Gourmet’s Choice: The Best Food Movies from All Over the World

What are you doing when you watch movies, place a live bet in Uganda, or go out with friends? You are eating! Food surrounds us everywhere, and it inspires creators to do new things, like filming movies. And these are the most thrilling movies to watch if you are a gourmet.

Estômago, 2007

The story of how, through his culinary arts and keen understanding of human nature, a “simpleton” like Raimundo Nonatou is transformed into a culinary genius and a master of souls. He rises from the bottom to the top of power and repeats the trick once again, ending up in prison.

A profound and vivid Brazilian movie, mysteriously overlooked by critics and audiences, not only tells a fascinating story and draws accurate psychological portraits and types. It also creates its own special atmosphere with the subtleties and colors of South American cuisine and gastronomic monologues in warm Portuguese.

Como Agua Para Chocolate, 1992

Tita, famous for her culinary talents, and Pedro love each other but cannot be together. To be closer to his beloved, Pedro marries her sister, a classic move in a Mexican love story. But this movie, based on the book by Mexican writer Laura Esquivel, has a noble dose of Gabriel Garcia Marquez-inspired Latin American mysticism. Here, tears can poison a wedding cake, rose petal sauce ignites passion, old family curses are more real than the latest news, and a talent for cooking works real miracles. This romantic film tale has won many international awards. Although it sounds retro today, it has lost none of its charm of a weirdly exciting tale.

Baharatin Tadi, 2003

Fanis is a Greek boy who is brought up in Istanbul by his grandfather. He trades in spices and teaches his grandson the finer points of cooking. In the 1960s, Greek families were deported from Turkey and the boy moved to Athens, while the old man stayed in Istanbul. Fanis continues to cook, dreaming of one day meeting his beloved grandfather again and keeping the memory of him alive in his passion for cooking.

It is a tender and touching, oriental warm and fragrant story about food, love, and the art of living your life, adding different flavors and spices to it.

Today’s Special, 2009

This is a comedy about the love of food and small business. Samir lives in New York City and dreams of a career as a chef in one of Manhattan’s posh restaurants. But after his father is hospitalized, he is forced to take over the care of the small family restaurant, which goes against the aspirations of the aspiring chef. After all, it’s just a small place with Indian cuisine, which Samir doesn’t appreciate at all.

Despite the fact that this is quite an American story with traditional humor and predictable plot, Indian cuisine plays a very important role here. With its variety of spices, brightness and spiciness it adds charisma and oriental flavor to this simple but very nice picture.

La Graine et le Mulet, 2007

This is the story of the everyday life of Maghreb immigrants in the south of France, who are haunted by lack of money and living conditions. One day they decide to open a restaurant with simple but very tasty national cuisine. Their main dishes are just cheap couscous and lamb.

The film by French director and actor of Tunisian origin Keshish Abdelatif may well become a cinema classic. This emotional and profound story is not so much about success and the pursuit of dreams as it is about what people are capable of from feelings of hopelessness and fatigue. And the unhurried dynamics of the picture, consisting of a lot of little things, immerses the viewer in the events on the screen and causes sincere empathy with the characters.

Soul Kitchen, 2009

Zinos Kazantsakis runs a small and pretty crappy restaurant on the outskirts of Hamburg. Life goes on as usual until the restaurateur gets in trouble with his thieving brother and the health inspector demanding a hefty fine. Then Kazantsakis decides to hire a super-chef with an insufferable temper to turn his establishment into a trendy place.

According to the law of the genre, the further he moves, trying to implement his plan, the more difficulties arise on his way. But they are the ones that turn individual misfits into a real team dedicated to their cause.