A Matter of Taste: Serving Up Paul Liebrandt

Play trailer

A Matter of Taste: Serving Up Paul Liebrandt

2011

1h 8m

Documentary

Biography

Play Trailer

Watchlist

Watchlist

Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

Tomatometer

4 Reviews

67%

Popcornmeter

50+ Ratings

Paul Liebrandt was only 24 when he became the youngest chef in history to receive a three-star rating from the New York Times for his innovative style of haute cuisine. But, after he quit his job in 2001 over a menu dispute, his career came to a standstill, and he was unable to find work in a post-9/11 New York City. Director Sally Rowe tracks the highs and lows of Liebrandt's nine-year journey as he attempts to get his culinary life back on track in the dog-eat-dog world of fine dining.

Stephen Cole

Globe and Mail

A Matter of Taste does an admirable job demonstrating how much body and soul go into a good restaurant.

Rated: 3/4

Sep 30, 2011

Full Review

Linda Barnard

Toronto Star

Rowe lets us see the true nature of the genius behind the pans.

Rated: 3/4

Sep 29, 2011

Full Review

Michelle da Silva

Georgia Straight

This fast-paced documentary offers a view into the enormous amount of work that goes into running a restaurant kitchen, and a glimpse into a young mind struggling to maintain balance between artist and madman.

May 3, 2017

Full Review

Chris Barsanti

PopMatters

...[a] perceptive and entertaining extreme-foodie documentary.

Rated: 9/10

May 2, 2011

Full Review

Read all reviews

Audience Member

You wouldn't call it an in depth expose, but there's still a lot of interesting detail.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

02/20/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Truly inspirational. 'A Matter of Taste' give us an up close look into the sweat and blood that goes into rising up in the gastronomical world or any industry for that matter. The beauty of his character is that he believes in coming out with the best and doesn't ever allow the economical system to shatter his dreams in spite of the failures he has to move forward from. The bittersweet idea of finding the balance between growth in personal life/your image in society to growth in what your passionate about is an important theme shown beautifully here. What I loved about the documentary was how he has documented his rise in the industry over the years in a very informal fashion. This allows the viewer to see a real character come up through the bullshit that life throws at you in the most real form possible and the truth is that this is applicable for any occupation. The struggle has been captured really well and through that the success even better.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

01/26/23

Full Review

Audience Member

The world of gastronomy and haute cusine is very fascinating to me. This movie provided the viewer with an up close glimpse into the life of a young up and coming chef, Liebrandt and his journey to establish himself as a chef with staying power and later, his attempt to gain the much coveted Michelin stars. Oddly enough, I went back and forth with the idea of making reservations at Corton in NYC last year. Only to find out after watching this, that Liebrandt is the head chef/director at Corton.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

01/18/23

Full Review

Audience Member

A must-watch for foodies!

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

02/16/23

Full Review

Audience Member

I get it. He's fascinating.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

02/26/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Loved this movie. Made me realize that I absolutely DO NOT want to become a chef! But great flick.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/11/23

Full Review

Read all reviews

Read More

Read Less

POST RATING

WRITE A REVIEW

EDIT REVIEW

Sally Rowe

Director

Heston Blumenthal

Actor

Daniel Boulud

Actor

Frank Bruni

Actor

Paul Liebrandt

Actor

Drew Nieporent

Actor

Show Less Cast & Crew

Show More Cast & Crew

View more photos

Synopsis

Paul Liebrandt was only 24 when he became the youngest chef in history to receive a three-star rating from the New York Times for his innovative style of haute cuisine. But, after he quit his job in 2001 over a menu dispute, his career came to a standstill, and he was unable to find work in a post-9/11 New York City. Director Sally Rowe tracks the highs and lows of Liebrandt's nine-year journey as he attempts to get his culinary life back on track in the dog-eat-dog world of fine dining.

Director: Sally Rowe
Producer: Alan Oxman, Sally Rowe, Rachel Mills
Genre: Documentary, Biography
Original Language: English
Release Date (Streaming): Aug 10, 2016
Runtime: 1h 8m