Cha Cha Changes

[it aint easy being cheesy]

Just curious of what Austinites felt about the movement of stars in some of Austin's fine dining restaurants? Zoot and Hudson's on the Bend both lost stars this summer. While two restaurants such as Aquarelle and Jeffrey's gained them. Is some of this natural progression over time. Jeffrey's slowly reinvigorating the food in the last year. Aquarelle getting better consistently since its inception. Has Hudson's lost an edge over time to other restaurants. Did zoot by shrinking size and modernizing the style lose some of its luster. Or is the Austin economy and food scene so quiet that nobody cares. Multiple page takes on whether RM and Blue Hill deserve 3 or 4 stars. Whether WD50 was accurately starred by Grimes. And Austin has had more changes at the top in its last year and nobody notices. Does this say something about food in Austin? Also if its just quietly being absorbed are there any takes on why its been such a changing year. A lot of places have been downgraded and a lot of places have been upgraded across the board.

[foodie52]

Probably lost their stars because they don't serve calamari...which in the past has seemed to be the benchmark of quality for the reviewer.

I assume you are referring to the stars allocated by the Statesman. I tend to read the review and take no notice of the stars given. The same person has reviewed these restaurants for years. Is it fair and objective to have one person do this over and over?

He yanked Hudson's star because he got a bad table. So now the establishment is rated "excellent" as opposed to...out of this world?

Between you and me, I think that Austinites don't take the star thing seriously. Let's throw it out there: who among you Austin egulleteers bases your dining decisions on the Statesman reviews?

[it aint easy being cheesy]

I guess you answered the question in a subtle way. You yourself don't really ever post about any of the "star" restaurants in town. Do other Austinites also feel this way? It seems that some attention would have to be paid and if not do they matter at all? Why does nobody talk about it? Is it because of apathy or as you say because nobody cares? Or is it because nobody eats at those restaurants?

Just curious. I think stars are good start when thinking about fine dining. I always do the research before I eat. But as I start looking at more neighborhood or ethnic restaurants I start looking in other ways.

[zephyrus]

I find the american statesman reviews to be less than informative at best and worthless at worst. Dale Rice(the reviewer) does not ever serem to have a firm grasp of the food at any restaurant, and as foodie52 said he does seem to enjoy calamari. for reviews that are at least a little more informative check out austin monthly. ken rubin, who is a chef at the texas culinary academy, does a good job with most of them.

casey

p.s. has dale rice ever given any restaurant "forks down" in the little blurb reviews?

[Schneier]

What happened at Zoot? What changes?

It's been about eight months since I've been, but I have enjoyed eating there on Austin visits several times.

Bruce

[biggles]

A few years back, my husband and I went to Hudsons. We had made reservations, but the table at which they tried to seat us was in a covered patio right by the outside door. The temperatures were freezing that night, and no, that's not an exageration. It was in February.

We opted to wait for a better table. Eventually, we were put in the covered area in which the reviewer was also seated. The service was good after being seated, and the food was as excellent as ever. However, we haven't been back since. Hudsons soon after was sited for health violations. One strike too many out did all their stars.

[Jaymes]

Zoot has changed hands recently, I think. The new owner, I've been told, is less capable, and much more rude - not a good step.

I don't pay attention to the stars. I read the reviews, and if the place overall sounds good, or if one or two of the dishes sampled sound like something I'd like, I go, and make up my own mind.

[elion_84]

I'm with Jaymes and others on this thread - I don't trust the Statesman star system for restaurants (or movies, for that matter - but that's a different board). I just read the review for descriptions of the dishes, ingridients, and flavors. If I like what I read I try to go the restaurant and taste the food myself.

In general I think the food scene has gotten worse in Austin over the last couple of years. Probably not enough .com $$$ to support a lot of high-end places.

[Jaymes]

In general I think the food scene has gotten worse in Austin over the last couple of years. Probably not enough .com $$$ to support a lot of high-end places.

I agree with that.

Although sometimes I think that it isn't just the "down economy" that's caused it, but also that Austin is a good place to "get discovered."

Austin is a cool town. Just like in other professions, smart up-and-coming chefs move here to make a name for themselves. I mean, if you'd just graduated from some culinary school, and thought of yourself as a brilliant dude, where would it be easier to get started and get noticed -- New York, LA or Austin? It's cheaper to get started here, and you can quickly become a dazzling sailfish in a small backwater pond. And you can live a much snappier lifestyle than, say, Omaha, while you're on your way to fame, fortune and the Food Network.

So then what happens when you DO get discovered?

Well, you leave, of course.

[zephyrus]

Zoot has changed hands recently, I think. The new owner, I've been told, is less capable, and much more rude - not a good step.

Zoot is actually now owned by the Co-Chefs and Co-owners of Wink, Stewart Scruggs and Mark Paul. Both seemed nice the one time i met them. i think the loss of the aforementioned AAS stars has more to do with working the kinks out with the new executive chef.

casey

p.s. the former chef of Zoot, John Maxwell, is now the chef at the new boutique hotel The Mansion at Judges Hill. Mansion at Judges Hill

[NapaValleyPhil]

Folks,

I've eaten at Zoot twice in the last 6 weeks. I think the food is very good, the service is very good and the atmosphere is very good. All the dishes are prepared with the freshest ingredients in mind and you do get a balance of flavors on evry dish, without a lot of confusion. I recently had the opportunity to work with Stewart, i.e. he taught a cooking class I volunteered to help with, and he was extremely nice and very helpful with class prep. He did a lion's share of the prep and took time to explain to us novices why he was using certain ingredients and how they were best prepared.

I'll go back to Zoot any time!