menton1

There seems to be a growing disdain for Michelin on the continent, and no wonder. Somehow we want more from a restaurant review than a few symbols and a 20 word description. Michelin and Zagat, although arrived at by a different formula, are little more than a phone directory with some symbols and a very cursory description. The Pudlo, the Gantié, and in the Provinces the Petit Futé guides are alot like capsulated newspaper reviews telling of the entire experience, whether it's describing a chandelier, the artwork, the biography of the chef, or the type of china and silverware used for serving. This is helpful information when deciding where to dine and what to expect. Reliability can be factored in by using more than 1 guide. Bux, I recommend you take a first-hand look at the Pudlo to see how really excellent a restaurant guide it is!

I have always thought of a bistro as small and simple, both in ambience and cuisine. Less formal as well. As far as the spelling with a "t", a French friend has told me that "bistro" is both an English and a French word, and the French spelling with the "t" is an example of Old French, which stopped about 100 years ago. It is trendy, though, for some proprietors to choose the old spelling....

Another nice thing about Pudlo is that the reviews are usually a couple of hundred words with descriptions of the ambience, and the background of the chefs and the types of cuisine. Other than the stars, (or forks) there is hardly any information in the Michelin!

Bux, as I've stated above, I'm really not surprised. The sheer number of restaurants to be reviewed combined with the large geographic area to be covered combined with a "review" that rarely exceeds 25 words makes it quite unsurprising to me that they don't visit every year. I was always puzzled by the esteem to which Michelin is held to by some... Have you ever seen the Pudlo books?

Just read this entire thread!!

We have talked at length on the NY forum about Zagat and how mysterious and misleading their "survey" can be. They routinely exclude restaurants for unknown reasons, never reveal how they arrive at their ratings numbers, and overall it has been agreed that Zagat has become much too powerful in New York, to be taken with many grains of salt. That being said, I have found the Paris Zagat to be particularly useless. I have mentioned Jules Pudlowski many times, his book is very thoughtful and useful, and then, just recently, a long discussion about Michelin here on the France thread has shown some problems with Michelin ratings of late. Basically, the €15 you would spend on Zagat Paris could be better spent on a few coffees!

Wow! What kind of an upbringing did you have?

i'm assuming this is the place on south maple right off of Ridgewood ave? if so, i wish you had posted about it *before* it closed, as i've been curious. That's it-- You had 25 years to try it, though....

The Tenafly Gourmet Farm on Piermont Road had nice Shiitakes last time I was there; I don't go there in the winter, because they never put the heat on and the cashiers are all wearing their heavy coats, hats and gloves!!

Ahhh-- what a noble goal!! Ever been in this cafffee? Is it closed forever?

You can start with the CIA in Hyde Park. The foremost training center for chefs in the US, it has 5 restaurants, all of which I have heard great things about, in addition to some special events with special guest chefs. The most upscale is the Escoffier. CIA Website

I don't know what you are trying to prove-- there still is no word in Italian spelled "Cafe". You might check with someone who is from Italy or an Italian dictionary. By the way, this place you have a link for also spells the word "Restaurant" which is also not an Italian word-- (Ristorante) !! They are probably using English spellings to appeal to tourists.

This story was again reiterated by Agence France Presse and has gone out in English on the Expatica.com web site; While a lot of the story does seem to be a disgruntled former employee's rantings, the most telling part is the head of Michelin being quoted as saying that they have only 100 reviewers for ALL of Europe! This presents not only a numbers problem, but a geography problem. As restaurant reviewers often say that it takes multiple visits to get a fair appraisal of a restaurant, the esteem in which Michelin reviews are held up to seems highly undeserving, to say the least. Although quite different in scope, the power of Michelin and relative newcomer Zagat seems overhyped and we should probably take a lot more seriously the views of people like Jules Pudlowski and Jacques Gantié, to name just two reviewers in France that seem to spend a lot more time and effort reviewing a restaurant. Expatica Michelin Story

Probably close to zero. Nimes, with the demise of Air Littoral, handles 1-2 Ryanair flights/day. Avignon has 2 flights/day with AF to Paris/Orly. Other than those, it's mainly cargo flights and "general aviation" that uses these airports. Not much competition for Marseille/Marignane with over 300 flights daily, or Nice with over 800 flights daily. Nice Airport is still a wonder to me, it's the only major international airport in the world where you can come off a 7 1/2 hour international flight, and be downtown in 6 minutes with very little traffic or hassle!

Wow, never figured Nimes for an international airport. Are you familiar with two pastries that are only available in Nimes: Croquants and Caladons? They are a crunchy type of cookie and are a treat when you are visiting Nimes (Not forgetting Maison Carré). Please report, I am very intertested in a hands-on view of Nice Carnaval and the Fete du Citron in Menton. Bon voyage!

There is no word in Italian spelled "Cafe" There is a word spelled "Caffe" There are scores and scores of little places called "Caffé _____" on their awnings and windows ubiquitous throughout Italy. Caffé Florian, Venezia Caffé Rivoire, Firenze Caffé Greco, Roma and so forth....

A terrific entry into Vegetarian dining is Counter Restaurant, in the East Village between 6th and 7th sts. This looks totally unlike a veggie place, no granola bars here-- looks like an upscale bistro, lots of organic wine selections as well, and a very creative menu, it can please non-vegetarians as well. Counter 105 First Avenue (6-7) 212-982-5870

Lourmarin? That's 2 hours from Nice-Cote d'Azur Airport! Beautiful town, though....

This authentic European café has beenat this spot for over 25 years, and predates the coffee culture of Starbucks and the like. They always had Segafredo Italian coffee for the espresso, home made cannolis, great Italian pastry, and a terrific European atmosphere. Sadly, when I passed by the other day it was closed and empty inside. The only gripe I ever had about this place was it had an Italian name but used the French spelling of "Café". (In Italy, it's spelled'"Caffé".) Does anyone have more details as to whether the closing is permanent? Is this the end of an era?

Even if you are not attending, this Nice Carnaval web site is a show all by itself, almost like seeing a movie! Carnaval Web Site

Very silly-- the Europeans laugh at Americans for their scrubbing themselves until the skin comes off... Would you have also been upset if she shook hands with someone and didn't wash immediately afterward? And also, based on the stories I've heard from people that have worked in restaurant kitchens, the less we know, the better!!

Is it true that they are opening another Thai Chef in Riverside Square? Seems a bit close to Englewood.... Anybody been to Thai Chef in Montclair? Same owners?

It's really not surprising that they don't visit every restaurant every year; the numbers just don't add up. With the existing restaurants already listed plus all the new openings, they would need a staff of a couple of hundred reviewers plus an enormous budget to cover all of them, not to mention the large geographical area needed to be covered as well. It seems we now need to use several guides and take a consensus from all of them, or, better yet, have an Egulleter review the place for us!

Oops! I did miss the mention of the time, 7:50; Of course, they were just getting going! In Paris, the restos fill up between 8:30 & 9, particularly on a Saturday! I think, based on the reviews of this place, you missed a very good dining experience! P.S. All restaurants in France have their menus prominently posted in the window or on the street before you go in (by law), so that you may peruse the menu carefully before deciding to dine there!

Maywood Marketplace scores again--- Beautiful Yellow Bell Peppers, $1.39/lb. Red, $1.49/lb. Red Onions, .49/lb. Fennel, .99 for a huge bulb. Made a great stir-fry tonight with this stuff!!