Common Sense Media Review
By Joyce Slaton
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Absorbing catering reality show can feel like an ad.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 11+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Watch
Videos and Photos
The Event
Parent and Kid Reviews
What's the Story?
In California, celebrity chef Wolfgang Puck is famous for his Spago restaurants, and reality show THE EVENT attempts to bring the same kind of acclaim to Wolfgang Puck Catering. THE EVENT takes viewers behind the scenes as the company plans and executes food and drink for huge celebrity laden parties like awards ceremonies and TV premieres. The catering company takes on every detail, from cooking to plating to serving, as we learn just how much goes into getting food and drink seamlessly into the hands of partygoers.
Is It Any Good?
Getting a backstage view of the nitpicky and endless details that go into throwing a big successful party is fascinating, even if this docuseries occasionally veers too far into advertorial land. Did we ever need to hear how exacting the standards of Puck's catering company are, how fervent the attention to perfection and service? Such a thing should be perfectly obvious from what we see and hear: a sous chef painstakingly washing each leaf of gem lettuce to ensure it doesn't have a speck of sand on it, waiters practicing smoothly bussing 1,286 place settings during a two-minute commercial break, a catering exec demonstrating that each and every vegetable inside the rows of salad servings is a perfect square. Repeatedly uttering portentous statements like "Wolfgang Puck Catering is the world's most prestigious catering empire" is a bit much.
Viewers who can ignore the hype, however, are in for a treat, as The Event zooms closely in on the details of prepping for and serving huge glamorous parties, from floral arrangements to lights to wine and water glasses lined up just so. Sometimes the events in question have a bit of extra drama, such as when a long-planned Screen Actors Guild awards ceremony suddenly requests a vegan menu. But even without that, the party preparation is plenty absorbing as we watch trained professionals on the job. If you've ever stood at a party holding a drink and an appetizer, you likely didn't appreciate the work that went into getting you your victuals just right. The Event may just change that.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the unglamorous side of the restaurant world. How much education, hard work, and risk does it take to become a chef? Does the work look hard? Rewarding?
The catering professionals on this show talk a lot about serving guests well. Why does that matter? Is it a matter of pride for these pros, or is it all about getting jobs and making money? How do they show pride in their work?
Throwing parties that put so many people to work is an expensive endeavor. Why doesn't this show talk more about the costs of parties? Why would they prefer to talk more about their artistry and creations rather than what they cost?
TV Details
- Premiere date : January 17, 2021
- Cast : Wolfgang Puck
- Network : Max
- Genre : Reality TV
- TV rating :
- Last updated : January 21, 2021
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