Netflix offers a ton of food-related content like the best baking shows or cooking competitions, and some of the best food documentaries on Netflix will leave audiences with their mouths watering. The allure of food documentaries can be attributed to a variety of elements. Whether one has secretly aspired to be a world-class chef or just likes to imagine eating one of their fabulous meals, chances are most are curious about what goes into creating famous dishes. Beyond the glitter of celebrity chefdom, some may have always wondered what it was like to own their own food truck and serve a sample of local flavor to passersby.
Perhaps audiences seek out food documentaries because they're curious about how food relates to health. Other food documentaries teach audiences how to cook new dishes or inform viewers about food from around the world they may have never heard of before. Whether it’s a desire to know more about the food supply chain, the food industry, or just where eggs come from, there’s a food documentary for that too. Luckily, Netflix offers a wide variety of food documentaries to choose from, and the best food documentaries on Netflix offer a little bit of everything.
What The Health (2017)
One of the best food documentaries on Netflix is What the Health. The link between diet and disease is a strong one, and knowing the ramifications of everything people put in their bodies is important to understanding it. What the Health looks at how what people eat alters the internal environment of their body chemistry, often resulting in harmful setbacks rather than healthy progress. While there have been plenty of anti-sugar or anti-carb documentaries, What the Health offers a more dynamic look at food and the human body. It’s sobering to look at the billions of dollars that the healthcare, pharmaceutical, and food industry stand to make by our ignorance.
Cooked (2016)
Once again, investigative journalist and foodie Michael Pollan takes a deep dive into diet and lifestyle, but this time he’s not just sticking to the West in one of the best food documentaries on Netflix. He undergoes a globe-trotting adventure to several of the world’s most flavorful countries, exploring the culinary arts of a variety of individuals. In Cooked, Pollan learns from chefs, bakers, and brewmasters the nuance of letting food add sustenance to one's life as well as one's body. With more of a focus on food prep, audiences will learn as much as he does about the passion for cooking meals that nourish body, mind, heart, and soul.
Rotten (2018)
For those looking to see the shocking side of factory farming, look no further than one of the best food documentaries on Netflix. Rotten takes viewers on a serious investigation of the dark side of the food industry, from giant meat-processing plants to airplane hangar-sized warehouses full of chickens packed so tightly they can barely move. Following the food chain supply from its source to market, viewers quickly see that supply cannot always meet demand and that the commoditized nature of food means that to keep costs down and to inflate profits, certain corners must be cut. Cutting those corners can have serious consequences for everyone.
Chef's Table (2015)
From the producers that brought Street Foods, their previous deep dive into the lifestyles and culture of chefs, Cooked, is not to be missed and one of the best food documentaries on Netflix. Follow culinary masters from South Carolina to China as they pursue their dreams of mastering the craft of creating new gourmet food experiences. Chefs reveal to viewers their passion for plating the perfect gourmet meal and the entire process that leads up to it. From making new recipes to locating new ingredients and creating new cooking methods to bring those recipes to life, they show viewers that innovation is the key to keeping cuisine exciting.
Salt Fat Acid Heat (2019)
Based on her 2017 book of the same name, Salt Fat Acid Heat sees Iranian-American chef Samin Nosrat traveling across the globe to showcase the best uses of salt, fat, acid, and heat in one of the best food documentaries on Netflix. Part travel show and one of the best cooking series, Nosrat samples local dishes in Japan, Italy, Mexico, and California and demonstrates to viewers how these meals best incorporate these fundamental tasting elements. Nosrat is a charming host and her instructions are both clear and precise, making cooking look easy. It's the perfect docuseries for those looking to explore the most delicious fundamentals of cuisine.
Street Food USA (2022)
One of the best food documentaries on Netflix seeks to showcase the variety of delicious street fare available in the USA. Street Food USA is an easy binge, with six episodes in total, and sees the camera crew visiting some of the most delicious street food venues in places like Miami, Oahu, NYC, Portland, New Orleans, and more. Each installment visits four different eateries and samples the local and cultural cuisine of the area, featuring everything from long-held classics to unknown dishes such as Souse and Yakamein to hot dogs and pizza. With all of this variety in mind, Street Food USA has a little something for everyone.
