Bux

Marcolini in Paris? I see now via a google search that he's had a shop since early in the year. Nobody tells me anything. His delicately flavored ganaches were incredible. Our Belgian friends didn't seem to favor his products, but they were the best we found in Belgium.

I was planning on coming again in 2007, but I'm glad I got a reservation for next year. There will be a lot of disappointed people as there must have been when you stopped serving lunch, but you deserve a break and it will be intersting to learn what you do with your year away from elBulli. Now tell me about the changes to the dining room, or should I look the other way and be surprised when I arrive?

Just one of the reasons we can't afford to miss a post on any forum on the site.

If the web site shows prices in francs, I wouldn't count on the menu being up to date.

Or l'Ecurie, 2 r Laplace, 5ième Arr. 01 46 33 68 49 The 2004 Michelin lists an Ecuries du Château in Dampierre-en-Yvelines, (a Paris suburb) but I suspect that's not the one you want. The one I noted above is not listed in Michelin, so I have no idea if they are open on weekends.

You mention bar/restaurant. I would suggest that most restaurants, with the exception of brasseries that have distinct and separate bar or cafe areas, may expect you to eat if you occupy a table at mealtimes. Otherwise lingering is the custom. I think the focus is on the quality and choice you're looking to find in the wines and on location and atmosphere. Is any particular neighborhood preferable?

Although I can't truly say I was prepared for my first meal at elBulli, I did arrive too late to enjoy the experience free of the prejudices that come from having read many reports. I was already under some obligation to respect, if not like, what I found, if only because those whose food or opinions I already respected, had expressed deep respect for your food. I had more or less assumed the palate I've trained for decades would be an asset, but I also recall sitting out on the elBulli terrace with chocolates after dinner and conversing with a group of North Americans who had finished dinner shorly before we did. Unlike myself, and my companions, this group, although apparently used to living well, did not make it a point of planning intineraries of starred restaurants and as much as we could tell, had never heard of you. They were healthy cyclists and hikers who had happened to book a tour that only guaranteed first class treatment. To a man, they were estatic about their meal, and every bit as much as we were, although it was clear they usually didn't think that much about food. Elsewhere in this Q&A session, I noted that I wouldn't recommend all restaurants to all people. While it seems logical to think of elBulli as a place for the most sophisticated and intellectual diner, it's clear that there's an immediate level of appreciation for the for the food by those who bring nothing more than an open mind to the table. Does this make sense to you? Do you bother to try and second guess who will like what you do?

First let me welcome you to the eGullet Society Forums. Your first post already gives us an inkling of why you are paid so much respect by other chefs, not to mention the rest of the culinary community. We've had some talented participants including many who were articulate and intelligent, but you are the first to start off a question and answer session with a question to the membership. I learned very little in college, but one thing I learned was that those professors who asked questions usually had more to teach than those who thought they had all the answers. Bravo for your first post. It is in keeping with the spirit of engagement I found at El Bulli. I do not believe the ideal gastronomy exists. I don't even believe we all have an ideal gastronomy. If we do, it may be a momentary ideal that shifts with each taste that enters our mouths. Everything is relative to a time and place in our lives. As a young student of architecture I happened to read le Corbusier's words to the effect that the human eye delights in the simple shapes of the cube, sphere and pyramid and the primary colors red, yellow and blue, but I read this expression of his thoughts shortly after my eyes were delighted by several buildings of his that were formed of sweeping curves and painted shades of green, purple and other colors. The validity of his words had to be understood in terms of the popular architecture of the day when those words were written. Not only may we all have our own idea, but it should change with our experiences. I have eaten satisfying meals in many restaurants, but I would not necessarily recommend each of them to every diner. Thank you for asking that question. I look forward to your answers to our questions.

Okay, it's agreed that FoodTV draws a large audience that's not deeply interested in food. What does this thread say about the eGullet audience when lurkers can read that almost as many people have felt the need to discuss how shallow the audience is at FoodTV than have taken the opportunity to ask Ferran Adrià, arguably the worlds most influential chef, a question in the eGullet Forums Q&A with Ferran Adria?

Now there's a topic.

