Spot on the five point on popping R and B. Mario Carbone is here today. Thank you for having me, No, thank you. You know why we number one. It's lovely to have you. We have mutual friends. I've eaten, I've enjoyed many meals at your place. You also send us a fantastic lunch today. Don't come empty handed? Is that your Oh he was raised right? Hi, Mario, you welcome to the show. So I said that I got free food today for Mario. He sent me
lunch, and look who appeared. Mysteriously, your friends, Sean, pet guys did not miss a meal. Let's just be clear about that. Anytime you can get a free Mario Carbone, who was never here. But usually I'm gonna finish my showing out the door early today. But the interesting thing is I was telling Peck the first time I went to Carbone was with Peck. Of course that makes sense because he's like the is he did you give
him like a mayor title or anything? That's vg I think The first time I went to was Mariah took me there, a little nice little name. She knows, she knows all the places. Man. You know, Mariah, order a Carbone. Come on what is everybody that spicy? Al Right, there we go. We got then you too, Yes, Ryan knows where to go to. Then I feel like I was there for like a like a rap mob meeting. It was like nas stee Stout Drake Draymond Green.
It was like it was like it was like talking about We talked about music man not for nothing, We told my music. It was a good conversation. Do I say again, you know you know, Mario, how does how does one get to this place in their career where they have a restaurant? No idea? What you mean When I hear stories like that, it's crazy, really crazy that they had nights like that. When did you know? Like, first of all, the restaurant business, notoriously is a
challenging business. Everybody says that people I know, like I gonna start a restaurant. Everybody goes, don't do that, don't do it. But you have done it and done it well. And when did you know, Oh this is gonna go? We got we got something here. I don't know. I don't know if I don't know if I ever had that moment. I don't know if I have ever had a moment where I was like,
Okay, we're good. There's always a feeling because of the restaurant business, because of how hard it is. There's always that like pit in your stomach that's like you got to you gotta earn it again today, Like there's no like you're good, You're good. This thing is just gonna last. Like I'm constantly on quality control making sure it looks right. It's you know, I will tell you like we're maniacs about it, making sure that that it's
consistent if I'm there or not. You know, your experience. You know, if you have one bad experience there, like you're gonna start questioning going back and like, so I think you gotta treat every day like this. It's temporary. M Yeah, we do the same thing. By the way, all of us, we don't know. Yeah, nobody cares about who I interviewed last month. They want to know what you did this week. Yeah, what are you doing for me lately? Yeah? What are you
done today and tomorrow? Otherwise? Is good? Well, congratulations, well done, because it's not just Carbone like you have. Well, you started with another with We started with Teresi, which is our first restaurant, which we just recently moved. Also, Yeah, six tables. I think the original one was I fit about twenty people, so great, and slowly we started to make a name. Amazing. And now what are you doing in Miami? Well, first of all, there's a Carbone in Miami, Shad,
that's also a vibe in there. How many do have in Miami? We have? In general carbones? We have we have almost fifty restaurants worldwide. No, I had no idea. Wow, And so I think I seen with someone posts Vegas, right, yeah, we have a couple with a couplays in Vegas. Vegas is an amazing, amazing market. Yeah, great market. It feels like you're winning Mario very Carbone in Vegas. Why not put a suit on and pretend you're Frank? Oh what I should say
underneath the name? That's pretty good? That's pretty good. So I don't know if you know this, but there are a lot of songs that mention your restaurant. Do you know them all? I don't know if I know them all. Okay, I have some for you here. I'm gonna tell you the lyric. We're gonna see. Do you want to play against your friends? You want to play this? You versus peck us. See who knows better than the lyrics. I'm gonna tell you the lyric. You're gonna
tell me who said the song? You like this like a little game your podcast now pecks you like to enjoy in little context, the human podcast. All right, let's start. Here. Goes our first one. It's multiple choice. Okay, we're gonna make this easy for hey, yo, we can meet a Carbone meet meet me at the Aria one hundred round block on me. That would be Drake and j Cole. No, it's not,
that's west side. Goes negative one from Sean Pecos. Okay, here, fairness, I didn't give you a multiple choice, so we'll leave it a flat for now. Okay, next one's multiple choice. Ain't ship to prove? What more can I say? Got a million hits? What more can I play? Catch me at Carbone when I'm in the m I a huhz jes. I didn't even have to give him the multiple choice. He goes to Carbones a lot, now you know what I mean? Right, A great time? Yeah, yeah yeah, next to him paying the bill.
