francesco

Both. As you say, there one good thing about Petrini and that is that he seems to be on top of what is happening outside of Italy, which is really rare for an Italian (he does live in Lyon). You pay for it with the fact that he clearly dislikes a certain style of cuisine (traditional haute-cuisine, essentially) and is hardly impartial in his judgement. You can get over that by learning to filter what he says accordingly. Much worse, however, is that reading him is a bit like reading a student of Derrida who is not good enough to be a movie or literary critic and has to take what he can get (food writing), clearly resenting it. Francesco

Cyn, I have never been to the Osteria Francescana, but I cited it as a possible recipeint for three forks from Gambero Rosso because the range of opinions on it is almost unanimously very good. Thus, I can't give you advice coming from direct experience. However, I don't quite understand your logic as there are NOT so many others to choose from that get more consensus on the positive side (I'd be more than happy to be proven wrong, however). If a few negative reports was enough to disqualify a restaurant, I'd never consider or would have considered El Bulli, Pierre Gagnaire, Marc Veyrat, Michel Bras, you name it. Also, you should consider that this is a restaurant with a strong focus on creative/experimental cuisine. The diner you cite might have expected more traditional fare. BTW, if traditional fare is what you're looking for, Hosteria Giusti (for lunch only, I believe) is truly excellent. Francesco

Let me guess....Petrini's the author? Francesco

I would definitively add Perbellini (Isola Rizza). Also, Bottura, of Osteria Francescana (Modena) gets consistent raves in the press and online: I wouldn't be surprised if it made it to the top or thereabouts. Personally, I have a weak spot for Arnolfo (Colle val d' Elsa), but that would hardly be a new entry! Francesco

Very surprising, this. We paid under €50 per person only last month. Did you have a very expensive wine? I don't think so, we had a bottle of the basic Tinto Pesquera 2001. It was 26 euros or so on the list. My colleague was so happy about the chuleton that he was quite willing to forgive the high cost, I was in a less charitable mood. I am now looking at the Viridiana bill and it was only ten euros per person more expensive (but with more expensive wine as well). Francesco

For what it is worth, "Il Pescatore" in Canneto had a snail soup on the menu a few years ago. As a matter of fact, there is a recipe in their cookbook, "La cucina di Antonio e Nadia Santini" for Snail and Porcini soup with farfalle pasta. Snails definitively belong to many Italian regions' culinary heritage. The reason for the lack of snail dishes in restaurants might be due to the fact that they do generally take time to get ready and that demand is probably not very high contrary to Burgundy where you are expected to order snails if they are on the menu. In any case, cookbooks seem to list plenty of options. For example, "Ricette di Osterie d' Italia", slow food's recipe book lists four recipes: one from Piedmont, one from Veneto, one from Friuli and one from Campania. Finally, Anna Gosetti della Salda's book "Le ricette regionali italiane" which is one of the most prestigious books on regional cuisine lists 10 recipes. In contrast, the Petit Larousse de la Cuisine, the only comparable recipe book for France I have, lists only three recipes. Francesco

yes, they might have been now that I think about it. the sausage in Botin did have rice and it was much better than the one I had at the vaca which was a straightforward blood sausage. Now that you mention it, I do recall the chef himself (who listed the off-the-menu options) citing Mexican mushrooms at some point: it must have been them. Ah, I have to hold my head in shame: the sauce was the actual name of the dish and I didn't figure it out. yes, it would have been the best part of the meal if it hadn't been for the formidable quality of the beef and tuna in the tataki. yes, I did follow the thread but I still think that if the standard is the one I had witnessed (and given the other comments on this forum, I have little reason to doubt it), it is ridiculous that the restaurant doesn't have one star (at the very least). Well, then if you get a chance to go back tell him that it's exactly what one of his customers (me) did with his egg, mushrooms and truffles dish. I should add that the "fusion" aspect of the cuisine fooled our guest who is brasilian and could have sweared that the chef was from Argentina, given the choic of dishes: I had a hard time to convince him that it wasn't so. I certainly agree with the comfort food aspect that Bux has pointed out: there were at least 4-5 options for each course which tempted us and it was a very difficult choice indeed, I only wish I would get a chance to go again soon. Francesco

