jeffj

Thanks Doc for this wonderful thread. It's a true labor of love and it's much appreciated. I’ll be visiting India this fall and I can only hope that my journey is half as fulfilling as yours.

Photos from last night's Passard dinner are here: http://www.finediningphotos.com/meal.php?mid=37 -j

It was a good year...a lot of absolutely fantastic meals ended up below the top 10: 1. Pierre Gagnaire, Paris, 11/20/05 2. Joel Robuchon at the Mansion, Las Vegas, 12/27/05 3. The French Laundry, Yountville, 08/21/05 4. L'Arpege, Paris, 11/21/05 5. L'Atelier de Joel Robuchon, Las Vegas, 12/28/05 6. Le Meurice, Paris, 11/23/05 7. The French Laundry, Yountville, 12/11/05 8. The French Laundry, Yountville, 06/04/05 9. L'Ambroisie, Paris, 11/22/05 10. Urasawa, Beverly Hills, 04/01/05

I agree...I've made this recipe several times (it's quite easy and flavorwise it turns out just like in the restaurant.) I originally purchased cornet molds over the Internet but I've found that they're more hassle than they're worth. Just make disks or cups (using a muffin tin) and you'll save yourself a lot of effort.

Yes, there were a few specials for the day that were not listed on the menu including the partridge which I ordered. L'Ambroisie is one of the best 3-star values in my opinion so 400 euros would be more than enough (we were closer to 300/person)

I did, though lighting was on the dim side...I'll try and get them posted once I have some time to process them through Photoshop. -j

Because the restaurant doesn't have a website, it's often difficult to get up-to-date information on L'Ambroisie. So, for those who are interested, I thought I'd post the current menu (as of a week and a half ago):

Doc and Molto, that truly is food porn...some of the best photographic coverage I've ever seen. Great work and thank you so much for sharing!!!

