Michael Laiskonis

My wife is a fairly strict vegetarian, and I'll ingest anything... so you can imagine the debauchery that ensues when left to my own devices...

I would be interested in an assessment of the desserts, by Jean-François Bonnet, formerly of Cello. Anyone?...

We hosted a group of New York chefs earlier this year at our restaurant for a September 11th related benefit. Ripert was among them... Super nice guy, which is why hearing of others' disappointing experience is especially sad...

I've been hearing more and more hit-or-miss stories with Le Bernardin lately... If memory serves, my one and only lunch there in '98 was a $50 or so prix fixe with choices, from the entire regular menu, of first course, main, and dessert. I thought it was a decent value. I must say that the most memorable dish I've ever eaten, in my short but rich dining career, came from that lunch at Le B: Skate Sautéed in Goose Fat, Porcini Mushrooms, Confit of Fennel, with a Squab Jus I recently confessed to Eric the significance of that dish for me, and it was nice to see his eyes light up a bit... obviously a favorite of his, too. Isn't the Ripert/Ruhlman book due out soon? Chop, your experience with the late wine is a huge peeve of mine! At recent meal in NYC (tasting menu, "beverage" pairing) at least half of the pours came several bites into the respective course. Annoying, at best!

Yes, natto is perhaps more interesting than delicious. All the comparisons to stinky cheese aren't far off. My favorite part of that episode was Fukui-san's comment at the end of the tasting: "Who will win and who will lose... This is natto gonna be easy!"

In addition, to Bouland's magazine suggestions, Saveurs can be quite accessible, though I tend to pass it over these days. Gault Millau, though not necessarily recipe-oriented, is my current fave, apart from Thuries. I didn't realize Ali-Bab had been translated; I have a 1920s edition (moldy, but a steal!). Lots of fun and surely a hefty (and in my case, smelly) tome. Also would add Ducasse/Dannenberg's Flavors of France and any of Vergé's books as mid-level options.

A must-have book for anyone interested in the current wave of Spanish cuisine: Los Genios del Fuego Quiénes son, cómo crean y qué cocinan 10 chefs de vanguardia Written by Pau Arenós with photographs by Albert Bertran Published in 1999 by Ediciones Peninsula: Barcelona. Amazing! Profiles and some recipes from Joan Roca, Ferran Adria, Jean Louis Neichel, Carme Ruscalleda, Santi Santamaria, Jean Luc Figueras, Carles Caig, Miquel Sánchez Romera, Jordi Parramon, and Joan Piqué. I bought mine a year and a half ago at Librarie Gourmande. Beautiful.

Perhaps a taste of what is produced at El Taller? http://www.tvc.es/cuines/bulli.htm Clicking on the items to the left takes you to the recipe. Notice again the appearance of Balaguer, but neither Adria.

I agree. It seemed as though the the first wave of El Bulli coverage offered only reports of the chefs who had simply had a meal there, whereas here it is nice to see the perspective of a few who actually spent some time in the kitchen. I'm glad that Ken Oringer was inlcuded, as, I think, he is truly filtering the ideas he saw there through his own style, as opposed to merely co-opting some of the dishes. While I never tried the caramel-squab dish at Clio, the celery root mousseline and black truffle fondue (recipe featured in the article) is beautiful, and with that slight dusting of cacao powder, it may even approach... sublime! A few open questions that I hope aren't too far off topic... Apart from constructing the following season's menu, I've always been curious as to what all goes on at El Taller. I assumed that part of its function was to serve as a sort-of in house media production center (a la Trotter's Studio Kitchen). What else do they work on? Do they host other chefs to conceive new ideas? Do they stage classes or special events? Does a portion of the 'regular season' kitchen staff take part in activities there? The El Bulli website, as far as I can tell, offers mostly the philosophy behind it... I recall a Food Arts piece specifically on El Taller quite awhile back, but my memory of details is indeed hazy. Does anyone know if the magazine, Spain Gourmetour still publishes? Apart from being, in essence, one long advertisement for Spanish food and travel, it did run some decent material, including a series of chef profiles; it was one of the first sources that turned me on to Adria, circa 1996-97. I cannot recall the specific organization that published the magazine or exactly how I appeared on (then abruptly disappeared from) their mailing list. I've noticed, on a site related to Montagud Editores, some recipes and writing from Jordi Butron (Espai Sucre, the 'dessert-only' restaurant in Barcelona)... Here's one Here's another Oh, and another OK, one more Nice stuff... Has anyone heard any rumblings of a book project in the works? That would be fun. They did a nice job with Frederic Bau's book, not to mention Oriol Balaguer's. ( There are also some recipes from Balaguer on the Apicius site, some in the book and some not. Here's an example.) If you browse the site you will also come upon some things from Frederic Robert (Pastry Chef at-large for Alain Ducasse, who, as you all must know by now, has produced a pastry companion to the Ducasse 'Grand Livre'). Enjoy. Speaking of Balaguer, I picked up his book, as luck would have it, within a month of being published (in Spanish). Imagine many frustrating hours with the Spanish-English dictionary! Needless to say I was bummed when I learned of the French translation and now doubly bummed knowing that it is in English. Steve, do keep us all posted on the arrival of Alberto's new book!

I once heard from a reliable source that Masaharu Morimoto kept a file of dishes whenever they came to mind, and categorized them by potential themes. He would also do test runs from time to time, replicating, at the very least, the one hour time limit... Would explain his confidence and creativity in Kitchen Stadium.

