Maestro

[Joe H]

Of course it's an Italian restaurant in the same sense that Le Calandre, Aimo e Nadia, Vissani ("blueberry lasagna") and others are rooted in tradition and use this as a foundation for cutting edge combinations and, at Maestro and Le Calandre, spectacular presentations. Even Roberto at Laboratorio has grown far beyond what might have been expected of him years ago. His duck custard brulee is one of the best things I've ever tasted, yet I cannot imagine that anyone would class this as "Italian." Still, his is an Italian restaurant. Michel Richard likewise has a French restaurant yet similar to Roberto and Fabio his, as their's, are as you say Global cuisines. Rooted in the heritage of their past.

My wife and I had literally the best meal of our lives a month ago at Maestro: 22 courses and a bit over five hours. There were a half dozen dishes that had a clear "Italian heritage." Yet another half dozen that had elements, combinations, textures, contrasts that I had not experienced before or in a similar way. The balance ,interpretations of what I have had elsewhere, including Robuchon's legendary mashed potatoes. Fabio is reaching as much as almost any chef anywhere. But not into fantasy such as at El Bulli. He is more grounded in what constitutes real food, if you will. Over the next few years he will receive the credit he deserves. I personally believe it is an embarrassment that he did not receive the James Beard Award this year.

At some point it will be as difficult to get into Maestro as it is at the French Laundry. It just remains for more of the national writers and some of those who actually vote for the James Beard Society to travel to Tyson's Corner and experience it.

Still, it is an Italian restaurant. One that represents the same cutting edge style found in a few restaurants in Italy today. Fabio is just educating many in this country that Italian can take on many guises and tastes.

Curiously, Fabio is not a "front of the room" type of chef. I think he prefers to spend as little time as possible there. Yet Emmanuele, the maitre d' and part owner, is as talented, enthusiastic and knowledgeable as anyone anywhere. One thing so many American restaurants have lacked is the ability of the restaurant's host to make eveyone feel important, to feel truly special. So very few do that here. Yet, there are some in Europe that are practiced at this, that have a talent for making every meal special to everyone. Emmanuele is like this. In fact he is as good for the front of the room as Fabio is for the kitchen and Vincent for his specialty. Together this is an extraordinary restaurant that we are fortunate to have. Along with Laboratorio two of the absolute best Italian restaurants on earth.

[Steve Klc]

That was a nice bit of hedging and qualification Joe. As chefs, to a certain degree we're all rooted in our past, rooted in tradition, where we've worked, who we've worked with. As we get more experienced, our inspiration and creativity is a much more complex thing, though, so too can it become harder to appreciate what dish is before you. I always think it's best to go in without expectation and to assess and evaluate what is set before you on its own terms. To a certain extent we as chefs accept simplistic labels, categories and limits from media and publicists--we accept a kind of dumbing down of what we do and who we are because it makes it easier for the public to get a handle on our food--which can be much more complex and personal than a label like "Italian" or "American" might suggest.

Clearly, some chefs are their labels--and make a lot of money wearing their labels. Where I think some diners (and writers) miss out is they too readily accept labels or pre-conceived notions going in. Sometimes, they too readily speculate about things they don't have personal knowledge of or experience with--in each case re-inforcing those labels and limits which aren't necessarily correct in the first place. Your last post might be a case in point.

Cutting through it, which was full of praise for Maestro which I'm not going to disagree with, you describe your last meal at Maestro where only 6 of 22 dishes had "clear Italian heritage" and this coming from someone well-versed in the "Italian" scene trying to make the case Maestro is an Italian restaurant...hmm...well, thanks for unintentionally helping support my point that Fabio as a chef is more global and rightly transcends the "Italian" label. That means, I assume, 16 dishes can't have the dots so easily and/or neatly connected--16 dishes don't fit neatly into some unhelpful categorization as "Italian." That supports me saying that his cooking is more personal--the cooking is more Fabio and less "Italian"--and diners not knowing Fabio's background would probably view his cooking as modern, creative and personal FIRST, which is my point.

