Category Archives: Foodie Films

Pepi Cubano

08 Tuesday Dec 2015

Posted by in Backstreet Bites, Food Glorious Food, Foodie Films, Noshes in my Neighborhood, Restaurants

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When Jon Favreau’s delightful foodie/road-trip film Chef came out, it got everyone curious about Cuban sandwiches. The marvelous photography of the food preps, edited to the beat of catchy Latin music, more than helped whet the appetite for what is really a simple Cuban sandwich. It seemed to me just your basic ham and cheese sandwich prepared much more meticulously than the ordinary ham and cheese sandwich we are used to. The Cuban sandwich (also called “sandwich mixto”) was developed as early as the 19th century and was hearty enough to satisfy the appetites of Cuban workers in Miami. Traditionally and essentially, it consists of ham, lean roast pork, Swiss cheese, dill pickles and lots of butter and yellow mustard, served between the cheeks of Cuban bread. Then the whole thing is compressed and toasted to a delicious crisp on a plancha.

And people rave about it! Hmm. curious. So when a Cuban sandwich shop opened on Gallardo Street, just off to the side from Dela Rosa Street in Legaspi Village in Makati, it was my chance to see what the foodie-fuss was all about.

Pepi Cubano. It is owned by Susan Dalmacion who would sell her Cuban sandwiches at the Saturday Salcedo Market even way back in 2006. Yes, even way before the movie made Cuban sandwiches a thing to jones for here in Manila. She opened this small, no-frills shop where the sandwiches are made fresh and hot. And the signature Pepi Cubano sandwich did not disappoint. I especially liked the bread. I am no expert and I am not sure if this is real Cuban bread, which is customarily made with lard or shortening, but I particularly like how finely crisp it’s toasted. You bite, you hear a delicate crunch, and your teeth sink into the moist and delicious sandwich fillings inside. Wonderful!

There are other sandwiches and offerings on the menu which I intend to try very soon. I am curious to try the Tito Choripan or the Pan de Lechon. My friend loves their Pan de Guyaba — a guava jelly and cheese sandwich, which I used to love when I was a kid. Pepi Cubano can be found on the ground floor of Tropical Palms Condominium on Gallardo St. in Legaspi Village, Makati. Or You may call 880-0389 or 0907-535-7574 for pick-up or delivery.

 

“Who is Killing the Great Chefs of Europe?” again

06 Thursday Sep 2012

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Writing recently about some great chefs I’ve met reminded me of this movie. Who remembers watching this?

Watching Who’s Killing The Great Chefs Of Europe? all over again, since the first time I watched it 3 decades ago, is like rediscovering the unmitigated pleasures of my childhood food favorites. Like “dirty ice cream” (queso flavor) or my lola’s ube halaya cooked over a firewood stove which she stirred and stirred for hours to decadent sticky smoothness. It was such a joy to experience and relish all over again. Yes, even after all this time, even if some language sounds dated and hokey, it is still very much a joy but in a different way, because now I watch it with the eyes and sensibilities of a well-ripened film and food enthusiast.

In a nutshell, the film is a delicious comedy-mystery, spiced with wit and bon mots. George Segal plays the smooth-talking and slightly coarse American fastfood magnate Robby Ross. Jacqueline Bisset is his ex-wife Natasha O’Brien, a renowned and gorgeous patissière “who may become the last course in an enigmatic killer’s lavish platefuls of delicious deaths”. The mammoth (in physical size and thespianic talent) Robert Morley plays the role of Max Vandeveer, “an acerbic gourmet magazine publisher whose cascading series of chins and stomachs bear witness to his love of fine dining”. Unfortunately, all that gourmandizing has taken a toll on his health and his doctor has commanded him to lose 100 pounds by giving up his most favorite dishes in the world — like the Pressed Duck of La Tour d’Argent or Natasha’s supercalorific Bombe Richelieu. Soon, one by one, the great chefs of Europe who created the fantastic dishes Max craves — who, not coincidentally, are all French (at the time, it was the French who ruled the culinary universe) — are murdered in the manner of the their specialities’ preparations. Pressed Duck, hence… you get the picture.

I admit that the years of devouring movies and even of marinating in the critical and cynical world of advertising have jaded my palate just a soupçon. 30-plus years since this movie’s release is a pretty long time, after all, and taste and sensibilities were different then. Movie-goers were perhaps more naive and less demanding than we are today. And watching this film again, it is easier now to cast a jaundiced eye and see through the tricks of misdirection cooked up by director Ted Kotcheff (he also directed Stallone’s “First Blood”). Lovely and elegant Jacqueline Bisset may be, carrying off 70s fashion so stylishly, she was great eye-candy. Sadly, however, she couldn’t act if her life depended on it. I had to suspend my disbelief at several points about her character. For one, it was odd that she was cast as an American chef, what with her obviously very-British accent. What was even odder was her character not knowing what chicory is! But George Segal, oldish (or D.O.M.-ish) as he was even way back then, played the charming, slightly greasy rogue perfectly. He was definitely one funny jamón!

I would love, though, to see a remake of this movie. I can see the trenchant and wittily erudite food critic for Vogue Magazine, Jeffrey Steingarten, playing the role of Max. And the luscious and voluptuous Nigella Lawson would be ideal in the role of the gorgeous patisserie chef Natasha. And there are many among today’s stars who can play the part of the asinine but charming rascal Robby. Robert Downey, Jr. perhaps?

If you are food-and-film lover, as I am, this movie is definitely worth watching. Maybe not among the pantheon of Oscar greats, but consider it a delicious cinematically high-caloric romp.

Julie & Julia

18 Saturday Aug 2012

Posted by in Foodie Films, Hail to the Chef

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This August 15, 2012 was Julia Child’s 100th birthday! In acknowledgment and in  celebration of this trailblazing foodie and oh-so-remarkable woman, I watched the movie Julie & Julia all over again.

