Per Se vs. Eleven Madison Park

Originally Posted by untilted

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HAHAHA. just to play devil's advocate, EMP is on the first floor of an investment bank! I loved tasting menus at both, thought EMP was just as good with less $$$. but honestly, if you are eating at those places, you are not caring about that $ differential, right?
What? Of course you care. My first meal at Alinea I saved every penny for 6 months. If they had somehow charged me $25 more than I thought they were going to, I'd have been rolling up my sleeves in the dishpit. You'd be surprised how many people go to these places with very little disposable income and this is what they save up for.

Originally Posted by kwilkinson

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What? Of course you care. My first meal at Alinea I saved every penny for 6 months. If they had somehow charged me $25 more than I thought they were going to, I'd have been rolling up my sleeves in the dishpit. You'd be surprised how many people go to these places with very little disposable income and this is what they save up for.

Yea, I've actually seen Northwestern students at Alinea twice get a nasty surprise once the bill came, and I don't think they were the kind of people that could just put it on the card and not care.

Originally Posted by nmprisons

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The Modern, and its not particularly close.
Yea I disagree (and so does Michelin). I much prefer Picholine in every way, even if it's less inventive than the Modern. Warmer service, more enjoyable atmosphere, excellent food. The Modern is a place I'd recommend for lunch because the setting is hard to beat in daylight, but it's cold and uninviting at night. When it comes to the food, the Modern gets so caught up in living up to being a modern museum restaurant that it tries tway too hard and the minimalist/artistic plating thing is tiring and detracts a little bit from enjoying the food - a tad theme-parkish for me. Picholine is completely unpretentious and comfortable, our waiters there have always been uber friendly and helpful - all refreshing qualities for a 2 star michelin restaurant. And needless to say the cheese cart is a fantastic end of meal for anyone who likes cheese. I could have dinner at Picholine every month, but don't think I'll have dinner at The Modern again.

I agree with you on the cheese cart. Otherwise, different strokes for different folks, I guess.

I personally could never understand the cheese cart at the end of the meal. Cheese is too filling to be consumed at the end, imho. I know a lot of high-end restrnts practice that in France as well as in US ,but it seems a bit gimmicky to me. I cannot see myslef eating assorted cheese plate after a 3-5 course dinner.

Originally Posted by Medwed

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I personally could never understand the cheese cart at the end of the meal. Cheese is too filling to be consumed at the end, imho. I know a lot of high-end restrnts practice that in France as well as in US ,but it seems a bit gimmicky to me. I cannot see myslef eating assorted cheese plate after a 3-5 course dinner.
To say that it is too filling for you is fine. To suggest that it is gimmicky is just amusing.

Originally Posted by Medwed

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it seems a bit gimmicky to me.

You want gimmicky? Order some cheese at the Inn at Little Washington. It literally comes on the back of a large, wheeled cow (named Faira, apparently) that moos. Seriously. But, to be fair, it was probably the best cheese course I have ever had.

Originally Posted by kwilkinson

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What? Of course you care. My first meal at Alinea I saved every penny for 6 months. If they had somehow charged me $25 more than I thought they were going to, I'd have been rolling up my sleeves in the dishpit. You'd be surprised how many people go to these places with very little disposable income and this is what they save up for.

i underestimated the amount of hardcore foodies at these restaurants then...

i imagine if you save so hard for a meal @ these michelin star restaurants, and the meal doesn't impress you as much as it is hyped up for...it would be a pretty negative feeling.

Originally Posted by untilted

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i imagine if you save so hard for a meal @ these michelin star restaurants, and the meal doesn't impress you as much as it is hyped up for...it would be a pretty negative feeling.

Than could be easily remedied by a cheese table or a box of chocolates, included in your Prix Fix.

Originally Posted by untilted

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i underestimated the amount of hardcore foodies at these restaurants then...

i imagine if you save so hard for a meal @ these michelin star restaurants, and the meal doesn't impress you as much as it is hyped up for...it would be a pretty negative feeling.

It is. Fortunately, I've had the good grace of choosing well and getting lucky.

Just had a hell of a meal at EMP. http://smithratliff.com/2011/06/16/d...-madison-park/

Originally Posted by SField

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One thing I hate and I mean I HATE about going to Alinea or Per Se or L20 is that you have to sit around a bunch of yuppies or dinks and overhear their marsupialed conversation about food.
That describes how I often feel about most food and restaurant threads here in Social Life, Food & Drink. Although 'hate' is a strong word ... it's more amusement.

Originally Posted by RSS

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That describes how I often feel about most food and restaurant threads here in Social Life, Food & Drink. Although 'hate' is a strong word ... it's more amusement.
I don't mind listening to people with a technical background discussing food... people like FoodGuy, Matt, kwilk impolyt and manton have varying degrees of knowledge and skill, but all of them have a fairly good grasp of context. I cannot listen to people talking about food that don't have a fairly wide understanding of food and experience so that they can put their thoughts into context.

Originally Posted by patrickBOOTH

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I have a question, folks. A friend tells me that if you go to a pricey restaurant and order an expensive bottle of wine before tipping you should subtract the cost of the wine before tipping your 20%. Is this common, or he is just cheap? I mean I see his point are you supposed to tip 20% on a bottle of Petrus?
Really? I've never heard of this. I'd be interested to hear from some of the restaurant guys on how that approach would be received. I've always added the tip based on a percentage of the gross bill.