enhF94

I'm really glad to see Alinea be OK with a table for one, and I can't imagine someone on eGullet who'd enjoy it more.

I'm sorry to say that although my heart pines for the Pacific Northwest, I can't put any of the entries I've visited - Canlis, Paley's, Higgins or Juanita - into a top 50. Although I'm amazed they didn't put Seattle's Mistral on the list. But I admire Gourmet's attempt to broaden the landscape beyond the big 3 cities. And congratulations to Alinea, both for the #1 spot and for making a meal I can remember each bite of, 1 year and 17 days later. I tried making Adria's anti-ravioli and fruit caviar this week and although the mystery is now gone, I'm still floored at what they're doing every day. Boston misses you, Chef Stupak!

Well, this is just lovely. Kudos to all, particularly for having the same problems I had, and then solving them! I particularly appreciate the tip about chilling your alginate/puree before the calci-bath. I didn't freeze mine completely (left it in for about 5 minutes, per Adria and enthusiasm), but it helped a whole lot with the appearance of the orbs. Also, I've noticed that once the orbs are out of the bath, the appearance is much more forgiving. Yay, gravity! My other note: it really, really helps to start with something that tastes good. In my enthusiasm, I've tried three flavors: yellow pepper, blueberry, and carrot. The colors were gorgeous, but all the flavors left much to be desired. Still, proof of concept. Except for the blueberry. Puree of blueberry turns out to be some freaky stuff, all jellylike and non-liquid. Do blueberries have that much pectin? (I mean, it was a happy accident, but I seriously checked my supply of Agar to make sure I hadn't dropped some into the blender by accident.) The bright colors make me wish for bright, acidic tastes. I'm going to have to experiment with how much lemon juice a puree can take and still sferify. Also whether adding calcium citrate to lower pH will screw up the lemon juice. I want these flavors to pop!! Thanks again to all for the discussion.

Which magazine was the Stupak profile in? I'd love to see it. enhF94

re: the chocolate ribbon's chemical - it might be transglutaminase. I know WD-50 has used it (scallops into cous cous!) and it's available commercially.

ChefG, thanks for everything. 1) Any suggestions on how to better train my palate and learn the language of palate? I _know_ homemade stock is better than canned broth (an extreme example), but have trouble finding the words to describe the difference to others. I've tried the most common response, "just eat a lot," for many years now and that's not quite working. How do you know what's balanced between acid, meatiness, salt, etc? 2) How worried are you about running out of new methods? After sous vide, dehydration, deep freeze, transglutaminase & friends, etc., how difficult is it to find new options? 3)Has Alinea had any disasters yet (that are now fun to tell)? Thanks, enhF94

I agree. At WD-50, I found the flavor combinations more experimental and unusual - I was tasting combinations I'd never experienced before. Some of these worked; some didn't (but I enjoyed attempting anyway). At Alinea, I found myself focusing more on the additions of technique to less-rebellious flavor combinations - thinking "in 30 years, everybody could be using mastic and braising nuts." Flavor combinations were milder and better balanced - I'm thinking of the matsutake cake with cream in particular here. It included several flavors I'd never had before, but immediately felt "at home" to me in a way that WD-50's pineapple-chili-licorice didn't. I guess for me it's that at WD-50, I feel like I'm participating in the experiment; at Alinea, I felt like I was being shown the best results from the experimenter's notebook. This comment focused only on food. These comments wouldn't apply to the atmosphere of either.

Yes, I should have mentioned our similar experience before! The kitchen was incredibly flexible with our dietary wishes. We were a table of 2, and we didn't ask for any specialness up front, but Alinea asked us. For our tour, they kept track of our dietary restrictions individually! That's pretty special in my book. (I was "no shellfish except oysters;" she was "no meat except bacon and beef tenderloin" - so you can tell they're more flexible and just allergies and religious reasons. Thank goodness I didn't mention I'm not a corn fan, or I would have missed the incredible corn pudding - I can still remember the taste a month later!)

I am elated to see that the Burdock and Matsutake, which I tried during the summer-fall transition, made it to the menu. The Guinness Foam on the burdock was pretty neat, tasty and fun to think about. The Matsutake was one of the best things I've ever tasted, one of those moments you never forget (like Clio in Boston or Le Petit Treehouse in Montreal). I'm also glad to see the Lamb's "pillow of coffee air" had been replaced by anise, because I didn't get much from the coffee pillow. Much thanks for the menu!!

I went to Alinea on Sunday, and they are transitioning to the fall menu - presumably the third complete menu since opening. Once the transition is complete, does anyone have plans to take pictures of the dishes? The first two rounds were so wonderful! Assuming the team repeats the process from the last menu change - replacing 7 dishes every week or so for a month - it looks like they're about 3/4 through. The flight of palm remains, as well as the bacon-on-a-bow (although it's amended). enhF94