In a nutshell, Julie & Julia is a tale of two parallel lives — one of an aspiring writer slogging away in a boring job and living in Queens with her husband, the other of Julia Child who, during the late 1940s and 1950s, felt restless and intellectually adrift while living in Paris with her husband. Child then discovered her true calling when she decided to learn how cook the proper French way at the famed Le Cordon Bleu. Powell, on the other hand, needing some creative direction and fulfillment in her life, also challenged herself by cooking ALL 524 recipes in Julia Child’s famous cookbook, Mastering the Art of French Cooking, every day for one year and chronicling her attempts in her blog.

Written and directed by Nora Ephron, it is based on Child’s autobiography with Alex Prud’homme, “My Life in France” and Julie Powell’s blog-turned-book entitled  “Julie & Julia : 365 days, 524 recipes, 1 tiny apartment“. It stars the magnificent Meryl Streep, masterfully portraying the inimitable Julia Child down to her fluting drawl to a tee, and Amy Adams as author and amateur cook Julie Powell. The extraordinarily talented Stanley Tucci, one of my most favorite actors ever, plays Julia’s husband Paul Cushing Child with a brilliance and a strong yet subtle presence that complemented and stood up to Meryl Streep’s dazzling cinematic charisma.

As The Vine review said: “Julie & Julia is not a mere celebration of food but a pleasant pair of true stories about the hand that rocks the ladle.” Yes, it is a delightful film. Definitely worth watching, if you like foodie films as I do. BUT, it’s not great — for me, it so failed to resolve satisfactorily the Julie and Julia connection, that it felt a bit anticlimactic.  Most of my favorite scenes were in the “Julia” part of the story. Amy Adams is charming and sympathetic but the lovely shots of Paris, the tour de force performance of Meryl Streep, together with Stanley Tucci, and the colorful character that was Julia Child simply drown out the more prosaic life of Powell/Adams and her husband. In fact, after watching the movie the first time, I actually went out and bought a hardbound copy of Child’s famous cookbook. Not that I would ever attempt to replicate what Julie Powell did. I can’t even master the French omelet (yet?), despite how easy Julia Child makes it out to be.

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P.S. I kept a clipping about Julia Child from a November 2001 issue of Oprah’s O magazine, where she lays out 8 of her favorite books — The Soul of a Chef : The Journey Toward Perfection by Michael Ruhlman, The French Laundry Cookbook by Thomas Keller, Kitchen Confidential : Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly by Anthony Bourdain, How To Read a French Fry and Other Stories of Intriguing Kitchen Science by Russ Parsons, Stand Facing The Stove: The Story of the Women Who Gave America the Joy of Cooking by Anne Mendelson, The Essential Rilke, Edith Wharton : A Biography by R.W.B. Lewis, and mystery novels by Mary Higgins Clark and Sue Grafton.

TAMPOPO — Raving about Ramen

12 Sunday Aug 2012

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Most of you may perhaps be familiar with the film sub-genre “Spaghetti Western”. Well, I call the film Tampopo by Jozu Itami a “Ramen Western”, that stands bright and unique in the firmament of filmdom. From the exaggeratedly complex depths of the humble ramen to the orgasmic heights of hedonism that food and sex can take you, Tampopo is extremely satisfying. It is one heck of a fantastic and joyful food trip, which includes dizzying detours which sometimes leave you flummoxed but most of the time give you a refreshing break (sort-of like a palate cleanser) from the main course, that you will never want to get off once you get on! As “the master” said, you will appreciate its gestalt.

The characters are distinct and memorable, expertly delineated and endearing — from the delicate but dedicated Tampopo herself and craggy-faced, cowboy-hat-wearing Goro to the white-suited Yakuza gangster to the hobos with surprisingly well-educated and fine-tuned palates. The vision, though complex to the point of labyrinthine, is clear and forceful. Written, directed, and produced by the amazing Jozu Itami, it is a sumptuous cinematic feast that only an extraordinary non-linear mind and brilliant story-telling genius like his can concoct. You will not be able to help yourself. Right from the start, from the very first scene, you will be inextricably drawn to the characters. And you will find yourself inhabiting the many stories that Itami lays before you. What a banquet for the senses! And Tampopo is gratifying to the very last drop … or, I should say, to the very last scene as the credits rise. (You must watch the film to know just what I mean.) When you see even just this one film of his, you will understand why Juzo Itami is one of my all-time favorite directors.

The best review of Tampopo that I have ever read was written by Hal Hinson of the Washington Post, way back in 1987 just after the film was launched in Hollywood — http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/style/longterm/movies/videos/tampoponrhinson_a0c94d.htm. Here is an excerpt: “Jozu Itami, the director of the Japanese film “Tampopo”, may be the most impenitent hedonist the movies have ever seen. As a filmmaker, he revels in sensual pleasure, and the spirit of his film is exultant, orgiastic. The movie has been described elsewhere as “Zen and the Art of Noodle-making”, but its spirit couldn’t be less Zen-like. Itami isn’t interested in detachment. He’s a zesty, immoderate connoisseur of pleasure-taking in all its forms — food, sex, movies — and he jumbles them all together here into a hilarious concoction. It’s half movie, half dessert-topping, a film gourmand’s lusty dream…”

Click on the link, if you want to read more about it. But I suggest you watch the film first so as not to spoil the scrumptious surprises it serves up. And be prepared to be overcome by a sudden craving for a steaming-hot bowl of Japanese ramen, after watching it. I was … each and EVERY time I watch it! This is a film classic that all true food-enthusiasts MUST SEE at least once in their lifetimes. It is simply oishii in every way!