The Hat with Betsy Sodaro and Mano Agapion (LIVE)

"The Hat with Betsy Sodaro and Mano Agapion (LIVE)" is Episode 187 of *Doughboys*, hosted by Mike Mitchell and Nick Wiger. "The Hat with Betsy Sodaro and Mano Agapion (LIVE)" was released on January 24, 2019.

## Synopsis

Betsy Sodaro and Mano Agapion, hosts of the podcast *Horny 4 Horror*, join the 'boys to review The Hat, a chain specializing in its pastrami-dipped sandwiches. Plus, a live edition of The Wiger Challenge.

Recorded live at the Brea Improv in Brea, CA.

## Nick's intro

On August 5, 2003, the Fox network premiered a TV drama that would become a pop-culture sensation: *The O.C.*

Set in the torrey Orange County community of Newport Beach, California (though for production reasons actually filmed in the LA-county city of Manhattan Beach), the glossy primetime soap chronicled the romance and intrigue of too-rich-for-their-own-good teenagers in parallel with storylines featuring their oversexed parents.

The success of *The O.C.* led to a brief cultural fixation on the SoCal county.

In 2004, MTV debuted *Laguna Beach: The Real Orange County*, a documentary-style reality series that was in fact heavily produced and semi-scripted. In 2006, *The Real Housewives Of Orange County* launched the now genre-in-of-itself *Real Housewives* franchise. These shows, all centered on obscenely-rich, out-of-touch whites, led to a skewed perception of Orange County as an enclave for the super-wealthy, a county-sized Beverly Hills.

But the real O.C. also includes working- and middle-class communities, and large Latinx and Asian populations that were mostly erased from TV. And the real O.C. also includes a food culture that isn't just the stuffy, white-tablecloth restaurants and overpriced beachfront cafes frequented by Peter Gallagher and crew, but includes burgers, burritos, and bánh mìs, as well as pastrami.

In 1951, a fast-food joint opened that served a signature pastrami dipped sandwich that would become an O.C. favorite, though like the filming locations of the show *The O.C.*, the original was actually located in L.A. county. Soon enough, there were outposts across county lines serving various combinations of pastrami and their house chili at affordable prices to eager customers. Over the decades, the demographics of Orange County have evolved from a reliably conservative area that produced President Nixon into, as of the most recent midterm election, now having an entirely Democratic Congressional Delegation.

But 75 years since its founding, this beloved local pastrami chain continues pretty much just as it was in the 1950s.

As for its name, it's as on the nose as it sounds - a nod to its logo, the traditional white cap that's adorned a chef's head for seemingly as long as restaurants have existed.

Today, with eleven local locations, this SoCal original still slings dishes with pastrami, chili, and pastrami & chili, to hungry residents across class lines of the area referred to as "The O.C."

This week on *Doughboys*: The Hat.

## Fork rating

* Pastrami Dip
* Grilled Cheese
* Chili Fries (add tomato & pickle)
 Mike Mitchell
* Diet Coke
* Pastrami Dip
* Roast Beef with Gravy & Au Jus
* Grilled Cheese
* Hot Dog
	+ mustard, onion, relish
* Onion Rings
 Betsy Sodaro
 Mano Agapion

Mitch, Betsy, and Mano all shared their order.

With these scores, The Hat joins the Golden Plate Club!

## The Wiger Challenge

In the Wiger Challenge, Nick presents Mitch and the guest with a mystery beverage and they try to guess what it is. The closest guess is declared the winner.

For this episode, being a live episode in Orange County, the mystery drink was an "O.C" soda, Orange Crush.

## Quotes

**Nick**: I'm a gravy fan. I do really enjoy it.
**Mitch**: Mayo and gravy have been your favorite foods. What is it now? Salt?
**Nick**: \*thinks for a solid 20 seconds\*
**Nick**: I'm going to say... a banana.

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* DD. The Mitchy Clause
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* DD. G-g-g-ghosts! And C-c-c-candy