First, the pictures. Yellow Truffle did an outstanding job of capturing the overall essence of each dish, so I will slant the content of my photos with the purpose of providing a closer look: SOUR CREAM smoked salmon, sorrel, star anise DUNGENESS CRAB raw parsnip, young coconut, cashews HEART OF PALM in five sections ASPARAGUS caramelized dairy, egg, bonito TURBOT shellfish, waterchestnuts, hyacinth vapor EGGPLANT cobia, crystalline florettes, radish pods FROG LEGS spring lettuces, paprika, morels BEEF flavors of A-1 HAZELNUT PUREE capsule of savory granola, curry PROSCIUTTO passionfruit, zuta levana FINGER LIMES olive oil, dissolving eucalyptus MELON gelled rose water, horseradish ENGLISH PEAS frozen lemon, yogurt, shiso FOIE GRAS rhubarb, sweet onion, walnut BROCCOLI STEM grapefruit, wild steelhead roe SNAPPER yuba, heavily toasted sesame, cucumber LAMB NECK sunflower seeds, kola nut, porcinis ARTICHOKE fonds d’artichauts cussy #3970 BISON beets, blueberries, smoking cinnamon PINEAPPLE angelica leaf, Iranian pistachios SASSAFRAS CREAM encapsulated in mandarin ice STRAWBERRIES argan, lemon verbena LIQUID CHOCOLATE milk, black licorice, banana SPONGE CAKE tonka bean, vanilla fragrance It would be impossible for me to describe every dish in gory detail so I will present you with some high level thoughts that I have after dining at Alinea. The physical design of the restaurant is outstanding...one of the most enjoyable spaces I’ve dined in. As you enter on the ground floor, you proceed down a long hall that harkens to a contemporary rendition on Frank Lloyd Wright’s use of confined entry spaces to help narrow your focus as you enter a large room. As you head down the hall, you are sealed off from all noise and activity…at the end of the hall, a solitary metallic sculpture bristles, creating a perplexing noise which draws you down the hallway. As you come to the end, you discover a set of doors to your left that suddenly slide open to reveal the heart of the restaurant. The receptionist greeted us, quite impressively, by name. After meeting Nick, visiting with Grant, and taking a quick tour of the kitchen, we proceeded upstairs to the dining level. The long and narrow building is broken up into a series of small dining rooms. Most impressive is the generous space between tables. While enjoying this space I couldn’t help but be thankful that we weren’t packed in like sardines as is the case of the similarly shaped Charlie Trotter’s. Almost equally as impressive were the chairs. These things were incredibly comfortable (and that’s a definite requirement when you sit down to a 7.5+ meal.) All of this is important to note because it illustrates an attention to detail that is rather impressive. The team has definitely utilized the nine months of down time to design this restaurant not just in a physical sense but also in a more robust conceptual sense. I get the feeling that not a single piece of service ware, paint color, or floral arrangement was chosen without first considering how it fits into the larger picture. A perfect example is the ginger sculpture that soon arrives to your table. Why put a flower arrangement down when you can use food as art? It provides a pleasant smell and is pleasing to look at but more interestingly, later on it becomes part of your meal (used on the Beef course.) Looking at established concepts in a new manner is really what Alinea is all about. Any discussion about Achatz’s food must first be put into proper perspective. The style of cuisine that he’s developed relies heavily on the interrelation and progression of a series of flavors. Unlike the cuisine at more traditional restaurants where one typically evaluates each dish as a separate entity, when dining at Alinea one must continually keep in mind that each dish’s juxtaposition is quite important in order to understand it’s role and objectives. The resulting meal (in its entirety) is what Alinea’s statement is all about. The meal begins with Achatz’s take on PB&J. It’s an interesting start to the meal...I get the feeling that the purpose of this dish is to ease the diner into the meal by presenting a universally understood (at least in this country) concept. The dish’s concept is so innately easy to grasp that even the most timid diner will be able to make a connection and understand what the restaurant’s vision is (examining established concepts in a new manner.) How’d it taste? Well, as one might imagine, it tastes like a well-refined, gourmet PB&J sandwich. The real interest is in the texture of the grape (which has been peeled and left on the vine.) Warm and gooey, the grape melts in your mouth, enveloping the other flavors into a unified whole. Presenting contrasting textures to create interest is another favorite device that Achatz utilizes. The asparagus dish illustrates this quite well. You’ve got various elements providing at least six different textures: crispy fried egg whites (think, the outer edges of a regular fried egg); a soft, thin film of egg yolk; the crunchy grit of caramelized dairy; a slippery noodle shaped gelee of egg white; a creamy sauce of some sort; and the firm texture of the asparagus itself. Flavor-wise, you’re essentially tasting asparagus, egg, and a smoky accent from the bonito. But all of this is coming at you from a large assortment of textures…it’s a real trip. I’d like to discuss the broccoli stem dish. Many people might wonder why Achatz would go to the trouble of serving what has been referred to as the offal of the vegetable world. I’m really curious why people would have a difficult time embracing this concept. Regardless, in order to fully appreciate this dish you need to experience the mouth-feel of a perfectly tender broccoli stem. What I’d previously thought was a tough, fibrous part of the broccoli plant was anything but that in this dish. The real reason to explore the stem is the fact that it provides a very delicate broccoli flavor in a uniformly tender texture. Broccoli’s more well regarded portion, the floret, is simply not going to provide you with the same delicate flavor, nor the same mouth-feel. Remarkably, what Achatz has done with this dish is taken the lowliest portion of the plant and cooked it in such a way that it exudes refinement and nobility. Add a paper thin wrapping of bread for some richness and textural contrast, a mound of broccoli puree for added intensity of flavor, grapefruit in 3 different forms for some contrasting bitterness, and a few precious pearls of steelehead roe for a wonderful earthy, brininess and you have a completely satisfying dish. To me, what Achatz has done with this dish is quite representative of what all chefs should strive for. Taking what is considered often considered mundane and transforming it into something that tastes luxurious