jtb

My wife and I have eaten at EMP perhaps a dozen or so times throughout Chef Humm's tenure, but mostly during the winter months when we habitually make the trek to the city from DC for an assortment of reasons. For a change, to celebrate our anniversary we have a reservation for mid-April and are looking forward to enjoying the restaurant during a different season. Throughout our history of visits, we have yet to experience the 11-course gourmand menu and would like to give it a go - just to sit back and completely entrust our entire evening to the chef. I'd appreciate any comments or recommendations from anyone who's experienced the "Eleven" menu on the topic of wine accompaniment. On one hand, it would be nice to simply go along with the $125 wine paring program in analogy to what we typically do with the more modest tasting menu. Our concern, though, is too much volume. We want to enjoy the food from end to end and not become so overwhelmed with alcohol that we fail to appreciate the last few courses. I would say that a total wine volume on the order of a 750ml bottle shared between the two of us pretty well defines our comfort zone. On a visit to Tom Tuesday Dinner last December, we faced a well-paced 10-course menu and voiced our interest in the accompanying wine paring program. When I casually expressed our desire for "pouring with a light hand" so as not to push us over the top with alcohol, our server cleverly suggested that we purchase a single wine paring program and effectively divide the typical volume per course in two. We did that and it worked out very well; we left the table full but comfortable, and met the goal of enjoying the taste of a broad variety of wines matched to each course without getting overwhelmed with alcohol. I have to admit that I would have felt "cheap" to have been the one to suggest splitting a wine menu had not our server made that very suggestion - as my primary motivation is not really a cost issue. I'd like to hear what others do? Jim

Just yesterday morning I scored a 2-top for 22-Dec - by a hair. They seem to be in a mode now whereby they book 4 weeks in advance. This is going to be interesting.

Thanks for the report - you confirmed what I had strongly suspected, based on my experiences at Meyer's other places. I just booked a table during my visit next month.

Anyone tried it yet? I'm planning to be in the city a month from now, and I notice the tables are booking up 4 weeks in advance, a la the rest of Danny Meyer's restaurants.

Gotham Bar & Grill ?

Since this thread has been quiet since February, I was just wondering if there were any more recent experiences out there. Also, I'm getting mixed readings on the reservations process. I plan to be in the city late to mid December and would like to take a shot at getting into the 22-Dec dinner. Should I be calling 6 weeks in advance to the day, or what? Thanks, Jim

After a lot of research on the the topic, IMHO the best knives that I've seen come out of La Coutellerie de Laguiole - particularly if you are after custom hand-made work such as scrimshaw handles, Damascus blades and bolsters, hand spine chisling, etc. Arguably the best Damascus artisan in France, Yves Conquet, practices his trade here, and the young Jean-Michel Cayron is an exceptional scrimshaw artisan. Their work isn't cheap, but ... In North America, it's best to deal with the factory representative, Alex Delorme, in Canada. Check out http://www.laguiole-elite.com/ I have no connection with them, with the exception of being a satisfied customer who owns several custom folding knives and a wine opener.

What's the story on Gramercy Tavern? I live in DC and haven't been to GT in about 9 months. Somehow I've gotten hints that they were closed for a while. I also heard that they lost Claudia Fleming. Can someone tune me in to the current state-of-affairs? I'm planning to go there in mid-December. Thanks.

Re NJ2FLA's note on Bond's. Bond's was home of the famous "Awful Awful", a huge milkshake served in a pail. They used to have a large rendition of their trademark pail rotating on a pole on top of the building. This was a real flashback to the 60's. I really miss the place.