cabrales

Adam -- Skortha alerted me to a book called "Medieval Arab Cookery" by Maxime Rodison, A.J. Arberry, Charles Perry, Claudia Roden. Not that I know what this means, but the book contains A.J. Arberry's translation of "A Baghdad Cookery Book" ("kitab al-Tibakhah", a 15th century cookbook). Is this one of the books you are reading? http://www.kal69.dial.pipex.com/isbn912.htm http://www.geocities.com/qilich/articles/html/bookreview.htm (scroll down)

Adam -- Thanks for your quick response. I won't be able to make the event tonight because I have dinner plans (restaurant currently unknown by me!). Also, Oxford is a bit far given my working hours. Maybe next time

Adam -- What day is the Chambertin vertical you mentioned, and, if a weekday, is it available for new customers and held after 6:30 p.m. at night?

I wonder what updates there are on caviar, which, unlike shark's fin and whale meat, is also consumed in non-Asian countries?

Out of curiosity, what is the general range of dates members are contemplating for the NY dinner?

stellabella -- When you have a chance, please consider discussing briefly what other "unusual" meats might be available in the Andes. If you do not have the information readily on hand, please do not pursue it.

I wholeheartedly agree that L'Astrance is an "emerging grand restaurant". It's already a great restaurant in my assessment. Separately, I wonder how accurate, in hindsight, G-M has been in according this label to budding restaurants in the past.

Bux -- I had problems with the search functions for restaurants on the G-M site. There's a summary page from G-M from which I extracted the L'Astrance information. http://www.gaultmillau.fr/nframe.cfm?ctx=actualite (Please choose "Palmares" arrow, and scroll down) On Nicolas Le Bec, G-M is gushing. Here are excerpts: "Like in 1981, when [various people arriving in Lyons' train station by TGV] discovered the speeds with which they could arrive to have lunch at Bocuse and to be able to say one day 'I was there.' This time, it's for young Nicolas Le Bec that they are making the journey. . . . He's a real creator (changing his menu every month), who isn't afraid to embrace 'terroir' products and lyonnaise cuisine, without relegating himself to pike 'quenelle' specialties and hot sausage. . . ." Note that, even last year, L'Astrance was beginning to receive the favorable review from G-M that it deserves. G-M indicated, among other things, that L'Astrance was making Paris "blush with pleasure".

Danielle -- I also prefer Michelin to G-M, although I have made use of both, as well as, for restaurants in France, (1) French websites (including those for persons in the restuarant industry as well as guide-type sites and restaurants' own websites), (2) Saveurs, Gault-Millau Magazine, Le Figaro and other French language magazines and newspapers, and (3) funnily, for new restaurants, the "Where" monthly magazine that one can find at many hotels. I collect out-of-print books on the history of French restaurants in France, and can get a limited number of ideas there. Also, for new restaurants, I rely a bit on where the budding chef has worked before (paying particular attention to the attainment of sous-chef positions, as chef de partie or lower positions are difficult to rely on). For three and two star restaurants, I place significant reliance on Michelin with respect to a first visit. After that, I rely on my own assessments of the meal.

Mao -- Was that for two or per person, if you don't mind my asking?

Margaret -- Thanks for the heads-up. I went onto the Website, and the link below summarizes top G-M assessments (with + signs presumably denoting upward changes?). http://www.gaultmillau.fr/nframe.cfm?ctx=actualite (Click on arrow denoted "Toques et Notes"; also note that the site can't even spell Roellinger's name correctly) For me, more than 1/2 of the restaurants rated "19" do not deserve that rating (including Gagnaire and Georges Blanc). Note Nicolas Le Bec of Les Loges at Lyons was selected as chef of the year. That Le Bec, a relative unknown in my book, was so selected does not instill particular confidence in G-M assessments. Which members have even dined at Les Loges, let alone left there with memorable dining experiences? Here's a translation of what G-M indicates about L'Astrance, which is justifiably rewarded with a 16: "A shockwave . . . has spread throughout [Paris]: in an area that is chic for cafe-style establishments, a rebellious young man allows himself to offer an haute cuisine at the price levels of brasseries. The laboratory was created on Beethoven Street, and a grand revolution was set in motion with this inventor-explorer, associated with his former accomplice at L'Arepge, Christophe Roy [this is another example of G-M clumsiness, as the last name is Rohat]. At 29 years old, Barbot's success has certain Robuchon-like qualities: 25 seats for lunch, 25 seats for dinner, and a one-month reservation policy; diligence and determination; a team that is young and quiet. A play by Paris on Paris, its stock is already very high."