I just wanted to report on my trip in Madrid. I did manage to follow some of the forum's recommendations, which were much appreciated. I was always with collegues so I didn't get a chance to write down exactly what I had on each occasion. Anyway, on the first night I went to Julian de Tolosa. We had an appetizer of Jamon and Lomo iberico and another of white asparagus with majonaise. Both were excellent, with a special mention for the asparagi, which, out of season, were a really pleasant surprise (the jamon was fantastic but this is not a surprise). The highlight of the meal was obviously the chuleton served with some fantastic red peppers which was one of the best steaks I have ever had. With a bottle of wine, and some good but not more than that, dessert, the final bill came at 70 euros per person which was, I thought was a bit too expensive for what we had, but maybe my expectations for food prices in Spain were out of sync with reality. The second night, I tried to book Asador Fronton but could not get through so we headed for "La Vaca Veronica". We had a starter of home made pasta with squid in its own ink which I thought was good and a dish of various meat cuts (including chorizo and a blood sausage) cooked on coals which I found OK but nowhere near the previous night's beef. Still, at half the price, not bad at all. The third night was dedicated to Botin, which does feel a bit too touristy. We had again several starters which included Jamon and Lomo, white asparagi, a kind of blood sausage/black pudding, and Riojan salad. The ham was not of the same quality as at Julian's and the highlight was the blood sausage which was really good. For mains, we went for Chocinillo asado (roasted suckiling pig), the house specialty which was good but not as good as I would have thought. Service was fine and they have a decent wine list. Finally, the highlight of my stay was a visit to Viridiana on the last night. There were quite a few items off the menu and given that there were three of us and some of the dishes we chose were off the menu, I am not sure I can remember the fine details of everyone's meal (also, I can barely make myself understood in Spanish so I am certain I missed some of details). Anyway, we all had a couple of pre starters offered by the restaurant. A gaspacho made with strawberries and a pickled anchovie was brought before a selection of pickled vegetables with some sweet honey based sauce. Both were unusual for me but excellent. For starters I had one of the house specialties: two eggs cooked in a pan with a mousee of mushrooms and a generous shaving of black truffles. I love eggs, mushroom and truffles and this dish I could eat every day of my life without getting tired. The other starters were a tortilla filled with mushrooms, goats cheese and a mole poblano sauce which I tasted and was excellent and a ceviche of bonito tuna with other ingredients that I don't recall. I didn't try this but it was described as excellent. For seconds, two of us had a most delicious tataki with bonito tuna on the one hand and steak on the other which came with a soy-based sauce which I couldn't quite identify and sauteed ginger. The quality of both meat and tuna was staggering. My wife had a beef dish where stew-sized cubes of beed came in a sauce with mushrooms and spring onions which was also excellent but I preferred my dish. Finally, for dessert I had a dish with 3 chocolate (white, milk and dark) mousses, my wife had a papaya stuffed with fruit and a fruit sauce and there was another dessert which I don't remember. Service was kind and attentive and we had a very good Ribera del Duero from bodegas Moro with our meal. On the basis of this one meal alone, it is really puzzling that Michelin has not thought more of the place. I had a great time in Madrid and the food was always good. We also found a tapas bar on a small square which looks on the Paseo del Prado, almost across from the museum, which served the most delicious (green) asparagous dish. Anyway, great eating and thank you to all of those (Gerry, Pedro, vserna) who helped with suggestions. Francesco

Gerry, thank you very much for your answer, I have to admit this seems like a pretty substantial list. Can you give me some more details on some of these restaurants? Francesco

Vserna, I will be staying in Madrid and I have booked a hotel very close to Atocha station so I can comfortably commute to Leganes every morning (it's just for 5 days anyway and just about anyone I know who attends the conference will be staying in Madrid as well). However, I would be staying in Leganes until as late as 6-7 PM every evening so I would rather not go out of Madrid for the dinner (in most cases lunch will be at the conference).

As the title says, I have an analogous problem to Endless Autumn but in Madrid, not Barcelona. I will be in Madrid from the evening of August 19th to the evening of August 23rd (included) for a conference. I do plan to attend the conference most of the time (in Leganes) and so would rather not travel with the car outside the city. Any ideas? All of the places that I've checked so far seem to be closed in that period. Francesco

Well Pia, we have been looking at the Monte di Portofino from opposite sides, but mine is better! (that's Italian campanilismo for you ). All joking aside, I am sure that you will find that the forum will ask as many questions as you are willing to answer. Welcome again. Francesco

Pia is probably too shy and modest about their restaurant to give out more info, so hoping she won't mind, I can add some background. Igles Corelli is a very well known chef in Italy. He was the chef at the (now closed) restaurant Trigabolo, which in the 90s had two Michelin stars and was considered one the most exciting places to eat in Italy. The magazine Gambero Rosso has recently dedicated a a cover story to the Trigabolo. If you can read Italian, go to the Gambero Rosso website (www.gamberorosso.it) and follow the links to mensile - archivio - febbraio 2004. (By the way, both Pia and Igles frequently partecipate in Gambero Rosso's own forum where I sometimes lurk...) I don't go back to Italy nearly as often as I would like to but la Locanda della Tamerice (www.tamerice.it) is on my "to do" list, especially now that I know that Pia "e' delle mie parti" since I am originally from Rapallo. Benvenuta Pia. Francesco

