tetsujustin

I second t'afia for its ratafias though both of those places are restaurants. For a more of just strictly cocktails, A+ which is the lounge at the Alden Hotel (formerly the sam houston hotel) which also has 17, the restaurant there. The lounge at NOE is also nice, though a little small and not very secluded. I was reading Houston Magazine earlier and some choices you might like that I've never tried from there are Red Door in midtown, Deco Lounge on Gray St., and The Whiskey Bar at The Icon Hotel (JG Vongrichten's Bank restaurant is also there, though I'm sure you have better access to the real thing up where you live.) For a nice selection of wines, Cova Hand-Selected Wines is a nice choice on Kirby. They have tapas-style plates there too, and a good atmosphere. I personally only turned of age recently, so I haven't had a chance to check out a whole bunch of places.

For the tasting menu or "the voyage": The amuse guele (or bouche, whichever you all prefer) I do believe is the margarita cocktail, I think... if its not, for sure do expect them at the restaurant. Most of the time, they aren't printed. The dessert is the confit of grapefruit sorbet though one might become confused for it being a palate cleanser. I say it's sweet and sour enough to be both. Cheese I do believe will be at request (multiple composed cheese plates are available) and mignardises will be served... again, a lot of times they aren't printed on the menu. I believe the wine program is still in the development stages. But if you do love those tasting menus, I believe this will be the way to go. Plus Randy'll make sure you won't have the same thing twice when you come back. Other than that, lets just hope construction will be quick and painless. My chopping arm's getting rusty

see now that's why you never degrassier your bbq sauce. It looks so much cooler when you take a picture. I thought it was a cup of beer at first. really weird looking beer. As much as I like the size of beef ribs, I've never really had a good rack of them. I've never had it so that the flavor is even near as comparable with pork ribs. It usually has a taste with less of a pronounced flavor to me, whereas pork (when done right) is just chew after chew of mouthwatering goodness. Then again, maybe I've just never had it where someone's cooked it correctly. We'll see. Maybe you should start another discussion for this but, how was the mushroom festival? What kinds were out?

because he points out things that should be said (that CIA is now a place where rich mommy and daddy's send their children, about trends of food, about phonies, and BS) surely have something more interesting to say then "he is a sellout." ← I'm going to have to disagree with your CIA comment. There are a lot of serious students there looking to actually make an impact in the industry. Just because you're not the biggest fan of the current trends doesn't mean they're not relevant, and I and you as well should have known a lot of people that were just scratching and scrapping their way through school. As for the "sellout" comments. It's interesting to see how Bourdain even makes fun of himself about how he goes in to expedite, and how his hands have become soft writer hands (I do believe he took a shot at Ruhlman after that comment), unhardened from his days as a cook. So in essence you could be correct in him saying "he sold out," but then you're missing the point. As a cook and chef Bourdain was pretty damn good. Les Halles would be a place I would think of whenever I'm in the mood for homestyle French food, but I believe his impact on the industry has been a lot more due to the exposure of our industry and the goings on and the food. Besides as you get older, you need to get the hell off the line for your own sake. I don't want to be slapping pans down in my middle age (for the sake of my bank account, if nothing) I believe it's a natural progression for any cook to look to another line of work that has to do with food. Some become hands-off exec. chefs, some consult, Bourdain as extraordinary storytelling and writing skills, and he's using them to his benefit. What's wrong with a TV show where he takes us into other lands to show native foods? What's wrong with someone buying your script to make a television show? What's wrong with signing a book that you wrote? If that's selling out, then I'm all for it. Back to the television show though. As much as I disliked the first two episodes, I actually took a liking to this last one. It mixed in a good amount of foodie quality that exposes restaurant kitchens, with some slapstick humor, with some actual feeling and expression. All I was wondering was what the hell was Jack Bourdain's chef thinking when he gave away a glass of "'62 Lafite-Rothschild," much less leaving half the bottle sitting on the table (then eating a hotdog.) haha. I agree with the comment about one of the premium channels picking this up. Kitchen Confidential (the book) wasn't made for regular cable.

