The game follows the plot of the film only loosely, but has the main voice cast from the movie reprising their roles. The player controls Remy, a rat with a refined sense of taste. When Remy finds himself in Paris near the restaurant of the famous deceased chef Gusteau, he works on making his dream of becoming a chef himself come true, while helping out his fellow rats to procure food.
There are some optional bonus missions, taking the form of dream sequences, in which Remy navigates landscapes made of foodstuffs. All levels include many collectibles. In most levels there will be up to 100 stars to collect. Special items in certain levels include batteries, darts or lightbulbs. Collecting all of a certain kind of item in an area awards bonus points, which can be spent in Gusteau's shop to unlock bonuses, including various kinds of artwork as well as the possibility to play the mini-games outside the main game, in both single and multiplayer modes.