know. I get a call, pick me up at whatever time in the morning. They take me to location. Somebody I don't know gives me a mission. And it's then I start to think, what am I going to do? How do I get food?
Is the food there? What equipment do we have? How many hours? Where's the nearest store, if I'm allowed to use a store. What are the weather conditions? We've done ice hotels in Quebec City at minus 30 degrees, where, literally, you take a tomato. And in five minutes in that, it literally crystallizes. And I've never had those things before.
So it really is adapting in the moment pretty much like we've done last year with COVID, right? You've got to pivot and change, and that's the only thing we know how to do. And that's the show. I don't know how David or George, the other guys, or, in this case, Darryl or Shane, I don't know what they're going to do until something comes out their mouths.
I'm going to direct them to tell them what I want. But if I'm not clear in giving what I want from them, instead of getting diced something, I get shredded something. And then, I go nuts. And then, it's my fault because I wasn't clear enough with them.
So I'm intense. I start to think of what we could do. And then, again, where am I getting food from? How many people are we feeding? What are this time limit? What do we have to cook on, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera, all of those things go through your mind.
JAYMEE SIRE: I mean, the challenges are certainly difficult, but these locations you're talking about are really amazing. Do you have a favorite filming location, either from this run or previous?
ROBERT IRVINE: Jesus, no. They're all so-- here's the thing, I travelled the world 345 days a year. I've done for the last 12 years. I go to military bases, where you don't even know we have military bases. I was in Greenland a couple of months ago, about 700 miles from the North Pole, our furthest most base, where, literally, you can't go outside.
We have 400 personnel up there. You can't go outside without special clothing because it's so cold. Everything falls off. It literally freezes. So I'm used to-- I hate the cold, by the way. If anybody knows me, they know I hate the cold. But it's the challenge-- it's really the challenge against me, personally.
And then, there's the producers who are trying to mess me up. And then, the terrain and everything else that goes with it. So I don't have a favorite place. I love to cook for anybody in the military. That's my passion. Food is not my number one passion. The military is. And the food is the vehicle that allows me to do what I love, which is be amongst people.
JAYMEE SIRE: Is there a location that they could possibly select that really, truly would make "Dinner Impossible?"
ROBERT IRVINE: Yeah, anywhere that reacts, that takes moisture, extreme heat, extreme cold, deserts. And by the way, I've been to all these places, not necessarily haven't cooked in most of the places. But yeah, I don't know what. Our world is so fragile that no matter where you go on a given day, it could be 126 degrees or it could be minus 30 degrees.
There's not much of a swing. So do we have equipment? And again, these are all the questions I ask myself when I walk up, and somebody says, hey, Robert, today, you're going to do this. And I'm like, OK. I don't even hear them after that point. My brain starts to kick in and say, OK, what do I need to do that? How am I going to achieve that?
JAYMEE SIRE: Well, I want to talk a little bit about your wife and how you met because you alluded to this at the beginning of this interview. You met your wife, Gail, on the show. She is a professional wrestler. Give us the story of how you two met and fell in love.
ROBERT IRVINE: Wow. I'm going to give you the real version?
JAYMEE SIRE: Yes, please.
ROBERT IRVINE: It's funny because Gail was with WWE at that time. She was a Hall of Fame wrestler. I had no clue about wrestling. It wasn't my thing. It never has been until I met Gail. And I went into the Staples Center and got given the mission by Stephanie McMahon and Big Show, who, literally, put his hand on my neck, and his hands literally went around my neck. He's that big.
When we were in the middle of the mission, which was create food that pertained to somebody's move, like finishing move, which means when you knock somebody out, this is what they do. One was, he used to spit green liquid in your face and all these other things.
But there was a piece in a show-- and Miz was being really silly. And Santino Marello, I asked him to crack eggs. And he started cracking eggs with his elbow, which, to me, was ridiculous. And then, they said, oh, we're going to bring this girl in, and it was Gail.
And I said, no, I'm not ready for anybody else to come in because I'm still trying to figure out what we're doing. And I screamed, no. I don't want to. And at that point, she's like, oh. She came in a little bit later, and we were very close. I mean, literally, very close. And I was teaching her how to cut a piece of iceberg lettuce or a lettuce cup. I can't remember what lettuce it was, at the time.
