Bux

I didn't mean to make light of that gang and its positive effect on dining in Paris. It was a much bigger gain to daily dinner out in Paris than it was a loss to multistarred dining. Tthere was a trip when we limited our dinners in Paris to unstarred restaurants that were well recommended. The memories are as good, if not better, than of meals that cost a multiple of what those meals cost. We've had some good threads on the subject here on eGullet, although it all happened well before eGullet started up. That's an encouraging report on la Régalade. Reports have been mixed, but then again opinions were dropping about the restaurant under Camdeborde. Time will tell.

As I recall, if one takes a left from the main entrance to the Hotel Palace, and continues for maybe three blcoks or so, one finds oneself on a street with many bars all offering tapas of some sort. I haven't really traversed that street in a while in the evening, but I think they're all still there. Years ago we found them inviting. I'd place them a distance behind the bars we tried in and round the Cava Baja though.

You should do a search on the Spanish spelling--Sevilla--it will bring up several threads with good information. Sevilla is one of the best places in Spain for tapas and not one of the best for restaurants. That's what I've heard and my experiences, albeit over a very short stay, supported that contention. In the few days we were there, we found nary an uninteresting tapa, and we found the food at the prestigious La Taberna del Alabardero a bit dull and not up to the decor and ambience. Perhaps it's good old fashioned home style cooking of a sort I've not learned to appreciate, but after some of the other gems we found in the region, it was a great disappointment to have had that kind of food in such a lovely setting.

I'm glad you include the upside of the equation. I know some restaurants in Paris that fit this description and they're mostly well worth knowing as they offer excellent value--very good food at a gentle price. I think this is all a continuation of the downscaling trend started years ago with that group we've talked about before. It included Camdeborde and Constant. Constant was chef at the then two star les Ambassadeurs as I recall, and a few of the chefs in that loose group had worked with him there. Constant went to open le Violon d'Ingres, perhaps the most upscale of the lot and has continued to purchase smaller and more informal places adjacent to the his main restaurant. Camdeborde had tremendous success with La Régalade, but as Pim mentioned, has left and is about to open a "w pension de famille." I think we're all guessing exactly what it will be, but you've probably described it. La Régalade had a carte with a reasonable number of choices. We'll see if the new place follows the pattern you're describing. Eric Frechon, who I also think of as part of the movement, had a wonderful place--more of a little restaurant than bistro--with a good menu. He's gone the other way and now heads the kitchen at the Bristol in Paris. As an optional form of dining or restaurant, I don't see the problem. If it's a trend that's going to deepen and we see the destruction of the traditional haute cuisine restaurants of France, it's a great loss. There are downsides to arriving at a restaurant with a set menu. It's particularly annoying to see the dish you had for dinner the night before as the only choice, but generally speaking, I look at it as being invited to a friend's house for dinner--only the friend is a good cook. Of course there are all kinds of diners. I'm the kind that often takes the surprised menu where I don't know what I'm eating anyway. For me, to some extent, that's the spirit of the current pleasure of dining out. It's not always better or worse than it was a couple of generations ago, it's just different and I'll never dismiss the savings that it should afford even at the ritziest places.

NUSSAH, are you referring to the many cafes and restaurants on the plaza level, or to the ones on a lower level that surround the plaza. It's on the lower level that we found the bars that meet your description. Even better yet however, were the bars a few blocks away on and around Cava Baja, inour opinion. Edit: Apologies to all. Those "caves" so matched the bars that Mrs. B was introduced to by a relative living in Madrid many years ago and to which we returned some years later, but still quite a few years ago, that I read Plaza Mayor where you wrote Plaza Espana. The Plaza de España is of course a different place and not one I particularly associate with tourists, although I don't really know it.

I'll say it again. Martin Berasategui just had the best food in our estimation and although a few people have disgreed, by and large our sense has been shared by the Spanish gastronomes we've met. The service was probably unsurpassed as well for us, although my wife speaks Spanish as a first language and that may change things. I could spend a week eating tapas in San Sebastian and not feel gastronomically deprived. There are a few things that can run into money some people can lose control as little tabs run up after you've had enough of them, but it can be a lot of tasting for little money. I recently posted a list of bars in a thread that already had some other good suggestions and links to other people's lists. I also recall some good advice about Try a search.