I will always hold to Rudy's for their turkey, sausage, and sauce. Plus I can fill my gas tank as well as my belly. I also second Thelma's in Houston. Anywhere that fills my baked potato with a pound of chopped brisket is thumbs up in my book. Uhhhh huh

Tranquil is the man who will eat chicken's feet. I'm curious as to who of you Houston diners will be open to trying things such as duck's tongue? When I had previously dined at Trio (when Grant Achatz was still at the helm), there was a woman who squirmed in her seat when her beef tounge and beef cheek was brought out and would only try to sauce that came with it and that is in what I believe to be a much more adventurous (at least diningwise) city such as Chicago. (the tongue I can understand, the cheek, no so much) So what kind of limit would you put on yourself?

I'd say Bittersweet on W Belmont (which I think is owned by Charlie Trotter) is a good bet. Pretty nice pastries, great vanilla iced tea and gigantic rootbeer floats. They also have a pretty decent savory section.

Benjy's is a good place if you like somewhat fusion-like food. www.benjys.com Otherwise, there are a few other good Rice Village eateries. Ruggles for lunch is a pretty good idea, I've always enjoyed myself. If you're in the mood for sushi, Azuma on Kirby is wonderful. I second Mi Luna, which is just off Kirby I believe. Chocolate Bar, if you want to fatten yourself up a little. If you have a chance, Houston has a wonderful Chinatown on Bellaire street where you can find great Vietnamese and Chinese eateries. A lot of little hole in the wall restaurants and bakeries. And if you really must, go to the Galleria area for some great shopping and decent eats. I've gotta warn you that traffic is horrid around that area right now due to a lot of construction on surrounding freeways. I wish you the best, come back to us with the good news when you've won the battle... and report to us what you ate!

I actually think Morimoto looked so annoyed because he thought he'd have to do a 30 minute overtime battle. haha. After that he did the whole shaking hands thing of good sportsmanship and such. However, I do hate the fact it was tied, though I somewhat agree. I hate to admit it, but this has been one of the worst battles this season, especially since Morimoto is one of my favorite (if not favorite) Iron Chefs. His food has started to look repetitive, though I suppose it's hard since he's been battling for so long. He just always seems to include sashimi or sushi (he did chirashi in his wolfgang puck battle) and then this was the second time in a row he did the noodles thing with the main ingredient. Chef Sanchez's food didn't look too much better, but I don't think the food looked that great from either chef. (Though it was cool watching the skin tighten up as morimoto torched the fish) I think next time these two battle or at least the next time Morimoto battles, give him something else besides fish. He's a sushi chef, of course he's going to do sushi or sashimi. Anyways, I very much looking forward to Batali vs. Des Jardins.

I both agree and disagree with you on your comment, I agree that the idea of a peeled grape is certainly not amazing as you have pointed out, high end sole Veronique has always had it. It's not an original idea (and the meaning of that, we can discuss for hours) however, I will always be amazed by peeled grapes (especially ones that are still on the stem) just for the sheer amount of time and care it needs to attain one perfectly. I'll be amazed that someone would take the time to peel grapes, pick citrus pods from a grapefruit, or shuck fava beans, just to attain a certain value in a dish with such a time consuming operation. And well, that's why I'm amazed by peeled grapes. Did anyone see Todd English make a mozzarella balloon on Iron Chef two weeks ago? Correct me if I'm wrong, but wasn't that a Trio original?

Of course his burger looked greasy, it had bacon in it... besides, I think if a burger isn't greasy, then you're missing the point. haha. As for the consomme, I actually think it was a beef consomme, so it wasn't just a tool for the dish. It seemed to be he was making a slight version of Vietnamese Pho with the sliced raw meat, then the broth being poured over it (most Vietnamese people like to have their meat served raw on the side, then they put it in themselves.) As for the ice cream, I just think it went in with the whole "burger, fries, and a shake" theme, though when I saw his shake out from the blender, it looked really lumpy and horribly unappetizing. Stirring it didn't seem to make it so much better, but I guess with only so much time there's only so much you can do. I do however agree that I think Chef Cora should've lost heir first battle and won this last one. I think the creativity on this last battle was far better than Chef Simon's though I think Chef Simon's dishes looked more appetizing. Also I was a bit baffled at the decimal scoring this time, it just sort've just to seem to jump in there as there has never been any sort of decimal scoring in any previous battle (American or Japanese) and then all of a sudden all three judges score with decimals. Maybe we're just missing something. Is David Burke really competing? I don't remember it being reported, but it does make sense because Donatella was a judge and they can throw in the "Judge brings in a chef" angle. They didn't play that angle for chef simon though, so oh well. I really think his dishes are quite inventive. Hopefully they'll throw him a fish so he can make his chops. I actually have enjoyed this season quite a bit more than the last, lets just hope it'll be worth it for Food network to keep on producing these for years to come.

