docsconz

That's consistent with the prices people are talking about. It's not conceivable that Ducasse would plan a restaurant without having a particular number of stars in mind. Some of his folks might say that they're not in it for stars, and some gullible listeners might fall for that, but I don't think it's reality. ← If Senderens and Robuchon hadn't already done that and if bistronomy wasn't currently so popular around the world I would absolutely agree. I think that amongst some of the bigger named chefs, hey may feel that they are above stars or at least not in need of stars to propel their business. It is possible the death of Bernard Loiseau may have had something to do with it.

i can assure you they are not. ← The prices posted upthread tend to support chefboy's assertion that this isn't intended to be Michelin 3* establishment. However, chefboy's statement that "Ducasse is not going for michelin stars" — implying he would be pleased with zero — is ludicrous. ← Then again, Ducasse would not be the first great French chef to spurn Michelin stars. Alain Senderens closed Lucas Carton only to open a much less expensive restaurant in its place and Joel Robuchon has not catered to Michelin either. It is much less expensive to state that one doesn't really care about garnering more Michelin stars. That does not necessarily mean that one doesn't care about putting out a great product. Besides if Michelin or the NYT comes out and awards less than the maximum, they can say they weren't going for it anyway. Should either still award the maximum number of stars, that only enhances the legend. In addition not going for Michelin stars does not necessarily equate with being happy with zero, it may simply mean that they are not shooting for a specific star score.

There are a lot of factors that go in to a successful restaurant. I@E had a lot going for it including great food when it first opened. What it appeared not to have was patience to stay the course and build a good reputation. Whether they have more patience now remains to be seen. I wouldn't base a conclusion as to what the capitol district is ready for on this restaurant's success or especially its failure.

I don't know if this is the event that you are referring to or if it is even a charity event, but this game dinner at Christopher's? in Brunswick is affiliated with D'Artagnan and will feature game from d'Artagnan. So far as I know only one chef is doing this. I suspect that this is not what you are referring to, but it may be a very good alternative if you can't find what you are looking for.

Judith Klinger (aka Hathor) has her restaurant and blog featured in there as well.

BTW, I strongly recommend reading the article. As usual per Steingarten, it is a very informative, entertaining and well written piece.

˙In this article from Men's Vogue, Jeffrey Steingarten says the best steak he has ever eaten was in Spain. His quest started during a trip to the basque region when he first had grilled buey or ox ( a castrated male greater than 4 years of age). His quest was later aided by two member of the eGullet Society, Pedro and Rogelio. Speaking of his meal at El Capricho: Those strong words certainly had me salivating, though I have never experienced what they had. Is there corroboration from others here? What kind of experience do people here have eating ox meat either in Spain or elsewhere? Does anyone have any particular recommendations on restaurants other than El Capricho where one can find steak this good? Any thoughts on El Capricho?

The whole post seems unnecessarily cryptic. ← Sorry. It wasn't meant to be. It was more of a reference to the perception as widely discussed on the Bruni thread to Frank Bruni's apparent distaste for fancy and "fussy" restaurants, which almost by definition Michelin 3star restaurants are. While not necessarily true, it seems as if shooting for 3 Michelin stars may necessitate not pandering to Frank Bruni's perceived tastes and therefore being less concerned about NY Times stars.

When I was about 7 or 8 years old I was away at summer camp. I really couldn't stand swiss cheese at the time (go figure!) and when they tried to make me eat it, I told them that I was allergic to it really believing it because I didn't really understand what the word meant. It worked and I got away without having to eat it. I agree that one must always take it seriously when someone claims an allergy, just that depending on the situation, one should not necessarily take it at face value. That doesn't mean that if someone says that they are "allergic" to a particular food, that person should be grilled and served it anyway. Some things are simply not worth questioning that much. OTOH, if a person really thinks they have an allergy but doesn't, it may be a disservice to that person to ignore the question and let the person go on believing something untrue. Ultimately I was very happy to discover that I was not really allergic to swiss cheese.

Allergy is a specific and much overused and abused term. Though clearly they do exist and can certainly be life-threatening and even life taking. In my job, I see a lot of patients who claim to have "allergies" to various medications including morphine and codeine. Allergies to penicillin and Sulfa are never questioned, however, most of the "allergies" people claim are either due to dose-related side effects, sensitivities or or other situation-specific, non-allergic complications. Food allergies are not much different. Nut and shellfish allergies are real, not uncommon and potentially very dangerous. Fruit allergies, though generally less dangerous are also real and may indicate allergies to other compounds such as latex. Regarding latex, there seemed to be a real outbreak of allergies to latex in the mid-90's, especially in the health care industry. This appeared to be due to decreased availability of quality product and alternate production methods. For whatever reason(s), the incidence of latex allergies seems to have diminished markedly over the last 5-10 years. That doesn't mean the allergies weren't real before that, just that the development of allergies is a complex phenomenon that can shift depending upon current factors. The incidence of food allergies is likely to go along the same path. Of course when something generates press and public interest, some people will feel that they are effected when they really are not. Despite that real and serious cases do exist underneath and the issue should certainly be taken seriously though not necessarily accepted at face value.

Perhaps Chefboy meant NY Times stars?

