docsconz

Great report as usual, Therese. Like you, I find that recounting through photos and prose helps cement the experience in my mind and to give it perspective. It is fun reading others reports for additional perspective and insights. Yours are full of both.

I haven't had Aligot in the Auvergne, but I have had an absolutely wonderful example made by Chef Matthew Secich when he was at the Inn at Erlowest in upstate NY. They were awesome!

Where did Nathan go? Great report and pics as always, Eliot. The lamb looked particularly enticing, although those ravioli are one of the all-time great dishes!

What Mark said, although I would substitute Gorgonzola Dolce for the Fontina. Fresh sheep's mlk ricotta is right up there as well. I couldn't not include a nicely aged Provolone as well.

Orinarily that would have been a perfect amount of food as it was for my wife who I normally out-eat. Unfortunately, of all nights, I wasn't feeling quite up to par and my dining ability was hampered. That I did as well as I did was a testament to the food and the restaurant. The Tour at Alinea is stylistically similar to that at elBulli in terms of the interweaving of savory and sweet throughout the meal as well as blurring of the distinctions between the two. The style of the food itself, though is quite different.

I agree that there is nothing wrong with people not wanting to eat synthetic food and truffle oil should be labeled appropriately and accurately, however, mad cow disease has nothing to do with food being "synthetic." The food supply may have been manipulated by feeding cattle food that they do not normally eat (e.g. other cattle), but that still isn't synthetic. This of course, is not to downplay issues around BSE, but just to be accurate.

Somehow, "storage apples" sold at a Farmer's Market just doesn't cut it for me. I want homegrown, as-close-to-picked as possible. Isn't that the theory of a Farmers Market? ← These are home-grown and still reasonably fresh. If you don't want them, don't buy them, but they are within the rules. I recently bought some apples at my home farmers market that are still quite good. Its better than the growers going out of business or having to charge absurdly high prices when they are "just-picked" because that is the only time they can be sold.

The implication that I've read in this thread and find very interesting is that truffle oil tastes to good (or at least some of it) to be "fake". Why should that be the case? What Patterson was claiming is that the flavoring in truffle oil is a specific synthetic version of the chemical found in real truffles.mOne of the principle differences is that of stability. Frankly, I like the flavor of truffle oil when used in moderation and don't really care if it is real or fake so long as I'm not being hoodwinked and paying a premium for "real" when its not. Ther article makes sense to me even if it is not entirely definitive.

Hare Juice This modern dish incorporated all the savoriness that I believe a rabbit can muster. A gelee of slightly sweet fruit based broth was surrounded by a hot rabbit broth that was utterly delicious and full of umami with great balance of the different elements of taste. The dish had just been added to the menu that week and it may have been my absolute favorite of the night. Sesos de Cordero con su Jugo I left this title in the original Spanish as there may be a little pun involving the word seso and the visual representation of the dish, but I will leave it to see if others share my occasionally warped mind In any case this is a dish of lamb brains in its own juice. The brains are not served whole or in a recognizable fashion, but instead liquefied and served as a spherification. According to our Catalan friends lamb brains are a traditional food served to children and this brought back some childhood memories. Visually, I found the inclusion of the walnuts to be of interest as they resembled miniature brains on the plate. I enjoyed this dish. Wool 2007 I recall liking this dish, but alas, I don't recall specific details of it as my extreme satiety returned after devouring the sesos. Sweet Frost Fruits. The one in the photo is raspberry that had some vinegar added to it with an eyedropper. This was a frozen dish. Mandarin This was pure citrus in another guise - delicious and refreshing. My birthday "cake", this was a cleverly lit block of carved ice with a candle on it for me to make a wish. Morphings. These were all excellent, but the specifics bypassed my spent body. One wish that I had was that if I am fortunate enough to have a "next time" at elBulli my stomach will be in better shape to handle it. Despite the pitiful state of my stomach, I had a wonderful night spending it with great friends amongst the most creative culinary team on the planet in one of the most magical settings I know of. Unfortunately, we dared not linger too much longer as my wife and I had to drive back to Barcelona airport early the next morning for our flight home.

