Where’s the Food?

Behavioral economics, dessert, entertainment, food, humor, stories, tv, video 2 Minutes

Have you ever had a friend who knew you so well that they could recommend only stuff you’d enjoy? I was lucky enough to have such a friend. And every book, movie, or show he recommended, I enjoyed. We didn’t actually like all the same stuff, but he knew to recommend to me the things that I would appreciate, not necessarily the ones that he liked … though we did have a big overlap, after all, we were friends.

One day he recommended Twin Peaks to me. I heard about it, and was hesitant to watch it. But he insistently recommended it and his track record in recommendations was flawless. So I gave it a try. It was the “original” version (well before there was a part 2 to make it “original”). And you know something? I remember liking it so much that I decided to make a cherry pie for my friend to show my appreciation. Why? Because even though this wasn’t a significant plot point of the show, it was a running theme that the lead character in Twin Peaks just loved that pie, and even referred to it as “this must be where pies go when they die” with a look of elation on his face when he ate it. He LOVED that pie.

It turns out that when I tried to make the cherry pie, it wasn’t cherry season. So I managed to find a substitute in the shape of some jarred cherries, and this was just the beginning of a series of substitutions. I’ve always blamed all the substitutions as to why the cherry pie I made was… ok, but not something to write a blog about (though it could have just as well been my baking skills) 🙂 And it’s the cherry pie that stayed with me.

Which made me wonder: how often is food an underlying theme in tv shows?

LESSONS IN CHEMISTRY: we recently watched Lessons in Chemistry (trailer to the right), and it was an absolutely fantastic show with the most significant drawback is that it’s so short and leaves you wanting more. Yes, there’s a cooking show within the show, but that’s not the biggest lesson from the show (hope is!). And food is an underlying theme and adds, forgive the pun, spice to it.

MRS. SIDHU INVESTIGATES: Mrs. Sidhu owns a catering business, but the show is really a detective/crime solving show, where Mrs. Sidhu, as you imagine, solves crimes (trailer to the left). But food, which is featured prominently throughout, is her “in” and, again, forgive the pun, her special sauce. It doesn’t feature on my updated list of detective shows (not so updated list of my favorite detective shows is here. An update will come.), but while we’re on a roll with puns, it is scrumptious.

Our question to you is: What shows that you like feature food as a theme? Do you think most of your favorite shows do? Please share!

Published by Endless Weekend

This is the story of our Endless Weekend. For a combined five-ish decades we dealt with the usual high tech rat race: alarms, cubicles/hobbit holes, TPS reports, productivity indicators/red lab coats. It was a good run (though Dilbert is more accurate than not), but it was all … Work Days, Week Days vs. Week Ends. No more Week Days. In the summer of 2019, we, husband and wife in our 40s, decided to embark on an Endless Weekend (read: early retirement). Come share our journey, it starts here.

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43 thoughts on “Where’s the Food?”

  1. Pie in the Sky is the series that came to my mind first. It’s a British cosy cop drama. The main character is a retired D.I. Who is trying to run a restaurant as he’s a chef but he keeps getting called in to solve murders and crimes.
    It has a good cast. I’ve watched it a couple of times through.

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    1. Most excellent: thank you so much! I’ve been feasting on cozy mysteries, not only classics like Poirot and Miss Fisher, but newer shows like Shakespeare & Hathaway, McDonald & Dodds, Beyond Paradise (spin-off of Death in Paradise), Madam Blanc, omg, I feel another list coming up 🤓

      I’ve not heard/come across Pie in the Sky, most appreciated!

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      1. I like all those you mentioned and am enjoying the new season of McDonald and Dodds and am chomping at the bit for the new seasons of Death in Paradise, Beyond Paradise, and Hope Street. Do you have Britbox? It’s my favorite station.
        I hope you’re able to find Pie in the Sky it’s on Birtbox. It’s an old show from the 90’s I think. I don’t think PBS has ever had it.

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        1. It is rare and most wonderful to find another cozy mystery aficionado. I already found and tagged Pie in the Sky and will now look for Hope Street (also new to me!). Thank you muchly!!!

          To express my gratitude, a couple more shows you might like (or tell me if you’ve seen them)
          – Magpie Murders: just one season (based on a book by the same gentleman who wrote many of the early episodes of Midsummer Murders), but a spectacular season, a mystery within a mystery!
          – Harry Wild: recently retired English professor (Jane Seymour) leverages her vast knowledge of English literature to solve murders. Over the episodes they let go of this angle, but still cozy and set in beautiful Ireland.

          Thoughts?

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      2. Oh another one I like that isn’t centered around food but, is set in a Cafe not Café but Cafe- caf. Is Kate and Koji. Starring Brenda Blethyn you’ll know her as Vera no doubt. There are only two seasons I think of this show as I’m thinking she left to do Vera.

        It’s a comedy. She inherited the cafe from her mum, and Koji is an African Doctor in the UK seeking asylum. He can’t practice medicine while seeking asylum but, you know he gets sucked into it and Kate feeds him for his “not doctoring service”. You can’t call him Doctor! 😂

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        1. Watched the trailer, looks hilarious, triple thanks, comedies are a big favorite of mine! Thank you x3!

