Behind the Scenes
Too Many Cooks: What's your Favorite Food Movie?
You'll be hearing from the staff at FOOD52 every week in Too Many Cooks, our group column in which we pool our answers to questions about food, cooking, life, and more.
We've talked about favorite gadgets and guilty pleasures, now on to something a little more visual: this week's question is, what's your favorite food movie?
These video clips should do a thorough job of sending you off into the weekend. Post your favorite food movies (and TV shows, why not) in the comments!
My Big Fat Greek Wedding
Merrill: Also, "A bon...a bont...a bundt?"
Big Night
Peter S.: "After seeing it, my good friend Sim decided that a timpano must be tried. He made a delicious one and now makes it an annual event."
Jennifer V.: "I got engaged the night I saw it -- that's what I call the perfect date night!"
Heartburn
Kristy: It isn't exactly a food movie but I loved when Meryl Streep said "rice pudding is a very personal thing" -- my feelings exactly. And when she slams the key lime pie in his face!
The Parent Trap II
Kristen: In one scene around 1:04:15, the girls make cookies and dump in bags of M&Ms, chocolate chips, jelly beans, marshmallows, etc. I very sincerely wanted to be them. This might explain some things (like the Sprite & cookies 'n cream floats).
It Takes Two
Brette: My favorite food scene ever -- EVER -- is the food fight scene in the Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen movie It Takes Two.
Waitress
Nozlee: It's kind of sad, and kind of cheesy, but mostly adorable. Also, pie!
Stephanie: There is an episode of King of the Hill where Hank joins the food co-op that I just love. On eating the tomatoes from the co-op versus those from the Mega-lo-mart, Peggy says, "If this is food, what have we been eating?" Also, "The puns about food get a little tiring -- peanut better, fakin' bacon, turkey burger." It's just the very best.
Babette's Feast
Kenzi: That scene where they all sit down to dinner (finally) seems pulled directly out of my dinner party dreams.
Chocolat
Christina
No Reservations
Rachel
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Tags: too many cooks, food52 staff, movies, heartburn, babette's feast, mary-kate and ashley olsen, my big fat greek wedding, timpano, food movies, food memories
Comments (35)
10 months ago susan g
In addition to the scenes in Eat Drink Man Woman and Tom Jones already mentioned:
Two Korean TV series (from Netflicks), The Grand Chef and Alone in Love -- foods is like another character in many of the scenes.
10 months ago smslaw
Eating Raoul. Gotta love those sexy cannibals.
10 months ago jacksonholefoodie
I love the scene in The Godfather in which Clemenza teaches Michael how to make marinara sauce; "You never know when you'll have to cook for 20 guys".
10 months ago fatbabylarry
I am Love
Simply Irresistible
I Love You to Death
10 months ago creamtea
Babette's Feast.
Like Water for Chocolate.
The Trip--the restaurant scenes are so sly!
10 months ago deanna1001
Big Night...that final scene is killer. Babette's Feast and Ratatouille are close seconds. Also loved Mostly Martha and Chocolat...but Big Night still reigns supreme.
10 months ago alme
So many! To start with
Tampopo--Japanese film about a woman who aspires to make the best noodles in Tokyo.
Tom Jones--you'll never look at asparagus the same way again
It's Complicated
10 months ago Summer of Eggplant
When I think of food in a movie Pulp Fiction always comes to mind.
10 months ago eeuforiee
I like film Soul Kitchen.
10 months ago Panfusine
You've covered my favorites, chocolat & my big fat greek wedding.. others I'd add .. Mistress of spices, & a bollywood movie - 'Cheeni Kum'... The description of 'Hyderabadi Zafrani Biryani' can drive you nuts!
10 months ago Omeletta
Ruthy is a recipe tester for Food52.
The opening scene in Eat, Drink, Man, Woman is my FAVORITE- I can watch it over and over. And Moonstruck! Everything in that movie eventually comes back to food, and the dinner table. Love it.
10 months ago thirschfeld
why doesn't Moonstruck ever come up?
10 months ago Lizthechef
Big Night - one of my first dates with my husband, some 16 years ago - we were so in love and raced off to an Italian restaurant after the movie ended. Ahh...