is a skill few chefs can claim. So, why bother with a broccoli stem? The answer lies in the fact that any chef can throw a slice of foie gras or truffle on a plate and have a good shot at satisfying the diner. But taking on the challenge of doing the same with a broccoli stem forces us to think more about what the limits of food are and how we can approach cooking in a way that maximizes the potential of each and every ingredient. Of the 10 courses designated as “small bites”, the Escoffier inspired Artichoke dish was the most instantly rewarding. Served in what was described as the “anti-plate” (a plate with no bottom) this small sphere showcased a deliciously warm, deep fried crispy exterior surrounding a firm yet rich artichoke heart that was filled with, if I recall correctly, foie gras and truffle. (for full disclosure, I need to let you all know that I did not take detailed notes so please accept my apologies ahead of time for any mistakes in this post…and after enjoying a meal that featured 20 different wines, there will undoubtedly be a few lapses in my memory :D ) As you might imagine, popping this in your mouth and biting down released an immediate richness that was incredibly gratifying to my palette. A lot of people have been curious about the Beef Flavors of A-1 dish. Essentially the dish attempts to deconstruct A-1 sauce to some of its core flavors and present them in various forms on the plate. Not having grown up eating A-1 sauce, I can’t be a great judge as to whether this dish successfully pulled that off. But I want to touch upon another aspect. Even the most inventive concepts are rendered worthless if basic execution is not upheld. In this case, the piece of beef on this plate was one of the most incredible specimens of red meat I’ve ever indulged in. First, cooked en sous vide, this meat had an incredibly tender texture which retained plenty of juices. The second step of grilling the meat, imparted a tremendously intense charred flavor and aroma which had no hint of bitterness or over-grilling. It was truly the best of both worlds and is a great example of a perfectly treated piece of meat. So, here’s where Achatz’s outstanding level of execution plays such a tremendous role in a dish’s success…even though I can’t relate to the A-1 concept, the quality of preparation made this one of my most favorite and memorable dishes of the evening. Besides, any dish that includes potato fried in rendered beef fat cannot help but be good. :D Continuing with this issue of execution, I find it incredible that I cannot classify any of the dishes as failures. Each and every one of them was soundly structured, well thought out, and executed to a high degree. Sure, my palette would have lead me to increase the onion flavor and reduce the sweetness of the Foie Gras dish as well as reduce the number of sunflower seeds in the Lamb Neck dish. But these are my personal preferences and are not indicative of a failed dish. What brought the success of Alinea’s menu more into focus was the fact that the following evening we dined at Moto. Moto’s Chef Cantu should be highly commended for also taking on the challenge of exploring food through a new set of glasses (albeit in a significantly different way than Achatz). However, I would classify nearly a third of the dishes I had at Moto as, at the very least, significantly flawed. (factors included improper proportions, basic salting issues, unclear concepts, and monotonous flavor profiles.) Since the validity of a chef’s culinary “statement” hinges primarily on whether the food was even prepared correctly in the first place, it is gratifying to see the lengths that Achatz has gone to refine and perfect each and every dish on his menu. It will be interesting to watch how other people interpret Alinea in the coming weeks. Speaking with Chef Achatz after the meal, he indicated that they are still working on finding the proper portion sizes for The Tour menu. I have to say that after 28 courses of food and 20 different wines, I was absolutely stuffed by the end of our 7.5 hours...more so than any other meal I can remember. Fortunately, I would much rather be served an abundance of food (which I can decline should I see fit) than end up leaving the restaurant still hungry (which has happened to us at other restaurants several times in the last year.) To their credit, Alinea will customize your meal on the fly, pairing it down should you become too satiated. Also, their wine pairing is quite flexible. If you find yourself at your limit of alcoholic consumption, you can let them know and they will end your wine service and charge you only for the wines you consumed. And I must highly stress that, due to Alinea’s eclectic and lengthy menu, choosing the wine pairing is pretty much the only way to go. I can’t imagine trying to choose a few bottles that could span the meal as well as the course by course pairing. And much credit goes to our sommelier/server, Joe Z., who not only knows his wines, but provides vast amounts of information in such an approachable manner. Speaking of service, it is almost unbelievable how on the ball the service was on the restaurant’s third day of operation. It speaks to how well Achatz is regarded by his staff that he was able to retain many of the former Trio employees who worked at that restaurant during his tenure there...it was great to see so many familiar faces. Doing so has obviously made the opening of Alinea a much smoother process than it might otherwise have been. There were a couple minor hiccups but, regardless, the overall service was extremely polished and equivalent to some of our finest dining experiences. Courses to watch (my top 10 dishes in no particular order) DUNGENESS CRAB raw parsnip, young coconut, cashews ASPARAGUS caramelized dairy, egg, bonito TURBOT shellfish, waterchestnuts, hyacinth vapor EGGPLANT cobia, crystalline florettes, radish pods FROG LEGS spring lettuces, paprika, morels BEEF flavors of A-1 FINGER LIMES olive oil, dissolving eucalyptus BROCCOLI STEM grapefruit, wild steelhead roe ARTICHOKE fonds d’artichauts cussy #3970 BACON butterscotch, apple, thyme For those of you clamoring to hear further descriptions of the food, let me tell you that, even in my wildest dreams, I would never be able to craft the words necessary to do justice to Chef Achatz’s cuisine. All I can say is that if the pictures pique your interest, if you’re an adventurous diner, or if you’d like a dining experience that is not found anywhere else that I know of then you need to visit the restaurant and savor Alinea for yourself. The cool thing is that due to the uniqueness of this cuisine, everyone will have their own slightly (or drastically) different interpretation of what the restaurant offers...I look forward to hearing from others.

