America's First Foodie traces Beard's influence through the many chefs that surrounded him and came after, including Julia Child, Alice Waters, Jeremiah Tower and Jacques Pépin, but what remains a mystery is the spirit that animated so many to come together to preserve his legacy. Several close friends affirm Beard's charms, but the man himself is unfortunately not on hand to glamour the viewer. How does one capture the "life of the party" when the party has been over for decades?

Chefs Julia Child, James Beard and Edna Lewis (Dan Wynn/Courtesy of the Wynn family and the James Beard Foundation)

There are testimonials to Beard's innovation, intelligence and wit. We hear that he was a master raconteur, loved a juicy piece of gossip, and was something of a scoundrel, skipping out on countless restaurant checks and flashing some of his guests and neighbors.

Beard scandalized his peers by endorsing everything from Planters Peanuts to Adolph's Meat Tenderizer to raise money for his cooking school, a move he later regretted, referring to himself as a "gastronomic whore." We see a few saucy quotes from his books and learn of his participation in the design of The Four Seasons, an influential New York eatery that combined Beard's twin loves of theater and food. Interesting tidbit: the restaurant was among the first to change its menu seasonally, hence the name. Nevertheless, there are some awkward moments regarding Beard's personal life that darken the otherwise rosy portrait of the man who helped launch the farm to table movement, not the least of which is the low opinion many of his close friends held of his (apparently) life-long companion.

The film is a bit like a soufflé that fails to rise. All the right ingredients are present and seemingly in the correct proportions: celebrity chef testimonials, a few Beard recipes prepared by Jacques Pépin and Naomi Pomery, archival images of Beard's youth and early education, early TV appearances by the man himself, and glitzy footage of James Beard Awards bestowed. But something is missing; perhaps it is just the impossibility of knowing the true power of a celebrity's charm without the man present to demonstrate.

Chef James Beard (Dan Wynn/Courtesy of the Wynn family and the James Beard Foundation)

There is no denying Beard's outsized personality and seemingly unquenchable lust for life. We learn how his innovations continue to proliferate within the food community today, though the film is unable to effectively convey the ineffable quality that made James Beard so beloved among his peers, inspiring a group of dedicated influencers to create a monument to his memory that became "the Academy Awards of the food world."

The man whose face adorns the ultimate culinary seal of approval loved people, according to Julia Child, "loved his work, loved gossip, loved to eat, [and] loved a good time." Seems like those are the very qualities necessary -- other than the food itself -- for a good meal, and the ones that cannot be prescribed in a cookbook. And maybe that's the secret to James Beard, he contained that extra something special that made a good dinner party great.

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