A Taste of Summer

Gabi is a sous-chef in a restaurant in NYC. After deciding she has enough of her routinary life, she moves to her sister's town, and has the opportunity to open her own restaurant- Then we have Caleb, who is the owner of a diner that is close to her soon-to-be open restaurant.

What I liked about this was that the romance was very subtle. It was a simple movie with no forced moments, but it was about the characters pushing the other to give the best of themselves. This movie talks about dreams, about chasing them, about thinking (and getting) out of the box, which is nice for a change.

I watched this movie with a different pair of eyes because I read that the two main actors are married in real life and that makes this 1000% more adorable. Besides, they are new faces, which I always appreciate and I'm here for some Latina representation. This might seem slow and kind of boring at some points but it's worth a watch, it totally has those summer vibes.

While this is a typical Hallmark movie, there was something about this one that is better than most of them. I won't waste your time with the plot - everyone knows a Hallmark plot by now. I admit to enjoying most of them. But some are better than others. This is one of the better ones.

I'm not exactly sure why this was better. The two leads are married to each other so the acting was comfortable, and not forced. Interestingly enough, though, something about the beginning was a turnoff and if the remote had been closer, and a dog not sitting on my lap, I would have changed the station. I'm glad I didn't. It quickly improved, and I enjoyed it. It left me feeling good. There were slight differences to the typical Hallmark movie, which was a nice change.

We know how they're going to turn out, but this one carried some positive messages too, that people can take with them. People don't always win, and there's nothing wrong with that. It's trying that matters. And if you win, that's good too, but no matter what, it's the trying that counts.

This movie tried, and turned out to be a winner. Watch it. Neither the actors nor the script disappoints.

Typical Hallmark movie. The softball team practiced and played a game without getting dirty. Just saying Hallmark at least try to make it authentic looking by having dirt on the uniforms.

There's a festival competition to win (which including another common trope at the end but I won't spoil it). Competing restaurants (A Taste of Romance did it way better). A baseball game relying on the kid with no confidence.

I have to say that Gabby is a compelling character. She has strong values. She is an encourager. She is eminently competent.

For two actors married in real life, the chemistry might have been there to some extent, but it wasn't positive. I never cared if these two got together. I wasn't as impressed with acting as could have been.

I wanted to root for Emily, but the baseball game was way too over the top and obvious.

This had nothing over and above the usual formula. I do appreciate Hallmarks efforts towards more diversity which this one exemplifies. I found the heroine too glammed up to be relatable or realistic for a hardworking chef in a kitchen. When will Hallmark learn that tarting up their actresses like they were selling cosmetics in a department store is not the way to go. The romance was not front and center which was actually refreshing. But Ironically, I didn't find the chemistry out of the ordinary considering the two leads are married in real life. The actress reminded me of Sandra Bullock but without her appeal and the actor reminded me of Topher Grace.