And she literally was-- there was no personal space at all. Fast forward, we finished the episode. And I was going to be interviewed with WWE. And as they came down the ramp to be interviewed by them, she was getting ready to leave for Las Vegas from LA, and I managed to sneak a kiss on the cheek. And I said, tada. And we conversed for six weeks.
And then, one day, I get a text. I'm working in Wilkes-Barre outside Philadelphia. And I said, oh, great. Get me a ticket. I'll come and watch. Well, she did. And I was really excited. I get to see Gail wrestle. She put me in a nosebleed section. She was like the pin of a-- the head of a pin. I couldn't see anything.
So we drive in the New York City, and she told me the whole story of how she got added to this show. It wasn't supposed to be Gail on this show. It was another girl who got sick the day before. And she was added. But she broke into her boss' computer or was reading her boss's computer about "Dinner Impossible" and said, well, why am I not on that show?
I'm the one that cooks. I'm the Food Network fan. I'm all that. And he said, oh, let me see if I can get you added, and the girl got sick. And here it is, and here we are now, 12 years, 13 years later, married, and that's the history.
JAYMEE SIRE: I love it. And I heard that you planned the entire wedding aside from Gail choosing her dress. Is it fair to say you were the one that wanted the fairytale wedding, and she didn't care as much about that?
ROBERT IRVINE: She didn't. She didn't care, but I wanted to give her the fairytale wedding because I'm-- people say to me, oh, you're so intense. You're mean. You're tough, all those adjectives. But I really love chick flicks and girly stuff. It's me that when we bought the house and designed the house and the garden, and I take care of all of that because it's my thing.
And yeah, I'm very particular. But she was, like, yeah, just-- we go to the registry office. I'm like, no, I don't think so. So yeah, I had the horse and carriage. All I said to her was, go and get your dress, and leave everything else to me. And I planned. I was the bridezilla.
JAYMEE SIRE: I mean, who had to deal with your bridezilla tendencies?
ROBERT IRVINE: Everybody-- the florist, Michael Chiarello, Morimoto guy. That's so funny because Food Network, they wanted to film the show. But then, they didn't want to film the show. And then, I said, guys, I'm not waiting for you. I'm moving. We're getting married in three months, and that was February. We got married in May, the 10th. And I hadn't even found a place to go then.
I'd done a dinner with Mondavi at my restaurant, and we seem to have wrestlers and Food Network folks. Wrestlers are not foodies. They eat anything. And it's a weird mix, but I took Gail-- I was filming with Guy, actually, and we took Gail to see the venue. She fell in love with it, and we end up getting married there. And yeah, it was one heck of a party.
JAYMEE SIRE: It sounds like it. I mean, you mentioned some of these Food Network stars. They were actually, like, helping and cooking at the wedding? Is that right?
ROBERT IRVINE: Not helping. I literally had Michael Chiarello do entree. I had Morimoto bring a whole squid. It was some of the best sushi I've ever seen in my life, Guy did my rehearsal dinner. And those of you know that I am very close with the Guy. Is he a good chef? No, not really. Kidding. He can cook.
He did an amazing rehearsal dinner and was my best man at my wedding. And then, Gail surprised me by bringing my sister from Scotland-- totally shocked to that. It was just, when you have people that care about food, and they care about you, and you really enjoy them people, it just makes for a good time.
JAYMEE SIRE: Actually, this is a fun fact. I don't know if you know this, that your wedding and honeymoon albums still rank among the most popular content on foodnetwork.com of all time, all these years later. The fans love it. Were you aware of that?
ROBERT IRVINE: I knew it was the number one for a long time. And I mean, we've been nine years. We've been married 13 years. So I thought it fizzled. We've had a lot more things happen in the world than Robert getting married. So I would imagine we've been knocked off.
JAYMEE SIRE: So one last question about you and Gail. Who's winning in an arm wrestling contest?
ROBERT IRVINE: She would always win. It's not about strength. It's about being smart.
JAYMEE SIRE: That's true.
ROBERT IRVINE: You just have to go with the flow, and you, oh, yeah, of course, you beat me.
JAYMEE SIRE: Smart man. I could have talked to Robert all day about Gail and their wedding, but he has another show on Food Network. And we're going to talk all about that coming up next. Let's switch gears to "Restaurant Impossible" because you're facing a challenge here in a completely different way with a lot more emotion involved. You're coming to the aid of failing restaurants with two days, $10,000 a lot of tough love, trying to get them to bounce back. How real are the situations on the show, the drama on the show that we see unfolding?
