Though still at the peak of his culinary powers, chef Tao Chu seems to be getting less pleasure from his work. With the invasion of fast foods and the decline of traditional Chinese culture, no one seems to care about the culinary arts. Furthermore, he is losing his sense of taste. After a few drinks with a good friend, he explains his frustrations. "Eat, drink, man, woman; food and sex, is that all there is?"

His daughters, all who still live at home, do little to raise his spirits. Jia-Jen appears to be on her way to becoming an old maid after having her heart broken by a college boyfriend. Jia-Chen is a modern-thinking executive who cannot wait to get out of the house. Jia-Ning is so much of a romantic that she does not notice others.

Though they all share the same house, they barely have time to spend wit

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h one another except on Sunday when chef Chu creates a feast for their dinner ritual. As he brings out a beautifully decorated and delicious-looking dish, the daughters always nitpick and find something wrong with the taste. In addition, they use this time to make "announcements."

The first of these announcements is that Jia-Chen is moving into an apartment of her own to become independent. As the story unfolds, we learn Jia-Ning becomes pregnant and marries someone. As a result, she moves out. Soon after, we find out that Jia-Jen has fallen in love with someone and moves out as well. The final announcement comes at a dynamic dinner where all are present: chef Chu has married a family friend. Although the Sunday dinner ritual was meant to make the family closer, it has pushed them farther apart.

Food is as much a backdrop as a recurring symbol. Chef Chu's love for food provides a background for the story. Chu's failing taste buds parallel his loss for the enthusiasm of life. Jia-Chen's love for cooking heeds to a frustrated childhood desire; she was not allowed in the kitchen because as a traditionalist, her father believed girls were not meant to be chefs. Jia-Ning's work at Wendy's makes a statement about the mixture of Western culture into modern-day China. For Chu, food is means of expression, not only of his creativity but also of feelings of affection that he cannot articulate. Food is his way of connecting.

There was a time in the movie where Jia-Jen scolded her students for b

Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 1068
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)