docsconz

As promised:

Have a great weekend and welcome to eGullet! While I have not had anything less than excellent so far in my two visits to the Beekman St. Bistro, I can recommend a few items as specifically outstanding. The bruschetta with oyster mushrooms, the caprese salad and the roast duck were all totally satisfying bistro food. Their new wine list is small, but well chosen and fairly priced. I would call Maestro's Italianish rather than Italian. I consider it more modern American with an Italian flavor. That is why I for one may not have mentioned it under Italian restaurants.

One of the regrets I have about not living in NYC is that I can't get to this restaurant more often. Great descriptions, Bux.

I can only imagine that this is a very interesting comparison, but really, although all these restaurants have some similarities, they are really like comparing apples to oranges to bananas to strawberries. The most similar stylistically are Moto and WD-50. The one most unlike the other three is Per Se. That one is the most traditionally luxurious and the most classicly based. The least expensive of the group is WD-50, which I believe provides the most bang for the buck. Alinea is probably the best overall mix of inventiveness, style, luxury, whimsy and great food and service. Moto is great, but would be number four for me on this list. Of course with this list that is hardly major criticism.

My son recently returned from China and brought back some wonderfully scented tea from The Bell Tower Tea House. Unfortunately since the package is in Chinese, I am uncertain of the specific variety. It is, however, of the "gunpowder" style. I have never had this kind of tea before let alone brewed any. How much should one use and what would be the best method for brewing and then storing this tea? I will add some photos shortly.

Fascinating blog, to which I have lately arrived. It has been reminiscent to me to a certain extent to a culinary literature version of a cross between Ulysses and 2001: A Space Odyssey. If this were the early twentieth century, the blog would likely have been banned in Boston. Good luck, Will. I hope to experience your creations in a less virtual realm someday.

You will have a wonderful dinner. Enjoy!

Great interview, Pedro. Chef Santamaria is obviously very thoughtful. He is also a brilliant chef. The meal I had at Can Fabes last September was one of the very best I have had anywhere. I was particularly intrigued by his comments regarding ancient cuisines. As someone who enjoys occasionally listening to older music on original instruments, I would be very curious about experiencing expertly prepared medieval cuisine. While he may use these texts for inspiration, these are obviously not his only sources. However one may wish to define creativity, he obviously has it.

raisa, thanks for the descriptions. Where exactly is Villaret? Is it an easy walk from the Goncourt metro?

Doc, did you get a reservation at Gagnaire? My evening there was one of the most memorable eating experiences I've ever had. My description for his cooking is "cerebral food," as each dish seems to be its own little gastronomic exploration. I do hope you're able to go. ← Jennifer, I should find out soon as I believe they are scheduled to return from vacation on the 17th. I expect it would be fun. Did you have any particularly memorable dishes? ← I got it!

Come early to mid-September I will be reporting on my experiences in Paris with my 15,14 and 6y/o boys. We will be hitting a few of the places you mentioned and a few others. Hopefully my reports will be of some assistance in that our circumstances are likely to be somewhat similar.

But does all the dissection — not to mention photo- and note-taking — take away from the enjoyment of the meal? If chefg is trying to guide diners a progression that engages all their senses — waxing and waning throughout the meal — doesn't that disrupt the flow and energy? And, perhaps this is another question, but if the meal is so cerebral, are you thinking so much about each component of the dish that it deadens say, your visual sense or sense of smell? As an example, you know how when you're driving and you're looking for an address, you have to turn down the music? You're concentrating on several things at once. Would you be able to savor the taste of the PB&J and enjoy the company of your friend in the passenger's seat at the same time? And thanks for the biggrins... I'm not trying to be obnoxious. I'm seriously curious. ← Liz is right, of course, and in no way obnoxious. That's why I find the pod people fair game for satire and even frontal attack. It's hard to think of a great meal that is not, quite simply, delicious. Along with that comes one or more of: cerebration, celebration, humor, visual beauty, the sacramental, admiration and gratitude for what one is eating, a sense of historical and cultural connections, etc., etc. Great meals don't have to be fun, but great hypermodern meals do; every fine dinner I've had by Ferran Adria, Grant, Jose Ramon Andres in D.C., Wylie Dufresne, and the other hypermodern cooks are full of fun and often witty. Ferran walks around the diningroom during dinner watching to see if his customers get the jokes; if they're too serious, they probably won't get another reservation. The pod people can forget about it. ← I agree that the great "hypermodern" - I like that term- meals need to be fun as well as delicious. It doesn't hurt for more classicly minded meals to inject fun into the mix as well. While other meals in other restaurants may have been as fun as Alinea, I have never had more fun in a restaurant - and for about five hours at that. Even better, my kids had a blast too.