I have had fantastic meals at Bib Gourmand restaurants and excellent experiences at unstarred restaurants. The multistarred restaurant experience is something else and it need not appeal to everyone. It is the "high art" of gastronomy, but not everyone needs to be a connoisseur of opera to enjoy music.

Semi-oxydized wines may be a hit or miss thing, but they can be excellent. I once served a Sauternes that was deep in tint and approaching a Madeira like taste. My guests sniffed and made rude comments. I poured little tastes and thought, great more for me. They all asked for seconds without apologies.

If you live in Paris, you have to adopt the local currency as standard. If you're a frequent visitor, you almost have to do the same thing unless you are willing to lower your standards as the dollar drops. I suspect most people who visit regularly, adopt to accepting the extra price in dollars, although when the euro dips, I also suspect they start calculating and spend a bit more in euros. Owen. Don't forget the Michelin "Bib Gourmand" listing. If you use the Michelin web site you'll find it a choice next to the star rating under Michelin Guide Extras. My search pulls up 16 in Paris. I'm not sure if that's the complete list or not. Aux Lyonnais is the one I know and it still offers a prix fixe three course menu at 28 €. Although we ate à la carte there because I wanted a specific dessert, my main course was offered on the prix fixe menu. With a bottle of better than average beaujolais, bottled water, two coffees and a small tip over the included service, we were probably around 110-120 € for that dinner. It was not haute cuisine, but it was memorable. My main course was a thick slice of calves liver, of a quality I do not remember having in the US. Anyway, it pushes your prices perhaps, but I thought it was exceptional value and remember service and tax is included in the food price, so it's 56 € for three course for two people plus beverages. Coffee in restaurants is rarely a bargain, not that coffee in France is usually great anyway. Extend your budget and use your coffee money for a nightcap in a bar or cafe. Then again if you dine at Parisian hours, cafes are closing up by the time you finish eating unless you're in a lively area.

The article also describes eGullet.com as the "primer sitio gastronómico Internet del mundo." Elmundovino has some astute people. Gracias, elmundovino and bienvenido to anyone coming here in response to the article.

There is plenty of good food to be had in Madrid, but it's not surprising to hear anyone say the gastronomic highlight of their trip was a visit to Viridiana. There are few dishes more comforting than those with eggs, mushrooms or truffles. No suprise again that you cuould eat a combination every day, but I think it also illustrates something I noticed about Garcia's food. In spite of the fact that he can be very creative and go off in odd directions, and in spite of his longstanding reputation as a "fusion" chef, most of his food is deep down satisfying comfort food in the "wipe your plate clean with a piece of bread" manner. Our menu from May of this year. If more familiar one is with Michelin ratings all over Spain, the less puzzling Michelin's undervalue of any particular restaurant will seem. Campsa rates Viridiana 2 "suns" out of 3. The best of Spain's chefs are outpacing their French counterparts and yet there's a greater discrepency among the stars in Spain than in France. It seems far tougher to get the first star and tougher again to advance. It becomes hard to argue with those who suggest the evidence points to a conspiracy or quota system.

Many years ago, escargot seemed to be the most quintessentially French food, although frog's legs gave them a run for the money. They were always escargot bourguignon or fat Burgundian snails served in hot garlic butter. Having had them, even in NY back in the sixties, was a mark of some sort of sophistication. They were standard in most bistros on both sides of the Atlantic if my memory is correct. I can tell you that we even bought a set of snail tongs or whatever they were called, and a set of steel plates with the requisite dimples. I have no idea where either of those items are today. They're probably in a box that hasn't been opened since we moved well over thirty years ago. The box is probably a time capsule of sixties items I've never missed. I still see the dish on menus, but the few times in the last twenty years or so that I've had snails, they've been in puff pastry with spinach, in a tomato sauce laced with Pernod or some other such preparation. Writing about escargot bourguignon right now brings up a craving for them, although I'd happily settle for a big bowl of hot garlic butter and a crusty loaf of bread. Wiping the plate clean of melted butter was always at least as rewarding as eating the snails. I don't think the dish is as iconic now as it used to be. There are more nouveau bistrots or retro bistrots in Paris than there are plain old bistrots. A cargolade would be appealing, at least because I haven't had one, or been to one. I doubt that I won't find something more appealing on the menu if I run into escargot bourguignon being offered. Actually, what I might crave along with some oysters when I'm in Paris next month, are some sea snails--the large Bulots in particular and perhaps some small bigourneaux--along with some good fresh mayonnaise to accompany the boiled snails.

