Bux

I would certainly include San Pau in Sant Pol de Mer. If your focus is on creativity and quality, perhaps Can Roca is the one I'd most recommend. We had a lovely meal some years ago at L'Esguard, but it would be my last choice of the four. Unfortunately, my visits to all those restaurants were not recent.For Can Roca we stayed in Girona and took a taxi to the restaurant in the suburbs. Sant Pol has valet parking, or so I recall. It's also accessible by commuter train from Barcelona. The station is a block or so away. I don't recall seeing hotels nearby.

Mrs. B's response to the the waiter's question asking if Madame has had pig's feet before when that was her order, was quite sufficient to keep him from asking any further questions when I ordered the andouillette. That was a few years ago, just after the takeover by the Flo group. For the record, her pig's feet were disappointing -- the breading was less than crisp. My andouillette was fine. The potatoes with them could have been crisper. Perhaps as if to apologize for questioning if my wife knew what she was ordering, service was quite good and very friendly after that. The brasserie was quite overrun with non French, mostly Americans. I suspect that was do to location, proximity to the Sorbonne and other things unrelated to the takeover. I'm glad you enjoyed l'Atelier de JR. We also had the tasting menu recently and while dining at a counter is the antithesis of fine dining, it seems to heighten focus on the food. I was with a very talented French chef who works in NY. While he professes to have a taste for more traditional and often more rustic food, he was ecstatic about his reaction to this meal. While his appreciation seemed to mimic mine, I suspect he started with higher standards and was far more appreciative of the disciplines involved in delivering such finesse course after course.

AK@Spicehouse, I'm not sure I get your point in regard to the thread, or more specifically why you chose to quote my post for your reply.

You're correct in implying it's an established systen and that inertia will keep in running this way. Most owners are going to be reluctant to break the mold as long as the public is willing to put up with the current system. In a way this system works against those who don't drink if their complaints of discrimination are true. Perhaps it could be said they pay the price of not paying a fair price. Interestingly enough I've found the wine prices at just about all of Danny Meyer's restaurants to be at least fairly priced and often enough rather well priced given the selection, service and the whole restaurant package, yet from those who don't drink, I rarely hear complaints that they're treated with less welcome arms.

My assumption has been that the teams practice. He was still cooking most of his food. In the end, I had the feeling he hadn't even considered how long it would take to make some of his dishes. In past, we've seen chefs ad lib changes in their planned dishes because something went wrong. I was really surprised to see only two dishes finished cooking let alone plated. He didn't seem to have a time table. As a result, I don't think we were really able to get that much sense of what his food was all about. For that it was disappointing.

One problem with the current formula is that those who don't drink wine aren't paying for their share of the food. Another problem is that those who do drink wine pay with each bottle they drink thus discouraging the selection of a second bottle. Wines by the glass, by the way, are generally one fourth the price of the bottle and perhaps one sixth of the volume. Pairing wines to tasting menus often runs at a lesser "value." Of course there's the added value of interest to the meal, but most of us have budgets somewhere. Another issue has been well defined by Felonious when he said "a wine worthy of the food they provide" as well as in his comments about knowledge, services of a sommelier, optimal storage conditions, selection, etc. (I don't know that he mentioned all those as such, but he established what one restaurant offers to justify a mark up that another doesn't.) I expect a much higher entry level at a four star restaurant than I do at a new neighborhood restaurant and I expect a bit higher percentage mark up on a bottle. I think this is the gist of the complaint that started this topic. Fifty dollar bottles at the bottom of a new restaurant that's not pretending to aim at four stars seems presumtuous when I can find a selection at sixty at Per Se and Daniel. One mistake people make when selecting a restaurant by price, other than relying on Zagat's estimates for comparitive analysis, is to neglect the cost of wines.

I've heard that excuse from caterers before and I'm sorry to say that most catered affairs in the US or France are disappointing. "Wedding food" is not a term of endearment. It's not an expression I've ever heard used in any way but pejoratively. It shouldn't have to be that way. Americans I know who have been to weddings in France tell me the food is not all that much better than what they've had in the US. I haven't spent much time in that area, but I know Restaurant Bru where we had a lovely meal some time ago. Sometimes restaurants cater off premises. It's a long shot, but you might contact them. It's also a long shot, but they might be able to recommend someone. Hopefully, one of our members who doesn't believe that everyday food in France has gone to hell in a shopping basket, may be able to defend the honor of French food with a suggestion of a caterer in the area.

Important people always have someone else do their chores, be it a secretary, or a concierge. It's one of the reasons Mrs. B makes many of our reservations through her travel agency. Even when there's no commission such as for a restaurant, she's calling for a "client." The opposite however, may be true if you're known to the restaurant. Where I'm known to a restaurant, or know I'm at least in the restaurant database, I will personally call and identify myself before asking for a table.

