robyn

I think with 3 hours - I'd stay at the airport. You have to get back at least an hour before your next flight (maybe more at Hartsfield depending on the security lines) - and traffic can be awful. So why rush around and possibly get into a "gray hair" situation. Better to eat a nice meal when you're not worried about catching a plane. Robyn

You must know when to drive! It took us over 45 minutes to drive from the Lenox Mall to midtown late Friday afternoon last week. Unless visitors really love to spend a lot of time in their cars - I think they should narrow down their restaurant choices to ones reasonably near where they're staying (or pick hotels based on where they want to eat). Robyn

Just FYI - On our trip last week - we picked up a new (?) free magazine called Edible Atlanta. A "slow food" type of publication. Had some good food ideas (everything from restaurants to recipes). Robyn

Norman Van Aken (Norman's) was one of the original Floribbean chefs. Made his name at Louie's Backyard in Key West maybe 30 years ago. He wandered here and there in south Florida - and a lot of his meals stick in my mind. Norman's was his signature restaurant - but from what I've read (haven't been for a long time) - it has been over the hill for a while. I always liked the work he did before he opened Norman's better than I liked Norman's - but Norman's was quite good in its time. Robyn

I just ordered the Michelin Green Guide today (Red Guide too). So I can start seeing where places are - and how far away they are from one another. We'll only be staying overnight in 3 places - but I'll be looking into day trips (and good places to eat on those day trips). Thank you for the information - I am keeping all of these messages. Robyn

In my experience - it's more like a full star or more at the top. Michelin doesn't seem to demand as much from US restaurants in terms of things like wine service - or even service - as it does from European restaurants. Our "wine server" at Per Se would have been laughed out of Europe (ditto with the "wine server" at JG). OTOH - ADNY was perfectly fine. Europeans would never tolerate going to a place like Per Se 20 minutes early and standing around waiting in a mall for the doors to open (very uncivilized). Robyn P.S. But I'll let you know. I'm going to a new country - Germany - this spring. Will see how some of its 3 stars stack up against 3 stars in the US.

Caffe Abbracci. Chispa. Take a look at the web sites and see what you think. Merrick Park is a relatively new nice "outdoor" mall in Coral Gables. The restaurants seem to change monthly. But take a walk around and see if anything catches your eye (if nothing else - it is a pleasant setting). Robyn

For a comparison, take a look at Marlene's account of her recent meal at Per Se. Obviously you cannot judge the success of the dishes from photos alone. But the platings and combinations of ingredients are simply more interesting than anything I had on the tasting menu at Gordon Ramsay. ← I actually dined at RHR and Per Se within about six months of one another - and although I had excellent meals at both - I wasn't blown over by anything extremely new at either place (except for the dessert at RHR - which was extraordinary). (Marlene said in her piece that when she dined at Per Se - it was the first time she ever had oysters or caviar - I think that is unusual for the average diner at Per Se.) I don't usually consider "plating" in terms of "newness" (I have nice dinnerware - 5 sets of plates - and 3 sets of flatware - plus misc. pieces made specifically for things like Asian food - etc. - and I can plate a grilled cheese sandwich better than most places can plate foie gras). But if you get points for plating - then I have to give them to Tom Aikens in London - where the dishes looked like abstract expressionist paintings (meaning some people really love them and some people really hate them) - or to some of the places we dined at in Japan (e.g., one plate we had during cherry blossom season was designed to look like a village with cherry blossom trees). Robyn

Our trip is late May to early June of this year. So no report yet. And any new recommendations are appreciated. Robyn

Pretty much the same with Ducasse at opening, except that the reactions to Ducasse were an order of magnitude more hostile. ← Yup - your review at your old web site was about the only positive thing I read about AD before eating there. Just shows the pros can't always be trusted. One thing that really confuses me. There's all this talk about GR's dishes being old-fashioned. Apart from molecular gastronomy - you know - things cooked in nitrogen - or whatever I had last time I ate at one of those places - what dishes do people think are "new-fashioned" these days? (Note that this is a serious question - in the US at least - I haven't seen too much that's novel in the last couple of years.). Robyn

