The Gourmet Detective

The Gourmet Detective has been a professional in the food and murder business since 1990.
Set in the age of Film Noir, the stylized and provocative comedy/drama Gourmet Detective follows the lives of the ruthlessly competitive men and women of the underworld, a world where intrigue and mystery are made into an art.
Once inside the stylish dining atmosphere, the characters greet you at the door, offer you a drink, and show you to your seat. From here on out the mystery is played out in scenes as you sit back and enjoy a visual feast of authentic costuming, sets and live period music. Between each scene of the mystery the same cast of characters serve you dinner… one course at a time. This is your chance to ask them questions, assume your own character and try and solve the mystery.
Audience Friendly™ is The Gourmet Detective’s trademark. We’ve raised the performance bar, insisting that our audiences always look good when interacting with the sordid characters in the performance. It’s easy to get a cheap laugh with an insult, or by putting an audience member “on the spot;” however, that’s not our style. Your involvement is up to you, and regardless of how much you play along you’ll never be put on the spot or made the target of an easy laugh. We discovered over time this is our greatest asset, as it allows audience members to play along or to sit back and enjoy the show on their own terms.
Our professionally scripted, audience participation, family friendly mysteries have won awards and rave reviews (Winner of both the Critic's Choice Award for "Best Dinner Theater" and the "Best Kept Secret" Award from Orange Coast Magazine, and "Best of the West... Best Mystery Dinner Theater" from Sunset Magazine), “Best Mystery Dinner Theater” Fox 11 News, MyFoxLA, 2009, a nomination for “Best Dinner Theater” by Best of LA TV, and most recently Talk of the Town’s 2010 Award for Excellence in Customer Satisfaction.
The Gourmet Detective is celebrating its 19th anniversary of mystery and mayhem in Orange County, CA. Having opened November 2, 1990 with the Bogart parody MURDER AT THE CAFE NOIR. We have premiered ten comical murder mysteries including, DEATH UNDER COVER, MUMM'S THE WORD, A CASE OF DO OR DIE, ABRA CADAVER, NOIR SUSPICIONS, YOUR DINNER OR YOUR LIFE, STAY TUNED FOR MURDER, DARLING, YOU SLAY ME and the current original production of GET CARTIER.
November 3rd, 2010 marks the beginning of our 4th season in Southern California at the Avila Terrace Theatre across from The Mission Inn in Riverside, Ca.