City of Gold (Laura Gabbert, 2015): USA

Reviewed by Markus Linecker. Viewed at the Santa Barbara Film Festival 2016.

I have seen many films about food and cooking, and as I am a great admirer of documentary and narrative films which have a culinary theme, I was very excited to see City of Gold which gives us an unique insight into the life and work of the food critic Jonathan Gold.

Director and producer Laura Gabbert spent around five years to create this masterpiece of a documentary. Its subject, Jonathan Gold, is the first and only Pulitzer prize winner for food criticism, which says a lot about the place he holds in that field.

Gold started because he wanted to “eat on every restaurant on Pico Blvd.” This expanded as he heard of more and more little gems worth visiting. There is an Ethiopian restaurant that the film covers. They interview the owner, and she tells of how her business was just about to shut down, but how after Gold’s unexpected visit she could not keep up with demand. Gold brings the local foodie world with him, to taco trucks, strip mall restaurants, and out of the way corners that delight locals and travelers following his tracks.

Johnathan, an icon in the food critic world, was born in Los Angeles and explores it with the passion of a man praising his own country. The interesting thing is that he reviews places where nobody else would go and therefore discovers many different gems. Even though he focuses on the food, his reviews are so much more than the culinary; he reflects upon the disparate cultures of his beloved Los Angeles. So the film is not only a story about Gold, it is a love letter to the diversity we can enjoy in this big Southern California city.

Gold is immersed in the community: he is a guest on a radio show, and he brings in a bunch of rap music. His parents exposed him to music, poetry, writing, and allowed him to find value in things beyond any given culture.

Gabbert created such a lovely balance between Gold’s work, his character, and his city. She shows places which without Gold’s review probably wouldn’t exist anymore. In focusing on his love for this multicultural lifestyle, Gabbert captures many sides of Gold, never silly no matter how much she shows his wild side.