The internet wasn't thrilled when Casey Webb took over as the new host of Man Versus Food,
but in all fairness, this is just one of those times when there was no way to make the internet
happy — Adam Richman just isn't coming back.
So, here are some things you should know about Man v. Food's new host.
Webb has some serious food cred, and he actually started in the same place many other people
do: washing dishes.
According to the Travel Channel, he's held down almost all the non-traditional jobs that
crop up in the food industry.
He was working as a bartender when he got the call confirming he was going to be the
next "Man" in Man v. Food, and it was a phone call that completely changed his life.
Webb grew up in Little Silver, New Jersey, so it's not entirely surprising that a lot
of his restaurant experience comes from New York City.
He has said the New York restaurant and food world are at the very heart of all he holds
near and dear, making the Man v. Food gig his dream job.
Anyone who suspects Webb went out looking for the hosting gig he eventually got is sorely
mistaken, and when he talked to Stars and Celebs, he shared the epically accidental
way he ended up as Man v. Food's new host.
After making a few appearances as an actor in small roles, he decided to pitch his agent
a food show where he would basically go to different cities and try food at different
places.
Instead, his agent asked him to audition for a then-unnamed hosting gig.
He explained,
"I was like 'Yeah, let's do it.'
As an actor, I feel like you're never in a position to give up an audition because you
might not ever get another one."
So, he auditioned, and had no idea what he was actually auditioning for.
Even after he was told he got the job, he still didn't know what he was going to be
doing.
He added,
"Physically, I turned the page on the contract, and the second page said Man v. Food."
When he auditioned and signed, he didn't even know they were looking for a new host — or
that the show was even off the air.
Sure, Man v. Food goes to all different kinds of places all across the country, but people
really know the show for its food challenges.
Webb chatted with Jersey Bites when it came time for him to take the reins of the show,
and he said that while he had his own experience with food challenges, that was a long time
ago.
He did his first challenge when he was only a child, and that time, "man won."
Finishing off the massive slices of an 18-inch pizza earned him a winner's T-shirt.
He said he would definitely do it again, but now, he's got even more on his plate.
According to the Travel Channel, Webb and his friends used to take on some of the local
food challenges, and the goal was just to get the T-shirt.
He fully admits he never did anything on the scale of Man v. Food challenges before joining
the show, but says,
"I'm up for any challenge that comes my way."
When your job is to eat insanely large quantities of food in between tasting other kinds of
food and exploring some of the best restaurants a city has to offer, well, let's just say
that's pretty much the polar opposite of an athlete.
But Webb says he channels his inner athlete every time he takes on a food challenge.
He explained to Us Magazine,
"A professional athlete is taking care of their bodies and eating well.
They're preparing themselves mentally and physically.
I have a sports background and especially with a challenge as big as the ones I have
been taking on, you really need to find your focus."
Webb says that just like an athlete gets in the right mindset before a big game, he does
the same thing before a challenge.
And during his down-time, he says he focuses on eating healthy, working out, and making
sure he gets his forty winks.
He's quick to stress that when the cameras aren't rolling, he doesn't just keep eating
like he does when he's working.
He added,
"I'm very conscious of my diet."
Man v. Food is one of the Travel Channel's longest-running series, so it's not surprising
that it's remained pretty much the same: man comes, man sees, and man tries to conquer.
It's a fun, simple formula that made the show great, after all, so why change it?
For the most part, the reboot with Webb isn't much different.
But Webb told ET that if he has his way, there might be a bit of a shake-up to the program,
saying,
"I would love nothing more than to bring on some friends."
If you're wondering what that could potentially look like, he was talking about his old friend
Amy Schumer at the time.
Webb — who's made appearances on Inside Amy Schumer — sang her praises as he discussed
the possibility of adding celebrity guests to the show.
Every cook, professional or amateur, has people they look up to.
When Entertainment Tonight asked Webb who his inspirations in the kitchen were, he gave
some answers that might surprise you.
His first was Martin Yan, host of the PBS show Yan Can Cook.
Webb says his father's favorite cuisine was Chinese, and — coupled with Yan's fun, humorous
attitude toward cooking — that made the show a favorite for him and his family.
He shared,
"Unknowingly, his and other shows would be the entry point for what has now become my
career."
He also says Justin E. Wilson and Mary Ann Esposito helped him fall completely in love
with food, that restaurateur and fashion designer Eddie Huang is a major inspiration, and also
adds Anthony Bourdain to the list.
