Chez Panisse

[jeffj]

When Alice Waters opened Chez Panisse over thirty years ago, I doubt many people realized what an impact the restaurant would have in defining California cuisine nor how much it would influence restaurant menus across the entire country. By championing local, in-season products from small purveyors, Waters has lead a movement that has not only raised the bar for quality and freshness in dining but, at the same time, has also embraced social responsibility and strengthening of the community that surrounds the restaurant.

Even though my girlfriend and I had previously lived in Berkeley for four years and even though we make several trips into Berkeley’s Gourmet Ghetto each month, we had never actually dined at Chez Panisse. Well, I’d finally sat down and decided to block out some time for a trip and here’s the lowdown:

October 1, 2003

House-made salami with cornichons

If there was any doubt as to the nature of Chez Panisse’s food, it was answered right of the bat with this small starter. Overworked, haute cuisine is no where to be seen...rather, Chez Panisse is all about simple and straightforward, pure flavors. The salami was very tasty and not overly oily. And with our late seating (9:15pm) I was hungry enough to gobble this down rather quickly.

Green bean, hazelnut, and autumn fruit salad with garden lettuces and Midnight Moon cheese

This was a very enjoyable dish…the quality and freshness of the ingredients stood out. The autumn fruit were grapes and figs and they were at the peak of sweetness. One of the great discoveries of this dish was the Midnight Moon cheese from Cypress Grove. Although there were only a couple shavings on the salad, the cheese stood out for its full, nutty flavor and salty crystalline bits that added some textural interest. I’ll definitely be purchasing some Midnight Moon during my next visit to the Cheese Board (which happens to be located right across the street from Chez Panisse.) Taking a fork full of lettuce with a bit of cheese and a piece of hazelnut and grape provided a tremendously satisfying flavor combination. And following that up with a sip of an Austrian Riesling was really superb. My girlfriend felt that the green beans were possibly a little overcooked, and while I tend to like my vegetables in an al dente, nearly raw state, I felt the preparation of the green beans was great in relation to the other components in the salad.

Roasted Chino Ranch yellow pepper and pimento soups

Once again, this course illustrated how to distill foods down to the pure essence of their flavor. Both soups were intensely flavored with their respective ingredients. They also played off one another very well…the yellow pepper soup provided a sweetness while the pimento was fierier with a hint of bitterness. Contrasting with the purity of flavor was the oil that was drizzled on top. Taking a spoon full of soup with the oil added an immense richness that warmed the stomach. This was a great autumn soup.

Spit-roasted Niman Ranch pork loin with mustard and capers, fresh shell beans, and broccoli rabe

Pork isn’t usually at the top of my list of preferred meats but I was very excited to try this dish. My expectation was that Chez Panisse would be able to serve pork in a way that would hopefully open my eyes. And while this dish wasn’t a revelation, it was indeed very strong. The pork loin was very tender and flavorful…the outer portions were infused with some fabulous seasonings. And of course I went all out and ate virtually all of the pork fat that was attached to the slices of meat. So succulent and tender, the fat had an obscene richness that you just can’t find in many dishes (and thankfully so, since I don’t even want to fathom the nutritional facts on what I consumed.) To back up the meat, fresh shell beans added body while broccoli rabe added some bitterness. Both were adequate but nothing to write home about. To accompany this dish we split a glass of house recommended Dolcetto d'Alba. One thing to note about this dish…I don’t know if I’m cursed or what, but I always seem to end up with some sort of foreign object in my food. In this case it was a portion of twine that had been used to tie up the loin. It reminded me of a passage from Michael Ruhlman’s “Soul of a Chef” where he describes a similar incident at the French Laundry. In that case the chef was so passionately angered with himself at such a mistake. I wondered if such a gaffe at Chez Panisse would be viewed with the same self criticism. In any case, the server apologized in a round about way and comped our cheese course and dessert wines.

Artisan cheese selection

Goat’s Leap Sumi, a sheep’s milk camembert from New York, and a firm cow’s milk cheese from Provence.

Straightforward cheese plate with walnut bread. Unfortunately, I failed to note further details of each cheese. The Sumi and the camembert stood out.

Apple-Calvados tart with raspberries

A very enjoyable dessert. As I have always noted, I love fruit based desserts so this was right up my ally. The raspberries were fresh and still intact within the tart. The tart crust was crisp and flaky…especially around the border. And the sauce and cream added just enough moisture and additional sweetness to the tart. The Muscat wine was a pleasant accompaniment.

