The Food Wife
It contains several references to different foods and famous chefs, and is largely devoted to the foodie culture, which Selman has said that he "always thought was funny and fascinating.
Chefs and media personalities Anthony Bourdain, Gordon Ramsay, and Mario Batali also guest starred in the episode, but as themselves in a dream sequence.
Although initially averse to the exotic food, Marge is reminded that she wants to be a fun mom and therefore asks for the most authentic dish on the menu for her and her children.
After unsuccessfully trying to persuade a resistant and gluttonous Homer to try their Ethiopian takeout, Marge, Bart and Lisa start their own food blog, "The Three Mouthketeers".
Homer, Bart, Lisa, Bourdain, and other famous chefs that have shown up, such as Mario Batali, then jump away from Marge on hop balls, leaving her by herself.
Just as he is about to have a taste of the meth (which he thinks is food produced with the help of molecular gastronomy), the police burst in and a gunfight ensues between them and the drug addicts.
While the trio eat their meal (deconstructed Caesar salad and miniaturized pork chops) with other foodies at El Chemistri, Marge feels guilty about misdirecting Homer and receives a panicked voicemail from him requesting help.
After unsuccessfully asking the other foodies to help save her husband, she, Bart, and Lisa head by themselves towards the meth lab after receiving doggie bags from the chef.
[1] According to Selman, the episode mainly revolves around Homer and Marge competing about who is perceived as the most fun by Bart and Lisa, a situation that he thinks parents can identify with in real-life.
[1] Selman said in an interview with New York magazine's Grub Street publication that the foodie culture is "just a world that I always thought was funny and fascinating.
"[1] Food references featured in the episode include jokes about Sriracha sauce and sous-vide cooking, referrals to chefs Wylie Dufresne, Frank Bruni, and Ruth Reichl,[1][5] a mention of the soup phở from Vietnam and how to pronounce it correctly, and the inclusion of the El Chemistri owner who is based on the Spanish chef José Andrés (known for using molecular gastronomy).
"[3] The fictional character Swedish Chef is also seen in the episode,[4] and the scene where the meth dealer is reminded of his childhood after eating the apple pie is a reference to the Pixar film Ratatouille, which was written and directed by former Simpsons consultant Brad Bird.
[6] In addition to the foodie culture, "The Food Wife" parodies the video game industry and references games such as God of War, Grand Theft Auto, Assassin's Creed, Half-Life, BioShock, Call of Duty, Dig Dug, Driver: San Francisco, Halo, Lego Harry Potter: Years 1–4, Lego Star Wars, Medal of Honor, Madden NFL, Q*bert, Resident Evil: Revelations, Shaun White Snowboarding, and Rayman Origins.
[2] While appearing on GameTrailers TV with Geoff Keighley on November 11, 2011, Selman commented that "We've been to so many [E3s] and we've been pushed around, and knocked around, and seen so many PR guys [talk] about how hard it was working on their game.
[1] Bourdain's appearance was cut short because the episode ended up being too long, and as a result, his "bad boy persona is not fully explored," Selman told Squid Ink.
[4] In addition to Bourdain, guest stars in the episode include chefs and media personalities Gordon Ramsay and Mario Batali as themselves.
[9][10][11] When asked by Digital Spy about his appearance, Ramsay said that "I grew up watching The Simpsons and love that they're foodies," and joked that "For God's sake, I had to promise Marge a spot on MasterChef to get on the bloody show!
[13][14] The Simpsons became the highest-rated program in Fox's Animation Domination lineup that night in terms of both total viewers and in the 18–49 demographic, finishing before new episodes of Family Guy, American Dad!, and Allen Gregory.
Ology (website)'s Josh Harrison gave it an eight out of ten rating, writing that "You gotta love these Simpsons episodes that really get into the heart of a subculture.
And if she goes too far in trying to keep this as her special thing, she also recognizes it immediately, feels guilty throughout the meal and then heads off to save the day, complete with a great homage to the climax of Ratatouille.
Childs further wrote that "The best thing about this episode is that it doesn’t try to stuff any outlandish plot mechanics or out-of-character character moments down the viewers’ throats.
[19] Chris Shott, a food critic for Washington City Paper's Young & Hungry column and blog, wrote negatively about the character that owns El Chemistri and is a parody of José Andrés.
The satire here, involving a deconstructed Caesar salad of foams, gels and airs, is more a riff on molecular gastronomy in general than a send-up of Andrés' over-the-top personality.
"[20] Food critic Katharine Shilcutt of the Houston Press' criticized the episode for giving what she thought was an inaccurate depiction of foodies, as people that are "tacky, snotty, slightly racist, hoarders of food experiences that you gather like rare gems and patronizingly hold over other people's heads.
It reduces all the hard work that people put into creating good, honest food into a joke, and not a terribly funny one.
There was no balance in the episode between smug, arrogant, obnoxious foodies and those who have a genuine, guileless interest in food and all its important permutations in our lives.
"[23] Doss, as well as Elizabeth Gunnison of Esquire's Eat Like a Man blog, also commended the hip hop song.
