'Can you find non-cooking roles next time?' Romeo Tan's mum said he tried too hard to look like a chef

Four lessons, learning under a real masterchef, and multiple mistakes — all these were part of the experience local actor Romeo Tan went through to play the role of an exceptional chef in the upcoming Mediacorp drama Love at First Bite.

While it may have not been a smooth journey for him, he told AsiaOne on Dec 8 that he seemed to have found his talent in tossing food in a pan — in one scene, it took him only three takes to get it right.

However, that was after multiple tries of tossing fried eggs at home which created a mess.

He said: "Some of the eggs were splattered over the stove and some on the floor. So, my mother was shaking her head. The kitchen is her playground and I was messing it up."

In response, his mother quipped: "Can you take on non-cooking roles next time?"

On Love at First Bite, Romeo plays Chen Guang, a fine dining chef who only hosts a small group of up to eight people for each sitting.

Love at First Bite also stars Chantalle Ng as Xi Yue, a bubbly character who encounters a picky, fastidious chef Martius (Xu Bin), as a series of events draw them closer to each other. Meanwhile, Chen Guang is also attracted in Xi Yue and fights for her affection.

The drama also stars Shane Pow who is slowly making his acting comeback since his run-in with the law last year.

ALSO READ: 'I looked like a ball with some facial hair': Shane Pow puts on weight and belly dances outside Esplanade for new drama

Prefers "quality buffets"

Smiling sheepishly, Romeo admitted that his family is indeed not the most enthusiastic about the cooking skills that he had acquired, probably because they are more flashy than practical.

He added: "[My family feels that] fine dining is not satisfying. It's one big plate and food is only placed on one small corner. It looks very nice for the camera but is not necessarily filling or delicious."

Romeo agreed with them, admitting that he is someone who goes for "quality buffets" that fill his stomach.

The role was challenging as the actor had to multitask. Besides cooking, he had to plate, cut, slice, and toss — all the while looking absolutely dashing, of course.

Regarding all the new cooking techniques, he shared: "It's my first time handling so many pieces of equipment, like the pressure cooker and torch. I did quite a bit of plate decoration too."

Romeo had to closely observe the chef's demonstration right before filming his scene so he can replicate the steps. He shared that prior to the filming of the scene, the chef will come early to prepare the ingredients and cook so the cameraman can "capture the details [of the process]".

"Usually I will be right beside the chef to observe the specific steps — like him slicing with his left hand and when he picks up his glove, for example. The assistant producer also helps me to take notes," he added.

However, he wasn't able to replicate those steps perfectly.

In fact, Romeo looked so perplexed when slicing the ingredients for real that he was asked to pretend instead. He admitted: "I was so nervous when slicing that my expression was quite stiff.

"So the cameraman said, 'Why don't you stop slicing? Pretend that you are slicing, but control your facial expression for the scene.'"

Baking over cooking

Despite his role, the actor is more of a baker. He used to bake cookies nearly twice a week during his younger days as it was one of his favourite snacks.

Due to his hectic schedule, Romeo rarely bakes anymore. Nowadays, he just buys cookies from Famous Amos. However, he has also learnt to make creme brulee after training for the show.

And instead of cooking, he opts for food delivery instead.

"Before Foodpanda and Grab entered the picture, I did cook. But now it's so easy, everything is at your fingertips, usually I will just order," the actor confessed.

He added: "So right now, I don't really cook that much. I don't really like to cook Chinese food because I find Chinese food more tedious. There are more steps, like measuring the right amount of ingredients and skill. I prefer making Western food."

Love At First Bite will be available to watch on Dec 19 on meWATCH or on Channel 8, weekdays at 9pm.

ALSO READ: 'We like to compare and see who's suffering more': Xu Bin drips mystery liquid on Chantalle Ng, she exacts revenge by smearing curry, puking on him

jolynn.chia@asiaone.com

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