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I am under the impression that Sam's restaurant will be much more than a dessert restaurant. In fact a number of hypermodern restaurants are really blurring the distinctions between savory and dessert courses. WD-50 has been doing that and Alinea is another as its "Tour" weaves its way in and out between savory and sweet. Indeed, I think this blurring is one of the hallmarks of hypermodernism as traditionally savory ingredients are used in desserts and vice versa.

The only time I think a destination restaurant is not also a neighborhood restaurant is when the restaurant is too expensive or too difficult to get into for its neighborhood residents. Per Se and Masa qualify although more likely for the latter reason rather than the former given the neighborhood.

I don't think they are mutually exclusive at all. If I have a destination restaurant in my neighborhood, I will still go to it assuming that I can afford it. If you really want to carry on this discussion and continue to apply it beyond Perry Street, I agree that another thread would be appropriate.

Interesting news. Thanks, Mark. Does that mean that he is just running it or that he bought it? In either case, I would expect that the culinary approach will have changed to a more Italian/Continental approach, though that is purely supposition on my part. I hope not, because that is the last thing this area needs another of.

The blog is great and a must for anyone interested in hypermodern cuisine. Their photography is outstanding and they freely share their (outstanding) creativity. Keyah Grande is on my shortl list for places to dine at. Unfortunately, it takes a bit of doing to get there, especially from the East Coast or I would have been there already. I may not have to worry about that too much longer though as Aki and Alex are planning on moving back east in the not too distant future. I would love to catch them while they are in Pagosa Springs, but will likely have to wait. For those to whom it would be easier to catch them there, don't put it off!

To put this back on topic, does everyone agree that given the above discussion that Perry Street is more than a "neighborhood restaurant" - i.e. that it is a "destination restaurant"?

Regardless of the original intentions of a restaurant, if it has become a destination for outsiders it is no longer a "neighborhood" restaurant. sneakeater, you are right, this is entirely a question of semantics.

Very sad news indeed. He was on the roster for the upcoming Worlds of Flavor Conference at CIA/Greystone. I was very much hoping to meet him there. Meeting him will now have to wait. I appreciate the anecdotes and links posted here about this remarkable man.

Bruce Willis does dine there regularly. He also dines at J-G regularly. I ran into him there the same week I saw him at Perry St. The latter argument, though good does not necessarily follow. I think that the key ingredient to being other than a nighborhood restaurant is that the restaurant frequently attracts people from outside that neighborhood who travel into the neighborhood specifically to dine at that restaurant. A neighborhood restaurant can, in fact, be very, very good and still not attract outsiders for the express purpose of dining there.

The first printing sold out in something like 2-3 weeks. In such a short time, it couldn't have been just tourists snapping them up.eGullet regulars need to remember that we're atypical. The fact that some of us turned up our noses isn't a good indicator of what the general public did. ← Even if New Yorkers actually bought the book, that doesn't mean that they are necessarily making dining decisions based on the book, although I don't find anything wrong with it if they did. It is just another piece of information to weigh. New York does get a lot of European visitors though. I would be quite surprised if they were not using it to a significant extent.

I ate there on a Monday night. The place was packed. Other diners included Bruce Willis and spearately Elle McPherson. Of course it is possible that they live in the neighborhood. Perry St. is much more than a neighborhood restaurant. I consider the definition as a restaurant worth going to if one happens to be nearby, but not worth specifically traveling to get to. I, for one, would specifically travel to dine there.

Don't hesitate to remind them.

That Michelin is influential is not IMO in dispute. Whether it deserves to be as influential as it is is the crux of this discussion as far as I can tell. My own opinion is that it is a guide like others and so should be taken with a grain of salt and calibrated to one's own taste. If an individual has had good results following it, then by all means that individual should continue. If the record does not appear to conform with one's own experience than that should speak for itself.

I discovered a substantial kink: I was excited to go to Porter House last night, their first night open. The staff was welcoming; the restaurant is beautiful; and the food was excellent--the oyster roast succulent, the porter house perfectly done, and the sides very tasty. I sat at the bar and was given astute service by the bartender, James. However, I was sadly surprised when I received my check and found that there was no 20% discount. I called James over and his response was, "What 20% discount?". I explained to him that it is advertised to be in effect from Oct. 3 to Oct. 8 and I had called earlier to confirm this with the reservationist. He escaped from the bar to investigate and returned stating, "don't worry, we'll take care of you." I told him that it was very difficult to believe that he would not be made aware of such a significant fact. He appeared to attempt to minimize the 'mistake'. I asked to speak with the manager who responded immediately. I asked him how this could happen that his staff is not aware of the discount; and I pointed out that apparently everyone else who had been eating at the bar was not given their discount. He apologized and appropriately offered a complimentary drink (which I thanked him for but did not accept). I told him I was embarassed to have to ask for my discount and that 20% is a lot of money (especially on my $200. tab (I ordered extra food to take home)), so that he was not convincing me that this was simply an oversight. He offered, "I hope you don't think I deliberately withheld this information from my staff." He read my mind (and I'm the one who is the psychiatrist). I thanked him for correcting the tab, told him I would return, and gratefully left a 33% tip. ← Robert, thanks for the report and welcome to eGullet! Unfortunately, I find that if there is a discount available it is rarely applied unless it is asked for. I'm not sure that it is wrong to doit that way, however, when asked for it should be readily forthcoming.