I second Steven's recommendation of Sun Sui Wah. In addition to dim sum, tasty items there include: (1) squab -- simply roasted, with crispy skin, and served with traditional accompaniments of a flavored salt (this is the item on which the restaurant gained its reputation), and (2) when available, Alaska King Crab. One crab is large, and probably requires 4+ diners. However, it can be offered in two services with different preparation methods. The crab is usually not the least expensive price-wise, but reliable. For dim sum in Vancouver, I would also recommend Kirin in a large mall on Cambie St. (beware, there might be two Kirins). The lines are significant on weekends, though. Other observations on Vancouver's Richmond area follow. There are several large Japanese supermarkets (including Yohan, sic), as well as Chinese markets. Certain large Asian shopping malls in Richmond have decent food courts, featuring 20-40 stalls with all sorts of Asian cuisine possibilties at very low prices. Richmond is very close to the Vancouver airport, and could be the location selected for a quick meal if one is driving to Whistler or to Vancouver Island.

I couldn't agree more with magnolia's observation. This past weekend, it was raining to some extent in Paris, but that didn't bother me one bit. I looked around, and Paris was even more poetic than normal with the pitter-patter and grey bleakness associated with rain -- and the little puddles forming on some cobblestoned areas. After a short while, the grey didn't even seem bleak -- it seemed subtle and nuanced and expressive, and an appropriate backdrop to the barren limbs of the trees lining certain similarly pale-toned waterways and streets. When the raindrops touched my face, they felt vibrant and different. And that's even before we get to Paris' restaurants ....

Bux -- I can see how Hiramatsu's aspirations could be higher than one star over the long run. First, Chef Hiramatsu is presumably cooking there 50% of the time. Second, the restaurant does use more expensive produce -- a predicate for the two-star climb. Witness, one or more of truffles, foie gras and caviar are components of a number of dishes on the menu. http://www.hiramatsu.co.jp/lang_french/carte.html Dorie -- While cod is not one of my preferred fish varieties, the Cabillaud cuit minute, truffé aux fèves (slightly cooked cod, truffled with broad beans) seemed to have large slices of black truffles plastered onto the side and top of the fish serving. It might be an interesting dish, if you have several people to sample it and do not have to choose the cod at the expense of other entrees that may be more interesting to you from the menu description. I believe much can be gleaned from a restaurant's menu, both in terms of the items that are included and in the way they are described (unless one is confronting Gagnairian-type convoluted descriptions and cuisine). That is part of why I collect menus. The menu description further spurred my interest in Hiramatsu prior to taking a meal there. (By the way, the use of expensive ingredients dove-tailed with my wondering about how an 18-seat restaurant can have rewarding economics, but the responses to both questions are somewhat clear now. A good point was made in another thread about how there might be economic benefits inuring to Hiramatsu's restaurants in Japan from Hiramatsu's having earned a star in Paris. While that might very well be the case, my take is that Hiramatsu launched in Paris for personal/professional gratification.) The restaurant utilizes Brittany lobster (Homard Breton rôti aux pousses d'épinards et son beurre aux fines herbes; Roasted Brittany lobster with spinach shoots and a butter of fine herbs). The bass I had was line-caught. The rabbit is described as young rabbit (lapereau) from a farm (Râble de lapereau fermier braisé aux truffes; saddle/back of free-range young rabbit braised with truffles.) There is currently no chicken dish on the menu; if there were, it would be Bresse or something even more specialized. The scallops are flanked by asparagus (Coquilles Saint-Jacques poêlées au beurre de champagne, croquant d'asperges fries; pan-fried scallops with champagne butter and crunchy asparagus fries?). The little vegetables in the John Dory and aubergine pasta dish are carefully noted to be from Provence. The spinach accompanying the lobster is not just spinach, it's spinach shoots. It's heart of lettuce (and romaine lettuce, to be clear) that accompanies the turbot (Turbot poêlé à l'orange, cœur de romaine au thym, gaspacho vert moutardé; pan-fried turbot with orange, heart of romaine lettuce with thyme, a green gaspacho with mustard). Note the listing of the seasoning (like thyme) for non-principal ingredients in a dish (like the lettuce, presumably) is another sign of ambition or pretension, depending on how a diner looks at it. Steven S -- Please don't remark (with partial accuracy only, as intentions may be indicative of the trend of the restaurant) in a post that Hiramatsu's motivations with respect to coming to Paris are not germane to the quality of his cuisine!

