Lisa Melsted of Foie Gras and Funnel Cakes organized a trip to see Chef, so Leigh of Flavorhood and I met her at the Grand Lake Theater. This is the synopsis:
“Chef Carl Casper suddenly quits his job at a prominent Los Angeles restaurant after refusing to compromise his creative integrity for its controlling owner, he is left to figure out what’s next. Finding himself in Miami, he teams up with his ex-wife, his friend and his son to launch a food truck. Taking to the road, Chef Carl goes back to his roots to reignite his passion for the kitchen — and zest for life and love.”
Yes, it was cliché, but it was also cute. Jon Favreau wrote, directed and starred in the movie and the kitchen scenes were pretty realistic because he moved like a chef. Turns out Roy Choi trained him and actually created all of the dishes: “I really tried to tell a story with the food.”
The evil food blogger character was funny because it was so unrealistic. Have you heard of anyone that sold a blog to AOL for $10 billion? Me neither. His role in the film was interesting and we talked about it afterwards. I always try to be honest, but also careful with whatever influence I might have as a food blogger. This means I won’t write about a restaurant if I couldn’t recommend it to a friend.
Anyway, this movie was FILLED with food porn – bacon, beignets, brisket and more – and we were sighing (moaning) the whole time. My favorite scene was the one with the grilled cheese – it was the most beautiful sandwich I’ve ever seen.
You’re pretty much guaranteed to leave the theater with a growling stomach. The Cuban Sandwich made several appearances, so when the movie was over, that’s what was on my mind. Luckily, Modigliani Cafe just opened two doors down and they happened to have one on the menu….
Christina Mitchell
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