Menus-Plaisirs – Les Troisgros

Frederick Wiseman’s 44th feature documentary turns the lens on the kitchens of a Michelin three-star French restaurant and the family that runs it.

Established in 1930 by Marie and Jean-Baptiste Troisgros, La Maison Troisgros earned its first Michelin star in 1956. Twelve years later, it had attained three-star status – a coveted position it has retained ever since. Now run by the couple’s grandson Michel Troisgros, the restaurant, which in 2017 relocated to the town of Ouches with the new name Le Bois sans Feuilles, is a perfect institution for the venerated filmmaker (and MIFF favourite!) to immortalise on camera.

Following the day-to-day minutiae of the Troisgros gastronomic dynasty – Michel and sons César, who also works at Le Bois san Feuilles, and Léo, who runs the nearby restaurant La Colline du Colombier – Wiseman’s four-hour feast is a foodie’s fantasy. Characteristically intimate and immersive without being intrusive, it’s a genuine farm-to-table film, patiently following the Troisgros men from the market to the dining room and everything in between.

Unlike the small pleasures of its title, Menus-Plaisirs – Les Troisgros is a tremendous Epicurean delight: so sumptuous and indulgent a study of the creativity and dedication that goes into every mouthful that its decadent running time flies by.

“Absorbing from start to finish … Menus-Plaisirs has all the virtues of a Wiseman movie, but its focus on beautiful food that’s prepared and served with equal beauty makes it especially seductive.” – New York Times