CHICAGO — Natasha Leggero describes “Rat in the Kitchen,” her new cooking competition series on TBS, as “a cooking whodunit, almost in the vein of "Knives Out" or "Clue." We have all these chefs that are coming on to win a cash prize, but what no one knows” — including Leggero and her co-host, the celebrity chef Ludo Lefebvre — “is which one of the chefs is the saboteur, the rat, who is going to sabotage everybody’s dishes. You never know who you can trust.”
A native of Rockford, Leggero said she may be a foodie but she’s a horrible cook herself: “I don’t make anything. I make toast for my 4-year-old. But apart from that, I’ve become a complete food snob and I’m amazing at critique.”
Perhaps best known as a standup comedian, she has also starred on the Comedy Central series “Another Period” (which parodied historical dramas) and has a long list of guest appearances on everything from “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia” to “Modern Family” to “Superstore” to “BoJack Horseman.”
When asked about a worst moment in her career, the story she shared was as unexpected as they come.
My worst moment …
“This was after the results of the last presidential election came in and I was so ecstatic. This was in LA and people were partying in the streets. My husband and I were driving home from the beach and I had to pee so bad. I was not drunk, but I never had to pee so bad. This was in the middle of COVID, so nothing was open. And then I saw The Comedy Store, which is a comedy club in LA, and I told my husband, ‘Pull over, I can’t take it anymore.’ I’d never had to pee this bad.
“So I went to The Comedy Store and I banged on the door. It was 11 a.m. and usually there are cleaners there, but this was COVID so everything was locked up tight. Nobody was there.
“But I had to pee so bad. So I went to the grate that’s in the parking lot and I lifted up my dress and squatted over the grate annnd I peed in a grate. Thankfully I was wearing a dress, pants would have been a little difficult. It’s very hard to be subtle when you’re peeing as a woman, because you’ve got to squat — men can just kind of be standing there and you wouldn’t even know — so I did a very ladylike squat. And then I did my little jump to drip.
“I remember looking up and seeing that my name is written on the building, and I’m like, you know what? I think this is going to be OK. (The club’s black exterior walls are covered with the names of famous comics who have been paid regulars there over the years.) So if anyone were to come up to me or want to arrest me, I’d be like, ‘Hey look, my name’s on the wall. So I’m allowed to pee in this grate.’ It’s a big deal to have your name on the wall!
“I don’t know if anyone saw me, though. There were people driving by and there were people on the street. I was trying not to squat too much, so that if someone did see me, it kinda looked like I was just in a strange yoga pose in the parking lot.
“But I remember my husband, his mouth was just hanging open. He couldn’t believe I was peeing in the parking lot over this grate. I think he was annoyed. He was afraid that someone would see. But, I dunno, I just felt like anything’s possible now that we have a new president, so you know what, why not?”
When did Leggero first perform at The Comedy Store?
“It would have been 2002, because it was the first place that I ever performed and I’ve been doing comedy for 20 years. The Comedy Store is a really amazing place, it has three stages and the Belly Room is the small one upstairs where a lot of women are featured and I think (club owner) Mitzi Shore called it that specifically because it was almost womb-like.
“So I have very warm feelings for The Comedy Store. It’s where I still perform. And no one knows that I peed in the grate there, but I guess they will now. Although, now that I’m telling this story, I feel like probably every male comedian has peed in that grate.
“I was uncomfortable at that moment because my husband was so horrified. At the same time, I try to maintain a very elegant nature but it’s important for me to understand that underneath that elegance is someone who will pee in a grate.”
The takeaway …
“Honestly, even though I knew it was a low point, it felt good. And, I dunno, I think I want to do it again.”
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