Alinea Review in the Sun-Times

[Ed Hamilton]

After reading the review yesterday, I didn't have time to post, I have to agree with glossyp and docsonz that Bruno was doing what reviewers do, create discussion. Certainly an explanation of why he chose to short Alinea half a star would have given him more credibility, since he did convey that he at least tried to appreciate the food, service and was complimentary about the suggested wine pairings, not always an easy feat.

One thing that came through from this review was that the reviewer didn't seem entirely comfortable at Alinea at first, but as the evening progressed he became more at ease with the restaurant and himself. It is also worth considering that very few writers can actually enjoy 4 star restaurants, service and wine, when the boss isn't paying the bill.

[Catherine Nash]

I have to admit that my ADD got the better of me and I didn't read the whole review. I am not a frequent reader of Bruno's work, but if this example is typical, well, the man can't write very well, can he?

He is condescending ("I figure you figured that out a while back, when I mentioned 28 courses.") and his dismissal of eGullet (for the "culinary challenged") is so far off base -- I mean, I am culinarily challenged but I'm the exception, not the rule -- it makes me wonder if he really spent much time on the site?

But as I felt myself getting hotter and hotter under the collar about the man's lack of understanding of the Alinea Project, I stopped to think: well, now, who is his audience? And the truth is that most people in Chicago, hell, most people in the world haven't heard of El Bulli and will never get to the French Laundry. We live in a rarified gastronimic microcosm, and things that seem to me to be ridiculous reviewing blunders and haute cuisine haughtiness in reverse may, in fact, just prove that Bruno is out eating for Every Man. Like he says he is.

And I gotta say, I like that, because I think so much food writing and restaurant reviewing forgets all about that guy.

I do wish he'd spent more time explaining why Achatz uses foams, gels and mousses rather than making it sound like some grotesque and unappealing chemistry lab cooking. Most people unfamiliar with the restaurant or that kind of cooking will stop reading right there. He had the option of educating people and instead chose to turn them off. Shame on him.

[Mummer]

A major paper in a huge city uses a free-lance reviewer. He goes, one time, to a restaurant with a national buzz and orders from the middle of the menu.

I don't get it.

[joiei]

Has Bruno ever given any place 4stars? What did he have to say about such places as Trotters or Trio or Moto? Just curious about how he really feels about what he is writing.

[ruthcooks]

I clicked on JiLS's "another site" and was amused to read--first post on the page--poster GAF proclaiming "Who eats bacon today?"

All he/she has to do is read eGullet for a while to know who.

[Grub]

From what I've seen of this restaurant in the threads of this board, I'll humbly admit that Alinea just possibly might be "too much" for me... But it seems absurd to rate a restaurant according to such a criteria.

Rating a restaurant according to whether it would be "too much" for someone who prefers McDonald's wouldn't make much sense -- anymore than an art reviewer commenting on Picasso being too much for people who prefer pictures of dogs playing poker.

[RonThePirate]

I'd like to state that this style of food, the whole "molecular gastronomy" or avant-garde--whichever you prefer--is still in infancy compared to the rest of the cuisines. People know what a hollandaise sauce is. People know what they're going to get. However, this new breath of life (as I see it) is redefining what we know. The chef I work for now used to say, "Why should we change the way we've been cooking for hundreds of years?" I'm proud to say he's began to at least look into the newer methods of cooking today. If no one made progression, we'd all be roasting meats over a fire... we've gone a long way and it's natural the keep moving on. That's why I love this stuff. That's why I love this style, philosophy. It's new and groundbreaking, therefore, it's unnatural to the majority.

