sammy

The salad was bland. Virtually no taste. It needed salt, regardless of where the greens were picked from. The same for the lamp and the snapper. The vegetables I ate at Bluestem in KC had more of the taste of the actual vegetable than any of the ones I ate at BH at SB. My guess is they were seasoned properly. That goes for the greens, snow peas, mushrooms, etc. Nice try but I said the food at bluestem was better prepared. I didn't say the food at BH was poorly prepared.

Soba, I'm all for food to be true to it's origins but if something is bland, like the lamb, the snapper and both salads, the chef needs to do something to perk up the dish otherwise it is failure regardless of where the ingredients were sourced from.

Finally went last week with some friends and while we thoroughly enjoyed the experience, we were somewhat disappointed with the food on the plate. We made sure to arrive early enough to walk around and have a cocktail outside on the terrace. We all felt transported to another place. Maybe the wine country in California, maybe Tuscany. We definitely did not believe we were in Westchester County. The drinks were excellent and included a martini with a pickled ramp, a margarita with elderberry syrup and sangria with fresh strawberries. Well now on to the food. As there were four of us with 4 choices in each section (soup & salad, fish, pasta (only 3 pastas), meat) we decided on each of us ordering the 4 course tasting and we each picked a different dish in each section so we literally tasted every dish on the menu. We were started with an amuse of Beet Juice which was good but nothing we haven’t had before at other restaurants not located on a farm and that is where I think the rub is. Is this really better tasting food? We ended up with 15 dishes and 2 desserts and not 1 dish was spectacular. Both salads were in desperate need of salt as were the lamb and snapper. The best dishes were the gazpacho, the smoked sturgeon, the tortellini stuffed with pork and mushrooms and the Berkshire pig. My wife had the chicken and while the actual taste of the chicken was very good compared to other chickens, it was still just chicken. While all of the vegetable accompaniments were very green and clearly fresh, they were devoid of much flavor. The vegetables and herbs I had at my dinner at Bluestem in Kansas City a few weeks ago had better flavor than the Blue Hill vegetables. And what is with the bread? A basket of small chewy squares made of white flour were something you might find at a cafeteria-style buffet like Morrison’s. Really a joke. Desserts were a flop. We had a chocolate dessert that looked very unappetizing on the plate and at the end of the day was very similar to the flourless chocolate cakes served across America. I don’t remember what are other dessert was, it was that unmemorable. All in all, I think what they are trying to accomplish is very noble but I don’t think it is manifesting itself in better food. Maybe before restaurants had such easy access to great ingredients, Blue Hill at Stone Barns would have more appeal. But if I can get better prepared food with ingredients of equal quality at close to half the price in Kansas City, what is the point?

How does he keep this place open? There is almost never anyone in the place.

It looks like this thread has gone from "Per Se is the greatest restaurant in NYC or possibly the US" to "Maybe Thomas Keller should rethink the technique of his 2nd most famous dish." Seems a bit fickle, no?

From The Gothamist: "For those of you familiar with Keller's award winning The French Laundry Cookbook, you'll recognize one of the best dishes on the Per Se menu, called "Mac and Cheese." The dish features a technique Keller pioneered in which he slowly poaches fresh lobster in butter over a low, gentle heat. Keller believes that "when you cook lobster violently, the meat seizes up and becomes tough, and you can't get any flavor into it." "

I believe Keller's original recipe for butter poached lobster was to partially cook the whole lobster in hot but not boiling water. The lobster would "steep" for several minutes. The lobster meat could then be easily removed from the shell and then cooked further in the butter, still at relatively low temperature until done. His theory is that a lobster cooked at lower temperature is more tender than one boiled. I have made his original recipe at home several times and the lobster has never been tough. In fact, it is unusually tender. As Doc said, they are either getting bad lobsters or someone isn't properly minding the sous vide machine.

True both both Psaltis and Delouvrier had difficulties in other organizations as well so maybe the issues are not with Ducasse. Psaltis left Mix for The French Laundry and did not last there long at all. Delouvrier allegedly had "kitchen management" issues while at Lespinasse.

I wonder why they can't get anyone from Kansas City to come. Does anyone know if they tried but invitations were declined?

The menu doesn't say fish broth. It says cipollini broth.

This sounds downright dreadful. Why add all of those full flavored items to something so simply delicious as Nantucket Bay Scallops?

Pasta Nostra has a great list, at both the high and low end. BYO'd once to Match after calling beforehand. Was told on the phone that corkage was $10 and after opening 3 bottles, was billed $75 on the check. Ended up speaking to the manager and the chef-owner before they agreed to reduce the charge, just for that night.