Mignardises

Conclusion:

Chez Panisse really has become an icon of California cuisine. And entering the dining room and sitting within its dark wooded, craftsman style interior, you really get the feeling that you’re experiencing the core of what Berkeley is all about. Chez Panisse is full of warmth. It’s accessible, relatable, home-style, comfort food that is expertly prepared but doesn’t exude a shred of pretentiousness. All along, however, you never forget that you’re sampling a cuisine that is historically significant. You’re experiencing the genesis of a movement in the food world.

In the end, the restaurant presented a menu that was as I expected…and that’s a positive statement. The spotlight was on fresh, pure flavors that warmed the soul. Yes, the meal did not invoke any cerebral exertion, but its simplicity is its charm. Even with the minor glitches, service overall was attentive and accurate…not many mistakes were made. In a nutshell, I would not hesitate to recommend Chez Panisse to those who are looking to experience California culinary culture…a style of food that makes California a unique place.

[ExtraMSG]

Nice pics. Trying to give back a little to egullet California since I'm asking for help now. Here's a report I put on Chowhound a while back. Hope it helps:

CHEZ PANISSE: We arrived a little early and sat on the porch. A nice place on a sunny day to relax before the meal. I think many people, especially wine drinkers, might like getting here a little early to have this opportunity to sit among the vines. The restaurant inside was nicer than I expected. I knew what the outside was like from pictures and descriptions, and I expected the inside to be a little shabby. But it wasn’t. I found it elegantly rustic. Actually, the design of the light fixtures and much of the woodwork was very reminiscent to both me and Scott of Frank Lloyd Wright’s work. I had just been in Washington, DC, a couple weeks prior and saw a stained glass exhibit of his work and the design similarities is almost too obvious. I love the stained wood interior. I also like the open kitchen with Ms. Waters checking up on her chefs for all to see (she actually ate dinner with a group right next to us, but no I wasn’t able to listen to their conversation, darn it). We were a little cramped in our two-seater just a couple tables over from the kitchen, but not uncomfortably so. We started with a selection of tasty olives, warmed (a nice touch), and some Acme breads, which were very good, as I’ve mentioned before.

The menu for the evening was as follows:

Green bean, cherry tomato, and Monterey Bay squid salad with garlic mayonnaise: I don’t know if I’ve ever had such perfect tomatoes. I’m not even a particular fan of tomatoes and will almost never eat one by itself. But these were almost like little berries they were so sweet and tasty. The bright sweetness of the tomatoes, balanced well with the herby/vegetably sweetness of the green beans and the bitter frisee. A rich, flavorful oil dressed everything and it brought out the flavor of the tender, but firm squid, which provided a tangy aspect to the dish (maybe brined in vinegar a little?). The garlic mayonnaise was extraneous, imo, possibly there to mask the squid for those who don’t like that flavor. A very good salad, though quite simple.

Chino ranch corn soup with savory fritters: A decent dish, but probably the least of the meal. The corn base was very creamy and didn’t have a very strong corn flavor. The flavor of the summer bulbing onions that was used in the base (yes, I had to ask) was almost as strong as the corn flavor. In fact, Scott, my eating partner, would use it as an example of what not to do every time we had another, more intense, corn soup on the trip. I can see his point. However, I think it was still a good dish and I can see why the base was so subtle. The fritters had a nice corn and onion taste and with a much stronger base would have been overpowered. They provided the true corn flavor for the dish. But if that’s the case, then there needed to be more of them so that every bite could have fritter in it. As it was, there were only three smallish fritters. I did very much like those fritters, though. They reminded me of the flavor of cachapas, a Venezuelan corn pancake. Yum.

Grilled Niman ranch hanger steak with summer vegetable tian and crispy potatoes: A buttery and tender piece of meat served rather rare with a nice sear on the outside. I think I liked this piece of beef better than any on the trip, even if other preparations may have been more interesting. However, Scott, a beef snob from Texas with very particular tastes in beef, seemed quite unimpressed, even letting me finish his (which I happily did). The dish also came with broccoli rab, which was a nice spinach-like green with a more interesting character. The vegetable tian -- an overlapping layer of eggplant and summer squash, I think -- was maybe a little soft for me, though I think that tenderness added a textural balance to the ultra crispy and wonderful potatoes. They were little quenelles with super light and crispy outsides and soft and airy insides. Everything was held together by a nice sauce that provided flavor and seasoning without overpowering anything. I lived all the pieces of the dish together and separate.

