The Perils of Chefly Stardom:

[Chris Amirault]

Can some one help me understand what the hell is going on?

Exhibit one: the front page of today's web-based NYT on Rocco's Ouster from Union Pacific, which will close at year's end. Rocco's is of course kaput, as we learned on the telly not long ago.

Exhibit two: the Las Vegas celebrity chef trading cards in the October Gourmet, which include, among the usual suspects (Bobby Flay is smiling particularly gleefully), one Thomas Keller. He looks happily miserable in the photo, and the little infotainment blurbs on the back are very strange indeed: "Best Vegas Memory: Staying in the Venetian's penthouse suite for the first time"; "What I Most Love about Vegas: Two of my brothers live here"; "Nickname: Thomas."

We shouldn't be surprised that Rocco's out on his keister, given the risks and compromises connected to The Restaurant. It was a cheesy career move destined to cheapen his reputation and thus career by putting glitz and easy money ahead of running a high-quality restaurant. Right?

But isn't this move by Keller (and Ducasse and Matsuhisa and Splichal and...) a cheesy career move destined to cheapen his reputation and thus career by putting glitz and easy money ahead of running a high-quality restaurant?

I mean, I admit that DiSpirito strikes me as a wrong-headed chap (and I know that the show and accompanying media crush strove to paint that portrait), and I admit that I am a sucker for the hagiography by Ruhlman et al on Keller.

But am I wrong to find it pathetic and cheap that the contrived opulence of "the Venetian penthouse suite" atop his Vegas restaurant is one of Keller's wonderful memories? Is it desperate for me to read his reference to his brothers as a veiled critique of Vegas's endemic artificiality? Most scary, am I wrong to think that the very thoughtful and considered philosophy that Keller espouses and that many find ennobling is betrayed by crap like this?

Or am I hopelessly naive about what it takes to make money selling prepared food these days?

Someone (is Mr. Bourdain around?) please help me out here. Do I have to travel to London and sit at the feet of Fergus Henderson to escape this madness? Or is he -- shudder to think -- one of them too?!?

[pjs]

I believe Bourdain and Henderson don't have PR people on retainer.

PJ

[mrsadm]

Perhaps there'll be a "French Laundry" set of cookware out soon .....

[Chris Amirault]

Perhaps there'll be a "French Laundry" set of cookware out soon .....

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Official salmon cornet system, with shaping cones and multi-hole serving tray?

Of course, cookware king Emeril is the host of this entire affair....

[Jinmyo]

Can some one help me understand what the hell is going on?

...

But isn't this move by Keller (and Ducasse and Matsuhisa and Splichal and...) a cheesy career move destined to cheapen his reputation and thus career by putting glitz and easy money ahead of running a high-quality restaurant?

Well, there's cheese and then there's cheese.

[Michael Ruhlman]

Admittedly, Thomas is a friend and a colleague, but I just returned from a restaurant tour of Vegas, and while the place is truly a vision of the end of the world, a moronic inferno if ever there were one, the dining scene is astonishing. And Keller's Bouchon is an oasis of calm sophistication 10 floors above the binging rattle banks of slot machines and nauseating carpet deodorizer of the main casino. Long time french laundry sous chef mark hopper runs the kitchen. The food is fantastic. If I am ever convicted of ax-murdering the good citizens of Cleveland and am given a sentence worse than death, a week in Vegas, I'll at least have Bouchon and numerous other fantastic places to eat at (had great ones at Bradley Ogden and Fleur de Lys, btw).

As for those ridiculous baseball cards, well, even Keller makes a mistake now and then.

[Carrot Top]

As for those ridiculous baseball cards, well, even Keller makes a mistake now and then.

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Mmm hmm. 'Your face on a baseball card!' would be a very very difficult thing to turn down for almost any guy I've ever known.

