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Ramsay Missing From the World's Best Restaurants List

partysugar — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 10:15:44 -0700

Yesterday Restaurant magazine and S. Pellegrino announced its famed list of the world's 50 best restaurants. The list is developed by a large panel of well-regarded international judges consisting of 806 chefs, restaurateurs, food critics, and journalists.

For the fourth year in a row, Ferran Adriá's experimental Spanish restaurant, El Bulli, has been named the best eatery in the world. Coming in at sixth, Thomas Keller's Per Se is the highest-ranking US restaurant.

The most shocking news, however, is that Gordon Ramsay's flagship London establishment, Restaurant Gordon Ramsay, which was number 13 on last year's list, is totally absent from this year's. To check out the complete list, read more.

El Bulli, Spain
The Fat Duck, UK
Noma, Denmark
Mugaritz, Spain
El Celler de Can Roca, Spain
Per Se, US
Bras, France
Arzak, Spain
Pierre Gagnaire, France
Alinea, US
L’Astrance, France
The French Laundry US
Osteria Francescana, Italy
St. John, UK
Le Bernardin, US
Restaurant de l’Hotel de Ville, Switzerland
Tetsuya’s, Australia
L’Atelier de Joel Robuchon, France
Jean Georges, US
Les Creations de Narisawa, Japan
Chez Dominique, Finland
Ristorante Cracco, Italy
Die Schwarzwaldstube, Germany
D.O.M., Brazil
Vendome, Germany
Hof van Cleve, Belgium
Masa, US
Gambero Rosso, Italy
Oud Sluis, Netherlands
Steirereck, Austria
Momofuku Ssam Bar, US
Oaxen Skaergaardskrog, Sweden
Martin Berasategui, Spain
Nobu UK
Mirazur, France
Hakkasan, UK
Le Quartier Francais, South Africa
La Colombe, South Africa
Asador Etxebarri, Spain
Le Chateaubriand, France
Daniel, US
Combal Zero, Italy
Le Louis XV, France
Tantris, Germany
Iggy’s, Singapore
Quay, Australia
Les Ambassadeurs, France
Dal Pescatore, Italy
Le Calandre, Italy
Mathias Dahlgren, Sweden

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Yummy Link: Eating at the Best Restaurant in the World

partysugar — Sat, 26 Apr 2008 13:03:18 -0700

if you're wondering what eating at El Bulli - the best restaurant in the world - is like, be sure to check out this account. It describes the four hour, once in a lifetime, too many courses to count dining experience. - Boarding Area via Bitten

Discover the 2008 List of 50 Best Restaurants in the World

YumSugar — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 08:11:11 -0700

Every year San Pellegrino and Restaurant magazine releases a list of the 50 best restaurants in the world. The list is put together by The Nespresso World's 50 Best Academy, a group that consists of over 650 chefs, restauranteurs, food writers and critics. There is no list of nominees, each member of the voting panel votes for their favorite five restaurants. They can't vote for their own restaurant, and they have to have eaten at their nominees within the past 18 months. So after 3,410 votes, who came out on top?

The top three are unchanged from last year, with Ferran Adria's El Bulli ranking number one. There are also four re-entries and two new entries. To discover the whole list, read more.

1. El Bulli, Spain
2. The Fat Duck, UK
3. Pierre Gagnaire, France
4. Mugaritz, Spain
5. The French Laundry, US
6. Per Se, US
7. Bras, France
8. Arzak, Spain
9. Tetsuya's, Australia
10. Noma, Denmark
11. L'Astrance, France
12. Gambero Rosso, Italy
13. Restaurant Gordon Ramsay, UK
14. L'Atelier de Joël Robuchon, France
15. Le Louis XV, Monaco
16. St John, UK Highest Climber, up 18 places from last year
17. Jean Georges, US
18. Alain Ducasse au Plaza Athénée, France
19. Hakkasan, UK
20. Le Bernardin, US
21. Alinea, US
22. Le Gavroche, UK
23. Dal Pescatore, Italy
24. Le Cinq, France
25. Troisgros, France
26. El Celler de Can Roca, Spain
27. Restaurant de l'Hotel de Ville, Switzerland Highest Re-Entry
28. Hof van Cleve, Belgium
29. Martin Berasategui, Spain
30. Nobu London, UK
31. Can Fabes, Spain
32. Enoteca Pinchiorri, Italy
33. Le Meurice, France
34. Vendome, Germany Highest New Entry
35. Die Schwarzwaldstube, Germany
36. Le Calandre, Italy
37. Chez Panisse, US
38. Charlie Trotter's, US
39. Chez Dominique, Finland
40. DOM, Brazil
41. Daniel, US
42. Oud Sluis, The Netherlands
43. Cracco Peck, Italy
44. Asador Etxebarri, Spain
45. Les Ambassadeurs, France
46. L'Arpege, France
47. Tantris, Germany
48. Oaxen Skaergaardskrog, Sweden
49. Rockpool, Australia
50. Le Quartier Francais, South Africa

