Flippin' Our Shades at Mark Regan from the South Philly Taproom

Mark Regan is a dreamboat. He's the sous chef at South Philly Taproom and he's one of the most entertaining people I've met. You may know him from his offensive yet charming twitter feed (@m_regan) where he consistently posts selfies, sarcastic food porn and unflattering pictures of his roommate's cat.

He's also not too shabby with a knife either and has worked all over the place, including the kitchens at Supper, Adsum and Lacroix before landing over at the South Philly Taproom. Mark made it to the final round for Eater's Philly's Hottest Chef contest, and his response to the Philly ramen craze was to hold his own "Round Guy Ramen" popups at SPTR (a play on the noodle bar formerly known as Round Eye). Here he is looking rather suave after kicking butt at COOK's Open Stove Competition:

I asked him a few questions about being a studmuffin:

SK: What's your idea of a perfect date? Can you give us a date revolving entirely around food and another not involving food whatsoever?
Mark: My idea of a good date (if I had perfect dates, I probably wouldn’t be single) would be to go somewhere where we could engage in fun activities, such as a carnival or a festival or the zoo or the aquarium or a hay ride. Food eaten would be on a stick or tube-shaped, preferably. I don’t want dates revolving entirely around food. I want to get to know the person, not show them I’m good at eating. They can probably already tell that from the stomach portion of my body.

SK: What do most guys do wrong when they're out with a girl? 
Mark: I’m still trying to figure this out. Ashley, if you’re reading this, please call me. I don’t know what I did wrong; I thought we were having a nice time.

SK: What's the worst thing a girl can do on a date?
Mark: Talk about their boyfriends! You’re on a date with ME! It’s just all-around rude and it really brings the mood down.

SK: Tell us a secret!
Mark: I steal things for no reason at all.

SK: Where's the most romantic place in Philly?
Mark: Old City, during the spring, when those beautiful trees that smell like semen are in bloom.

SK: What do you like most about Philly girls?
Mark: Girls from Philly are the worst! They sound like Spinner from Death to Smoochy (YouTube it). Girls who moved to Philly, however, are great. They are this perfect little package of being laid-back, tough, and funny, all wrapped up with a nice lacey bow.

SK: What would you cook to seduce someone?
Mark: I’m not the best cook. I am, however, a great mixologist. We could imbibe some of the incredible cocktails I concoct on the spot, akin to musicians of free-form jazz. Anything with garden-fresh lavender really seals the deal.

SK: What would a girl cook for you to win you over?
Mark: Anything really, I’m not picky. (And I’m not talking about the food #winkyface) Also, a lobster roll.

SK: What would you put on a mix tape for a girl that you liked?
Mark: I would probably just mix up the order of 2005’s Garden State soundtrack. I don’t have a lot of free time now a days.

I never know if Mark is being serious but let's hope he is because I am already planning a trip to the aquarium where we will most certainly get corn dogs. He's single, ladies, and odds are he will make you a bangin' brunch one day. I mean, who doesn't love brunch?