Preparing to Eat a Tasting Menu

[nolnacs]

I think I'll just ask them to give me half of what they would usually pour throughout. I am not a heavy drinker. On the other hand, my hotel is only a mile away and cabs are plentiful...

As for the water-loading thing, I believe I read somewhere that the Man vs. Food guy preps himself by drinking large quantities of water the day before an eating challenge to expand his stomach.

Be careful with that... my wife ordered a half pour tasting at Alinea when we went there back in '07 ('08?) and the pours were actually quite generous. My theory is that they thought she was ordering the half pour because it was cheaper (we were in our mid 20s at the time) and not because a full pour would end with her being completely inebriated. Which ended up being the case anyway.

[Margaret Pilgrim]

There should not be any problem fitting a tasting menu into your normal style of consuming. The problems arise when you are traveling and schedule night after night after night of larger than normal meals, perhaps after some larger than normal lunches. While survival is probable, your enjoyment of the later meals will be less than they would have been had you arrived hungry with an unjaded palate.

[Derek J]

I am happy to report I survived the tasting menu at Alinea. They gave me exactly the right amount of food to make me feel incredibly full without feeling sick. Perfect portioning. My review is posted in the Alinea thread in the Heartland dining subforum.