While I find this list completely fascinating - and I definitely want to eat at more than one of them - I'm a little dismayed by the fact that there isn't a single restaurant in Asia on this list. Not to mention the overall lack of diversity. What do you guys think about it?

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50 Best Restaurants in The World

YumSugar — Tue, 24 Apr 2007 12:31:38 -0700

Last night Restaurant Magazine announced their annual list of the world's 50 best restaurants and I am ridiculously embarrassed to say that even though two of them are really close by (Chez Panisse and the French Laundry), I have not been to any of the ones on the list. While I go hang my head in foodie shame, you can check out the list. Oh and it's worth noting that the top 6 are the same as last year and there are only 5 new entries and one that has re-entered. And finally, if you don't recognize him, that's El Bulli's head chef Ferran Adria in the photograph.

1 - El Bulli, Spain - Best in Europe
2 - The Fat Duck, UK
3 - Pierre Gagnaire, France
4 - The French Laundry, USA - Best in the Americas
5 - Tetsuya’s, Australia - Best in Australasia
6 - Bras, France
7 - Mugaritz, Spain
8 - Le Louis XV, Monaco
9 - Per Se, USA
10 - Arzak, Spain

To see the rest of the list, none of which I've eaten at either, read more

11 - El Celler de Can Roca, Spain
12 - Gambero Rosso, Italy
13 - L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon, France
14 - Hof van Cleve, Belgium
15 - Noma, Denmark - The biggest climber - up 18 places from last year
16 - Le Calandre, Italy
17 - Nobu London, UK
18 - Jean Georges, USA
19 - Hakkasan, UK
20 - Alain Ducasse au Plaza Athénée, France
21 - L’Astrance, France
22 - Can Fabes, Spain
23 - L’Ambroisie, France
24 - Restaurant Gordon Ramsay UK
25 - Troisgros, France
26 - Le Bernardin, USA
27 - Martin Berasategui, Spain
28 - Le Gavroche, UK
29 - Le Cinq, France
30 - Charlie Trotter’s, USA
31 - Dal Pescatore, Italy
32 - Daniel, USA
33 - Rockpool, Australia
34 - St John, UK
35 - Chez Dominique, Finland
36 - Alinea, USA - Highest New Entry
37 - Bukhara, India - Best in Asia
38 - DOM, Brazil
39 - Oaxen Skärgårdskrog, Sweden
40 - Chez Panisse, USA
41 - Enoteca Pinchiorri, Italy
42 - Cracco Peck, Italy - New Entry
43 - L’Arpège, France
44 - River Café, UK - Re-Entry
45 - Oud Sluis, Netherlands - Biggest drop - down 26 places from last year
46 - Combal Zero, Italy - New Entry
47 - Le Quartier Français, South Africa - Best in Mid East & Africa
48 - Taillevent, France - New Entry
49 - Bocuse, France
50 - Les Ambassadeurs, France - New Entry

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Next Up: Haggling at Restaurants?

YumSugar — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 09:00:40 -0700

From serving spiced-up burgers to offering cheaper premium steaks, restaurants are trying every trick in the book to bolster sluggish sales. Some, seeing little improvement, have turned to a strategy that was perhaps once unimaginable: haggling.

A reporter from the New York Post, who felt there was nothing to lose and only some to gain through negotiating, decided to put her theory to the test by bargaining at various Manhattan stores. The result of her experiment? She saved nearly $35 in one day by bartering at stores, including coffee shops, neighborhood restaurants, wine merchants, and even casual lunch chains. At Starbucks, a barista slashed 25 percent off the cost of a caramel macchiato "without batting an eye." When the reporter told a manager at sandwich and salad chain Cosí that she was trying to save money, she got a 10 percent discount. A local café was willing to give her a 20 percent "starving artists discount" off of a $50 table.