"All great ideas were once called blasphemy." I don't remember who said that, but I agree with it. The dining public is rather clueless about what's going on at the cutting edge restaurants in the world. A lot of people I work with don't know about this (granted, I do live in Dallas). But Alinea is definately a big step for this industry. It's made a statement, and people can rave about it or complain about it. Personally, I'd kill for a chance to have an experiance like this. I think it was interesting that in this review, it was mentioned time and time again that people will either "get it" or not. Can't you say that about every other restaurant out there? How many people do you know will quiver and scowl when you mention sushi? How many people look at Indian food and think, "What the hell?" A review shouldn't judge one's culinary philosophy in mind. If you don't like raw fish, then don't go to a sushi bar. Simple as that. But for the people who are interested, and do understand the reasoning behind the food have mentioned countless times that they are blown away.

From what I have read, from what I have seen, I thought Alinea would recieve 4 stars. 3.5 isn't bad, but I think the real message of molecular gastronomy hasn't been embraced enough. I think more people are more interested about what's going on at Alinea, elBulli, or The Fat Duck than whatever Alain Ducasse is churning out. Perhaps the review was too early. Perhaps the critic was ingorant about the thought process involved in the food. For everyone who has seen this restaurant's progression, you can see the logic in every little detail, from the food to the service to the flatware to the sound system. It's amazing. It's new, it hasn't been done before. As an aspiring chef myself, I've got to give all my highest praise the chef Grant Achatz for making such a bold and impressive mark in this history. Escoffier was the big guy back in the 1900s. It's been 100 years since then, we've been due for a real change in the approach to cuisine. We, as in humans, have advanced technologically and new methods are available. Keep in mind, someone invited the whisk. Someone used a bain marie and it changed a lot of the ways things are done. I believe what I'm seeing is the future of food, and that's exciting. After all, don't we all want to have progression in our lifetime? Things change, and there's a huge change going on in food right now. Those who don't know/understand/get it will make a case that everything is stupid and illogical.

Maybe they're right. But let's not forget, people thought that the earth was the center of the universe. There was a time when people thought the world was flat. So why can't there be a time when people stop thinking, "food is for nourishment." Food is an experiance, and I'd like to see the greater public embrace the work that has been put into the details and understanding that there's a difference between a steak cooked sous vide and a hamburger at McDonald's.

I think Alinea is a turning point for restaurants and for upcoming chefs. It has set a new level to reach and definately shows they will keep pushing themselves to give people the opportunity to experiance something they never thought was possible. That's an impressive thing to do, I say.

[Lactic Solar Dust]

I'd like to state that this style of food, the whole "molecular gastronomy" or avant-garde--whichever you prefer--is still in infancy compared to the rest of the cuisines.  People know what a hollandaise sauce is.  People know what they're going to get.  However, this new breath of life (as I see it) is redefining what we know.  The chef I work for now used to say, "Why should we change the way we've been cooking for hundreds of years?"  I'm proud to say he's began to at least look into the newer methods of cooking today.  If no one made progression, we'd all be roasting meats over a fire... we've gone a long way and it's natural the keep moving on.  That's why I love this stuff.  That's why I love this style, philosophy.  It's new and groundbreaking, therefore, it's unnatural to the majority.

"All great ideas were once called blasphemy."  I don't remember who said that, but I agree with it.  The dining public is rather clueless about what's going on at the cutting edge restaurants in the world.  A lot of people I work with don't know about this (granted, I do live in Dallas).  But Alinea is definately a big step for this industry.  It's made a statement, and people can rave about it or complain about it.  Personally, I'd kill for a chance to have an experiance like this.  I think it was interesting that in this review, it was mentioned time and time again that people will either "get it" or not.  Can't you say that about every other restaurant out there?  How many people do you know will quiver and scowl when you mention sushi?  How many people look at Indian food and think, "What the hell?"  A review shouldn't judge one's culinary philosophy in mind.  If you don't like raw fish, then don't go to a sushi bar.  Simple as that.  But for the people who are interested, and do understand the reasoning behind the food have mentioned countless times that they are blown away.

