Weekend Cooking: Always Be My Maybe (Movie)

I'm always on the look-out for a good foodie movie, so couldn't resist trying Always Be My Maybe (Netflix, dir. Nahnatchka Khan, 2019), starring Ali Wong and Randall Park.

This cute rom-com is about how childhood neighbors and friends went from BFFs to virtual strangers after high school graduation. Sixteen years later they are united again by chance . . . and you can generally guess the rest.

Sasha Tran grew up with hardworking parents who weren't around much, so she spent a lot of her time next door with Marcus Kim and his parents. Sasha always loved to cook and eventually became a celebrity chef, opening restaurants throughout the United States.

Marcus loved music, started a high school band, and became a popular local rap musician. He, however, chose to stay home after high school to live and work with his widowed father. Marcus is more cautious than Sasha and feels a strong sense of responsibility for his dad.

By the time they meet up again, when Sasha is back in San Francisco to open her latest restaurant, she's rich and famous and Marcus is content but not at all rich or famous. I liked the way Marcus still saw her as his childhood best friend and that Sasha didn't snub him. Their relationship seemed realistic, both as kids and as adults. Other themes of Always Be My Maybe had to do with friendship, family, and following one's dream.

 There wasn't a whole lot of food porn in Always Be My Maybe, but I had to laugh at the $6400 dinner (paid for my Keanu Reeves's character), with its multiple pretentious courses. Still, I enjoyed the movie for its restaurant and cooking underlayer and especially for the diverse cast; in fact, Reeves, who a plays a parody of himself, is one of the few white people in the entire film.

Is Always Be My Maybe utterly predictable? Yes. But is it fun? Also a yes if you like rom-coms. If you're looking for a light foodie-type movie for a relaxing evening, give this Netflix Original a go. Here's the trailer (warning: adult language and themes):

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