[Mulcahy]

Admittedly, Thomas is a friend and a colleague, but I just returned from a restaurant tour of Vegas, and while the place is truly a vision of the end of the world, a moronic inferno if ever there were one, the dining scene is astonishing.  And Keller's Bouchon is an oasis of calm sophistication 10 floors above the binging rattle banks of slot machines and nauseating carpet deodorizer of the main casino.  Long time french laundry sous chef mark hopper runs the kitchen.  The food is fantastic.  If I am ever convicted of ax-murdering the good citizens of Cleveland and am given a sentence worse than death, a week in Vegas, I'll at least have Bouchon and numerous other fantastic places to eat at (had great ones at Bradley Ogden and Fleur de Lys, btw).

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The dining scene is truly astonishing. I had a remarkable meal at Bradley Ogden and excellent meals at Rosemary's, NobHill, and Prime. (Rosemary's is actually a local Vegas establishment.)

I had my "aha" moment as to why chefs put up with Vegas while talking to our waiter at Bradley Ogden. "The great thing about running a restaurant in a casino," he said, "is that they don't have any idea what they have in stock or what things cost. Nor do they care." They had been recently sent a case of vintage Veuve Cliquot from the casino cellar at the cost of the Yellow Label. He also reported that they were going to close for a week, so that the whole staff could take a vacation. The only thing that makes those kinds of events possible is the vast amount of money generated on the casino floor. I recall reading somewhere that Robuchon couldn't turn down Vegas because of all the money they were willing to spend building him his dream restaurant. I imagine, that after years of fighting with owners about costs and worrying about profitability Vegas can seem very appealing.

But the baseball cards are truly awful.

(As an aside, couldn't agree more about that smell in the Venetian casino).

[Chris Amirault]

Let me start by saying, Michael (if I may), that I absolutely devoured your two books this summer and think that both are terrific. I found your discoveries truly insightful, and I appreciate what it takes to write a book. The fact that I care a whit about these idiotic baseball cards is due directly to your writing. So, thanks.

Admittedly, Thomas is a friend and a colleague, but I just returned from a restaurant tour of Vegas, and while the place is truly a vision of the end of the world, a moronic inferno if ever there were one, the dining scene is astonishing.   And Keller's Bouchon is an oasis of calm sophistication 10 floors above the binging rattle banks of slot machines and nauseating carpet deodorizer of the main casino.  Long time french laundry sous chef mark hopper runs the kitchen.  The food is fantastic.  If I am ever convicted of ax-murdering the good citizens of Cleveland and am given a sentence worse than death, a week in Vegas, I'll at least have Bouchon and numerous other fantastic places to eat at (had great ones at Bradley Ogden and Fleur de Lys, btw).

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I'd be very interested to know who is eating at this restaurant. As you must know, the opening of Per Se has been an event of major proportions here on eGullet, and I'd love to know who eats what how at the Vegas place. I admit to imagining characters like the one Jack Nicholson plays in Mars Attacks!, all hair implants, bad clothes, cheap cowboy hats, and sunglasses at night....

As for those ridiculous baseball cards, well, even Keller makes a mistake now and then.

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So, now that we've got you: what's up with that? I mean, what should we make of this mistake? Is it part of some strange contract that one must sign with the Las Vegas Gaming Comission upon agreeing to open a restaurant there? Does "everyone do it"? What is "it"?

Thanks!

[KatieLoeb]

I'd be very interested to know who is eating at this restaurant. As you must know, the opening of Per Se has been an event of major proportions here on eGullet, and I'd love to know who eats what how at the Vegas place. I admit to imagining characters like the one Jack Nicholson plays in Mars Attacks!, all hair implants, bad clothes, cheap cowboy hats, and sunglasses at night....

With no insult to Mr. Ruhlman or to Chef Keller intended, the reports on Bouchon that I've heard from friends that have been as well as several reports here on eGullet are that Bouchon is quite the disappointment.

None of the people I know bear any resemblance to the Jack Nicholson character. In fact, they are folks whose taste I generally trust which makes this all the more difficult to wrap my head around.

