fchrisgrimm

Corn dinners cancelled. And from the e-mail it sounds as if a large party held the event(s) hostage by saying if they couldn't have a group of 10 on Saturday (they reserved for 5 & 5) they would cancel. I hope those people don't read eG because I'm really annoyed. Shola has a very small business - a one man show. You can't monopolize the table and then threaten to cancel if you don't get your way. You didn't know there was a no cancellation policy? You pre-paid, you knucklehead(s). People are generally a-holes, no doubt about it. If there is another side of this story, I would love to hear it.

Was there Friday, had the Gourmand, and thought the meal was top-notch. Loved a trio of tomatoes. The lamb/sheep cheese tart/bean plate was as near perfect a single plate as it is possible to have. FWIW, I was dining solo and treated wonderfully - neither hurried nor ignored. I put it right there with J-G and Le Bernadin. I haven't been to Per Se, but I don't plan to go because of the price and because of a marginally disappointing dinner at French Laundry - not bad, mind you, but disappointing given the rep and the price. By that standard EMP is also a steal. What's not to like?

Saw that yesterday and promptly signed up for Friday. Though have to do this one solo.

We'll see you there! ← Excellent! Gotta start obsessing on wine soon!

Next round, October 2 & 3. We'll be there Saturday.

Schoolhouse is wonderful. Arguably the best restaurant in Connecticut at this point in time. We're there a half-dozen times a year. New American, farm-to-table cuisine. And a customer friendly corkage policy ($20/bottle). They tend to have five aps, five mains, and five desserts on the menu each night, which changes fairly frequently - though the main proteins vary little, but the way they are prepped changes. Not sure what else to say - it's a small but top-notch place. Like a miniature version of Blue Hill that is (for me) closer to home and a whole lot cheaper.

If you are only in Montreal for one night, APDC is the "must." We go once or twice a year for three nights, and always go to APDC and Joe Beef, trying to hit a new place for the third dinner. Can't help much for the New Britain area. IMHO, the best restaurant in Connecticut is now the Schoolhouse at Cannondale in Wilton. A couple of other nice New American options in different parts of the state are Still River Cafe, Firebox, Carole Peck's Good News Cafe. (That said, there is more than just New American in CT.)

FYI... The next round of Studio Kitchen Ideas in Food dinners is this coming weekend.

John - sorry to belatedly hear of the closing. Was only briefly in the upstate in the Fall - didn't hear the news until now (as I graze on eRobertParker more than eGullet now). Best of luck to both of you. I've had the fortune of eating the food of Robuchon, Keller, Ramsay, and Vongerichten, but my two favorite chefs are you and Racha Bassoul (from Montreal), who also closed Anise last year. I could just cry. Please send me the manuscript when you finish - I'll help any way that I can.

Glad the veal chop was good, and the building looks interesting, but I can't imagine looking for a stand-out meal in Derby.

(another bump) Definitely staying three nights in La Malbaie before heading to Monteal. Would love updated recommendations.

(Bump) Haven't even taken our summer trip to Montreal and are already considering a week betweemn Charlevoix and Montreal in the Fall. Anything new or interesting to report for Charlevoix?

Toqué! is fabulous (IMHO), but not unlike many "best place in town" kind of contemporary yet formal restaurants. I prefer (amongst comparable places) Vancouver's Lumiere, for instance. APDC is certainly a definitive local dining experience. Hard to recommend anything else, if you are looking for a place to have one meal in Montreal. We're returning to Montreal very shortly, and have our three dinner reservations at Bazaar Anise, APDC, and Joe Beef, for what it's worth.

Chris, depending on when you are going... Foie gras pizza is a great ap. The apple tart with foie gras is sublime. On one trip I did get the stuffed pigs foot, but it is huge. That said, I don't think I've ever not gotten pork.

Thanks for making the point, Special K, that seemed to be missed by a few others above you. Sitting here steaming, I wanted to say, "yeah, well, the Bialy Eaters is truly one of the most dreadful food books I've ever read, too" (which it really is), but you calmed me down. Poor Adrienne. A terrific and underappreciated talent.

Can't be trying to bury it, as they running an American version of Kitchen Disasters this year. Love the restaurant, love the show. But some of the contestants belong in a David Lee Roth video.