Just in terms of the amount of food - the two main dishes seemed pretty large - more than enough for me (although I probably would have rather had smaller mains - a small starter - and a dessert). Robyn

Breast of Stone Church Farm duck with swiss chard is *still* on the tasting menu at Per Se, BTW:http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showtopic=97465 ← So what do you get on the tasting menu - 1/4 pluot? Robyn

The Left Bank in Fort Lauderdale? South Florida isn't the south. Maybe southern New York - or northern central and south America - but not the "American South". Which is where you're more likely to encounter "coca cola" dishes. At the best restaurants - I don't know what they do - but they manage to cut through what I think is the sickening sweetness of Coca Cola. Another example of a pedestrian ingredient - like ketchup - which can be used to great effect in really good food. As for attorneys (of which I'm one) - I don't think they have anything over chefs these days in terms of "don't play well with others". Last night's Top Chef was a great example of that. On the other hand - there are too many lawyers. On the third hand - there are too many wannabe chefs. On the fourth hand - it's easier to make a living as a lawyer than as a chef. Robyn

this area is a transcultural minefield. In my country, lavatories - never bathrooms, we couldn't contemplate having a bath in a restaurant - are still restricted to the upper strata of society. Those of us lucky enough to own one, like to leave the doors a little loose-fitting so that our neighbours can walk in at any time, admire our plumbing and catch up on gossip. I can see that it must be unnerving for someone who isn't used to building lavatories into their social intercourse. ← I can't understand the attention paid to lavatories. I like swell ones (the Virgin Atlantic upper class lounge at Gatwick has one that's fabulous). But you do what you gotta do. Bruni *is* a guy - yes? And he's supposed to be well-traveled. How much trouble does he have? As a woman who travels a lot - I am always happy to find a a "loo" that is reasonably clean and consists of something more than a hole in the ground (I cheated at the hole in the ground places in Tokyo and elsewhere in Japan by using the handicapped facilities - which tend to be what we're used to in the west). The only lavatory stories that upset me are ones like the one where the National Multiple Sclerosis Society in Philadelphia had its annual meeting (lots of people attended in wheelchairs) at a restaurant where you had to walk down a flight of stairs into the basement to "go". Pretty stupid. Robyn

Just curious - what do you think are the 5-10 most important restaurant openings in the last year or so? Robyn

Ummmm, Cafe Boulud? Ummmm, DavidBurke & Donatella is better than Daniel? ← Cafe Boulud is on the upper east side - I think . I don't know whether you'd say that AD is on the upper east side (I'd call it Central Park South). I thought DB&D was better than Cafe Boulud - although curiously - I thought Cafe Boulud in Palm Beach was better on both occasions that I dined there than CB in New York. An exception to my "outpost" theory (although the local restaurant critic hated the place). I enjoyed it as much as DB&D. I've never been to Daniel. Robyn

Actually - the post expressed a bit of disgust at the whole New York dining scene - especially the hype - and the perceived need for hype. I think it encourages what I'd call "shooting stars". I was at DB&D in 2004 - and it was really quite good then. But - as with all shooting stars - there apparently was a big bang and then a fizzle (I've noted diners' comments since then). I think GR will survive. As will AD. I suppose the moral of the story is don't go to outposts. If you want to dine with a chef who has an empire - go to his signature restaurant on his home turf. Better yet - find the home town people (whatever the town) who are less famous but nevertheless put out a great meal. Robyn

Re the opening buzz - if it's correct - that is more New York's loss than the chef's IMO. Like I've said before - New York simply isn't the center of the universe like it used to be - in terms of restaurants - shopping or even finance (thank you Sarbanes Oxley). Sure - New York is closer to me than London - but going to London simply isn't a big deal for me or a lot of people. Whether or not a restaurant is a hotel restaurant - or a restaurant in a hotel - I think the economics are different. And - with regard to restaurants in hotels - hotels are willing to cut deals with restaurants that other landlords might not be willing to do - if for no other reason than having a subsidized signature restaurant run by a third party is cheaper than running a restaurant in house at a loss. I'm no expert on the economics - but I think that the current trend in a lot of luxury hotels is to minimize their in house restaurant operations and get more famous chefs to operate those so-called restaurants in hotels. Anyway - GR is in good company with his 2 stars. My favorite restaurant last couple of trips to New York was David Burke & Donatella - which also has 2 New York Times stars. Robyn

