After her mother's death, mediocre chef Amanda Shelton (Sarah Michelle Gellar) is having trouble attracting customers to her family's restaurant. While shopping for ingredients, she is given a magical crab by mysterious Gene O'Reilly (Christopher Durang). Afterward, Amanda's dishes suddenly become excellent, inducing strong emotional reactions in everyone who eats them. Tom Bartlett (Sean Patrick Flanery), who is preparing to open his own eatery, tries her cooking and falls in love.