Tastefilm presents an innovative concept: watch a film while you’re served courses of the food that features. But at the hefty price tag, is it worth it? I finally got tickets and was able to test it for myself.
What is Tastefilm?
Tastefilm is a cinema experience with a tasty twist, combining multi-course dining with movie viewing. Toting itself as “the only way to watch what you eat”, it collaborates with well-rated restaurants and independent chefs to serve you courses of food and drink that feature in the movie you’re watching.
Prices vary based on the film, but from what I can currently see from the tickets on their website, they tend to be either £80 or £100. Expensive, yes, but that covers around 5 courses of food, alcohol, and a cinema ticket. If done right, it could certainly be accurately priced, and I wanted to determine whether it was, in fact, done right.
The Tastefilm experience
At the beginning of this year, I made a bucket list of activities and experiences that I wanted to have in 2024. After fighting for tickets numerous times last year and failing, Tastefilm was right at the top of that list. When the email came through advertising their latest movies, I saw Tim Burton’s Alice In Wonderland and jumped straight to my group chat. While I’m not particularly passionate about the movie having only seen it once years ago, I knew (or hoped, I guess) that the food and presentation would be phenomenal.
On walking into the makeshift cinema (a beautifully decorated room with a projector in the back of an independent restaurant), I was immediately excited. Tables were pre-assigned, grouping you with those you’d bought tickets with and were alight with cute mushroom lamps and locked chests, Alice in Wonderland style. They also came with baskets of popcorn to munch on while we waited… Although, admittedly, these were pretty stale.
“There was something so jovial about partaking in an afternoon tea in sync with the Mad Hatter on the screen.”
They keep the events very small (which explains why tickets sell out so quickly), so although we were grouped at a table of three at the back, we still had a clear view of the screen. The tables ranged from more communal-sized benches to smaller grouped tables, to a few small tables of two. Although, I suppose this would probably alter based on the venue itself.
What was the food like?
I can’t speak for Tastefilm as a whole, as the food will vary based on the film and the venue that’s hosting. The Alice in Wonderland menu consisted of 4 food courses, 2 alcoholic and 2 smaller juice drinks.
Our Tastefilm Menu
Roses are Red tart
A tomato rose on top of a red onion and cream cheese tart.
With a tomato sauce you could use to physically paint the roses red.
A key to your dreams
Lemon sherbert in a “shrink me” bottle and a parmesan biscuit in film-accurate “eat me” wrapping.
Served in a chest that you had to unlock much like Alice did with the doors.
Magic Mushroom Mezcalita
A cocktail made with mushroom-infused mezcal, Cointreau, lime and orange and served in a mushroom glass.
Twisted Tea Party
A savoury afternoon tea platter, consisting of a cheese and tomato mushroom, a chicken roll in a brioche bun, prawn tempura, a large sausage roll, a breaded pastry of some sort and a mushroom puff, along with a selection of dips.
Wishful Drinking
A DIY Lychee Martini.
Broken into test tubes and pots for you to mix in time with the White Witch making her potions.
The Impossible Knight
Six small dessert tasters, laid out across a chess board.
Each one representing one of the “six impossible things” Alice lists in the final battle.
On first looking at the menu and seeing that two “courses” were drinks, I was slightly worried I’d spend £100 to leave hungry. However, when the afternoon tea showed up I quickly ate my words (as well as a super tasty chicken roll). Tastefilm has nailed the “little and often” serving method, ensuring that you’re never bored and certainly never hungry. I struggled to make it through the desserts, but I certainly gave them my best efforts.
Though it was all tasty and the experience was so fun, I have to say that none of the dishes themselves particularly blew me out of the water. The afternoon tea was my favourite, and the tempura, chicken roll and breadcrumbed pasty were the highlights, but nothing was a standout when it came to taste. In the same vein, nothing was bad either. Except for the mushroom cocktail. That made me deeply upset (but was fun to try).
Highlights and Lowlights
We’ll start with the lowlights to get them out of the way: this is not for you if you need silence and focus to watch a film. While it’s not particularly loud (everyone was very respectful if they spoke amongst themselves), it is certainly not cinema-level quiet or immersive. The movie is shown on a projector, the room is never pitch black as you need to see your food, and you are encouraged to keep your phone on to take pictures and videos of the experience. Additionally, I found that due to our table being at the back, I was often broken out of the film due to waiters blocking my view as they served others. This was only ever brief, but is something to keep in mind if you’re there mostly for the viewing. Also, while I was full, I do not believe I had £100 worth of food.
Highlight-wise, this is such a fun experience. It was great to do something a little different and be immersed in a film in a different kind of way. There was something so jovial about partaking in an afternoon tea in sync with the Mad Hatter on the screen. Also, the staff and team running it were so wonderfully friendly and helpful, and are open to suggestions for future films.
So, is Tastefilm worth it?
I have been in two minds about this because I had a great time, but I do have to consider the price tag. Whilst I did leave full, I felt the food itself was quite basic and I would not class it as £100 worth of food. I know that a lot of the cost comes from the presentation and the experience itself, but if I was presented with the food alone in a restaurant, I’d be shocked if I paid more than £50.
That being said, I would recommend it and I would go again for the right movie. It is such a fun and unique experience that I think would make the perfect gift or special day out for someone. It is certainly not something I would recommend that you do again and again and again, but I think it’s worth trying once for a movie you care about and know well. I have no regrets and left the experience smiling, and if The Menu comes back, I will be first in the ticket queue.
If you are interested, be sure to sign up to their mailing list and register for priority tickets. It’s your best shot at actually getting tickets to a showing.
Would you attend a Tastefilm event? Let me know below.
Lots of love,
Jas xx
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This sounds like such a neat idea!! 😍
It’s so fun!