Ethan Tobman & Dominique Crenn Give Us A First Look At The Menu - Exclusive Interview

There is nothing mundane about "The Menu," starting with the fact that the dishes you're asked to admire on screen — horrified, amazed, enchanted? — are not prop food. The food is probably Michelin-quality, at least if the movie's culinary consultant, Dominique Crenn, had anything to do with it. 

Consider, too, the kitchen. "The Menu" might be the most accurate culinary movie to hit the big screen yet. As set designer Ethan Tobman exclusively told Tasting Table, the movie's kitchen is astoundingly functional. Tobman — whose work you're familiar with if you've seen any of Taylor Swift's recent videos — superseded mere functionality. If you watch the black comedy closely enough, you'll find multiple nods to the legends of the food world in the set of "The Menu." 

Crenn, for her part, is re-doing her three-Michelin-starred restaurant after working on the A-lister packed movie. The chef was so impressed with how precisely Tobman understood the pandemonium in Chef Slowik's (Ralph Fiennes) head that she recruited Tobman to design her own real-life place. The new Atelier Crenn, set to open in February 2023, is as much a reflection of Dominique as "The Menu's" set mirrors Ralph Fiennes' characters' emotional odyssey (Stay tuned!) 

While we're talking about Fiennes, you should know that Crenn instructed the Tony award-winning actor on how to transform into the half-haunted artist, half-cult-leader who'll intoxicate you on-screen. She also taught Fiennes how to make "the cheeseburger." She'll teach you, too, if you stick along for the ride.  

I want to come back to that! Ethan, here's a question for you. The restaurant that you designed here gives off part military barracks vibe, part church steeple vibe. Having dined in Michelin-star restaurants in the past yourself, is that in any way a reflection of what you felt or observed?

Ethan Tobman: Everything that I do is motivated by character. I can't design anything unless I understand who the person is, and even if I don't agree with them, I have to feel like there's a part of them in me, or I can't design. From there, I start designing, and I don't know if I look at architecture to imitate it. I look more at how emotion inspires it. 

The reason I'm not an architect is because I'm not interested in creating spaces and imposing them on people. I'm interested in emotional architecture. I take what's in someone's head and I create a world to parallel it. If Slowik is inspired by the island, I want to use every material the island has to offer. He'll harvest that ecosystem to create the island.

If I want to feel, as you mentioned very intelligently, that the kitchen is a place of worship, I'm going to design it like a church. I want there to be a cross on the back wall. I want him to feel like he's sermonizing from the pulpit. I'll build his floor a little higher and all the chefs a little lower so they look like they're genuflecting to him because they're in a cult. Similarly, I want to keep the front of house and back of the house very open. 

[The] filmmaking allows for the most visual depth, but there's something off about it. There's something very controlled. Where I landed was the idea that chef is inspired by nature's perfectionism, but haunted by it. In effect, he wants to destroy it.

Dominique: The contradiction.

Ethan: Yeah, the contradiction, and that's true for so many of us as artists. We want perfectionism.

Dominique: He's haunted by it because people are haunting. It's interesting. When you say "like a Michelin star restaurant" — yes, some of them probably are very military-like [atmospheres]. Not everything is like that. Actually, Crenn is not like that. As a matter of fact, we're re-doing Crenn, and it's going to be redesigned.

Dominique, there's another half-personal thing I see in the movie. We see a taco scene in which a chicken thigh is served. What's the inspiration for that, especially because you, yourself are opening a taco restaurant, although plant-based?

Dominique: No, [I had] nothing to do with it. It was [the result of a collaboration] working with Ethan, Mark, and the writer came and brought the script. [We were] also working in what they wanted to do. It happened that [way] ... I tried to execute something they wanted me to execute. [It had] nothing to do with my own life. I could make tacos for my girls everyday.

Let's talk about pet peeves, because we get a microscopic view of those in "The Menu". We get the foodie taking pictures, we get changes requested to the menu, complaints about a broken emulsion. What are the things that irritate you most about customer requests or behaviors in a restaurant?

Dominique: There was one story [that] was a few years ago. Two guys [went] to my restaurant with a big bottle of magnum cherry port wine. They put it on the table and then they start to diminish and [were] bullying one of my servers. Furiously, I had to go back to the table and I say, "You guys take your ass out. You're not welcome in my home." 

A disrespecting customer, [who] comes to us and can't respect a person of my team or myself is not welcome. I don't have any problem with say[ing] "Get out." [My biggest pet peeve is] being disrespectful. Food is subjective. Not everything might not be [to everyone's] liking.  We can [serve] a plate or dish — [someone might say], "It's too salty." [That] doesn't bother me. I understand it, but humanity in my restaurant [is vital]. If you [are] not a good human and you walk into my [place], that is the only thing that drives me crazy.

Ethan: Because it is your home.

Dominique: It's my home. I will take action, but I will not kill them.

Dominique, one of the things that Ralph Fiennes says is that you train him how to act in the kitchen — from his body language to his facial expressions. What chefs or experiences did you draw on to help mold his character?

Dominique: I got [it], not from a chef ... The first thing I [said to him was], "You are the director ... this is your symphony. Everyone is as important that is [participating], but you are the one that is going to direct it." When you have to have your own confidence, you have to bring confidence to [everyone], and [you have to have] the intensity, [the ability to] make sure that every note goes together. From the start to the finish, this is a beautiful symphony.

That's where I drew [my inspiration from] and that's how we built [the atmosphere] in Crenn, too — from the idea of a symphony or movement of dancing. That was very important, to have [Ralph] understand the importance of confidence and connecting the dots with the team that he [was] running. You can see it, too. They will die for him. A conductor — in the symphony — the people that play will make sure that they please the conductor. 

There is no inspiration from other chefs. [The] inspiration [comes from] music, art, detail, and it's like a character. A movie [actor] is also that way. Someone that designs also is that way. [The inspiration comes from] outside of the cooking world, about how a heart come[s] together and how you build the team around you — attention to detail, and being a team.

Finally, let's talk about "The Menu's" cheeseburger.

Dominque: We taught him how to do it.

How do we replicate it in that case?

Dominique: It's all about the ingredients ... [You have to use] the best ingredient that you can find out there. A cheeseburger is about cooking from here [points to heart]. It's comfort food. If you cook with love, that is going to be the best cheeseburger that you ever had in your life. Caramelize some onions, get the best meat, grind [the] meat, cook it, caramelize onions, smash the burger on the caramelized onions, put [on] your cheese, get ... beautiful bread, whatever you want to put on that.

Ethan: God, I'm hungry.

Dominique: Put that in your mouth. I [would] add some pickle.

Ethan: Yeah, always.

Dominque: You need that. You need that layering of flavor and umami, and then, that's it. It's pretty easy to do.

Ethan: I'm absolutely starving now.

Dominique: I know. It's like I say: life is all about the ingredients that [we] use in cooking. Not [only] cooking — it's [about] what [Ethan] uses [as] ingredients to do his art. If you don't use the right ingredient and it doesn't come from [the heart], [it's a] zero. No good. Bye bye. It's true!