CRITIC’S PICK
‘The Truffle Hunters’ Review: In Dogged Pursuit of Culinary Gold
- The Truffle Hunters
- NYT Critic’s Pick
- Directed by Michael Dweck, Gregory Kershaw
- Documentary
- PG-13
- 1h 24m
The history of human gastronomy is full of mysteries. Who figured out that an oyster was something to eat? That fruit juice left sitting around for a while would get you drunk? That a kid would eat the middle of an Oreo first? I am now convinced that these imponderables pale in comparison to the question of the truffle. How did this subterranean fungus, the best specimens of which look like woebegone potatoes, come to be among the most prized and pricey of delicacies?
I am not sure that any of the human characters in “The Truffle Hunters,” a charming and slyly poignant documentary by Michael Dweck and Gregory Kershaw, have the answers. Not the portly, well-dressed gentleman who assays the truffles with