We're increasingly at a point in this country where labels don't apply to high end cooking, Joe--or where labels at least aren't helpful. I don't see this as a bad thing and re-reading your last post leads me to believe you might actually agree with me. Take the label "fusion." Well, not too long ago that was a slur--something derogatory trotted out to demean a creative chef--because only a few geniuses annointed by the media power brokers could be trusted to do fusion right. Thankfully, we're getting past the fusion label. That's because we're getting past fusion itself.

By the way, I didn't say this but there were as many French "techniques" on display in my meal at Maestro than Italian. How do I know? Well, I'm a chef and I cook with French techniques every day. That doesn't make my opinion more correct--but it might mean I'm coming from a different place because I cook and create myself. It's unsurprising, really, because the French have influenced us globally for so long. That doesn't make me or Fabio any more a "French" chef, does it? It doesn't make his cooking "French" does it? No. It's Fabio Trabocchi being Fabio Trabocchi.

This is simplistic, but it might help show you why I see things the way I do: when I do a dessert at Jaleo with all American ingredients is it still necessarily a "Spanish" dessert? I'm clearly not Spanish myself. How about a dessert which uses the great Spanish dessert wine Casta Diva--I make a gelee of the wine and vanilla and pour it into a bowl in a shallow layer and build a simple but creative dessert of berries and granite on top of it--does that make it a "Spanish" dessert? No, that's a Steve Klc dessert, modern, clean and personal which just happens to "fit" in a traditional Spanish restaurant of Jose Andres. The gelee "technique" itself is not "Spanish" nor is pouring it out a thin flat layer.

Let's get back to the Maestro restaurant "experience" itself--the nuts and bolts of the meal unfolding--things like menu composition, plating, service, sommelier, decor, pacing: it was not "Italian" at least in any frame of reference that would distinguish it for the vast majority of high-end diners and tasting menus. It was the consummate gracious attentive high-end "global" dining experience--and could have been received in SF or NYC or Chicago or Portland etc. at Michel Richard, Trotter, FL, ADNY, Blue Hill, Clio, Trio, Tribute, Hugo's etc. or Paris or Spain or Italy and on and on. That Vincent poured a higher percentage of Italian wines with our meal than I might have received elsewhere doesn't make Maestro "Italian" either--it means he poured wines appropriate for the dish compositions--but those wines could easily have been poured for French, Spanish, American or global dishes.

Of course, anyone could read Fabio's bio and the restaurant website blurbs--he's Italian, grew up and cooked in Italy and opened "Italian" restaurants like Bice previously. I realize it seems crazy to say what I've said. Fabio himself might disagree with my assessment. But I wouldn't say the same thing about Babbo, Galileo or Tosca for instance--the cooking there and those dishes are more recognizably, more comfortably Italian--or at least what passes for creative Italian in food media circles--and even with some personal cooking and interpretations those dishes--and meals there--do not transcend the label in my book as Maestro does. That's not to say those chefs aren't capable of individual transcendent dishes--individual dishes which defy category or defy a label; that's just saying that overall labelling these restaurants Italian, the cooking Italian, is warranted up to a point--if you even have to apply labels to them. That's because you aren't going to get an "only 6 Italian dishes out of 22" at a Babbo, Galileo or Tosca, are you--nor will you get a "no risotto/one pasta dish only but avant garde at that" as in my recent 15 course tasting menu?

Similarly, does it make what Jose Andres is doing at the Cafe Atlantico minibar "Spanish" because Jose "is" Spanish? It's clear what Jose is doing at Jaleo is his take on traditional Spanish tapas--that's a label which applies--but the minibar is so much an expression of "Jose" it is not "Spanish." What Fabio is doing at Maestro--based on what I know and what I observed last week--similarly transcends labels. It's much more modern, creative, eclectic, interesting and personal--like what Jose is doing at the minibar or like what an increasing number of elite "French" or "Spanish" or "American" chefs are doing--than any "label" can do justice to.

