Monday Musings: TV Restaurants, Un-cancel Culture, A ‘Wild’ Life, Oppenheimer, Alexa, Are You Listening?

Alexa is my new bestie

Did you have a great weekend? My little niece celebrated the big FOUR! And she’s a future tastemaker because she chose ‘Halloween Costume Party’ as her theme this year. Did she even know that the calendar marks halfway to Halloween? It was so fun and the cake — delicious! I highly recommend Victor Bene’s Bakery at Gelson’s - they made this custom cake. I went as Willy Wonka and I don’t even have any pics, but I went as the Gene Wilder version so just stream Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory on HBO Max and you’ll get the idea! 

Here’s what I’m musing about this ‘very late’ Monday!  🍭 🍫

FX on Hulu’s ‘The Bear’ Announces Season 2 Date - What’s Your Favorite TV Restaurant? 

One of FX’s most critically acclaimed series is the fast-paced restaurant dramedy — The Bear which is premiering its second season on June 22. Working in a restaurant/bar is not easy work, but TV usually makes it look fun, which is probably why The Bear is so popular with viewers because it’s one of the most frantic series on TV, mirroring what its really like to work in that high-stress environment. Here are some of the most notable TV series to take place in a food/bar/restaurant setting. I think I’ll bar hop between Cheers, the Regal Beagle, and Call Me Kat’s cat cafe. How about you?  

• Cheers streaming on Paramount+ 

• Alice is available to buy on Apple TV+ and Amazon Prime 

• Party Down streaming on STARZ

• Three’s A Crowd streaming on Pluto TV and Tubi 

• Sweetbitter streaming on STARZ

• Pushing Daisies streaming on Amazon Prime and HBO Max 

• Call Me Kat streaming on Hulu 

• Two Broke Girls streaming on Paramount+ 

• Gentefied streaming on Netflix 

• It’s A Living streaming on Amazon Freevee 

• The Restaurant streaming on AMC+ 

• It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia streaming on Hulu 

OMG, when I was making this list, I had such a flashback to It’s A Living. It was a series that aired 1980-1989 and it starred Sheryl Lee Ralph (now starring in Abbott Elementary) about a group of women who waited tables at a fancy restaurant on top of a skyscraper. You can stream it for free on Amazon’s Freevee. 

Alexa Is Listening To Me and I’m Totally Okay With It

As a joke I was going to post a change.org petition on this week’s Monday Musing to bring back the OG Dynasty to streaming. About three or four years ago, Amazon Prime just took it off their streaming platform while I was in the middle of watching it (yes, I’m obsessed with this nighttime soap opera from when I was a kid and I love all the overly-accessorized glam 80s fashion, shoulder pads and all). Just when Jeff Colby was about to discover Fallon was alive again, Dynasty stopped streaming and I’ve been cursing Amazon ever since. So last week when I was listing all the new series coming out in May — Amazon has uploaded an entire catalog of retro shows streaming including Freaks and Geeks, Beverly Hills 90210 and…..OG Dynasty! Obviously Alexa heard me and reported back to Jeff Bezos who told his little executive people working on Amazon Prime content to put it back on. Big shoulder pads and big block car phones live on!

Happy Birthday, Lord David Attenborough 🎉

The voice that could calm a lion turns 97 years young today. He was born this day in 1926 and is the younger brother of actor Richard Attenborough (you know him from Jurassic Park). He never wished to act, so he studied Natural Sciences at Cambridge University. He ended up joining BBC Television and later became Director of Programming, but he is best known as the iconic voice behind some of your favorite wildlife documentaries. One of my favorites is certainly one of the most applauded — Planet Earth (2006). If you haven’t streamed it, do so! It’s quite remarkable. Currently streaming on Discovery+ and Amazon Prime. 

Which Series Would You Un-Cancel? 

The news today is that CBS has uncanceled the police drama, S.W.A.T. Apparently CBS listened to its fans who caused quite the online uproar after the series was canceled last week. That’s probably one of the fastest un-cancelling’s I’ve ever seen. One series that I wish could be un-canceled was Ringer (2011). Sarah Michelle Gellar stars as identical twins, where one fakes a death and the other takes on her life. I am still left hanging after the season cliffhanger, still wondering what would’ve happened if Sarah Michelle Gellar’s character would have known her twin was still alive! You can stream the first and only season on CWtv.com . 

Oppenheimer Trailer Is Now Out!

Okay, so this is a TV blog, but I could not, not share the new Christopher Nolan film which premieres in theaters July 21. It’s the true story of scientist Robert J. Oppenheimer who developed the atomic bomb. Cillian Murphy stars in the title role. While you’re waiting for this film to come out I recommend the following disaster films in the same vein. 

• Chernobyl streaming on HBO Max

• Manhattan streaming on Amazon Freevee 

• The Heavy Water War: Stopping Hitler’s Atomic Bomb streaming on Amazon Prime 

Currently Sipping and Streaming - The Last Thing He Told Me x Laurel & Bay Cabernet 🍷 📺

I get really excited when I unexpectedly find a new wine to fawn over. Laurel & Bay Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley was one of those finds. It was so nicely balanced and just bursting with endless flavor. Black and blue fruits dance on your palate with a fun pop of grape candy that gives it just a bit of sweetness at the finish. Full bodied with a unique complexity grounded in oak. 

The Last Thing He Told Me could have been a disaster, but thank the TV gods that author of the bestselling novel and Reese Witherspoon bookclub pick Laura Dave, along with her husband screenwriter Josh Singer (he wrote the Meryl Streep film, ‘The Post’) are writing and producing the series because it is very very close to the book. Jennifer Garner is a great Hannah and made me totally forget that Julia Roberts was originally cast in the role. I think Garner turned out to be the best choice. You can stream this limited series on Apple TV+.

Streaming Today and Tomorrow

May 8

• Spirit Rangers: Season 2 (Netflix)

• Jeopardy Masters (ABC/Hulu) 

• Fear the Walking Dead: Live From WonderCon Special (AMC+) 

May 9

• Hannah Gadsby: Something Special (Netflix)

• Till: Movie (Amazon Prime) 

• Dancing Queens: Season 1 (Bravo/Peacock)

• Judge Steve Harvey: Season 2 (ABC/Hulu)