ROBERT IRVINE: The "Restaurant Impossible" was written four years before it actually came out. I literally wrote the show. I have it in my safe, put it into an envelope, sent it to the Writers Guild, registered it with the Writers Guild, and then it came back. And I have it still sealed, which is interesting. Because people say to me, oh, you just copy Gordon Ramsay's show. And I said, no. Actually, he copied mine because I have it dated and stamped and timed.
"Restaurant Impossible" started because I would get-- every Sunday, I would get emails from people asking for help before the show started. I wrote the show. It was originally a 22-minute show, not a 42-minute show. And it was really about not people. It was about places and things. And the first episode in New Jersey turned into people. And it took its own spin at Valerius in New Jersey.
And from that point forward, here we are. We're now in season 18 and still going strong. You ask a question of how real it is, and I go back to what I said to you before about "Dinner Impossible." I choose not to know the restaurant or the people's story because I really want it to be my emotions, my reactions as it actually happens.
Because they're much more intense, believable, whichever way you want to put it, when you're hearing it the first time. You can't replay things. You get one shot at it. So the producers and all the people that pick these places, they know the stories. Although, it's funny. When I get there, the story change. So what they've told producers, normally, about their family, their back up, their money, and all the things, it's a lot worse.
Because I really do, in the first eight hours and 1 minute, they hate me, literally, with a capital H. Because I'm very intense, and I just need the information to be able to formulate a plan. When I drive up to the location, I'm literally scanning the place to see what's around it, what type of restaurant, what type of residential business, et cetera, and how are we going to make this place work.
If it's not worked for eight years, and you've made no money, but you're expecting the miracle guy-- me-- to walk in and change that with a fairy godmother stick or wand, it doesn't happen like that. You failed for a reason. I have to get to the bottom of that reason. Is it food? Is it an ambiance? Is it leadership? What is it?
And all the stories are real with a capital R, seriously. And a lot of them are heartbreaking. A veteran of 22 years in the military, had post-traumatic stress-- my foundation got involved-- and literally, he started yesterday in Massachusetts, getting help with two week intense course that we pay for. I paid for that.
And the viewers don't know that because I don't need them to know that. There are lots of things that I find out about. The viewer will never know, and we fix. And by fix, I mean, get them help and make sure that whatever it is that we can do to make their life better from that point, it happens. It's very emotional.
I would never have said to you 13, 14, however many years ago, we've been doing this show-- I cannot remember-- that I would get affected by it. And I was affected by a show that I did with a young man named LJ. He was 12 years old at the time. He's passed away since. And I think you see me break down because my daughter Anelise was at the show.
And I paid for the mortgage because they were literally being kicked out of their house as we were giving the good news of the restaurant being finished. And she just gave me an envelope just before we were filming me and said, hey, here. And I'm like, what is this? It was an eviction notice. I called Mark Summers, and I said, listen, I need 10 grand from you. I'm going to give 10 grand. Don't ask questions. Just say yes. True story.
We paid off their mortgage payment that was owed six months to give them time to get on their feet. They sold the restaurant, but LJ walked into that restaurant. And I'd asked Tom Berry to find me a picture to put on the wall because the service station needed something, and it was a last minute.
But it had to go with the colors that we'd redone the room with the restaurant. He put a picture up. There was no curtain on the service station, so everybody could see it. LJ literally came in a wheelchair, jumped out the wheelchair, when he saw the picture.
Little did I know that it was a picture that he painted at a Make-A-Wish foundation gathering, and I lost it. It was-- and I still-- In my life show that we travel the globe with, there's a piece of LJ in there. He passed away three years ago. And every time I talk or I look at this, I always lose it in the show. He's real. They're real. I'm real. They're emotional those stories.
JAYMEE SIRE: I mean, I'm getting emotional just listening to you talk about it. And you can hear in your voice how much these stories mean to you. How much are you-- how much are you keeping up with all of these different people and stories that you've helped on the show?
ROBERT IRVINE: So I keep in touch-- this will shock you. I keep in touch with everybody we've ever done a show with.
JAYMEE SIRE: Really?
ROBERT IRVINE: Mhm. Yeah, I have a rule. I talk to six of those folks every week, and I just keep going until I-- in fact, just before I get on this, Lou Perello, I was just talking to him. And we did his restaurant, I think, four years ago and then went to revisit-- to reopen back in business. I talked to these folks all the time.