You say "Still, it is an Italian restaurant. One that represents the same cutting edge style found in a few restaurants in Italy today. Fabio is just educating many in this country that Italian can take on many guises and tastes" I just wish you'd demonstrate it because you're evidence seems to support my take on this--and though I've never been to this restaurant in Italy which you have been to, I wonder if I did dine there if I wouldn't feel the same way about it as I do Maestro--that it is more global and the cooking more personal and transcendent than anything else, than any label can do adequate justice to? How much product does Le Calandre fly in from around the world--as much as Fabio? How many of their dishes could just as easily have been presented at Trotter or FL or a Spanish Michelin three star as many of Fabio's could?

Up to that point, I think we can agree to disagree about Fabio and Maestro: summarized essentially as my "personal, creative, global" vs. your "cutting edge Italian"--and let others weigh in to either agree or disagree--as Vengroff has already done. I think that will just depend on one's perspective on labels and one's appreciation of food and chefs. To me, the best chefs don't have limits and they defy labels. Also, sometimes in your posts you include a few comments which over-reach just a bit and are worth calling you on, this was no exception: "I personally believe it is an embarrassment that he did not receive the James Beard Award this year." Why? There are many James Beard awards to be had in a career--Rising star, Best Chef-Mid-Atlantic, Best Chef nationally. Fabio has an incredible future ahead of him. This year he "lost"--if you could call being one of only 5 chefs nominated nationally "losing" or embarrassing in any way. I can't. How many meals have you had at the hands of Grant Achatz--the young chef who did get the Beard in Fabio's category this year? Both young guys doing serious work--one got it, one didn't--in an admittedly political, somewhat mysterious process inherently difficult because it is conducted on a national scale. Rest assured, both will garner further Beard nominations and win awards. But in order to feel so embarrassed you'd surely have had numerous meals at Trio in Grant's hands, right? Have you written up those meals somewhere and been non-plussed? If so, I'd like to read how and why Grant let you down.

You also lose me a bit when you use terms like "real" food and "fantasy" as if they have some meaning--some agreed upon significance--and when you try to talk about El Bulli not having been there yourself, I wonder if you've at least read through the El Bulli books, cooked with the recipes, played the CD-ROM and digested what they have to offer. From what I have read it seems you're still unaware how Ferran and El Bulli inspire and influence all sorts of chefs both here and abroad.

But that's OK--we both do agree on at least this much--that Fabio is a great chef already, doing great work now and that Maestro is a great restaurant.

[vengroff]

I think the debate as to whether Maestro serves Italian vs. Modern, Global, Personal or whatever comes at least in part as a result of how the menu is structured. As discussed earlier in this thread, the menu offers the diner three distinct ways to approach the meal. One of the ways they differ is in how many or how few recognizably Italian ingredients and techniques they use.

First, there is La Tradizione, which, according to Maestro's web page, consists of, "Italian regional dishes use ingredients similar to those in the original recipe with an updated touch.  Items in this category embrace more traditional tastes.  Pure and simple." If you want courses of buffalo mozzarella, risotto, zucchini flowers, and fresh Mediterranean fish, this is for you.

Second, there is L'Evoluzione, whose "dishes reflect Chef Fabio's personal interpretation of Italian cooking adapted to modern tastes.  An evolution of traditional Italian recipes with a global seasoning, these dishes showcase Fabio's signature style.  Bold and intense." Here, Fabio pushes the envelope much further than La Tradizione. This is where the foie gras, caviar, ginger, Thai basil, savory cappuccinos, and agar agar show up.

Finally, there is la Creazione, the tasting menu of which Fabio says, "I create a sequence of dishes out of my inspiration of the moment.  I try to satisfy your taste with the same enthusiasm I use in making my favored choices." Your waiter will ask you to provide as much or as little guidance as you wish in terms of ingredient preferences, any allergies, and whether you lean towards traditional or evolutionary tastes and techniques.. I think Steve is right when he suggests that to as great an extent as possible you should just let the kitchen choose for you. I would add that suggesting you are open to any and every possibility is never the wrong choice here.