Clue all right, word tab on j Z. I'm coming. Then when's it going? You're going back to perfect last table left in Carbone, calling place on the rotary phone. I take a glass of Domino to go with me home. No idea what it means, but it's Drake that is definitely Sean percass is getting bodied by Marco Carbone on the Carbone lyrics. Okay, you know how it goes when they can't get a reservation up in Carbone. They're gonna tell you it's a chill night. They're gonna tell you they rather
stay home. Still Drake, still dr Drake loves that Carbone, love that. Okay, we got three more dinner at Carbone's kind of heavy on the carbs though, veal a s cargo. The bill looked like a car note. It's either main Jadakus or fabulous fabulous. You need some Carbone family feud music segment. Guys, all right, bottle of red from O nine, Spicy Rigatoni at Carbones, no line. I get you home and I'm performing like it's showtime. This is either smoked a Freddy Gibbs or Conway the Machine.
Anyone, anyone. This is gonna be just a big total guess. Go for a guest, somebody I don't really know because I don't wait on line either, so I don't pay attention to Freddy Gibbs Conway the machine. You should have known that from West Side, I know, but you didn't know it exactly. I kind figured who it was when she said, all right, the last one, this is a good one. Do you want
me to tell you who the people are? And then I'll tell you the thing and then you can first Ferrari, no Le, Gustan Low Slamborghini Skirt Skirt, Joe Pasta, Benito Friends is Carbone family. You did really good. Thank you. You were really in touch with what the rappers are saying about your restaurant. It's a major it's a major demographic for me. I need to keep to make sure I'm up on it. They love it there all the celebrities, though, what was the first who was the biggest person
to step in there? Or somebody that surprised you that you didn't know they were coming and you were maybe taking aback or nervous or I mean, there was nothing like the first night that Stout brought Jay in when at the first restaurant where there was six tables, this is this is this is yeah twenty ten, him walking in the room, A room that small, my room? What did you do? What do you do? I probably froze for a good amount of time. And then there was really no small talk.
He was just kind of he was in his own mood with with with with Steve. They were having like a meeting, and we just tried to do our thing and not be too distracted by the fact that like your all time favorite is sitting head and feed away, eating your food right now. And did he did he seem to be happy? Did he compliment? You seem to be happy? He came back for and has been coming back for years to come. So it was the beginning of a beautiful relationship. He's an
amazing tipper. I would imagine, I would imagine you stayed out of the business business heard you well done, well done. If he wasn't one, you probably would have heard. Somebody might have shared that information. Do you feel like the rappers helped with the promo? Definitely? I think I think you know, Carbone is just like crazy some of its parts right, Like you know, at any given time, you can see this this really wide demographic of people in one room sharing the same music, the same plate of
food. You know, from all walks of life. And that's what I love about that restaurant. It's just it feels like New York. Is there anybody who hasn't showed up yet that you would like to publicly invite to come down there? Probably call out enjoy a meal for perhaps there anybody would love to see walk through the doors of one of your places. That that's a
great question. I think about old timers that aren't with us anymore more often than people that got yeah, like big, like people that would have come if they were around, Like they would have found a way to come in. You know when when Tony Bennett first came in, that was like a big that was a big one for like us. So yeah, it's we've had we've had. We've had hell of a run. That's amazing. Congratulations. I think something that's cool about Mario that people probably don't know, like
I've known them for a long time. We can say we're brothers and family. The thing that about hip hop in our world, right, the whole sort of Italian restaurant thing we enamored right as kids by looking through different shows. He was probably one of the first guys of our era hip hop that embraced our community. You know what I'm saying. Like first he was like, yes, please bring the represent please. People know each one and know
who they are. And I think when you see that as kids, when we grew up in the eight and how that world didn't really embrace us in the first time, a brother, a person like that Italian descent, big businessman would embrace our community. So it was important for us to give back. I think that that was a great thing about always bringing great people that I love that. What is what's happening at Carbone Beach? Tell me about
that. So we're coming up on Formula one Miami Carbone Beach, partner with our great friends at American Express to put on this this extravaganza that sounds like big money Mario one, American Express, big numbers around. You know that American Express. You gotta pain at the end of the month. This is
