The Menu

At the local harbor, Tyler and his date Margot  wait for the boat that will take them to a   private island where they'll dine at Hawthorne,  an extremely exclusive restaurant operated by   the best chef in the country. Tyler's a foodie  obsessed with this chef and the details behind   fine dining in general. When the boat arrives, the  two of them are shocked to see how many important   people will be traveling with them. There's  Lilian, the food critic that discovered the   chef and her editor Ted; post-prime actor George  with his assistant and girlfriend Felicity;   and a trio of important tech business investors:  Dave, Soren, and Bryce. The ones that get Margot's   attention though are businessman Richard and his  wife Anne because Margot knows Richard and doesn't   want him to know she's there, so she tries to stay  out of his sight. During the trip, they're already   served the first fancy dish, and Tyler gushes  over it while he takes a picture, but Margot isn't   impressed. When they finally arrive at the island,  the maitre d’ Elsa calls Margot a different name,   so Tyler has to explain there was a change  of plans and he came with a different date,   making the whole situation pretty awkward.  Before dining theres a tour for the guests,   and Elsa shows the guests all the facilities while  explaining the restaurant's employees do all the   hunting and farming, that's why everyone lives  here. The chef also lives on the island, but his   house's off-limits. Afterward they finally enter  the restaurant, where they discover the kitchen is   an open area that allows them to watch the cooks  work. There's also an old lady named Linda on one   of the tables who looks like doesn't belong  at all. When Richard finally notices Margot's   presence, he asks his wife to exchange seats with  him so he can have a better view. Elsa informs   everyone that they can watch the cooks work but  pictures aren't allowed. Tyler immediately comes   closer to point out all the techniques they're  using and asks tons of questions, so the cooks   have to ask him to stop distracting them. At  that moment, chef Slowik arrives and Elsa tells   him something that makes him stare at Margot. The  first dish is the complimentary appetizer. Lilian   takes her time with the food, smelling and tasting  everything carefully, but Felicity is busy trying   to break up with George. Margot likes the dish but  isn't super into it, so Tyler has to arrogantly   explain why this is so important. Moments later,  it's time for the first course. Slowik comes   forward and claps his hand to make all his cooks  turn around at the same time like obedient little   soldiers. Then he offers a speech about his work  and reminds everyone that they shouldn't just eat,   they should savor and relish; Tyler tries to make  a comment on that and only gets scolded by Slowik   for interrupting. Tyler still takes pictures  even if it's forbidden. For the second course,   Slowik claps again and explains that bread's  the food of the common man, but since his   guests aren't common, thus they aren't getting any  bread. The next dish is a breadless bread plate,   only small drops of the savory accompaniments  are on the plate. Tyler absolutely loves it but   Margot finds it insulting. Lilian thinks the  emulsion does look slightly split, and as an   ironic response, they send a whole bowl of it to  her table. The tech bros think the joke is running   too far and ask for bread but they're denied even  when they point out they work for Doug Verrick,   the actual owner of the island. To shut them up,  Elsa creepily tells them that they will eat less   than they desire and more than they deserve.  Margot refuses to eat her dish and Tyler tries   to take it for himself only to accidentally break  a glass in the process. Slowik immediately comes   to the table and Tyler tries to apologize, but  the chef is more interested in knowing why Margot   isn't eating. Margot points out there is no food,  and Slowik replies that he carefully designed the   size of the portions so if she doesn't eat, she  won't fill up. Margot still refuses to touch the   dish, causing Slowik to leave rather offended and  surprise everyone by gently checking on Linda.   Margot can't help turning to look at Richard and  Anne notices this, causing her to point out that   Margot looks like their dead daughter. Richard  pretends he doesn't know Margot and asks his wife   to change the subject. With another clap, Slowik  announces the third course called "Memory", which   prompts him to share a memory about his family's  old taco nights. He reveals Linda's his mother,   and that she's been drunk since he was a kid.  