The Roussillon may be Catalunya, but it's France and I've moved the posts on snails in the Roussillon over to the French forum. Those who want to discuss snails in France can click to read or join that discussion.

There are some threads in the NY forum right now that discuss the realtively short life of contemporary restaurants in NY. At one time we had respected restaurants that were over fifty and even over 100 years old. Restaurants were institutions larger than the individuals who owned, ran and cooked in them. Today, great restaurants are about a person, usually the chef. Their life is rarely longer than that of the chef or the owner. There have been great restaurant institutions in Paris, but since I can remember, let's say post war, my sense is that the restaurants of provincial France have been tied to the chef. I wonder if I'm correct and how that makes things different there. I remember years ago, Loiseau bragging that he had been the first person to return three stars to a restaurant that had them under a previous chef, but lost them afterwards. The Troisgros family restaurnat has a different history. It has maintained three stars over two generations. Has any other French restaurant done that before, or since? At the end of the 20th century restaurant food, in France and the US, were very much different. Escoffier codified French restaurant food and to a certain extend, the Troisgros bothers were part of a group that started to uncodify haute cuisine. I'm not sure if it's correct to ask, but I'm curious to know how and what Claude Troisgos is doing. He had a wonderful restaurant whose development I was looking forward to enjoying, but he didn't stay here very long. Ari, you'll excuse me for not posing direct questions as much as letting my mind wander in the hope it will inspire you. I don't have the time to research my facts and I've not eaten at Troisgros in ages. Good luck. I'm sorry you didn't contact us sooner. With the time difference, I don't even know that my message will help at all. I'd love to see your article when it's finished. Please link to it if it's online.

If one wants to eat with Parisians, it's best to show up after 8:30 at neighborhood restaurants and after 9:00 at the fancier ones, although I've been known to cheat by a half hour sometimes. If you find a restaurant that caters to Spanish tourists, you'll never have to worry about dining too late.

I believe they are also eaten this way in the Bas Languedoc. It's not surprising when you realize that the neighboring Roussillon is as much Catalunya as France. It's not unusual in that part of France to have large cargolade as a public feast. Unfortunately, I've not been able to time my arrivals to enjoy this feast, but my understanding is that vast quantities of snails are grilled and served with aioli. Cargol is the Catalan word for snails, and closer in sound to the French name for snails than the Spanish.

We ate there quite a few years ago. As I recall it was right on the corner, but I can't remember if one entered directly off the quai des Grands Augustins or the rue des Grands Augustins that runs into the quai. It's still there, or at least the Michelin web site says it is at 53 quai Grands Augustins.

We ate there a few years ago. It was off season in December. The food was good, but what I remember most was getting the same garnish in more than one dish. In fact they served the garnish for one of the dishes as an amuse. I don't remember what it was. I remember enjoying it as an amuse, but I thought it the oddest thing in the world when it showed up again during the course of dinner. It was like having leftovers and really took the edge off the meal.

As others have suggested, the particular farm may be more important than the region and the best region may well depend on your other interests. I will add that it can get cold in parts of Spain. Much of central Spain is dry and the winter is not as bone chilling for that. Than again the dessert is not where the farms usually are. Galicia is not one of the best known regions but it can be very temperate in winter due to the Gulf Stream. I recall the January we drove ahead of a blinding snowstorm that caused considerable damage back in Burgos and I think as far as Madrid, but as we reached Galicia we drove out of the storm into a place where there was ripe fruit on the orange trees and trees were in bloom. It seemed like Shangri-la by comparison to what we left behind for the TV news to cover. All of Spain's coast seems rather temperate however and I don't expect there are many farms in the high mountain ranges.

Service always runs a far distant second to the food for me. That said, I expect different levels or kinds of service in different places anyway. Some things are basic however. I don't want hot food sitting in front of me when they've yet to set the table with silverware. Along those lines, I was going to ask why one would eat pancakes without syrup, but the real question is how would you eat pancakes without the syrup? You might just as well pour the raw batter on my plate. I can eat a hot dog without mustard if I have to, but what's the point of pancakes without syrup. Bring me the syrup before the fork, please. I can even eat with my hands. Pancakes without syrup? I'll take a pill and a glass of water if all I want is to fill my belly.

