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Bite into the plot: How movies are stirring up the menus
From Heeramandi-inspired cocktails to ZNMD-style tapas, OTT is reshaping restaurant menus into cinematic experiences
Once confined to screens, cinematic storytelling has now spilled over into our plates and glasses. Across India and beyond, restaurants and cafés are embracing the trend of OTT-inspired dining — crafting immersive menus that blur the lines between food and film. Whether it’s a glitter-dusted mocktail echoing Disney’s Encanto (2021 )or a tasting menu that channels the spirit of Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara (2011), this isn’t just about themed meals — it’s about eating emotions, tasting plotlines and sipping cinematic nostalgia.
How it all started
The phenomenon gained traction earlier this year when Netflix launched Netflix Bites at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas (USA). On the menu? Squid Game-style snacks and Bridgerton-inspired brunches. It wasn’t long before restaurants around the world followed suit. Viewers didn’t just want to binge-watch anymore but also binge-eat their favourite shows. As Josh Simon, Vice President of Consumer Products at Netflix, puts it: “Fans don’t just want merch anymore. They want experiences.”
Mood on a plate
This genre of dining goes beyond clever names. A dish isn’t just tasty — it’s dramatic, poetic, even bittersweet. Menus read like screenplays; a salad might serve as the emotional reset of Act Two. The goal? To evoke the narrative through taste.
At EnCanto, a Gurugram café named after the 2021 Disney film, food becomes pure sensory magic. “OTT shows are no longer something we just binge,” says director Tusheeta Khanna, adding, “They’re part of our emotional vocabulary.” Their star drink, the Casita Cooler — a shimmering mocktail of coconut water, pineapple, and passionfruit — is designed to feel like stepping inside the film’s enchanted house of the same name.
Summer on the menu
In Bengaluru, ParTTwo channels the essence of Endless Summer (1966), a surf documentary that celebrates eternal sunshine and travel. Chef Karan Upmanyu crafts dishes like the Wai-Wai Salad, a grown-up spin on the beloved Nepali snack. With cold shrimp, pomelo, crispy noodles, and cabbage, it captures both nostalgia and freshness. “Summer is about joy, boldness, and friendships,” he says. “That’s what we’ve tried to plate.”
Seasonal ingredients like mango and pumpkin get unexpected, playful treatments — culinary nods to carefree memories and sun-drenched wanderlust.
When food and film collide
In Delhi, the collaboration between The Piano Man and Sunset Cinema Club takes the concept a step further. Their film-and-food evenings begin with screenings of films like Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara and segue into menus that reflect the plot. Chef Manoj’s ZNMD-inspired tasting experience included churros, tapas, and cocktails named after the characters. “Each dish is tied to a moment from the film. It’s storytelling, but through flavour,” says Sahil Kapoor, founder of Sunset Cinema Club.
At Qavalli in Delhi, the Mallika Jaan cocktail — infused with kokum, Timur pepper, and tequila — honours the powerful women of Heeramandi. “We wanted a drink that felt rooted and confident like Mallika Jaan herself. It’s a tribute to women who shape the world with quiet force,” says founder Dinesh Arora.
Eat what you watch
At Taste Cinemas — with locations across India — the cinematic dining experience is literal. Their recent Twilight-inspired event featured a nine-course menu, from blood-red shots to edible baseballs, recreating the film’s love story bite by bite.