I know that one could argue that you must respect the customer's wishes, but given the context, it was obvious that Vic Reeves was taking the piss and if (and it's a big if) this wasn't part of some script, I really can't find any fault in what Ramsay did. BTW, can you explain why you think that talking like that to Vic Reeves is a big mistake? Am I missing something? Francesco

I believe you had panzerotti. Francesco

Chef, thank you for your time. I noticed that crayfish used to be a significant part of the Haute Cuisine repertoire until not too long ago (Pic, Point, Chapel, Bise, etc.) but they now seem to be a bit off the culinary map. I've often heard that this may be because the quality of the material has deteriorated significantly due to the depleted stock of native varietes. Since I've found a source for the more common (american?) variety, I was wondering whether you thought it worthwhile and if so, whether you could suggest a recipe. Thank you. Francesco

Robert, the idea is intriguing. I can bring two people (i.e. me and my wife) to the table, if you think we can raise the rest, it might really be something interesting to organize for next summer. I haven't had the chance to try many of the greats at their peak (Robuchon and Girardet being another couple that I really missed) and amongst them Chapel was always the one that somehow fascinated me most. Francesco

Thank you to all who replied. Unfortunately, we didn't get a chance to go anywhere as we had our daughter we us and baby-sitting options didn't materialize. As an aside I just noted that Robert Brown has had experience with the current chef at Alain Chapel and it would be nice to read his thoughts on the subject as this restaurant is on my "target list" anyway. Francesco

Robert, glad to read you enjoyed Arnolfo. I was there last summer with my wife and we both enjoyed our meal very much. This came just a few days after a meal at Pont de Brent in Switzerland and Arnolfo, for us, was much better and much less expensive. The restaurant doesn't always get the best reviews in the Italian media but I am glad you thought it was as good as I remembered. Also, we missed each other by just a few days: I am very curious to read about the Camogli experience. We only managed a very good meal at Ca' Peo in Leivi which for us is an old friend. Francesco

Well, I will be staying for a few days in Courmayeur, on the Italian side of the Mont-Blanc and I was wondering whether I might get a chance to step into France and do a nice meal somewhere I can go and come back from the same day. In the area, I've been at Georges Blanc and Marc Veyrat and, in Switzerland, Rochat (ex-Girardet) and Pont de Brent so I want something new. I have been contemplating many options and I wonder where I can get some sort of feedback. I have been in "historic" mode recently so most of the suggestions are old classics (no Bocuse because reviews are unvariably negative). Auberge des Clos et Cimes: sounds interesting but it is perhaps too far. I've read mostly (very) good reports. Alain Chapel: the great man is gone and I hear so little about this place that makes me think of decline but since I've never had a chance to try the original, I wonder and this is the one chef who has always piqued my curiosity a lot. Pyramide. Same as above with perhaps even fewer links to the previous "great man". But it is good now? Flocons de Sel. A Veyrat pupil and fairly convenient. Any thoughts? Auberge du Midi (in Lamastre) - A former great restarant: does it stll have some interest? off the beaten track, I suppose Lameloise - Apparently the cheapest 3 star and fairly uncreative, but then again, I don't necessarily want creativity per se as much as good food. Is it worth it? Greuze - recent reports seem less enthusiastic than before. Any other thoughts? Thanks, Francesco

Jonathan, As another professional economist: these things, are all well-known and studied by a large number of members of the profession. Economics has the unenviable task, just like any social science, of modelling the most complex thing there is: human behavior. Every time some reality is modelled, the trade-offs faced have to do with tractability on the one hand (which requires simplification) and not leaving out crucial assumptions on the one hand (which requires not simplifying too much). So if a macroeconomist writes down a model which requires the representation of a whole economy, tractability requires that he write down firms as individual agents which maximize profits because at that level of aggregation, this is an acceptable assumption. However, if what we need to model is compensation packages for managers of a publicly-traded firm, then assuming that, for example, these managers try to maximize long-term profts is clearly something that will generally not be accepted. In the end, the difference between good theory and bad theory is that the former manages to simplify enough to generate interesting insights while not making assumptions which are crucial for the theory while being debatable as a description of the reality that we want to model. Most models do make that assumption because while clearly false in a literal sense, it allows us to gain many insights into incentive behavior. In other words, many of these models do capture some of the phenomena we observe. Sometimes, to capture some other phenomena, we do need to make different assumptions but before that, economists try to see how far you can get with the old one (that effort is costly). It can be argued that in some cases this is not possible and that different assumptions are needed. For example: http://econ.lse.ac.uk/staff/tbesley/papers...s/motivated.pdf This debate has been going on for a very long time and the answer is that probably a combination of your current wealth, the possible amount of money you can steal and the risk of getting caught that are stopping you from making that decision. If my best friend's pockets contained a million dollars and I had absolute certainty of impunity, I doubt I would refrain from stealing the money. Francesco PS looking you up on the web, I noticed we have some acquaintances in common. While neither of them was my dissertation advisor, I was once teaching assistant for both John Roberts and Joel Podolny for an MBA class they taught together: the world is small indeed!

