Aahana Swrup
‘Boiling Point,’ the BBC drama show succeeding Philip Barantini’s eponymous 2021 film, invites the viewers back into the whirlwind inner workings of a lavish restaurant in northeast London. However, instead of the Jones & Sons featured in the film, the show finds much of the same kitchen staff, this time under the leadership of Head Chef Carly at Point North, their newest culinary endeavor, they work towards establishing a reputation. Under Carly and her dedicated chefs, Emily and Jamie, alongside Nick and Bolton, some new faces, Point North’s menu thrives as a representation of Northern cuisine, distinguishing itself from the competitors.
Nevertheless, the novelty of the up-and-coming business also threatens to spell out its doom, as the restaurant staff— both in the kitchen and the front room— continue facing various difficulties in leaving a dent in the competitive industry. Naturally, the restaurant ends up fueling most of the realism within this chef drama show. For the same reason, viewers must be compelled to wonder whether or not Point North is an actual location in real life.
Point North: A Fictionalized Restaurant
Unlike Jones & Sons— the previous central restaurant in the on-screen universe— Point North, the Dalston-based establishment is not based on an actual restaurant and fails to have a basis in real life. The series is crafted by equipping the real-life experiences of creators Philip Barantini and James Cummings, who have both worked within the hospitality industry in their professional lives. However, even though the stories recreated within the walls of Point North maintain some relevance to reality, the restaurant itself remains a fictitious element.
Consequently, instead of being a real-life restaurant, the on-screen Point North originates as a studio set in Space Studio, a Manchester facility built specifically for producing TV, film, and commercial projects. According to the company’s social media accounts, the show utilizes Space 05 from the facility to craft the restaurant space. The studio, located in Vaughan Street, West Gorton, has been previously utilized in several other projects, such as Netflix’s ‘Fool Me Once’ and Disney+’s ‘The Full Monty.’ The same results in a fictionalized location for the restaurant, affirming the lack of a real-life location for fans to visit.
Still, equipping Space Studios helped the show create a realistic background for the central establishment wherein most of the significant narratives unfold. Shaun Fagan, the actor who embodies Bolton— a staple within Point North’s kitchen— discussed the design of the set with Grazia. “When I first saw the set, my head fell off. It was so jarring because, from the outside, it is this massive wooden frame, yet the moment you walk in, it’s like you’ve just stepped into a restaurant,” said the actor. “Even when we were filming, at the end of a take, you’d step off set and forget you were actually in a studio.”
As such, despite lacking a tangible, real-life establishment behind its origin, Point North’s general visual ambiance retains authenticity. Furthermore, the Northern-centric cuisine that drives Point North seamlessly sets the place apart from the predecessor’s Jones & Sons restaurant. Therefore, the establishment introduces a unique perspective to the show/film’s shared universe while still staying true to the universe’s authentic approach to the hospitality industry.
“I think people who work in the industry will relate to it [the show],” Barantini said in an interview with Big Issue. “And people who haven’t will find it exciting to see what goes on behind the scenes. You are there to enjoy this beautiful, calm meal – but backstage is pandemonium. You get nights when it is a bit more relaxed, but generally, it is high octane, high energy, high stress.” Ultimately, while the events and narratives inside Point North hold a certain connection to reality, the restaurant as it stands remains a fictional element without a real-life counterpart.
Read More: Is Boiling Point Based on a True Story?
