Columbo questions Eileen and Neal in Chasen's Restaurant and provides horrified amusement to everyone by ordering chili. Chasen's, which closed in 1995, was renowned for its chili.
When Columbo receives the bill for his bowl of chili at the fancy restaurant, he is astounded that it costs $6.00. While this may not sound like an outrageous amount, that would be equivalent to $33.00 in 2021 after adjusting for inflation.
Columbo reviews the key plot points from a previous episode, Candidate for Crime (1973). Riley Greenleaf responds, "Lieutenant, very frankly, I don't give a damn about your senator or your story."
Jack Cassidy starred in the first official episode in the series, Murder by the Book (1971) which also dealt with writing and publishing.
As part of his alibi, Jack Cassidy's character, Riley Greenleaf, gets drunk and visits various bars and restaurants where he makes a scene so he will be noticed. This is a coincidental foreshadow to what Cassidy did on the night of his own death in December 1976. Then he had consumed alcohol at various bars across West Hollywood before returning to his apartment, drunk. Tragically, he lit a cigarette then fell asleep. The cigarette started a fire in which he was killed.