I did take some pictures but the lighting at my table seemed much more dim than what Yellow Truffle had so his outstanding pictures will probably be the definitive set for now. When I get back home, I'll see what I can salvage and include them with a more thorough description of the meal. In the meantime, I can tell you that all of you with reservations are in for a real treat. Alinea is a very special restaurant.

Quick update. Just got back from Alinea and the meal was as incredible as Yellow Truffle’s pictures illustrate. Our meal was a bit over 7.5 hours long. Of most interest is the fact that, in it’s third day, Alinea is running on all cylinder’s and the service was indicative of a restaurant that’s been open for years. My hat’s off to chefg and the crew for orchestrating an incredible dining experience. More to come...

Awesome work Yellow Truffle. We just arrived in Chicago this afternoon and we'll be at Alinea within the next 2 hours. Thanks for such beautiful pictures...now I won't feel obligated to do all that work myself :)

Actually, the spine itself was not intended to be eaten...much too thick (it must have come from a large fish). You just kinda gnawed on it until you'd eaten the meat that surrounded the spine. By the way, this was to be eaten using your fingers (and not chopsticks). It was very tasty.

Had an absolutely phenomenal dinner at Urasawa last week. It was a true pleasure and honor to experience the incredible skills of Hiro Urasawa. I’m far from an expert in Japanese cuisine but even I could recognize the incredible freshness and quality of the ingredients used in each dish. Simple things such as the ikura and fresh wasabi were revelatory. If you can afford it, I highly recommend you visit as soon as possible before it becomes too hard to get into. Here are the pictures: The counter before service begins All the amazingly fresh ingredients are ready for service. Preparing the chawanmushi Chawanmushi with ikura, uni, and shira ebi Getting ready for the sashimi Sashimi: toro, Spanish mackerel, and snapper with fresh wasabi Steamed halibut with shrimp and cherry blossom leaf Hoba Yaki with toro, oysters, and scallop Deep fried fish spine Cutting the foie gras Opening the scallop Preparing the shabu shabu Shabu shabu broth Kobe beef, scallop, and foie gras shabu shabu Nigiri Section Starts with toro (not shown) Maguro Shima aji Cooked toro Uni Spanish mackerel Japanese Herring Clam Red Clam Squid Tiny shrimp Snapper Kuruma shrimp Shrimp from Santa Barbara Preparing the shrimp Ready to eat...can't get any fresher Needle fish Shiitake mushroom Anago Abalone Kyoto radish Ikura Toro roll Kobe beef Tamago Green tea mochi Papaya Preparing green tea Green tea

Forget the money, next time I'm at TFL, I'll just wear a sign around my neck that reads "Will photograph for food" Robert, thanks for your support. -j

