pirate

I assume that you're a woman. Le Stresa is a block from the Ave. Montaigne and is a fashionista's heaven. Beautiful woman wi th impeccable figures and fashionable clothes abound. That's part of the wow. Coca-Cola and Coca-Cola lLght are their usual drinks. That got me to try Coca-Cola Light on my flight back. I liked it.

These are just some brief notes. Hiramatsu: small but spacious and elegant. Good wine list and service. Food well executed but nothing was memorable Guy Savoy; One gets an overwhelming amount of food here even a la carte. I like the restaurant but no longer like to gorge. On their website a 100 euro at lunch with entree, plat dessert chosen from their menu is available. You have to ask. It is an excellent value. Wines are expensive. I've been unhappy with the bottles I had there. Scallops entree and apple dessert were fine. Plat of veal kidneys with spinach and mushrooms was boring. L'Arpege: I didn't reserve. Just showed up at 12:30 for lunch and asked for a table for one. I got a good table in this small and somewhat cramped restaurant. This being the restaurant's 20th anniversary they have a 130 euro vegetarian menu. Not quite vegatarian since there was a coquille st jacques plat. The vegetables are from Passard's farm. When asked I said it was an interesting experiment. I was treated very nicely. Passard sent out a complimentary plat of cod with a vegetable puree I liked . I was also comped an aperitif and glass of wine Relais du Parc; It now has a Michelin star but is a big letdown from when Robuchon had a restaurant accross the way Le Stresa: This is a restaurant on the street behind the Plaza Athenee. It is famous for celebrities and others that frequent it. It's small.crowded and far and away the most fascinating restaurant to dine in. For years I found it impossible to reserve in the usual way, but lucked out in an unusual way. Don't ask. The food is classic simple Italian.. I liked it so much I went a second time. On second visit I asked at a neighboring table about a wine they were drinking. We conversed a bit. He was an art dealer from Antwerp and his guest was a young conductor. The art dealer mentioned the restaurant was like a club. Indeed it is.

The Brasserie Ruhlmann is in Rockefeller Center (45 Rockefeller Plaza) not Gramercy area.. I ate there last week and the food and service were distinctly poor to mediocre. I haven't eaten at La Coupole recently but unless it's declined precipitously in recent years it's much better.

I didn't take it seriously. I just used the opportunity you presented to reproduce the graffiti I've seen a number of times in Paris "Vive le Roi".

If you like being ruled by street mobs. Vive le Roi.

Some comments: Rokusan .... is, I believe, the restaurant of one of the original Iron Chefs. As already pointed out it probably emphasizes seafood. Not one I would choose The Park Hyatt has several restaurants. The Japanese restaurant Kozue is excellent but very expensive. The staff speaks English and can explain the dishes. Fixed menus at variable prices are offered. But this is a place if contacted in advance could build a menu to suit both of you. Takamura: practically no English.,very exclusive and probably impossible to get into on short notice, top-notch I know nothing about Shunsenbo. I haven't been to Kamon but I would take Kozue over it for hotel Japanese. My choice would be Seryna which has both steak and seafood at its Roppongi site. Full information here. http://www.seryna.co.jp/index-e.html The menus shown are only indicative as there are daily specials. You can check out what each dining area offers for that day when you get there. Shinjuku site is high up and offers a view. I haven't been to it.

I'm a great admirer of John Hess and reread "the Taste of America" every few years. I wonder what he and his wife Karen would think of Paris restaurants, which they knew well, today. A couple of weeks ago I stopped in Paris on my way back from Cairo and had one fine lunch at Le Meurice and a decent lunch at Drouant and a mediocre lunch at Senderens. The latter was particuliarly disappointing. The main of Pyrenees lamb did not come close to that of Alleno at Le Meurice. The entree was lightly smoked salmon mi-cuit. It was a heavily salted slab of ordinary smoked salmon clearly done well in advance.. The best rendition of lightly smoked salmon I've had was at the now closed 2 Michelin star restaurant of Dutournier in the seventh. Second best was in the French restaurant atop the Mandarin Oriental in Hong Kong. In both cases the smoking was done while preparing the dishes.

to Robyn: I was in Kyoto and Osaka in January and posted brief comments about my visit in this forum. I have tried to retrieve it but it seems to have been deleted by the controllers of this forum.

