Love, Charlie: The Rise and Fall of Chef Charlie Trotter.

Documentary.

Director: Rebecca Halpern

Contributors: Wolfgang Puck, Grant Achatz, Lisa Ehrlich

Before Gordon Ramsay lost his rag with incompetent kitchen staff, before Jamie Oliver made cooking cool, before all the current celebrity chefs with their recipe books in time for Christmas, there was Charlie Trotter.

‘People yearn for excellence and quality’  says one of his friends in the absorbing and heartfelt documentary ‘Love Charlie’ The Rise & Fall of Chef Charlie Trotter, and in the ‘90s and noughties Chuck Trotter gave them exactly that with  groundbreaking restaurant in Chicago.

The first American to open a restaurant to rival the world renowned cuisine of French establishments, Trotter was an innovative and creative force in the world of fine dining. He was one of the first chefs to  serve his clientele quinoa and exotic meats such as ostrich as well as introducing them to the concept of Chef’s garden vegetables at a time when there were few culinary options for vegetarians who wanted to dine out. He changed the way cooking and food was presented to the public too, with his revolutionary food photography in his books. The instagram world of food pornography owes much to Charlie Trotter who is described in the film as a tornado of energy, mixed with fear and panic, a perfectionist to the extreme.

He was spurred on by his desire to prove himself to his father, a successful businessman he looked up to and adored. Trotter started by cooking dinners for clients in their homes before moving into the restaurant business. As the new kid on the block in a competitive field he had to sell himself to a sceptical Chicago. But alongside a punishing work ethic ( he lived, breathed and slept at the restaurant) enormous talent and an obsession with achieving his goals, Charlie Trotter was also the right man at the right time. Chicago in the ’90s was a cultural hub of success. Oprah Winfrey hosted a ratings winning tv talk show from the city, Chicago basketball legend Michael Jordan was a sports phenomenon, the music scene was vibrant and the place produced a number of Hollywood stars. A rockstar restaurateur just completed the picture. Hot celebrities needed a hot restaurant to eat and be seen at. Trotters became the place to be. People flew private jets from across the country to eat there. Charlie Trotter started tasting menus. 10 courses in which he never served a repeat dish. He began the idea of the kitchen table where he brought customers into the engine room so they could see the food being prepared. He became so famous he appeared, as himself, in the hit Julia Roberts movie My Best Friend’s Wedding. 

The restaurant was making $10-12 million per year. Glossy cookbooks followed, there was a Trotters to go restaurant and a branch in Las Vegas. To say Charlie Trotter was highly driven is an understatement. 

Friends, colleagues and rivals offer admiration throughout the film but there are hints of the rising cost of Chuck’s ambitions and perfectionism both on himself and those closest to him. The broken marriages, the sharp dismissal of potential competition also paint a picture of a man hurtling toward a derailment. Health problems, a changing restaurant scene, new blood all combined, in time, to throw Charlie Trotter off course. Not given the industry recognition he craved or the respect he deserved, his restaurant closed in 2012 and Trotter himself died aged just 54.

The film is a loving tribute to an enormous culinary legend and clearly a man for whom many still hold a great personal affection but also a complex and volatile character. 

It seemed only right to attend a special screening of the film celebrating Charlie Trotter’s legacy at the cool Parlour restaurant in Kensal Rise, an establishment to which people travel from afar for great food. We watched his life story and professional glories unfold over a selection of delicious snacks and cocktails which lived up to his expectations of excellence and quality. 

Love, Charlie The Rise and Fall of Chef Charlie Trotter is on Amazon and Netflix. 
I recommend it.