
Insatiable - The Homaro Cantu Story
Event Information
Description
At the age of 27, innovative chef and inventor Homaro Cantu helped put Chicago on the culinary map when he opened his first restaurant “Moto” in the city’s untapped Fulton Market meatpacking district. Virtually overnight, Cantu rose to the rank of celebrity chef and became famous for his “molecular gastronomy” approach to cooking. Cantu’s meteoric rise to fame masked an early life of poverty, homelessness, and even physical and emotional abuse. In his mid-thirties, “Omar” moved beyond the kitchen and became a hit on the traveling speaker circuit, penned his first cookbook, and ultimately, he dedicated the remainder of his career to using science and cooking to tackle festering social problems. He dedicated nearly all of his energy and capital to a little berry from West Africa- the “miracle berry” which makes sour foods taste sweet. Dreaming of using the berry to launch an assault on the world’s love affair with refined sugar, Omar wanted to dial back the obesity epidemic. Filmed over a period of three years with remarkable access, INSATIABLE follows Cantu at a pivotal moment in his career and takes you on a dizzying and thrilling ride, in a story that moves from redemption and inspiration to tragedy and back again.
Produced & Directed by: Brett A. Schwartz