Timing is everything. I suspect one of the reasons we have a high number of reservations is that members responded to a timely notice here. I can see pros and cons to the idea of posting reservation request e-mails. Most people would be curious to see what worked, but I'm afraid that any commonality might be seen as a path to follow and that next year we'd see a form letter mentality develop that could have exactly the opposite efffect of the one wanted. My guess is that you're much better off with a unique approach than trying to follow a pattern. Mrs. B doesn't keep her e-mails and I don't understand Spanish all that well to even know exactly what she said. I can tell you that she mentioned our previous visits as well as that it's been two years since our last visit. Our hope was to imply that we are appreciative of the food, but not looking to hog space. We really don't know if first time applicants would play to a sense of fairness or if yearly regulars are likely to get preference. You go with what you've got and try and make it sound as if it's a strength. We met Alberto Adrià a few years ago at the Salon du Chocolat in Paris, so we sent our regards. Does that get passed on or would Luis check to see that Albert really met us? I have no idea, but I'd be very cautious about lying. I placed most of our hope in the timing. We applied right after the notice was posted here. To return to my earlier premise, I'll bet that if certain characteristics and buzz words start to reappear, they'll trigger rejections more than reservations. Put yourself in Luis' shoes when you write.

Define "now," and maybe "top." Certainly Ferran Adrià is at the international peak, although it's fair enough to allow a top that includes more than one person. A ranking with the French Laundry at the top of a list of American restaurants would hardly be news. It's little more than an affirmation of what many people have been saying for years, while at the same time, it's hardly definitive. I've yet to see a top restaurant list in a magazine that had much validity beyond marketing. At the same time, any thread with "Adam Sandler" in the title is probably a poor choice in which to start any more than half serious discussion about Keller, the French Laundry or restaurants in general.

. . . . To get back on topic: I vaguely recall reading something in the Times about French restaurants in Astoria. Can anyone report on bistros in Queens? ← Tournesol in LIC. I've only been there once. As I recall, it was easy enough to get to from Manhattan by subway and well priced. Unfortunately I can't offer much of a review after only one meal and that was some time ago. It's the kind of place you'd like to have in your neighborhood. It if was in my neighborhood, you'd have to reserve a month or two in advance which seems all wrong for a bistro.

In a good year, we get to spend maybe a week in Paris. It's true that more often we're there and the more people we want to see in Paris, the more often we eat in casual restaurants. Bistros are far more conducive to meeting people and socializing. I agree that it's so easy to get around Paris, that it's not necessary to choose a restaurant near one's hotel, although I understand the desire most people have to do that.

I haven't eaten at Rafa's, but my first meal at El Bulli, a lunch some four to five years back, was followed by a simple meal of seafood at Can Majo in Barcelona. I don't recall the first course, it may have been gambas a la plancha or some other such straightforward dish followed by a Catalan wet rice with lobster. As superb a meal and an powerful an experience as the meal at El Bulli was, one of the things it seemed to do, was to heighten my appreciation for fresh seafood simply prepared. I know that sounds like I'm saying "after all that haute cuisine, what I really need is a steak to satisfy me," but I think you understand they're a one, two punch either way. To appreciate one and not the other is to suffer some gap in the love of food, from my perspective.

You may be thinking of John Whiting, not John Talbott. All those guys with white beards look alike.

I don't want to take this off topic, but I hate to leave the subject of Maxim's hanging. I last recall the name, and perhaps the premises as well, being purchased by a well known fashion designer. I have not heard it was closed, but I didn't see it listed in the 2004 Guide Michelin.

I've generally defended the brasseries in the Flo chain, but I wonder if I'd feel the same way without the wonderful interiors they've preserved all over Paris. As for "a Maxim's," I wonder what the appeal might be. Is there still a Maxim's in Paris and is the one at the airport in any way connected with a Maxim's that was ever connected with fine food. I believe the name's been traded and sold, perhaps more than once, and the last Maxim's in Paris brought no gastronomic credit to the name. I think I'd be scared away from an airport restaurant trading on that old name perhaps too recognizable to tourists.

And if one can experience Paris through the eye's and words of a poet, it becomes all that much more a pleasure to know the city even in the dead gray of winter. Of all those cafe/brasseries, I'd choose the terrass at le Dôme, not for it's history or it's literary connections, but mostly for its oysters.

Exactly the sort of corroboration I needed.

Perhaps bistros get shorted on eGullet, but if, as you say, they are less serious, it's understandable that people will have less to say after just recommending them, or not recommending them The one thing I like about dining in France is that restaurants are well lit, although bistros tend to a bit dimmer than fine restaurants. How different that is here. An extensive list of wines by the glass is a positive factor, though I've not found that to remind me of France. Regrettably, we were not all that pleased with le Quinze. We found the food lukewarm, literally and figuratively. Well conceived dishes were poorly executed and poorly conceived dishes were nicely garnished. Nothing clicked and the food was tepid although there were few occupied tables.

