We Eat at The Worst Michelin Starred Restaurant, Ever

[liuzhou]

Quote

It’s as though someone had read about food and restaurants, but had never experienced either, and this was their attempt to recreate it.

 

That quote above is from this review of a restaurant. It's one of the most polite sentences I could find in this scathing takedown.

[Wisp]

@liuzhou That was amazing, in a train-wreck sort of a way, and very fascinating to read! I'm still having trouble with the chef's mouth dish.  How to you type a shuddering sound?

[KennethT]

I only got part of the way through it because I don't want to be caught laughing with tears in my eyes more than I already may have....  I think the writer should be doing a lot more than writing for Everywhereist.....

[blue_dolphin]

7 minutes ago, KennethT said:

I only got part of the way through it because I don't want to be caught laughing with tears in my eyes more than I already may have....  I think the writer should be doing a lot more than writing for Everywhereist.....

 

I thought it was hilarious, too.  She does have a book: All Over the Place: Adventures in Travel, True Love, and Petty Theft (eG-friendly Amazon.com link) though I haven't read it. 

 

I know the other day, Everywhereist was rather overwhelmed so she reposted on Medium.  Here's that link in case anyone finds the Everywhereist slow to load.

[Anna N]

8 minutes ago, KennethT said:

I only got part of the way through it because I don't want to be caught laughing with tears in my eyes more than I already may have....  I think the writer should be doing a lot more than writing for Everywhereist.....

How odd. I must go on a hunt for my sense of humour. I, too, had a hard time getting to the end but for the very opposite reason. I just could not find any humour in it and kept wishing that it had been handled by aJay Rayner. Perhaps had I read it at another time it might’ve struck me differently. Humour can be like that. 

[blue_dolphin]

The chef's 3-page response appears at the end of this article: 27 courses, very little edible: Review of Michelin-starred restaurant goes viral

 

[chromedome]

So there's a sequel, in which the chef replied with a rebuttal that was every bit as rambling and incoherent as the meal itself.

 

 

[Margaret Pilgrim]

50 minutes ago, Anna N said:

How odd. I must go on a hunt for my sense of humour. I, too, had a hard time getting to the end but for the very opposite reason. I just could not find any humour in it and kept wishing that it had been handled by aJay Rayner. Perhaps had I read it at another time it might’ve struck me differently. Humour can be like that. 

Agreed.  I have to wonder how and why these diners decided to visit this restaurant.    What had they heard, read, researched?    They seemed to have had no clue what to expect of this or this genre place.    Portion sizes for a (what was it?) 27 course tasting menu are always just that, "tastes".    No chunks of protein or mounds of carbs.   Beyond that, however, is understanding the chef's style, sense of humor and not least ego.    Today, there is little excuse not to "know before y9u go".    This is not to say that I haven't endured my share of stinker restaurants, but almost all of the time I smack myself upside the head, realizing that I should have read between the lines of reviews and more correctly "read" nuances of food and service. 

[KennethT]

@Margaret Pilgrim I understand what you're saying, but I think it's more than that.  I've been very fortunate to have been able to experience these types of tasting menus at some of the best places to get them - El Bulli, El Cellar de Can Roca, etc.  None of the places that do this format so well do anything remotely close to what the article described.  While some of those tastes were truly only 1 bite, many of the later dishes in the progression got more substantial - but never so much as to be overwhelming.  It's a thin line to walk, but the best ones do it in amazing ways.  Also, there's usually some type of narrative or arc that the best ones take you through - not just a random assortment of things to show what they can do.

 

On the flip side, I've also experienced (unfortunately) a meal or two similar to what the article described.  Is it infuriating to pay so much for that type of experience?  Absolutely.  But, personally, at some point, the anger gives way to a ridiculous feeling that the only remedy for is to laugh.  Maybe it's just my response mechanism? But the urge to just slap the table and fall on the floor laughing is so strong it is indescribable...

[Margaret Pilgrim]

What you say, Kenneth, is absolutely correct.   What I held back from saying was my impression of the diners at this table.   They came across (to me) as extremely callow and inexperienced, the purpose of their writing incendiary and self-serving.   Either their meal was a bad as they described or it was (as is sometimes current fashion) meant to be "amusing" (for those who are so amused.)    In any event, they should have had a handle on the chef's concept and what/how they would be served.    in short, I find them publicity seekers, little more.

[chileheadmike]

She did say that she researched them on Tripadvisor and that the food she received was nothing like what was shown there. 

[Margaret Pilgrim]

3 minutes ago, chileheadmike said:

She did say that she researched them on Tripadvisor and that the food she received was nothing like what was shown there. 