White nectarine sherbet coupe with peaches and boysenberries: This dessert grew and grew in my estimation. Sure, it’s not elaborate, just some sherbet in a glass with peaches and berries, a couple cookies on the side and an espresso truffle. But mmmmm, what peaches and berries. It was a battle between intense fruity flavors, tart and sweet. The cookie provided a respite from the war of flavors, instantly clearing the battlefield and enabling the palate for another wonderful fight. You had sweet and tart peach slices, sweet and tart boysenberries (and I question they were all boysenberries; I think some were blackberries), and then the sherbet which was a battle of sweet and tart itself as nectarines tend to be. This may be the best fruit dessert I’ve had. It’s certainly one of the best, especially for one that so fully focuses on the fruit not trying to temper it with pastry.

Conclusion: One mild quibble about the food was the seasoning. Only the beef dish was adequately seasoned. I had to add salt to the other two. In their defense, though, they do provide good salt on the table (grind your own).

Service was very good and attentive. They actually saw me eyeing the kitchen and suggested that I go take a look around and take pictures if I wished -- and to make sure that I got Ms. Waters in them (which I did). Was it worth $65? Probably. I’d like to return on Saturday or Sunday. It wasn’t as good a value as Danko, for certain. Also, I did feel like with their ingredients I could have easily made any one of their dishes and have made many more interesting and elaborate dishes that were as balanced. I just don’t have access to those ingredients. Usually, I at least can’t say that about the dessert at fine restaurants. It’s a very good restaurant, though. Best in the country as Gourmet suggested? No. But I can see how many people would find it comforting and a welcome change from more pretentious hotel restaurants. As the sage of savory on SF Chowhound, PaulH, would later refer to it during our dinner at Danko: “Good, honest food.”

Edited October 3, 2003 by ExtraMSG (log)

[megc]

Thanks for the Chez Panisse reports, guys - great food and nice pix! CP is one of my favorite places to eat in Berkeley, my hometown that I miss often (I'm living on evil Long Island right now). I have many fond memories of my meals there at CP, as well as time spent in the surrounding neighborhood. Looks like I need to visit soon!

[Schneier]

Excellent. And thanks for the pictures.

Bruce

[jat]

jeffj

How about some recipes to match a Chez Panise style dinner.

Here's my menu and I will post the recipes:

EXQUISITE ROLLS, these are from My Daily Bread in Santa Barbara (I've never had

a better dinner roll, warmed and serving with Plugra Butter).

SHRIMP APETIZER Crispiness, and I promised this to replace Gary Danko Lobster

CORN BROTH (See Roasted Corn Cappuchino posted earlier)

FIG SALADE

NEMAN RANCH PORK LOIN (If Chez Panisse was boring, this has everything, breaded

with fresh breadcrumbs, fresh rosemary, garlic, olive oil, salt with Madeira Cherries)

Calvados Pear Dessert, with Calvados Cream, to replace the tart

This is simple, tasty food .

[mixmaster b]

Thanks for the Chez Panisse reports, guys - great food and nice pix!  CP is one of my favorite places to eat in Berkeley, my hometown that I miss often (I'm living on evil Long Island right now).  I have many fond memories of my meals there at CP, as well as time spent in the surrounding neighborhood.  Looks like I need to visit soon!

I grew up in Berkerley, too! (Now I'm in LA.)

I would also like to thank Leff J (great pix) and Extra MSG for reminding me of great times in one of my favorite spots.

[KarenS]

Hey, I grew up in Berkeley too!

[megc]

Hey, I grew up in Berkeley too!

You lucky girl!

[bilrus]

I just love this place.

I was there yesterday for lunch for the second time this year and once again it was done just right. Such simple food - I doubt that any of our dishes had more than five ingredients, but they were all fresh and flavorful. My salad was a perfect example. Avacados, beets and a citrus vinagrette. Not much too it, but the best avacoado I have had in a long time made the dish.

I guess that is the point of the palce and the reason I will keep going back whenever I am in town.

[marie-louise]

I, too, adore eating at this restaurant. This Tuesday Paula Wolfert is doing a book signing:

Tuesday, November 18       $75 Book signing with Paula Wolfert and her new book

     The Slow Mediterranean Kitchen

Herb jam with olives and lemon, avocado-sardine toast, and

      leeks simmered in olive oil

Turkish red lentil soup with paprika and mint sizzle

Elbason tavasi: Turkish-style lamb smothered in yogurt; with parsley salad

      and potato gratin with dried plums

Kabak tatlisi: sweet pumpkin dessert with walnuts and walnut ice cream

[Andy Lynes]

Alice Waters has been so famous within the culinary world for so long that she has become almost part of the scenery. Coming from the UK, I'm used to a fashion driven restaurant scene, where customers are always on the look out for the next new thing and where it's all too easy to overlook the established places of quality and integrity. Some of those places will inevitably be resting on their laurels and have long passed their sell-by date, so I was curious to see if Chez Panisse could still hold its head up high after 34 years of trading.

