Food Culture and Restaurant as a Workplace

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Generally, cultures provide a deep connection with the people of the same belief and norms. These norms raise them and their communities, allowing them to have the same attitudes, treatments, and perspectives over ideologies. One of the ideologies affected by culture is food and its preparation. Various cultures treat food and its preparation differently, and the differences have been well-demonstrated in films such as “Burnt” and “East Side Sushi” and novels such as “Last Night at the Lobster.” These films gave food its own identity differently, and these showed how food cultures affect the relationships between people.
One of the films that best portrayed food cultures and people’s attitudes toward food are the 2015 film, Burnt. It tells the story of a previously renowned chef in Paris, France, Adam Jones, who lost his starlight when he indulged in drug use and persevered in his journey to perfecting the taste of food. When he lost his shine, he decided to run away from what was once his ultimate dream and decided to take remorse for what he did to his life (Wells). Another film-related to food cultures is East Side Sushi, which tells a story about an aspiring Sushi chef, Juana, with a Latina origin. She was initially a fruit vendor, but she worked quickly and efficiently when slicing and dicing food. Because of her talent, she applied at a local Japanese restaurant and attempted to play with food to create many sushi styles and flavors. Although her race and gender are unfitting, she strived to become one of the greatest sushi chefs in history (Lucero).
Burnt and East Side Sushi shared similarities and differences on the following aspects: 1) Emphasis on the quality of work of the chef and his or her experience and how they treat food; 2) The origins or culture of the chef; 3) The reaction of people when presented with various types of food; 4) The battle inside the kitchen and on the service on the restaurant; 5) The relationships made due to food and food cultures.
Burnt and East Side Sushi highlighted the need to have excellent food preparation. Here, the first and second criteria shall be discussed. Both films emphasized the importance of experience in cooking and its connection with food origins. In Burnt, the food culture is based on European nations, which have many fine-dining restaurants. It focused on elegance and reputation rather than embracing a specific culture. Here, the chef’s experience and “arrogance” were the essential factors in creating palatable foods. The experience allows the chef to move smoothly without any mistakes, and any deviations from the criteria during the food preparation and any error shall be deemed unacceptable. The food prepared shall be thrown for it will not satisfy the sophisticated tongues of the customers. By contrast, East Side Sushi showed the importance of perseverance, especially when the chef has a different race from the origins of the food that she is preparing. In this case, a Latina is trying to fit in the Japanese culture because she wanted to become a Sushi chef. Aside from perseverance, East Side Sushi demonstrated the importance of authenticity rath...