Earlier, Steve said, "I had read all these reports that Maestro is an Italian restaurant and Fabio cooks Italian. It's not necessarily and he doesn't necessarily. His cooking is every bit as modern, contemporary and interesting as the very best French or Spanish or American chefs who are globally influenced and inspired." I emphatically agreed with this because I think that in three sentences he summarized what it just took me three paragraphs to say. If you chose carefully from La Tradizione, you could have a meal that I think we would all agree was Italian. But it's not necessary to do so, and I think we all agree that it's not desirable. Fabio is so good at using so many other techniques and ingredients that it would be a shame not to just put yourself in his hands. If you have twenty-two courses, as Joe had the pleasure of doing, then some of them will inevitably come from the more traditional side of the menu.

[vengroff]

Another question has come into my mind as a result of the discussion here. It may belong in another forum, but I'm not sure which. Since it came up here, I'll start it here.

In calling what Adria, Andres, and Achatz (does having a name that starts with 'A' help you out in some way here?) are doing "global" or "modern global" cuisine, do we mean only that they are using the best ingredients and new techniques they can find, regardless or where in the world they originated? Or do we also mean that this cuisine is appearing around the world? Is anyone in Tokyo, Hong Kong, Singapore, or Sydney doing this type of work? What about Buenos Ares, Cape Town, or Tel Aviv? Given the rapid dissemination of information through the internet and inexpensive international travel, and the availability of distant ingredients via express air transport, is the world of fine dining getting smaller? Is regionalism going to fade in prominence?

[chefette]

Reading through this made me think:

1- How DO you really categorize high-end food or cooking anymore? What makes something French or Italian, or anything else when pretty much everyone everywhere can get most any ingredients and can put them together using their own senses as a guide?

2- It seems that we seem much more willing to allow French chefs to improvise and adapt and still be 'French' where we don't seem willing to allow for so much drift in other cuisines.

Maybe this question belongs in a completely different thread, but I thought of it here so here it is.

[DonRocks]

Based on my experience tonight, Maestro is officially knocked off its pedestal. From a full-blown seven-course Creazione: one great course (sea bass), one good course (agnolotti stuffed with foie gras confit), and the rest a bunch of also-rans. Nothing was bad, but not much else was great either. My friend and I began hypothesizing halfway through the meal that the dishes from La Tradizione tended to be better than the ones from the L'Evoluzione, but that was dispelled by a lame, inexplicably overcooked partridge dish. Vincent Feraud was great as usual, but the restaurant slipped vis-a-vis the other two times I went. Quite uninspired and disappointing. Just goes to show: you can neither annoint nor trash a restaurant based on one visit. At this money, I expect excellence; it was not to be found tonight.

Rocks.

[vengroff]

Don,

I'm sorry to hear that this trip didn't match up to your prior visits. But I have to believe you experienced an anomoly. Time will tell.

[tammylc]

Last night I had the fortune to go to Maestro and enjoy dinner with 57 fabulous food geeks. Joe H, who has waxed poetic about Maestro on this board, organized a private dinner at the restaurant over on Chowhound, and last night was the night.

I had the great fortune to happen to be attending a conference in DC the same week of this fabulous dinner, and the even greater fortune of having someone on the DC board know that and send me a link to the information. So while I didn't travel all the way from Michigan just for dinner, it was certainly the highlight of my week so far.

Joe sets some pretty high expecations of Maestro, and I have to say that it absolutely lived up to them for me. I think I'd rank this as my second best meal ever - my Tour de Force dinner at the kitchen table at Trio still holds the number one spot, but last night's dinner has a firm hold on number 2. Not a single course was less than good, few were less than great, and several were absolutely stellar.

Here's my course by course write up:

Canapes (these were all just single bits, to be eaten with fingers or served in a spoon):

Mozzarella Cone with Taggiasche Olives Tapenade - Olives are the one food I just can't seem to acquire a taste for. I ate this anyway, but it was well, olivey.

Kumamoto with Maine Sea Urchins and Flat Parsley Froth - Kumamoto oysters are my least favorite, but this was a pretty decent one. The hit of parsley from the parsley froth was really excellent.

