A few months ago while trying to find something to watch on Netflix, a documentary about street food in Asian countries came up on my feed. I was already a fan of the series “Chef’s Table”, so expecting a similar story I started watching “Street Food: Asia”.
Netflix documentaries are well known for having heartwarming stories that will touch the spectators’ feelings by showing stories that are so human that anyone can relate to them.
Family focused storylines, family secrets and parental hardships are part of these stories. They show the human side of the business, they show that every successful story started with pain, hard work and a lot of effort.
Street Food: Asia is full of well shot scenes that actually lets viewers feel the vibe of the place, watching every single episode will make you feel as if you were actually there, experience the scent, feel the crowd and the heat of the hobs.
You wouldn’t expect street food to look so well presented but these small vendors have managed to provide local flavours with visuals that you would expect in high end restaurants with three Michelin stars.
The 9 episodes of the first season of this series are full of nostalgic stories. It is not just about food. It is about the story behind every single dish, the personal journeys of each one of the cooks featured, the art behind the craft, their personal struggles, the cultural richness of every single plate being sold.
The local cuisine of the countries featured is the center of the storyline describing the importance of their origins and the reasons why each one of them is working hard to keep part of their cultural roots in a dish, leaving aside the globalised world we all live in and remaining truthful to the heritage of every one of them.
Something that definitely caught my attention was the way in which the series captured the social structure behind the food business in the countries featured, experience, time and age are key factors for each one of these cooks. They have earned their peers’ respect with professionalism, outstanding skills and a lot of patience to endure what happens around them.
This documentary is one of my favourites on Netflix, with every single episode l wanted to know more about the country’s culture, its cuisine, its heritage.
Street Food: Asia will leave its viewers hungry and craving for those flavours, scents and the stories behind them.
And what about you, are you craving for any of the dishes?