There might have been a coffee salon at the Carousel du Louvre in Paris this past weekend too. Did any members have the chance to attend? (Bux, I know I should be starting new threads, but the coffee salon does not seem important enough and might have ended and/or be ending shortly. Also, the reason I don't always start threads is that new threads should presumably herald important topics.)

On a more popular meat like chicken, while one could imagine the esoteric diseases any given specimen could conceivably carry, one has confidence that the typical range of disease exposures (e.g., samonella) is acceptable. On guinea pig, I doubt we collectivley know what the "typical" range of exposures might be. This brings to mind that poisonous fish in Japan (about which there is a description by A Bourdain in his book). People know what the "typical" range of exposures (including death if preparation has been faulty) might be.

Wilfrid -- Even at a restaurant, how would one know that a small restaurant would have taken care on health issues? Or perhaps one would rely on the sampling of the item by other diners, who have not had serious health complications entailing reporting of the restaurant to regulatory authorities? I have wondered whether diners report cockroach problems, for example, to the authorities. And on the conversation with the vet, it might go as follows, hypothetically, of course: "This guinea pigs looks pretty normal, even though, to my horror, my cat has been interested in having it for dinner! I wonder if this species could carry bacteria that, for example, might be harmful to cats?! [Vet says no, but keep the two pets separate.] So I guess guinea pig don't carry bacteria?" Later: "What diseases could my guinea pig become subjected to? Are any of them transmittable to humans who come in contact with them? Are innoculations necessary, or have they already been provided by the typical pet store?" In my mind, the health risks associated with pet store possibilities appear insurmountable, though.

Bux -- I'm prepared to say that the food at Hiramatsu is markedly less creative than that at L'Astrance (in a relative sense), without any negative connotations with respect to the absolute (i.e., non-comparative) level at Hiramatsu. But I have to add that, for me, the food at L'Astrance is decidely French (in the most fabulous sense), even though creative. With respect to decor, L'Astrance has, for me, wonderful decor. The yellow and orange suede seating at L'Astrance against a graphite grey textured set of walls is more to my personal liking than the decor at Hiramatsu. Hirmatsu was brighter in its use of lighting. On wine, I don't need to know there are so many years for LaTour unless I'm ordering that type of wine. At L'Astrance, the wine list is beautifully crafted with care, and while not exhibiting the monetary investment associated with a family of restaurants in Japan, is appropriate for the cuisine and offers many good buys Also, a Japanese-ethnicity chef entering Paris' restaurant landscape would tread carefully, I would imagine. It's a fine line between trying to establish oneself for one's own dishes, and being faulted for being pretentious and for telling the French what is French food. In this respect, Hiramatsu is particularly interesting. Unlike Jean-George's Market, it launched as a restaurant aspiring to produce French haute cuisine. Even the Pourcels' Maison Blanche was arguaby not as obviously seeking a first star in the way that everything about Hiramatsu (including the cuisine) makes clear. For example, what one star restaurant (except for demoted establishments) is there in Paris that has Christofle cutlery? (I don't know the answer to this question; it's not rhetorical.) Another example: I have never had a one-star, non-hotel restaurant in Paris have personnel come to receive me at my cab. Granted, it was raining and the street on which Hiramatsu is located is a small one where there is less other traffic. Also, some restaurants are not located curb-side. However, the restaurant has all the right "Michelin" touches for a restaurant at the one-star level.

