Original subtitles

I'm Adam Richman, global food explorer.

I'm back in Britain on a mission

to combine two of my biggest passions,

food and football.

Come on!

This is some delicious chicken in my face,

get that bird, ya heard!

Making the match-my-menu,

I'm visiting some of the biggest clubs in Britain,

exploring football culture fork-first.

Do you need me to tell you this is going to be spectacular?

From classic fan favourites...

Scran! Scran!

..to fine dining footie style.

You don't want a burger, no.

It's where beautiful grub meets the beautiful game.

My taste buds just qualified for the Champions League.

This is Adam Richman eats Football!

Newcastle upon Tyne,

the largest city in North East England,

famed for brown ale, rich history,

and the bakery that conquered a nation.

But there's much more variety here than high street chains.

I'm right here at the home of Newcastle United,

St. James Park.

I am going to fill myself up on some delicious Geordie goodness,

and I'm not just talking about the kindness of the people here.

We are going to chow doon on the tune.

Hungry supporters of The Magpies,

so-called for their iconic black-and-white shirts,

have a toon of options nearby,

right here at The Stack,

a massive fan zone right next to the stadium.

The air is filled with excitement and delicious burger-y goodness

from fan favourite, Brack Burger.

So, I'm meeting founding brothers Joe and Ollie

to get a taste for myself.

Joe? Ollie? I don't know who's who?

Hey. Joe, Ollie.

Joe, Ollie.

Do you guys come from, like, a butchering family,

or a barbecue family?

We grew up in hospitality, my dad's always had bars.

In COVID, obviously, everything kind of stopped for us,

everything closed down. Mm.

Er, so, me and Ollie put our heads together,

and then started Brack Burger.

We started doing takeaway,

and it just kind of took off from then.

You guys grew up diehard Newcastle fans, yes?

Magpies for life? Yeah, massive.

I think, if you live in Newcastle, it's... It's part of the...

It's part of the culture, really.

What is and was the burger scene like?

The food in the North East as a whole is, is...

You've got a bit of everything, which is good,

but the burger scene in particular

is massively up-and-coming.

And I feel like, over the last kind of few years,

it has actually really took off.

There is a big burger scene here,

there's a big food scene in general,

but I can't say whether it's the best or not.

Well, some say these are some of the best burgers in Newcastle,

loved for their unique, crazy flavours and toppings.

There is a burger on your menu that intrigues me very much,

because it's kind of an homage

to a burger from the American Midwest.

What is that burger called?

The PB & Perry.

Will you take me through the making of The PB & Perry, chef?

Of course. Want to go in the kitchen?

Let's go in the kitchen.

The Brack PB Perry, a double-smashed burger,

topped with chilli jam, cheddar cheese, crispy bacon,

and yes, creamy peanut butter.

As a kid in America, we grow up

with PB&J, peanut butter sandwiches.

That's really not a thing you kind of grow up

eating here in England, is it?

No, no. No, definitely not at all.

Er, it is a very American thing.

That's true.

I think people are going to kind of lose their minds and go,

"Urgh, you're putting peanut butter on meat, that's gross."

Really? Have you had Thai food? Have you had Indonesian food?

You're willing to have beef satay and dip that in peanut sauce.

Yeah.

But now, suddenly, you put it on a burger,

and suddenly these guys are aliens.

Get a grip, people.

Take a deep breath, download the car map.

You're going to be just fine.

Beautiful smash, chef.

A smashed, thinner patty cooks faster,

caramelises the meat,

and creates beautiful, lacy, crispy edges.

And what are you sprinkling on there?

Er, so, this is our house seasoning. Hit it.

Yeah?

Wow! Savoury as heck.

Yeah, like garlic, paprika. Not too salty.

Nice amount of pepper in it, too, which I really like.

Joe and Ollie build layer upon layer of flavour.

But burgers without fries? That's like hugs without kisses.

I'm going to need a side dish.

With any clever burger place, there's usually clever side dishes.

What is the side dish I'm going to get today?

So, as we're doing, like, the more adventurous burger,

we'll go for the classic Brack Fries,

which is a burger and our house burger sauce on top.

Brack Fries? Your burger on top?