Due to the brevity of my trip and a very tight schedule, it looked very much as though I would leave San Francisco without either seeing the Golden Gate Bridge or dining at Chez Panisse. However, after attending Waters' cookery demonstration at the recent Masters of Food and Wine in Carmel and having the chance to briefly chat with her, I felt compelled to make the effort eat at her restaurant.

I left Carmel Sunday afternoon, stopping over in Los Gatos to interview David Kinch at Manresa. Monday was to be spent mooching around the picturesque town before heading back to the airport for an evening flight to Heathrow. Checking my guide book, I realised it would be possible for me drop off both my hire car and bags at SFO and then take the DART out to Berkeley for lunch and still be back in plenty of time for my 7.30pm flight. A phone call from my hotel room secured a 2.00pm table and I was all set.

Berkeley was something of a surprise; not the leafy, bookish stereotypical college town I had imagined it to be. The fortress-like wood and stucco restaurant seems to have fallen into its place on urban, gritty Shuttuck Avenue out of a windy Kansas sky. I was almost expecting to see the Wicked Witch of the East's legs sticking out from under the front steps.

Upstairs, past the intimate evenings-only main restaurant is the busy café. There is nothing luxurious about the space, but the open kitchen with its brick built oven, displays of fresh fruit and the dining room's abundance of wood make it a very appealing and inviting place to pass a few hours.

The menu is an equally inviting proposition, with its range of simple salads, pasta, meat and fish dishes. Everything here is of course about the ingredients. Alice Waters is not a celebrity chef building towers of food or smearing purees over plates. If Waters has a "signature dish" (and I imagine that she might shudder at the very thought) then it might well be a green salad.

She had spoken of her love of salads at the demonstration, about how she makes her own vinegar at home to Richard Olney's recipe and how she likes her dressings to be a little sharp so that you can taste the vinegar or citrus in them. And here was all that on the plate in front of me; a selection of "sound, seasonal, local" leaves bursting with freshness and flavour dressed with the assertiveness you imagine Waters would want.

A bowl of accurately cooked garganelli pasta with wild nettles, Bellwether Farm ricotta and pine nuts was enchantingly direct and unfettered, as was the Page manderine sherbet served with Champagne-grapefruit granita and delicate, spicy biscuits, all from the $26.00 daily changing pre-fix menu. It was a delightful lunch enjoyed over half a bottle of Chehalem Dry Riesling, wonderful sourdough bread, good coffee and great company.

I hope it's not too long before I have the chance to return for dinner and the full Chez Panisse experience. I might even make the effort to see that blasted bridge.

[MaxH]

Upstairs, past the intimate evenings-only main restaurant is the busy café. ...

I hope it's not too long before I have the chance to return for dinner and the full Chez Panisse experience.

Thanks for an engaging report. I just saw it after posting some comments on CP's origins in the "Regional Californian" thread here. (Which in turn cites a different CP thread, also in this subforum.)

I wanted to point out a source of some confusion. The restaurant "Chez Panisse," which established the name, is downstairs. The casual café upstairs originally (if I remember after many years) served just coffee; later with the restaurant's success it opened with its own open kitchen, as a casual spin-off (subject of the Pasta, Pizza, Calzone cookbook, ISBN 0394530942). Paul Bertolli, long chef downstairs (and author of Chez Panisse Cooking, ISBN 0394559088) used to tell me in the 1980s that they were essentially separate businesses, though part of the larger whole. Locals would make a distinction. As the restaurant became known further away, the new phenomenon surfaced of journalists eating a pizza or writing a review of the upstairs café and labeling that as "Chez Panisse" rather than the Chez Panisse Café. Which is a different, well-regarded place in its own right.

The overlapping names of these very distinct establishments, one literally on top of the other, contribute to this blurring.

-- MaxH

[Andy Lynes]

Same ingredients, same philosophy, different format.