Nice, detailed report - thanks! Which would you say was your best meal strictly based on the food after Le Comptoir, which you said was your favorite meal?

According to this report summarized by the American Diabetes association from the journal Diabetes Care, unfortunately there appears to be no substance to the claim of beneficial effects of cinnamon on bllod sugar or fat levels. Of major significance is that this study did not look at true cinnamon. Instead they used what most people in the US think of as cinnamon - cassia. It is not clear to me from the New Scientist article quoted at the beginning of this topic which form of cinnamon the Pakistani study used. I would wager, however, that it was true cinnamon and not cassia.

Etxebarri is one of the restaurants that I most want to try in the world. Unfortunately, I don't think the logistics or economics will allow it this time.

I don't know if this book posseses as much authority on the subject as it claims to have. I can't wait for Thomas Keller and his book on S-V! ← It may not be definitive, but it is an authority and as of now, still the only major book I know of devoted to the subject. At the very least, it has been a very influential book for many professional chefs. While the technique is credited to Bruno Goussault in France, Roca has done as much as anyone to promote the technique, especially over the last ten years. When NathanM writes a book on sous vide that will definitely be authoritative and most likely definitive.

Thanks, Rogelio. As always, you are a font of knowledge! A lechazo and cochinillo trip is certainly one of the better options that I would be interested in.

With the program looking to be particularly outstanding, I am giving serious thought to heading to Madrid for Madrid Fusión 2008, but will need to do so on a serious budget. Food, of course is the first priority, but good inexpensive lodging will go a long way to allowing for more to spend on food. I have a few questions, answers to which may be helpful to myself as well as others attending this event or simply traveling to Madrid. 1. What are the current can't miss restaurants in Madrid? 2. Recommendations for good, inexpensive hotels with reasonable access to the conference as well as places I would want to go in Madrid. Metro is probably the desired mode of transportation. Any do's and dont's regarding the metro? Economical access options for the metro? 3. Strategy for attending the conference. Can anyone relay a good strategy for getting the most out of the conference? Is food available there? Can one actually get to everything or will difficult choices need to be made? I will be interested in people's experiences navigating past conferences. 4. Post Conference. I am thinking of extending my trip for a few days after the conference. Possibilities include San Sebastien, Sevilla, Galicia or simply staying in and around Madrid. My first choice would probably be to head up to San Sebastien to score a couple of specific meals. Does anyone have any suggestions as to how to do that most economically? I will be traveling solo. Planning time is running short. Thanks for any help you can provide. You can, I think, safely assume that I will report back should I be able to put this trip together.

I see them all the time here in North Carolina and they are readily available in Philadelphia, too. The Genesis and Messiah bold are their standard offerings and are available in 12 oz bottles. More interesting are the brews they bottle in 22 oz. bombers, particularly their recent special release, Jewbelation 11. Although they are brewed in upstate NY, the are brewed under contract and the company that markets the brand is based in San Francisco. I think of them as a west coast beer, as a result. Perhaps that is why you are not seeing them locally. ← Thanks, Brent. That makes sense.

Aside from the sous vide topic here in the eGullet Forums with amazing contributions from NathanM amongst others, I'm not sure that there really is much else of value out there dedicated to that technique. If not the first, it was probably the first authoritative book on the subject. I am unaware of anything having eclipsed it yet.

Hebrew Genesis is an American Pale Ale. It's reasonably well balanced between the caramel malt and piney hop elements but is nothing special. There are better APAs out there and there are much better beers from this particular brewery, in my view. ← Thanks, Brent. Are the brews from this company readily available? I'm just surprised that I have been unaware of it before now. It does not appear to have a large local presence, but then I'm not generally scouring local beer lists.

For those of you who may be going, The Rogers Collection will have some Fermin Jamon Iberico in their booth at the San Diego Fancy Food Show.

Fabulous photos as always, Philadining. The meal looks outstanding. One element that caught my eye was the "Hebrew genesis Ale, Schmaltz Brewing Co., Saratoga Springs, N.Y." That comes right from my backyard, yet I have never heard of it. Can anyone tell me more about it? Was it good? What was it like? Thanks.

Listen to the Doc. Often people conclude that they are suffering from food poisoning when they are suffering from the flu. Just make sure that your husband remains rested and hydrated. ← Listen to this doc. Public health only works when diseases are reported. Of course there could be other causes of his sickness. Let the pros decide if they get a lot of reports from one place. Otherwise it stays hidden until there is a big problem later. ← By all means, if one really thinks that one contracted food poisoning someplace, it should be reported, however, the discussion above was very quick to conclude that the illness was due to food poisoning from the restaurant, when in fact the illness is likely from any number of sources other than the restaurant. If it turns out to be an isolated case, then one can likely conclude that the problem did not come from food poisoning from this restaurant. OTOH, if others report the same response and all had the same chicken for example, then the likelihood is much greater that the chicken in that particular restaurant is the source. My point was simply not to condemn that or any place based on such limited information. An accusation of food poisoning at a restaurant is quite serious. Raise the flag, but only by mentioning the co-incidental events and not drawing a conclusion one way or another without all the facts.

There have been a lot of bugs going around that are not necessarily from food poisoning. I wouldn't jump to any conclusions.

...a crisp-fried egg prepared in duck fat - perfect!