Spoon of Marinated Rainbow Smelt, Confit Red Peppers and Poached Quail Egg - My favorite dish of the night, although there were several close contenders. A marinated smelt, wrapped around a poached quail egg and served in a spoon. All the flavors and textures just worked so well together, I was in awe, and the meal had scarcely begun.

Amuse Bouche: Fennel Anise Shot with Taylor Bay Scallops and Salmon Roe. Marinated scallops and salmon roe served in a scallop shell perched atop a glass of warm Fennel Anise soup. Another lovely, lovely dish. I don't like fennel or anise that much, but this was still great.

Il Mosaico: Mosaic of Steel Head Wild Salmon, Blue Fin Tuna, Carribbean Princess Conch Meat Jelly, Baja Sone Crab on "Saraceno" Potato Pancake with Sevruga Caviar and Lemon Zest. Beautiful presentation on this. One cube of each of the four main ingredients set atop a long rectangular potato base, and a stripe of caviar along the top. Amazing. The fish was really, really fresh and wonderfully flavored.

Il Carpaccio: Rolled Beef Carpaccio in Parmagiano-Reggiano Sauce with Seared Belle Farm Foie Gras, 50 Years Old Condimento Balsamico, Maestro Style. Another big, big winner with me. What the name doesn't tell you is the the carpaccio was stuffed with tofu that had been marinated in honey and something else. That's right - tofu! But it totally, totally worked. Served with a piece of parmesan on top and a quenelle of mushroom duxelle on top of that, with the two sauces and foie off to the side. The foie was lovely, beautifully seared and very, very tasty.

I Ravioli d'Astice: Maine Lobster Ravioli with Freshly Grated Ginger Glaze and Bisque Jus. One of the largest dishes of the night, this was not only the ravioli, but a big chunk of lobster alongside. Very rich. Keeping in mind that we were only about halfway through, I only ate half. It was a good dish (although not as great as the preceding 4) but I'm not a big lobster fan and it was very rich.

Gli Scampi e le Castagne: Sauteed Live Imported Scottish Langoustine Tail on Grilled Country Bread Soaked in Langoustine Jus, Winter Chestnut Cappuccino with Sherry Whipped Cream. That description is a mouthful, and this dish was too! A chestnut soup, essentially, poured around the bread and langoustine. Very rich, but delicate and refined flavors that worked really well together. As one of my table mates said - "I like that it fills my mouth even when I don't have a mouthful."

Il Risotto: Risotto with Taleggio Cheese and Forelle Pears Flavored with Grappa and Crushed Peppercorns. Fabio is well known for his risotto and this proved why. Perfectly al dente (a bit of trick when getting 60 plates ready simultaneously, I'd imagine) and wonderfully flavored by the cheese. I cleaned my plate and was tempted to move onto Karen's (who decided that if she didn't like this risotto, she just wasn't going to like any risotto and could stop thinking she was missing something).

Lo Storione: Roasted Wild West Coast Sturgeon in Taroroot and Basil Waistcoat with Wilted Butter Lettuce in Sturgeon-Red Wine Jus. The texture of the sturgeon was marvellous, and the taroroot waistcoat utterly unique. But another very rich dish. You'll notice that there are several in a row here starting with the ravioli, and there's still one more to go. Something with vegetables would have been a nice change (there's nary a vegetable to be seen on this menu, you'll notice) and a sorbet intermezzo would have helped reduce some palate fatigue. But that's pretty much the only complaint I have about the meal!

Il Bue Rossini, XXI Secolo: Australian Premium Pasture Fed Beef Tenderloin Rossini, XXI Century. From what I've read, this dish usually comes with a really elaborate presentation, but since they didn't have 60 of the necessary props, ours was a bit more laid back. Tenderloin stuffed with foie gras, topped with some kind of ravioli or something, served with a port wine truffle sauce and a potato puree. Yum, but I was glad to be done with the rich dishes and onto dessert - my dinner stomach was full, but I knew my dessert stomach still had some space...

Pre-Dessert: Lychee Panna Cotta with Homemade Basil Grappa. A light and delightful panna cotta, with a little basil grappa poured on top. Lovely, and the palate cleanser I'd been looking for.