From what I have read, from what I have seen, I thought Alinea would recieve 4 stars.  3.5 isn't bad, but I think the real message of molecular gastronomy hasn't been embraced enough.  I think more people are more interested about what's going on at Alinea, elBulli, or The Fat Duck than whatever Alain Ducasse is churning out. Perhaps the review was too early.  Perhaps the critic was ingorant about the thought process involved in the food.  For everyone who has seen this restaurant's progression, you can see the logic in every little detail, from the food to the service to the flatware to the sound system.  It's amazing.  It's new, it hasn't been done before.  As an aspiring chef myself, I've got to give all my highest praise the chef Grant Achatz for making such a bold and impressive mark in this history.  Escoffier was the big guy back in the 1900s.  It's been 100 years since then, we've been due for a real change in the approach to cuisine.  We, as in humans, have advanced technologically and new methods are available.  Keep in mind, someone invited the whisk.  Someone used a bain marie and it changed a lot of the ways things are done.  I believe what I'm seeing is the future of food, and that's exciting.  After all, don't we all want to have progression in our lifetime?  Things change, and there's a huge change going on in food right now.  Those who don't know/understand/get it will make a case that everything is stupid and illogical.

Maybe they're right.  But let's not forget, people thought that the earth was the center of the universe.  There was a time when people thought the world was flat.  So why can't there be a time when people stop thinking, "food is for nourishment."  Food is an experiance, and I'd like to see the greater public embrace the work that has been put into the details and understanding that there's a difference between a steak cooked sous vide and a hamburger at McDonald's.

I think Alinea is a turning point for restaurants and for upcoming chefs.  It has set a new level to reach and definately shows they will keep pushing themselves to give people the opportunity to experiance something they never thought was possible.  That's an impressive thing to do, I say.

←

The style of cuisine that Alinea is doing has actually been going on for the past 20 years at El Bulli in Madrid, Spain. Although, I am not taking anything away from what the people at Alinea are doing, I just think it is fair to note that Alinea is not as groundbreaking as you claim it to be.

[ChefCAG]

I'd like to state that this style of food, the whole "molecular gastronomy" or avant-garde--whichever you prefer--is still in infancy compared to the rest of the cuisines.  People know what a hollandaise sauce is.  People know what they're going to get.  However, this new breath of life (as I see it) is redefining what we know.  The chef I work for now used to say, "Why should we change the way we've been cooking for hundreds of years?"  I'm proud to say he's began to at least look into the newer methods of cooking today.  If no one made progression, we'd all be roasting meats over a fire... we've gone a long way and it's natural the keep moving on.  That's why I love this stuff.  That's why I love this style, philosophy.  It's new and groundbreaking, therefore, it's unnatural to the majority.

"All great ideas were once called blasphemy."  I don't remember who said that, but I agree with it.  The dining public is rather clueless about what's going on at the cutting edge restaurants in the world.  A lot of people I work with don't know about this (granted, I do live in Dallas).  But Alinea is definately a big step for this industry.  It's made a statement, and people can rave about it or complain about it.  Personally, I'd kill for a chance to have an experiance like this.  I think it was interesting that in this review, it was mentioned time and time again that people will either "get it" or not.  Can't you say that about every other restaurant out there?  How many people do you know will quiver and scowl when you mention sushi?  How many people look at Indian food and think, "What the hell?"  A review shouldn't judge one's culinary philosophy in mind.  If you don't like raw fish, then don't go to a sushi bar.  Simple as that.  But for the people who are interested, and do understand the reasoning behind the food have mentioned countless times that they are blown away.

