ulterior epicure

Please tell me that charging diners for bread will be a short-lived trend. Have any other cities (besides Kansas City) been experiencing this phenomenon? I admit, encounters have been limited to two restaurants.

Has anyone been to SPQR, Nate Appleman's new venture on Fillmore? The menu read rather well; chicory with anchovy and lemon caught my attention from the get-go.

Congratulations to chefs: Gerard Craft of Niche (St. Louis) Koren Grieveson of avec (Chicago) Giuseppe Tentori of Boka (Chicago) They have been named one of the Best New Chefs by Food + Wine Magazine for 2008

Scenario: A lunch on the lighter side (dinner the night before is the full tasting at Le Bernardin, dinner that night will be at Ssam Bar) at Esca. Looking for must-have dishes. Here is their current menu. Currently, I'm thinkgint that my friend and I will each get a crudo, a primi and secondi and skip dessert. Any other advice would be helpful.

Sometimes, a critic is unable to try as many dishes as they would like - even on three visits. Also, a critic may want to see how the restaurant "handles" at various points in the week. Of course, one visit on a Saturday night may not be representative, so the critic returns for another weekend night. If the restaurant serves lunches, I would think that would require at least two lunch visits. I find it rather easy to justify at more than five, if not more than ten visits, depending on the restaurant. As consumers, we expect product testers to scrutinize the product; the more test-runs, the more accurate the information is supposed to be (does anyone watch America's Test Kitchen - those folks are awesome). I don't see how expectations of a consumer advocate, like certain restaurant critics, is fundamentally different.

As someone who only heard of, but never actually experienced Ryan Poli's cooking at Butter (in Chicago), I'm very excited to hear about his new position at Perennial.

It is indeed. I find myself agreeing almost 100% with Mimi Sheraton's views. Paul Levy has this idea of going into a restaurant, announcing himself to the chef, and saying, "Show me the best you can do." This isn't just a Europe/USA divide, as Steve Plotnicki has the same idea.Now, what these folks don't realize—or what they willfully ignore—is that we can't all do that. If Frank Bruni dines under his own name and asks for Jean-Georges Vongerichten's best, he is going to get something different than if I ask for it. It might be entertaining to read about what is theoretically possible, but in a review I'm more interested in knowing what I'll actually get if I dine there. Yes, I think in American restaurant criticism, there's more of an expectation (whether implied or stated) of consumer advocacy.

Also, does anyone know if Nicole Kaplan is still the pastry chef at Del Posto?

Thanks heightsgtltd for that re-cap. How were the portions? My fear is that doing the tasting would be overwhelming.

What if I said no? I think you would still want to go. I think you should go, regardless of which menu you do. FWIW, having done the Tour twice, I suspect that I would like the Tasting more.

How was it? Has anyone done the (big) chef's tasting menu, recently?

I earlier alluded to Chef Bowles' upcoming venture. Well, here's the inside scoop. All I can say is: Chuck Taylor sneakers, Levi 501s, and edible Bloody Mary's!!

With the recent string of restaurant closings in the Kansas City area, I thought I'd make a companion (or counterpart) thread to "Kansas City Openings" started by our fearless leader, moosnsqrl. In the last month, the following, to my knowledge, have closed: The Grille on Broadway (formerly Boca Boca, formerly The Grille on Broadway) 40 Sardines Scotty's on 39th

Alas, I fear that Michael's Genuine F+D is suffering from deflated experiences due to over-hype. There are very few holy grails in the restaurant industry. I enjoyed my dinner there, but of the three dinners I had in Miami, it was not my favorite. I enjoyed my stay there last October. I did peek into the restaurant, and the menu did look rather pricey. Glad to hear it wasn't a disappointment.

Hey buddy, This is amazing! Thanks for the near-live blogging! Keep it up! u.e.

I hope you are right. Did Walt Bodine or any of his guests have anything to say this morning about this matter?

A *lot* of talent.

When it rains, it pours. Word that 40 Sardines had closed (today) was followed quickly by news that Scotty's on 39th (formerly Macaluso's) also closed. Any confirmation out there on this?

That is sad news indeed I am really quite devastated. Despite its weaknesses and imperfections (which every restaurant has), it was definitely one of the better restaurants in our city.

FYI.

I received the sad news earlier today that 40 Sardines has closed its doors. I didn't want to believe it, but had to accept the sad truth when, just an hour ago, I drove by the beloved restaurant to see it completely dark inside with an empty parking lot. I suppose we'll be getting more information in the coming days.

With the exception of Friday lunch and Sunday brunch, 1924 main has become dinner-only?

I want to know, and thereby publicly admit that I watch this show on some consistent basis, whether or not Andrew (who I find frightening and disturbing) is a "Sous Chef at Le Cirque," as sometimes, but not always, credited on his byline flashes.

Gusto ristorante e bar americaino. I've only heard wildly good reports about this restaurant but have yet to hear one peep out of someone on this forum about it. Please guide me if I've been misguided.

oh sure. but that says nothing about dinner ... which is what I thought the question was about. Not necessarily dinner, but the Jean Georges desserts, in particular. I called the restaurant and clarified: yes, you may order from the Jean Georges dessert menu at the bar shared by JG and Nougatine, anytime, night or day.