And the reason I do that is not only because they've really made a personal connection with me, but also because, when I do the shows that I knew, I want somebody who's been through it to talk to the new "Restaurant Impossible" family members. And that's what they are. They're big family. We are a big family.
And I utilize them. Last night, yesterday, Denny Thornatory come up from Orlando to feed our crew, and we did his restaurant. He was one of the ambush-- one of the ambush shows that we did, and he fed the crew yesterday. He's gone on to not only pay his debt, also open a star next to it. Again, because they just do an amazing thing. And if you listen, you can be successful. It's only when they go back to their old habits that they fail.
JAYMEE SIRE: I want to ask you about the ambush style because that was like an early part of the show, where they didn't even know you were coming. You just show up, and you're ready to fix things up. How did that go? And how did it change to what we see now?
ROBERT IRVINE: So that was really season 11, 12, 13, where we literally just show up, and it was a convoy. We had an RV with all the sound equipment in it. Tom, with the trucks and the generators and all these things. And it was so difficult to do it because if I needed to change electrical work or I needed to take out a wall, which I did numerous times, I got in trouble for it because we need planning permission, or we need this, or we need this.
It was a good thing. People had no idea. And Denny was one of them. I showed up, and he couldn't stop swearing. He was like, bleep, bleep. I mean, it was like 30 minutes of bleeping. It was great. But I felt that I really didn't have enough time with them because it was so rushed. And remember, when I ambushed somebody, and they say, well, I don't want you to do it today, I'm like, no, we're doing it now.
And they're like, well, I'm not ready. I'm not-- this is your chance. So I would have to wait. The initial shock of Robert Irvine's here, then they would contemplate, do they want it done today? And there is no tomorrow. If you're not doing it today, we're out of here because I got to create a show.
And there was one we did-- and I can't remember the name of it off the top of my head right now, but she thought until 4 o'clock in the afternoon of day one to decide because it was disgusting. It was filthy. It was roach-infested, the whole nine yards, and she didn't want to be shown on TV.
I said, hey, this is it. It's happening. And she literally thought until 4 o'clock in the afternoon, which put us behind. And before we opened, a car had hit the main electrical wire. And we almost didn't open. So the show has a life of its own, and the personalities just keep coming.
JAYMEE SIRE: Well, little did we know, this past year, every food establishment would essentially be facing circumstances fit for an episode of this show. What have you seen in the restaurant industry and any words of wisdom for some struggling restaurants that might be listening out there?
ROBERT IRVINE: Well, you know that we've seen it all. Literally, we were filming revisit in State College, Pennsylvania when we had a shut down. I was getting emails. And I mean, 3,000 plus emails of help. What do we do? And I called Courtney White, and said, hey, we need to be doing something. They need help.
Courtney is an angel to me. She really is. She's my boss, but she's also an angel in disguise because she allowed, with all the COVID protocols and all that. We had two buses, six people on each bus. And I called the folks and said, hey, listen, I'm doing this. Do you want to be part of it or you're scared?
And I could understand if they said no. They got 12 people, and we got six on each bus. And we started going to the "Restaurant Impossible" family members that were closed in the different states to help them put protocols and systems in place to the customer or the consumer. Confidence was coming back, and they would come to the carryout, or takeout, or curbside, et cetera, et cetera.
So from the July 4th weekend, all the way up until Christmas, December the 21st, I think, it was, I think we did 39 shows. And again, all of us working with that while doing that with the NIH, CDC, and National Restaurant Association. I came up with a product called Virus Safe Pro, which was an app, that we could literally put consumer confidence back into people.
It was taken by the National Restaurant Association as part of their-- I sold it to them and gave the money to charity. And yeah, and that's how we started. But there's one thing I-- and this sounds sucky up a little bit, but I'm going to tell you the truth. I think Food Network led the way. We were the first out helping people.
And that's why it's called the Food Network. That's why we have so many loyal fans because they know what we do, and they know what Food Network stands for. I was very proud when Courtney said, hey, listen, you want to do it? We're going to back you. Let's do it. Let's make sure we can be as safe as possible, and I just hope we can get volunteers back at some point because it's hard.
We got camera guys cleaning floors. We've got some guys cleaning toilet. I mean, it's just unbelievable the team that I have. I'm the face of that team because I'm on TV, but it's the team behind the scenes that went out on those buses and still doing it now that have made what I call America reopen.