Il Tiramisu: Glass of Cream of Marscapone and Coffee Dipped Sponge, Warm Carmelized Pears, Pear Sorbet. As far from the ubiquitous chain restaurant tiramisu as you can get. The pears and pear sorbet added a surprisingly nice touch, given that it was a combination that I wouldn't have thought would work.

Petit Fours. More than just an afterthought, these were really good. I wasn't a big fan of the macaroon (although others at the table adored it), but both the white chocolate truffle filled with raspberry sorbet and the miniature molten chocolate cake were divine.

Thanks again to Joe for putting this together. And thanks to all the great food geeks who gathered and provided such hospitality and welcome and conversation (I know some of you read this board too). Obviously this wasn't your regular Maestro experience, but after this meal, I'd go back for the regular menu in a heartbeat.

[bilrus]

I have seen the pics of this on CH and thislooked like an unbelievable blowout.

I don't know why, but the thing that struck me was that the room itself was much more formal and traditional than I had expected to see, given the ambitious menus.

[Tweaked]

Yeah the dining room definitely falls into the grand hotel category. But what's really cool is how they have the open kitchen set up. You have this formal dining area and its almost as if the kitchen is the stage at a theater. or as if during construction they just didn't bother to construct the wall between the kitchen and the dining room. To walk into a formal dining room and then have this gleaming industrial stainless steel kitchen directly connected, it's almost surreal!

btw, the food produced in this kitchen is almost surreal as well! Last night's dinner was truly extraordinary.

[bbq4meanytime]

Based on my experience tonight, Maestro is officially knocked off its pedestal. From a full-blown seven-course Creazione: one great course (sea bass), one good course (agnolotti stuffed with foie gras confit), and the rest a bunch of also-rans. Nothing was bad, but not much else was great either. My friend and I began hypothesizing halfway through the meal that the dishes from La Tradizione tended to be better than the ones from the L'Evoluzione, but that was dispelled by a lame, inexplicably overcooked partridge dish. Vincent Feraud was great as usual, but the restaurant slipped vis-a-vis the other two times I went. Quite uninspired and disappointing. Just goes to show: you can neither annoint nor trash a restaurant based on one visit. At this money, I expect excellence; it was not to be found tonight.

Rocks.

Don, having dined recently multi-course at two of the consistently top ranked restaurants in DC, I'm afraid to try Maestro because your comments echo almost precisely my experiences at the other $250-300 per head dinners I refer to.

At some point I will have to try Maestro but maybe I'll approach it less critically and just try to have some fun

Joe: from the pictures looks like you folks had a nice time, and the food does look pretty tasty.

[Mark Sommelier]

Based on my experience tonight, Maestro is officially knocked off its pedestal.  From a full-blown seven-course Creazione:  one great course (sea bass), one good course (agnolotti stuffed with foie gras confit), and the rest a bunch of also-rans.  Nothing was bad, but not much else was great either.  My friend and I began hypothesizing halfway through the meal that the dishes from La Tradizione tended to be better than the ones from the L'Evoluzione, but that was dispelled by a lame, inexplicably overcooked partridge dish.  Vincent Feraud was great as usual, but the restaurant slipped vis-a-vis the other two times I went.  Quite uninspired and disappointing.  Just goes to show:  you can neither annoint nor trash a restaurant based on one visit.  At this money, I expect excellence; it was not to be found tonight.

Rocks.

Don, having dined recently multi-course at two of the consistently top ranked restaurants in DC, I'm afraid to try Maestro because your comments echo almost precisely my experiences at the other $250-300 per head dinners I refer to.

At some point I will have to try Maestro but maybe I'll approach it less critically and just try to have some fun

Joe: from the pictures looks like you folks had a nice time, and the food does look pretty tasty.

Please tell us about your experiences at the other multi-course, $200-300 restaurants that you refer to. We are curious.

[Joe H]

Tammy, thank you for your wonderful words. It was a real pleasure to be able to share this extraordinary dinner with you. I am also convinced that your baby (Tammy is seven months pregnant) in several decades will be well on their way to a James Beard award!!! I can only imagine at how you are spoiling them!