So, if the burger on your bun isn't enough,

have a little burger on your fries.

Alright, I'm going to get the Brack outta here,

go into the dining room,

and I'm going to eat this Brackin' thing.

Let's go.

The brothers cook up the epic plate,

a seductive secret sauce

drizzled over the Brack Fries that ride alongside the chilli jam,

bacon, and peanut butter-topped PB Perry burger.

This lacy edge gives me such joy, as a burger eater.

This is not easy to achieve.

It's about having the right level of fat in the mince,

the right temperature of the flat-top,

and a cook like Ollie

that knows how to bring that to the table.

The burger itself is awesome.

I want a smashed burger that crunches.

The beef flavour kind of comes as you're working it around,

and that's ... I think maybe why this burger works as well

as it does, is that it's truly a study in balance.

You have a soft, pillowy bun, and you have a crunchy patty.

You have creamy peanut butter, and then you have

the sort of knobbly bits that come into a chilli jam.

You have sweet, you have spicy.

You have umami out the wazoo,

but the cheddar brings in a nuttiness and a saltiness.

A different type of, kind of stretchy, gooey consistency,

that's different in the peanut butter.

The fries happen to be made exceptionally well.

Their Brack sauce is sort of like the great northeastern,

Geordie homage to Big Mac sauce.

It has that sort of Thousand Island-y,

relish-y tang to it,

but you can see it's actually not overly thick and cloying,

so you get to taste the mince and everything underneath it.

Well done.

Newcastle's food culture truly evolved

during its famous shipping and industrial era.

Since 1835, Grainger Market is traditionally home

to independent eateries and top-notch produce.

One of the eateries here is the reason why I have come.

It's called Acropolis, and it too is a place steeped in tradition.

And in particular, the sauces made by the materfamilias,

a woman named Cleopatra,

are apparently nothing sort of remarkable.

So, I don't know too much about their sauces,

but then again, it's all Greek to me.

And kebabs are in the pantheon of greatness

in football food mythology.

At Acropolis, they serve a twist on Greek souvlaki,

a kebab of juicy, smoky joy

that all start with secret sauce made by matriarch, Cleo.

I don't want to disrupt mama. How are you?

Filip, yes? Hello, yeah.

Adam. How you doing?

Mama, can I hug you? Hello.

Mama.

Is it true your name is Cleopatra?

Yes.

That is so damn cool.

The handsome bearded gent here is her son, Filip,

who after moving to the UK from Athens in 2016,

sold his kebabs at food markets and festivals

with his brother, Viktor, and friend, Yusuf.

What are we making here? Just salad?

What are we..? Er, chilli sauce.

What? Chilli sauce.

Lettuce goes in the sauce?

Yeah.

Now, I've never seen anyone add lettuce to a sauce before.

Do you have memories of, like,

her mum making this for you and stuff?

So, my mum put a twist on it.

Oh, really? Yeah.

What was her twist?

The lettuce.

The lettuce? Is this tradition from your family?

Yes, I said like this.

What does the lettuce add to the sauce, other than moisture?

Does it add a flavour profile?

Yeah, a little bit.

Is lettuce in a lot of sauces in Greece?

Not really, no.

But because we use a lot of salad everywhere, and...

You just had extra lettuce lying around?

You, like, may as well use it?

Yeah. Yes.

Or did it, like, come to you in a dream?

Like, an angle said,

'Cleopatra, you must make chilli sauce'..?

Maybe, maybe.

In 2019, they opened their first shop,

and they drafted in Mama to help.

So, what else goes in?

I see bell pepper, I see iceberg lettuce.

Yeah, cucumber.

Cucumber, parsley.

And onion. And onion.

So, the chillies come at the end?

Yeah.

Don't be fooled by Mama's cuteness, she means business.

Oh, my God! You... Shall I pass you your bazooka?

This is my gun.

Your..? OK.

Yes, exactly.

Blending the lettuce is actually kind of genius,

because it's fragrant, and it lifts the whole sauce.

It's vegetable violence!

It looks like a vegan crime scene in there.

It's like someone just killed a bunch of lettuce.

Will she 'lettuce' have a taste before I 'leaf'? Get it?

Can you take a spoon and ladle it on my skewers of love?