Well, I'm not sure you were served just 5-6 oz (it's hard to eyeball portions in oz) of protein just because it's hard to compose a plate if you only have two ounces of protein on there or so, but yes, tasting menus do usually limit the size of their proteins if not for anything than the fact that the idea of it is to satisfy, not stuff the customer. Usually if the menu is four items or more then around 4 oz of protein on a plate would be pretty common. The small portion sizing also serves to keep your tastebuds from being overworked and it usually looks better on the plate too. I personally haven't been to Aries so I can't really comment on if the portion sizing was really just that small... you may be right, but being a native of Houston, when I ate in other cities I had to get used to the idea of such small portions on tasting menus when I was thinking I was paying 80-100 dollars for the menu. After a little while though, especially if it runs in the 6 or 7 and above courses range, you'll begin to see why. I applaud Chef Tycer and Aries for offering the tasting menu... I don't see it as a concept Houston would embrace too well with all the Pappas', Cheesecake Factory's, Landry's, and steakhouses running amuck. Though if it were me, I'd serve slightly bigger portions than normal in Houston for tasting menus than I would in another major restaurant city just for the fact that us Houstonians love our protein.

Before you get into this I would just like to say that my computer had died on me and I’d thought I’d lost everything (pictures, notes, and stuff) up until last week when I was able to save a bunch of things. I do have hand written notes, but with Daniel (and every restaurant that I enjoyed after this) I only took notes on slight things, and also notes that I think would personally benefit me (if you want to call it idea-borrowing, gladly do so. Haha.) Hence, I do remember certain thoughts from the courses, but some of them I just draw a blank on and can only rely on what I jotted down. I received a menu at Daniel, but the tasting menu dishes weren't listed on it... this is the best I can come up of, though I think my ideas of the restaurant were put up more than actual facts. In other words, whereas I'd tried to at least be somewhat objective beforehand... because I didn't write these right after I went to these places, I'm going to be very personal, rather than objective, on any reviews to follow, mostly because I don't remember well enough to put a big fat graded stamp on it. As always, take these all for what they're worth. Daniel Stepping into such an elegant dining room such as Daniel’s, it makes me feel, myself, very out of place. Such long stretching walls, such brightly shined chandeliers in such a perfectly dim room. It was marble, velvet, plush, posh, elegant, pretentious… yet.. not… those are all the feelings that I encountered as I strode in my every-week blazer and train-tussled hair to a comfortable chair smack in the middle of the dining room at Daniel. It was quite the difference from the experience I had the previous week at Jean-Georges. Whereas the air at JG made it seem as if there were electricity and buzz, the atmosphere at Daniel made you feel rich and important. A kid no more probably than 11 years old sat in his navy blue blazer two tables away, well behaved, quietly devouring a piece of foie next to his parents. At Daniel, I hoped to build on my Jean-Georges’ experience, hopefully dividing the two as to what made a NYT four-star rated restaurant. What the likenesses were, and what made them both great in their own way. I wanted the food to be just as good. The flavors just a developed and well thought out, and I wanted the service to be even better. It seemed the place where there would be less personality in the service, though replaced with attention to detail and pampering. I’d also heard from a few chef-instructors and classmates that this was one of the best service-minded restaurants in the city. I knew that Daniel kept more to the classical French side of the cuisine, expanding mostly only with French flavors (whereas JG uses more of an Asian touch) and so I expected less exotic, more rich in the profile of the food. Previously having already decided on the tasting menu, I only slighty skimmed the menu before the waiter brought us a silver plated, tiered with bites for which we were to start. The gougeres (sp?) were the best I’ve ever had. Seeing this, the waiter “snuck” us a couple more. Very nice touch. Our first course was sautéed foie gras, quince paste, and mache. We’d requested sautéed foie, and this was no letdown. They gave a very well-sized portions that were cooked to exactly right. To the point where it wasn’t overly oily, but also very soft. The sweet paste was a nice quaint compliment to the gamey quality of the foie. Very good start. The next