I'm a little dumbstruck, as America really doesn't embrace haggling. I haven't bargained for anything - let alone food - since my last trip to a foreign country. But, for the food service industry, could the best way to see change at the register be with flexibility in price? What do you think? Is bargaining something you've ever tried at a restaurant? If not, then given the current economic climate, would it be something you'd be willing to consider?

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Alex: "I Really Didn't Want to Be on the Show"

partysugar — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 08:00:17 -0800

Alex was asked to "pack his knives and go" on this week's episode of Top Chef, and I have to admit, I really had no opinion of the Los Angeles-based chef.

However, I spoke to him over the phone yesterday and found out that he is happily enjoying his life as a newlywed. To see what Alex had to say about the Euros, the judges, and his creme brulee, read more.

On neither Fabio or Stefan winning: I think they both have big egos and that's probably going to kill them. In the end, they will cancel each other out. Eventually they are going to go at it. You can't have two big egos together for a long time. They will explode. There are a couple people who are great chefs who can really show off their skills on the show, but they don't have egos. At this point, I always said Jamie was my favorite chef, I think she has the most talent out of everybody. I like her a lot. I think the people with the smallest egos will last the longest.

On Tom's "Top Chef is about winning" comment: Obviously I was kicked off, so maybe he is right. Top Chef is not about who is the best chef or who can cook the best. It's about who can make the best decisions. A lot of the food I make takes a long time, I love braising. On the show I was totally out of my element. You have to make good decisions to win. But to me, it was never about winning. It was about having fun and learning more. I am still kind of 50/50 on that comment. He made a good point. The show is about winning. I knew I could have played it safe, I could make a salad, but I chose not to be safe. It was a bad decision. Ariane did the smartest thing, she made the right decision.

On his wedding: I got married Aug. 24. It was everything we hoped it would be. My bride is awesome. I can't complain about that. That was a big thing with the show, I was constantly thinking about the wedding. I didn't have my suit finalized, I didn't have my vows written. My wife is the one who forced me to go on the show. I really didn't want to be on the show. I don't like being a public guy. She was like, "you have to do it, I will take care of the wedding." She was very supportive. She's an entertainer, so she knows chances like these don't come very often.

On creme brulee: My issue was the timing. I knew the flavor of the creme brulee was good. It just didn't set. I made a poor judgment call. Maybe I should have picked something that took a short time, but I wanted to do creme brulee.

On the judges: I love Tom. Tom's awesome. Out of all the celebrity chefs, Tom's the real deal. He's a very successful chef. I have a lot of respect for Tom. Padma? She's Padma. She's beautiful, stunning, everything people say about her is true. I was like, "Hello, Padma!" Rocco? He's nice. To be honest, I'm not a big Rocco fan. He just doesn't float my boat as a chef. He is good at what he does - public appearances - but I can't imagine him sweating behind the line and going through a 12-hour day. He is almost too good looking for that. When I first saw him, I was a little disappointed. I wanted to see a real New York chef who is still in the restaurant business.

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Chef Roy Yamaguchi Talks About Life, TV, and Celebrating 20 Years of Roy's

YumSugar — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 13:28:31 -0700

This year, award-winning Chef Roy Yamaguchi is celebrating 20 years of Roy's, his eponymous high-end restaurant chain. He's throwing himself a big party and is celebrating at his restaurants around the globe. I recently had a chance to talk with him, and he was such a delight! He has morning breakfast rituals with his son, and got into cooking to meet ladies! To find out more about Chef Roy, including what he thinks of the current celebrity-chef trends, read more.

YumSugar: Thanks for chatting with us so early [it was 8:30 a.m. his time].
Roy Yamaguchi: Oh it's not that early, I've been up since 5 or 5:30. I usually get up and have breakfast with my son.

YS: What did you have for breakfast?
RY: There are two places I go for breakfast. One place is called Zippy's, it's a local coffee shop sort of place, and the other is Ruger Market. Today I went to Ruger Market. I go with my son and we always order the same thing, chicken long rice. Basically it's chicken that's cooked with rice noodles. We always get that, and the ahi poke and the pork laulau. And what we do is we always sit on a bench right outside the market near the parking lot.

