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Where Was The Menu Movie Filmed

Was the restaurant inspired by any real meals you’ve had?

I’m a huge foodie and I find filmmaking and food-making really similar—they’re both ephemeral; they bring together very random groups of people and they create an artificial, highly immersive environment that you miss the moment it’s over. Where I personally felt that most was Noma in Copenhagen—I was lucky enough to get a last-minute table there on Christmas Eve in 2017. I didn’t realize it was the last time they’d ever be serving that menu (prior to a six-month refurb closure) and the staff were ready to celebrate; the lines between upstairs and downstairs blurred and my four-hour dinner turned into a 12-hour dance-athon! They showed us the fruit cellar, the dry cellar, how emulsions are made. I was so sad when I left, and I thought: to recreate that on a film set would be the greatest joy.

I also worked with chef Dominique Crenn [the only female chef in the United States to attain three Michelin stars, at Atelier Crenn in San Francisco] who consulted on the movie . She and I became so close; I was designing the plates that would house the film’s dishes, and a fully functioning kitchen that had to pass the rigors of a Michelin chef’s opinion. By the time we got to the first day of shooting, she said, “I want you to redesign my restaurant.” And I said yes. We plan to open early 2023. It’s the greatest example of art imitating life, imitating art.

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The Georgia coast is a magical place to take a trip—where did the cast stay?

The Perry Lane Hotel in Savannah, which was excellent, [and has] a beautiful rooftop bar. But what was most memorable was the local food—of course, it was such a big part of our journey. Common Thread was our favorite—we liked the restaurant so much we hired the then-chef John Benhase to work on our advisement crew. The other huge discovery was Chocolat—the owner, Adam Turoni, ended up making our custom chocolate for the film; it was so fun to hang out in his shop after hours, making chocolate sculptures at 3:00 a.m. for the s’mores scene in the movie. Then there’s The Crab Shack on Tybee Beach—I’ve been all over the American South and it’s the greatest I’ve ever been to. We also loved Mrs. Wilkes Dining Room, the oldest restaurant in Savannah; Mrs. Wilkes fell in love with us and would send over hundreds of boxes of her fried chicken she’s known for. In fact, the Obamas were eating there on one of our visits.

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