10 months ago wutsfasupa
Babette's Feast
Mostly Martha
Eat, Drink, Man, Woman
10 months ago bluechefk
"Dinner Rush" is my favorite - the scenes in the kitchen (also scenes of chef shmoozing the FOH patrons) are THE most like working in an actual restaurant kitchen of any I've ever seen! The same reason I love the British TV series "Whites" - VERY true to life :D
10 months ago Tracy A.
"Chocolat" - Johnny Depp - I mean seriously - how could it be anything but!?
10 months ago pqmommy
Babette's Feast and Tampopo!
10 months ago Miafoodie
One ofr my favorites, Like Water for Chocolate. . . .
10 months ago pierino
pierino is a trusted source on General Cooking and Tough Love.
It's impossible not to love "Big Night". But here's a total geek pick; "Dinner Rush" with Danny Aielo as a restaurant owner who is getting squeezed by the mob. I can't think of another film that actually captures what a restaurant kitchen is really like when it's getting slammed. John Corbett has a small but pivotal part. And as Aielo say's of the Corbett character; "he's a good kid. Works on Wall Street." Except that's just his day job.
10 months ago pierino
pierino is a trusted source on General Cooking and Tough Love.
Regarding "No Reservations"; it's almost a frame by frame remake of the film "Mostly Martha" (Germany). Watch the original, it's really good.
10 months ago nzle
I had no idea -- I'll have to track that down!
10 months ago amyeik
Eat Drink Man Woman, for sure...
10 months ago Third Floor Kitchen
Christmas in Connecticut: A classic holiday comedy in which Barbara Stanwyck plays a wildly successful food columnist whose weekly magazine feature lovingly describes the she prepares for her husband and child at their farmhouse in Connecticut. The only problem is that she's not married, can't cook, and lives in a small apartment in New York. When her high powered publisher (played by the wonderful Sydney Greenstreet) who doesn't realize she's a fraud (played by the wonderful Sydney Greenstreet) invites a soldier and himself to her farmhouse for Christmas, she sets up an elaborate scheme to keep from being discovered. Wonderful!
10 months ago Third Floor Kitchen
Oops. That's the " meals she prepares" and added one too many sets of parentheses. Just finished half a bottle of rosé and not thinking clearly.
10 months ago nzle
We would all do well to follow your example with the rosé before settling in to comment on FOOD52!
10 months ago latoscana
Mostly Martha
Eat Drink Man Woman (and its Chicana sibling, Tortilla Soup)
Julie & Julia
Under the Tuscan Sun
10 months ago vvvanessa
Last year I decided to make "Big Night" my traditional Thanksgiving film. That scene at the end is one of my favorite pieces of filmmaking ever!
10 months ago irinaleibo
Big Night and Babette's Feast. Amazing.
Cheers
irina
10 months ago nzle
I just realized that I totally forgot about The Trip with Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon!
10 months ago creamtea
Love that movie! Funny yet also touching.
10 months ago PistachioDoughnut
I love so many movies..the greek fat wedding, waitress, and the no reservations is one of my fav...
Some others that i love are Eat, Pray Love , particularly this scene
http://www.youtube.com...
Then, another scene from movie Life in a Day, specially the breakfast scene where someone is making their morning fried eggs, some part someone is grinding coffee beans for his morning coffee, someone is having roadside "cutting chai" some where in Europe some farmers are making cheese. The movie itself is fantastic, but it is not on food.
And, then the movie "Toast" it is based on Nigel Slater's memoir and Kings of Pastry is another movie of my choice. I need to stop here.
10 months ago TaoistCowgirl
Also, for the vegetarians, there's the hilarious scene from "Everything is Illuminated" when the main character gets his vegetarian meal at the Ukrainian peasant B & B.
10 months ago TynaD
Big Night is not only my favorite food movie, but also my favorite movie of all time! An award winning cast gives award winning performances in this brilliant movie! You must watch this movie!
10 months ago TaoistCowgirl
Gotta love Remi the Rat-chef of Ratatouille!
10 months ago nzle
After putting this post together, I can't WAIT to watch Big Night for the first time.