Stream It Or Skip It: ‘Waffles + Mochi’ On Netflix, Where Michelle Obama Helps Two Buddies Learn About Fresh Food

When Michelle and Barack Obama started their production company and announced a deal to make shows for Netflix, we wondered when the first time one of them would appear in a show would be. We’d never guess that the first time would be in a show with a yeti puppet with waffle ears and her best friend, who’s a mochi. But that’s what we got, with Michelle Obama playing a version of her healthy-food-promoting self.

WAFFLES + MOCHI: STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?

Opening Shot: Michelle Obama’s voice says, “Let’s start at the beginning,” as we see pictures of her market full of fresh foods.

The Gist: Obama talks about how “In the Land of Frozen Foods,” live two buddies: Waffles (Michelle Zamora), who is half-yeti, half-frozen waffle, and Mochi (Piotr Michael) who’s a mochi (of course). They aspire to be chefs, but can only make ice, given everything around them is frozen. They hop a grocery truck that accidentally wandered by their igloo, and they find themselves at a store filled with fresh foods.

As they wander around in wonder, they decide they want a job, and they’re directed to the shop owner, Mrs. Obama, toiling away in the rooftop garden, and her officious bee assistant Busy (Jonathan Kidder). Mrs. Obama tasks them with taking a bushel of tomatoes and telling them to put it in the proper place in the store. They can’t lift it themselves, but they find Magicart (Diona Elise Burnett), who wants the pair to find out all about tomatoes.

They go to Oakland, where they meet Samin Nosrat of Salt Fat Acid Heat, who tells Waffles and Mochi that though tomatoes are used as vegetables, they’re considered a fruit because of the seeds inside. Nosrat, helped by the buddies and a young assistant, make pasta with roasted “tomato candy”. Then the pair go to a pizza restaurant where everyone who works there is hearing impaired and use ASL to communicate. We hear a tomato wearing a Sia wig (and singing in her voice) identify herself as a fruit. Then Waffles and Mochi visit José Andrés, who makes them an amazing gazpacho.

What Shows Will It Remind You Of? Waffles + Mochi feels like a Food Network travel show, but with puppets. And Michelle Obama.

Our Take: Waffles + Mochi starts off as an adorable puppet showcase, with the title duo joined by talking shelves, mops and other grocery store staples. And when we get the inevitable appearance by the former First Lady — the production company she and Barack Obama started produces Waffles + Mochi, co-created by Jeremy Konner and Erika Thormahlen — we think the show is going to be a treatise on eating fresh fruits and vegetables.

But once Waffles and Mochi get into Magicart, the show reveals its true self. It’s really a travel-and-food show, brought down to kids’ level. And the combination of the segments where the duo travel, talk to celebrity chefs and other famous folks, and visit fun restaurants, along with the more store-centric stuff, is a winning mix.

Michelle Obama has been a proponent of healthy eating since she entered our national consciousness in 2008, so seeing her as the store owner, working in her urban garden, is completely on-brand for her. And, though she’s not a professional actor, she has more than enough charisma to interact with Waffles and Mochi and make it look believable. She’s there for name and face recognition, sure, but she’s not the show’s focus. And Waffles and Mochi have more than enough personality to spare. We especially appreciate how Mochi communicates, via his little squeaks out of his CGIed mouth; somehow, we understand him despite the fact that only occasional words he utters are recognizable.

As much as we like seeing the guest stars, and judging by what we’ve seen from other episodes, there will be a lot of them, both in the market and in the remote segments, we like seeing Waffles go all gaga over eating a new food and Mochi being Mochi. They naturally interact with the humans sharing the screen with them, and it’ll be fun to see them discovering different foods and trying to figure out how to make great meals with them. And if kids get an idea how to make simple, fresh and delicious meals from the show, all the better.

What Age Group Is This For?: Waffles + Mochi is rated TV-Y, and it’s pretty safe to say that it’s appropriate for all ages (including grown-ups).

Parting Shot: Mrs. Obama give Waffles and Mochi their Tomato Badges, officially making them employees of her store.

Sleeper Star: Not sure why, but we get a kick out of the fact that Mochi’s animated mouth looks like it has food in it when he takes a bite of something.

Most Pilot-y Line: None.

Our Call: STREAM IT. Not only is Waffles + Mochi too adorable by half, but it may spark your kids’ interest in fresh food and how to use different ingredients to make healthy and tasty meals. And Michelle Obama isn’t bad, either.

Joel Keller (@joelkeller) writes about food, entertainment, parenting and tech, but he doesn’t kid himself: he’s a TV junkie. His writing has appeared in the New York Times, Slate, Salon, RollingStone.com, VanityFair.com, Fast Company and elsewhere.

Stream Waffles + Mochi On Netflix