We generally don't bother changing the water either and it hasn't been a problem. I think the big question is how quickly one needs the meat thawed. Convection via running water will undoubtedly defrost more quickly.

I had dinner a couple of weeks ago at Perry Street and will add my name to the list of admirers. Standout dishes included the goat cheese, frisee and pickled peach salad; grilled king oyster mushroom and avocado carpaccio, madai sashimi with lemon, olive oil and crispy skin; Rice cracker crusted tuna, butter poached lobster, grilled beef tenderloin; and goat cheese-cake with concord grapes. Unfortunately, the lighting was too low for good dining room photography. The presentation were simple and elegant, pared down from those at Jean-Georges but of a similar aesthetic. There was a definite similarity in style of food with its older and more sophisticated sibling. The flavors are strong, true and balanced with good use of acid modulation. Neither restaurants is shy in its use of chili spice without overdoing it.

Those are some pretty damn good food photos, Dean. You are way too modest. Brian, I like your plating style - spare and elegant. While the setting may not be the most elegant, it looks like you are doing a tremendous job. The food looks delicious. Dean, you also did a very nice review that was clearly meant to be constructive. I see a lot of potential here.

Recently made Octopus with Olive Oil, Pimenton, potato and a copper penny or more correctly a variation on the recipe. We used Spanish canned pulpo so had no need of an additional copper penny. It was good, although I added a little too much pimenton. Also recently made variations on Roasted Pork Tenderloin with Apples. The latter recipe I actually made twice over this past weekend. I made it for the first time Friday night using the recipe proportions from the book and wild boar tenderloin that I had in the freezer from D'Artagnan. I didn't use Golden Delicious apples, though. I used Belle de Bosque apples, which are a bit tarter. This recipe is a keeper. On Sunday we hosted a pot luck party for our neighbors. I redid the recipe using pieces sliced from a whole pork loin and scaled the recipe upwards by a factor of ten. I have to say that it came out really well and it was a big hit. Unfortunately, my photos of either recipe did not turn out so well and don't add to the discussion .

Little India is on Court St. in the space formerly occupied by Eartha's.

It would seem odd then for an expensive haute cuisine restaurant to receive a one-star rating. if it is "exemplary for its category" then it should be in the two to three-star range. If it is not, it cannot be "exemplary for its category" or so it would seem to me.

I think one "n", though I am not sure about the "b"'s

This is the purest and most indefensible kind of groundless internet speculation, but I wonder how much that longevity is attributable to indulgent investors. As is often observed, WD-50 is by far the easiest "major" restaurant in New York to get a last-minute reservation at. ← I don't know any investors who are indulgent ot losing money. While it may not be difficult to get into, they are at least holding their own and have been doing so for awhile as far as I can tell.

This is a very interesting assertion. Since the topic of this thread is so broad I don't feel like exploring it further is necessarily "off-topic." I haven't eaten at Moto (but I do stalk the food) and have eaten at both Alinea and wd-50. I would say without a doubt that wd-50 is more whimsical than the two Chicago restaurants, but to say it's more progressive is, well, interesting. While Alinea and Moto both fit into the traditional fine dining mold more than wd-50 that alone doesn't make wd-50 more progressive. Opinions? Disagreements? ← I am not sure what is meant here by use of the term, "progressive". I suspect it means using and pioneering the use of new techniques and "hypermodern" ingredients like colloids, transglutaminase, etc. This may or may not be the case, but the reality is that all three of these restaurants as well as a handful of others around the country are trailblazing a small revolution in cooking and dining on this continent. As for NY, WD-50 is demonstrating longevity, a trait that is difficult for any restaurant, let alone a hypermodern one. That in itself is an indication that at least a subset of the city is "ready" and desirous of this cuisine. As for other indicators, don't discount the pastry world. NYC is clearly in the vanguard of hypermodern pastry creativity with people like Sam Mason, Will Goldfarb and Alex Stupak honing their arts (and sciences) in that city. There are also a number of others, who may not be quite so cutting edge, but still incorporate ideas and techniques in their work. This is clearly the golden age for pastry in New York and the hypermoderns are clearly a major part of that.

Thanks. That is pretty cool.

Thanks, Elliot. It was. ← 'doc... way back there on post # 79 with Sam Masons demo I thought it was a version of his hydro collided creme brulee and the most recent starchefs.com mail out confirms this. Sorry I couldn't post earlier. I would like to thank you and Bond Girl again for the EXtensive documentation which, of course, foodgeeks like me can't express our love for enough. And the chefs for doing what they do like the true badasses they are! Starchefs pulled this off amazingly, it would seem, and next year I'm going to see all of you there! ← Ted, with luck I will see you there too. You are correct about the creme brulee spheres. At the end of the demo he torched the plate and some caramel to leave a fitted dome of sugar over the brulee spheres.