1119 replies to this topic

[Nathan]

I wonder if we could start selling futures on meals at Per Se.

I'm offering to sell a meal in 2009 for $350.

[bleachboy]

Make fun of Per Se all you like, but the food and wine I consumed there just about a month ago was among the best I've ever had. Better than Daniel. Better than Le Bernadin. It was awesome.

[rich]

Make fun of Per Se all you like

Okay, we will.

[Fat Guy]

By industry standards $250 seems about right for the meal and experience you get at Per Se. The restaurant was an inexplicable bargain when it opened, and has now adjusted up closer to what it's worth, i.e., same as Ducasse. So now, if you want a bargain, walk across the street to Jean Georges where the dinner tasting menu is $125 -- half the price for seven eighths of the experience -- and lunch can be had for like forty bucks.

[rich]

By industry standards $250 seems about right for the meal and experience you get at Per Se. The restaurant was an inexplicable bargain when it opened, and has now adjusted up closer to what it's worth, i.e., same as Ducasse. So now, if you want a bargain, walk across the street to Jean Georges where the dinner tasting menu is $125 -- half the price for seven eighths of the experience -- and lunch can be had for like forty bucks.

nine eighths

[ulterior epicure]

By industry standards $250 seems about right for the meal and experience you get at Per Se. The restaurant was an inexplicable bargain when it opened, and has now adjusted up closer to what it's worth, i.e., same as Ducasse. So now, if you want a bargain, walk across the street to Jean Georges where the dinner tasting menu is $125 -- half the price for seven eighths of the experience -- and lunch can be had for like forty bucks.

nine eighths

... I wasn't going to say it... but thanks rich, now I don't have to.

[BryanZ]

Blowout meal at Per Se tonight with the g/f. We do one blowout a year--last year was a night in Chicago for the Tour at Alinea--so we thought we'd do Per Se, as the g/f has never been to a NYT four-star/Michelin three-star for dinner. The experience was a great one, but the food wasn't completely mind blowing. Every course was very tasty and perfectly executed, but it lacked the soul and personality (dare I say, point of view) of my meal at Eleven Madison Park from the night before. Per Se was far and away the better experience when the space, service, elegance, and overall quality are accounted for, but underdog EMP's highs were as high, if not higher, than Per Se's.

Here's the menu:



Service was as good as one can expect. Totally attentive, friendly, smooth, relatable yet refined. Overall, I still prefer restaurants where I can interact with one server in a more casual, friendly fashion, but for its type Per Se's service can't really be beat. Our meal was paced quite quickly--we were done in about 2.5 hours--but we eat quickly and don't really linger. I thought some courses came out slightly too quickly, and the fish course was actually served too hot for the g/f, but I'd rather have even, quick pacing than than wait around for interminable and variable amounts of time. Per Se is able to put out dishes so fluidly because of its relatively small size and few choices. Interestingly, however, I saw a couple otherwise identical dishes go out on different china with different platings. The components were the exact same but they were definitely arranged differently. This was puzzling.

The Oysters and Pearls is such a classic dish and was, predictably, a highlight of the evening. Creaminess, saltiness, and brininess are rarely matched so well.

We did both the heirloom beets and the foie between us. The beets were as good as can be expected though not transcendent. A great example of a beet dish but not necessarily more; I would've like some cheese to give it more body. The foie was very, very tasty and more "meaty" than any other torchon/terrine I've had. It seemed to really taste of duck/duck fat. I'm not sure if this had to do with the quality of the foie or the preparation. The apple chutney was actually a highlight of the night for its texture and convincing use of winter-y spices. The texture was like a firmer version of the salmon cornets and rather than using acidity or bitterness to counter the foie, it used nutmeg/cinnamon/clove notes. We got the nice but kind of strange "brioche turn" and thoroughly enjoyed the dish, but I don't think it was worth the $40 surcharge.

The Loup de Mer was actualy quite similar to the snapper dish I had at EMP the night before. This was a lighter, more acidic take that was very Jean-Georges-esque. I may have enjoyed the EMP version slightly more for its addition of sweetness, but this was the more elegant dish. The vegetables added the slightest bit of crunch and as the perfectly cooked fish yielded some of its fat and juices it really balanced the acidic lemon vierge sauce. This dish grew on me as I worked through it, and I was sad to see it go.

The sea scallop was pretty huge and had a great, dark crust on it, though I couldn't pick up on any herbal notes in the scallop itself. I really, really enjoyed the progression across the plate from subtle, vegetal, salty celery coulis to sweet and root-y tender celeriac, to rich and satisfying mushroom puree. Between this mushroom puree and Chef Kahn's mushroom caramel I've got a whole ton of umami I can unleash in new ways in my own dishes.

My favorite part of this dish was the yam puree. More than any other component of the entire night, this tasted exactly how it should have and was a prime example of "yam." To me, this focus is a very Keller trait. The duck itself was damn tasty and I can't say anything negative about the rich duck jus. In the meat courses especially, Keller/Benno's kitchen has talent for creating extremely rich, sop-worthy animal-based sauces.

The rack of lamb was another great example of a typical fine-dining lamb dish executed extremely well. The garlic and tomatoes adding enough sweet alium notes and acid to balance the rich lamb and jus. Another sop-worthy course.

Although I really enjoyed both the duck and lamb dishes, the proteins themselves did not particularly amaze me. These dishes were prime examples of strong technical cooking driven by great ingredients and conceived under a watchful eye. Everything tasted as if it belonged together, but the dishes did not at all venture out on a limb. As I have alluded to and others have noted, I find that Per Se is great for an occasional top-notch meal but the cuisine is reluctant to push the boundaries like that at other, "lesser," restaurants. I'm not sure if this is a knock at Per Se or just simply a reflection of how my own tastes have changed. Two years ago I was enlightened by a meal at Per Se that ultimately led to my current fascination with modern cooking. Today, I loved the experience but wasn't moved holistically by the food. Certain elements were special and eye-opening, but there is more exciting cooking going on throughout New York. I don't know, however, if a better overall restaurant experience exists in the city. Perhaps if we could get Chefs Humm and Liebrandt to team up in Per Se's space with its staff. I'll let Chef Achatz continue ripping up Chicago; the Second City has to have somehting going for it.

The cheese, desserts, mignardises followed and were enjoyable but not revelatory. The quality and quantity of post-savory offerings is unmatched at anywhere I've ever been, but at that point in the meal it seemed like too much. I felt this on my previous visit, too. We were too full for coffee and kind of nibbled at the offerings while letting the food, wine, and view sink in.

[Swicks]

EMP and PS back to back?!?!? Wow, Merry Christmas indeed.

[DutchMuse]

The experience was a great one, but the food wasn't completely mind blowing. Every course was very tasty and perfectly executed, but it lacked the soul and personality (dare I say, point of view) of my meal at Eleven Madison Park from the night before. Per Se was far and away the better experience when the space, service, elegance, and overall quality are accounted for, but underdog EMP's highs were as high, if not higher, than Per Se's.

Interesting that you say this as it mirrors EXACTLY my experience. I've always thought Per Se's cuisine was very technical and precise but lacked a sense of soul, which is everpresent at EMP under Chef Humm. We're certainly on the same wavelength!

[docsconz]

For continued discussion on Per Se in 2007 see here.