ulterior epicure

Has anyone tried their "Black Truffle Special" pizza?

Alrighty, folks, the temperature where I live has again dipped well below the zero mark (and I'm in a country that speaks Farenheit). It's time to go to the mattresses. Does anyone here happen to have (or know where I can get) the recipe for St. John's Jerusalem Artichoke Soup? I looked in both of Ferguson's cookbooks last night and I was disheartened to find the recipe absent from both.

No harm done. Haven't made any reservations yet.

Eight years and we've not made it past the first page. I'm going to stir the proverbial pot here and hope that something floats to the top.

PhilD, you're absolutely right - there is no need to take sides. And I'm not sure why you think I'm saying that one needs to take sides. I certainly am not taking sides for taking side's sake. I'm simply saying that I prefer one to the other. I wish I could appreciate the full spectrum like you do. You're right that the two meet different needs. I just don't find myself needing one nearly as much as the other. In fact, my desire to visit m.g. restaurants have been mostly driven by a one-time curiosity and, admittedly, belt-knotching. I have been to alinea twice. After my first disappointment (2005), I was so certain that I had an "off-night" (due to nearly unanimous raves) that I decided to give it a second chance (2006). The second time didn't impress me any more than the first. I found moto (2005) more fun and tastier than alinea - though, admittedly, the lows were much lower than alinea (like that awful donut soup). And, as I said in the blogpost, my one meal at wd~50 (2006) was such a disaster that I have no interest in returning whatsoever, though, as I have said time and again, I will give anything a second chance. The Fat Duck, as I stated in my blogpost, has been the most successful at balancing classic and m.g. cuisines in my opinion. It has been my best m.g. experience thus far. As I said, if it weren't so difficult to get to, I probably would go back for their a la carte menu. I have tried. I really have tried. I simply like "classic wine" much more than "m.g. wine," in your terms.

Here's an excerpt from my blogpost about a recent meal at The Fat Duck. You can read the entire review (and see the pictures) at the ulterior epicure.

Disregard my question above. I see from the Scarpetta website that the risotto and the scallop tartare are two separate dishes. That clears up my confusion.

Those both sound delicious. Was the polenta served warm or cold? So, what you really mean to say is this was one of your 5 favorite meals you've had in NYC in 22 days?

Neither did "Ramsay's" two at Petrus go with him. But I suppose everyone had acknowledged that Wareign was the "real" chef there anyway.

Oh dear.... May I quote you on that?

I'm not sure if this is traditional tapas (I'm guessing not), but it sounds like something I had at Alma de Cuba once. Inventive.

You don't think the reincarnated Bouley has an outside chance? (I have no clue as I haven't been and know very little about it.) I mean, I suppose the fact that Bruni demoted it to a three-star (IIRC) says something. ← Obviously Bouley has a slight chance, but it has been pretty far off the radar. There's no one screaming from the rooftops, "You have to try this," as you'd expect if Bouley had really upped his game. The few reviews I've read suggest that the new Bouley is very good (as you'd expect at this level), but not transcendent. ← But, as we have all identified here, neither is Daniel (transcendent) - not even to Bruni. And, I've never heard anyone complain about the interior at Bouley (granted, I have no idea what the new one looks like - but from all accounts, it's quite beautiful, in a less sumptuous way than the previous one, which is exactly what the new Daniel is to the previous one).

You don't think the reincarnated Bouley has an outside chance? (I have no clue as I haven't been and know very little about it.) I mean, I suppose the fact that Bruni demoted it to a three-star (IIRC) says something.

Yes! I have two friends, one a chef, one a great wine collector, who have had Chef Daniel personally cook for them. The chef said "The meal blew my mind." The wine collector said he would go to Daniel only if the Chef cooked for him; the experience was so different. Sadly, most of us mortals have not had this experience but I think there's a huge gap between the Chef's talents and the restaurant's normal output. ← Right, and stories like this one is what prompted me to state above:

I have no doubt that Daniel Boulud knows what service should be. When the chef came by at the end of our meal, it was like the sun had come out and shined on us. But everything up until that point had been rather frosty.

Where are those glazed sweetbreads on the veal dish hiding?

*sniff sniff*

Right, but it seems to have all the trappings of a place that might deliver a "meal of a lifetime." I'm clearly learning, from you and others, that it's not that kind of place at all.

You know what is alluring about Daniel to me? It seems like, looks like, smells like, and sounds like the type of restaurant that could delivery the meal of a life-time. But, from the comments made here and elsewhere, it seems that it simply won't (as opposed to can't).

ellenost, you and I could have been at the same Daniel meal.

I'm no Bruni expert, but this seems like the perfect way to put it.

I thought you might say that. I would have to disagree on the space. I love it. A lot. ← Which brings up an interesting point - Bruni (in a recent blog post) seemed to love the space at EMP but remarked that he felt short-changed by the prix fixe portion sizes. I can't recall him complaining about the service there.

I thought you might say that. I would have to disagree on the space. I love it. A lot.

As compared to a place like EMP?

Well, Michelin-starred restaurants aren't exactly known for their meal deals. This is what I find more troubling - nothing I've had at the l'Atelier (in N.Y.) was unforgettably spectacular (save a dessert I had on my latest visit) - even when I was able to get more than a bite. (Actually, depending on what you order, the portions at the one in N.Y. can be quite substantial, like this plate of pasta with morels.) More than any other restaurant I've been to, l'Atelier requires some "luck of the order" for the uninitiated. And, for the initiated, it's a hard balance between ordering what you want against what is better value. That is, price alone doesn't necessarily correlate with the amount of food that will arrive.