Heston Blumenthal's (the Fat Duck) smoked bacon and egg ice cream served with French toast and tomato jam, come to mind immediately.

I've moved a few posts commenting on Francois Simon's Op-Ed piece in the NY Times to the topic entitled Guide Michelin comes to NY in the NY forum.

Who may that be? ← Noé, but my relative illiteracy in the French language should probably have precluded me from suggesting that delanoe might somehow be a reference to the man who artfully survived 40 days and nights of free water.

There's a thread, Famous chefs' meal choices when they travel, in the Media forum. It's in response to an article from the NY Times Business section. It touches on this subject with a response from a certain French chef. What impressed me about the article was, as I noted in that thread, that the French chefs (2) interviewed, seemed to want to learn about the local or regional good when they traveled. I don't mean to start a discussion on the subject here, but merely to point out the other thread.

That's not an expression I've heard before. Does that refer to the man who saw too much rainwater and lived to tell about it? Here in NY, we often refer to tap water by the name of the current mayor. Eau de Bloomberg has replace eau de Giuliani.

Interesting op-ed piece. In addition to repeating the same arguments he was quoted as making in Paris a week or two ago. he goes on to express a wish for the Red Guide to rejuvenate itself in NY, but I'm not sure he believes there's any hope of that as our asparagus has no taste and our best chefs serve truffles out of season.

Two clicks and I was reading a charming article, Affordable Paris by Jane Sigel from the April 2005 issue of Food & Wine. Talk about immediate gratification, albeit accompanied by the frustration of not knowing when I will next visit Paris. It is an article that makes you jealous of those who live there and are, as they say, branchée. Sigal wrote one of the more charming cookbooks on French provincial cooking some ten years ago. Backroad Bistros, Farmhouse Fare, A french country cookbook.

I was feeling a little saddened by Bux's first post, but this made me warm and cozy again. Thank you! ← whadidisay?

In general, I'd say I prefer the pan fried steak as the French do it. For years I would have it no other way, though I've learned to like the grilled steak as well. It's a matter of cut and thickness among other things. Variety is of course, one of those other things. Perhaps it's my interest in variety that leads me to pass the chains and stop at the independents, even it the quality is lower at the mom and pop restaurant.

"Courtepaille is not that bad for the price and the convenience." (My emphasis.) Bear in mind that this is an English language web site and many, if not most, of the participants have to go out of their way to just be in France. We don't go to France for the convenience, we go for great food. Some of us who remember a a less "convenient" France also think of that time as a the "good old days."

I don't know why I assumed Per Se and ADNY did not turn tables, especially as I've heard people say they had a 5:30 reservation at Per Se. I should think it's obvious that table will be used again. I trust Marcus is correct. Whatever a restaurant does that doesn't affect the diner's meal shouldn't make a bit of difference in the rating. A few open tables during the evening, even at prime time doesn't mean the restaurant isn't fully booked. It may just mean they're cautiously erring on the conservative side. As for chopjwu's friend, a lot of people think they know what makes other people tick. Even if he's right about how they look at Parisian restaurants, it doesn't mean they won't adapt their standards to local custom. We've had the great thread, maybe more than once, about how Michelin's success in France is tied to the fact that the French have so well, and for so long, held onto a single ideal of "restaurant" that it makes it easy to compare them all on the same scale. That's less been the case in the US and it's changing in France as well.

The first few times I went by they hadn't opened on schedule. The next two times the line was unbelievable. I could only assume people were being paid to take the dumplings and there was free sex. Then they were closed again. I finally made it to an open shop with no line on Monday night. We tried the shrimp, the pork, vegetable and the duck dumplings and a salad. We were underwhelmed. The creative sauces seemed more interesting than the creative dumplings. The pork and chives were the most successful and these were no better than average, maybe not as good I'd expect in Chinatown. As our daughter lives in the neighborhood, I had high hopes for this place. My guess is that the lines on the opening day were indicative of everyone else's expectations. The almost empty place a week later may be very telltale of how well those expectations were met. They're not bad, but they don't seem to be much of a buy nor worth going our of my way to get. I picked up a bag of frozen pork, shrimp and chive dumplings and another of pork, shrimp and cabbage at Sun Dou on Grand Street between Mott and Elizabeth. I'll stick them in the kids' freezer. 50 dumplings for $11 and it's easier to toss frozen dumplings into boiling water than it is to run around the corner on a cold snowy evening. I'm content to mix a little black vinegar, soy sauce, sesame oil and maybe some hot oil and grate a piece of ginger also kept frozen for a sauce, though it might be fun to devise some more original sauces.

