Quaint Colloquies: August 2007

I recently had the pleasure of viewing this utterly delectable movie, which completely blew me away with its simplicity and obviously its food. The fantastic combination of a rat, who, has the gift of sensing flavors and a gawky garbage boy, who, has been a loser all his life is endearing, hilarious and delicious.

The movie inspired me so much that I actually googled for the recipe of ratatouille online and may think of making it someday for my unsuspecting friends. Ratatouille is a peasant dish made with a combination of zucchinis, tomatoes, eggplants and green and red peppers flavored with onions and garlic. Apparently, an American chef was hired as a consultant for this movie and he gave a new twist to the way ratatouille is made and that’s how it was shown in the movie. The most charming scene of this movie was the time when the food critic Anton Ego tastes the ratatouille made by Remy and dreams of his mom. The scene, although hilarious, makes us realize how all of us humans think alike. For any individual in any part of the world, mom-made food is the benchmark for comparing any tastes.

The director has been very careful in making every food scene look scrumptious and yummy enough to tickle your senses. Whether it’s the scene where Remy tries to cook mushroom, cheese and a twig of rosemary on a chimney or when he tries to correct the disastrous soup made by Linguini. The scenes featuring the explosion of flavors experienced by Remy when he first eats a piece of cheese and strawberry together almost made me taste a strawberry cheesecake in my mouth.

French cuisine is amongst the few western cuisines, which has some great vegetarian options. We do not have enough options for French cuisine in Mumbai, actually none that I know of, but I do believe, that this movie should generate interest of many a food enthusiasts in experiencing what seems to be an assortment of culinary delights.

A must watch for all foodies like me. Do not miss this movie for anything in this world!!