From what I have read, from what I have seen, I thought Alinea would recieve 4 stars.  3.5 isn't bad, but I think the real message of molecular gastronomy hasn't been embraced enough.  I think more people are more interested about what's going on at Alinea, elBulli, or The Fat Duck than whatever Alain Ducasse is churning out. Perhaps the review was too early.  Perhaps the critic was ingorant about the thought process involved in the food.  For everyone who has seen this restaurant's progression, you can see the logic in every little detail, from the food to the service to the flatware to the sound system.  It's amazing.  It's new, it hasn't been done before.  As an aspiring chef myself, I've got to give all my highest praise the chef Grant Achatz for making such a bold and impressive mark in this history.  Escoffier was the big guy back in the 1900s.  It's been 100 years since then, we've been due for a real change in the approach to cuisine.  We, as in humans, have advanced technologically and new methods are available.  Keep in mind, someone invited the whisk.  Someone used a bain marie and it changed a lot of the ways things are done.  I believe what I'm seeing is the future of food, and that's exciting.  After all, don't we all want to have progression in our lifetime?  Things change, and there's a huge change going on in food right now.  Those who don't know/understand/get it will make a case that everything is stupid and illogical.

Maybe they're right.  But let's not forget, people thought that the earth was the center of the universe.  There was a time when people thought the world was flat.  So why can't there be a time when people stop thinking, "food is for nourishment."  Food is an experiance, and I'd like to see the greater public embrace the work that has been put into the details and understanding that there's a difference between a steak cooked sous vide and a hamburger at McDonald's.

I think Alinea is a turning point for restaurants and for upcoming chefs.  It has set a new level to reach and definately shows they will keep pushing themselves to give people the opportunity to experiance something they never thought was possible.  That's an impressive thing to do, I say.

←

The style of cuisine that Alinea is doing has actually been going on for the past 20 years at El Bulli in Madrid, Spain. Although, I am not taking anything away from what the people at Alinea are doing, I just think it is fair to note that Alinea is not as groundbreaking as you claim it to be.

←

Probably more like 10 years.

[VeryApe77]

Probably more like 10 years.

←

Also, El Bulli isn't in Madrid....sorry to be pedantic.

[matttx76]

So he gave it 3.5 stars. What's the big deal!!!! Are you going to hang your hat on what some critic has to say about the place. Go and experience it for yourself and you be the critic. We put too much stock in what food critics say about the restaurants we frequent. Go and experience places on your own and make your own judgements on that.

[ChefCAG]

So he gave it 3.5 stars.  What's the big deal!!!!  Are you going to hang your hat on what some critic has to say about the place.  Go and experience it for yourself and you be the critic.  We put too much stock in what food critics say about the restaurants we frequent.  Go and experience places on your own and make your own judgements on that.

←

Well Said

[ronnie_suburban]

So he gave it 3.5 stars.  What's the big deal!!!!  Are you going to hang your hat on what some critic has to say about the place.  Go and experience it for yourself and you be the critic.  We put too much stock in what food critics say about the restaurants we frequent.  Go and experience places on your own and make your own judgements on that.

←

I don't think the issue here is the rating per se but more so that the review read like a 4-star review and then -- for no clearly rational reason -- ended with the awarding of 3.5 stars. There was also the (side) issue of the swipe he took as us culinary (sic) challenged and the fact that the first several paragraphs of the review actually review the eGS and not Alinea.

For me, the primary value of reviewers and critics is this: once you find one(s) with whom you usually agree, their reviews can be useful and even valuable. I've never really seen eye-to-eye with Bruno, so I would have been more suprised by a 4-star review from him than the 3.5 he gave Alinea. And again, this review was based on one trip to the restaurant where the reviewer didn't even bother to order the Tour de Force. So, I guess we agree . . . the opinions expressed in the review are worth ignoring.

=R=

[Lactic Solar Dust]

I'd like to state that this style of food, the whole "molecular gastronomy" or avant-garde--whichever you prefer--is still in infancy compared to the rest of the cuisines.  People know what a hollandaise sauce is.  People know what they're going to get.  However, this new breath of life (as I see it) is redefining what we know.  The chef I work for now used to say, "Why should we change the way we've been cooking for hundreds of years?"  I'm proud to say he's began to at least look into the newer methods of cooking today.  If no one made progression, we'd all be roasting meats over a fire... we've gone a long way and it's natural the keep moving on.  That's why I love this stuff.  That's why I love this style, philosophy.  It's new and groundbreaking, therefore, it's unnatural to the majority.