He says Bourdain in particular holds a special place in his heart, and that his book Kitchen
Confidential really hit home by opening the door on the down-and-dirty that went on behind
the scenes in a kitchen.
Webb told AM New York that hosting Man v. Food opened a door for him that allowed him
to check something off his bucket list: making pizza in a real New York City pizzeria.
The host says that even though he grew up in pizza places across the city, he was usually
stuck with washing dishes and working in the front of house.
He explained,
"You weren't allowed to make pizza, or I wasn't.
To go back there and make pizza in an actual pizza place in New York City — I hit my
bucket list.
In Brooklyn, of all places."
Not only has Webb gotten the chance to hit the kitchens of a pizza joint, but he's had
the unique honor of having a pizza named for him: the Caseydilla.
"He got the Caseydilla."
He says he had no idea that was even in the works until it happened for the show — and
he has high hopes it's going to be back on the menu again.
Starting a new job always comes with challenges, and when Webb sat down for a Q&A with Ali
of Potluck with Ali, she asked him what kind of challenges he faced during those first,
crucial episodes.
You know, aside from filling those big shoes.
Webb said every day was so fast-paced that he didn't have time to think about too much
besides getting used to the grueling pace of filming all the different segments of a
show in such a rapid-fire fashion.
He also said he had trouble with something else — being himself, instead of a character.
“They wanted Casey talking to chefs, talking to patrons, and tasting the food, as I would.
So I guess being myself was maybe difficult in the very beginning.”
Webb added that as soon as they told him to relax and be himself, the tension was gone
and he found his groove.
"I just kinda started playing as I normally would."
Adam Richman walked away from Man v. Food with a list of things he just wouldn't or
couldn't eat anymore.
Webb, on the other hand, told Us Magazine there's nothing he won't eat and the only
rule he's sticking to is that it just has to be fit for "human consumption" — which
actually leaves a whole lot of wiggle room.
He also told Ali of Potluck with Ali that he's at a point in his life where he just
might be able to go back and eat one of the foods that really, really gave him chills
in the past: live shrimp.
"It wasn't really my jam.
I mean I might revisit, this was like 15 or so years ago.
Dating myself a little bit.
Just a little funky for this monkey."
That said, Webb claims he's willing to try anything for a very specific reason.
From his earliest days in kitchens, he was told that in order to work in a restaurant
and in the food industry, he needed to taste everything.
The only way to be able to talk to people about food was from personal experience.
He added,
"You need to know what you're talking about, and that was important to me."
After filming his first season of Man v. Food, Webb was able to look back over the cities,
the experiences, and the challenges and name the scariest.
He chose the so-called Zombie Burrito from Genkiyaki, which was only a two-and-a-half
pound burrito.
It wasn't the size that scared him, Webb told BUILD, but the heat.
The Zombie Burrito was the hottest thing on the menu, packed full of some of the hottest
peppers in the world, and Webb had the dubious honor of being the first person to even attempt
the challenge.
"The thing is, I love hot food, but these challenges go way beyond normal consumption."
Webb told Parade,
"For me, the spiciest are the hardest because not only do you have a time limit, but you
have a chemical reaction in your mouth and the heat just keeps rising."
If it was easy, it wouldn't be a challenge, and Webb adds that during his off-camera down
time, he's slowly been working up to and through eating hotter and hotter peppers in preparation
for future challenges.
"I do work out with peppers, essentially — I don't bring them to the gym."
Leading up to filming, he went through a phase of having all his meals laced with ghost chilis,
and honestly, that's some serious dedication.
When fans think of Man v. Food, it's probably the food challenges that come to mind first.
But Webb told Stars and Celebs that it's about something else for him: community.
He says he's kept in touch with most of the people he's met on the show, all thanks to
social media.
They flew past the 100-restaurant mark, and Webb says that in most cases, they spend about
three days in a city.
He added,
"And that's a ton of amazing human beings and a lot of great food along the way.
So I have a lot of new friends."
Webb stresses that the sense of community isn't just about the people behind the scenes,
but the fans, too.
He started being recognized on the street very, very quickly, and that's cool by him.
He explained,
"People come on up to me and it's like the greatest thing.
[...] They feel like they can come up and talk to me.
And they can.
And I really love it.
[...] The only way to treat anybody in life anyway is… as if you know them."
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