Food Explorers’ Cinema a la Carte event is a unique dining experience combining food and film.  For our second edition, we are pleased to present the award-winning German film “Bella Martha” (2001), with on-plate adaptations and interpretations of the scenes in the movie by the creative culinary team at “Felderbock” – Janosch Schüttler and Carla Ulke.

Cinema a la Carte: The Plot

The evening began with a cocktail reception during which guests mingled and enjoyed a welcome drink and appetizers, setting the tone for the evening.  Soon it was time for the movie to begin.

“Bella Martha” revolves around Martha, a very talented head chef at a posh restaurant in Hamburg.   Martha is totally consumed by her work – she is so obsessed with food that it is all she talks about with her psychotherapist.  Her rigidity keeps her from breaking out of her monotonous routine, or meeting new people.  When Martha’s sister is killed in a car accident, she must take care of her 8-year-old niece, Lina, until the girl’s father is located.

Food plays a central role in the film.  It is Martha’s only real connection to the world, though that starts to change when Mario, a charming Italian sous chef, comes to work at her restaurant.

The conflict between Martha’s iciness and Mario’s joy for life make for a colourful culture clash.  Coupled with Lina’s presence, Martha’s orderly existence is thrown in turmoil – not only is she faced with adjusting to her new parental role, but she must also find ways to deal with Lina’s grief over the loss of her mother.

After the intermission, we followed the transformation of Martha as her heart begins to open from her interactions with Lina and Mario.  She has to learn to live with the messiness of life and all the miseries that come with loss of control.

All’s well that ends well – our evening concluded on a sweet note with a delicious trio of desserts, mirroring the pleasure Martha finds in her new life with Lina and Mario.

A big “Thank You” goes out to our wonderful guests who supported this event and made it a success.  Food Explorers look forward to bringing you more of such evenings in the near future!