Ochowie

I see your point. Maybe, it is the boredom blandness of the season has made me overly critical of this years contestants. Also that piece of editing made it really clear she was going regardless of whether her attitude was bad or not.

I knew Jamie was doomed when she mentioned how unimpressed she was by Ripert and how he doesn't inspire her. I knew when she was a goner with that attitude and rightfully so.

Yep. I said this earlier but I will reiterate after watching a rerun. Maybe Scott was the one that needed to relax, not Fabio.

Fabio deserved what he got. He was trying to defend the indefensible. I was surprised to see Jeff get sent home, but I assume Colicchio will explain it on his blog later today. ← I totally agree that he made a bad dish and most likely should have been sent home. However, the other judges said the same thing without being so defensive about it. It seemed like to me that Conant was felt he needed to prove that he was a better chef than Fabio in that exchange. Which I would think is a foregone conclusion.

What was the deal with Scott Conant when he was talking to Fabio? He seemed to really have something to prove and went after him right away. Maybe it was the editing but I thought that he came off as an ass in that situation.

He looked like he didn't know what hit him. One thing I will say it really made me want to try those sweetbreads.

Yeah. That is right in the heart of the expense account zone (which I am on so my perception is skewed) so prices are going to be high for just about every restaurant in that area.

Anthos is right around there and I have never had a bad meal there before. Since you said you were looking for an Italian place, Alto is at 53rd and Madison, although I am not sure how early they open.

Which it initially did. ← Fair point. Maybe I am just bitter that I spent an hour yesterday trying to get this reservation. Or maybe I need to reexamine my life and why I actually spent that time.

I'm assuming your sarcastic so I support your comment on this. At least if they are taking phone reservations instead of the crazy internet idea maybe they could get a phone system that supports the amount of calls? Or at least have a few more people answering the phone. It would be like the Ko website crashing every day at 10am.

I also tried this morning for the hour following 10 and got nothing but the answering machine or number is disconnected messages. The most annoying one was the answering machine from the reservations lady. This makes me think there is some number other than the one they list on the website. Oh well, I guess I will be trying to get back to Ko instead.

So on last Friday I went back to Ko for my second dinner there. I think I enjoyed it a lot more than I did the first time. They got rid of the escargot lasagna which I remember being pretty boring for some great corn ravioli. Also they had both the egg caviar dish and the foie dish on the menu. I enjoyed both of them but the foie dish is really in a class of its own. I think it even topped the great foie gras dish at EMP. Finally they replaced the panna cotta with a deconstructed strawberry shortcake. The yellow cake ice cream they served with that was really unique and I left wanting more of it. One thing I liked more from my first time there was the soup course. The bacon dashi they are serving now is good but I liked the pea soup more. Also one of the cool things was that even though it was my second time there two of the chefs recognized me from my previous visit and I had a more interactive experience then I did my first time. I think I will be coming back soon (providing I can snag another reservation).

Just out of curiosity has the dinner menu changed at all since June? I just snagged a reservation for Fri thanks to FG and was wondering if the dishes have changed much.

Yeah I've been meaning to go to Jean Georges for lunch. Maybe I will sneak out on Friday. I usually have to eat lunch in the office (the life of a consultant ). ← Well, I recommend grabbing your blackberry and heading there. It's definitely worthwhile. Their foie is on brioche and the top is caramelized (they call it foie gras brulee). Would you call the EMP dish savory or did it have some sweetness to it? ← It definitely had some sweetness to it that came from the cherry syrup and the cherry brioche they brought. I really liked the contrast between the more savory foie and the sweet syrup.

Yeah I've been meaning to go to Jean Georges for lunch. Maybe I will sneak out on Friday. I usually have to eat lunch in the office (the life of a consultant ).

No. I didn't mean that they gave me a free glass. I just meant that because I was alone I was forced to order by the glass. Honestly I don't order foie gras too often and have not had it at Jean George. I did like it more than the seared foie gras at Daniel although they are pretty different. It wasn't a torchon rather more of a mousse.

As I mentioned in previous post I would come back with my impressions of EMP. My reservation was yesterday and I was very impressed with the restaurant especially the with the service. Due to a delay at work I was over an hour and fifteen minutes late for my reservation which caused my dinner partner to drop out. However, the host and hostess didn't miss a beat and were able to find me a seat. Once seated I ordered a vesper as my cocktail which I enjoyed. Once I ordered the cocktail I was presented with the dinner menu and wine list. I ordered the three course menu with foie gras terrine and Suckling Pig. Since I was alone they offered me a sweet wine to pair with the foie gras which I thought was a unique choice. Also since they saw I was alone they brought out some of the house magazines for me to look through while I waited for my food. The first thing that came out was the amuse bouche and although I can't remember them all I remember the anchovie tart and the rabbit to be very good. Also they brought out these little cheese puffs with fleur du sel on them that were excellent (I ate them so quickly that they brought out a second dish of them ). Along with the little amuses there was a gazpacho with summer lemon that was very interesting. My family pickles watermelon and the flavor of the tomato base with the watermelon reminded me of that taste. Next came the foie gras which I thought was one of the best foie dishes I have had in the city (along with the lychee foie gras from Ko). I really enjoyed the creaminess and how it contrasted with the crispiness of the cherry brioche toast that came with it. The one disappointing aspect was the mousse that accompanied it (which the waiter suggested was a good entry into the dish) was a little bland. The recommended wine which was a Zwiegelt worked well with the dish in my opinion. I enjoyed a slight fig taste which is one of my favorite fruits. The main course was the suckling pig, which I had read about in the reviews of this restaurant. I was impressed by how tender the meat was and also by how crispness of the skin. Getting both components of dish in the same bite provided for an awesome contrast. For dessert I ordered the bing cherry and pistachio mille feuille with mascarpone ice cream. This wasn't a bad desert just not as exciting as the rest of the meal. Although I thought the mascarpone ice cream was delicious and I would love to order it individually. Throughout the whole meal I was very impressed with the level of service. From the runners to the captains and the sommelier everyone working in the FOH was attentive and seemed happy to be working at this restaurant. I could tell that every member of the staff took pride in their work. Towards the end of the meal chef Daniel was stopping by the tables and chatting with the patrons. I was happy I could tell him how much I enjoyed the food and the experience at his restaurant. Overall I enjoyed my experience and will definitely be returning in the near future. (Sorry if this review wasn't great I'm still kind of new to these boards and this is my first more in depth review).

After reading all about the restaurant in this thread, I decided that I will do a Chicago weekend "vacation" to check out Alinea. I have booked the Oct. 10th Tour and I am really excited.

Sweet serendipity to read something like this after having just gotten off the phone to make a reservation at EMP. ← Same thing here. I kept meaning to get around to trying this restaurant and finally made a reservation today, came to read up on it here and found this review. I will report back but if it's half as good as Dutch said I'm in for a great dinner.

The first time I heard about this restaurant was when they hosted a wine and beer tasting early this spring. I didn't stay and eat at the time but came back a few weeks later. I had the burger which was honestly one of the best burgers I've had in a while. I'm not a huge burger fan but I love grass-fed beef and I loved the flavor of this along with their homemade ketchup. Also their tap beer list is really good even though it's small. This is a place I would definitely go back to again.

I couldn't agree with this more. A friend of mine took me there last week and I think it's been my best meal since I moved to Baltimore.