YS: So it's been 20 years since you opened up the first Roy's. Did you ever think it would grow into an internationally-acclaimed enterprise?
RY: No, but at the same time, when we first started - actually that's a question I get asked a lot. What happened is that even I never thought we'd get this big, what I did was surround myself with very talented people.

YS: So what have you learned after all this time?
RY: For me, I've learned every day. The greatest thing about my role is that every day there's something new that happens to our company or to myself. There's not really one thing that comes to mind, but it's a great learning experience. I'm able to use my mind, my eyes, my hands, and my passion to work with every situation. Every day I wake up and feel energized to come to work.

YS: Speaking of passion, how'd you get started?
RY: I had a friend in high school, he asked me if I would consider taking home ec. I said I don't know what that is. He said don't worry about it, we'll be able to meet a lot of girls. [Laughs] I took it with him and fell in love with it. Don't get me wrong, my father loved to cook, he made most of the meals at home. So I already had that experience at home. I took home ec and a light just shined. At the end of the semester we made a Thanksgiving dinner and I invited the school counselor as my guest. He really enjoyed it and he said, "Hey Roy what do you want to do with your future? Cooking could be something interesting."

YS: Have you ever talked to him again?
RY: Unfortunately, he passed away years ago, but I did have a chance to talk to him and the teachers that wrote the recommendations.

YS: Is there anything you'd do differently in your career?
RY: Well, no, not different. At the end of the day, I think the greatest thing that can happen to an individual is that you can learn from your mistakes. Before Roy's, I had a restaurant that didn't work out. Those things are heart wrenching and tough, but because of situations like that, I was able to decide to open Roy's and really figure out what I wanted to do and how I wanted to do it.

YS: What's your opinion of the word "fusion"?
RY: Well, when I first started out, fusion was not a bad word. Then halfway into it, fusion became a bad word all of a sudden. Then you turn around and today it's a good word again. To me, fusion never had a bad connotation. It's just what I did. I come from being raised in Japan and then the US and then living in Hawaii, you know what I mean?

There's cross-cultural things that make our world what it is today. So fusion's needed to infuse cultures into things, but some people were doing weird things. But to me, fusion means progress. A lot of thinking is needed to put it together in a way that's better than the stand alone. So to me, fusion is a great word. It's telling people who we are.

YS: What do you think of the whole celebrity-chef culture?
RY: Well, there's two sides to the story. First there's the old-school celeb chefs who have become popular because of their great reputation in the culinary world. Then there's your so-called celebrity chefs that have made it through media via TV or Internet. And I mean, I'm not saying it's right or wrong, or one is better or not, but my personal opinion is that great chefs have gone through a lot of hard work building a foundation and spending time as an apprentice and working at restaurants. Then there's the chefs that become popular overnight because of TV. I'm not saying you have to cook a long time to be a great chef, I mean some people can cook for 50 years and still be a lousy chef. Years aren't really a big factor, but at the same time, when you do build a foundation, then you become a solid individual.

As for celebrity stardom, I think it's great for the industry and makes it more well known. But I don't want the people who have made it big via media to get, well how can I say it, get cocky, or think they're the greatest things ever. That would kill the industry. They should continue to educate and institute, because they're who the young kids look up to.

YS: Thanks for talking with us, I don't want to take up too much more of your time. Do you have any words of advice for the home cook?
RY: Keep it simple. Not everyone can afford to go out and buy kobe beef, but try and buy the best you can and the freshest you can. Stay organized and have everything ready. A good kitchen is a happy kitchen.

If you're interested to learn more about Chef Roy - he was so much fun to speak with! - you'll be able to see him at the remaining dates of his 20^th Anniversary Culinary Tour.

San Francisco, CA - Thursday, April 10
Chicago, IL - Thursday, May 22
Philadelphia, PA - Tuesday, Aug. 19
New York, NY - Wednesday, Sept. 17
Atlanta, GA - Tuesday, Sept. 23
Baltimore, MD - Thursday, Sept. 25

For more info, contact the Roy's near you.

Biography Lorenzo Delmonico: Revolutionary Restauranteur

partysugar — Mon, 03 Sep 2007 01:19:31 -0700

On today's date in 1881, Lorenzo Delmonico - New York's most famed restaurateur of the time - died at the age of 68. Lorenzo came to America from his native Switzerland exactly 50 years earlier to help his uncles John and Peter with their restaurant, Delmonico's, New York's first restaurant. In 1842 at the age of 29, Lorenzo inherited the family business.

