Gourmet Detective

I’m shocked at all of the great reviews. I think if this cost $ 30 per person I could up it by a star or 2, but for what you pay it was NOT what I expected. I will say– the show was entertaining the actors were hilarious and appear to really love their jobs. So the issues were these:
The food was AWFUL. I’m not usually that picky, but the salad was clearly straight from a bag and the vegetarian ravioli couldn’t have been any more obviously frozen and it was so salty I couldn’t finish it. The drinks were way overpriced for what they were. The cheesecake was ok, although mine was still frozen in the middle.
The location– super dumpy. SUPER dumpy. I personally felt really let down to have «splurged» for our big night out and find myself in a dumpy building with awful food.
I kind of understand wanting to give it a good review because you like the cast, but I was dissapointed and don’t want others to be as surprised by me at the horrible quality for the price. ESPECIALLY since you call it the «gourmet detective.»

Fun date night and a great way to spend Halloween! From the moment you walk-​in, the actors are already in character and ready to perform. I thought they did amazing and I loved it when they sang! They’re quite talented, especially being able to improve each situation. It’s definitely a lot more fun when you play along and interact with the other guests and actors! Our table had a blast and we met some really great people. The venue was easy to find and the atmosphere was lovely. I thought the food was good, not the best. I got the chicken which was at least not dry, but the steak that my boyfriend got was DELICIOUS! Overall, I would definitely come back again! :)

Took the whole family to the gourmet detective «who done it» gourmet dinner. We had a blast, good food and cast, we will be back in the future for more, I highly recommend going to one of these as the entertainment is worth the price and the food is a bonus

An absolute delight. The three word review if you don’t want to read the rest of the review.:D
I received a groupon to this show as a gift. I’ve always wanted to do a murder mystery dinner, but my impressions were always from what I’ve seen on TV, on sitcoms where the characters go to mystery dinners and get into shenanigans.
The Intro: The place was a little off putting upon first arrival. The building is located on a golf course property, and the google maps images don’t help out. After parking and walking to the door, we are greeted by two actors (in character) who are already engaged in conversation with other guests. The accents were on point and they were very funny. After a minute or two, we head inside and are welcomed into the bar. where we were able to enjoy a cocktail while the dining room was prepped. The actors continue inside, sewing seeds of doubt and corruption among the other actors. I enjoyed being able to engage in conversation with the actors in an attempt to weasel out information about the other characters. With drink in hand we are led into the dining area, which is beautiful, and very unsuspected when gauging the building exterior. My girl an I were sat at a table with another couple (assigned seating so don’t fret about being in a hurry to get a seat) who couldn’t have been lovelier, striking up conversation about what we all do, what was expected of the show, and of course, who we already thought did it (without the cast announced or the show even starting.:D)
The show begins and what follows is a mixture of wonderful laughs and beautiful singing voices. I was laughing out loud scene after comical scene and was entranced when singing began from the very beautiful and talented actors. I do not want to ruin the experience so I will halt my description of the show there.
Soft drinks and alcohol are additional, coffee was complimentary. Dinner was par, we ordered steaks, which could have been better, and cheesecake for dessert. I make mention of the food and its quality, because, even though it is noted here on other reviews, understand that the show is the main event, and if food was the priority, perhaps a professional restaurant may have been better suited if that was the intended goal.
Being full from our meals, the show commenced with an incredibly entertaining ending, that caught most of us at our table by surprise. I did not guess the killer correctly, but my lover made a silly enough guess (and explanation) so as to warrant a reading from the accused actor out loud in front of everyone. After that, the winner was announced, and shirt (and a kiss) was given, and the show was wrapped. Everyone was invited to take pictures with the cast after the show (we couldn’t resist).
If the mystery dinner show has been something you’ve been interested or curious in, I couldn’t recommend the Gourmet Detective anymore. The show is a little PG-​13 as there are many a lewd reference and most people were dressed for special occasions, birthdays and anniversaries; I was not, because I am a comfortable hobo. These are some hard working actors, that also act as your food servers, that go above and beyond to meet and exceed the audiences expectations. We were told they were going to be introducing a new show and story in November and I think that will be an excellent time to bring our friends so that they can experience this as well.
Bravo Gourmet Detective, Bravo!

Loved this murder mystery dinner! So much fun! It is a great place to celebrate a special occasion because it is something different and interesting. My husband and I decided to have a date night without the kids to celebrate our wedding anniversary, so we chose to come here. We arrived at 7:15pm and sat down in the lounge for a drink. We are greeted in French by François the Chef and his staff because we are in Monte Carlo. At this time, the actors are in character and interacting with the guests. We are all supposedly guests at a birthday party. At around 7:30pm, they start seating everyone at our tables in the main dining room. We sat with another random couple at a table for 4. They serve salad at this time and the yummy bread is already at our table. At 8pm, the show starts. After the 1^st act, they serve the main course. I got the steak which was well-​done and seasoned well. I liked the flavor and the sauce it comes in. It comes with potatoes and assorted steamed vegetables. After everyone is served, they continue with the next act and then the cheesecake dessert is served. This is when we submit our guess of who committed the murder. They collect our responses and finish with the last act which explains exactly what happened. Then, the people who guessed correctly are entered for a raffle drawing for a Gourmet Detective t-​shirt. I guessed the murderer correctly, but a lot of others did too so I didn’t win. It’s fun interacting with the actors and I thought everyone did a great job. I enjoyed the food and the show. Tip: Bring cash to leave gratuities for the actors/​staff. At the very end, you can take a photo with the cast of the show.