course I didn’t write too much about, it was a seared diver scallop with truffle essence and some sort of puree underneathe. All I remember from it was that it was very truffly (in the good sense), though a bit oily. I don’t remember what this was… Our next course was a warm smoked lobster with an herb crust, sage royale, bacon-lentil ragout, and sacue “cardinale.” I have it written that the lobster was a little tough to work with, but the smokiness all around worked very nicely with the whole dish. I did remember believe that the sweetness usually found in lobster wasn’t to be found, though the overall flavor was very nice. With the smoky bacon and lentils with the smoked lobster. The roasted garlic on the side bound the whole dish together with sort of a feel of “woodburning, homey, countryside (if lobster can be found on the countryside), rustic” type of dish. However, the plate up made it a very appropriate for the setting. The last fish dish that I had was the marrow-crusted grouper with grilled porcini salsify and a green Costa Rican peppercorn sauce. This was a very well thought out dish because to me, grouper is a hard fish to get right. By itself it’s very meaty, one of the heavier whitefishes that I can think of, so the balance that came from the bone-marrow crust was very nice. The taste of bone marrow, I can’t really put a finger on… but to me it’s sweet and buttery all at the same time. It’s very distinct. Yet the fish’s innate texture itself was reinforced with the mushrooms and it the dish was very well put together and quite enjoyable. Our first meat course was one of the most memorable in my New York adventures, it was roasted sweetbreads and Brussels sprouts with truffles and accompanying jus, carved tableside. The may have been the most perfect, and yet most simple preparation of sweetbreads I’ve ever encountered. The skin was crisp, the inside was smooth, and the root vegetables and sprouts all bound together with the fresh truffles and jus was absolutely to die for. It’s not on the regular menu. If I ever have a chance to go back to Daniel, I’m requesting this. It seemed to be just so classically French, and so well executed. My final savory course was the loin of Niman Ranch Lamb with a pistachio crust, dried fruit pastilla, fennel confit, and grilled eggplant. Maybe this course just had a tough act to follow, but the preparation of this was very normal, and the execution was only so-so. I’ve chronicled before in my lack of enthusiasm for lamb, and that had something to do with it. The flavors were there, but the dish as a whole just didn’t jump out at me. As for our desserts, two were sent out to us. One each from the fruit and chocolate section (I honestly don’t remember much about them because I was pretty full) and the pastry chef also sent out a chocolate mille-feulle. At this point I’d become a bit bored with chocolate desserts (I like them just fine now though.) I do remember the warm madelines serve though. The were absolutely wonderful. The food at Daniel was very, very good. However, as I was comparing it to the dishes in my previous week’s adventure at Jean-Georges, not each one of them was a star in their own right. There were big hits, but there was also dishes that I thought were nice, just not something to die for. As for a personal preference, being a young’n, I do personally prefer the more exotic, out of the box flavors to the classical ones. When it comes to food, I do tend to think more progressively, so the food at Daniel didn’t quite inspire me as much as the previous week. It’s hard to rate each restaurant as its own entity, and I believe if I could, then I could fully realize how spectacular Daniel is. However, I must say the captains were very well trained, and to my surprise, very personable though professional. There were a couple hiccups with the backwaiters, as our water glasses were left empty for a little while, and they kept on bringing us new napkins for some reason which sort’ve sat on the edge of the table for the duration of the meal. I do believe I got the gist of the restaurant though. We were very lucky to meet Chef Boulud, as he was in the house for the night, as well as take a little peek into the kitchen. Also, Howard Stern and his girlfriend made a big entrance into the restaurant which got a kick out of. Thinking about it, I believe myself to be too young and brash for this restaurant. I lack refinement (and probably wealth) to really enjoy this restaurant, but as far as food, service, and atmosphere go it’s one of the top ten places I’ve been to so far. The food is well executed, though I would say the flavors are a bit safe. Superb service, though not outstanding. I want to go back sometime when I’m older… or if they’ll let me, go back and order the sweetbreads again. Out of 10? A very personal 7. Take it for what it’s worth.