JAYMEE SIRE: You've hit all of it. I think Food Network is so in touch with the fans, with the restaurant industry, as are you. And pivoting off of that, you really are in touch with the people that you've helped as we've heard you talk about and also with your fans. You're very active on Twitter and in social media, in general. Why is it so important to you to take that time to respond and connect with the people, who, not only are impacted by your shows, but just watch your shows?
ROBERT IRVINE: It's funny. You'll know it's me because there's no full stops. There's no punctuation. It's 140 characters of one word, the sentence, and you've got to read it and figure it out. And that's why people know it's me. It's funny because if there's ever a tweet or something on social media that's punctuated, they know it's not me.
So yeah, I'm very in tune with that because I believe, when you reach out to somebody-- I answer all my own Twitter, period. Because I believe the connection you have, and you've seen that. I do live tweeting every week, and we give away $3,000 to $5,000 in food gift cards, and protein bars, and all those other things.
But it's a connection that I have and I know everybody I talk to on that social media platform. I know everyone. I know the kids. I know the-- and it also gives us an advantage, I think. So we have a little girl who-- she's 18 years old, who has angel syndrome. She pledged to walk 1,000 miles-- and can't walk or very little-- for another charity, 1,000 miles in 2021. And we started support her through that.
Autism is the month of April, and I have hundreds of autistic families that watch this show. And they tell me every week how much of a difference it makes to their family. And when you read these things-- and it sounds like I'm a real-- I'm going to cry in a minute because I get that emotional with these folks. Because I know their stories.
When they've got no food yet, they'll go and buy a protein bar because it gives somebody else money. And we've done a thousand things like that. And that's why it's so important to me to stay connected to the people that watch our shows. We are one of the best teams on the planet for keeping in touch with our viewers.
And through them, telling us, we can communicate with the network, we can communicate with folks of what they need, what they think they need. Actually, this last year has been so horrific with job losses, and no money, and kids staying at home and have to be taught. We have a whole new respect for garbage man, shop tenants filling shelves, doctors, nurses, firefighters.
We have a whole new respect of those people that did something and still do something throughout this year of a pandemic. Food Network was that light, that guiding light of giving you something positive to watch when everybody was feeling down. And that's why I'm so proud to be part of it, and that's not a suck up. That's just reality.
We've watched people in the darkest days come out. And I said this earlier on when I was on a telecast this morning. There's a friend of mine. His name is-- he's a sergeant major of the army, Michael Greenstone. He said, you know what, this is my squad. Get to know your people, right?
Well, now, I've got four million people that I talk to every week and numerous times. And when they're feeling down, we give them hope. And when somebody else is down, they give them hope, and so on, and so on, and so on. And I think that's what Food Network and Discovery is it's hope. And when you take that hope, and you can give something, even if it's for two hours, an hour 45 minutes, that hope in somebody else's life gets them up the next morning to do something else.
JAYMEE SIRE: Yeah. I mean, I think that's really well said. It's very clear how connected you are, how important all of that is to you. But I do want to talk about another aspect of your life that is clearly something that you hold very dear, and that is your fitness. And I know people are obsessed with hearing about this. So how do you manage to keep up with the food and the exercise when you're traveling how many days a year for this and still maintain your physique.
ROBERT IRVINE: Well, number one, Gail pushes me. Sometimes, I feel like I don't want to go work. And she's like, you'll feel much better if you do. Listen, in the military-- I was in the military, and fitness has always been a big part. Obviously, I married Gail. She's a fitness freak as it is. But I love working out.
I'm working out when we travel with 22-year-old kids, male and female, in the military that we asked to do their job every day. And OK, well, we want to work out with you. 500 Marines, they just want to kill you because they know you like fitness. But yeah, I just love that. I love that we get up, and I get that hour and a half, for me, because I like to do 30 minutes warm up. And then, I do my hour. That's my time escapism.
JAYMEE SIRE: Is it is it every single day?
ROBERT IRVINE: Every day, yeah, unless I'm on a really long flight. I would be going to Abu Dhabi, June, and then we go to Korea. And normally, I leave the workout before I get on a plane or I'll do push ups and sit ups on that long haul flight.
JAYMEE SIRE: Like, in the aisle? Where do you do it?
ROBERT IRVINE: What I'm blessed with, Food Network is all around the world. So no matter whether I was on a flight with Air Turkey, literally, and the flight attendants knew I was. They allowed me to do my sit ups and push ups in the galley. So yeah, I mean, there's always-- people, you can't have excuses for not working out or doing something because we do it in hotel rooms. We do it on planes, wherever it is.
