The idea of watching a movie and having a hot meal sounds dangerous, yet exciting. That’s exactly what we did at the NYC Food Film Festival that just wrapped up this weekend.We’re not talking about hot popcorn, but a piece of naan, a few spoonfuls of vegetables and soup. Travel Channel’s George Motz created the festival in 2007 with the idea of bringing a multi-sensory, full-bodied experience of film and food. Food is served before, during and after the film.

We watched the film Cook, Pray, Eat: Feeding 50,000 at the Sikh Golden Temple in Amritsar which documents the everyday food event in Amritsar in which volunteers serve 50,000 free meals. There is no narration in the movie, but what the movie lacks in dialogue, it makes up with a symphony of events from peeling garlic to cleaning dishes.

We were served a dish before the movie which was potato pancake-like with spinach and mango chutney. During the film we were served a soup, curried vegetables and a few pieces of bread (eating in the dark is not easy). After the film there was a tasting of many vegan-friendly Indian dishes in addition to organic sodas. Our favorite bite was the lassi pops from Monsieur Singh. Surprisingly, there wasn’t a single hitch in the food service.

Source: NYC Food Film Festival

Himself He cooks trailer from Valerie Berteau on Vimeo.

(Image Credits: Bruce Leong/Dapper Guide)