His innate ability to manage the restaurant, combined with his keen knack for understanding the constant flux that is New York City, gave Lorenzo and his restaurants unmatched confidence. During his reign as New York's culinary extraordinaire, he opened many more Delmonico's and hired the best chefs who created dishes such as Eggs Benedict and Lobster Newburg.

His success is due in part to his business philosophy that the customer must always be happy and the ingredients are of the highest quality. Today the legacy that Lorenzo Delmonico built lives on at the current restaurant and Emeril's Delmonico restaurant in New Orleans.

Source: Steak Perfection
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Martin and Lee Anne Honor the Top Chinese Restaurants

YumSugar — Wed, 14 Nov 2007 16:13:33 -0800

Yesterday, in New York City's J. Javits Center, celebrity chef Martin Yan, Lee Anne "Top Chef" Wong, and 300 Chinese restaurateurs gathered for the Fourth Annual Top 100 Chinese Restaurants in the USA Awards Show (try saying that fast).

The awards are broken down into ten categories - Overall Excellence, Regional Cuisine, Take-Out, Buffets, Best Value, Signature Dish, Rising Stars, Nutrition-Friendly Menus, Asian Fusion, and Metro Favorites - and there are 100 winners on each list. This year competition was open to all Chinese restaurants in the US; there were more than 43,000 participants from all 50 states. The winners were then chosen by a mystery diner program - anonymous visits and evaluations of each restaurant - as well as votes from diners and the public as a whole.

To find out if your local restaurant made the list, check out their website or download the pdf.

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Exercise in Excess: Feasting at The French Laundry

YumSugar — Wed, 20 Jun 2007 08:01:31 -0700

A little while back, I confessed to never having eaten at a single one of the 50 best restaurants in the world. Well, last week I finally fixed that by dining at Thomas Keller's number 4 ranked (number 1 in the US) The French Laundry of Yountville, CA (Napa wine country). The menu there consists of two options: the chef's tasting menu or the taste of vegetables menu, so unfortunately there's no popping in and ordering a la carte. In fact, there's no popping in of any sort - we had our reservations booked two months in advance, and even those were hard to come by. The meal itself is rather pricey, but I felt worth it for the food, atmosphere service and experience. It's not something I could see myself doing often, mostly for financial reasons. When I told everyone that I went, the first question was, "was it worth it?" followed shortly by, "what did you eat?" To find out the answers and see a parade of delectable pictures, read more

The evening started off by being presented bottles of both still and sparkling water. The still water was from Hildon and my friend Eric made sure that I noted that the bottle said it was "An English Natural Mineral Water of Exceptional Taste." Once we were settled in with waters, we (there were four of us) all decided to go with the Chef's tasting menu. The vegetable menu looked great, but I knew I would be sad not to get the chef's menu. Once our menus were chosen and our variations (a few dishes had options) selected, it was time for the amuse-bouches.

The two amuses were little gougeres (cheese bread puffs) served on a warm plate, and red onion crème fraiche filled, black sesame cornets topped with salmon tartare. I could have eaten just these and been quite a happy camper.

Next up is the "Oysters and Pearls," "Sabayon" of Pearl Tapioca with Beau Soleil Oysters and White Sturgeon Caviar. This is one of of the only dishes that is served just about every evening, and after tasting it, I know exactly why. The oysters were great, the caviar delectable and the texture amazingly creamy. It was like a savory tapioca pudding, everything just melted in my mouth. They followed this up with one of the best breads I'd ever eaten. A "brioche-like" roll and I must say, if this recipe is in either the French Laundry or the Bouchon Bakery cookbook, this will be disaster for my waistline.

After the caviar it was time for Moulard Duck "Foie Gras Au Torchon" "Compressed" Strawberries, Purple Top Turnips, Frisée Lettuce and Black Truffle "Gastrique" served with fresh buttery rich brioche. This dish was smooth, creamy and totally my undoing. I should have eaten only part of it, but I devoured it instead. In fact, I had more than one helping of brioche. Along with the brioche, the foie gras was also served with a trio of fancy salts.

At this point we were only 2 of 9 courses in to the meal, and on our 3rd glass of wine. Like I said, the whole evening was an exercise in excess! Be sure to come back for tomorrow for part 2 of my French Laundry recap!