At the movies

According to the WSJ, this is the future of American cinema: dinner at the movie.

Now, I’m just talking through my hat, here, but I simply can’t think it’s a good idea to layer on even more noise & disturbance to the film-watching experience. Ordering, serving, busing—it’s a lot of to-do to be going on while you’re trying to follow what’s on the screen. Plus the distracting lighting so you can see what you’re eating.

Moreover, it's bad enough wading through the previous showing's spilled popcorn or nachos; I don't want to think about linguine with shrimp & garlic.

I haven’t experienced this—there were some Gold Class Cinemas in Seattle, but the $29 entry fee discouraged me—but my recollections of dinner theatre, actual eat-at-your-seat-in-the-theatre-while-the-actors-are-performing, was that both the food & the acting were second rate, as thought they thought that between the two of them it would amount to value for money.

I know that the movie’s the movie regardless of the food, but I’m just not seeing it.

Now a full bar, on the other hand, has definite possibilities.