[tan319]

You know, this kind of snobbery drives me nuts.

As M.R. writes, restaurants there are the pick of the crop, and these chefs, who have sweated blood to get to where they are today, can open a place,built to their specs, w/o any of the usual bullshit that they have to put up with.

And make a helluva lot of money w/o (any of?) the risks they usually would have to face.

Ducasse won't have a Chodorow to screw with his chefs and food sources, etc.

People like Keller, et al, deserve to make as much as they can, as long as they put their best efforts to the task.

Which I'm sure they won't hesitate to do.

Re: Dispirito...

While watching him on QVC tonight, I thought that even though his NBC show was a true trainwreck ( that we couldn't turn off), he's probably making more money then he's ever made too.

It's unfortunate IF that got in the way of his doing a great job at U.P.

The NYT article has a weird slant to it, considering the seemingly sneery tone to the ""selling sausages on QVC"".

He is a great chef, my meal at U.P. was one of the best I've ever had, and I hope he get's to do it again sometime soon, if that's what he want's to do.

Edited September 30, 2004 by tan319 (log)

[Really Nice!]

Chrisamirault, when you visited Bouchon in Vegas what did you find so unappealing about it?

[fiftydollars]

With no insult to Mr. Ruhlman or to Chef Keller intended, the reports on Bouchon that I've heard from friends that have been as well as several reports here on eGullet are that Bouchon is quite the disappointment.

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Having been to Bouchon LV recently, I am happy to report, that there is nothing wrong with the steak frites or the french onion soup.

As you can see... Bouchon delivers solidly on these two fronts.

[Jinmyo]

Classic.

[Chris Amirault]

Chrisamirault, when you visited Bouchon in Vegas what did you find so unappealing about it?

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Beats me -- as I said, I was imagining the sort of folks who leave the deodorized gaming floors of Vegas, hide their pillowcase of quarters somewhere, and ascend to culinary heights. I asked because I've never been there. My question -- I'm asking questions -- is what's going on when one of the most articulate philosophers of food and eating currently running restaurants is shacking up with this crowd.

I mean, I know I may be being naive, tan319, but I'm pretty sure that I'm not being snobby. I wrote in an earlier post that I deeply admire Keller's philosophy (as reported by Ruhlman and others), which in my understanding involves a keen awareness of the particular and nuanced substance of food. Asking what's going on when this person is on a chef/baseball card awkwardly shilling for the most artificial and thus least substantial city in the world seems a question not about elitism but about consistency and authenticity.

Mulcahy's report from Bradley Ogden's place says a lot, I agree, about why someone would take all those resources and open a place with, seemingly, no financial worries whatsoever. Makes sense to me. And those photos are making me consider blowing off the rest of the week to take a quick trip west for a meal....

But Katie's post (and other concerns I've heard) raises questions about whether or not that absolute power is such a good thing. Someone once said something about absolute power -- and if there's a more corrupting place in the world, you'll have to tell me what it is....

Idealistic? Perhaps. But this isn't about snobbery.

[Michael Ruhlman]

Mulcahy makes a good and accurate point about the financial operations of these restaurants. It's funny money there in Vegas.

Chrisamirault, thanks for the comments on the books, very good for the solitary soul.

The oddest thing about the people in restaurants was not their resemblence to John Waters characters but rather their numbers--it didn't seem like many people were eating at any of these places. Maybe that's the reason for the steep prices everywhere (104 bucks for the kobe ribeye and lobster)

Though Bobby Flay's Mesa on opening night had a line of middle american Boy Meets Grill fans lined up all the way back to Ogden's place.

I'll ask Thomas next time I see him about the cards; judging from the unenthusiastic tone of his responses, I'm guessing he knew exactly how ridiculous this was but for some reason had no choice.

