iheartoffal

It's probably just a partial schedule.

FYI, there's a feature on Chef Gallante up on Epicurious.com with interviews, recipes, and a couple of cooking demos. Great stuff. Check it out here.

Yeah, I did them back to back as well, though in opposite order. I was a very happy man afterwards, albeit penniless. I think I ate top ramen for a month after that week.

I stopped by last night for a quick snack before heading out to the bars. Got to try the new foie preparation from the a la carte menu (there's another new one on the tasting menu, too). This time, it's roasted and served with passionfruit scramble, saltine puree, and candied coriander seeds. I really liked this preparation--much more subtle than the previous iteration with the nori caramel. It let the foie speak out a little more. The passionfruit scramble literally has the appearance and mouthfeel of scrambled eggs. According to the server, it was made using cellulose. I also tried a couple of desserts. You must run, not walk, down to WD-50 NOW, and try the local strawberries with parmesan ice cream. What an eye opener of a flavor combination. Even my neophyte friend, who was initially a bit squeamish about the parmesan ice cream, thought it was out and out terrific. On a side note: I'm not sure if I'm the only one who noticed, but the local strawberries are quite remarkable this year. Even the ones I get where I work have have just been fantastic; like idealized versions of what strawberries should be. The other dessert was called "rice and beans"...basically toasted puffed rice flavored ice cream and red bean gelee. How Sam got the ice cream to taste exactly like puffed rice is beyond me. I'm convinced that you could ask him to make an ice cream that tasted like dryer sheets and lawn clippings; somehow he'd be able to crank it out, and it would be damn good, too. Seriously though, I love this restaurant. It's one of the few restaurants that manages to be challenging and fun at the same time. I've heard some say that Wylie should turn the place into a more formal sort of restaurant. To me, the reason why WD-50 works is because the vibe present in the cuisine is also present in all other aspects of the restaurant--from the decor down to the service. I mean, the food would taste just as good whether it was served in a McDonalds or ADNY, but I wouldn't want to eat it anywhere else other than WD-50 the way it is. Does that make any sense?

I had a simply wonderful lunch at Cafe Gray yesterday. I started off with a refreshing chilled yellow tomato coulis with onion marmelade and basil. The texture and balance of flavor in this dish was masterful. At first I was suprised by how assertive the flavor of the coulis itself was, but it was balanced perfectly by the sweetness of the mamelade, with the baby basil leaves adding a high note on top. Next, the kitchen sent me out an obscenely decadent mushroom risotto with a nice hint of truffle, and what appeared to be sauteed chanterelles on top. I had to agree with the waiter when he said that "rice shouldn't be that good, no?". I've had my share of rich mushroom risottos in my life, but this was a standout. For my entree, I chose the Skate "schnitzel", which came with a melange of ingredients, that, on paper, appeared like they might be confusing when put together in the same dish. In the hands of most other chefs, this might have been the case, but not with chef Kunz, who is a master of balance. The skate was served with with capers, diced apples (poached in red wine), cauliflower florettes, beurre noisette, and what tasted like bright gastrique of some sort. The flavors were almost musical, with one flavor singing and then retreating into the background while another flavor would assert itself, but one would never overwhelm or clash with the other. Maybe I'm being a little silly with this analogy, but it was that good. At this point I was so full that I asked the waiter to kindly roll me out into the escalator, but apparently at Cafe Gray "I'm full" means "I would like dessert" because chef Kunz sent me out a whole assortment of sorbets, granites, and ice creams. These were served in one of the funkiest little pieces I've ever seen. It was a silver piece consisting of a shallow bowl with smaller bowls radiating off of it. Let's see: there was grapefruit granite, blueberry sorbet, pina colada sorbet, chocolate sorbet, peach sorbet, vanilla ice cream, and hazelnut ice cream. My favorite was the hazelnut ice cream. I almost asked for more (I still had a little room in my esophagus), but decided against it. I was seated next to the open kitchen. A lot of people have complained about the setup of the restaurant and the fact the kitchen is in front of the windows. I personally like open kitchens, and I think that having it in front of the windows is a wonderful idea. It didn't really obstruct the view of the park, either. I wasn't such a fan of the decor, though, which was like a glorified '70's hotel lobby restaurant. Then again, who cares when the food is this good. I highly, highly recommend this place.

I was actually walking aimlessly around NYC yesterday when I basically stumbled across Bar Americain. I arrived just as the kitchen was closing for lunch, so I just ordered a martini. It was called a Dark n Stormy, which was made with goslings black seal rum, ginger, and fresh lime juice with some sugar on the rim. It was pretty good...quite refreshing after traipsing around the city in the sauna-like weather. The room is quite nice, too. Like Bruni said, orange is the predominant hue, but I happen to like orange.