[Joe H]

I should also note that there are extensive photographs of the dinner linked separately under a different topic title.

[bbq4meanytime]

Based on my experience tonight, Maestro is officially knocked off its pedestal.  From a full-blown seven-course Creazione:  one great course (sea bass), one good course (agnolotti stuffed with foie gras confit), and the rest a bunch of also-rans.  Nothing was bad, but not much else was great either.  My friend and I began hypothesizing halfway through the meal that the dishes from La Tradizione tended to be better than the ones from the L'Evoluzione, but that was dispelled by a lame, inexplicably overcooked partridge dish.  Vincent Feraud was great as usual, but the restaurant slipped vis-a-vis the other two times I went.  Quite uninspired and disappointing.  Just goes to show:  you can neither annoint nor trash a restaurant based on one visit.  At this money, I expect excellence; it was not to be found tonight.

Rocks.

Don, having dined recently multi-course at two of the consistently top ranked restaurants in DC, I'm afraid to try Maestro because your comments echo almost precisely my experiences at the other $250-300 per head dinners I refer to.

At some point I will have to try Maestro but maybe I'll approach it less critically and just try to have some fun

Joe: from the pictures looks like you folks had a nice time, and the food does look pretty tasty.

Please tell us about your experiences at the other multi-course, $200-300 restaurants that you refer to. We are curious.

Mark: Citronelle and the Lab. As I said above, Don summed it up: "Nothing was bad, but not much else was great either. ... Quite uninspired and disappointing. Just goes to show: you can neither annoint nor trash a restaurant based on one visit. At this money, I expect excellence; it was not to be found tonight."

[Joe H]

Everyone is entitled to an opinion but to dismiss Maestro, Laboratorio and Citronelle with what amounts to a virtual sweep of the hand-all "$250 to $300 a head dinners" where "excellence was not to be found" is quite a statement.

I was born here 57 years ago and grew up when there were temporary buildings on the Mall and La Salle du Bois was D. C.'s best French restaurant. Italian meant red sauce and Mexican and Szechuan caused many people to worry that they would be "hurt" from the heat. I say this because today Washington, D. C. is fortunate to have three world class restaurants, the very three you have chosen to criticize. Michel moved from L. A. where he already had a national reputation, Roberto personally spawned a whole series of talented chefs who helped ratchet D. C. Italian to the top of the ladder while winning his own James Beard Award and, now, Fabio has placed us squarely on a national stage. Our three compete with the absolute best of New York, San Francisco and Chicago; they challenge the best of Rome and Paris. I'm sorry but there is genuine excellence in all three of these. I've organized exquisite dinners at both Laboratorio and Maestro that sold out and will probably do Citronelle. I suggest that you consider investing another $250 to 300 (or even half of this since they do NOT have to be so expensive) for the next one and see if you leave feeling the same way.

Perhaps not every meal will be a life changing experience. But more often than not they offer something that we haven't had here before without crossing an ocean to find. I have a tremendous respect and appreciation for this, feeling fortunate that all three are here today. We are indeed lucky to have this exquisite level of excellence here. I know that when a course is served and all conversation stops as eight people simultaneously take a bite that they are experiencing something truly extraordinary. I know that when prolonged applause from every person in the room greets Roberto and Fabio at the end of the dinner there is a genuine feeling of actual "value" despite the cost. I've seen mouths drop with the presentation of "Breakfast" at Citronelle. I also know that all three of these men share an intense love and passion for what they give and share with us.

It is not fair nor just to them nor to us who read these boards to summarily dismiss all three with a virtual wave of the hand.

[bbq4meanytime]

Joe: you misread and misinterpreted my post. I dined at both Cintronelle and Laboratorio. Neither was a great as the hype that was billed in private and in public and I was dissappointed. I haven't yet dined at Maestro but plan to one day. My comment is this: after spending $250-$300 a head (multiply that times 2 because of the guest), I am a little cash-shy that the next hyped multi-course dinner will leave me yet again disappointed. I haven't dismissed any of these restaurants or their chefs. But in my experience, they didn't live up to the hype.