Alright, I'll stop with the cheese and move on to... Postres Cloris from Greek signifying the goddess of flowers and gardens. White chocolate ice cream with fresh and dried flowers that taste and smell of jasmine, violet and rose put on top of a crystalline blanket within which one sees flowers and herbs of the mountains. This dish was extremely floral and perfumey but not overly so - a fine emblem of the spring. Sisoe from Greek meaning braided hair. Cold soup of white chocolate, banana, pickled red ginger ice cream with droplets of red curry, covered by a gelee of gold with dark Venezuelan chocolate and sweet and crunchy crystals of spicy gold. Complex and a bit 'precious", but it worked. Denique from latin meaning the end. Little "handkerchiefs" of choco-micrifilm and gold, stuffed with two different forms of chocolate truffle. Chewy and tasty these were a fun way to finish an outstanding meal. In summary, the food, setting and style of this restaurant are unique and very enjoyable. I am quite happy that we included this on our itinerary as it was one of the best and most interesting meals of our trip. My Catalan friend called it the best meal that he has ever had and he has eaten at some of the best places in Catalunya and therefore the world including elBulli (2), Can Roca and Hispania with us and Sant Pau without us. While I enjoyed the meal very, very much, I do not share his ranking of the meals we have had together. This is not a restaurant that I would wish to frequent as great as this meal was. Much of its charm comes from the novelty, surprise and sense of pampering. Make no mistake - the food is delicious - but after a time the experience would not be the same and the sense of wonder here is one that should be preserved. That being said, I wouldn't mind the opportunity of visiting this restaurant once a season to experience the new delights envisioned by this master of the plate.

The question is how much will be bought up at these prices in Asia. where the Bordeaux market apparently has really taken off? It may be that England and the US are no longer the major market for these wines.

Its not the photographers, its the food stylists.

Oh come on, the chili lime butter is exquisite.

This restaurant is at the top of my list for when i return to Spain. In general, I think lunch is the way to go in Spain if one can do it logistically. I think that would be especially true at a place like this if one is staying in Bilbao or San Sebastien as the nighttime drive would probably be very difficult and stressful. Of course, if following Joe Gerard's recommendation, it might be a different story.

I'm not aware of Slow food physically maintaining any seed bank. Rather, I believe they support the preservation of biodiversity by supporting and calling attention to people and organizations that are working in the field to do just that. With their "Ark of Taste" they call attention to specific products and their Slow Food Award for the Preservation of Biodiversity honors those people doing yeoman's work in the field. I do believe that one of the best things the organization has done is focus attention on the topic and on specific products and producers.

That was a no lose situation as Hispania is excellent as well. If that was your only traditional meal then that was probably a wise choice as at least one traditional meal is necessary while in the area. Nevertheless, L'Esguard is one of the most unique and enjoyable restaurants I have ever visited.

Polenta Gnocchi I am afraid that my memory of this dish also got caught up and lost amongst the sheer quantity of dishes and my own gastric distress. I recall it as good, though it didn't stand out amongst the other dishes. Razor Clams in Escabeche My wife and I had grilled razor clams along with grilled sardines for lunch at Kiosk Universal in the Boqueria that afternoon. These were quite different. The razor clams at Universal were very tasty and good. These were incredibly tender and perfectly cooked. The accompanying escabeche was a tad on the bitter side, which worked with the sweetness of the clams. I would love another go at this dish on a normal stomach, but then the same is true for all the dishes I had that night. This was a take-off on classic Catalan cooking. Asparagus in Different Cooking Times. This dish was a treat for the entire table, but especially for my Catalan friends who were not used to having fresh cojonudos or large white asparagus. The majority of these vegetables are eaten after having been canned. Fresh ones of the quality we had here are apparently rare or quite expensive. These provided variations in flavor and texture and was a fascinating dish. The little yellow dots are treated egg yolk. Liquid Won Ton of Mushrooms This dish was stellar with bright, clean mushroom flavors. We had been at Petras in the Boqueria earlier, where Llorenc told us that someone from elBulli had recently left having purchased mushrooms for the restaurant. I imagine that these flavorful beauties were amongst them. Unfortunately, I do not know the name of the mushroom variety used. Spring Peas on Begonia Leaves with Almonds and Puree of ArtichokesThis was a special dish that I could not have appreciated nearly as much without my Catalan friends to put it into perspective. The peas were marvelous, local peas with an approximate two-week window of availability. They have a tremendous reputation locally as a premier seasonal delicacy and I can understand why. Espardenyes 2007 The first time I ever had espardenyes was at elBulli in 2005. I loved them then and I loved them now. Crab Marrakech The crabmeat was perfectly presented as whole muscle bundles. It was sweet and succulent, nicely balanced by the Moroccan spices. To this point, of the meal, there were plenty of technical elements in the cooking, but they were relatively muted and not in your face, especially after the initial snacks. With the following dishes the technical aspects once again became more apparent, but even so, the traditional bases of the dishes remained clear.

This is a fascinating discussion. I think that Slow Food is an important organization and does some very good things that I am happy to support even if I do not support everything that Carlo Petrini, the founder and main spokesperson of the organization says and does. Petrini clearly wants the goal of Slow Food available to the masses, but he can be a bit hypocritical as he enjoys and courts many of the same elements that he apparently disapproved of at The Ferry Plaza Market. I have no problem with that market. It is a prime market and operates by supply and demand receiving a premium by virtue of the quality and reputation of its farmers as well as its prime location. It is not representative of the bulk of the farmer's Markets in the US nor should it be, but it does benefit the other markets because it elevates the idea of shopping at said markets. Steven, I don't blame you for being insulted, but I would urge you to not throw the baby out with the bath water. Slow food USA is much different than Slow Food International for better or worse. That may be what Petrini was getting at as he sees a different attitude than his own.

