Live from Los Angeles’ historic Dolby Theatre, the 95th annual Oscars are coming to you on March 12, at 8 p.m. ET on ABC and streaming on Hulu and YouTube TV. This year, Jimmy Kimmel will be hosting the Academy Awards and will, hopefully, not slip into an Elvis accent and get stuck in it like Leading Actor nominee Austin Butler.
Ahead of the red carpet rollout where all your fave A-List celebs gather and look hot hot hot, you have to figure out a menu for the occasion. What famous foods will you be pairing with all the nominations? We’ve got some ideas for you. Here are foods that represent each major motion picture up for the penultimate Academy Award of Best Picture. From heartwarming family moments to grueling wartime winters, food has a major role in storytelling. If you’re feeling it, you can even lay out some of these items to craft the most delicious Oscars watch party snack table.
All Quiet On The Western Front: Turnip Fries
The Netflix film All Quiet On The Western Front is nominated for a whopping nine Oscar categories in 2023, including International Feature Film, Best Picture, Cinematography, Production Design, Visual Effects, Sound, Makeup and Hairstyling, Original Score, and Writing (Adapted Screenplay). Following German soldiers during World War I, this film sees the dire situations of life in the trenches where rations were your only hope for sustenance. During this time in history, poor harvest seasons and blockades created food shortages for soldiers and civilians alike. The mainstay of many diets became the turnip, both on its own and as a flour substitute for bread.
Avatar: The Way Of Water: Shrimp (Teylu) Tacos
The Na’vi may live in a whole different world from our own, but their main source of protein — Teylu — is similar to jumbo shrimp, according to Avatar Wiki. Transform your “Teylu” into a delicious and nutritious shrimp taco. You can get even more essence of Pandora if you use blue corn wraps. This box-office record-breaking James Cameron sequel is up for Visual Effects, Sound, Production Design, and Best Picture.
The Banshees Of Inisherin: Guinness
An Irish film requires the most Irish staple of all. No, I’m not talking about corned beef, soda bread, or shepherd’s pie. I’m talking about Guinness. Sure, it’s not a crowd-pleasing beer, but it is unapologetically a proud Irish stout, and commonly seen throughout The Banshees Of Inisherin. During filming, lead actors Brendan Gleeson and Colin Farrell were able to drink non-alcoholic Guinness 0. Before this N/A invention, they were drinking concoctions of grape juice and cream, flat coke, and other unappetizing mixes. Initially, I would’ve said that finger foods correspond well to this movie, but, for those of you who have seen the nominated film, you know that wouldn’t work out for one character in particular.
Elvis: Bacon Ultimate PB&J Sandwich
Elvis Presley is famous, not only for being the king of rock and roll, but also for being a hearty eater — particularly with peanut butter and banana. He had his own twist on peanut butter and jelly sandwiches described as the “Fool’s Gold Loaf,” which contains copious strips of bacon. This biopic tackles Elvis’ rise to fame, stardom, and death depicted by nominee Austin Butler. Not only is Butler stuck in Elvis’ voice, but he may also be keeping up with Elvis’ diet as well, as he revealed he too is obsessed with peanut butter and banana sandwiches on Hot Ones with Sean Evans.
Everything Everywhere All At Once: An Everything Bagel
If you’ve seen the movie, you know there’s only one delicious bread item that perfectly sums up the plot: an everything bagel. (Well, maybe hot dogs could be a good representation, too.) This film is truly a movie lover’s dream, tackling family relationships and generational trauma through the lens of sci-fi and fantasy tropes with a signature A24 edge. Lead actors Michelle Yeoh and Ke Huy Quan have had incredible success during the 2023 awards season making history as Asian actors, and the film itself broke a SAG record for most wins. Needless to say, we are thrilled to see what this stunning cast does next.
The Fabelmans: Brisket
The Fabelmans, starring Paul Dano, Michelle Williams, and Gabriel LaBelle, is director Steven Spileberg’s most personal, semi-autobiographical project. Tapping into his real childhood, Spielberg shares the coming-of-age story of a Jewish boy (Sammy Fabelman) who wants nothing more than to be a filmmaker. With heartwarming, interpersonal scenes focused on getting to know the characters, it only makes sense that a Shabbat dinner brisket represents this nominated film. Additionally in the Shabbat dinner scene, one can see challah bread and kugel, too.
Tár: Tuxedo Cake
A classy film needs an equally elite dessert to pair with it. In honor of Cate Blanchett’s now iconic Lydia Tár maestro outfit, the tuxedo cake only makes sense. The psychological drama has been nominated for several awards including Directing, Actress In A Leading Role (Cate Blanchett), Cinematography, Film Editing, Writing (Original Screenplay), and Best Picture.
Top Gun: Maverick: Spicy “Rooster” Wings
The Top Gun sequel with Tom Cruise also stars Miles Teller as Lt. Bradley “Rooster” Bradshaw. With an action-packed, drama-film, sky-high (literally) film such as this, it’s important to have a dish that’s just as exciting. Whether you are seeking a mild buffalo sauce or trying to kick it up a notch with a Ghost pepper seasoning, you should definitely “wing” it with your snacks for this movie.
Triangle Of Sadness: Champagne Cocktail
Movies in 2022 were all about addressing class disparity through films such as Glass Onion, The Menu, and Best Picture nominee Triangle Of Sadness. What better way to highlight the height of luxurious living than a champagne cocktail? Throughout the film, characters can be seen holding Champagne flutes in a myriad of scenes. I’m willing to bet these hoity-toity characters are not sipping on Andre, but you definitely can with these champagne cocktail recipes.
Women Talking: Crusty Bread
This may seem like a simplistic representation of the film, but the connection contains multitudes. Not only do these women live in a rural colony and farm their own wheat and crops, but they also live under a strict Christian religious order, specifically that of the Mennonites. Based on a 2018 book of the same name by author Miriam Toews, this drama examines patriarchal violence, female solidarity, and more timeless themes. Women Talking is also nominated for Writing (Adapted Screenplay) by Sarah Polley.