Travel Themed Movie Night
TL;DR
Themed movie night dinners to feel like you're traveling while you're staying at home. If you're looking for a cheap, easy, and achievable way to feel like you're traveling, even if you're not: combine a movie with food from the country in question: et voila!
A travel themed movie night is one of our favourite diy movie night ideas at home. Take movies with vacation vibes and combine them with foods and drinks from the respective countries. Of course, our movie themed dinner ideas all come with recipes for a three-course meal. Our favourite movie night themes are
- Greece
- France
- Italy
- Vienna
- Tibet
- Greek themed movie night
- French themed movie night
- Austrian themed movie night
- Italian themed movie night
- Tibetan themed movie night
Greek themed movie night
We just love Greece!
The Greek movie: Mamma Mia!
What the movie is about: Mamma Mia! is a classical musical romantic comedy. If you're into the music of ABBA, this is the movie for you! It is set on the fictional Greek island of Kalokairi, which gives you serious holiday vibes. A young woman invites three men to her wedding to find out which of them is her father. A classic rom-com plot full of surprises, humor, and romance unfolds, all laced with ABBA songs interpreted by the cast. And if you don't have enough yet there's a sequel called Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again.
The Greek movie themed dinner ideas
- Starter: Greek salad
- Main course: Metaxa Gyros
- Dessert: Greek yogurt
- Drink: Greek wine and Ouzo
I guess we all know Greek salad with cucumber, tomato, peppers, feta cheese, olives, and onion. Our recommended main course Metaxa Gyros consists of Gyros meat (or pork with Gyros spice) in a sauce with peppers, tomato paste, sour creme, and of course Metaxa. The whole thing is gratinated in the oven with cheese. We recommend eating garlic potatoes as a side dish. For the dessert, mix Greek yogurt with powdered sugar, add red fruit jelly, and top the whole thing with crumbled shortbread or Graham Crackers - it's delicious!
French themed movie night
Of course, France is very romantic…
The French movie: Sink or Swim
What the movie is about: This French tragic comedy is about a guy with depression, who joins an all-male synchronized swimming team. He gets to know all the other team members and their problems. On a whim, the team decides to participate in the male synchronized swimming world championships. Hard training commences, and all group members get new impulses to solve the problems in their lives. All in all, this film is really heartwarming and uplifting and a great choice if you're already into french comedies (like What's in a Name?, The Intouchables, Welcome to the Sticks - we can recommend them all, we just love french movies), or if you want to try something new.
The French movie themed dinner ideas
- Starter: Oysters
- Main course: Coq au vin
- Desert: French Cheese and Baguette
- Drink: Champagne and red wine
All those things are super easy to cook. You only have to open the Oysters and cut the cheese. For the coq au vin, you basically cook a chicken in a bottle of red wine and you're done.
Austrian themed movie night
We couldn’t pass the opportunity to include an imaginary trip to our Austrian neighbours.
The Austrian movie: Before Sunrise
What the movie is about: In this 1995 movie, an American guy (Ethan Hawke) meets a French woman (Julie Delpy) on a train in Europe. They only know each other for a couple of minutes before he asks her to exit the train with him in Vienna (she was on her way to Paris). She does, and they spend the whole night wandering through the streets of Vienna, enjoying a Viennese café and sharing a kiss on the super romantic Ferris wheel. They have wonderfully deep conversations throughout this whole movie, that just feel super realistic. The whole way they experience Vienna and each other's company is immensely romantic. The film belongs to a trilogy with Before Sunset (2004) resuming the story 9 years later in Paris, and Before Midnight (2013), continuing the story another 9 years later on the Peloponnese coast, Greece. The whole trilogy is amazing! Go watch it, thank us later.
The Austrian movie themed dinner ideas
- Starter: Grießnockerlsuppe (Semolina dumpling soup)
- Main course: Schnitzel and potato salad
- Desert: Kaierschmarrn (Emperor's Mess)
- Drink: Beer and Melange (Viennese coffee with milk and milk foam)
The soup is essentially a beef broth with Semolina dumplings. Schnitzel is breaded pork, which is super easy to make. Kaierschmarrn is basically pulled apart pancakes.
Italian themed movie night
Of course, Italian food can not miss on this list.
The Italian movie: To Rome with Love
What the movie is about: This Woody Allen romantic comedy transports you to Rome in an instant. The plot features four unrelated stories taking place in Rome: the one of the American tourist Hayley, the one of the newlyweds Antonio and Milly, the one of Leopoldo, who reaches unexpected fame, and the one of John, who has lived in Rome some 30 years ago. This film is so wonderfully whimsical and funny that I'm chuckling even as I write this article. If you liked this movie you will also like other Woody Allen films like Midnight in Paris or A Rainy Day in New York.
The Italian movie themed dinner ideas
- Starter: Antipasti
- Main course (Primo piatto): Pasta
- Main course (Secondo piatto): Saltimbocca alla Romana
- Desert: Tiramisu
- Drink: Wine, Espresso
If you can't get ready-made antipasti in your local supermarket, the easiest way to prepare them is by putting the vegetables of your choice in the oven with garlic, herbs, and loads of olive oil, until they are softened. We're sure you have a favorite pasta you can bring out for your first main course. For the second main course we recommend Saltimbocca alla Romana - it even has Rome in its name. It's basically veal, prosciutto and sage, rolled up and cooked. Tiramisu couldn't be easier to prepare: you layer ladyfingers dipped in coffee with mascarpone mixed with sugar (and raw egg, if you're sticking to the traditional recipe), and top everything up with cocoa powder. Don't forget to serve espresso with it!
Tibetan themed movie night
We’ve never been to Tibet but one might dream…
The Tibetan movie: Seven Years in Tibet
What the movie is about: In this 1997 war drama, the young Brad Pitt plays the Austrian Heinrich Harrer, who is mountaineering in the British Indian Himalayas in the 1930s. When World War Two begins, he is imprisoned by the British. Years later he and his companion escape and make it to Tibet, where they stay in the holy city of Lhasa. They start to build a life and even get to meet the Dalai Lama. In 1950, they leave the country because of the Chinese invasion. This movie was very touching. You witness the story of a man whose life was turned around by two major global events - and the crazy thing is, the film is based on an autobiographical travel book, written by Heinrich Harrer himself.
The Tibetan movie themed dinner ideas
We didn't dare to cook Tibetan food so we ordered it in, we recommend you do the same for a more authentic experience.
- Starter: Thukpa (noodle soup)
- Main course: Momos (dumplings)
- Desert: Bhatsu Mahku (roasted barley with sugar and cheese)
- Drink: Masala Chai (Indian milky tea)
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