Image Credit: Josie Barry
Tucking into a meal whilst watching a film is no longer a unique phenomenon, The Everyman enterprise for example, has been doing this now for over twenty years. Taste Film offers a very different experience, designed around the film you’re watching. In every way, bringing the theatre of the film to your table, with the menu and timing of the courses, relating to scenes on the screen, or the added little touches, served with artistic flourish.
Taste Film is the brain child of Any Fernando, growing from a one-off event of Goodfellows in 2017. The locations have now expanded from London to Manchester and Edinburgh. Tickets from £82 can seem pricey, but if you break down a typical evening of premium cinema, a restaurant meal and cocktails, it’s not far off.
I have been going to Taste Film for a couple of years now at their London venues. There are pros and cons to both. The Refinery in the City of London (a ten minute walk from Liverpool Street station), may be central but as part of a modern skyscraper, it lacks atmosphere, although not enough to be a distraction. The Parlour, in Kensal Rise, is a cosy fashionista pub but a bit of a schlep to West London, although not far from a station.
The food is served throughout the film and in the main, more hit than miss. It’s clear it is all preprepared as any mass catering, but some reheating attempts do affect the quality. The artistic creativity of each dish and attention to detail for synergy with the film, is definitely a huge part of this unique experience. As each course is generally tasting-menu size, the five courses are not insurmountable.
The Taste Film staff are bubbly and enthusiastic and usually have a warm-up act to get you in the mood, including a pre-film quiz.
The film selections are mainly favourite classics and the audience is unsurprisingly either couples or groups of women, across every generation. They do tend to repeat popular films each year, so my past experiences are very likely to pop up again.
Willy Wonka
Image Credit: Josie Barry
This was my first experience, so it blew my mind. If the nostalgia of the film doesn’t choke you, then the childlike delight of course after course of confectionery-inspired dishes will finish you off. It was truly magical and for those social media compulsives – very instagrammable. The quality of the food and drinks was consistent as well as dramatic. The only distraction was a fellow diner who was obviously a Willy Wonka enthusiast and sang along to EVERY song. God Bless…
Image Credit: Josie Barry
Love Actually
The timing of this production was, of course, Christmas – a welcome alternative to The Elf film for which I seriously wouldn’t have bothered. The Taste Film staff warmed us up with their own homage to the doorstep scene with Andrew Lincoln declaring his love for Kiera Knightley, through the medium of cue cards. It shouldn’t be a spoiler that this is a heart breaking classic, so time your mouthfuls away from Emma Thompson opening her christmas pressie. The menu was just as festive with the main dish, a posh version of Christmas dinner. A lovely touch was the sparkly dessert served in a gold gift box. Food, drinks and atmosphere were a spot-on start to Christmas.
Image Credit: Josie Barry
Pulp Fiction
This was the one I really struggled with. One of my favourite films with an amazing soundtrack, I was determined not to be put off by the fact I was on a table at The Refinery, on the far left of the room, so I was at an awkward angle to the screen. But then the food began to arrive.
Image Credit: Josie Barry
If you are an aficionado of Pulp Fiction, you’ll know that there are iconic scenes, entirely devoted to the topic of burgers. It was therefore no surprise that a burger was on the menu, however there were a variety of points it could have been served throughout the film. They chose to serve it first, basically as a starter. It wasn’t a bad burger and all the references to Kawabunga burgers from one of the early scenes were cool, but once the burger was devoured – I was stuffed.
Cut to the iconic dancing scene in Jack Rabbit’s diner, when they served a large vanilla milkshake, alongside a sharing plate of fries. I attempted to do the right thing and gulp down as much as I could, after all, I had paid good money hadn’t I? But it was like forcing down a protein shake after eating a large steak and I was defeated after a quarter of the glass.
Image Credit: Josie Barry
Relief should have arrived in the form of a nod to Uma Thurman’s adrenaline shot, playfully presented with a syringe. Determined to enter into the spirit of the night, after the Taste Film team put so much effort into their demonstration, I injected a mouthful and swallowed. Fearful that my stomach was going to rebel against the concoctions I had force-fed it so far, I stopped there.
Image Credit: Josie Barry
However, like a relentless juggernaut of stodge, courses kept coming down the line. A Greggs-size pastie was served to time with Bruce Willis attempting to toast a pop up tart on screen. A honey brownie then followed for the Tim Roth exchanges with his Psycho, Honey Pie girlfriend. Both, a bridge too far.
Image Credit: Josie Barry
Again, the supporting merchandise was spot on, but the menu could have been more refined and some of the dishes, such as the burger and brownie, did not fare well with reheating – both baked items had hardened bits.
Pretty Woman
Everything about this evening was a pink fluffy hug – just as it should be. The starter, served to coincide with the breakfast scene in the hotel, was arguably a dessert served as a first course, but because it was light as well as sweet, proved a playful start. The risotto visually failed as a reference to the snail cracking scene in the film, but was surprisingly tasty. The merchandise again, opera tickets and bar bill, was spot on. Then pop strawberries into a prosecco, what’s not to love? As a final P.S. serving a jammie dodger in an engagement box – well yes… I do…
Image Credit: Josie Barry
Films planned for the next couple of months include: The Holiday (2006), Elf (2003), Monsters Inc (2001) and Bridget Jones’ Diary (2001). Popular choices sell out quickly, so it may be worthwhile to subscribe to their emails for ticket sales, usually two months before the event.
Venues: London (Parlour and The Refinery), Manchester (The Anthologist) and Edinburgh (Patina)
Tickets: £82.50, Premium films £99.50
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