The Marunouchi one has contemporary decor which I like. Four Seasons runs the hotel for the Taiwanese corporation that owns it and, as I understand it., the head of the corporation checked out the decor (he has great taste). Most Four Seasons have the cluttered Fremch and English interior decor which I despise. The Ritz-Carltons have that, too. It's my first time in Cairo. I asked a friend who frequently visits Cairo for advice. Four Seasons has a newer hotel near the pyramids but the one on the Nile was recommended.. I'll have to suffer if the decor is not to my liking.

The Four Seasons Marunouchi is on the bottom seven floors of an office tower. Not much to look out the window at. The Mandarin Oriental is high in its office tower and one can get rooms looking over the grounds of the Imperial Palace. The Mandarin Oriental has several restaurants. In addition, it's closer to stores and restaurants I like. I must admit I'm not a Four Seasons fan but in less than a week I'll be staying at my first one, the Four Seasons on the Nile in Cairo (followed by the Paris Park Hyatt which is not in the same class as the one in Tokyo).

I left Tokyo two weeks ago after an 8 day stay at the Park Hyatt in Shinjuku. Yes it is a bit out of the way but Shinjuku has its attractions like Opera City. The Park Hyatt is the best hotel in the world. currently in my opinion. I've been alternating between staying at the Grand Hyatt in Roppongi and the Park Hyatt over the last few years. The Park Hyatt is much more luxurious; the Grand Hyatt is more of a business hotel. For example, on this trip I had a continental breakfast in my room every day. The Park Hyatt is the only hotel I've ever stayed at that serves freshly squeezed tomato juice. The croissants and viennoiseries are excellent (far superior to those of the Grand Hyatt). I've never been pleased with my meals at Grand Hyatt restaurants. I've liked some meals at the Park Hyatt. I've not stayed at the Imperial but I did eat at the Saisons restaurant there. A noted French chef, Thierry Voisin, was put in charge last year. The menus are haute cuisine, well executed, with fine service;probably two Michelin star caliber. I must admit that I enjoy the small French restaurants around Tokyo run by French-trained Japanese chef-owners far more.. There is the several years old Four Seasons Marunouchi in the lower seven floors of the Pacific Century Tower. Only one restaurant Ekki which I liked when the hotel first opened. A visit the following year put it on my avoid list. There is the Conrad in Shiodome which I haven't checked out. I did check out the new Mandarin Oriental in Nihonbashi, a good location almost next to the main Mitsuikoshi store. I lunched at their Italian restaurant. The hotel is nice but for me. it's a comedown from the Park Hyatt. The restaurant is not worth a revisit. Again there are excellent small Italian restaurants sprinkled around Tokyo. The Peninsula currently being constructed not far from the Imperial has the attributes of a winner. The Ritz-Carlton under construction in the Midtown Center would be an excellent choice if they can avoid the hideous interior decor of their hotel in Osaka. Neither the Peninsula or Ritz-Carlton will be open this year.

I've posted earlier in this thread. I agree with the quoted statement. I was in Tokyo two weeks ago and had a continental breakfast daily in my room at the Park Hyatt for eight days. The tomato juice was freshly squeezed ( not true at the Park Hyatt in Paris). The croissants and viennoiseries were excellent.. One new feature on this visit was an American muffin. The chocolate-walnut variety was delicious. I haven't had American muffins in France.

Quote: In this thread I read about how people had the best croissant of their lives in Tokyo. This makes me want very badly to try Japanese made pastry. I wonder what it was that made it better. Was it eaten on the street or presented under certain conditions in a restaurant? I posted. Eaten at a hotel cafe. What made those croissants and viennoiseries so unusual? The pate feuillete leaves were so thin and so layered and so buttery that I was astonished that it could be accomplished. Let me add that a number of years ago I labored at producing a classical brioche with all its butter and eggs. I finally succeeded and so achieved a standard with which to measure all brioches I ate from then on. Frankly nothing came close. Practically all brioche one finds are the common brioche far less butterry and eggy. Or the grain had the wrong density. Getting back to those Japanese croissants, I cannot imagine that I could ever achieve results like that. It's hard to believe anyone could but they are now my measure of merit for judgment. In France the closest to them that I can remember were at at inn in Gevrey-Chambertin in the early eighties which were bought from a local boulangerie. I was in my burgundy collecting stage at that time, buying at the vineyards (with an acquit vert, of course) stuffing my rental car with cases and driving up to CDG to Air France freight for shipment to JFK.. Why burgundies? Well I had a 1959 Romanee-Conti prior to that and it became the red wine against which I measured all others. Getting back to Japanese execution of Western pastry, I posted on the Japan forum about my first encounter with Japanese pastry in Kyoto. A slice of pound cake, quatre quarts, I believe , in French. I was struck with how delicious and how authentic it was. "Autentique" is the correct word for Japanese execution.