no minimal payment on those guys. Four nights Thursday through Sunday, so the whole weekend of Formula one and uh, it's a we kind of build this big, beautiful tent on the actual sand of Miami Beach, four hundred guests, full, big time dinner, like crazy like Roman Empire stuff like giant towers of ice, sculptures with seafood and caveyard stations and a huge carbone meal. And then there's always a big surprise performance at the end each each one,
every night. Who's that going to be? We'll talk off okay, and how do people see it? Be part of it? Like how do how do you can get You can get your tickets through American Express, you can get it through Major Food Group and our websites. You know, there's still tickets available for some of the nights. We don't ever announce the performers, so it's just you don't know until kind of your entrees are up. Who's about to come out? Are we going to this cause? Are we
going? Oh? She was there? I can imagine when was that night last year? How did you pull thatay night? The first year was Andrea Blli. He brought it. He brought the house into tears. Yes, wow. And anybody can buy tickets to this event, absolutely wow the house. If you're an AMEX card holder, they make a little exception for you. But anyway, Platinum there you go, figure which color want to use? They take all my money, so they love me. They love me
to death over there. You know, I keep the silver one because I got the limited the limited edition art you know, the artwork. Got the artwork. I got the artwork. I gotta get that. Man. Well, congratulations, I can't wait to see it. Before you go. We have a new segment. You don't even know this. I have a new segment on the show. Check it out. It's called in My Bag. So we have a bag that we want you to go into. Pick out a few things, see what brings up for you. Okay, is there
money in the bag? Money? We got the mayor. We got the mayor of Carbone, Manly Beach, mister nice. Okay, all right, so tell me about this. He spends enough time there that we started calling it Carbone and diego like a such table. He's got a plaque, he's got his own chalice. He drinks out well. Then, of course j because he was the first scenario. Sinatra passed it on to Jay and he's the chairman of the board. Let's see what else we got. Oh,
oh, we got a Michelin guide. Tell me about this Michelin story. How does this work? That one's itally? You? I think Michelan's agezy, you do. I think the whole things forgetting. Wow, But weren't you in one? Aren't you was? They've been giving, they've given me stars, they've awarded me stars. We have some stars, they've taken them away. I just think the whole thing is forget. Taking is no good. How do you take a star away? And then you in your feelings
when they do it? Beside this year you're not as good as last year? Based on what that's a great question, based on what. I think. The whole thing is a ship. Oh, throw the book away. Nobody get the book, toss it out of here. Screw that book. Look at this. What's going on here? I don't know. Does it bring up anything for you? Well? Those are two separate things. Do one at a time. Myrill put the sauce back. I say that this Knight brings up my high school. No, I went to holy Cross High
School. The Knights. Yeah, so envy and queens get the money? Right, that's right, He's right, You're right, Stout definitely went. He's right. It's a real question. You went to hold quotes? Did you spin the block and spin through Saint Francis Prepp when you got off come on. Now, Okay, we got out thirty before they did. You know, first prep, you know that way home. You know what got thing we got we got. We got a jar of spicy vodka sauce.
Carbone spicy vodka sauce. Is this the sauce we eat in the restaurant. This is the sauce you eat in the restaurant if you add cream and butter to it. Got the problem we when we when we started packaging this, the problem was they were telling us the only way to do it, to make it shelf stable, was to use powdered dairy, and we were like, I can't do that, Like that's I'm not not willing to do that.
So they're like, oh, there's no other way around it. So so we left the recipe on the back and you have to pick up cream and butter and then there's a really easy recipe to blend the whole things together, bring it up to a simmer, and it's the same sauce as the restaurant sold. I mean, Pegs won't be there, butt or maybe he will restaurant, maybe he will, It depends on what it is. I think that's it, right, is the last one that is it. What
does that bring up for you, Dawn? Maybe my my humble beginnings in the restaurant industry. Did you know that about your friend? His first job it was a dish wash? Otherwise, what else does this mean that he takes out tomato peas is like athlete. He's got a framed in his man cave, all his shirts with Linguini stains. Like, yeah, but when you think about that, from going to working in a restaurant and doing dishes and being a dishwasher to what you've built now, it's really a beautiful story.
Congratulations and also being the same person. Also important. Here's a real question. What's a bigger deal to you? You opening restaurants or you being in supermarkets with that type of stuff. Excellent question, Clue, Okay, with the hard hitting question. It has to be the restaurants, because without the restaurants, there's no dart sauce. You know. Yeah, there it is. That's Mario's bag. Mario was in his bag today. Everybody