An incredibly talented, astoundingly arrogant, brutally sharp-tongued chef—who also happens to be insecure and somewhat tenderhearted under his hard-bitten exterior—is the protagonist of the BBC comedy Chef! Featuring all six episodes from the 1993 first season (along with a half-hour Christmas special on this otherwise extra-less DVD), Chef! stars Lenny Henry, who expertly delivers the reams of blistering insults Chef Gareth Blackstock hurls at the generally inept kitchen staff of the rural restaurant over which he presides like an obsessive tyrant. Fortunately, Henry is also skilled at conveying the humanity beneath the bluster, so that the audience comes to see Blackstock's drive for perfection as less bullying than endearing. The writers have concocted a sufficiently varied series of complications—the decision of Blackstock and his wife to put all their resources on the line to buy the restaurant, attempts to garner publicity for the place, the search for the best possible ingredients, disputes over expenses, etc.—to keep the program from becoming a one-joke affair. With a cast of predictably colorful, well-played supporting characters (especially Roger Griffiths as the bumbling apprentice Everton) and some able guest stars (including Oliver Samuels as Gareth's smoothly unappreciative father), Chef! proves a tasty treat, though—like a rich dessert—it's best consumed in bite-sized, single-episode sessions rather than all at once. Recommended. [Note: Chef! The Complete Series Two and Series Three are also available separately at the same price, or all three series together in the boxed set Chef! The Complete Collection for $59.98.] (F. Swietek)
Chef! The Complete Series One
BBC, 205 min., not rated, DVD: $19.98 Volume 20, Issue 6
Chef! The Complete Series One
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