TA is hardly doing research,

[gfweb]

5 hours ago, blue_dolphin said:

The chef's 3-page response appears at the end of this article: 27 courses, very little edible: Review of Michelin-starred restaurant goes viral

 

everything comes up except (sadly) the chef's response.

[gfweb]

More sad than funny. Fraudulent food.

 

Likening his cooking to art is weak defense.

 

Modern art (in part) has tired of doing actual art and devolved into stuff that shows no evidence of talent or inspiration and is defended as being above criticism because its .....art. 

 

I'd contend that foam in a plaster mouth is art in nobody's eyes.

[Margaret Pilgrim]

There is a lot of fraudulent food out there.   Essentially it’s in the eye if the beholder, I.e., yours, mine, the author’s, Mr. Michelin’s.   But my point remains that the author should have known more about what to expect when she booked,

[Anna N]

Who books a table for eight in an extraordinarily expensive venue without having experienced it first? Unless of course it is of the calibre of the French Laundry  or Noma? There really is something fishy here. 

[Eatmywords]

Haha, what  @KennethTsaid.  I think there's enough in the descriptions, food pics and facial expressions to make this very believable.  And as a travel writer you'd think she's sampled enough avant garde/molecular food to know the difference btwn good and comically bad.   

 

This got me going:  

 

“I’m… I’m sorry, did you say rancid? You mean… fermented? Aged?”

“No. Rancid.”

“Okay,” I said in Italian. “But I think that something might be lost in translation. Because it can’t be-”

“Rancido,” he clarified.

 

😆

[Anna N]

15 minutes ago, Eatmywords said:

This got me going:  

Is there a point in the interaction between staff and diners when the staff begin taking the Mickey?

[Margaret Pilgrim]

So I looked up this Geraldine DeRulter and see that Time Mag described her as "consistently clever".   This piece validates that writing tone.   Professionally clever i seldom find particularly amusing.   Kind of like a laugh track on a TV show.

 

I have to wonder if this entire evening was staged to create content for this kind of piece.    "Hey guys, there is this place that makes really stupid food.    Let's go pull their leg."

[KennethT]

21 minutes ago, Margaret Pilgrim said:

I have to wonder if this entire evening was staged to create content for this kind of piece.    "Hey guys, there is this place that makes really stupid food.    Let's go pull their leg."

That wouldn't surprise me at all.

[Margaret Pilgrim]

25 minutes ago, Anna N said:

Who books a table for eight in an extraordinarily expensive venue without having experienced it first? Unless of course it is of the calibre of the French Laundry  or Noma? There really is something fishy here. 

Actually, Anna, I would hazard that a sizable number of high-end diners have no idea what they’re eating. Either what’s on the plate or in concept.   They’re just checking boxes off boxes on a status list. 

[Eatmywords]

46 minutes ago, Margaret Pilgrim said:

So I looked up this Geraldine DeRulter and see that Time Mag described her as "consistently clever".   This piece validates that writing tone.   Professionally clever i seldom find particularly amusing.   Kind of like a laugh track on a TV show.

 

I have to wonder if this entire evening was staged to create content for this kind of piece.    "Hey guys, there is this place that makes really stupid food.    Let's go pull their leg."

 

She dragged 8 people to a ~E150 pp meal to invent a clever and funny account of a bad experience to drum up PR for her travel book or blog that covers everything from Jeff Goldbloom to Star Trek?  Really?

[JoNorvelleWalker]

2 hours ago, Eatmywords said:

Haha, what  @KennethTsaid.  I think there's enough in the descriptions, food pics and facial expressions to make this very believable.  And as a travel writer you'd think she's sampled enough avant garde/molecular food to know the difference btwn good and comically bad.   

 

This got me going:  

 

“I’m… I’m sorry, did you say rancid? You mean… fermented? Aged?”

“No. Rancid.”

“Okay,” I said in Italian. “But I think that something might be lost in translation. Because it can’t be-”

“Rancido,” he clarified.

 

😆

 

How do you say "Okay" in Italian?

 

[Margaret Pilgrim]

1 hour ago, Eatmywords said:

 

She dragged 8 people to a ~E150 pp meal to invent a clever and funny account of a bad experience to drum up PR for her travel book or blog that covers everything from Jeff Goldbloom to Star Trek?  Really?

Really. + or - $150 is an easy tab for some.   And this kind of romp is deliciously tempting.

Edited December 10, 2021 by Margaret Pilgrim (log)

[Anna N]

1 hour ago, Margaret Pilgrim said:

Actually, Anna, I would hazard that a sizable number of high-end diners have no idea what they’re eating. Either what’s on the plate or in concept.   They’re just checking boxes off boxes on a status list. 

You don’t need eight people to do that!