His father was a drunk first, and one night,   Linda called him out for it, so the man tried to  kill her with the phone cord. To save his mother,   little Slowik grabbed a pair of scissors and  stabbed his father in the thigh, but now he   regrets not having killed him. To remember that  special taco night, the dish is a smoked chicken   thigh served with a pair of scissors in it on  top of a phone cord. The tortillas were made   fresh but to add a touch of innovation, they've  been engraved with a laser machine. Everyone is   disturbed by the story, but things get even more  awkward when they discover the memories on the   tortillas. Lilian finds pictures of restaurants  that closed because of her bad reviews, and Anne   is shocked to see photographs of her husband's  private life. One in particular shows Richard   going out with a strange woman, but Richard swears  it's just a prank. George finds pictures of his   role as "Doctor Sunshine", a movie that did  awful when it came out, and the tech bros are   disturbed to find their company's tax records  that prove they've created invoices with fake   charges. Elsa refuses to explain how they acquired  that information, and when the men threaten with   closing up this place, Elsa cryptically says it  won't be necessary. Tyler sees himself taking   pictures of the food and thinks Slowik hates him.  Margot finds the images insulting and wants to   send the dish back, but Tyler snaps at her and  calls her a child for not behaving correctly.   Hurt, Margot decides to go to the bathroom, and  Elsa rushes to stop her from entering a forbidden   silver door. When she makes it to the bathroom,  Margot gets close to the window to have a smoke   and notices an employee running with a pair  of angel wings in his arms. At that moment,   Slowik comes to ask Margot why she refused to eat  again since he's feeling wounded by her attitude,   but Margot just says she isn't that hungry.  Slowik also wants to know who she really is,   and when she says she's just Margot from Nebraska,  Slowik doesn't believe her. A moment later, the   cooks start the preparations for the fourth course  by putting a piece of fabric and some decorations   on the floor. Slowik introduces everyone to  Jeremy, one of his sous-chefs who created the   next dish called "The Mess". Jeremy studied in  an important culinary school and his dream has   always been to work for Slowik, and while Slowik  admits he's talented, he doesn't think Jeremy is   great. Jeremy may want a life full of prestige  like Slowik's, but Slowik thinks his life is   full of pressure, not to mention all the unhappy  customers and critics that won't appreciate his   work. Slowik asks Jeremy if he wants that life,  and when Jeremy says no, Slowik kisses him on   both cheeks and steps back before Jeremy takes out  a gun. Then Slowik announces the fourth course and   Jeremy ends things in front of anyone. The other  cooks aren't surprised by this and watch solemnly,   but all the guests freak out and step back except  for Tyler, who finds this fascinating. As the body   is taken away, Slowik asks everyone to sit down  and accept this is part of the show. Everyone   begins discussing if the death had been real  or not, and Richard has had enough. He tries   to leave with Anne, but Elsa stops him, explaining  there's no available boat. Richard still insists,   causing Elsa to order the chefs to grab him and  get his ring finger. Guests start freaking out   again except for Tyler, who is still enjoying his  meal without a care. While Richard wiggles on the   floor in pain, Elsa returns the fallen wedding  ring to Anne. Slowik once again explains this   is part of the menu, and Lilian accepts it, but  the others are starting to get afraid. Felicity   wants George to have a talk with Slowik since  supposedly they're friends, but George confesses   he lied to impress her. Elsa brins Margot  to the kitchen, where Slowik tells her she's   simply wrong. He can tell she isn't a Margot and  that's a problem because she wasn't part of that   original menu plan. Slowik wants to know if Margot  is on the side of the guests or the restaurant's,   not that it matters because everyone's dying  tonight anyway. Margot rushes back to her table in   tears and slaps Tyler when he won't stop talking  about the food. The whole mood in the restaurant   is tense and nervous. Soren goes crazy and  decides to try to break a window with the chair,   but it's made of unbreakable glass, so Elsa just  takes him back to his table. The next course is   tea served as a pallet cleanser, and Slowik takes  the chance to ask if anyone has any questions.   