TV Reviews : ‘A Moveable Feast’ on PBS Views American Food

If “A Moveable Feast” were a restaurant, it would be a health food cafeteria. As you walked down the line, looking at a lot of dreary dishes that were supposed to be good for you, you’d think how much happier a hamburger would make you.

But in the case of this particular “Feast” (airing at 8 tonight on Channels 28 and 15 under the “Smithsonian World” banner), it doesn’t even turn out to be particularly good for you.

This self-described “lively tour of American food culture” begins with a depiction of the Pilgrims. Some nice Indians (who look more like Gypsies) bring them oysters and teach them to plant corn. The Dutch drop by for dinner (bringing some cheese). It’s all as exciting as a grade school audio-visual presentation.

The next thing we know, we’re riding the rails, and the announcer is telling us that “the railroad helped to carry us from an agricultural to an industrial society.” There is a too-brief section on the Harvey Girls, suddenly we’re eating fast food and then the McDonalds tell us how they invented the golden arches. And now on to power lunch at “21.”

The “21” segment is one of the high points, for it takes you right into the heart of the kitchen and gives you a sense of how a big restaurant produces food. Unfortunately, it’s sandwiched between a puffy piece about what an important place “21” is and another about how the Air Force Academy manages to feed 5,000 cadets at the same time. (You’d probably rather not know.)

The last segment of our food tour takes us to Berkeley’s Chez Panisse--and back to the land and a brief visit to the Chino Ranch. If you don’t already know that this Rancho Santa Fe institution is where the country’s best fruit and vegetables are being grown, it’s a nice introduction and one that will make you want to jump into your car and rush right down to buy something for dinner.

But first you’ve got to try to swallow the last few words of this particular “Feast.” “We have wound up where we started,” says the announcer, happily looking at the fresh-food movement--and neatly overlooking a few minor environmental problems.

Bon appetit.