Here in NYC, one might find two, or even three types of dried cod (or other substitutes) for sale in a maket catering to certain ethnic groups: Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Latin-American, etc.That's at best, and they're all likely to be prepackaged. In Spain, one might wander into a tiny shop that sells only dried cod and find dozens, if not hundreds or types for sale. I can't even begin to recite the varieties that go far beyond the boneless and with bone choice in NY. There are qualties to be considered and then there are cuts. At a quick glance, it would seem as if they are able to cut the fish into more parts than an American butcher cuts a steer, right down to the dried and salted cheeks and jowls. Of course, if you really want a selection, you will avoid the tiny shop and search for the big shop in town where the selection rivals that of cheese in the finest affineurs in Paris. That Portugal may have an even greater appreciation for dried cod is mind boggling. Drying and salting cod is method of preserving the fish just as curing hams is a way of preserving pork and brining pickles is a way of preserving cucumbers and other vegetables. Refrigeration is not going to do away with any of those products. Direct access to the sea is not going to lessen the appreciation for dried cod very much, at least not very much more than it will for the taste for ham, in my opinion.

I supsect Rafa's and SnackMar are going to see a disproportionate number of members this summer.

It's worth noting that $500 is about €400, unless it's less now -- a quick check reveals that it's less than €375. Thus I won't suggest Arpège. Gourmard is a rather pricey one star fish restaurant, but you should be able to have a rather fine meal there with a reasonable bottle of wine for your price. We had a couple of spectacular first courses. The langoustine and blue lobster were superb specimens exceptionally well handled and garnished in a very light contemporary fashion. Our main courses were less impressive. We had a plane to catch that afternoon and didn't have dessert or cheese, so I can't comment further. I haven't been at le Divellec in over a dozen years, so I can't say how it compares, but it appears to be more expensive. In general, you shouldn't have too much problem finding vegetable and seafood first courses in any fine restaurant, and if you're ordering three courses à la carte, I'd expect you to find a couple ofl fish choices, but you're probably going to find more attention to red meat and game in the middle of the winter. A fish and seafood restaurant is going to offer the most choice.

Thank you again Pan, for pointing out what drove me away from this thread when I first thought of responding. It's heavily populated by people who don't understand the NY Times four star rating or Michelin's three star rating and at least a few who I suspect have never eaten in the restaurants whose food is in question.Russ hit one nail on the head when he noted that "four-star does not mean "delicious"." Of course it should be delicious, although we must remember that taste is subjective, but it must offer much, much more than just delicious. Russ called for "perfection plus some level of astonishment." That works for me, but astonishment is also subjective and some people are easily astonished. Some of our guests have expressed astonishment at our food. They've never been to a four star restaurant, or they're just being polite and agreeing with other guests, or they're making adjustments and offering us a handicap advantage. For the record, I'll agree that it can be done. I will also in almost the same breath say that I don't know why one couldn't build a hydrogen bomb in one's kitchen. Hell that's worth saying just to see if I get my internet access tapped by the CIA. Now I've probably offended both the Culinary Institute of America and the Central Intelligence Agency. In either case, I'll bet none of you have seen either happen. Let's leave the "why" out of this. I'm offended by the notion that sheer perfection is not a reasonable goal. Some people derive pleasure and satisfaction from abstract pursuits. Cooking four star food is not unlike climbing the highest mountain. Most of us don't understand why anyone would attempt to ascend Mt. Everest, but my hat's off to the idiots who succeed. Sam followed Russ with what I thought was an excellent list of the things your home kitchen won't have. When he noted that "several people will work on one plate at the four star level," I thought he was downplaying the advantages of a four star professional restaurant kitchen where dozens of talented cooks may be working -- some of them taking cuts in salary just to get the experience and the line on their resumes. The prep work for an individual chef or even a couple who cook together could take a week to duplicate what is on hand as a cook sets up his mise en place for any dish. For all that, there are levels of expectation and things one can do at any scale that are impressive. I have watched and cooked with the sous chef at a four star restaurant -- the guy who's actually in charge of the restaurant when the titular chef is off in Singapore doing a charity benefit or catered affair -- and have seen the differences in what he attempts in his kitchen and my kitchen. We have an uninsulated industrial brute from the seventies with six 12 inch burners and a 24 inch griddle and salamander. He has a far more useful as well as more powerful DCS residential pro stove with six 12 burner with yet higher btu output, but neither range competes with equipment in the restaurant. That said, people have paid a pretty penny for him to come to their house and cook dinner parties expecting four star food and I suspect they've gotten it at least when he's worked out of the restaurant with a professional prep team behind him. Is the experience of cooking dozens to hundreds of meals a night for the last ten or more years, most of them in top restaurants in France and the US, going to make a difference with or without a team behind him? Theoretically, anyone can turn out four star food, but you're not going to get rich betting professional food critics that you can serve them four star food in your home no matter how pleased you are with the food and we're back to my initial reaction to the question -- the answer depends on how easily the diner is pleased and if he understands four star food.