Gallery – Goethe Institute

Remaining Performances:

Sunday, July 20 at 2:45 p.m.

Tuesday, July 22 at 6:00 p.m.

Friday, July 25 at 8:30 p.m.

Sunday, July 27 at 2:45 p.m.

They Say: “The Dish is DC’s latest talk show and it’s all about the food. Starring your favorite food celebrities (watch out for the scorned sous!), special guest stars from the DC food scene and you. Come play with our food.”

Alex’s Take: Put too many cooks in one kitchen, and competition is bound to follow. Any fan of the Food Network knows the cooking show genre is ripe for parody, and the cast of The Dish dig in with relish. Filled to the brim with DC in-jokes, soap opera infighting, and a committed cast, this production is sure to entertain.

Audiences are treated to a behind-the-scenes view of a fictional talk show, also named The Dish, where the hosts vie for the spotlight and a chance at their own show. The cooks include Rhonda Lee (Catherine Deadman), a just over-the-top enough Paula Deen wannabe known for her “dump cakes,” Rodger (Kevin Boggs), an Alton Brown/Tim Gunn type, and Nadia (Anika Harden), who flaunts her food blog and Instagram followers, yet no one knows her name. Fueling the flames are Rhonda’s former lover, sous chef Phillip (Jonathan Wong), and executive producer/puppet master Gwen (Kristy Simmons) attempts to control the mayhem.

The cast’s witty banter takes us through the various segments of the show, discussing what’s “Hot or Not” in DC trends, interviewing an actual chef (at this performance it was Tiffany MacIsaac, but the guests will change with each performance), and finally ending with a live cookoff challenge. The jokes had the audience in stitches, from the mentions of “Hipster Margaritas” (PBR, lime, and tequila), to a running takedown of the DC cupcake invasion. It would be great to see this show live on as a weekly or monthly feature in the District, as it’s one dish I would gladly order again.

See It If: You watch entirely too much Food Network programming and want to see it and the DC food scene hilariously skewered.

Skip It If: You’re hungry. Seriously, listening to food talk for an hour is probably not the best idea on an empty stomach.