[Andy Lynes]

Two things I want to add about my experience of Chez Panisse Cafe. Firstly, I was deep in conversation with my dining partner and the service seemed to just happen around us. Unobtrusive and efficient, everything took place at just the right time and pace, and this in a very busy restaurant. Very impressive.

Secondly, its not unusal for me to leave a restaurant feeling full, well fed, happy/merry and at ease with the world. When I left Chez Panisse, I felt something altogether different, that I had been nourished and I was struck by how rare that feeling is.

[bilrus]

I've only eaten in the Cafe, but this is a place that makes me happy when I am there and for hours after. I'd never think to include a meal there in a list of my "best meals ever". It's just so simple.

But I always include it on any list of my favorite restaurants.

[rhiannonstone]

Here's my account (crossposted from my LiveJournal) of my first dinner at Chez Panisse since we moved back to the Bay area (no pictures, sadly, because I haven't quite yet convinced my boyfriend--or, to be honest, myself--that taking pictures in nice restaurants isn't weird or rude):

Despite calling as soon as they'd opened on January 14 (they begin taking reservations a month in advance), Paul was unable to get reservations at Chez Panisse for Valentine's Day, or the weekend before. So we settled on a Thursday reservation instead, because Chez Panisse is Chez Panisse, and it doesn't really matter what day you go. :) I've never had a bad meal there (and only once did I have an item I didn't like, and that's because not even Alice Waters could make me enjoy whole anchovies), and we certainly weren't disappointed this time, either. The evening began as always with a basket of wonderful bread (I could seriously live off this stuff) and a little plate of marinated olives. Every other time we've been, it's just been a mix of olives, but this time there was just one type of olive along with baby radishes. I remember Dad making me eat radishes all the time when I was little and I don't remember liking them much, but I tried them, and they were tasty, as were the olives. Next time I really need to remember to ask the server what kinds of olives they use, because they're the only olives I've ever actually liked. We debated over whether to order a full or half bottle of wine, and finally settled on a full bottle, which we drained. :) It was a Pinot Noir from Broadley vineyards, and it was wonderful--I liked it even more than the Navarro Pinot Noir we usually order from CP (and which was missing from the wine menu this time), which is a shame, because it costs twice as much.

Dinner started with risotto fritters with black truffles and fontina, served atop a little chicory salad. It was, of course, wonderful. The risotto fritters were very lightly fried, so they were just barely crispy on the outside, and the cheese made them creamy on the inside, with the rice giving them a nice texture. There was the tiniest hint of black truffle flavor, which really pushed the dish over the edge from being comfort food to something more elegant. We each got two small fritters; I think I could have eaten ten. This was probably my favorite dish of the whole meal, and something I'm going to try to reproduce at home, even though there's no way I'm going to be able to make them as perfect as these were, especially without the black truffles.

Next was a winter minestrone with cardoons, cavolo nero, and Tuscan olive oil. Completely unlike any minestrone I've ever had before (which makes me wonder: What makes it minestrone?), with lots of greens and a clear, flavorful broth, and tasty bits of something I was surprised to identify as barley. I've only recently begun to appreciate olive oil used as a main flavor component rather than just something to sautee the veggies in or top the salad with, and this soup was an excellent example of that, with the (presumably house-made) oil stirred liberally into the soup, giving it a fresh, slightly fruity taste.

The entree was grilled Wolfe farm quail and garlic sausage with caramelized artichokes, chenterelles, new garlic, and crispy potatoes. I could smell the quail grilling as I was eating the soup and it drove me crazy, it smelled so good. I love grilled meat and I can't wait until Spring gets here so I can go buy some charcoal and start grillin'! The skin was perfectly crispy, and the meat had a wonderfully smoky flavor. The little garlic sausage that came with it was amazing, and I wanted two or three more. The veggies were excellent, too, especially the chanterelles; when I do get to start grilling, I'll definitely be picking up some wild mushrooms from the farmer's market to throw on with whatever else I'm cooking.

CP now offers an optional cheese course with their prix fixe dinner, which they didn't have when we lived here before. Of course we opted in. :) Three small wedges arrived, with a couple pieces of dark brown bread (in addition to the bread that was still left on the table). The only cheese I recognized was the spicy Jasper Hill Blue; there was a cow's milk and a sheep's milk, too, but I don't remember what they were. Unfortunately I don't think we'll order this next time, though, unless we have more people with us, because while it was tasty, it was too much food, and after demolishing the plate, we barely had room left for dessert.

