Made with Love Review
Director: Teddy Soeriaatmadja
Date Created: 2026-04-16 03:06
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Made with Love Review: Directed by Teddy Soeriaatmadja, Netflix’s Indonesian series Luka Makan Cinta stars Mawar Eva de Jongh as Luka, Deva Mahenra as Dennis, Sha Ine Febriyanti as Chef Sari in pivotal roles alongside Asmara Abigail, Adipati Dolken and others. The series unfolds over 8 episodes, each with a runtime of around 30 minutes.
Made with Love Review
Netflix series Made with Love centres around Luka, a very passionate young sous chef who works at her mother’s restaurant known as Umah Rasa. It is due to her passion and desire to create her identity independent of her mother’s fame and establish her identity as the head chef that Luka is constantly engaged in meeting different sets of expectations set for her from inside as well as outside. However, everything changes after the entry of an experienced chef, known as Dennis, into Luka’s life, who tries to prove himself better than Luka in terms of cooking.
What makes Netflix’s Made with Love different is the focus on its characters. Luka is one who is easy to relate to. She is far from being perfect, dramatic, but realistic. The girl experiences self-doubt and has difficulty validating herself and fulfilling the expectations that her mother sets for her. One just cannot resist the temptation of feeling empathy toward Luka due to all the difficulties she faces in reconciling with her passions and expectations.
The relationship between two women, the mother and daughter tandem, is undoubtedly one of the most emotionally charged in the show. Luka’s mother appears as an authoritative, strict and even uncompromising person, but through various events described in the series, we slowly discover new facets of her personality. Once we start learning more about her problems and particularly about how difficult it is for her to cope with the loss caused by her illness, it gives us another layer of this character’s personality. As far as a cook is concerned, not being able to taste would mean both professional danger and personal disaster.
Lastly, Dennis, who is full of life in the novel, makes for a very interesting character because he is not just any competitor for the leading lady’s attention. Unlike the latter, his attitude towards the work is characterised by modest confidence. It can be clearly seen from the skills that he possesses; however, besides them, it is worth pointing out that Dennis uses actions as a means of communication. In particular, when he deals with food and people, Dennis looks like a truly interesting character. In addition, his interactions with Luka are quite captivating due to the lack of exaggeration and unnecessary dramatisation.
Perhaps one of the most commendable aspects of the series is the way it portrays the love interest is that it does not impose the story on its viewers. It rather lets romance blossom organically within the series. The love affair between Luka and Dennis unfolds amidst shared experiences and adversities in their lives, such as long hours in the kitchen, creative differences, and keeping the business alive.
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Aside from its cast, another notable feature of the Indonesian series Made with Love lies in its accurate depiction of the life of a restaurateur. Rather than romanticising the career path, it highlights the challenges inherent in it, which include monetary problems, consistency, and personnel management. Aside from its role as a setting for the series, the kitchen itself becomes the perfect venue for emotions and conflicts.
From an aesthetic point of view, the simplicity of the series is apparent but very successful. First of all, it is necessary to pay attention to the fact that the emphasis is put on the cooking process itself, not its demonstration. The depiction of the food in the film does have a sense of reality that befits the overall tone of the film.
However, although this is quite effective in building up the characters, this kind of approach will not appeal to those people who want something more thrilling right from the start. Moreover, there are certain aspects of the film that feel like they could have been developed further, but overall, Made with Love makes for an excellent watch. This is despite the fact that it has no need for surprise developments or outrageous occurrences in order to maintain your interest.
Netflix Made with Love Review: Summing Up
Ultimately, what sets this series apart from others is the focus on character development, personal growth, and identity rather than love stories and food alone. What’s great about Made with Love is that it shows how much can be achieved with minimal fuss, which makes it an interesting series to watch.
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