What Bux means (I think) is that while you are indeed very close to the train, Sants per-se is not terribly well located in terms of where the interesting things are in Barcelona. The area is not nice to walk either and there's pretty much nothing to see (I would know, I live 8 blocks away, fortunately towards the nicer areas). Moreover, Barcelona is small enough such that if you would need to really get to Sants quick you would still be able to by either subway or an inexpensive taxi ride. Silly. ← And what I think Silly Disciple means is that should you need to get to Sants to leave Barcelona, you could easily get a taxi that once, rather than having to commute from Sants to the more interesting and more central part of town on a regular basis during your stay. Communte is an exaggeration as Barcelona is small enough, but the closer you are to the plaça de Catalunya the less reliant you will be on transportation to just be somewhere. As I mentioned earlier, it may even be that you can get your train at the plaça de Catalunya station. Several Metros stations and a Renfe station are below that plaza. The train from the airport, which is sort of a commuter train, stops at both Sants and pl. de Catalunya. I think it may be a mistake to think of Sants as the destination train station as many trains also stop at pl. de Catalunya. If yours doesn't, it appears the both Silly Disciple and I agree that it would be better to take a taxi from Sants to and from a more centrally located hotel, than to get somewhere interesting in the city from Sants every morning or back there at any time of day. It's in a rather boring area. Except for the one time we stayed there for a day, I don't ever recall having a need or interest to ever be near the Sants station in any of my visits. Many tourists prefer the Rambla/Gothic quarter. I don't. I'd rather be on the other side of the pl. de Catalunya. Hotels in Barcelona tend not to be cheap, but the NH Calderon and the Avenida Palace are both excellently located and I think they run about what the Barcelo costs according to Michelin. I know various travel agencies can usually get better rates than the rack rates as well.

If anything, elBulli should heighten your interest in food. One of the best meals of my life was a simple lunch in Barcelona the day after dining at elBulli the first time. Real food for the first time in two days? No, not at all, but it was the perfect counterpoint as will be a meal of charcuterie, cheese and bread, or a bowl of spaghetti with garlic and olive oil followed by a ripe piece of fruit.

As noted, you have 3 months with a US passport without needing a visa, but you should also note for referrence that you don't leave the Schengen visa area by going to Spain, Italy, Germany, etc. In terms of visas and passports, there are no borders in the EU these days. They disappeared a few years ago. It's not quite all one big country, but it's one currency and one visa area.

I thought my curse was that I always pick the wrong line in the supermarket. Now I find I pick the wrong flights.

As the guide itself is new, it's going to be difficult to suggest it should pay attention to a restaurant's history before the guide intself arrived on the scene. As far as Michelin should be concerned, all restaurants have been cooking only as long as they've been visited by Michelin inspectors. It's different in France and it will be different in NY years from now. Does Michelin have such a thing or is it just that at a level far below three stars, it's unusual for a French restaurant to turn tables. It's obvious that Per Se and ADNY are everyone's pict as top contenders if only because of prices and the fact that they don't turn tables, but I'm not sure that's near as relevant as glassware or service to a three star rating. Having recently had both the tasting menu at Per Se and the eight course tasting menu at Daniel in reasonably close proximity, I have to say that I didn't see a clear winner in terms of food. If anything I was rooting for Per Se as the two people I was closest to in the Daniel kitchen are no longer cooking there and I was kind of secretly hoping their absence would be noticeable. It really wasn't. There was a shift in style, but Daniel Boulud is a restless chef and never content with his fare. His food has always been evolving. That evening, three of us got a total of 24 different courses all at a consistent level of excellence. Daniel's ability to do that for a table is legendary. His tasting menu is never set for the whole restaurant. It is a tour de force that makes its size a positive factor. Many of the courses were simply better than similar courses at Per Se. On the other hand, Per Se has some spectacular dishes whose simplicity belies their impact. What I sense is that even if other people would agree with my finding on this score, Per Se gets the nod from many, not because it's tasting menu is better, but because it doesn't offer an inexpensive (hundred dollar) menu. Moreover, it gets that nod from people outside NY who haven't eaten at either one. I'm not sure that's the product of the most sophisticated reasoning. Tony is correct to note Michelin's built in audience among travelers from Europe, South America and Asia as well as among American's who have come to rely, maybe too much, on Michelin as a standard all over Europe. Pan's comments on the current respect, or lack thereof, shown to the NY Times ratings makes it not so unlikely that New Yorkers will begin speaking in terms of a one, two and three star classification with the Times taking a back seat with it's inflated stars. On the other hand, I'm expecting the Times to do some major and overdue revamping of its restaurant reviewing with, or without the appearance of Michelin. Part of our job will be to determine who gets the most respect.