For my fellow eGulleteers, here's another set of photos...these are from this past Sunday's lunch service: Gruyere Cheese Gougeres "Cornet" of Salmon Tartare with Sweet Red Onion Creme Fraiche Cauliflower “Panna Cotta” With “Beau Soleil” Oyster Glaze and Russian Sevruga Caviar “Terrine” of Poached Moulard Duck “Foie Gras”, “Confit” of Navel Orange “Supremes”, Pickled Sunchokes, Bitter Orange “Coulis” and Young Parsley Shoots Sauteed Filet of Pacific “Kahala”, “Ragout” of Baby Fennel, Sweet Peppers, Nicoise Olives And Sauce “Bouillabaisse” “Fricassee” of Maine Lobster “Mitts” Tokyo Turnips, Applewood Smoked Bacon, “Pomme Bouchon”, Spring Onion, Scallion Salad and Creamy Lobster Broth Pan Roasted Four Story Hills Squab Breast, Wilted Arrowleaf Spinach, Heirloom Baby Beets And Sauce “Perigourdine” Elysian Fields Farm Lamb Ribeye, California Green Asparagus, Grey Morel Mushrooms, Sweet Carrots and Lamb “Jus” “Tomme De Savoie” Pickled Golden Delicious Apple “Parisienne”, Celery Branch, Candied English Walnuts and Saba “Vinaigrette” Banana Sorbet, Muscovado “Genoise”, Braised Maui Pineapple, Mango “Pate de Fruit” And a Yogurt Caramel “Croustillant” “Degustation de Pommes et Pain D’Epices” Golden Delicious “Tarte A La Mode”, Granny Smith Apple “Gelee”, Spiced Bread Ice Cream and Dust “Tentation Au Chocolat Noisette Et Lait”, Milk Chocolate “Cremeux”, Hazelnut “Streusel” With Vanilla Bean Ice Cream and Sweetened Salty Hazelnuts Vanilla Crème Brulee Cinnamon Pot de Creme Macaroons “Mignardises”

My wife is 5'3" and about 100 pounds and she commented that she was not full from the meal. I wouldn't say that I was famished but I definitely could have stopped for a burger on the way home. Also, to docsconz's question, yes substitutions are permitted. You just need to let them know about any special requests at the start of the meal. For instance, we requested no chocolate for dessert.

Chef Short’s tenure at The French Laundry and the sample menu on the Masa’s website were the main reasons I wanted to check out the restaurant. Initially reading the menu, I was immediately curious due to how similar in style it was to something you’d see at TFL. I went into the meal with hopes of finding a TFL experience at a slightly less expensive price point and without the same difficulty of booking a table. While I don’t think the overall experience reached the level of TFL, it was a very strong offering…especially the second half of the meal which was absolutely sensational...nearly flawless. From the poultry course onward, each dish was a true pleasure. Of special note were the main desserts which, for our palettes, were two of the most successful dishes we’ve ever experienced. Visually appealing and uniquely thought provoking, they were light and refreshing…the perfect end to the meal. With regards to the variation on Keller’s “Oysters and Pearls”…one could not help but immediately begin to draw comparisons the second that dish landed on the table. Honestly, the original dish is such a favorite of mine that I wouldn’t have minded if Chef Short had simply served an exact copy. Unfortunately, his rendition was not quite as enjoyable…it seemed to lack a little dimension and the turnips didn’t add much of anything in my opinion. The wines listed were from the wine pairing. I commend sommelier Alan Murray for his easy going demeanor, thorough descriptions, and generous pours…he did a wonderful job. However, whenever the wait staff tended to our wine service, the descriptions were lacking and the pours were skimpy. Not to mention one pour which was served so quickly and sloppily that it left a good six inch trail of wine on the table cloth. That was absolutely appalling. But really, in the end, it was the cost of the pairing which left the worst taste in my mouth. At $89 per pairing, I figured the markup to be between 4 and 4.5X. Definitely not worth it in my opinion. One other thing to note…in a recent review of another restaurant I made the comment that the portion sizes were relatively small. Well the portions for this 9 course meal at Masa’s now hold the record for the smallest size we’ve encountered. Most everything tasted great (especially that second half of the meal) and I just wish I was given a bit more of each dish to eat. Compared to TFL, you’re getting about 65%-70% of the amount of food. Again, because it was so enjoyable, this is not a fatal flaw…just something to keep in mind. As for the separate men’s and woman’s dishes, yes we knew about the format before arriving at the restaurant. Both of us were served the Aji as the amuse. From then on, the first dish I listed in each pairing was presented to the woman. My wife and I both agree that, hand’s down, the men got the better dishes in this menu.

