A reunion at a restaurant/bar becomes the occasion for a seriocomic outburst of family grudges and resentments. The widowed matriarch is at the center of the proceedings, holding court and criticizing her grown-up children for their failures and missteps. Mother's favorite son Phillipe, is a business executive with a slow-witted wife, Yolande, whose birthday is the reason for the gathering. Less favored siblings include Henri, who runs the shabby restaurant inherited by their father, and Betty, a headstrong, single 30-year-old, who is secretly having an affair with the restaurant bartender, Denis.