Oh, oh, you're going down the whole thing?

OK, I was going to dip it. OK. Thank you, Mama.

You eat chilli?

I love chilli.

Taste it. I don't tell you nothing.

Mmm, mmm!

So, there are some old-school pizzerias in New York

that make what's called a raw sauce,

they don't cook it, and that's what that reminds me of,

because it doesn't have a cooking process.

And because you puree the vegetables,

it's got an awesome texture.

It's just so light.

So, I love the fact that it leaves room

to still taste the meat and whatever else you serve it with.

Seems that the Geordies have really taken to Greek cuisine.

Yeah.

Why do you think that is?

Is there something, a flavour you use,

or have you changed the traditional recipes

to appeal more to a Geordie crowd?

I think the whole package.

The way we serve, you know, always served with a smile.

I've become a Newcastle fan.

You go to the matches?

Yeah, sometimes.

Really? And do fans come here?

Yeah, we have a few players as well.

You've had players come here? Yeah.

Which players? Can you tell us?

No.

Is this going to become chock-a-block with..?

Oh, yeah. Thank you so much,

and thank you so much.

I'm going to hop out.

So, I'm going to try their amazing Acropolis chicken souvlaki,

and we will learn that there's more to match day

than just pie in the land of the magpie.

They grill the pita, top it with juicy chicken, salad, fries,

like a Californian burrito, and then Cleopatra's chilli

and tzatziki sauces,

and the Acropolis souvlaki is complete.

I need the gaffer to formulate an attack plan.

I'm looking at a high block, I think.

Just going to use the teeth, a high press,

try to gain possession of the chicken.

Mmm! It's about layering flavour.

If it's all chilli, it's going to be way too hot,

like, you're not going to get any of the nuances

in that wonderful chicken

and that rich, rich, almost baked chicken flavour.

If you go super creamy, with a kind of more neutral sauce,

again you lose the extreme, right?

You, you lose the heat.

Filip told me about their tzatziki sauce being remarkable,

and he's a hundred per cent right.

To me, the best stuff has that slight sourness, tartness

from the yoghurt.

People forget how, even if you're doing a wrap,

contrast is going to be key.

If it's all mush, all spicy, all gravy, all savoury,

there's no note by which you can contrast.

To have authentic Greek flavours in a handheld package,

made by family, feeding you like family.

Mama's right, one bite, you'll understand.

It's match day, and Newcastle United will be facing off

against Brighton & Hove Albion later.

So, I continue my Geordie journey through food and football.

So, I'm at a Brazilian steakhouse, just 10 minutes away

from The Magpies' home ground,

and it's beloved by not only fans,

but players too.

Right now, as we film this in 2024,

Newcastle's midfield is anchored by two incredible midfield talents

from Brazil, Joelinton and Bruno Guimaraes.

They eat here for a taste of home.

This is Rio, famous for its traditional Brazilian Rodizio,

where rotisserie meats are king,

and there's 16 different delicious cuts on offer.

Oh, my days! OK.

So, we've just come over to just a thing

of indescribable beauty, a rotisserie of just pure joy.

Adam, by the way.

I know you're in the middle of working.

What's your name, brother? Nino.

Nino, nice to meet you. Nice to meet you.

Rodizio actually means 'turning' in Portuguese.

Alright, chef, walk me through what we're looking at

on each of these beautiful skewers.

We have the chickens, spicy chicken wings.

Woah!

So, that's... It's belly pork. Lemon pork, pork belly.

And then it's, it's like... We cut slices on the table.

Can I be..? You guys have been nice.

I don't want to start our relationship by lying to you.

I've been trying to carry on a normal conversation,

when I really want to try one of those sausages.

Oh, that is so good.

Come with me.

You know when you get that corner, right there on a pot roast?

Look at that fat cap, just melting out.

It's basting while it cooks, it's cooking in its own juices.

Then look at the lamb.

The lamb is literally sizzling with its own fat.

The sweetness coming off of the ham and the pineapple,

and then you get down here.

And it's that awesome, mineral-y, primal,

'I want to kill a sabretooth tiger

'and drag it back to my cave' type of vibe.