We found this through a groupon deal, but it was a great time. Food was good, all great seating in the room, and cheesy but great acting. Not a professional looking dive of a golf course clubhouse, or professional acting, and the server didn’t know what a dirty martini was, but overall, a very fun time.
The plot was clever and a great way to keep the audience guessing and keeping laughing at the same time. Well done.
The food was average. Not very inventive or flavorful. I had the chicken, my date had the salmon, salads and bread were good — the cheesecake was absolutely delicious as cheesecake tends to be. :-)
Loved the touch of having the audience explain why they thought their written choice was the killer — the funnier results were read out loud, including «because she a ho.» Ha ha ha.

I got a deal off groupon for this dinner show, which turned out to be very fun.
My girlfriend and I were sat with another random couple. The venue is small, but seating is spaced out enough to be comfortable. It was a packed house on this Saturday night.
From beginning to end, the actors and actresses were in character the whole time. The characters were very engaged with the audience and were pleasantly humorous.
The meal starts off with a house salad which I think is Italian dressing. My girlfriend and I both ordered the steaks with mushroom sauce with house potatoes veggies. My steak came out well done and my girlfriends came out medium but both were still good. The random couple at our table ordered fish and chicken and we over heard them say it wasn’t very good. I’m glad we didn’t order those dishes.
All in all, the experience was really fun. If you’re looking for something different to do on a date, gourmet detective is something you must try. They switch up the show every few weeks so it’s never the same.

This whole situation was purely amazing. From the outdated, falling apart golf course club house the show was held in, to the bartender who brought us shots for no reason. I ordered a Moscow mule but I’m certain the bartender didn’t have a clue what that was. 6 drinks in we didn’t care that the acting was hilarious and the food was awful. The kids were at home and they couldn’t go wrong. We had a blast, but I wouldn’t call the outing ‘serious’. We were cracking up the whole time. The actors definitely stayed in character. Definitely plan on getting drunk. The crowd was random, and equally amazing.
I ‘won’ the whole thing and got a free tshirt which was fun. I would totally go to the other shows but they are kinda far away. I seriously haven’t laughed this hard in a long time.

Although I thought the performances were good, I was deflated by the food and the atmosphere. The show seemed a bit raunchy to me and more suitable for older folks. I couldn’t get passed the overcooked, bland food or the outdated décor but if they can improve on those areas, it would be a nice show.

This a great special occasion or date night experience… once, maybe twice. Most of the guests seem to have had the same idea since many tables were celebrating something.
As an «experience» it was really fun: dressing up in our makeshift 1920s garb, slipping into a bad French accent along with the cast as they greeted us and served our drinks, and trying to sleuths the Who Dunnit? throughout the show.
However, the food was mediocre, served steaming hot which was impressive, but NO menu alterations (which is fine) and since the cast members are the servers, don’t expect to have more bread, extra sauce or your steak recooked… they have a show to finish!
I did like that they moved the story along pretty efficiently and served each next course in between acts. The cast was lively, fun and certainly contained an element of melodrama! If they change the story regularly, this is a fun special occasion destination.
I suggest, the larger the party, the better evening… and tut MUST dress the part!

We were first greeted by the French Chef at the door when we arrived there. He was very funny and we though he is a real chef. We all didn’t know what to expected or what is going to happens next inside the show. All of us felt welcome there as we all played ours part in making the show even more interesting and amusing. The entire dinner show were absolutely marvelous and very professional. The main course meal was delicious and mouth watering. We totally recommend our family and friends for sure. All hats go out to all the casts and staffs for putting up such an awesome show. Hope to see all of u again next year. God Bless

I don’t work at GD so this is pretty honest.
I’m from out of town and I stopped in to visit SoCal, and wanted something fun for a Saturday night.
Well, I achieved that. I had a good time with my friends that I went with, and enjoyed the ambiance. It’s kinda a dumpy location, but the actors did a good job of pumping up the story before the «play» started.
Would I go again? Absolutely not.
The food? Mediocre at best.
The acting? How would I describe it? Washed up has-​beens who always wished they’d go to Broadway. Does that mean they were bad? Not at all. Whoever wrote the script was, though.
Overall, I would recommend this place as a joke for a less-​than-​meaningful birthday to a friend of family member.
It’s worth giving it a shot. Maybe you’ll like it more than I did.

The Gourmet Detective is where you will find the REAL DEAL murder mystery show. The actors are professionals and if you like it, their improv with you is GREAT!
***They just moved to a new location in OC (they also have a location in Riverside) so make sure you are going to the right place.
There is a lounge bar area for you to relax with a drink if you like before it all starts. You get assigned to a table (all the seats in the house are great because the performers go all around the room.) The three course dinner happens between the three act show. Funny, funny, funny plot where someone dies and it’s up to you to figure out who did it. Play along to have the most fun! …and don’t forget to pay attention.
The performers are your servers! After you fall in love with them… go get your photo with them for memories after the show!
Fun for all! Worth a try!