How much do YOU think your meal was worth? (Restaurant In Our Living Room)

Member Name: pmcds

Product:	Restaurant In Our Living Room
Date:	07/11/09 (45 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Great idea, and really interesting to watch

Disadvantages: Limited appeal over time, I think

In a rather more interesting style than some of the generic restaurant programmes we are used to, this programme, shown on Virgin's freeview channel, seeks to turn people's homes into a new wave and style of restaurant. It has a quirky idea of taking two couples each week and getting them to invite people to eat in their own home.

So, how does this work? Well, first of all, it's a competition, with the prize each week being a 5 star hotel retreat for two, somewhere really swanky and nice, often abroad. Each couple must turn their own home into a restaurant, decide on their menus, how they're going to organise their seating, themes, and then send out the invites. They have a budget of £400 to buy the food, then they must cook and serve to however many guests they think they can successfully serve, with those guests then leaving what they think they would pay for the dining experience.

Quite simply, the couple with the most money at the end of the night wins. You can get some diners who love it and happily put £15 or £20 per head into the box, and some even refuse, if they really think it's been rubbish. The latter is rare, though, and the majority of the time, the people all put something decent in it.

Styles can vary, and people have pushed the boundaries to come up with some fantastic ideas. Some have operated it like a drive-in with people served in their cars, while most have played it safe and made room inside their homes. Playing it safe has also seen some success, and shows that you don't have to be wacky and innovative to win the show. One couiple won purely by cramming as many people in as possible, forewarning them that there would be a time limit at the table as they were getting two sittings in for the evening.

All of these attempts ultimately put pressure on the couple, and while they are allowed to get help from friends, etc, they still have to deliver the service and the food to get the people to pay. It is quite interesting to see the interaction between the couples and how they respond under pressure. Quite often, I sit there watching the TV screaming (in my head) that they're about to really mess it up. Other times I see what they do with some of food and cringe. However, most of the time, they get everything done surprisingly well. They obviously put a lot of time and effort into it, and don't wander into the competition half-heartedly.

The show is a joy to watch. No doubt the novelty value will wear off before long, and the show will have to rely on switching it to a celebrity format instead, with celebs trying to make as much money for charity as possible, such is the potentially limited longevity of the consumer market for regular peeps. Aside from that, I think it's a great idea, and whenever I can catch it, I will. It usually airs on a Thursday, and is repeated a couple of times throughout the week. Recommended.

Summary: Innovative new cooking programme on Virgin