Italian Haute Cuisine?

[Stone]

A while back there was a discussion here about what constitutes haute cuisine and what cuisines deserved that title. There was a strong consensus that French fit the bill, and strong arguments for Chinese. Regarding Italian, a few people argued that no matter how good it tastes, Italian food doesn't deserve "haute cuisine" status because the techniques involved weren't sufficiently subtle or complex. Putting aside the obvious response that the label of "haute cuisine" is irrelevant, I wonder what your thoughts on on where/how Italian cuisine compares with French, Chinese, Indian, etc.

By the way, thanks for the eggplant caponata at Otto and the sweetbreads at Babbo. And I'm sure your gelato has put a significant dent in Ben & Jerry's NY sales.

[Mario Batali]

haute cuisine is a french term for well developed and concieved food, served in an appropriate atmosphere that unfortunately translates to wearing ties and jackets in a fancy looking place and overpaying for food... i am far more interested in a perfect plate of curry, or soup dumplings or penne puttanesca than the room it is served in, or even the way the people sitting next to me have been educated or are dressed if someone likes that fancy stuff let them have it, i for one, care less for it... some people like cupcakes better!!!!!!!

haute cuisine is not the ultimate objective or expression of any great regional cuisine, it is merely one interpretation mb