Onscreen, multihyphenate screenwriter-director-producer Paul Feig is best known for fun and funny films such as “Bridesmaids,” “Last Christmas” and “A Simple Favor.” And offscreen, he’s known for his impeccable sense of style, enthusiastic embrace of cocktail culture (his Artingstall’s gin brand makes frequent cameos in his movies) and, it turns out, a penchant for all things spicy.
“I am so much about hot, hot heat,” he told The Times in a recent interview. “I just love [heat]. I can’t eat anything without putting some kind of a hot sauce on it. I think it’s because when I was a kid, all the food in Michigan at that time was so bland I thought I hated food. It turns out I hated bland.”
In advance of his latest work — the thriller “Another Simple Favor,” which started streaming on Amazon Prime Thursday — I buttonholed the dandy director about his ideal Sunday, which includes browsing for western wear, taking in a ball game, doubling down on Mexican fare and satisfying that spice tooth at every opportunity.
This interview has been lightly edited and condensed for length and clarity.
7 a.m: Water or a walkI always try to sleep in, and it just never happens. So if I sleep until 7, that’s kind of a miracle for me. I like to get up and either do water aerobics for my exercise in our pool or I’ll do a one-hour, four-mile walk through my Toluca Lake neighborhood, which is really nice. And that always ends with me going to Patys coffee shop at the end of my walk.
8 a.m.: Pop into PatysI’ve been going there for 30 years and eating breakfast there forever and ever. But Sunday is kind of fun because there are more people there, and it’s a great local hangout. I get there early — they open at 8 — because it gets crowded later on Sundays. My main order is to get this [dish] called the Power Lunch but for breakfast. It’s a grilled chicken breast, and I get it with a double side of steamed broccoli instead of rice. And I don’t get any bread, but I do order a side of salsa. That’s my healthy meal. And if I want to cheat a little bit, they have really good gluten-free pancakes there, so I’ll get that with sausage.
10 a.m.: Browse western waresAfter that, I’ll walk home and maybe jump in the pool and then shower and head out to a few of the stores I like to visit all the time and I have this country [and] western wear circuit. I’m obsessed with this place in Van Nuys called Country General Store because I’m really into cowboy boots. And they’re one of the last places that carries a lot of Lucchese boots and they’re my favorite brand. They’re always getting new ones in, so I’ll go and check out the new selection. And they have good hats there too.
There’s also a place in Beverly Hills called West that’s got really cool boots and really cool men’s jewelry, so I like to go there. And a place on Sunset called Boot Star that always get lots of vintage western wear. That’s actually where I got the outfit that I wore to South by Southwest — the coat with the fringe on it is a [Mealey’s Pitic Leather Handcrafted] jacket from the ’70s. Doing the whole circuit is really fun. It takes a few hours, but most of that’s driving around. And then I’ll pop into each place for like five or 10 minutes.
Noon: Indulge a hankering for hot sauceThat takes me to about lunch, which would be one of two places. If I ended up in Beverly Hills — well, this wouldn’t count if it was Sunday because they’re closed, but [I’m mentioning it because] Brighton Coffee Shop has the best hot sauce. I get the breakfast quesadilla, which they serve with this hot sauce they make in-house that’s incredibly good and really hot. I just slather it on, and the [waiter is like,] “Sir, you know that’s hot.” And I’m like, “Don’t worry! I like it really hot!” It kind of burns the s— out of my mouth. But it’s really tasty.
If I’m going back to the [San Fernando] Valley, I’ll go to Don Cuco [Mexican Restaurant] — the original one on Riverside Drive, not the one in downtown Burbank. It’s my favorite place for old-school L.A. Mexican food. It’s been there forever. The waiters are really nice, and some of them I’ve known since they were busboys, so it’s fun to see them. My favorite is the cochinita pibil. It’s a slow-roasted pork they make days in advance so it just falls apart, and they serve it with plantains. I get that with the standard black beans — not the creamy ones — and a side of tortillas. And the Don Cuco’s house salsa is great.
3 p.m.: Down for the DodgersIf there’s a Dodgers game, I love to do that because I have season tickets and I just love going to a ballgame. I was at the game where they beat the [New York] Mets to get into the World Series. And I went to Game 2 of the actual World Series, but I wasn’t there the night that Freddie Freeman hit the walk-off grand slam. I was in New York that night watching in my apartment and made so much noise the doorman called and said, “I think the neighbors are worried about you.”
If there isn’t a game, we have this sort of covered indoor-outdoor patio space [at home] next to the pool, so I’ll sit under that and catch up on my showbiz reading — scripts that we’ve been sent, scripts that we’re developing, new drafts [of scripts]. Then, when the sun isn’t blasting down anymore, I’ll get back in the pool.
6 p.m.: Mix up a creative cocktailThis [part of the evening] could involve opening a nice, light rosé like a Château Minuty. And there’s always time for a cocktail. I’m usually a martini fanatic, but I’m trying not to get too blasted on a Sunday, so I’ll do a gin and soda. There’s a drink called Ranch Water that’s tequila, lime juice, a little bit of Cointreau and Topo Chico. I’ve created my own version of that called Palace Water. I like to use a little bit of Grand Marnier. It’s a little orangey and binds it all together.
7:30 p.m.: Head to the Gardens of Taxco for takeoutNow we get to dinner and I love Mexican food, so I have no problem doubling down on Mexican. Do you remember the Gardens of Taxco restaurant in West Hollywood? Well, it’s gone now. It closed a few years ago, which was gutting to me because I used to eat there two or three times a week. But they still cook the food [for pickup or delivery] right on Santa Monica Boulevard [in West Hollywood], and the food is just as good as it was. I get the [Salsa de Ajo Picante] garlic shrimp, and instead of rice and beans, they do sauteed vegetables for me. And they have a little quesadilla with guacamole and they always give you this little pudding[-like dessert] with bananas in it. So I’ll drive over and pick that up.
Or I might go to a friend’s house for dinner. For years and years, the every-Sunday thing for my wife, Laurie, and I was to have dinner with our friends Betsy Beers and Bruce Cormicle. She’s Shonda Rimes’ business partner, and he’s a lawyer who does legal consulting for some shows and is an amazing cook. He always cooks these big feasts at their house in Brentwood, and there’s always a theme: Sometimes it’s a Mexican theme, sometimes it’s a French theme, sometimes it’s seafood. And it’s fantastic. I mix martinis, and we have a great time.
9:30 p.m.: Wind down with true crime — and maybe a martiniWe’re not late-nighters really, so we’re usually home by 9 or 9:30 p.m., and then it’s “What are we gonna watch?” It’ll either be a movie or TV, and there’s so much out there I try to avoid getting caught up in a TV show that has a million episodes because I’ll get hooked in. And then it becomes this whole thing, so I’d rather find a series where you’ve got three episodes, or a great movie or documentary. I really liked “Apple Cider Vinegar” and the true-crime story [“Devil in the Family: The Fall of Ruby Franke”] about the Mormon YouTube mom. We’re in the age of the con man, and I’m just fascinated by human nature and what people think they can get away with.
But sometimes, if we get back early enough, I’ll go over to the Smoke House [Restaurant], which is right by our house, and have an end-of-the-night martini. Oh, and everyone talks about the garlic bread there, but they make great hot wings.
The post How to have the best Sunday in L.A., according to Paul Feig appeared first on Los Angeles Times.
