If years of Pinterest fails have taught the internet anything, it’s that DIY projects on the screen are far less attainable IRL than they appear. And while these inspo-zany tutorials have since spread to one-minute video clips on Instagram and Facebook, the rules remain: Your full-ass attempt at those festive mug cakes will come out of the microwave bland and burnt, no matter how good they look in the clip.
“Meh,” you think to yourself after burning the roof of your mouth on spongy bread that tastes less more like glue than chocolate. So it makes sense that with Garnished, a new cooking tutorial video series, you can experience the underwhelming mediocrity of an overcomplicated but seemingly simple recipe without the fallen hopes and wasted ingredients.
Unlike the smoke-and-mirror presentations seen in video series such as Spoon University, BuzzFeed‘s Tasty, and Delish, Garnished’s DIY vids will actually teach you how to make yourself an easy yet superb five-star dish that’ll make you shout, “Bone app the teeth!” when it’s ready.
Take this 40-second step-by-step guide on the classic peanut butter and jelly sandwich—garnish and all.
https://www.facebook.com/meh.cooking/videos/1878200249061683/
Or feast your eyes on this nifty homemade gourmet ice tutorial. Never thought about smoothing out and plating your own ice cubes for a fancy dinner party, huh? Oh, and don’t forget the garnish.
https://www.facebook.com/meh.cooking/videos/1878202539061454/
Running low on time? Have your roommate grab some ice to-go on their way in.
https://www.facebook.com/meh.cooking/photos/a.1878293822385659.1073741828.1877701385778236/1878293765718998/?type=3
And who could resist reaching for the cupboard to peel their own cereal box after watching this inspirational take on breakfast?
https://www.facebook.com/meh.cooking/videos/1879514852263556/
You best garnish the hell out of that bowl, too.
While Garnished only launched last Tuesday, its social presence has already exploded. Nearly 400,000 people like its Facebook page as of this writing, with more than 78 million collective views on their six videos. They’ve already expanded by uploading videos to YouTube, Instagram, and Twitter, for more accessible, average foodie content.
Garnished also offers tips on how to cut up all that parsley. Because everything needs a garnish, right?
https://www.facebook.com/meh.cooking/posts/1879648105583564
And they make the Garnished experience interactive too with Facebook Live reactions to foodie classics.
https://www.facebook.com/meh.cooking/videos/1880005818881126/
While Garnished appears to be a well-devised parody of Tasty on par with the Onion‘s viral content diss ClickHole, the troll masterminds behind your new favorite cooking vids are actually a kind husband and wife team from Montreal, Canada. The couple, who replied to questions under the name “Got Garnish,” told the Daily Dot they decided to launch their side project as a fun response to all the popular birds-eye-view cooking videos that continue to clog up our news feeds.
They’re not quite sure how their page blew up as fast as it did (“It seems that people really enjoy average recipes”), but the 72 million views on the ice DIY makes it a viral content home run. The light background jazz music, sped-up instructions, and well-designed social images act as an homage to the real deal, and the couple means no disrespect.
“We haven’t heard anything from [Tasty and similar video productions], but we respect what they do—they inspired us to start making these videos,” the couple wrote. “Many of our viewers wanted to know how to boil eggs so we tried and almost burned our house down. Luckily, Tasty made a video showing exactly how to do it and the least we could do was share that video (we aren’t about withholding invaluable information).”
For the couple, the best part of making these plain posts are the reactions from the viewers who play along—most of the comments come from posters who share how their plated orange juice turned out, or criticize the couple for using parsley instead of mint, or advise other viewers against microwaving the ice once garnished.
“We believe any reaction is good, whether people think our videos are funny or completely idiotic,” the couple wrote. “The comments on the videos are what actually make the videos entertaining… Otherwise, it’s all just, meh.”
Editor’s note: This article has been updated to reflect the name change of the brand from Meh. to Garnished.