I'm having trouble remembering the name of the Woody Allen film a few years back... I believe a scene was shot at Mercer Kitchen and featured a glimpse of Jean-Georges Vongerichten. Tadpole, currently showing here, has scenes in both Payard and Café Boulud, but no cameos...

I would be interested in hearing the full story of Ludovic Lefevre's departure from L'Orangerie if any one knows... and what is the lowdown on any of Fred Eric's places? Thanks!

I love the concept of bubble tea and have begun to see variations in the slightly more "haute" realm... One that comes to mind... At a benefit in Chicago earlier this year Grant Achatz of Trio did a "bubble tea" consisting of, I believe, cucmber juice, green tea, a little crème fraîche, a dill ice, and salmon roe as the "bubbles". The whole was served in a cordial glass, straw and all. Cute, and sounds tasty too (didn't get to sample it). I also like the juices/teas with little cubes of flavored agar jelly. Overall, the ones I've sampled have been cloyingly sweet or obviously not made with highest quality product. Like I said, the concept...!

Beachfan, I sampled a Comte, vintage 1998, a few weeks ago at Arpege. Quite interesting! And is La Ferme Saint Aubin the shop that has an adjoining restaurant as well? Remembered it mostly for my first tastes of wines from the Savoie- definately something that is hard to find in the US, at least in my neck of the woods!

Greengage plums. Totally missed them this year.

Most Americans would know chicory as a coffee substitute (roasted and ground) and is quite common in New Orleans where it is added to coffee itself (the name of the specific drink escapes me, though I think the famous Café du Monde serves it). The liquid chicory, as it was explained to me by a French expatriate, is a favorite children's after-school drink, added to hot or cold milk, with a little sugar. I use it in ice creams, sauces, chocolates, etc. The liquid is nice; there can be a bit of guesswork with infusing granules. A little goes a long way! I do not, however, know exactly how the extract is produced. I don't have the bottle in front of me, but the brand is Leroux, dark brown bottle with a yellow cap and maybe 250 ml or so. About 2-3 euros. The few super-marchés I went to didn't carry it. Didn't know about the pet food connection. Intrigued.

My great mission when in Paris was to find a liquid chicory extract that a chef friend turned me on to a few months ago. Far and away better than granules. Eventually found it at La Grande Epicerie. Brought back armloads of it.

I always ask for a copy of the menu... On my last visit to Paris, only Arpege offered me the full current menu (I have menus from all four meals there). Passiflore refused, saying that "it was complicated"?! Gagnaire never seems to part with the current à la carte menus, but will let you have the day's/month's tasting menu should you order it. Ditto with Petrossian- last season's menus. Old menus can be fun, but not all that relevant to my meals at Gagnaire and Petrossian. I like to have menus not only as a little souvenir, but as I don't always like to scribble notes during a meal, I find the menu a good reference to aid my memory. I'm trying to think of any instance of denied menus here in the US, but I can't recall of any from my experience. Jordyn- I can't imagine taking snapshots in the dining room... how is that received by the staff?!

Has anyone spent time with Frederic Robert(Alain Ducasse's pastry chef)'s new companion to Ducasse "Grand Livre". I perused it while at Librarie Gourmande, but couldn't part with 160 euros at the time. Does anyone know when Rocco DiSpirito's book is due out? Should be soon...

I, too enjoyed Les Bookinistes a few years back. While I haven't been to any other Guy Savoy owned restaurants, would Les Bookinistes be indicative of the others? And is Ze Kitchen Gallerie all Ledeuil, or in partnership again with Savoy? I remember seeing something in Gault Millau a few months back, but I don't remember...

I enjoy the 7th for all the reasons mentioned above ( quiet, residential feel, the convenient No. 8 Metro line) but I noticed some signs of where the neighborhood may be heading... a gleaming new Lenôtre outlet opened just two weeks ago on the corner of Rue Cler and Rue Champs du Mars, which is nice, but seems a bit out of place, and a little pricey for the neighborhood. The worst is a new 'Seattle style' coffee place on Rue Saint Dominique. I hope that it is no longer there when we return! Might I also add, on the other side of the Invalides, on Rue Bourgogne, Tante Maguerite and Rollet-Pradier, to whom Steingarten gave nods for the best baquette in Paris a few years back. Still, Poujaran gets my vote.

How was I unaware of Bernachon?! I am however still eating my way through chocolates from Herme, Peltier, and Lenotre. I passed on Maison du Chocolat and J.P. Hevin (nice new shop on La Motte-Picquet) this time around. Apart from L'Etoile d'Or, I now also regret not getting to Cluizel's shop on Rue St. Honore while I was nearby (sort of) at E. Dehillerin. Apart from the Palets d'Or, what other chocolates are noteworthy in that line? Is there, I presume, a Bernachon shop only in Lyon?

Cabrales, it is indeed a great lineup for the event at Trio. I can only hope that I'll be invited to tag along! I used to work with a former Trotter's sous chef, but I've forgotten most of the interesting stories he had to tell. Is anyone familiar with the battle Charlie had with the Health Department over having the kitchen table? I believe it got some press several years ago...

Cabrales, thanks for the link. I believe I've found my answer!

I ordered a 1995 Savennieres last week at Petrossian in Paris. The wine was presented, then tasted and decanted at the sommelier's table. Does anyone know if that wine, at that age, is typically decanted or is it perhaps standard at Petrossian and other restaurants to decant everything? I cannot imagine there being any sediment or deposits( as with very old sweet wines). I've only heard of the rare decanting of very young white Burgundies- just to give them a bit of air. In 1997, I had a bottle of 1990 Gaja Rey Chardonnay (amazing) and was later told by a wine friend that he might have decanted it, for that same reason. But the Savennieres?