Chef’s Table Pizza (2022)
Pizza may have gotten its start in Italy, but chefs from all over the world have added their own cultural spin to the classic dish. This is what one of the best food documentaries on Netflix seeks to explore, Chef's Table Pizza. With six episodes to choose from, the docuseries travels to different parts of the world to explore several different chef's crafts as they each have their own unique way of making pizza. Starting out in Phoenix, Arizona, and traveling across the globe, Chef's Table Pizza sees some intriguing takes on the beloved dish while also spotlighting the lives of the chefs who are revolutionizing it.
Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner (2019)
Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner is quite unique as it takes Chef David Chang and a slew of different notable celebrities to major cities all over the world and sees them tasting and talking about local cuisine. Guest stars include Seth Rogen, Chrissy Teigen, Lena Waithe, and Kate McKinnon traveling to famous locations like Vancouver, Marrakesh, Los Angeles, and Phnom Penh to take a bite out of local eats while also experiencing the culture and exploring different food-making techniques. The docuseries takes viewers through breakfast, lunch, and dinner at each of these locations with some fun field trips along the way.
Chef’s Table BBQ (2020)
The Emmy-nominated series has another spinoff in Chef's Table BBQ, and it's one of the best food documentaries on Netflix. Like the rest of the Chef's Table iterations, BBQ follows four different chefs from completely different regions as they take on the nominal delicacy of America's South. While the series mainly stays in the USA, the final episode sees audiences taking a trip to Yucatán to discover chef Rosalia Chay Chuc's Mayan traditions for preparing a slow-cooked masterpiece. Chef's Table BBQ features more interesting characters than in previous seasons and features all types of BBQ cooking techniques which are sure to take audiences away from the standard grill.
High On The Hog (2021)
Based on the book High on the Hog: A Culinary Journey from Africa to America, this four-part docuseries is one of the best food documentaries on Netflix that showcases the cultural impact African American cuisine has had on the USA. While there are only four episodes right now, the series has been renewed for a second season. The show stars Stephen Satterfield, Gabrielle E.W. Carter, and Jessica B. Harris who bring their food and cultural knowledge into the fray as they discuss cultural roots in African cuisine and how it's changed American dishes forever. The show explores everything from okra and yams to mac and cheese and Virginia ham.
A Tale Of Two Kitchens (2019)
The short documentary A Tale of Two Kitchens is definitively one of the best food documentaries on Netflix and one of the best documentaries for Top Chef fans as it showcases one chef's venture to open a second kitchen in San Francisco while keeping the same employee culture of warmth and belonging. Gabriela Cámara has a successful eatery in Mexico and in the documentary opens up a sister restaurant, Cala, in California. The documentary chronicles the trials and tribulations of opening a new location while providing insight into how Cámara runs her operations. Cámara's priorities may be different from other chefs, but it hasn't stopped her businesses from flourishing.
Flavorful Origins (2019)
With 50 episodes to choose from, Flavorful Origins is one of the best food documentaries on Netflix. The docuseries takes audiences to China and explores cooking techniques of the region both old and new while also featuring ingredients that some may never have heard of before but are vital in Chinese cuisine. Flavorful Origins takes viewers to four separate regions of China — Chaoshan, Yunnan, Gansu, and Guiyang — while showcasing staple foods of the area such as mutton, sour fruits, seaweed, potatoes, and more. Flavorful Origins is the perfect series to watch for those looking to expand their palettes.
Fresh Fried And Crispy (2021)
Food critic and YouTuber Daym Drops hosts one of the best food documentaries on Netflix, Fresh Fried and Crispy. Drops takes viewers all across the U.S. to taste the local flavors of cities like St. Louis, San Diego, and Savannah while sampling anything that's fried and crispy. With eight episodes to choose from, each installment focuses on a different U.S. city with Drops tasting a variety of local favorites that range from famous to bizarre, like shrimp po'boys and chicken and waffles to beaver ravioli and Rocky Mountain oysters. If it's fried and crispy, it's featured in the series.