Tyler makes a stupid question about the tea,  but George comes through and wonders what's   going on. Slowik explains they're ingredients  in a degustation concept but this shouldn't   be a surprise. For example, Lilian is a monster  that causes restaurants to close because of her   personal taste, and Ted coddles her. The cooks  bring more broken emulsion for Lilian, and Elsa   brings Margot a kitchen timer saying she has ten  minutes. Then Anne asks for a doctor for Richard,   so Slowik points out they've been the most loyal  customers for five years yet they can't name a   single dish they've eaten here. Slowik worked to  become a very exclusive chef but it wasn't until   recently that he finally understood he's been  working to satisfy people that can't be satisfied,   like his own mother. Since Slowik keeps referring  to the place as "his" restaurant, Bryce reminds   him that the actual owner is Doug Verrick.  Slowik replies he actually owns Doug himself,   and at that moment it's revealed that Doug is  hanging outside while wearing the angel wings.   Dave tries to offer money to save him and when  Slowik turns him down, he tries to run away,   only to be stopped by the staff. Bryce points  out Doug kept Slowik open through the pandemic,   but Slowik complains that Doug kept questioning  his menu. Elsa makes a sign with her arms and Doug   is lowered into the sea until he drowns, prompting  Slowik to announce he's finally free before going   to his office. Suddenly the timer on Margot's  table rings and she's asked to go see Slowik.   Margot admits she isn't supposed to be here, and  in return Slowik admits he can tell Margot's a   fellow industry worker. He wants to know why  Margot kept staring at Richard, making her confess   that she's actually a street worker. Richard had  been one of the few clients that managed to rattle   her because he wanted her to pretend to be his  daughter while they were getting frisky. Both   Slowik and Margot agree that they used to enjoy  serving others and bad clients have made them   hate their jobs. Afterward, Slowik takes everyone  outside. The next course is presented by sous-chef   Katherine, who explains Slowik has flirted with  her many times, and she's always said no. Slowik   didn't fire her but stopped looking her in the  eye, and this inspired the next dish, called   "Man's Folly". Then Katherine stabs Slowik on his  leg and hugs him before staining his chef uniform   with blood, prompting him to apologize. Now all  the male guests are given a chance to escape,   they'll have a head start of forty-five seconds,  and then the staff will try to catch them. All   the men begin running except for Tyler, so Slowik  has to send him out there while Katherine takes   the women inside. The women try the sixth course  while sharing a table with Katherine, who explains   "everyone dies" was her idea. Lilian's compliments  make her cry, and all the other ladies begin   offering compliments as well to keep her happy.  Anne asks Margot if she knows her husband and   Margot admits she does, but Anne doesn't comment  on it. Margot ends up admitting her real name is   Erin and she's from Massachusetts. Outside, Tyler  spies on them through the window because he hates   that he's missing a course. Meanwhile the staff  goes after the men and finds them with no issues,   no matter if they went to the forest or  the beach. Ted hid in the smokehouse,   and for his efforts he's given a Passard Egg. All  the men are brought back to the restaurant and   George sarcastically apologizes to Felicity for  being a failure, which makes her admit she's been   stealing money from him. George already knew, and  Felicity knew he knew. Suddenly Slowik announces   the menu can't continue as planned until they  solve an unresolved matter. He approaches Tyler   and makes him confess that he had always known  tonight's menu would include "everyone dies".   Tyler had a date but his girlfriend broke up with  him, so he hired Margot because the restaurant   didn't take reservations for just one, never  caring about the fact she'd die. Margot's upset by   this revelation and attacks Tyler, but the staff  quickly pulls them apart. Next Slowik points out   how much Tyler knows about food and gifts him a  chef's uniform before pushing into the kitchen,   asking him to cook in front of everyone even if  Tyler doesn't want to. Tyler's cooking is messy,   especially since Slowik keeps making fun of him  for being Mr. Knowledegeable Foodie, meaning the   final dish is an absolute disaster. Slowik tells  Tyler he's why the mystery has been drained from   his art and whispers something in his ear that  causes Tyler to take off the chef jacket and run   in tears. Afterward, Slowik takes Margot aside  to ask for a favor. To start preparing dessert,   they require a large barrel that is supposed to be  in a corner but Elsa forgot to bring. Slowik wants   Margot to go get it and ignores Elsa when she  says the staff can do it. On her way out, Margot   discovers Tyler has ended things for himself,  but she doesn't care. Then Slowik returns to   the dining area, where George points out that this  isn't really fair. Slowik explains George's being   punished because he saw "Doctor Sunshine" some  