TEQUILA WAS INBOUND FOR TV TITANS
Talk takes boozy turn for Andy, Mario
When Bravo star Andy Cohen and celebrity chef Mario Batali come together, tequila happens. At least, that’s what went down between the “Watch What Happens Live” host and “The Chew” star backstage at HubSpot’s annual INBOUND conference at the Boston Convention & Exhibition Center yesterday.
The Boston University alum and the salmon-shorted chef knocked back shots of Don Julio Blanco and posed for selfies before taking a seat next to each other for a joint interview in the INBOUND Studio. Maybe it was the liquid courage talking, but the two celebs openly riffed about what it takes to work in the business big leagues like they do.
“Sleep less,” said Batali, who has 26 restaurants to his name. “I get up between 4:30 a.m. and 5:30 a.m. every day of my life because I value the hours between 5 a.m. and 7 a.m. much more than I used to value the hours between 3 a.m. and 4 a.m.”
“Plus, you do a ton of blow, don’t you?” Cohen jokingly asked Batali.
Batali’s witty comeback: “As much as I can get my hands on. The only reason I stopped doing so much blow is so I could shoot more tequila.”
In all seriousness, Batali did point out that a key part of his productivity regimen is exercising hard for 45 minutes to an hour each day.
Meanwhile, Cohen thanks his lack of children — and his dog Wacha — for giving him the time and energy to devote to work only on projects that truly get him jazzed. Oh yeah, and his flexible work schedule helps, too.
“I get more vacation time than 99 percent of Americans and I have no problem taking it,” he said. “And I have no problem relaxing whatsoever.”
Batali echoed the proverbial work hard, play hard mentality.
“I was in Michigan for 92 days in a row this summer,” Batali said, clarifying that he did still get a full P&L for all of his restaurants each night that he has to comb through.
We’d still take it. Where do we sign up?