          Speaking of food, there’s a show, set in South Africa, about a lady who inherited her aunt’s home and lives there, creating recipes from whatever the local butcher is trying to peddle that week. She has a pet chicken, a gorgeous garden, and a penchant for solving crime: Recipes for Love and Murder.

          And speaking of eccentric physicians, what did you think of Doc Martin?

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          1. Oh, I was sorry to see Doc Martin come to an end. I’m watching it now again and it’s getting closer to the end.
            I’m also watching for the next thing Martin Clunes does.
            Caroline Catz if you like her was also in DCI Banks. Have you seen that? Another Cop show but, more serious, and she was also in Murder in Suburbia. She played a D.I. in the murder squad she was partnered with another female D.I. I like that show too.

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          2. Maybe it’s time for us to watch it again: I like to rewatch shows I KNOW I’ll enjoy. It certainly has been a while for us. Has it held its own on a second viewing? Have you also seen the movie retrospective they made?

            What next thing of Martin Clunes is doing that you’re watching?

            I’ve watched (and liked and was sad to see it end so quickly) Murder in Suburbia. She is good! I’ve heard of DCI Banks but never watched it, I’ll look it up. I’m ok with more serious detective shows, though I don’t like gore. It’s enough to tell me that there’s a dead body and show me a covered lump. Seeing bones jutting out of the flesh (Remember The History of Violence? 😳) is just not for me… Foyle’s War was fantastic (I heard new(er) episodes are available, though I haven’t seen them), and Broadchurch was extremely well done (with the marvelous Dr. Who), but more difficult to watch, definitely not a cozy mystery…

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          3. DCI Banks is similar to Midsomer Murders but in a big city not the cozy little villages of Midsomer.
            I think I watched the retrospective that they made of Doc Martin twice. 😊 Most the episodes hold its own but, there are some I haven’t sat through twice. Maybe Murder in Suburbia quit because Caroline Catz started on Doc Martin? She was really young when both started. Doc Martin was on for 18 years! It doesn’t seem like it was on that long.

            Oh, I’m sorry I was just saying I’m waiting and watching for whatever Martin Clunes is going to do next. I haven’t heard anything just waiting. 😊

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          4. I’m not sure why Murder in Suburbia was cancelled, but given how few episodes there are per season in both shows, I would have hoped they could have fit both in … Sadly, they didn’t look to me for scheduling advice 😀

            Poirot had an allergic reaction to the countryside, and he still remains one of my favorites, so I’m going to watch DCI Banks for sure—thank you, again, for the recommendations, and please do keep the coming.

            Speaking of Midsomer Murders, have you seen some of the hilarious merchandise they have?

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        1. Where have you been all my life? I think the “Forks” episode in Season 2 of Bear is very high up on the perfection-meter for episodes, can forgive a whole lot if a show produces a gem like that. What did you think of it?

          And what are you going to snack on while binge-watching?

          More recommendations, please?

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          1. I’m going to have to rewatch that episode it’s not coming to me. I probably won’t snack just have lunch, but I will have hot tea no doubt through out.
            What are you going to snack while you watch it?

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          2. It’s the one where we see Ritchie (finally? Unexpectedly?) blossom. A magical late bloomer.

            We are big tea drinkers, too! We drink two big (huge!) cups of tea every day 🫖 What kind(s) of tea do you drink?

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          3. I’m pretty boring with tea. I’m straight up black tea/ English Breakfast/oolong every time, all the time, and I put milkor half & half and sugar in my tea. When I was little Mom put tons of sugar in milk in my tea and as I grew up the amount of sugar and milk decreased but, I still like two teaspoons of sugar in my cuppa. I’ve been trying other natural sweeteners like Stevia, monk fruit, a stevia/monk fruit combo but, they’re just not sweet.
            What about you? What teas do you like, and how do you take your tea?

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          4. Do you know what the origin of the milk-in-tea custom is? The way I remember it is that the Chinese were reluctant to share the secret of making porcelain with the British, so the British learned … what they could, and started to make it on their own. It turned out that those early attempts resulted in the British making porcelain that was not of the highest standards, and if you poured hot water directly on it, it would crack. So they put a wee bit of milk in first, and the boiling water after. Eventually, the British perfected the process of making porcelain, but the habit … remained.

            I used to drink my tea with sugar, and when it was available, I preferred it with lemon and honey (and something for dunking 🙂 ). Long story, now we both drink it as is. We drink gunpowder green tea (made of the whole leaves, much more gentle flavor) or Sencha and vary it with hibiscus every once in a while. If you told me 10 years ago that that’s where I’d be, I’m not sure I’d believe you but now … I’m lovin’ it!

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  2. I’m giggling about your cherry pie and the long list of substitutions. How incredibly thoughtful of you to even try that.

    But instead of food, you have me thinking of friends who know us well enough to know what we like. That is a unique skillset – someone who is looking out for us in a special way. Thanks for reminding me of all we can do for one another!

