HBO is serving up a new anthology series next month: Food Lore, an HBO Asia production that explores our connections to the cuisines of our youth and culture, as well as our interconnectedness through food.
The eight-episode series journeys across Japan, Singapore, Thailand, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Vietnam with just as wide-ranging perspectives. In the “Tamarind” episode, a Malay food hawker (Firdaus Bin Abdul Rahman) introduces a Singapore-based French chef (Valentine Payen) to more than just the local flavors. And in the Kuala Lumpur-set “Stray Dogs,” an aspiring businessman and a brilliant, but grumpy chef strike an unlikely friendship. But no matter where the story takes place, an abundance of highly appetizing food awaits.
Though we maybe should have waited until closer to lunchtime to unveil it, The A.V. Club is exclusively debuting the trailer for Food Lore this morning.
In addition to showrunner Eric Khoo, who helmed an episode set in Singapore, Food Lore also counts among its directors Japan’s Takumi Saitoh, Indonesia’s Billy Christian, Vietnam’s Phan Dang Di, Thailand’s Pen-Ek Ratanaruang, the Philippines’ Erik Matti, Singapore’s Don Aravind, and Malaysia’s Ho Yuhang.
Food Lore will be available to U.S. subscribers Monday, March 2 on HBO Now and HBO Go, as well as partner streaming platforms like Hulu and Amazon Prime. In addition to Beforeigners, it’s part of a ramped-up slate of international programming for the premium cable network.