Michael Moses has three days left in Halifax to order “the usual.” If, within seven days, one of the Willy’s Poutine crew at Pizza Corner recognizes him and remembers his daily order (a steak poutine with mushrooms and onions), he’ll give them $100 in cash. No strings attached. It’s a gambit the 33-year-old comedian from Coaldale, Alta., has turned into Instagram and TikTok fame, amassing more than 350,000 followers who tune into his culinary travels as he looks to become a “regular” at restaurants, diners and burger shacks around the globe.
“I’ve always wanted to be a regular somewhere,” Moses says, speaking by phone with The Coast. “To just, like, go somewhere and be able to walk in, and that’d be my spot.”
It was that desire that prompted Moses, on a whim last November, to visit the same Brooklyn bagel shop every day until the staff remembered his order. He posted it on his personal TikTok account—which, at the time, he says, “was nothing, like 20 followers.”
@itsmichaelmoses Episode 1 | How long will it take? #foodtiktok #samething ♬ original sound - everydaysametime
As overnight successes go, the results were near-instant: In four days, Moses woke up to 60,000 followers. By the end of the month, that had nearly doubled to 110,000. Suggestions flooded in of which countries, cities and restaurants Moses should visit next—from In ‘N Out shakes in Los Angeles to avocado toast in Berlin to Japanese hot dogs in Vancouver.
“It became a thing,” he laughs.
Not every one of Moses’s personal challenges lead to success. In April, the comedian spent seven days trying—and failing—to become a regular at a popular bakery in London, UK. In Niagara Falls, Moses’s quest to order “the usual” at a dairy bar was thwarted by seeing nine different servers in 10 days. Other times, the results take longer: Moses visited the same New York Starbucks for 12 days before the baristas caught on to his mocha order—and it took 17 days of In ‘N Out drive-thru burgers before his order stuck.
But his channel’s growing popularity has forced Moses to change his approach in other ways, too: In March, the comedian visited Schwartz’s Deli in Montreal. By the time he posted his first video and returned for his second visit, the staff had already watched it. Now, he delays releasing his video series until after he’s completed his challenge and left for another city. (Moses left Halifax last week for Edinburgh’s Fringe Festival.)
“I think I’ve gotta do a week out [now], just so they don’t find out,” he says.
So far, Moses’ food destinations have been mostly guided by follower suggestions—along with wherever he has standup gigs lined up. In Halifax, he performed at Yuk Yuk’s and caught the Great Outdoors Comedy Festival. He’s performed a New Year’s Eve special at Massey Hall in Toronto and on Comedy Night with Rick Mercer.
The food adventures have been another beast entirely, though—the most surprising part of which might not be the challenges at all, but the reception he’s received, along with how it’s changed how he sees the world.
“I’ve had people comment, like, ‘Hey, I show your videos to my daughters, just so they can see how easy it is to ask somebody’s name.’ So I’m surprised at the response—and [by] the fact that it’s really people from all over the world as well,” he says. “Because most of the time, you know, you go through the motions of ordering—and you might be on your phone. Now, if I’m walking down the street and catch somebody's eye, I’ll stop and talk to them. And that's definitely changed.”
So, does Moses succeed in the end at Willy’s? On that matter, the comedian remains mum. But he does offer a glowing review of the poutine:
“I would recommend it; it was perfect. I was going at 11pm, so it was definitely a great late-night snack. The large is a lot… but the small is the perfect size, and the steak is really good.”
