''Chef's Special'' ( es, Fuera de carta) is a Spanish film directed by

Nacho García Velilla Nachos are a Mexican cuisine, Mexican culinary dish consisting of fried tortilla chips or ''totopos'' covered with melted cheese or cheese sauce, as well as a variety of other toppings and garnishes, often including meats (such as ground beef or ...

that centers on

homosexuality Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexual attractions" to peop ...

and the decision to come out. It focuses on men who have had relationships with women to hide their own sexuality, to the point of even having kids. The film also deals with the theme of single parents. It stars

Javier Cámara Javier Cámara Rodríguez (born 19 January 1967) is a Spanish actor. He became known for two television roles as a priest in '' ¡Ay, señor, señor!'' and ''Éste es mi barrio''. He has since featured in films such as ''Torrente, the Dumb Arm ...

Benjamín Vicuña Benjamín Vicuña Luco (born 29 November 1978) is a Chilean actor and entrepreneur. Biography Vicuña was born November 29, 1978 to father Juan Pablo Vicuña Parot and mother Isabel Luco Morandé. He is a descendant of Benjamín Vicuña Macke ...

Lola Dueñas María Dolores Dueñas Navarro (born 6 October 1971) better known as Lola Dueñas is a Spanish actress. Born in Madrid, she is the daughter of Nicolás Dueñas and studied in the Teatro de La Abadía of Madrid. She decided to relocate to Par ...

, and

Fernando Tejero Fernando Tejero Muñoz-Torrero (born 24 February 1967) is a Spanish actor. Among his work, he has acted in multiple films, including '' Football Days'' (2003), for which he won the Goya Award for Best New Actor, and television series like ''A ...

. The film premiered in Spain on April 11, 2008 and was a success in the box office, earning almost 1 million Euros in its first weekend and ending the year as the sixth highest-grossing Spanish film grossing 5,107,626.41 €. It received fourteen award nominations—including two

Goya Awards The Goya Awards ( es, Premios Goya) are Spain's main national annual film awards, commonly referred to as the Academy Awards of Spain. The awards were established in 1987, a year after the founding of the Academy of Cinematographic Arts and Sc ...

—winning six of them. The critical reception was not as favorable, receiving negative reviews from important publications like

El País ''El País'' (; ) is a Spanish-language daily newspaper in Spain. ''El País'' is based in the capital city of Madrid and it is owned by the Spanish media conglomerate PRISA. It is the second most circulated daily newspaper in Spain . ''El Pa ...

, El Mundo, and

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

Plot

Maxi (

) is the chef and owner of a restaurant, Xantarella, who aspires to win a

Michelin Star The Michelin Guides ( ) are a series of guide books that have been published by the French tyre company Michelin since 1900. The Guide awards up to three Michelin stars for excellence to a select few establishments. The acquisition or loss of a ...

but is having financial difficulties. He helps Álex (

), a maître d’ who is desperately looking for a boyfriend. It has been a while since Maxi has come out of the closet and declared his

. Since then, he left behind his wife and his two children whom he hasn't seen in the last seven years. His wife's death leads him to have to take care of his two estranged kids. Meanwhile, an Argentinian soccer player, Horacio (

), comes into Maxi and Alex's lives and passes himself off as heterosexual when in reality he's homosexual. The film develops from the love triangle formed between Maxi, Álex, and Horacio, Maxi's responsibility to his kids, and the future of the restaurant.

External links

* * 2008 films Gay-related films Spanish LGBT-related films 2000s Spanish-language films 2000s Spanish films Films about chefs 2008 LGBT-related films {{LGBT-film-stub