Nothing more and nothing less should be taken from my post.

[Ted Task]

as a new egulleter or is it gulletier, i need to comment on Maestro, having dined there twice in two very different circumstances.

The first was a private dinner for 16....wonderful if too much food, but that was my hosts choice...take it from an old foodie 'twas very special.

Most recently we celebrated some birthdays at the Sunday brunch...the selection was dramatic (at least five cheese I did not know) enough variety to satisfy any

abnormal person, and staff on the floor of the kitchen who were outstanding.

That being said, was pissed that they advertise this as a Champagne Brunch (recall that wine is what I'm all about) and they had the chutzpah to offer a Spanish Cava that I can buy at retail for under ten bucks.

They WILL keep making you all the bloody or Mexican Marys you can handle.

That being said...will return.

[Malawry]

Welcome to eGullet from a L'academie alum, Ted.

[Mark Sommelier]

Joe: you misread and misinterpreted my post. I dined at both Cintronelle and Laboratorio. Neither was a great as the hype that was billed in private and in public and I was dissappointed. I haven't yet dined at Maestro but plan to one day. My comment is this: after spending $250-$300 a head (multiply that times 2 because of the guest), I am a little cash-shy that the next hyped multi-course dinner will leave me yet again disappointed. I haven't dismissed any of these restaurants or their chefs. But in my experience, they didn't live up to the hype.

Nothing more and nothing less should be taken from my post.

Dear bbq4,

I am curious about your comments. What did "the hype" leave you to expect?

[Joe H]

BackwardsHat: have you had the Winter prix fixe at Maestro? In particular the chestnut soup with langoustine and the tallegio risotto? They are extraordinary and among the best dishes served in any restaurant on earth. Fabio also does a superb foie gras. You might have some interest in these photographs:

http://dell.shutterfly.com/osi.jsp?i=67b0de21b34becf045a2 The thread that accompanies them is:

http://www.chowhound.com/midatlantic/board...ages/32482.html

This was an extraordinary 14 course, five hour + dinner at Maestro in February that I organized.

[BackwardsHat]

BackwardsHat: have you had the Winter prix fixe at Maestro? In particular the chestnut soup with langoustine and the tallegio risotto? They are extraordinary and among the best dishes served in any restaurant on earth. Fabio also does a superb foie gras. You might have some interest in these photographs:

http://dell.shutterfly.com/osi.jsp?i=67b0de21b34becf045a2 The thread that accompanies them is:

http://www.chowhound.com/midatlantic/board...ages/32482.html

This was an extraordinary 14 course, five hour + dinner at Maestro in February that I organized.

Is it the $125 menu? If so, then yes, I had it once... Is it still being served? If so, I'll go back and try it again, paying particular attention to the soup and risotto, they sound dynamite...

Thanks for posting those pictures, looks like you guys had an AMAZING evening! Five hours of dining and 14 courses... wow... Great job arranging that... Definitely drop me a line if you arrange something like that again... Must have been fabulous watching the team in action with the open-kitchen design at Maestro... And man, that Ravioli d'astice must have been to die for!!!

[Joe H]

Yes, it's the $125 which is seven courses plus several amuse and a pre dessert fora total of ten. But it's their "winter" prix fixe which they introduced about the first of the year. The taleggio risotto and chestnut soup are new dishes included as choices for this.

[Mark Sommelier]

Joe H wrote: "They are extraordinary and among the best dishes served in any restaurant on earth."

Joe,

This is a statement that is so hypberbolic that it invites challenge.

[Joe H]

I've eaten in a" helluva lot of restaurants" throughout the U. S. and Europe which includes, maybe, 75 to 100 starred restaurants in a number of countries over the past 25 years. I've also eaten ribs, fried chicken, pizza, chicken tikka masala, ice cream and bratwurst everywhere I can where they are suppose to be exceptional.

And, Mark, yes, both of these dishes are on par with anything that Robuchon or Girardet put on the table for the first and the risotto was worthy of winning Gallo's Il Risotto Dell'Anno.