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    1. How perceptive of you, Wynne. You are right: I was very lucky to have had such a good friend. I recently saw some sad statistics about how few people have anyone who they feel truly knows them, how very many are lonely. It is a wonderful thing to have a friend, especially like mine who went out of his way to find and share with me things that will bring joy to me. Baking him a 🍒 pie was the least I could do, even if it had less than optimal result 😁 We actually watched a few episodes while eating the pie (in a binge session before binge watching was a thing 🙃 I think the show-watching greatly improved the experience of the pie, and, yes, we drank coffee with it).

      Your wise words remind me of Robert Louis Stevensons’ words from “Travels with a Donkey in the Cévennes”, where he said:

      “we are all travellers in what John Bunyan calls the wilderness of this world—all, too, travellers with a donkey: and the best that we find in our travels is an honest friend.”

      He agreed with you, it’s the best thing to have a good companion on our life’s journey. Thank you for highlighting what’s important!

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          1. Absolutely gorgeous place. One of my favorite hiking trails is right outside North Bend so I used to go there almost weekly! But I haven’t done a tour…

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  3. I absolutely love the original Twin Peaks. First, I grew up in Washington state near where it was filmed. Second, I went to college with Kyle MacLachlan (Special Agent Cooper). He was one of the most talented in the Drama Dept. I didn’t get in….but I took acting classes, set design and lighting.

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    1. OMG! How awesome is that? Kyle MacLachlan was a spectacular casting choice for Twin Peaks (and as Paul Atreides in David Lynch’s Dune)! Do you have any anecdote from an interaction with him?

      And… have you ever tried to make that cherry pie? 🙂

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    1. That is genius, Ally! Thank you so much for this: yes, you’re absolutely spot on with Harry’s love for pies “All I need is an empty room, a spoon, and a 🥧.” Love it! And this isn’t just lip service. I actually recommended Resident Alien as a show to bring cheer to our hearts (https://endlessweekend2019.wordpress.com/2024/05/21/when-you-need-cheering-up-still/) … how could I forget the bringing pie to our collective stomachs? Spectacular add!

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  5. I can’t think of any shows that I currently watch that feature food. Surely there are some, but I’m having a memory loss moment.

    Do you remember the movie Michael with John Travolta? It’s been years since I saw that, but for some reason PIE comes to mind when I think of that movie. (This is how my brain works)

    Oh, and what a gift to have such a friend who knows you SO well. I love that.

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    1. You’re lucky to have only a sporadic moment of memory loss. I don’t even remember when’s the last time I didn’t experience one 🤪

      Oh! Movies with food! For John Travolta, Pulp Fiction comes to mind with their milk shake discussions? I’m afraid I’ve never seen Michael … Should I? Best movie moment has to be the deli scene on When Harry Met Sally, what do you think? 🤓

      And, yes, you are 100% right: it’s an amazing gift that one often doesn’t appreciate until it’s too late?

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  6. As mentioned above, Resident Alien certainly has a food theme. His pie addiction includes pizza pie. Speaking of Doc Martin, I began watching a couple years ago based on an idle comment of a friend. I am leisurely working my way through season 6 right now. I guess Burt’s restaurant connects the show to food.

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    1. Absolutely spectacular (the show, and the connection). Hard to believe I forgot that one… Are you still enjoying it? Just heard it was renewed for season 4!!!

      AND Doc Martin is quite the cook himself, too (always in a suit, go figure…). Of course, he’s the one who said:

      Doc Martin: “You’re a dog trainer?”
      Barbara: “Dog psychologist. It’s all the same, really. Simply a matter of rewiring the brain.”
      Doc Martin: “Restrain that animal, or analyze its unhappy childhood.” 🙃

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        1. Thank you, I’m awfully bad at remembering anything important, but trivia, when I absolutely don’t need it, spurts out of me 🤪

          It’s funny to me how Murphy’s Laws work: shows I care nothing for get renewed for 42 seasons (or so). Shows I love barely survive? And then there are the shows that end in such a silly way that it’s almost like the writers wanted to do me a good turn by making sure I wouldn’t miss them anymore 😝

          Any shows you’d recommend?

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          1. Actually I get many good leads on shows from your posts and the comments. My quirk is that I often watch while multi tasking. As I type this, I am going through my emails while watching Doc Martin Season 6 Episode 5.

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          2. We find ourselves doing the same: multi-tasking while watching tv. When we work out, we’re captive audiences (which is why I got so many lessons from The Expanse, it’s one of the shows we watched while working out. I was paying attention :D). When we’re fiddling in the kitchen, we’re mostly captive audiences. The rest of the time, I can tell you 10% of what happened in a show 😀

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  7. “The Bear” was the first one that came to my mind, too. Great acting and amazing food? You can’t beat a combination like that.

    Tara has been watching “The Golden Girls” lately, and those old ladies sure were fond of their cheesecake.

    I’m guessing “Top Chef” and “Master Chef” don’t count!

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    1. I get The Bear, and must ask: what did you think was the best episode? For me, it was Forks, from season 2 by a mile (or two…).

      Completely forgot The Golden Girls, definitely a good one!

      And you’re right, cooking shows don’t count, even if it’s the Gordon Ramsey show 🙃 Have you ever seen him around his mother?

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