"All great ideas were once called blasphemy."  I don't remember who said that, but I agree with it.  The dining public is rather clueless about what's going on at the cutting edge restaurants in the world.  A lot of people I work with don't know about this (granted, I do live in Dallas).  But Alinea is definately a big step for this industry.  It's made a statement, and people can rave about it or complain about it.  Personally, I'd kill for a chance to have an experiance like this.  I think it was interesting that in this review, it was mentioned time and time again that people will either "get it" or not.  Can't you say that about every other restaurant out there?  How many people do you know will quiver and scowl when you mention sushi?  How many people look at Indian food and think, "What the hell?"  A review shouldn't judge one's culinary philosophy in mind.  If you don't like raw fish, then don't go to a sushi bar.  Simple as that.  But for the people who are interested, and do understand the reasoning behind the food have mentioned countless times that they are blown away.

From what I have read, from what I have seen, I thought Alinea would recieve 4 stars.  3.5 isn't bad, but I think the real message of molecular gastronomy hasn't been embraced enough.  I think more people are more interested about what's going on at Alinea, elBulli, or The Fat Duck than whatever Alain Ducasse is churning out. Perhaps the review was too early.  Perhaps the critic was ingorant about the thought process involved in the food.  For everyone who has seen this restaurant's progression, you can see the logic in every little detail, from the food to the service to the flatware to the sound system.  It's amazing.  It's new, it hasn't been done before.  As an aspiring chef myself, I've got to give all my highest praise the chef Grant Achatz for making such a bold and impressive mark in this history.  Escoffier was the big guy back in the 1900s.  It's been 100 years since then, we've been due for a real change in the approach to cuisine.  We, as in humans, have advanced technologically and new methods are available.  Keep in mind, someone invited the whisk.  Someone used a bain marie and it changed a lot of the ways things are done.  I believe what I'm seeing is the future of food, and that's exciting.  After all, don't we all want to have progression in our lifetime?  Things change, and there's a huge change going on in food right now.  Those who don't know/understand/get it will make a case that everything is stupid and illogical.

Maybe they're right.  But let's not forget, people thought that the earth was the center of the universe.  There was a time when people thought the world was flat.  So why can't there be a time when people stop thinking, "food is for nourishment."  Food is an experiance, and I'd like to see the greater public embrace the work that has been put into the details and understanding that there's a difference between a steak cooked sous vide and a hamburger at McDonald's.

I think Alinea is a turning point for restaurants and for upcoming chefs.  It has set a new level to reach and definately shows they will keep pushing themselves to give people the opportunity to experiance something they never thought was possible.  That's an impressive thing to do, I say.

←

The style of cuisine that Alinea is doing has actually been going on for the past 20 years at El Bulli in Madrid, Spain. Although, I am not taking anything away from what the people at Alinea are doing, I just think it is fair to note that Alinea is not as groundbreaking as you claim it to be.

←

Probably more like 10 years.

←

Adria has been doing it since 1982.

[scordelia]

Unfortunately, Chicago does not have very good restaurant critics at the major papers. Phil Vettel is a bit of a pushover and a kind reviewer. Pat Bruno does a poor job of explaining his ratings. Also, another poster aways back pointed out that Bruno obviously only visited once. Another thing about Bruno and Vettel is that neither really bother to hide their identities when they review a place (I did a lot of waitressing in college and grad school and worked for a couple a new places when they opened and we knew when they were coming, unlike Reichl's account of her days as a reviewer).

Bruno's only real criticism is that Alinea is not for everyone--well, duh! At a minimum of $75 a head, of course it's not!

[ronnie_suburban]

chefg himself has addressed the comparing of "avant garde" chefs in the past. You can read his comments here.

As for the sub-discussion taking place here about Adria and El Bulli, while it is an interesting tangent, this thread isn't the proper venue for it.

At this point, I'm asking that we drop that line of discussion and return our focus to Alinea and reviews of Alinea.

Thanks

=R=