docsconz

I don't think this is any different from any other style of cooking. Some are clearly better at it than others. If I go to a lousy Italian restaurant it doesn't mean the whole cayegory is bad. The same is true for hypermodern cuisine.

I agree completely. I'll even go one step further and say he is absolutely the best right now. What's more, is as you said, he's doing it the old-fashioned way. He doesn't need L'Atelier de David Kinch @ $47,000.00 pp to make an impact. The only other chef on the planet that I have the same level of respect and enthusiasm about is Thomas Keller. I hope they both would view that as mutually complimentary. ← With all due respect to David, he is very talented and a great chef, but yours is a rather strong statement, that I, personally would have a hard time ascribing to anyone - even amongst the many great chefs whose cuisines I have had the pleasure of trying. then there are the multitudes whose food I know only by reputation. I think it would be nearly impossible for one individual to definitively make that statement without a qualification such as "in my experience".

I just called Oyamel. They are still in place there, but in the near future will be doing dinner only. When specifically asked about these rumors, the person I spoke with replied that "nothing is set in stone." It sounds like there is some basis to the rumors and the future of Oyamel is in doubt. It is not absolutely clear to me, however, whether Oyamel will close, move or even stay where it is. Nevertheless, Mark is much more in tune with the DC restaurant scene inner workings than I am. I just hope that Oyamel stays in business somewhere.

What cause would that be, monkfish?u.e. ← Chicago Chefs for Choice ← Do you have any information on this organization? ← here's a small link about them. http://www.suntimes.com/output/news/cst-nws-foiegras15.html ← Thank you. They are brave given past PETA tactics.

I love the 'oven' aspects of my current toaster oven and do not want to make a change in that area. It's relatively large -- and cooks as an oven and a broiler very well. But it makes toast very slowly and somewhat unevenly. That's why I'm looking for a stand-alone toaster. I'm not crazy about dividing the tasks between 2 appliances but I'm resigned to it and I have just enough counter space to accomodate doing so without a losing a ton of usuable area. Surely, some folks around here must be in love with their toasters . . . =R= ← Ron, I'm afraid that I'm another fan of the Cuisinart Toaster oven. I do not find it toasting unevenly. It is versatile, easy to clean, well-made and efficient. Surely, you can find something else to take up your counterspace?

What cause would that be, monkfish?u.e. ← Chicago Chefs for Choice ← Do you have any information on this organization?

Anything particulary stand out in your memory? Was this site a source for you?

Marvelous as always, Ah Leung! I like the fact that you don't add much sugar. My biggest beef with most restaurant examples is that they are way too sweet.

Very cool, indeed. I bookmarked it. Has anyone here ordered or used anything that they found on this site?

I would not necessarily get hung up about having to eat right around the Louvre. It is easy to cross the river too and at your price point there might be more and better options there on the Left Bank. I'll leave it to those with more current experience to suggest places.

I wouldn't take the comments here as being the typical "general public" having had a sense of the palates over time, but even so, I would have to question your assertion that I highlighted in bold. Granted it is difficult for kitchens to season for a wide variety of palates and someone who never adds salt to anything will be much more sensitive to it than someone who always pours it on. I like salt and have come to use it liberally, but I have found that the more salt I use, the more salt I need to use. I would suggest that "proper" use of salt really is an individual thing, but that if a restaurant is going to be financially viable over the long haul, they need to learn to season according to their targeted clientele. It strikes me that at least some of the people above complaining about the over-salting of food at The Modern are indeed their targeted clientele, or should be. Additional discussion of this tangent could prove interesting, but I would suggest that if there is a desire for anyone to continue it or expand upon it that it be taken outside...to a topic of its own.

How does the food at either Zabb compare to Sripraphai?

Grapeseed oil is a good alternative to peanut oil. It also has a high smoke point. It is part of my armamentarium along with EVOO, lard, butter and duck fat.

Given the popularity of El Bulli, Adria could charge much more than he does and still fill it many times over. I don't think the issue is whether El Bulli is economically viable. Rather I think Adria is taking advantage of the success of El Bulli to branch out. I don't think that this cuisine is inherently unviable economically. With so many of its techniques becoming more and more mainstream and even much of its visual framework becoming adopted within the mainstream, I think it is only a matter of time before someone like Wylie Dufresne, Paul Liebrandt or someone else becomes financially successful in NYC with this style and approach. With the advent of Gilt, I was hoping that time had finally arrived.