I haven't seen any reviews of Masa's since Gregory Short took the helm so I thought I'd post pictures from our dinner there the other night. 9 courses, different sets for men and women: Aji Sushi rice, radish, mirin reduction Dewazakura “Dewasansan” Sake Caviar Blini, lemon crème fraiche Caviar Miyagi oysters, sabayon, turnips 2003 Prinz Riesling Kabinett Sashimi of Yellow Fin Tuna and Hamachi Citrus salad, chive infused oil, red jalapeno Yellow Fin Tuna Tartare Heats of palm, edamame, red radish, lemon-pepper vinaigrette 2003 Willakenzie Pinot Gris Chilled Maine Crab Pea shoots, red radish, English pea coulis, mint oil Diver Scallop English peas, applewood smoked bacon, romaine lettuce, mint oil 2003 Silverado Vineyards Chardonnay Norwegian Salmon White asparagus, braised nettles, navel orange glaze John Dory Baby carrots, parsnip puree, crispy spring onions, sauce bordelaise Domaine Bru-Bache Jurancon Sec Seared Foie Gras Toasted brioche, orange marmalade, orange supremes, frisse, orange gastrique Chilled Artisan Foie Gras Pickled rhubarb, baby greens, house made brioche 2000 Domaine Roulot Monthelie Liberty Valley Duck Breast Braised swiss chard, ruby red grapefruit, confit leg, grapefruit sauce New England Quail Shiitake mushrooms, baby turnips, wilted spinach, squab jus 2000 Chateau Loudenne Medoc Prime Beef Ribeye Caramelized Anjou pears, braised salsify, marble potatoes, tellicherry peppercorn sauce Saddle of Colorado Lamb Glazed cipollini onions, baby leeks, brussels sprouts, lamb jus Arugula Sorbet Apple slaw, pear soup Moro Blood Orange Sorbet Ruby port gelee 2003 Domaine de Durban Muscat de Beaumes-de-Venise Kefir Lime Sorbet Vanilla-lime gelee, coconut udon, coconut-lemongrass foam, cilantro oil Textures of Basmati Rice Foam Tangerine, rum raisin, crème anglaise Mignardise

Melkor, thanks for that detailed write up. I had been considering visiting Campton Place for a dinner in the near future but your report has saved me the agony and infuiation that I'm sure I would have felt. The way the staff handled your feedback really knocks this restaurant off my radar.

I definitely know what you mean about foams...although the potato foam in this case was much more dense than foams I've typically had. And it was sprayed onto the plate at tableside. That said, I have to admit that I enjoyed the meal more than my two dining companions. But I still contend that the food was mechanically solid and the service was so outstanding that I would definitely make a second trip back next time I'm in L.A.

It's funny that you should mention that....after my wife returned to the table after making a trip to the bathroom she came back and told us that she had heard a lot of yelling going on in the kitchen. She could only assume that it originated from Chef Lefebvre. So, I definitely don't doubt the validity of your story.

