It is said that the way to any human’s heart is good food and even better TV shows. With a new venture- a pop-up restaurant aptly named ‘Netflix Bites’, it appears that Netflix has got all bases covered. The streaming giant that revolutionized the entertainment industry, is now breaking new ground by venturing into the world of culinary delights with its very own restaurant concept. Netflix has moved on to tickling not just your visual senses but your taste buds too.
The eatery, ‘Netflix Bites’ premiered on the 30th of June in the ‘Short Stories Hotel’ situated in West Hollywood. The functioning hours of this pop-up are stated as 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. daily. On Sundays and Saturdays, they serve brunch to add to its already booming flair. It was introduced as a ‘limited run’ pop-up where the restaurant is expected to stay open until August. And it is, of course, reserved and packed for quite a while where even before the launch of the menu, the reservations were nearly full.
The pop-up restaurant presents creations from top-class chefs that are featured on shows that are constantly streamed and binge-watched. A few of the shows that may ring a bell are ‘Chef’s Table’, ‘Iron Chef’,’ Is It Cake?’ and ‘Drink Masters’. Reports state that “Michelin-Starred chefs such as Dominique Crenn and Curtis Stone are among the chefs participating”. In addition, the East-West fusion master Ming Tsai and baker Nadiya Hussain are also on the participants’ list, even if it is for a limited time. Hearing such names makes this eatery sound more like a red carpet lineup than an eatery’s kitchen staff. That is the catch of ‘Netflix Bites’, enabling an unrivaled experience that you thought would happen only in your wildest dreams. But don’t be mistaken, you are not the only one who is excited to be a part of ‘Netflix Bites’, Curtis Stone exclaims, “Bringing my love of food to people across the world is one of the biggest thrills of my life but this screen-to-table experience of giving fans a taste of what happens on camera is just awesome”.
A Synopsis of Netflix Bites
Does it come with all the glamor of the celebrity world? The answer to these could be both yes and no. Primarily, the setup of the restaurant, the props, and the ambience is one with a theatrical set. The space allocated for the restaurant occupies the bar and the courtyard of a hotel. The dining booths are surrounded by floor lamps, there is a barbeque pit, a pizza oven, Netflix-branded pillows, walls, and even plates which serve as excellent backgrounds for makeshift photo booths. In terms of the aesthetic, there truly seems to be no stone unturned when they have tried to replicate what the virtual version of Netflix offers.
To add to the spice, fans are given a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to influence the menu. Netflix plans to host interactive and immersive functions where diners can vote for their favorite dishes, and the one with the most votes retains a permanent spot on the menu. It’s a democratic food revolution where fans have a direct say in dining choices.
To complement the atmosphere they got creative with the menu as well. The menu covers a range of intriguing dishes from Andrew Zimmern’s grandmother’s meatloaf to Ming Tsai’s truffle and mushroom-stuffed ‘MingBings’ to Rodney Scott’s whole hog. The menu as a whole is categorized into five sections: Small Bites, Pizza by Ann Kim, Big Bites, Sweet Bites, and Sips. Sips as the name suggests is the beverages menu which is a customized mix of cocktails orchestrated by the MVPs of Netflix’s “Drink Masters”. Paying a visit to their website will give you an even better insight into the panoply of dishes that they offer. It will have you binge-reading it for hours.
On the pilot episode of Netflix Bites …
Despite all the excited chatter revolving around the eatery, the ratings aren’t all just 5-star reviews. Several food critics who restaurant hop for a living made a pause at ‘Netflix Bites’. They have varying, mostly unsatisfactory reviews about the taste of the food and of course the exorbitant prices. What most said was that while the food is not that bad, paying such a steep price for something that you get for much cheaper and tastier at another place was not worth the effort. Replaying back to the hot takes on the taste of the food, several food connoisseurs question whether Netflix Bites is moving too fast from being about ‘Netflix and Chill-ing’ to Netflix and Kill-ing the entire excitement about having their food with some of the bland dishes that they serve. However, despite such criticisms, a recommendation that came from a few of them was the ‘Chef’s Table: BBQ star Rodney Scott’s Pulled WHole Hog and Tsai’s mushroom binge. The first being priced at US$46 and the latter at US$27, can have you hooked and will give you taste worth its subscription.
Additionally, it also doesn’t help that the blingy expenditure that was allocated for marketing and promotions of their eatery coincided with Hollywood’s biggest labor strike that took place in six decades. Bowman and Romo writing for NPR posts that the timing and the grandeur of “the promotional campaign couldn’t be more surreal”. Most shows and scripted films are on pause because the contracts that actors had with major studios, including Netflix, collapsed. It is against a calamitous backdrop as such that Netflix Bites is ending its run.
It is only natural that a fraction of people subscribe to the glam and gloss of what the pop-up eatery offers and the other half is disdained. However, what this new venture with all its creativity, innovation, and glamor informs us is that when it comes to culinary delights, what happens on Netflix doesn’t stay on Netflix. They may not invite you to share your passwords but they seem to be gleefully onboard with sharing their ‘Netflix Bites’.
(Sandunlekha Ekanayake)