Well, having eaten in Chicago, SF, and NYC... it's hard to get what I perceive as "fine dining" here in Houston (haven't been much elsewhere in Texas for fine dining) but just a few things: 1. The menu must be coursed out. Multiple courses with changing of silverware, and plates in between. It must be timed. I can't count the times I've been to a high end steakhouse eating my salad when my steaks come out. 2. Service must be point on technically. Not overly friendly, I'd rather have a comfortable, very technically sound, and pleasant waiter than a bubbly person. Fine dining places just aren't the places I look for that. Decrumbing, intuitions on when a person needs something and the whole aspect of "exceeding expectations" come to mind. 3. The type of food. The menu. I've seen a place claim to be high end fine dining and have venison carpaccio on the appetizer side of the menu right next to buffalo wings. Then sushi and also pork schnitzel of all things on the entree side. It just didn't work for me. Even if the plating was pretty nice. 4. The atmosphere should make it not that you can't bring kids in, but you really wouldn't want to. Sophistication, maybe? I'm not sure how to describe it. Then again, I did see a 9 year old a Restaurant Daniel eating a piece of sauteed foie. So who knows. I myself wouldn't consider steakhouses fine dining mostly because there isn't much passion about the food. Even if the service and food is wonderfully executed. You can have a grand ol time, but when it comes down to it for me, no matter how aged the ribeye is, no matter how delicious the potatoes au gratin is, and no matter how nice your hollandaise is on your steamed broccoli, it's just too simple. There's not much reflection of the chef in a steak dinner. The place just doesn't have the personality in it that I would consider fine dining. But again, that's just me.

If another opinion between the two matters at all (since you've gotten so many), I'd choose Indika over Churrascos. I've been to both within the last two weeks and thoghroughly enjoyed Indika more... the food was more interesting and the service was better in my opinion. Also Ouisie's Table is another option though I will say that they do have their off nights.

Chef Pope, This question was addressed to Chef Scott Tycer a couple of months back and I'm sure we would like to hear your opinion on it As a recent culinary graduate hoping to one day own an upper end restaurant in Houston, I was wondering what you believe the outlook on the food culture of Houston is especially towards the fine dining sector, as it hasn't been nearly as big, accepted, or noticed as in such cities as San Francisco, Chicago, and New York. The amount of fine dining establishments has slowly crept up, but the numbers still aren't there as in the aforementioned cities. Do you think Houston has the clientele to accept it as most people think fine dining are only steakhouses. Do you see the food, portion sizing, and pricing range for there to be a large amount of fine dining restaurants ever being accepted by the citizens of Houston? Also, on a personal question of mine: with the summer season upon us, what produce is coming in that you're really excited about and can't wait to work with? I can't wait for the sweet corn to come rolling in.

those fiddleheads look amazing. Thank goodness its spring!

I must say, from when I read the book right before I entered the school till when I just graduated, I was expecting a lot of the same, but most everything's changed. Sure, update when I leave. It would've been interesting to see how you would've gone about your business since most everyone at the school has a copy of your book now... I'm sure you weren't such a big celebrity before when you attended. And as of a couple blocks ago when I saw him, Chef Pardus is still in New York and not in California. Actually, as of like... a week and a half ago, he was leading a group of students around Vietnam to go market hopping with the Chef from Bao 111. Looking forward to it.

