What’s Keith Famie been cooking up these days?
Well, nothing in the kitchen. At least, nothing for our consumption. The Farmington Hills native once hailed as one of America’s “Best New Chefs,” who went on to operate such upscale metro eateries as Chez Raphael and Les Auteurs, traded in his cutlery for cameras nearly two decades ago.
Famie founded his own video production company, Visionalist Entertainment Productions, and has gone on to create nearly 30 longform documentary-style films, winning multiple Michigan Emmy Awards for works centering on Detroit and its history. Beyond the things we know we’re famous for — cars, music, and coneys, for example — Famie has reminded us in his previous docs that we are also the city of churches, faith, and hot rods, among other attributes.
But with his latest release, Famie appears to have come full circle.
Detroit: The City of Chefs, detailing our city’s long and eclectic culinary history and the melting pot of immigrants who helped make it so, airs at 9 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 12, on Detroit PBS, Famie’s broadcast partner for years.
Prior to that, however, the film will be showcased in a gala Metro Detroit premiere that should excite both filmgoers and foodies alike.
Detroit: The City of Chefs will debut on the big screen at Novi’s Emagine Theater at 7 p.m. Monday, Dec. 9, accompanied by a variety of food and chef-related events. (Tickets are priced at $20 for general admission, $200 for the VIP “Chef Extravaganza Experience.” More about that later.) But why, after all these years, has Famie now decided to make a film focusing on chefs? Was he attempting to distance himself from his previous life?
Pondering the question, Famie says he really doesn’t have a good answer. “I’ve always wanted to tell this story,” he said in a recent conversation. “I understood the importance of the story of our culinary heritage, but it just wasn’t something that was on the radar screen to do.
“Maybe in a subconscious way at 64 I was reflecting upon where I came from personally and the richness of that story, and I started seeing people like Milos [Cihelka, the master chef best known for his years at Southfield’s gone-but-not-forgotten Golden Mushroom restaurant] turning 92, other individuals falling away, I thought it was time.”
Nearly 14 months in the making, Detroit: The City of Chefs includes interviews with dozens of chefs, restaurateurs, and other Detroit icons of eating out. It’s surely the last visual image of our seafood fine-dining legend Joe Muer, Jr., who died Aug. 11 while the film was still in production. And because the subject was especially dear to Famie’s heart, he and his team at Visionalist Entertainment added some special garnishes.
They reached out to Detroit’s College of Creative Studies, who selected student Alexandra Martinescul to painstakingly craft 20 miniature clay likenesses of people interviewed in City of Chefs, which were then used in a stop-motion animation CCS created for the film. And Detroit’s timeless chanteuse, Jill Jack, was commissioned to write the doc’s original theme song, “The Legends of the Stove,” which she also performs. (The trailer for Detroit: The City of Chefs is available at vimeo.com.)
The documentary traces our city’s rich kitchen history back to the early 1900s, and shows how it was enhanced as different ethnic groups — the Italians, Poles, Irish, German, and Lebanese among them — landed in Detroit, bringing their unique cooking styles and ingredients with them. “I talk about the work ethics of the early European chefs and immigrants, and what that led to,” Famie says. “You can still see that work ethic in the great young chefs we have in Detroit today. To be a great chef, I think you have to have a little ADD.”
City of Chefs also explores a unique connection between our restaurant industry and auto industry. As Big Three executives traveled around the world on business, they grew accustomed to diverse menu offerings, meticulous preparation and impeccable service. They brought those expectations, and suggestions, back home with them: Detroit restaurant owners had no choice but to compete.
A limited number of $200 “Chef Extravaganza Celebration” tickets will be available until Nov. 27. They include preferred seating for the 7 p.m. screening on Dec. 9, a special collector’s program book, and admission to a pre-reception from 5:30-6:45 to meet and mingle with chefs, restaurant owners and hospitality industry standouts, many of whom are featured in the film. Will there be food, too? What do you think?
A “grand buffet,” created by chefs and students at Schoolcraft College’s Culinary Arts Program and Oakland Community College’s Culinary Studies Institute, will feature such epicurean ecstasies as smoked whitefish cannoli, tuna tartare, beef tenderloin sliders, and veal and oxtail ragout, finished off by the likes of chocolate Chambord cream gateau, hazelnut praline tarts, and cheesecakes galore. (Tickets can be purchased at detroitcityofchefs.com.)
The $20 general admission tickets carry additional perks, too. Prior to the film, attendees can stroll through a “Chef Alley” spotlighting such local culinary companies as Old World Olive Co., Nino Salvaggio International Marketplace, Stoney Creek Mushrooms, Hope’s Cookies, and Michigan Chefs de Cuisine. And speaking of chefs, such well-known Detroit chefs and authors as Brian Polcyn, Jimmy Schmidt, Kelli Lewton, and Mary Brady will be on hand to sign copies of their books.
The premiere event will also host five Michigan charities: The Rainbow Connection; Gilda’s Club Metro Detroit; Rising Stars Academy; New Day Foundation for Families; and Community Living Centers.
The Keith Famie documentary Detroit: The City of Chefs receives its official premiere at 7 p.m. Monday, Dec. 9 at Emagine Theatre in Novi, 44425 West 12 Mile Rd., prior to its broadcast debut at 9 p.m. Dec. 12 on Detroit PBS. A limited number of VIP tickets, which include preferred seating, a collector’s program book, a pre-reception and a grand buffet, are $200 each and must be sold by Nov. 27. To purchase, go to detroitcityofchefs.com. General admission tickets are $20 and can be purchased up to and at the premiere; to buy in advance, go to emagine-entertainment.com.