I travel to Paris and Tokyo at least once a year and have done so for many years. The best croissants and viennoiserie I've ever had was in Tokyo. It was at the Cerulean Tower Hotel and every day for ten days I'm sure that French trainiing was involved. But the Japanese execution bordered on the incredible.

Quote from Bux: Sometimes a seemingly inexpensive menu only allows one to enjoy the ambience and atmosphere of a three star restaurant and not the cuisine. I would replace "Sometimes" with "More often than not"

MBNA probably instituted the charge later. Last November in Paris their 2% surcharge was in force and it was itemized as such on my bill. That's on top of the MC 1% charge. I don't use their card for non dollar purchases. What I'd like to see is a multi-currency card;if not a credit card, at least a multi currency debit card with interbank exchange rates. If anyone knows of one please post.

At the Bristol, they'll supply your husband with a jacket. They don't turn away customers on account of a jacket. Personally of all the palace hotel restaurants, I liked Le Meurice best for food (compared to Ritz, Crillon, Bristol,Four Seasons). I like the Ritz dining room (L'Espadon) best for style (Bristol infinitesmally close second).. Not as elegant as the aforementioned, it's more like a very high-end bistro, but I like the Art Deco decor and ambience, is the Relais Plaza at the Plaza-Athenee.

How about posting the menus at the other Paris palace hotels?

The menu is straightforward; no fireworks there. But the real question is how well it will be executed. Taste, not presentation.

Here's a suggestion: Lavinia is a huge wine store near the Eglise de la Madeleine. They have a bistro upstairs (quality unknown to me) and the following policy: Any wine purchased in their store can be opened and served upstairs in the bistro at no extra cost. This is their stated policy; you don't have to ask. They have a huge selection of wines which I'm fairly sure includes some vintages of La T\^ache. They recently purchased Caves Auge (Aug\'e), a very old and honored wine store. The latter has some notable French wines not exported to the USA. I don't know if they allow the serving of wines purchased there in the Lavinia bistro..

All bottles of wine in French stores and eating places have to have a tax seal, usually found on top of the sealing covering the cork. The only exception is wine for export, purchased from a grower or negociant for which you have to get an acquit vert. You can and will be arrested for violations. I doubt any restaurant could or would risk serving an untaxed bottle. I asume that you are American. If you buy your La Tache in France it will have the seal and then you can proceed as posted by Felice if you wish. If you bring it in make sure French customs is informed and get some sort of official acquit. With the proper acquit you might then be able to tackle a restaurant or bistro. Of course, getting an acquit vert for shipping wine from France to the USA is something I've done a number of times. But I've also been stopped by the police and had to present my acquit vert a number of times , too. Frankly I wouldn't do what you are suggesting.

It's still there on the first floor (French designation) over the men's store. It was expanded a few years ago. There are eating kiosks now like in KaDeWe in Berlin, although GL doesn't match KaDeWe.. Bon March\'e seems more upscale to me. It would be interesting to know how they match up in scale and depth of offerings. so I hope that this thread elicits some first hand comments

I was simply pointing out that while the kitchen failed, the staff made me as welcome as possible. That appeared to not be the case for you and I stated that. As far as mistakes, we all make them and will continue to make them.

I lunched at Le Cinq two or three years ago. I had to be supplied with requisite jacket which, as I 've also noticed at the Bristol, seemed to make me appear more like a common person to the staff (to their satisfaction I think). For 12 additional euros at that time, 60 euros for lunch, I had the accompanying wines. A conversation about wines I like with the sommelier led to lavish pourings (as much as I wanted) of premier cru burgundies. I had the usual Paris city water with ice for free, but the sommelier, at no additional cost, offered a half bottle of mineral water. that he wanted me to try, too The food was very poor for the fixed price lunch, as you yourself noted. The wines and water alone were worth virtually the entire price of 72 euros. You disregarded the advice that you yourself sought.. Paris is super expensive for epicurean food ( see my post above on L'Ambroisie) and more costly than the USA for everyday food.. From your description of your lunch at Le Cinq it seems to me that you're not desired as a client..

Parasites are present in tuna, too. It is my understanding that freezing kills them and that sashimi and sushi in Japan come from previously frozen fish. I'd be interested in expert comments.