My favorite food book of all time, Real Barbecue, has been revised and will be released near 20 years after the original publication, later this summer. I've traveled with my dog-eared copy forever. I swear, the three contemporary books that have had the most influence on my life are Ball Four, Deliverance, and Real Barbecue! For those who haven't seen it, the book's a guide to 100 BBQ joints nationwide - more or less Jane & Michael Stern style. FULL DISCLOSURE - I've worked in publishing most of my professional career and was somewhat instrumental in the book's impending return. But I'm here to tell you that books like this are why I'm in the business and that I can help to bring this jem back gives me an immense degree of pleasure. Would love to hear other's thoughts on this long out-of-print classic. I once heard John Martin Taylor say he had a big backlog of names trying to get the old edition (from which a third of the restaurants had closed). Mine's stuffed full of menus, notes, and ephemera.

No website that I know of. Coppia is east of Downtown Fairfield. If you are headed east on Post Road out of Fairfield, they are on the right, just past Mo's Wine & Spirits in a tiny brick plaza/office building that also houses a sports bar and a USTA office. Between Downtown Fairfield and Black Rock. Coppia, 937 Post Rd., Fairfield, CT, 203.254.7519

This was what it had said... Anise a cinq ans! Cinq ans de saveurs, de plaisirs et de magnifiques souvenirs en cuisine, dans la salle et avec nos convives. Anise vous fait ses adieux! Pour célébrer cet anniversaire, faire ses adieux et faire honneur à tous ceux qui l'ont supportée durant ces années, la chef Racha Bassoul vous propose la Grande Finale: Un dernier voyage sur La route des épices avec François Chartier dans le cadre du festival Montréal en lumière Les 22, 23, 24, 27, 28 février et 2 et 3 mars 2007

In this morning's e-mail... Racha Bassoul is pleased to announce the opening of... BAZaAR Anise ... whenever you feel like eating out ============================================== BAZaAR Anise Here's the link to the menu.

Coppia Fairfield update. Tuesdays and Wednesdays at Coppia are now BYO, with a $5 corkage charge. There isn't a better BYO opportunity that I can think of in Lower Fairfield County.

This is our fourth year in a CSA - Fort Hill Farm, New Milford, CT. We met up with them via a local Farmer's Market at which they sell. I was hooked by their greens (specifically the tatsoi) which are about the best ever! First year the available delivery was a little out of the way, but as they have grown they've added drop-sites that are closer to us. Not cheap - and for two, it is a little more than we can easily use - but you can't beat the opportunity for fresh, organic, and local. And we use a higher percentage of our weekly box contents each year! A lot of good reasons to do this - but we'd have never first signed up if not for the high quality.

It has been a while since I have been to either JL or TH - I probably owe both revisits. Why bother with La Paella with Meigas so close? It's half the money, that's why! I obviously love Meigas, but La Paella is the better PQR, and one of my favorite restaurants. I've eaten at the Ridgefield Thali once for lunch. While the food was good, it is just not the same as either of the others. And the location is no fun. (I believe it has an abreviated menu, too.) NC & NH are simply better experiences - they are both beautiful places while the Ridgefield branch is, literally, a motel restaurant. While not in the County (and while I have admittedly not been back to either since the beginning of the year), I'm quite fond of Carole Peck's Good News Cafe and, in Westchester, the amazing Blue Hill at Stone Barns - both reasonable trips for Fairfield County residents.

