From Screen to Plate: Taste Film review

For all movie-loving foodies, Taste Film should be on your radar, with the idea that you can enjoy a three-course meal based on the actual food and drink from the film you are watching.

I recently ventured to Parlour at Kensal Green, a quaint little bar and restaurant, to try Taste Film’s offering of comedy movie Bridesmaids.

Although I know the movie well, I was completely unaware of what food to expect other than Mexican cuisine – which would hopefully spare me of food poisoning unlike the bridal party of Lillian in the film –  and perhaps a cake or two.

Led into a private dining room made up of long tables, each place accompanied by low-light touch lamps, popcorn and decorative placemats and menus to match the theme of the movie, the set looked like that of a film itself.

There is a drinks menu if you fancy any extra tipples, including special cocktails of the day. I treated myself to the ‘Pick N Mix’, a frozen sweety daiquiri with jellybeans and bubble-gum flavouring. The concoction was everything you can imagine, a burst of sugary sweetness frozen to melt away on the tastebuds.

Once everyone was seated and the film began, the starter was soon served. Labelled ‘Baby’s Got Cakes’, this savoury cupcake with a cornbread base was topped with fresh salmon and served on a stream of thin cream cheese and dill frosting. Unsure at first, I quickly found that the buttery and smooth salmon complemented the tangy frosting well and the cornbread helped to soak up and bring the flavours together.

The first themed drink was also brought. Named ‘I Do…Drink”, this mix of peach schnapps and white wine with a secret fruity twist offered notes of strong bitter citrus paired with a sugary berry flavour. Keeping up with the attention to detail, the drink was served with a ring box filled with a sweet.

Around 40 minutes into the film, around the point of the iconic food poisoning fiasco, the main course was served. A real taste of Brazil, this was fortunately a different experience to that of Amy’s in the film. Juicy grilled skirt steak on a skewer known as Brazilian Churrasco, was served with a side of black beans, white rice and collards. The meat was tender and flavourful, while the sides were just the right amount of crunchy. The main was both tasty and filling and given that it has been a week I can safely say there has been no food poisoning, however, it was just a tad odd to be enjoying food while watching people on screen not so enjoy it…

Round two of drinks was perfectly timed so that you could sip on a hard pink lemonade as Amy had hers. This drink was my favourite, refreshingly sweet while having a slight kick of spirit. To accompany the drink, we were brought a ‘Maid of Dishonour’ chocolate fondue with a mix of fruit and biscuits as the bridal shower chaos unfolded. The melted chocolate was smooth and not too sweet so it was not sickly with the sugary drinks. It made for the perfect afters to the main.

The final dessert was the ‘Sorry Excuse of a Carrot Cake’, a half-baked soft dough dosed in sugary frosting with a plain biscuit top and a pipet of chocolate to decorate it with your own message. Expecting a carrot cake flavour I was surprised at the strong vanilla taste; however, as it melted in my mouth, I found it was a lovely sweet end to the meal.

Overall, Taste Film was an unusually unique and fun experience that I would try again for a different film. While the attention to small fun details is at the centre of the presentation of food and drink, the taste and quality do not falter. The servers are prompt and timely so that everyone receives their courses at the same time. The company is currently hosting a range of different movie experiences including Step Brothers, Grease and Dirty Dancing.

Taste Film

https://www.tastefilm.co.uk

See website for tickets and locations.

Tickets: £75 each