years ago and ruined the first day off he had in   months. On the other hand, Felicity'll die because  she graduated from Brown University without any   student debt. Meanwhile Margot makes it to the  smokehouse but instead of grabbing the barrel,   she grabs a knife. Afterward she sneaks into  Slowik's house, which is an exact copy of the   restaurant but with a bed in it. Margot tries  to leave through the silver door, but she's   interrupted by Elsa, who has her own knife and  reminds her this area is out of limits. Suddenly   Elsa attacks Margot, explaining she doesn't  want to be replaced. Margot defends herself   with objects from the kitchen as she points out  she doesn't want to work here, but Elsa says she   didn't forget the barrel, Slowik just never asked  for it. Both women end up struggling on the floor,   and by trying to keep the knife away from her  body, Margot ends up accidentally killing Elsa.   After her initial panic is over, Margot takes  Elsa's keys and opens the silver door. There   she finds a simple room with Slowik's memories  from when he was younger and happier with a   family and a job making hamburgers. There's also  a radio in the room, and Margot tries to use it   to call for help. Back in the restaurant, Bryce is  presented with a cake because his friends had told   the restaurant that it was his birthday. Margot  suddenly interrupts by entering with the barrel   through the main door, and Slowik tells her he  used to be a monster, but everything he does today   is pure. His chef hands are so strong that he can  touch fire without feeling pain, because he can no   longer be hurt. At that moment, a boat approaches  the island, and Slowik realizes Margot used the   radio. The staff immediately cleans all traces  of blood from everyone and Slowik makes a threat:   if the guests ask for help, then an innocent man  will die. Coast Guard Dale enters the restaurant   and asks what the problem is, but nobody dares  to speak. Then Dale notices George and asks   for an autograph because he's a big fan of Doctor  Sunshine, so George pretends to give him one. When   Dale is about to leave, he discovers the piece of  paper actually says "help us" and takes out a gun,   ready to defend the guests that now are brave  enough to speak. Dale keeps the gun on Slowik   for a few seconds only to suddenly turn around  and point it at the candle on Margot's table,   revealing it's just a lighter shaped like a gun.  Dale isn't a coast guard, he's another member of   Slowik's staff, and now he can return to the  kitchen. Slowik's very disappointed in Margot   for having betrayed him and declares her to be as  bad as the other guests. Margot remembers what she   saw in the house and decides to take a risk.  She suddenly claps to get Slowik's attention,   announcing that she doesn't like his food and  that she would like to send it back. Slowik falls   for Margot's manipulative tactics as she points  out all the dishes were an intellectual exercise   rather than something to enjoy. She's still  hungry, so she wants to eat a proper cheeseburger,   not some fancy, deconstructed poop. For the first  time in the day, Slowik smiles and accepts to   prepare a traditional cheeseburger with fries  for 9.95. All the cooks watch with fascination   how happy Slowik looks preparing a traditional  cheeseburger, which he presents to Margot with   pride. Margot gives it a bite and approves of the  taste, but she also thinks it's too much for her   to finish and asks for the rest to go. Slowik's  still in a trance so she does as he says, and   once Margot has her bag, she leaves a ten-dollar  bill and leaves the restaurant. On her way out,   Margot hesitates because the others are still in  danger, but Anne tells her to go with a gesture.   While Margot makes it to the harbor and escapes on  the boat Dale left behind, Slowik reminds everyone   is time to pay. The cost is 1250 per head under a  no-tip system, and everyone gets a bag of goodies   that includes one of Doug's fingers. Everyone  hands their credit cards, and a moment later,   Slowik announces it's time for dessert. The cooks  begin decorating the floor as if it was a plate,   then they put chocolate hats and marshmallow  vests on the guests. Slowik reminds everyone   they represent the ruin of his life and now they  shall be part of it, so the dessert will be the   most offensive assault on the human palate: the  s'more. This is usually prepared over a fire,   thus Slowik grabs a lump of coal from the oven  with his bare hands and announces a cleansing   as he throws it on the decorations the cooks left,  causing a fire that takes over the restaurant and   all the people in it. Meanwhile Margot stops the  boat to finish her cheeseburger while watching   the restaurant burn, using the copy of the menu  that came with the gift bag to wipe her mouth.