I believe that we have reached an accord

that analogy works if you're asserting that Bruni is unfamiliar with pizza in Italy (something which I highly doubt). after all, pizza in Italy is usually cheese-less, sometimes tomato-less (though of course this varies widely by region and style). ← But Bruni is not the major food critic for an Italian newspaper, is he? He should be familiar with the best of what NYC has to offer. Perhaps at the beginning of his tenure, he could have received a pass on that, but how long has he been at this job now? Bruni did not have to directly compare the pizze at Mozza's directly to Patsy's or any other specific pizzeria, but he should be familiar with them. By his own admission on his blog he has never been to Patsy's. It makes me wonder what other NYC institutions he remains unfamiliar with. It makes it more difficult for him to relate to NYC, his principle feeding ground. Nathan, I also question your assertion that pizza in Italy is usually without cheese. Often I can accept. I'm not sure about usually.

Excellent analogy.

Cuarta Parte Cheese. Libentia from Latin indicating goodness and pleasure. Exposition and degustation of cheeses aged in their own cave. There is no excuse for leaving L'Esguard hungry. Even if one is not filled by the delights prior to the cheese course, the choice of whichever cheeses one cares to try from the cart should obliterate any lingering peckishness. The top shelf of the cart included cheeses from Spain with the lower level cheeses from France. Not being particularly hungry at this point, but being a glutton and faced with such an abundance of beautiful cheeses generally not available at this level of quality if at all in the US, I opted for the cheeses on the plate in the bottom photo. They were each magnificent. They are identified in the individual cheese photos.

Besides the reason Patsy's is even an issue on this topic is that in his blog, Bruni admitted that he hasn't ever tried their pizza. If he hasn't tried such a clear example of one of NYC's finest, what else hasn't he tried and how does that effect his frame of reference for anything? He doesn't necessarily need to review it, but he should be familiar with generally accepted NYC culinary institutions and their product, whether he travels to LA to review pizza or Moldavia to review whatever.

In the immortal words of Buckaroo Banzai: yes on one and no on two. Yea, they're making Neapolitan-style pizza at Mozza. At it's broadest definition, "Neapolitan-style" means individual-sized, thin crusted pizza with sparse (and largely traditional) toppings baked at high temperature in an Italian-style wood-fired oven. "new Neapolitan-style" takes the toppings concept in the direction of a Chez Panisse-inspired asthetic, with nontraditional but still impeccably fresh (local, seasonal) toppings -- a good example might be something like "spicy cauliflower." The pizza meny at Pizzeria Mozza seems fairly traditional, with a sprinkling of new Neapolitan-style offerings. I can only assume that Bruni has plentyenough experience in this area without going to Patsy's. Which brings me to... No, Patsy's East Harlem is not making Neapolitan-style pizza. They are making coal-fired NYC-style pizza. This is larger, has a crust that is made with hard flour instead of soft flour, has toppings that are not within either the old or new Neapolitan-styles (pepperoni and low-moisture mozzarella?), is baked in a coal-fired oven which imparts a more aggressive char, etc. Patsy's is not an appropriate frame of reference for someplace like Pizzeria Mozza, for the same reason that lots of people in NYC don't "get" pizzerie like Franny's and Fornino. I don't get that the Mozza article is connected to NY at all -- and I don't see any reason why it should be. If Bruni happened to take a jaunt out to Moldavia and wrote an article about a restaurant in Suceava in which Joe Bastianich was a partner, would he have to include a survey of all the Moldavian restaurants in Queens? The Mozza article is about something interesting that's happening in Los Angeles, and Bruni's expertise and understanding of this kind of pizza certainly seems to be miles ahead of many NYC critics (not to mention eG Forums participants) who kvetched about the prices, absence of Hormel pepperoni and lack of slices at Franny's. ← Sam, this is clearly a semantic issue. Patsy's is not a Neapolitan pizza, but it is Neapolitan style in that it is round , thin crusted with a base of tomato sauce and mozzarella cheese. This is as opposed to a Sicilian style pizza which is square, thick crusted, also with tomatoes and cheese, but often with onions as well. That is common and long-standing (since before I was born) NYC usage based on the history and lineage of those who came over and started making those pizzas in NY. That Patsy's is coal fired and not wood fired is but one of the things that distinguishes it from a true Neapolitan pizza and that was more of a function on fuel availability then anything else. As for why it is relevant, I have already addressed that.

I will reiterate that Patsy's is relevant not because Mozza's purports to be anything like it, but as a point of reference for his NY readership and for himself as one of the finest examples within the city that he covers.