JAYMEE SIRE: I need to-- I need to put that little last piece of advice on repeat for myself because I always seem to find an excuse.
ROBERT IRVINE: OK, I'm going to throw it back at you. You get up-- you get up and clean your teeth every day, right?
JAYMEE SIRE: Right.
ROBERT IRVINE: Do you brush your hair? And I say this to young kids all the time. I want you to do me one favor. I want you to make your bed in the morning, and they look at me, like, I'm not making my bed. And then, I'll say, why? Because it gives you an achievement. The first achievement you have in a day is making your bed.
And if you listen to the top Fortune 500 leaders in our world, they all made the bed as kids because it was an achievement, and that's what I'm going to say to you. You get up, and you achieve something by putting clothes on, doing your hair. You have to make it a priority because if you don't, just like everything else, it becomes, the older you get, slower we become, and you won't prioritize things. So prioritize it.
JAYMEE SIRE: I got a pep talk. I got the emotional plea, not the tough love. So I appreciate you going easy on me. Well, this has been so much fun. But before I let you go, I'm going to ask you one last question that we ask to all of our guests here on "Food Network Obsessed."
And I'm curious for your answer because I know you had said earlier that food is not your number one joy, or priority, or anything like that. So what would be on the menu for your perfect food day-- breakfast, lunch, dinner and dessert?
ROBERT IRVINE: So breakfast, for me, would always be oatmeal and fruits because I eat that every day. Because it's a slow-burning carbohydrate. It takes two hours, so I can work out and not feel hungry or get lightheaded. Then, I normally follow that with eggs and egg white omelets or poached eggs.
Lunch would always be a tuna salad sandwich made with hummus instead of mayonnaise. I like that on toasted bread. Dinner would be roast chicken and mashed potatoes. I'm not saying healthy because there's a pound and a half of butter in the mashed potatoes.
JAYMEE SIRE: That's all right. I think everything else you just named was healthy. So I think--
ROBERT IRVINE: And then the snack-- I'm a big believer in-- or dessert, I should say. I'm a big believer that every meal should end in dessert because our bodies have become so accustomed to when we grow up. So you can't have dessert unless you finish this. So in the morning, it's normally, for me, it will be toast and jelly.
Lunch, it will be a square of chocolate or a rice pudding, a cup of rice pudding. Dinner, right now, it's Girl Scout cookies. I love chocolate. I'm not a-- I don't like to drink chocolate milk. I love coffee, occasionally, but I don't eat anything with coffee in it, so I won't eat tiramisu. I'm not that guy. It's weird when you said-- when you drink coffee, but you don't like anything with coffee in it.
JAYMEE SIRE: So you pretty much eat pretty healthy most of the time, and then you-- but you indulge with that dessert after every meal.
ROBERT IRVINE: Yeah. And I believe that, unlike most people, breakfast, lunch, and dinner, I eat every 2 and 1/2 hours. So for me, the protein source, whatever that is, is the size of a deck of cards, and the carbohydrates are always the size, not the finger mouse here, but the old mouse that show my age. But the old mouse. So you always have a deck of cards and a mouse in protein and carbohydrates, seven to eight times a day.
JAYMEE SIRE: Well, I could go on forever asking you more questions, and perhaps, we will have to do that at another time. But we appreciate you setting aside this time for us, a second day in a row. And it was so much fun talking to you, and best of luck with all the new shows.
ROBERT IRVINE: Thank you so much. And now, what are you going to do tomorrow morning?
JAYMEE SIRE: I'm going to get up and work out.
ROBERT IRVINE: There you go.
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JAYMEE SIRE: Such a fantastic conversation with Robert. And I don't know whether I want to pump some iron right now or maybe start a restaurant. Either way, I do know I will be tuning in to the new episodes of "Restaurant Impossible" on Thursdays at 9:00/8:00 Central and "Dinner Impossible" right afterwards at 10:00/9:00 Central on Food Network. And you can also stream on Discovery Plus.
As always, thank you so much for listening. Be sure to follow us on our platforms if you aren't already, so you don't miss a single guest. And if you enjoyed today's episode, we would love it if you would rate and review. I do read all of them. Thank you so much for listening. We will catch you foodies next Friday on "Food Network Obsessed."
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