The Menu

Margot does not fit the menu. She was not Tyler's original date — she is an escort named Erin, hired after Tyler's ex-girlfriend dumped him before the dinner. In a private confrontation, Slowik recognizes that she comes from the service class, not the world of the other guests. He then reveals the worst of it: Tyler knew ahead of time that everyone would die tonight. He worshipped Slowik enough to attend anyway and brought Margot knowing she would be killed alongside him. Invited into the kitchen to prove his credentials, Tyler produces a sloppy, overcooked, conceptually empty plate of lamb — what Slowik names "Tyler's Bullshit." Humiliated, Tyler is led to Slowik's office, where he hangs himself with his tie.

Margot breaks the menu from the inside. She confronts Slowik in front of the remaining guests: she doesn't like his food, she's still hungry, and she accuses him of cooking with obsession rather than love — of failing at the most basic job of feeding someone something they actually enjoy. She orders a cheeseburger. A real one, not deconstructed. Slowik goes quiet. In the kitchen, he grinds the meat, forms the patty, and cooks it on a flat top — the same food he made before the accolades turned cooking into theater. It is simple, honest, and clearly made with care. Margot eats it with visible pleasure, then asks if she can get the rest to go. She offers a ten-dollar bill. Slowik boxes it up and lets her leave. She is the only guest who correctly diagnosed his grief, and the only one who refuses to be part of his ending.

With Margot gone, Slowik addresses the remaining diners for the last time. The final course is a s'more: the staff dress each guest in a marshmallow stole and a chocolate hat, then scatter graham cracker crumbs and flammable syrups across the floors and tables. Some guests thank him. Some weep. Slowik sets the restaurant alight. The flames spread through the carefully arranged fuel, the marshmallow melts, and the building becomes an inferno. The staff stays. Slowik stays. Linda, still drunk, stays. Everyone inside burns.

Out on the water, Margot unwraps the to-go box, takes out the cheeseburger, and eats it while watching the restaurant burn on the horizon. She wipes her mouth with the printed menu — using it as a napkin — and keeps eating as the screen cuts to black.