Do you really have a problem with the choice of 3 course meal? Which - at many restaurants is a choice of 4 - or sometimes a choice of 3 or 4 or 5 etc.? When I'm going to a high end restaurant - it's not often that I won't eat a starter - a main - and a dessert (I happen to love desserts - perhaps a non-dessert eater wouldn't appreciate the compulsory dessert). Judging from restaurant pricing I've seen lately - you usually don't save any money by ordering strictly a la carte from restaurants that have a la carte menus (sometimes you might save a few dollars - but no big deal - usually you'll spend more money because the a la carte menu will have the most extravagant dishes) - so people who want 2 courses can buy the 3/4 course meal - and skip the courses they don't want. I think the choice of 3/4 courses is a far cry from the compulsory 29 course tasting menu. And I'm not sure you're right about European restaurants. If you're doing traditional Italian - for example - you're expected to have a starter - a pasta - a main - and a dessert. The problem in some restaurants may be more a function of serving size than number of courses (I don't like mini bites of courses but I don't want a half pound of pasta - or anything near that - for my pasta course either). Robyn

The 3 course dinner menu is $80 - which seems like a bargain IMO - especially for New York. I agree with Steve's posts - except for the part about Europeans (or others) doing things solely to help their PR so they can make a big splash when they open. Keep in mind that this restaurant is in a hotel - and that the economics of a hotel restaurant are usually a lot different than those in stand-alone restaurants. They can usually afford to take a longer term view of things (which I guess in New York is 12 months are opposed to 2 <sigh>). Some of my best dining in recent years has been at hotel restaurants - and I'm sure that will continue (the 2 3 star Michelin reservations I currently have booked in Germany are both in restaurants that are in hotels - and - in fact - the same company owns both hotels). Robyn

I was just complaining about the lack of Florida discussion in another thread. I'll ditto it with regard to Atlanta. And I'll report back that we were in Atlanta this weekend to see the Honda Battle of the Bands. Which was fantastic. Go next year. The tickets are only $10 and they're worth a heck of a lot more than that. Had dinner at Park 75 at the Four Seasons (very good) - Bacchanalia (even better). Lunch one day at Agnes & Muriel's (really good but I thought I would OD on the salt and fat). Eno for lunch was at the opposite end of the spectrum. A main course "salad" that - although tasty - was too small to be a starter. We stopped by Trois to take a look and have a drink - but it was so crowded we left. Robyn

This isn't the first "Deathwatch" on the internet. This was the first to the best of my knowledge. Doesn't have anything to do with eating. But millions of people were involved in the entities involved in the first Deathwatch. Robyn

"Eater" is actually kind of hot these days. I know about it - and I live in Florida. Can't remember exactly where I read about it - but what I read was a recent lengthy AP article (maybe I read it in my local paper - which picks up a lot of AP stories). You can find the AP article on Google news. As for this and other food boards (Chowhound - Mouthfuls - OA - even Flyertalk - which deals with travel destinations) - all I'll say about them here is that except for Chowhound - they have miserable coverage of Florida. Which is where I live and spend most of my time. Strikes me as curious since Florida is the 4th largest state in the US - soon to be the 3rd largest. The new Chowhound interface is a huge improvement (of course - it was simply awful before) - and I have posted a fair amount about restaurants I know in Florida there since there is now a reasonable - albeit imperfect - way to navigate in the site. I've never had a message deleted from Chowhound. And there doesn't seem to be much of that going on in the Florida section - perhaps because people spend most of their time simply exchanging information about restaurants. Which is necessary. When you talk about Florida - there are large metro areas scattered across a huge geographical area. People who know about Miami don't know about Tampa - and people who know about Orlando don't know about the Panhandle. It would be like taking the population of the NYC metro area - dividing it - and relocating large parts of it in Buffalo - Albany - Lake George - and even Montreal. Anyway - it is good to have an active user base of people in many parts of Florida. Note that most of my posts are responses to questions about Florida restaurants - and I have always tried to answer questions about Florida restaurants here too (assuming I have something to say). But - apart from the occasional "where should I eat on South Beach this year" thread - there's not a whole lot going on in Florida here. I wish the situation was different. Robyn