Wilfrid -- Equally importantly, I wonder if there are health issues associated with pet shop guinea pig. For example, could they carry bacteria or have received innoculations? I raise this because, as you know, certain animals are sometimes available in Asia for intake, and I have frequently refused on the grounds of concern about health consequences. I would imagine that, if a person were to undertake a self-help remedy with respect to guinea pig, that the animal would ideally be kept around for a while so that the diner could see if the animal was behaving normally and disease-free. Presumably, one would have to take one's animal to a vet for independent health inspection as well. And to reduce the risk of contaminated flesh, a further measure might be to buy a male and female guinea pig, wait until they breed and consider the result, no?! All the above being hypothetical of course.

I have no leads on sampling guinea pigs at restaurants, and, like Wilfrid, would appreciate information from other members. However, it occurred to me that, leaving aside my inability to cook, and speaking only hypothetically, guinea pig could be sampled at home. Presumably, the item could be sampled in multiple services, including cooked in its own fat. I am not going to suggest that Wilfrid, though, undertake any greater cooking responsibilities than is currently the case! And apologies in advance to members who think the described thought is disgusting, or who have guinea pigs as pets. The described thought also led me to wonder what the different roles for restaurants might be, historically and today. For example, are there foods that one would eat at a restaurant that one might have disutility from preparing because one thinks the process is distasteful (like either looking at the teeth of guinea pig or having to remove them oneself)?

For members interested in the materials mentioned by Steven, see "The long road to eGullet" under "Member Bios" (p. 1). One question I have wondered about is whether one can tell a chef is a woman from her cuisine. For example, have members been to Pic in Valence since Anne-Sophie Pic took over? And are male and female diners' experiences modified by Annisa, with a female maitre d' as well?

Steven -- If you are comfortable discussing it, why precisely are you so curious about this aspect of G Savoy as a person? Were you interested in the fact that Scottha Khunn, sic, is from Cambodia, and did you discern any Asian aspects to his cooking at Le Cirque?

stellabella -- Please consider discussing the size of the guinea pigs you had. If they're as small as the ones normally kept as pets in the US, I wonder why they would be raised for purposes of their meat, unless they were particularly tasty. Also, did you sample the head portion (since you mentioned calf's heads in another post) and the tail (do guinea pigs have tails?)?

Marc -- I'm glad that you didn't help out on my indirect inquiries. And G Savoy was incredibly nice to us, as Steve P's upcoming post on the dinner will illustrate! I should add that G Savoy appeared to be basking in happiness. It might have been particularly nice for the chef (if he had had time to think about it) that our dinner was so soon (less than two weeks) after the Michelin announcement, and Steve P (and likely most of the diners who were there Saturday night) had made their reservations significantly in advance of the announcement.

Steven -- I agree that the breaking of barriers by members of minorities (including women as Michelin-starred chefs in France, by the way) is commendable, and noteworthy. It's not that Jackie Robinson's race is irrelevant, it's the bluntness of asking the question in a context in which it might be misinterpreted by the responding party, whose day it should be. I am not saying that whether G Savoy is Jewish is irrelevant; I am saying that, in many contexts, a diner's direct question might not have been the best thing when the chef's perceptions are taken into account. I am saying that, for me, I am glad I asked no direct questions and, in hindsight, I regret having even made the attempt. I am not upset at myself; I would merely have done things differently. Imagine you are G Savoy; you have cooked an elaborate dinner for eight people, showing great accommodation as the party sought an all-truffle menu, but not the all-truffle tasting menu you have listed. You have given the meal your best shot by offering many added dishes, greeting the group upon arrival and several times thereafter, having your maitre d' offer good amounts of truffle shavings with respect to relevant dishes, gifting the group a large veal shank and all sorts of things. Suddenly, a diner asks what your religious affiliation/origin is. If you were G Savoy, would that affect your perception of how meaningful your meal had been to the diners?! Note my prior post focused on what it is appropriate to discuss with the chef. If your curiosity spurs you to collect information about G Savoy's religious affiliation in other ways, that at least would not have the potentially negative effects described.