The dinner scenes at the table are some of the most memorable and iconic moments from Blue Bloods.
Every week, it seems fitting that the production team finds a new way to incorporate a meal into the police procedural.
Sometimes the Reagans are feasting on a classic dish of meat and potatoes. Next, they may converse over the course of roasted chicken and veggies.
Despite all the delicious food incorporated into Blue Bloods, there is at least one dish that the cast and crew avoid like a plaque – salmon.
The reason, as Jim Lillis (who serves as the prop master on Blue Bloods) puts it, is because “fish is delicate.”
True, when shooting a single scene for hours, there are certain types of food that are probably best avoided. In the past, Blue Bloods star Donnie Wahlberg has stressed how broccoli became unpopular at the dinner table because the food is rich in fiber.
Therefore, after spending hours in the same room and with the same people, no one wants to be the first to start passing gas.
Consequently, Lillis noted that salmon is another source of food the cast and crew prefer to avoid, not so much for the taste, but because fish is hard to preserve over hours of shooting.
Reagan family dinners may lack certain foods. Nevertheless, Sunday occasions rank among the most memorable moments of the show, even if the production team deceives in other ways.
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For example, it’s often reflected in Blue Bloods that these family dinners occur in the evening or at night. However, in reality, Lillis revealed that many of these scenes are produced in the early hours, often beginning around 9 a.m.
Thus, the cast is more feasting on breakfast than dinner. For this reason, not everyone on the cast is thrilled about shoving down potatoes first thing in the morning.
Still, the cast manages to stomach it all and come out ahead. There is no doubt that Regean Sunday dinners bring audiences to the table, and the show truly wouldn’t be the same without them.
Interestingly enough, the actors rarely know what they are being served. Therefore, every week is a surprise, even if certain dishes are commonplace.
Lillis, like much of the cast and crew, was raised Irish-Catholic and likes to incorporate childhood favorites like pot roast and green vegetables.
Be that as it may, whatever the occasion, Lillis reminds audiences that they can almost always count on the Reagans being served dinner rolls.
We’ll bring our appetite next time Frank, Erin, and Danny sit down to enjoy another dinner together.