Dessert was a Meyer lemon tartlet with creme chantilly. My boyfriend took one bite, looked at me, and said (jokingly... I hope), "OK, I'm leaving you for this tart." It was seriously that good. The lemon custard was soft and sweet (Meyer lemons are far less tart than standard lemons), and the tart shell was thin and crisp, and the creme chantilly was perfectly light and airy, and OMG, it was just a wonderful taste and texture experience. I think that even if the cheese course had filled me up, I'd have made room for this dessert.

So all in all, a wonderful welcome back to Berkeley. :)

[MaxH]

Same ingredients, same philosophy, different format.

I'm in general agreement with the spirit of that, but my own experience, in several meals at each over the years, would differ on the point of "ingredients," as they actually show up on the plate, and this is related specifically to the format difference. CP [restaurant] has typically featured le menu of the day (French sense), prix-fixe. This can produce focal, elaborate courses. I remember stopping by at noon to drop off some wines for a dinner (1988) and Paul B. showing a whole boned lamb being rolled up with winter vegetables and truffles inside for long poaching in stock. In contrast, my experiences at CPC has emphasized things along the lines of imaginative pizzas, pissaladières, pastas, rustic stews.

I hope earnestly that you will have the opportunity to return and dine at the restaurant, Andy (preferably a few times!) and then compare the two, as I am doing here.

-- Max

[Andy Lynes]

Max, a review of the Cafe menu and that of the downstairs restaurant bears out your point: the involved "Grilled rack, loin and leg of Eliot Ranch lamb with thyme and roasted new onions and Chino Ranch vegetables" downstairs and the more simple "Niman Ranch pork loin with turnips, grilled potatoes, pounded sage and garlic" in the cafe for example.

I would say however that my companions main course of "Quinault River steelhead and manila clams with sorrel broth, leeks fennel and aioli" at lunch in the cafe looked quite refined and complex and reportedly tasted "absolutely delicious" so its a venture not without some ambition of its own.

[appreciator]

oooh what wonderful photos... what wonderful reviews. I've been dreaming of eating at Chez Panisse for 20 years and reading this thread has just made me want to get myself down there all the more. Sadly I don't think I can quite justify a trip to California just to eat at Chez Panisse but I'd like to.

Thank you all for posting your thoughts and photos... very evocative.

[Andy Lynes]

San Francisco is what, an hour from Vancouver by plane? Sounds do-able to me! If you can't justify it for Chez Panisse alone, then there's lots of other great restaurants you could cover while you're down there as well.

[bilrus]

San Francisco is what, an hour from Vancouver by plane? Sounds do-able to me! If you can't justify it for Chez Panisse alone, then there's lots of other great restaurants you could cover while you're down there as well.

←

No dobut that San Francisco could keep any visiting eGulleter happy for an extended visit. Hell, I live on the East coast and am already plotting my third trip in the last year and a half.

Edited March 1, 2005 by bilrus (log)

[appreciator]

San Francisco is what, an hour from Vancouver by plane? Sounds do-able to me! If you can't justify it for Chez Panisse alone, then there's lots of other great restaurants you could cover while you're down there as well.

←

No dobut that San Francisco could keep any visiting eGulleter happy for an extended visit. Hell, I live on the East coast and am already plotting my third trip in the last year and a half.

←

Yes, I know it's quite pathetic that I have not made the trip down yet considering I've had the place in my mind for over 20 years as "the place I must eat before I die". Maybe that's why I haven't gone yet

[merle]

San Francisco is what, an hour from Vancouver by plane?

Errr... sorry, it's more like two and a half hours.

Don't let that stop you, though! ;-)

[canucklehead]

The 2.5 hour plane ride is very much worth it for a eating weekend. I could list off a bunch of places to go to. I've always preferred the lunch experience to the dinner. The easy-going nature of the lunch seems to suit the food more. The salads, pizzas and pork dishes are alwasy very very good.

The food will catch you off guard with its simplicity - and you may think "what's the big deal". But the quality of ingredients and the confindence in the cooking (bringing out the inherent best in the food) is astounding. I did not think that it was possible that a simple salad could taste so fresh and alive. You will eat things that have have had before but they will taste better than you thought possible. It is like watching a movie in black and white - and then seeing it in full color.

Dinner is excellent - but the formality of the setting always, for me, knocked up against the simplicity of the food. Still this is a very minor quibble.

[merle]

The 2.5 hour plane ride is very much worth it for a eating weekend.

Oh, yes. Not just for Chez Panisse, in my opinion, but combined with four or five other restaurants... if my passport were still valid, I might head to Vancouver for just such a restaurant run...