The Time’s one star review of Bastide definitely got me interested in the restaurant and after reading more about Chef Lefebvre (check out the January 05 issue of Los Angeles Magazine) I was even more excited to see what the fuss was about. His controversially innovative food pairings seemed like something I might really enjoy. Let’s get to the menu. Sorry for the poor photo quality…Bastide is very, very dimly lit. Deconstruction of Bloody Mary Oyster served in Sea Water Gelee, Shallot Cream, Parsley Jus Mussel in Gelee infused with Lemongrass, Caviar “Parfait”, Saffron Crème Fraiche, White Soy Sauce Day Boat Sea Scallop Seared With Cocoa and Peanut Licorice Milk, Udon and Green Papaya Poached Wild Turbot, Vodka cream with Caviar Confit of Blue Fin Tuna with Vadouvan Kimchee, Tomato Lemongrass Broth Black Truffle Ice Cream, Truffle Syrup Poached Capon with Wattleseed, Confit of Leg and Wild Mushrooms, Capon Mousse “au jus de Cuisson”, Hot Potato Foam, Truffle Fries with Parmesan Les Fromages De Nicole Grandjean “Mont Blanc”, Chesnut Ice Cream, Chocolate Gelee, Crispy Meringue, Vanilla Whipped cream, Burnt Orange Sauce, Candied Orange Petit Fours Wines included: 1996 Louis Metaireau Muscadet 2001 Charles Hours, Jurancon Sec, “Cuvee Marie” 2000 Chateau Malartic-Lagraviere Bordeaux 2001 Yves Cuilleron Syrah Chateau de Montmirail Vacqueryas 1996 Chateau Moulin Haut Laroque Fronsac Henriques & Henriques 10 Year Verdelho Madeira First off, I really thought our menu was rather restrained compared to what I had read about. No white chocolate mashed potatoes to be seen anywhere. However, while not everything worked (the scallop and udon dish wasn’t received well by anyone at the table), overall Lefebvre’s food exuded a quiet sophistication. The cuisine is methodically refined…it feels as though a great deal of thought has gone into the relationship that each ingredient has with each other and that nothing extraneous is allowed into a dish. In addition, it was hard to find any execution flaws…everything was cooked correctly and came out at the right temperature. The deconstructed bloody mary goes down as one of my favorite amuses of all time. It has all the right characteristics…It’s deceptively simple in appearance yet it’s mysterious by its deconstructed nature; it looks nothing like the traditional notion of a bloody mary. It can be downed quickly in one bite and it packs a flavor punch that gets your tastebuds instantly excited. And the whole conceptual parallel between starting your day with a bloody mary and this meal being started with an equivalently deconstructed amuse, tickles the intellect. But where Bastide really shines is in the service department. From start to finish the staff put on a fantastic showing. At the top of the class was the sommelier. His presentation of the wines and extensive explanation of each was outstanding…the best wine service of any meal we’ve had. Not only were the selections rather interesting, their accompaniment with the food was spot on. The pours were extremely generous and glasses were even refilled on occasion. At only $60 for the pairing this is one of the best bargains we’ve come across. The cheese service was nearly equally impressive. The cart had a wide range of mostly foreign cheeses. The server was obviously an old pro and was able to give each guest a differently laid out plate of cheese based on their selections. It was all top notch. Overall, it was a tremendous visit and we’ll definitely be back again in the future.

We had dinner at Sona a couple weeks ago. Thought I'd post some pics...I apologize that the descriptions are lacking. Sona doesn't provide guests with a copy of the 9 course menu (and the followup email by the dining room manager was full of mistakes and missing items.) Big Eye Tuna with Yuzu Soy Emulsion Bread Potato and Leek Soup Pumpkin Soup with Fresh Maine Lobster Clams with squid and squid ink pasta Confit Salmon served with Spicy Grapefruit, Orange Braised Cauliflower, and Grapefruit Syrup Tuna with mushrooms Foie Gras two ways Squab with Crisp Pig's Feet, Red Wine Braised Cabbage, Chanterel Mushrooms, and a Bearnaise Sauce Rabbit and Bacon Tourchon with Beluga Lentils, Baby Turnips, and Herbed Creme Fraiche Millbrook Farm Venison with Chestnut Agnolotti, Black Trumpet Mushrooms, Red Pearl Onions, and a Venison Bordolaise Hanger Steak with Shortrib Pierogi, Leek Fondue, Kolhrabi, and Orange Compote Cheese course Meyer Lemon Granitas Mille-feuille with brown butter ice cream Sour cherry strudel with chocolate ice cream Mignardise Mignardise Mignardise I thought the platings and concepts were the restaurant's strong point. Execution was lacking at times...various components were often too cold or too gummy (probably had been sitting a while). Service was a total bust...they have a lot of ground to cover before the restaurant can claim even decent service. To their credit, after pointing out a serious flaw, the sommelier provided me with complementary tastes of some incredible wines including a 1999 Château Haut-Brion and a 1981 Loosen-Erben Spätlese Riesling "Ürziger-Würzgarten. The room was a little too noisy and the vibe was a bit too frenetic for my liking. Overall, the restaurant has good "bones" but I'd like to see it refine its rough edges.