Had the opportunity to visit Robuchon at the Mansion while on busines in LV a few weeks ago. In for a penny, in for a pound, so I opted for the 47 course, er, make that 13 course dinner. The short version of the menu... La Sangria Le Caviar La Langoustine La Truffle L'Oursin L'Amadai Le Bar Les Legumes Le Boeuf de Kobe L'Epeautre Le Punch Pom.Pom.Pom Le Cafe ou le Cafe (and le Bread to go, I suppose) And a variety of thoughts on the food (sorry, no pix)... Started with a vanload of bread - too many choices and I suppose I most enjoyed the milk bread. The bacon bread was fun. The rosemary bread was nice. the three caviars were fab - especially loved the asparagus perfumed flan with caviar and the cauliflower jelly with. The truffled langoustine ravioli with stewed cabbage was sublime. I loved the mini truffle tarte with carmelized onions. Maybe my favorite bite of the meal, until I had... the sea urchin in potato puree with a hint of coffee. wow was that good - though I don't recall tasting the coffee. loved it. everything about it. Now up to this point (I hadn't noticed until later dishes) everything was very good, and immaculately prepared, but rather neutral in style because the emphasis was on some serious ingredients that didn't need to be overwhelmed (the caviar, the truffles, the sea urchin). At this point, the meal took a serious left turn. The amadai was cooked with scales on - after a bit of doubt, I ate the skin too and found the tiny fried scales to be like breadcrumbs. I still don't know if I was just supposed to leave the skin in the bowl, but the fish, served in a 'lily bulb broth' was tasty. And crunchy. The sea bass with five spices and verjus sauce was another seriously bright dish, really waking up the taste buds after the early fabulous but subdued dishes. The root vegetables and beans, served solo, were amazing - and forced one to think of vegetables as a stand-alone dish, rather than an accompaniment. The kobe beef, with watercress tempura and horseradish mustard was succulent and wonderful. Farrow, prepared like risotto, except with gold leaf, was another dish (like the veg) that made you think. Great stuff. The rum punch sorbet was refreshing. The apple dessert (with vanilla and caramel) was the least inspiring dish of the night - but certainly not bad. The chocolates were fine - though I tend to dig through for the jellied fruit - and the bread for breakfast to go is a fun touch. I drank a split of white burg, and glasses of burg and bordeaix throughout. What can I say - the food was (not surprisingly) spectacular. Immaculate preparation. Mindful, unrushed service. And a really beautiful room for in the middle of the MGM Grand. (When I die, I don't know if there's a heaven and I don't know if I'll be invited - but if there is a heaven and I get it, I kinda hope heaven is like the MGM Grand.) It's hard to judge a place like this on its merits. First, their is the baggage of the expectations because of Robuchon. You expect a perfect meal. Then there is the price - that would also suggest a perfect meal. Was it my favorite meal I've ever had? No. My favorite restaurant I've ever eaten in? No. The best? Well, yes and no. One thing I have to say is at least you know where the money goes. Into the beautiful room (at least indirectly) and to the big staff (for what is a really small place). And the ingredients are basically unmatchable. I guess I'd say that I loved being able to eat a remarkably well prepared meal made with these spectacular ingredients. That's where my money went. And the progression of the menu was something to behold and, I like to believe, a reflection of Robuchon's genius. Would I have enjoyed sinking the same amount of money into a meal of these ingredients made by one of my favorite chefs? Gordon Ramsay or Racha Bassoul? Sure! But I don't have that opportunity. The service was like a good umpiring crew - keeping things moving without being obtrusive or rushed. They were so nice with this solo diner that as I was about to leave, when I asked for a glass of water, they brought be a new bottle, gratis, and I was grateful. Here, I'd just spent a forture on dinner and wanted to apologize for accepting a free, what, $2 bottle of Pellegrino, because they had all been so nice to me. I guess that is good service! Would I go again? Probably not. Have I urged my friends who do happen to be blessed with the means to afford this kind of splurge to go have dinner at the Mansion - you bet.

It is certainly broadly within the 'New French' category, but immaculately prepared and served by a sharp staff, in a classy surrounding. When I ate at the Royal Hospital Road location, I thought the food was remarkable - will always remember Leslie describing her foie dish as looking like a small woodland portrait. I guess you need to eat his food to understand his food. But as I've said elsewhere on the site (to the consternation of others) I ate at Ramsay and French Laundry with months of eachother, and Ramsay was unquestionably the better of the two. I guess the food at FL is more creative if one's standard is complicated pilings. But who gives a rip? "Thousands of Chefs"? Eat his food before you say that! Of course the man has had impact - he's taken London food beyond even White. Maybe not Fergus Henderson impact (because of his culinary direction) - but certainly impact, if only for the quality. The vile temper is (to a degree) played up for television - and the (US) television, he even says in the article, is to help build his name for growing his restaurants. If he was that bad, his people wouldn't keep following him. Ramsay will be fine - and while I haven't been to Ramsay at the London, my partner (who dined with me at his eponymous London restaurant) has been there a good five times since it opened and says it is splendid. Grrr.