That's awesome. Good for them. They both seem like good, talented people. I'm glad to see that the fact that they were gay was not a hinderance. Let's hope that it's a sign.

I was being facetious...

I guess pizza dough might be ok. There's quite a few things you can do with the blank canvas that a pizza crust provides. But hamburger meat? What can you do with that besides make burgers and meatloaf? I just can't see it working in anything else without coming out tasting like some Hamburger Helper concoction, regardless of whether you dress it up with foie gras or perigord truffles. Who knows? Maybe they'll suprise us with what they come up with. I'm guessing this is only the tip of the iceberg as far as pedestrian ingredients are concerned, though. Here are some future battles: Charlie Trotter Vs. Batali in Battle Hot Dog Thomas Keller Vs. Morimoto in Battle Easy Mac Rachel Rae Vs. Bobby Flay in Battle Hidden Valley Ranch Alain Ducasse Vs. Kora in Battle Slim Jim

You didn't see this coming? This is what America, sadly, has become increasingly good at: taking things from other cultures (in this case, Japan), stripping them of any redeeming qualities, and repackaging it all as what ends up being a mockery of the original. I guess you could say the ICJ was a little tounge in cheek at times, especially with Kaga prancing around like Liberace, but it always took the food seriously. I don't know who should be more ashamed of themselves, the networks for foisting this crap upon us, or the public for accepting it and demanding more. </rant>

They just showed an ad for the new season Iron Chef. I saw some bespectacled dude with mutton chops running around in a pinstriped apron. Couldn't tell who it was, though.

Oh wow! Can't wait to see that...

There's a restaurant called the Slaughtered Lamb? That's horrible...

Wow! Thanks for the link. Very interesting. I bet it makes a great exfoliating mask, too.

Sweet! Thanks for the report and the pics, Wendy. Maybe this will draw some attention away from the other French Laundry thread.

I've never actually heard of micri before. I know it says it's a "neutral sauce base", but what is its usual application? Is it usually an industrial ingredient that Wylie coopted for use in his cuisine?

Good question. If I had to guess, I would say it's frozen on a sheet pan, cut into cubes and just thrown in the deep fryer... On second thought, it probably involves gellan and at least three other ingredients I have no idea how to use. ← fried mayo

It was actually not too bad at all. I had the tasting menu and two $20+ glasses of wine. My total without tip was just over $150.