Jean-Georges Walking through the glass doors of Jean-Georges at the Trump Hotel on a Saturday night, I was not surprised to see a crowd gathering at the hostess stand, I was, however surprised to see how calmly the hostesses handled the situations as there were many walk-ins that tried to give them “the hand shake” only to be told that both the formal and informal dining room were completely full. Noting that we had a reservation, we were led past the mob of a mess that was the informal dining room (the bar must have been at least three customers in) into a room with a completely different aura... replacing the loud, obnoxious bar area was a large room with stretching walls and ceilings that had a very quaint buzz to it. In my opinion, I hate to see chefs that stretch themselves too thin. I do like the idea of entrepreneurship, but I have been to many restaurants where there was a name-brand chef, only to be disappointed because a standard was not held up. Nobu, Todd English, and Roy Yamaguchi come to mind immediately. So more than anything, I was curious to how Jean-Georges Vongrichten held up his four-star flagship restaurant to the highest standard and continued to do so even with so many other establishments to worry about (there is even a new place called “Bank” in my hometown “by Jean-Georges Vongrichten”). Knowing about his travels and after reading his biography, I could tell that many different flavors and exotic ingredients would be blended with French technique, and I was hugely curious to find out how well they matched, as I have had some awful experiences before, and as always... for a four-star restaurant, I wanted four-star service. Unintrustive, knowledgeable, serviceable. I don’t want to ask for anything. After perusing the menu and switching back and forth between the winter menu and the Jean-Georges Menu a few times, I settled on the Jean-Georges Menu. The waiter presented us with an amuse of from left to right a shrimp boullion (though it was more bisque-like) with an olive tuile (my friend argued that it was more like melba toast than a tuile)... something I can’t decipher from my notes in the middle, and a spoon of salmon, jalapeno, and cucumber juice. We were told eat from right to left. The spoon had a great flavor to it, with both the zing of the jalapeno and the cooling of the cucumber to compliment the salmon, and I remember the boullion being very good, with the slight crispness and saltiness of the tuile. Our first course was Egg Caviar with a hollowed out chicken egg with scrambled eggs, whipped crème fraiche, and a load of caviar. I was especially pleased with the way the crème fraiche and eggs were prepared for this dish as I think it actually made the caviar the star of the dish. Often I find that we cook eggs too dry and it loses both the soft texture and also a lot of flavor, and without whipping crème fraiche, it often becomes too clumpy. The textures of soft and smooth complimented the slight pop of the caviar and the whole flavors of salty, egginess, and the slight sour of crème fraiche worked very well... as it is a classic combination. After this we had Sea Scallops, Caramelized Cauliflower, with a caper-raisin emulsion. As I was watching Iron Chef America one time, I was wondering what Jeffery Steingarten was talking about one episode where he said “you managed to suck the succulence out of the scallop and it was wonderful” I’ve heard time and time again, why would you do anything besides sear a scallop or sauté a scallop? It’s so good. It’s so succulent. I believe this dish exemplified his comments, because though the scallop was sautéed, it was only done very lightly. Instead of being the star of this dish, the whole makeup of the dish was a big success. The lightly sautéed scallop didn’t have any succulence, but actually tasted very full had a nice firm texture. This partnered with the slight char of the cauliflower and the sweet-salty emulsion is... just very hard to describe. I can only say that most of the time when I eat scallops, the way that it is cooked makes my mouth water with the brininess and umami flavor. This dish had none of it, it was very suttle and very complex in flavor. Very interesting and mind opening. Our soup course came as Young Garlic soup with thyme and sautéed frog legs. We were told to dip the legs into the soup and to nibble at it, then to eat the soup. It was interesting to see how the make up of the soup altered with the frog’s legs. With the crispy legs that also had the slight fishy flavor, the soup almost acted like something to balance out the flavor of the frog’s legs when eaten with it. However, when eaten alone, the soup had a much more fragrant, almost flowery flavor to it that worked with the slight sweet garlic flavor of young garlic. Very nice. It was interesting, and I’m not sure if they intended it to be this way, but our next course, our fish course, almost acted as a sorbet course, refreshing our palate and cleansing it. It was turbot with a chateau chalon sauce. There was a acidic taste to the sauce that went well with the brunoised tomato and zucchini that sat atop a lightly cooked turbot. The whole dish overall, though my least favorite of the night, was very quaint in flavor, light in texture, and just a pleasure to eat even though there weren’t any big booming flavors. Next was Lobster Tartine with lemongrass and fenugreek broth, and pea shoots which seemed like just a step up in flavor with from the previous course. The lobster was firm and sweet and atop something that was soft and bready, I couldn’t put my finger on what it was. The mixture of texture with the piece of bread (I guess) that soaked up the broth really melded well together into a very Asian-tasting dish. I dislike it many times when chefs garnish dishes with microgreens or salads without any purpose, but the peashoots with the very raw, almost grassy taste to it worked well for the Asian theme of this dish. Our final savory course was a broiled squab, with onion compote, corn pancake with foie gras. The squab was dusted with Chinese five spice and was very reminiscent of the final course we had at Le Bernardin because of the five spice. I found this to be a better pairing, however, because the skin was crispy and because the gaminess really complimented the sometimes overpowering flavor of the five-spice. The compote, corn pancake and foie didn’t really tie into the dish extremely well, but it was very good on its own, and I can never complain when it comes to a sautéed piece of foie. The three together were wonderful, however. Maybe it was something that I just didn’t get. For desserts, I stopped taking notes because of all the ice creams on the table, but I had the exotic fruit sampler, my friend had the apple sampler, and we were also given a molten chocolate cake. I liked the green apple sorbet that was on his plate, and the pineapple polenta cake that was on mine... for some reason, chocolate is going further and further out for me. Maybe it just... seems too regular now. I’m probably just being spoiled. I do remember, however, that it also came with a vanilla ice cream that I think was probably Tahitian vanilla as opposed to the usual Bourbon vanilla bean and I thought that it was a better match. I think each course was a star in its own right... but I also loved the fact that each course seemed to build up or down on each other. There weren’t any major jumps in flavor, and the whole menu seemed to be very well thought out. Even though there was only seven courses my palate took a very nice ride that night. Plating wasn’t always on point and I think more could have been done with the turbot plate, but that’s just being nitpicky. I sometimes complain that none of the dishes stood out on a menu, but I can still remember each dish that was presented to me that night. I remember service being very nice and serviceable... though not over the top. I could pick at it all night, but then I wouldn’t enjoy myself. They did well, I just don’t think they went an extra mile. It worked for me, but I’ve had better. The room was very nice, very simple and modern looking, and it was actually interesting to see the mix of people that was dining here... as both older and the "young hip" ones were able to be seen. The ambience was very nice. When people ask me what restaurant to go to now when they have money to blow, at this point, I will always say Jean-Georges, I really enjoyed my night there very much. The place was spotless, the service was nice, and the food was absolutely outstanding. I have a different view on the whole “superchef” name now because I see how many projects Chef Vongrichten has his name attached to and probably at least keep an eye on slightly, yet his four-star, flagship restaurant really deserved its acclaim. Again, I really enjoyed my night there. Bravo. Out of 10? 9. Read above.