KatieLoeb--I'd love to know the criticisms of Bouchon. Maybe it was food snobbery, but I really haven't seen much of that on this site. Maybe it was when the restaurant first opened and still ironing out kinks? Also, the Vegas Bouchon has an odd role to fill. A lot of people go there thinking only Thomas Keller and expect French Laundry food. Mark was trying to do some FL-style canapes for some tables to bridge the gap, but it threw the kitchen off and he admitted that he's since calmed down.

I'd be surprised if the food was uniformly disappointing because it's not very difficult to do, as opposed to FL food.

[cdh]

Chrisamirault--

It is clear that you hate the idea of Vegas, even though you admit to never having seen the place in person. In your worldview, does any chef have a place in Vegas, or do those people really only deserve short order fry cooks? I'll admit that I've never been to Vegas either, but I am not carrying around nearly so much negativity about the place.

Did Vegas kick your dog?

Have an ex who moved there and loved it?

You knew a herd of dimwitted fratboys who wouldn't shut up about it?

You watched Leaving Las Vegas one too many times?

Your tone makes it seem that your beef is much less about the chefs and their reputations and more about the place and how undeserving it is of their talents. Why shouldn't there be an easily accessable part of the country where anybody from any state could fly in and indulge in the works of chefs from all over the country? Well prepared food as a tourist draw says good things to me about the state of American food culture... if people are drawn to Vegas for the food, that is really great evidence that there is a real hunger out in the sticks for better food... and if they're drawn there for other reasons and encounter good food, then that's great too. Why not look at Vegas as gastronomic training wheels for the inexperienced but curious gourmand? Much less intimidating than, say, NYC, no?

Edited September 30, 2004 by cdh (log)

[Really Nice!]

Well said, cdh.

[Michael Ruhlman]

true, even the sorts who enjoy a place like vegas deserve to eat well.

[simdelish]

Well prepared food as a tourist draw says good things to me about the state of American food culture... 

... and if they're drawn there for other reasons and encounter good food, then that's great too. 

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My thoughts exactly.

I must share a story... I have been quietly amused by some recent developments of new aquaintances in my new town. For lack of any nicer way to describe these people, unfortunately, I must say they are "nouveau riche". One guy was invited out to LV for gambling with buddies as a lark, and ate the best steaks he had ever eaten in his life. He then returned a month later with his wife. She then got together two other couples for a third trip. Now all these people talk about is LV and planning their next trip.

Why? not because of the gambling, but because of the extreme lavish excess, "the concentration of money all in one place" (their words not mine), the impeccable service -- which basically translates to me as attention they don't otherwise get here. The by-product of these jaunts? the new-found appreciation for the incredible meals they have been eating. These people don't know a whit about food, had never heard of any of these chefs, but went to these restaurants because that's what other people with money in Vegas do. They come back to me not even sure of what they ate, or how to pronounce/remember the chefs names, and grill me. They are only now learning/realizing that there are alternatives to Outback Steakhouse, that food can be an experience, incredible, orgasmic, not just sustinance. They are now "researching" other great restaurants in other parts of the country (NY, DC, Chicago, Calif) and are considering going...

I live vicariously through them...They ask me now where they should eat next! (I keep waiting for a doggy bag! )

(As the first guy said,"this is waaaaaaaaay better than Outback!!!"

Oh well...

[Tess]

Yes to the last couple of posts.

I wouldn't go to LV for the sake of the food. A lot of the high-end restaurants, good as they are, are spinoffs and the originals exist somewhere else. Why not go to those places? But to put good restaurants there is a brilliant idea. You have a lot of people with a lot of money to throw around, looking for some nice food in the evenings. Gambling is considered a sin in some quarters, but it's the hobby of some very well-to-do people. These people are not unsophisticated yokels who keep quarters in a pillowcase. A lot of them also travel with spouses who don't care for gambling and want to be treated to something nice to make the trip worthwhile.

LV is also often a meeting place for groups of family and/or friends, because it's an easy place to fly in and out of, and you can often get a very good deal on a hotel. Then you feel you have some monsy to play around with on dining.