I'm tempted to ask if they're changed their fries. I should imagine they're real potatoes, frozen maybe, but they seemed to capture the essence of processed potato product both times I had them, not terrible, but not good and certainly not in a league with Balthazar. It's not the sort of food I can really get worked up over, although if the fries were better, I might. It's a very welcome addition to the city and particularly to the neighborhood. I've visited several times and even had "dinner" there twice. The park is a very pleasant place on a nice day. The requirement to consume the beer and wine in a restricted area is most annoying, but that's not their fault and I understand it's difficult for the city to deal with abuses of public consumption of alcohol. Unfortunately, the application here is an invitation to "brown bag" a beer from a grocery store. What I don't get is how this could be an important culinary destination for an out of town visitor--a great stop on walking tour that brought you close, perhaps, but I'd choose 11 Madison Park or Tabla if I had the time or money for lunch. Then again, on a visit to relatives in western Michigan, we all went out for burgers at what appeared to be a regional institution. It was a huge sprawling old place that was packed with families. Service was most friendly, but an order for mustard on a cheeseburger with onions came with mushrooms. Must have been my NY accent. I was impressed, though not particularly favorably, by the notice on the menu that burgers may not be ordered with lettuce or tomato. The unordered mushrooms appeared to have been boiled or canned--no real surprise and the onions had been heated in oil, but to no advantage. The fries however, were so totally unrewarding that that most of them went uneaten. I can't hardly remember a portion of bad diner fries that I didn't at least finish over half. I do understand how bad this genre of food can be. And, reading the last post as I previewed mine, I'll probably order the 'shroom burger next time as I've been prepped for it.

With that less than obsessive need to be in those destinations, perhaps you'll be open to other suggestions. There's a certain dliemma in that Cahors and Montpellier together don't deserve half as much time as Paris, but there's no point in spending just one day in any city especially if arriving by train and plane and at the mercy of timetables. Agreed that this is a sensible and interesting stop, especially with the fair. I suppose that's redundant. There's nothing sensible about stopping in an uninteresting place. I actually believe we stayed at that Hotel the last time we passed through Dijon. Libertel hotels are usually very reliable in their price range. As I recall, we didn't have a reservation and picked it after driving by some other hotels. Truthfully, I don't remember it very well, which is generally a good enough sign when not staying in more luxurous digs. As I recall it was well located for seeing Dijon on foot, but parking facilities may have played a part in our decision. I don't recall where we ate, but it was a rest day between gastronomic destinations. Good to know we have that freedom without insulting you. I've never thought of Sete as "grubby" but I've also never thought of it as a destination. I've stopped in it's cafes for a coffee or beer, but never lingered too long and wonder what a single person would do in such a sleepy town not particularly known for its restaurants. Maybe it's not as sleepy as I think it is, but then I've mostly seen it in the summer. It will be quieter in October. Marseille always sounds far more interesting than it really is and its food has a better reputation than it deserves. We spent a few days there some years back, including a New Year's Eve. We enjoyed it enough, as we were meeting friends, but it doesn't draw me back nearly as much as many other places in France. I've been in and through Montpellier many times because friends live nearby, but I might say about it what I've said about Marseille. It's a university town and I don't know much else about the population or the single life. Most of the people we know in the area are married and old enough to be your parents. I love the Pyrenees and the Basque area, but in a good part of it, you're between seasons and the best of it is best seen by car. I generally love the countryside in France, often more so than the cities, but if I were traveling alone, I might prefer even bigger cities. I can talk about food and even museums, but when it comes to a singles scene, I'm out of the loop so I'm loathe to make many suggestions. Toulouse might be a choice however. Also be careful about distinguishing between comments made about places like Cahors in summer and fall. Places that are lively in summer are often dead in the fall and places that are obnoxiously full of tourists in the summer can be pleasant in the fall. It depends on what you want.

I've never had Xiaoplong Bao in rapid sucession at New Green Bo, Moon House and Yeah Shanghai, so a comparison is hard to make, but I think I'd recommend those at Yeah over the other two. I seem to recall them being referred to as something closer to shao laun bao on menus.

Please take this in the friendliest way possible, but I can't answer the "why?" and thus all the other questions seem moot. I suppose it qualifies as a curioisty. I read the post. I've never seen it though and was curious where one might have run across this. My guess is that it's all consumed in Australia. Perhaps that's my hope.

We've had wonderful meals at the Jardin des Sens, but haven't been there since it got its third star. We have had very mixed reports since it's had three stars, but Michelin seems happy enough. It's kept all three for a while now.