Chris, Welcome to eGullet! I have heard particularly good things about the steaks at The Bears, but haven't yet been.

Doc, did you get a reservation at Gagnaire? My evening there was one of the most memorable eating experiences I've ever had. My description for his cooking is "cerebral food," as each dish seems to be its own little gastronomic exploration. I do hope you're able to go. ← Jennifer, I should find out soon as I believe they are scheduled to return from vacation on the 17th. I expect it would be fun. Did you have any particularly memorable dishes?

raisab, thanks for thee encouraging input. We will be at rue Arthur Groussier. I imagine that this is quite close to where you were. What are those particular restaurants like? Is "modern French" along the lines of the upscale bistros such ass L'Epi Dupin?

Getting back to Rafa's...does anyone know when they are open and when they are closed? I fear that they will be closed on Sundays and Mondays as will Can Roca. Unfortunately this may cramp our plans as we would then only be able to do one on the saturday that we arrive.

santo_grace, Welcome to eGullet and the New York Forum and to the Saratoga area! I must admit that it has been awhile since I have last been to Springwater. While I have had some truly wonderful meals there, the last few times I have been there, i have been disappointed. I am due to try it again. Your experience at Sargo's sounds much like my own. The veal and lobster dish certainly sounded much better than it ate. Some friends very much want me to return though. I must say at the prices they charge I am in no hurry.

Thank you for the responses. They are indeed helpful. I have emailed Pierre Gagnaire. L'Astrance may be the biggest problem. The good news is that I have enough to choose from that I think I should be ok even if I get shut out of a couple:wink:

I found the account to be very personal and all the more worthwhile because of it. The only issue with that aspect I had was the author's obvious bias against what he refers to as "cuisine tendance" or the necessity to continuously "astonish" jaded diners. While his appafrent preference for classicaly based French cuisine as exemplified by Loiseau is fine, I do believe that he went overboard in his editorializing against this contemporary style of cuisine. Personally, I do not believe they are mutually exclusive.

I have hit an unexpected snag in my quest for fine dining in Paris. Many of the restaurants I am interested in are currently closed and therefore unavailable for taking reservations. What is the best way now to assure reservations for early Sept.?

I concur with the positive reports about this book. It is certainly fascinating and quite sad. The major emphasis is on Loiseau's disease - bipolar disorder. His highs were quite high and his lows quite low. It seemed as if he was able to sublimate most of this drive into significant work accomplishments. One of the more interesting passages described his foray into Japan. It was at this time that the down side of his personality seemed to really become apparent. I am sorry that I never got to try his work. Is the restaurant still going? Has anyone on these boards been since his death?

Oxo has come out with a new device to separate mango pulp from their seeds. Here's a Quicktime Movie showing it in use. Has anyone tieed this yet? I am not quite sure how it would deal with differrent sized mangos with different sized seeds. They purport that it leaves essentially no pulp on the seed.

A question of technique- How does one manage to vacuum seal liquid without making a huge mess?

I would love to read your impressions.

This presents an interesting illustrations as to how cities can change over time - at least in the US. Current day NYC bears essentially no resemblance to this description. Even today ethnicity in various parts of the city is extremely different than it was say even twenty years ago. With that comes changing dining patterns and food availability. Only a few of the food items mentioned in that article would still be considered common in the city today - at least as compared to how they existed then.