Ugly Delicious (2018)
David Chang hosts one of the best documentaries about farming and the food industry, Ugly Delicious. With two seasons and 12 episodes to choose from, Ugly Delicious follows a similar shtick as Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner as it features celebrity guests like Steven Yeun, Aziz Ansari, Ali Wong, and more. How it differs from the other best food documentaries on Netflix, however, is it also instructs viewers on the culture from which these dishes come, providing lessons on things like the Persian Gulf origins of meat cooked on a vertical spit, the true definition of curry, the differences of school food between cultures, and more.
The Chef Show (2019)
Actor and filmmaker Jon Favreau is probably best known for his extensive involvement in the MCU, but he also co-hosts one of the best food documentaries on Netflix, The Chef Show. The four-volume series is basically a cooking show and was inspired by Favreau's time learning under Roy Choi in preparation for his film Chef. Each installment sees a slew of celebrity guests and interviews as they learn from master chef Roy Choi cooking the food from Chef and other mouth-watering dishes. Celebrities like Robert Downey Jr., Seth Rogen, and Bill Burr have appeared on the show as well as famous chefs like Candace Nelson, Ivan Orkin, and Wolfgang Puck.
Street Food Asia (2019)
The Street Food franchise popped out another binge-able spinoff that focuses on Asian cuisine and is subsequently one of the best food documentaries on Netflix. With each episode clocking in at around 30 minutes, audiences are taken across the globe at break-neck speed to explore popular street fare in countries like Thailand, India, South Korea, and Vietnam, to name a few. The series combines archival footage and interviews with street food chefs to give viewers a full picture of the culture from which these famous dishes come and the techniques with which they're made.
Gather (2020)
The documentary film Gather was co-produced by the nonprofit organization First Nations Development Institute and is one of the best food documentaries on Netflix. Its primary aim is to chronicle how Indigenous Americans are reclaiming the social, economic, and cultural food practices of their ancestors. The documentary follows five separate figures who are taking action in this regard; Chef Nephi Craig, who has a restaurant serving traditional Apache food and is training recovering addicts to cook; Fred and Elsie DuBray, who are working with bison; Sammy Gensaw III and the Ancestral Guard, who are teaching traditional practices in fishing and cooking salmon; and Twila Cassadore, who is sharing historic agricultural practices.
Somebody Feed Phil (2018)
Creator of Everybody Loves Raymond Philip Rosenthal is hungry, so he decided to take audiences all across the globe in one of the best food documentaries on Netflix. Somebody Feed Phil has proven to be quite successful, as the show has been officially renewed for a seventh season. Its charismatic host takes audiences to some of the biggest hotspots for international cuisine and also showcases many of the charities and non-profit organizations that are active in that region. A spiritual successor to his PBS show, I'll Have What Phil's Having, Rosenthal started adding celebrity guests into the mix in season 5 and the series even has a companion cookbook.
Street Food Latin America (2020)
The second iteration of the hit Street Food series takes audiences to Latin America to sample some of their most famous street food delicacies. One of the best food documentaries on Netflix travels to countries Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, Peru, Columbia, and Bolivia to sample street fare from a variety of different purveyors. Each installment sees four different restaurants and four different chefs discussing their most popular and sought-after dishes and sees some majorly mouth-watering eats like Peruvian Donuts, Argentinean Empanadas, Arepas, and more. Interviewees get to be the testers of these tasty treats and Street Food Latin America is the perfect option for those who enjoy Latin American cuisine.
A Nation Of Broth (2022)
The Korean docuseries A Nation of Broth is one of the best food documentaries on Netflix and sees three Korean stars explore the importance and impact of broth in Korean cuisine. Starring actor Soo-young Ryu (Endless Love), actress Ham Yeon Ji (The Supernatural Agent), and comic artist Huh Young-Man as hosts, A Nation of Broth takes an in-depth look at broth in Korean food, exploring things like history, uniqueness, and culinary experimentation. The hosts speak to different restaurant owners and chefs along the way who fill audiences in on how history has impacted food culture in Korea over time.