When did they close????? That stinks. They have a branch in Grand Central Terminal Market (yes, same company). I wonder if they closed as well. ← No, the GCT store was still open, at least as of last week. They also have a store on RT 123 in South Salem, NY.

Thanks for the tip on Mecca. I've been a few times shortly after they opened, and while the food was good, nothing was memorable. Because of your post, I'll make a point to go back. Also, not a big deal but I think you are incorrect about Jaime running the Wilton restaurant and being a partner in the group. I think you are thinking of Jose (I don't recall his last name) who ultimately bought the Wilton restaurant on his own after being a partner but ended up selling it to an outside party and moving back to Spain. I believe Jaime may have been one of the managers at Meigas prior to opening up Mecca.

Lots of good places in and around South Norwalk. Best in order of preference: Meigas (Spanish) (in Downtown Norwalk) Pasta Nostra (italian) Kazu (japanese) Relish (american/eclectic) Habana (cuban/latino) Barcelona (spanish tapas)

Otto for a romantic evening? I don't think so. Only if you get the gelato to go and head for the hotel room. And while Chikalicious is a really good place, sitting at a counter with a horde of people standing around you waiting for a seat is also not romantic. I was thinking more like Cafe des Artistes.

Asimov did a Diners Journal piece in October. Bruni has reviewed several other restaurants after being open only a few months, why should Cafe Gray be different? My guess is that if Bruni really thought Cafe Gray had the potential you speak of, he would have waited a bit longer.

did you look around at that point to see if you could find the hidden camera? ← Funny thing is we laughed at first thinking he was kidding but his reaction was dead serious. At the end of the day, a steakhouse specializing in cooking steaks should do better than getting 3 out of 6 cooked right (in the kitchen).

I ate there Monday night and can't figure out why they are so busy. First, we had to wait close to 30 minutes for our table. Next, could be the loudest restaurant I've ever been in. Close to impossible hearing what other people at our table were saying. Then, our waiter was trying to push up our bill touting how great the 3 kinds of shrimp cocktail are and the great crabcakes. Being that I was entertaining a propect, it becomes difficult to say no so we had the shrimp and crabcakes. The shrimp were od average size and were cooked way to far in advance as they had a poor texture and were extemely cold so you couldn't really taste them. The sauces were average at best as was the crabcake. We ordered 6 steaks and only 3 were cooked properly as the others (including my ribeye) were way underdone. Two of the undercooked steaks were filets and the waiter suggested cutting them in half and putting the cut sides down on the surface of the plate to continue cooking. Huh? I didn't realize the diner was responsible for finishing up what the cook started. While the steaks were being refired in the kitchen, out came the vegetables and potatoes. (creamed spinach and potatoes au gratin). The service staff served almost ALL of the potatoes and spinach to the 3 diners who were happy with their steaks. When our steaks came back from the kitchen there were almost no potaoes and spinach left. When I waiter came back over to check on our steaks, he noticed what had happened and brought over more spinach and potatoes. I don't believe they were on the bill. My steak was good but nothing great. I'd rate in the same league as Angelo & Maxies, fine but not worth the pricetag. We all passed on dessert. The bar was quite happening though and might be worth going back to for a few drinks and a burger at the bar.

How so? Entrees are priced from $18 to $25 and typically include a vegetable and starch.

I disagree as I believe both establishments are terrific. What makes them both special is that both owners/chefs are passionate about what they do and NEVER take short cuts. Have you been to Springwater since David Britton took over?

But you can't bet any exactas at SPAC!

Where did you eat the night before? For the future, getting a table at 7:00 am is the way to go. Throw on a table cloth or two and leave. You can return to the track at around 12 noon and start putting the food and drink out. We did it that way this year and avoided the mad rush for tables when the gates officially open at 10:30 am.

So what is up with China 46? I went for the first time Friday night at 7:00 PM and there were only 3 tables occupied. The food was terrific.

I was at the track this past weekend and without a doubt, the best way to get a table in a good location is to get to the track at 7:00 am when the gates open for "Breakfast at Saratoga." There is no admission charge at that time but they hit you for $10 parking. If you leave before 10:30 am, they refund the $10. When you go in, throw a table cloth on the tables you want. You can either stick around for breakfast and watch the horses work out on the track or simply go back to your hotel for some sleep. No one will take over your table. We saved two shady tables at 7:00 am and came back to the track at 12:15 with all of our food and drink. The available tables remaining at 10:30am when the gates open for the races are typically not in good locations. P.S. We had an over-the-top dinner at Springwater Bistro that was truly incredible. Chef David Britton put together a 6 course his/her menu that had everyone moaning thru all of the dishes. He is truly talented and is clearly passionate about the food serves. If there is either pork or game on the menu, order it all. Make sure someone orders the mac & cheese. Also, top notch service.