I am a foodie. If you put something in front of me and tell me it’s food, I will eat it. Food might be the only thing besides my family that I love as much as movies. So when food and movies come together, it’s something that I cannot miss. There is something about showing the artistry of well-prepared food to the point where the visual is so clear that you can almost taste the food yourself. Food is a primal need, and something almost anyone can relate to as most people appreciate good food. By itself, food nourishes our bodies, but excellent food, prepared with care and presented with pride also nourishes our soul. It makes sense then, that films with food as a central theme or driver of story are quite often feel-good films.

In the best Foodie Movies the food is quite often a conduit that brings together two people who have some sort of difference between them. The films in which that conduit is created most successfully are quite often films that have great emotional impact, wonderful drama, and more often than not, a fair amount of humor. The food that we see should be luscious and look like it could jump off of  the screen and into your mouth, and the film in its entirety should be a feast for the eyes and the heart.

With that in mind, here are my five favorite Foodie films.

1. Chef

This is a film that meets all of the above criteria. The food that Carl Casper (Jon Favreau) prepares is amazing to look at, and he is an absolute artist when it comes to its preparation. It might not have the greatest screenplay ever written. The structure is practically non-existent, but that doesn’t really matter because that isn’t really what this film is about. What the screenplay does very effectively is bring together a father and son whose relationship is perilously close to falling apart. After Casper loses his job as head chef of one of the prime restaurants in Los Angeles his last resort is to open his own food truck and his son helps him make a name for it through social media and he teaches his son to cook. This interaction develops their relationship and a bond is formed that never would have happened before. The film is loaded with images of delectable food and a wonderfully developed father-son relationship. For me, it was the feel good/taste good movie of 2014.

2. The Hundred Foot Journey

Another feel good/taste good film from 2014 was this film starring Helen Mirren as the proprietor of a fine dining restaurant in the French countryside. She is of single mind and purpose, which is to be named one of the top restaurants in France. However this desire and ambition has removed all of the joy and pleasure from food for her and her kitchen staff. The Kadam family moves into the restaurant across the street. They’ve emigrated from India where they had owned restaurants in the past and the son, Hassan has the instincts, if not the training to be a master chef. In this film, it is not only people that come together over food, but barriers between entire cultures are torn down and prejudices subside. The film fuses fine French cuisine with exotic Indian food in a way that is symbolic of the coming together of the cultures. The Hundred-Foot Journey is a film that makes the world smaller and brings its people closer together through food.

3. Mostly Martha

This is a German film that was remade in the United States as Without Reservations. The German version of this film is actually quite good as a chef has her life turned upside down after her sister dies and she has to take in her niece. Neither of them understands anything about the other, and with the help of food and an Italian sous chef, they find common ground and are able to move past their grief. Don’t let the fact that the American remake is less than stellar. This is a wonderful film that warms the heart and makes the stomach want more.

4. Ratatouille

This animated film has the wonderful premise of a rat who longs to be a chef in a Paris restaurant. It’s a funny and charming film, and even though the food is CG, it still looks amazing and delicious. This is also a film that brings together characters that normally wouldn’t have anything to do with each other. A rat in the kitchen of a fine dining restaurant in Paris is an ironic premise and one that only animation could provide, and the food is the conduit of memories of happier times and simpler days.

5. Big Night

The story of two Italian brothers trying to save their restaurant by having a party with Louis Prima as the guest of honor. The restaurant is failing and so is their relationship as brothers. Primo (Tony Shalhoub), the older brother and chef is a perfectionist who doesn’t want to Americanize his cooking. Secondo (Stanley Tucci), is the younger brother who manages the business and tries to do whatever he can to save the restaurant from foreclosure. This film has a well-written script that is well-structured and the cooking and the relationships simmer and marinade over the course of the story emanating different flavors as the story progresses, and we finally see the brothers bond over a plate of scrambled eggs.

Honorable mentions: Julie & Julia and Spanglish.

That’s my list. If you have other Foodie movies that you love and that I left off the list, please feel free to share them.