Also, there are usually a lot of people around for conventions.

[slbunge]

It will be interesting to watch as the famous chefs' outposts in Vegas develop. I don't have any problem with any of these people opening a restaurant anywhere in the world but it seems to me that one of the things that used to separate Keller from other chefs such as Batali is that the former used to speak through a single place. Part of the interest in French Laundry was an expectation that the actual man at the helm was personally obsessing over every part of my meal (from the way the building was designed to the source for the sunflower sprouts) and that obsession might lead to something akin to perfection. Perhaps this is naive but when he had only one location it was easy to think this to be true. Now with two or three restaurants the diner, perhaps, is just there for great food rather than some fleeting hope that this will be the perfect meal.

I'd be curious to hear from people out there who have eaten at the originals and the Vegas outposts.

[Chris Amirault]

Michael Ruhlman, thanks for your thoughts. I'll be curious to hear what Mr. Keller says.

As for this: ouch:

It is clear that you hate the idea of Vegas, even though you admit to never having seen the place in person.  In your worldview, does any chef have a place in Vegas, or do those people really only deserve short order fry cooks? I'll admit that I've never been to Vegas either, but I am not carrying around nearly so much negativity about the place. 

Did Vegas kick your dog?

Have an ex who moved there and loved it?

You knew a herd of dimwitted fratboys who wouldn't shut up about it?

You watched Leaving Las Vegas one too many times?

Your tone makes it seem that your beef is much less about the chefs and their reputations and more about the place and how undeserving it is of their talents.  Why shouldn't there be an easily accessable part of the country where anybody from any state could fly in and indulge in the works of chefs from all over the country?  Well prepared food as a tourist draw says good things to me about the state of American food culture...  if people are  drawn to Vegas for the food, that is really great evidence that there is a real hunger out in the sticks for better food... and if they're drawn there for other reasons and encounter good food, then that's great too.  Why not look at Vegas as gastronomic training wheels for the inexperienced but curious gourmand?  Much less intimidating than, say, NYC, no?

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Sorry -- I was unclear about having been there: I've not been to Bouchon; I've been to Vegas. And, I'll fess up, my knowledge is still limited primarily to viewings of CSI. No dogs kicked, no frat boys, no exes (of which I'm aware). I'm sure that the people of Vegas are on the whole fine folks. (Sincerely!)

So, I do think that cdh raises some good points here. I'm particularly convinced by your populist argument about testing out the "gastronomic training wheels." But you get my point wrong. I've never had a beef with anyone going to Vegas, or eating there, or even opening a restaurant there. Bobby Flay can run the tourist center there and I'll congratulate him.

My very specific question did and still pertains only to the matter of someone whom I respect and admire as a thinker about food -- Thomas Keller -- going to work selling the idea of Vegas. I mean, this is the guy who created the French Laundry!

Guilty as charged if that's evidence that I've got negativity about Vegas; I feel it's evidence that I have an investment, perhaps foolishly, in the food world having people of integrity like Thomas Keller around.

[Jinmyo]

Part of the interest in French Laundry was an expectation that the actual man at the helm was personally obsessing over every part of my meal (from the way the building was designed to the source for the sunflower sprouts) and that obsession might lead to something akin to perfection.

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But he still does that at FL.

He's usually there from before beginning to long after ending every day.

That doesn't mean he can't open and oversee other places.

[weinoo]

With no insult to Mr. Ruhlman or to Chef Keller intended, the reports on Bouchon that I've heard from friends that have been as well as several reports here on eGullet are that Bouchon is quite the disappointment.

Well, I was there back in February, right after they opened, and this is what I wrote on eGullet then:

Bouchon - IMO, this will be the hottest and best new restaurant to hit Vegas in a while...all I want to say is thank you, thank you, thank you to T. Keller for opening a beautiful, affordable and delicious restaurant. Excellent service, fairly priced wines, great food - what more can you ask for?