Ever since Bong posted the first review of Manresa on this thread back in May, I’ve been meaning to make it down to Los Gatos and check out the restaurant. The high course count format had me intrigued from the start. However, as the absolutely fanatical reviews have been flowing in over the course of the year, I became a little perplexed. Was Manresa really an innovative bastion for fine dining in the bay area? From my perspective, some of the glowing praise wasn’t matching up with what I was seeing from the pictures. Was there something magical about the food that had to be tasted to be believed? So, with some skepticism, we finally had a dinner at Manresa last night. Photo essay Petits fours "red pepper-black olive" Chestnut croquette Grapefruit and jasmine tea cocktail Oyster with sea urchin, its' own gelee The egg Foie gras and cumin caramel Fatty bluefin belly, cucumber and shiso flower Nantucket bay scallops, watercress vichyssoise Spanish mackerel with steelhead roe Warm smoked salmon and lentils Chicken wing confit and breast, garnet yam and coconut milk Roast rack of suckling pig, boudin noir Kobe style American beef bavette, bordelaise Pineapple soup with lemongrass Saffron rice pudding with sour cherries Warm date cake with dolce de leche cream Chocolate souffle, condensed milk ice cream Tea service: Chrysanthemum green tea Petits fours "lychee-chocolate" Now, some random notes **Highlight dishes: Foie custard, Nantucket scallops, Spanish mackerel, Date cake **Dishes that failed: Chicken wing confit, Saffron rice pudding **Beware, the portions are small. This was the least full we’ve ever been after a large format tasting menu. This isn’t necessarily negative since the goal of such meals is really to revel in the food and not to stuff yourself silly. But I honestly felt like I could eat another whole meal at the conclusion of this menu. **Water here is pretty steep. I believe this is the first restaurant where we’ve hit the $10 mark per bottle of sparkling water. **Service was generally good but rather inconsistent. There would be points where the servers would be meticulous (ensuring perfectly straight silverware and turning bottle labels inward) while at other times things were pretty haphazard. If they were able to keep service at its peak levels, it would be an impressive feat. As it was, service was only average for this type of restaurant. **Pacing was a little troublesome. The start of the menu came fast and furious. But as the restaurant became busier, the meal slowed to a crawl. There were some significant waits in between courses. **Be sure to visit the restrooms. The walls are adorned with menus from some great restaurants…I saw autographed menus from Adria and Passard to name a couple. Overall Manresa is definitely a great restaurant and I will return. However, there’s no way I would proclaim it the second best restaurant in the Bay Area (behind The French Laundry.) The menu was very up and down. The misses were significant while the hits were strong but not outstanding. If you assembled a six course menu of just the best stuff, you’d have a solid menu that would be very enjoyable; however, it wouldn’t qualify in the top bracket of high cuisine. Manresa seems to be all about keeping the purity of flavor intact and focusing on how elemental flavors play off one another in a more classically rooted, approachable manner. What I didn’t see were a significant number of more complex flavor harmonies or unexpected, innovative flavor pairings. From my view, Manresa’s strong point is its warmth, charm, and approachability. It feels like a homey, local restaurant rather than a stark food temple. And to a certain extent, I think the food mirrors this feeling. It is well executed and high quality without being overly showing or overly intellectualized. To be able to make next day reservations with no trouble is also a big plus. If I lived closer, I’m sure I would visit the restaurant often and focus my attention on the smaller four course menu.