This could bring out the feral carnivore in anyone,

but Executive Chef Barbara has also nailed Brazilian soul food.

You are from Angola?

Angola, yeah.

But you speak Portuguese?

Yes. I do speak Portuguese, yeah.

How?

Because Angola was colonised by the Portuguese,

so we're a Portuguese country.

We do speak Portuguese, that's the main language.

I heard that, you know, obviously, Newcastle United Football Club

has two very talented Brazilian midfielders

that are from Brazil,

and I know that this is where they come for Brazilian food,

a little birdie told me, a little Brazilian birdie.

I guess I'd call it a 'bir-jie.'

Yeah, we do...

How do you say, like, 'birdie/little bird' in Portuguese.

Pequena, pequena ave.

Pequena ave?

Yeah, yeah.

Pequena ave. So, a little pequena ave told me

that Bruno likes coming here for the fejuada?

Yeah, they do love to come here for the fejuada,

especially the farofa as well.

So, if you are happy with the midfield performance

out of The Magpies,

you have to thank this lady and her fejuada,

because that's what's fuelling these performances.

If you see a little more jump,

maybe Joelinton has a little more lift,

maybe it's her food that's filling their spirits?

Fejuada is a traditional, luscious comfort stew,

made with black beans

and a variety of rich, smoky meat.

So, to start fejuada, we do the olive oil first.

We do the pancetta. So...

Let the fat render out of the pancetta?

Yeah. So, after that, we just pass all the seasoning.

Oregano.

And garlic, and onion as well.

Onion, chef.

And actually, we use loads of bay leaves, because...

Do you? Yeah.

Then we add some hog on The Tyne, pork, pork sausage,

smoked bacon, and rump steak.

Could you just show them the bottom of the pan, chef?

Yeah.

So, right on the bottom of the pan,

it's technically called 'fond,' F-O-N-D.

All of that are just little caramelised bits of magic,

joy, happiness and angel tears.

So, then, when we add anything liquid, 'like beans,'

it's going to pick up every bit of those complex flavours

from the bottom of the pan.

Mmm, it starts...

Oh, the smell is unbelievable.

It really is. Oh, my gosh.

This is like... I feel like Prometheus giving fire to man.

I bring unto you, beans.

Just pour it in. I'll let you pour the feijao in.

Thank you. I will feijoa as I've never feijao-ed before.

Yeah. Ready?

And then we let it cook, and we do a little bit of samba.

Samba? So, it's the three..? One step to the three?

One, two, three.

It's like...

One, two... It's like you put your feet there.

One.. I'll work on it.

Meantime, the smells are working on my hunger.

Hopefully, my eating will be better than my dancing.

Obrigado, obrigado. Obrigada.

Really, you're such a wonderful person.

Wonderful crew. Mano, my man.

Now, I get to tuck into Rio's Brazilian bounty,

and first up, the juicy beef picanha, medium rare.

Oh, that's beauty.

Perfect.

Yes, please.

Oh, my God.

The juiciness of the fillet,

with the mineral-y-ness of our rump roast.

I've never had a lean cut quite that juicy before.

Now, the stew that Magpie midfielders are mad for.

OK, it's super-duper good.

That wonderful bay leaf, super savoury.

The thing that's crazy is the flavour,

all of that soaks into the beans.

The pork, super soft, super juicy.

And you can see, kind of like in a good gumbo,

which it almost resembles to a degree,

or a good jambalaya, the flavours kind of marry

right in the pot.

Let me tell you, its name is Rio and it dances on my tastebuds.

It's match day here in Newcastle, it's just before kick-off.

I've had a tasty time here on The Tyne,

from smashed burgers with peanut butter,

inspired by the USA,

a chicken souvlaki taking me over to The Mediterranean,

and finishing in South America

with fejuada, an authentic Brazilian barbecue.

Ultimately, there are plenty of great places to dine

on the banks of The Tyne. Eat mightily, and chew carefully.

Let's go.

What the hell is this?

Why'd you pee in my pudding?

Do you normally serve it with gravy, or a beverage?

Pease pudding, neither peas, nor pudding. Discuss.

You know, I'm going to call this Gandalf Pudding. You know why?

You shall not pass through my colon.

This is not moving anywhere.