Replacing Chef Chico

Typically, Filipino TV shows/Movies always had the same plot. Third parties, sexual nature, mediocre storylines and many more.

THIS, however, is such a refreshing sight! The female lead is realistic, not too glamorous looking for a Chef role as it should.

You can feel the emotions from the characters involved. Soundtrack was beautiful. Cinematography felt high class, not your typical Filipino low budget films.

I hope this paves the way for BETTER Filipino movies.

I just wish Netflix could translate some phrases better.

Other than that, this show will take you on a ride. You may tear/sob, or laugh + drool with the showcase of Filipino cuisine!!

Alright, let's talk about Alessandra De Rossi and this weird series. De Rossi rose to leading-lady status after the success of "Kita Kita", a film that dominated the local box office. So following its triumph, she seemed to develop a sense of entitlement, assuming she'd be inundated with similar role offers afterwards, sadly none of it happened to her. To make matters worse, a tensions arose between her and Arci Muñoz after ABS-CBN allegedly reneged on its promise to cast her as a leading lady for a TV show. She was so mad to that. So to ease her frustration, she pivoted to producing her own films, with dashing leading men and narratives seemingly tailored to make her feel desirable that she also written. Lol.

Anyway, we decided to binge this Filipino series that was blatantly trying to emulate the Golden-Globe Winning Series "Bear". Sadly instead the series delving into the intricacies of meals, the show veered into an indulgent exploration of De Rossi's character personal struggles. As if that weren't bad enough, some characters are spewing overly theatrical Tagalog monologues too explaining the menu in some scenes, an absurdity that would never occur in a legitimate fine dining restaurants lol. It was soooo cringeworthy.

And then, of course, there was this preposterous love triangle tension involving Sam Milby and Piolo Pascual's character, pffft! De Rossi as the romantic focal point?! Hilarious! First, the pairing was physically unconvincing. Second, her character oscillated between grating and insufferable. And let's be honest, the concept, along with several key elements, was shamelessly ripped-off from the series "Bear"!

The movie has a good plot. Good theme and motive. Except for their chosen leading lady. She doesnt fit the role.. she is emotion-less.. like a sociopath with no feelings. She cannot act. And considering there's 2 of the most handsome and best actors. Why did they even choose this actress? It made the series undesirable. It ruined the greatness of the story. Sorry to be harsh but that's my honest opinion. I mean even the other characters were really good! The restaurant characters were better actors/actresses than the leading lady! But the story and plot were good. Just the leading actress is yuck.

Overall I think it's a missed opportunity to be something better. I like the focus on the customers and how it shows why Hain is special and not just a restaurant serving good food and fine dining. The perspective is really nice, a nice back and forth focus between the kitchen and the customers, but the delivery was pretty cringey. The love stories and the conversations were sometimes just too long and unnecessary. The constant background music was also pretty annoying. This is a typical kind of Filipino telenovela/drama which is not something necessarily negative, but I have my doubts it will be popular for the good characteristics in the west.

What an empowering, thoughtful and wonderful show! It's both gentle and captivating and I enjoyed every episode. L I loved how all of the characters gained depth and nuance as the show progressed and I especially loved seeing Chef Ella find her voice and own her talents. I also really enjoyed how each episode centered on a specific event happening in the restaurant showcasing tender-hearted stories from all walks of life. There is some verbal/emotional abuse from the chef that Ella steps in to replace but it is shown to be as such and the show deals with it in an appropriate and healing way. I highly recommend it if you enjoy thoughtful storytelling with a gorgeous soundtrack.