The Kitchen Brigade is a wish-fulfilment comedy about the topical issue of migration to the European Union.
Yes, Chef!
by Alexa DalbyCAUTION: Here be spoilers
A volatile Michelin-starred chef has an argument with her celebrity chef boss and storms out of her restaurant for artistic reasons. The only job she can find after that is in a migrant hostel, where, overcoming her frustration at being there and the lack of resources, she trains the boys in cookery, despite the reluctance of some of them, and forms them into a well-drilled kitchen brigade.
This is a real fish-out-of-water comedy with a contemporary (albeit wish-fulfilment fantasy) twist: it was made a few years ago, and some of the references show it. Today, when migrants are in the headlines, it has different resonances for us. These unaccompanied ‘boys’ can only stay in France if they can prove they are under 18 – after that the older ones are deported.
The direction by Louis-Julien Petit is unexceptional. The main emphasis is on the characters and actors well-known in France: Cathy-Marie, the chef (Audrey Lamy); her friend wanna-be actress Fatou (Fatoumata Kaba); Lorenzo, the liberal middle-aged hostel manager (François Cluzet); Sabine, his well-meaning, overweight, education assistant (Chantal Neuwirth); and the boys – precocious, endearing little GusGus (Yannick Kalombo) et al – some get names, but not all.
Of course, they all come to learn the truth about each other, use recipes that remind them of home, learn about their hardships in life, and how to get along well with each other. Change and learnings are possible! It’s enjoyable and heart-warming, if unrealistic.
The Kitchen Brigade is released on 3 October 2025 in the UK.