Had dinner there last night by myself before going to visit a couple of friends. Overall, I found it to be a very enjoyable experience with only a couple of minor problems, none of them having to do with the food or the wine. The service was friendly, knowledgable, and polished for the most part. One thing that bugged me in the beginning is that I felt a little too hovered-over. It wasn't just my waiter, but it seemed like at one point I was surrounded by several people, all of whom seemed to be watching me, some pointing and talking. It was a only a minor annoyance and a fleeting one at that. I guess solo diners are always a bit of a curiosity. My only other service gripe was that my waiter seemed to forget a couple of times that I was having the tasting menu. Two times during the meal he handed me a dessert menu, even though I had already ordered my dessert from the tasting menu at the beginning. Again, no big deal. The food was excellent. I have never received so many amuses in my life. I'm not sure if they were extras or if everyone got them...doesn't matter. Needless to say, I left full. I took some pictures of what I ate using my camera-phone. They're obviously not of the highest quality and a couple actually didn't come out. I've included what did come out. Anyway, here they are. First amuse: Roasted Beet Puree with Gorgonzola in a Pistachio Tuille Cute. Tasty, but I wish I could have tasted more of the gorgonzola to offset the sweetness. Second amuse: This was a trio of bites given to every table, ostensibly. One was a parmesan crusted duck meatball which was quite tasty. Another was some sort of tiny tart with a sweet tasting crust and some sort of truffle cream. My favorite of the three was a lollipop looking concoction consising of toased brioche and gruyere wrapped with prosciutto. Wow! Give me about fifty of those and I'll be set. My server indicated that this was his favorite of the three as well. Third Amuse: Red and White Gazpacho with Almond Foam, Avocado and Tapioca Note: I'm doing these from memory, so there might be a few mistakes. If anyone knows of any mistakes, please correct me. Anyway, this was a refreshing little thing. It tasted like spring in a cup. I couldn't reach the nice bits with the spoon, so I looked around to see if anyone was looking and just took the rest down like a shot. Yum! Fouth Amuse: I can't remember all of the components to this dish. That was one of the other problems. A couple of times I was given descriptions by people and they rattled them off so quickly that I didn't catch everything. I guess I should have spoken up. At any rate, it was tasty. From what I remember, it contained sevruga caviar, peach, red beet, and maybe a goat cheese mouse (?). The flavors were in perfect balance with the mouse sort of bridging the sweetness of the the fruit with the saltiness of the caviar. First Course: Arctic Char with Water Chestnut, Asian Pear and a Dill-Chervil Sauce I love arctic char and this dish was a perfect platform for its rich flavor and texture. The dill flavor was very strong, but it didn't overwhelm the fish. This dish also had a great visual appeal, with the bright orange-red of the fish against the striking green of the sauce. Second Course: Rouget "Maki" with Baby Squid, Wild Arugula, and Saffron Emulsion I wish the picture I took of this one came out, because it was a sweet presentation. This was actually the first time I had ever had red mullet..I've always wanted to know what the fuss was about. Wow! Such a wonderful full flavored fish. It was wrapped in some squid ink noodles and served over the baby squid, which had a wonderfully satisfying texture. The saffron emulsion added an underlying mysterious flavor. Third Course: Smoked Poussin with Braised Pork Belly, Hon-shimeji mushrooms, and Pickled Rhubarb When I saw this one on the menu, that Sesame Street song that goes "One of these things is not like the others. One of these things just doesn't belong" started going through my head. Rhubarb didn't seem to have any place in this dish as I tried to connjure up what the flavor would be like. I really did work. What really bridged the smoky poussin and the sweet rhubarb was the pork belly, which, to me, sort of acted like a foundation for the other flavors to ride up top. Extra Couse: This was another description I could barely make out. It was some sort of pasta cooked risotto style with rabbit sausage and what tasted like some sort of shellfish broth. It was out of this world, whatever it was. Fourth Course: Wagyu Beef Cheeks "Sous Vide" with Cranberry Beans, Porcinis, and Brussels Sprouts In my best Homer voice: "Mmmmm. Beeeef Cheeks." The meat was melt in your mouth tender--not stringy like some beef cheeks I've had previously. Pre Dessert: Clementine Consomme with Grapefruit Sorbet and a Raspberry Cloud I second the guy above me in regards to foam. Sure, it's cute, but that's about it. The course as a whole was a nice little palette cleanser. Dessert: Warm Olive Oil Cake with Spring Rhubarb, Mascarpone Cream, and Bitter Orange Verrrrrry rich. The cake could have stood on its own without garnishes. I couldn't really taste the olive oil, but I'm not sure I was supposed to. For some reason, the kitchen sent out the petit fours before I was even halfway through my dessert. I'm not sure if that was intentional or not, but I felt ever so slightly rushed. Again, minor gripe. I only had a couple of glasses of wine because I was meeting up with friends later on. I had an absolutely stunning cabernet from Leadmark Vineyards in Napa. Bold and smooth with a wonderful lingering finish. The other was red Burgundy: Volnay Premier Cru....I forget the year. It had a well balanced flavor that reflected the terroir more than it did the fruit. Again, great overall experience. Hopefully next time I can get a look at the wine cellar and the kitchen.

I have a reservation for the dining room in a couple of weeks. Is it all degustation menus, or do they offer a la carte?

Awesome. Your trip sounded magical in a lot of ways, especially the realization it led you to concerning the sometimes undervalued freedom we have in this country. I never really even stopped to think about it that way. You've inspired me. I was going to fly to Seattle sometime this year to visit my folks, but now I think I'm going to drive.

Oh man, how I miss Swanky Franks. If you're ever back up in this area again, you HAVE to stop by Duchess. It's a fast food joint just over the Norwalk/Darien border. When you go there, you must, MUST try a big "D" chili cheeseburger. It will knock your socks off. It's one of my favorite things to eat. Heck, I think I might go for one tomorrow!

Going to "Cru" with my "crew" on tuesday night. Actually, that's a lie...I'm going by myself. I'm sure it'll be a blast anyway. Anyone have any specific recommendations before I go?

I would have to agree that Patricia Brooks seems more qualified as a reviewer, IMO. She actually seems to really know food, whereas Bruni ostensibly BS's his way through that part of his reviews.

The prices are about what you'd expect for the type of food. Apps run around $10-$18 and entrees go up to the mid $30s. He has the menu posted on the website. Now if you want truly overpriced food, go to Telluride up on Bedford St.