Robert, the Italian magazine Gambero Rosso April's issue has a report from the Basque region. In addition to the 5 restaurants you mention, other places to visit according to them are: Extebarri Axpe-Marzana, Plaza San Juan 1 Axtondo tel. 0034 946 583 042 for hautish cuisine and everything cooked on a grill. It comes very highly recommended. They also recommend also Casa Julian Santa Clara 6, Tolosa tel. 0034 943 671 417 Casa Nicolas av.da Zumalacarregui, 6 Tolosa tel. 0034 943 654 759 both specialise in chuletas, Spain's claim to fame in the great steaks world. I should add that the reporter says that Olivier Roellinger and his wife, who were with him, found both fantastic and from the description the steaks do sound marvellous. These are *not* high-end restaurants, especially the first but the bill can be relatively high because of the cost of the meat itself. For tapas in Donostia: Alôna Berri Birmingham, 24 San Sebastian tel. 0034 943 290 818 Bergara barrio de Gros General Arteche, 8 San Sebastian tel. 0034 943 275 026. Juli, Renteira (on the way to Mugaritz, more creative tapas) - tel. 0034 943 512 887. Amongst the five restaurants you mention my impression is that Mugaritz gets the most kudos and Akelare the fewest, for what it's worth (but it still comes as recommended). Finally, they mention Fagollaga C.tra de Goizueta, 68 barrio Erenozu Hernani San Sebastian tel. 0034 943 550 031 but it doesn't seem to be more recommended than any of the 5 you mention. Hope this is of some help. Francesco

I actually had this, altho' they called it salsa di noci....is it just pine nuts with heavy cream? Jim Jim, the original sauce, "salsa di noci" is with walnuts. It shouldn't be with cream but with prescinseua which is a kind of soured milk, although it is difficult to find and most restaurants will use cream (which seems a bit heavy) or ricotta. What Genovese does, I was told by my father in law, is to substitute walnuts with pinolia (pine nuts) which is a bit of an innovation. vmilor, the only thing about Ca' Peo is that they do have consistency problems. As you might have noticed the owner has some health problems and his very talented wife is, I believe, getting tired of the whole thing. They have two daughters but only one is interested in the restaurant and she does not cook. So whenever the wife feels like it, the food is really excellent but on other days they just seem to be going along. Someone told me they hired a good young chef to help in the kitchen but I haven't been in a year and so can't tell what effects this has produced. Also, I agree the cellar is quite good but I find the wine expensive.

Jim, yes, I had forgotten about this trattoria, maybe because I've never been! It opened quite recently and since I am in Rapallo at most for a total of 4 weeks/year I haven't had a chance to try it myself. I do know that my father-in-law finds it good value for money and I do know that they do ravioli (or pansoti) with pinolia sauce (as opposed to the more traditional walnut sauce). Sounds like it's worth a try next time I'm in town. The shop where you bough the cheese sounds like "La Bottega dei Sestieri" which is by far the best cheese shop/salumeria in town and (I am told) has recently been put in a list of the best 100 food shops in Italy. The shop was also featured a few months ago in the Italian edition of the Gambero Rosso magazine (they have the cheese shop/salumeria and another location near the train station where you can find wine and deli items). Menton1, I am afraid that all the help I could give you would come from reading the usual food guides and not from personal experience: Paolo e Barbara is one place I have tried and found really good. Balzi Rossi is past its prime, Claudio and Il Palma used to be great, now they tend to be inconsistent (I hear), etc. I hear pretty good things about La Conchiglia in Arma di Taggia. The problem is people from one riviera don't tend to go to the other.......

I couldn't resist a reply as I am originally from Rapallo. The trattoria was U Bansin or was it U Giancu, near the highway exit? Or somewhere else...just curious.... Noli, Spotorno and Finale are on the other side of the Riviera so any trip to Rapallo would be very time consuming and that area probably has more quality restaurants than the Rapallo side anyway. Not being from the area I can't really recommend small haunts or trattorias. However, if you want to splash, Paolo e Barbara in Sanremo is probably the best restaurant in Liguria at the moment but it is expensive. If you do happen by the eastern side of the riviera, Ca Peo in Leivi does an excellent pesto (very few still do it with a mortar) and probably the best pesto lasagne in the whole region. Leivi is in the hills above Chiavari, about 25-30 mins drive from Rapallo. Francesco