I'm not sure about walk in... but call the day of or day before and there are usually both an early and a late cancellation. I called the day of, 5 hours before I came and got a spot on a saturday, I'm sure it happens all the time. Also, smaller tables are easier to get. mostly likely anything above a two will be a lot harder. Walking in might be a little bit harder to come by. I've only heard it happen once.

Actually I already finished my externship this past October and my first kitchen gigs were before school because of the whole "needing 6 months of experience" thing. I'd been working in kitchens for about 2 years now. The restaurants have helped in deciding what I need to do or what I want to do in my future, but I think I'll discuss that in my last post. I will say though that I have loved every single Danny Meyer establishment I have been to.

Well as I hit my final stretch of school I just sort've wanted to be focused on what I needed to do for my next stage of life and to finish strong on my current stage. Since I left off, I have eaten at a few places (we'll leave that up to the element of suprise), and I have a few half-written reports sitting on my laptop. Hopefully I'll have a bit of time in the coming weeks to finish them up. If not, I'll definitely be posting them after I finish school in a few weeks. Sorry for no updates, I didn't really think anyone would miss me. Haha. Thanks for the concern though! Justin

Chef As a Culinary student up here in NY but a native to Houston, I have several questions regarding running a high end restaurant in Houston, as I would hopefully love to one day own my own place... hopefully in my hometown. With the demographics in Houston as they are, what is the makeup of your staff like-- knowing full well of the availability of very good minority workers as opposed to culinary-educated students who have a degree in hand. What is it that you look for in a cook when you hire? Also, in many of the restaurants that I've eaten at up here in New York and with my fine dining experience in places such as LA and Chicago, I wonder how you deal with the portion sizing at your restaurant... as I know you have places like Pappasitos and Cheesecake factory to contend with even though they are in a different dining genre. A lot of the time I hear Houstonians complain that the food was great, but the portion was just too tiny! Has the 6 oz portion of protein cut it for our Texas-sized stomaches? Also, do you believe Houston, as you have said that it is a budding restaurant town, is a good place for a student to build his or her culinary career? Or do you think the more major cities such as NY, SF, Chicago, and Boston would be a better idea to work with more well known chefs and restaurants for a student to work at and stage at in order to build up a reputation and skill level before returning to a smaller market to open up his or her own place? Thanks for any answers you can fling my way. Justin

I think the food is incredibly important because I've had a whole bunch of experiences where I was snacking on something or another small, simple and tasting wine and then there was a pairing that just completely sang out to me. Even though other wine bars may have the same wine, the whole experience of having a great pairing at that exact place makes me crave not just that pair... but that place as well. Like... I need to go back to find another pairing. Also, somethings out of the ordinary food-wise would be good. Just to make yourself distinguished. I love a good selection and wide variety of charcuterie and cheeses too when I wine.

Or if you're a starving college student like me? Sriracha and white rice. If I'm lucky I'll put some lunch meat or homemade kimchee or spam on. Damn you CIA meal plan.