I have never posted here before but I read this forum all the time and I'm Buckethead's frequent dining companion. We ate together at James. I agree that $90 is overpriced for the tasting menu we had but ultimately, in my opinion, it's on us because we didn't ask. (It did make me think of those times that a restaurant whose entrees are generally $17 have specials that turn up on the bill as $30. It's annoying.) As for the meal we had, I thought it was very good and I'm looking forward to visiting again. All but one of the dishes was really suited to my tastes and preferences (small portions, simple preparations, absence of conspicuously rich ingredients like butter and cream, seafood ...) and not so much to BH's. That doesn't mean they weren't really good dishes--sometimes it's a matter of taste. And as for the "practical joke" meal ... perhaps the kitchen was having an off night? My potato puree was velvety smooth and all dishes were properly seasoned. What I signed up to be able to say is: If you wanted to try out James but now don't want to because of these posts, please reconsider. Ask about prices or order from the regular menu and make up your own mind. I agree that this is an influential public forum and I would love to see a wider variety of food lovers posting. But maybe the degree of vitriol intimidates people who might want to come forward with dissenting opinions. I know it has previously kept my status to "lurker."