I got a whole duck at Per Se. It was brought to the table to be presented - and then carved. Served with a lot of other things. Yet I don't think of Per Se as a 1965 restaurant. And I know I couldn't make that dish. Doubt you could either. So the issue is - why did Thomas Keller think that Breast of Stone Church Farm's Challan duck roti a la broche with braised swiss chard leaves and ribs en ravigote with poached pluots and sauteed mollard duck foie gras was perfectly ok in 2004 - 2005 - and 2006 - but somehow not ok in 2007? By the way - my husband's main that evening was Sirloin of Hallow Farm's Young Rabbit wrapped in applewood smoked bacon with sauteed fall squash, glazed Tokyo turnips, toasted pecans and rabbit jus. These are definitely dishes one couldn't eat with chopsticks. Knives required. And the presentation was beautiful - even though it wasn't a bit Asian. If Fat Guy says these items are being disappeared because they didn't sell because everyone going to Per Se insisted on having Oysters and Pearls - so they could post one of the 2000 pictures of Oysters and Pearls that you'll find here and on other web sites - and tell everyone that they ate Oysters and Pearls - ok. I'll buy that (maybe not the part about the photos - how many out of focus amateur pictures of Oysters and Pearls do I need to see). But don't tell me that it's 1965 food. It's like - well if I'm going to buy an expensive purse - it has to be a Birkin - so everyone knows exactly where I bought it and how much I paid for it. Heaven forbid I should just buy something beautiful. Or eat something great that can't be identified readily by all those trendy people out there. Per Se isn't a place to go to eat great food - it's a place where I can put culinary notches on my belt. And if - as you suggest - people get bored by cooking the same thing - why would Thomas Keller and his chefs want to cook the exact same meal for everyone who comes to the Keller restaurants on a given night? So don't tell me it's about boredom. BTW - the thing about the teeth - here it is - written by a professional restaurant reviewer in London - not me: "Yet while many of the flavours are politely interesting, the relentless pappy textures of mousses and foams and creams and poached meats really begins to grate. It is, in essence, the kind of food that a discerning astronaut or a dying billionaire with no teeth might enjoy, but I find myself desperate for a proper lunch - a perfect roast chicken, a crisp green salad and a glass or two of fine white burgundy. A cheese sandwich! Anything, instead of - oh God - another pool of Douglas fir puree which tastes like a cedar candle smells." Robyn

There's small - and then there's really small. I think most of the tapas I had in Spain (and other places in the world when they became popular worldwide) were served in portions larger than Keller's full sized dishes. I can imagine Keller's tasting menu version of eels (angulas) in garlic and olive oil - 3 eels - but served in a bowl at least 14 inches across. Sopping bread no larger than 1 square inch. The dish thing dates back to the original nouvelle cuisine (if I remember correctly). Relatively small portions served in very large dishes. Why they did this - I don't know. Keller has taken it to new extremes. The merest whisp of food served in a dish so large it can't fit in an average dishwasher (this I know - because I was thinking of ordering some of his plates until I actually measured them). Of course - most nutrition experts today recommend serving smaller portions in smaller plates so the portions look larger. As for things like texture - well I am a person who likes crispy - bones - well developed flavors. Those food attributes come in large part from cooking things whole. Guess you might be able to do that for a tasting menu. You just need a restaurant with 1 or 2 or 3 seatings where everyone gets seated at about the same time - so everyone is ready for the same thing at the same time. Kind of like eating at the school cafeteria - first shift - second shift - etc. - but with better food. On my part - when I do "big deal" dining these days - 3 star Michelin stuff - maybe once or twice a year - I go to single seating restaurants if at all possible. So I can eat at a reasonable hour for 3 or more hours. But you know - I don't know how Keller could turn out the duck I had at Per Se - which was cooked to order - on a tasting menu. Have to say - that was one mighty fine looking duck when they brought it out and showed it to us before carving it. Robyn