The day "avant-garde" is popular with the masses is the day it is no longer "avant-garde". There is a difference though between someone trying to push the envelope for its own sake versus someone trying to push the envelope to come up with something new, interesting and good. I don't really ascribe to the former, but appreciate the latter. This is one reason why I prefer the term "hypermodern" to "avant-garde" when discussing the cuisine of these and other chefs of a similarly creative mindset. I consider the names I mentioned above to be in the latter category, although I still have yet to try Chef Liebrandt's cuisine. I base my inclusion though on reports from here and elsewhere. At some point I hope to be able to determine the validity of that inclusion for myself.

I absolutely love DC as a culinary destination. It holds some of my most favorite restaurants, but before we anoint it as true hotbed of hypermodern cuisine, let's consider that the premiere hypermodern restaurant in DC, Jose Andres' Minibar, is only a six-seat restaurant housed within another of his restaurants. Sure it is wonderful, but under that scenario, it could probably exist anywhere with a cosmopolitan audience. In addition, Chef Andres has all his other more conservative restaurants to help support it, much in the same way that all of Jean-Georges Vongerichten's restaurants help support lunch at Jean-Georges.

This topic is moving into an interesting tangent, but tangent it is. To continue discussion of this please go to this topic. Please reserve the current topic for discussion of the work/plans of Chef Paul Liebrandt.

I think it is generally a matter of dealing with acquired tastes and not an innate difference in palate or any physiologic aspect. I can't fully rule out the latter though as sometimes food preferences/cravings do stem from individual physiologic needs. Pica would be a pathologic example of that while a craving for red meat or other iron containing foods for an anemic person would be an example of a compensatory mechanism. Even within a culture food preferences are often age-related with younger ones tending towards more limited food choices. At least some of that may be based on developmental physiology. Therefore, I imagine that it is conceivable that underlying generalized nutritional differences can result in different culinary preferences as well as the reverse. Nevertheless, for the vast majority of people I believe the issue is more one of experience nd recognition. It is easier to eat what is known. As food items become less "strange" to an individual, it becomes easier to approach, eat and enjoy them. Cheese is a broad class of food items in western culture that often has an acquired component to its enjoyment, especially with stronger examples. I imagine "stinky doufu" would fit into that category within a Chinese cultural framework. Is it common for Chinese children to routinely eat and enjoy that dish?

I would not say that NY is not at the forefront. Wylie Dufresne is right there with anyone when it comes to quality hypermodern cuisine. I will agree, howeve, that the city has not embraced hypermodern cuisine as a concept in the way that the country of Spain or the city of Chicago, for examples, have. It is not that there isn't significant interest or a coterie of devotees, but for some reason it hasn't really captured the imagination of the masses. Hopefully that will change and the masters of this approach to cooking such as Wylie, Sam Mason, Wil Goldfarb, Paul Liebrandt, Alex Stupak and others will get their due. I think one of the problems is that the cost of dining in NYC, being what it is, most people are moe into the safety of a known cuisine as practiced by reliable and sometimes great kitchens. Avant-garde, by definition, is into pushing boundaries. Oftentimes it does so when in the hands of its masters in amazing ways. Sometimes it misses or even if it hits the creator's mark, is not what the public is interested in. There will be a time (and it is already happening) that hypermodern cooking is no longer truly avant-garde. Many techniques have been and more are everyday being incorporated into mainstream restaurant and even home kitchens. There is plenty of evidence for this all over eGullet, for example.

I would find that very pandering to tourists tastes disappointing to say the least. One of my main motivations for going to any country, but especially a country like China, would be to eat they best they have to offer. While I am sure a lot of it would require acquired tastes, I would be happy to try, even if I ultimately failed in the acquisition. I do appreciate, however, that this sentiment is far from universal and understand the desire and need to separate cuisines for the majority of foreign travelers. I would like to be able to find ways to avoid that for those who are so inclined.

The next steps for Chef Liebrandt and crew.

Anywhere but the meat-packing district.

I very much hope to test that theory someday! Funny thing is I first got involved with eGullet because i didn't go to China. I was supposed to go back in the spring of 2003 right in the middle of the SARS epidemic. Unfortunately, just before the trip was supposed to leave I came down with a respiratory bug of my own. I was not going to try to enter China then with a pre-existing respiratory condition of my own and was pretty sick so I didn't go. I suddenly found myself with a lot of time on my hands and discovered eGullet while surfing the net. Sometimes good things do come from bad.

Wow, Therese, thanks for resurrecting these fond memories. Brighton Beach is certainly a unique community within NYC and possibly the US, well worth a visit .

This just puts another restaurant in Chicago on my must try list.