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Exercise in Excess: The French Laundry Part 3

YumSugar — Fri, 22 Jun 2007 05:58:39 -0700

After the first two parts of my French Laundry excursion, I've arrived at the final installment: the cheese & dessert. I must say, although I was ridiculously full at this point, I somehow managed to make room - which actually came as no surprise. The night we were there, Thomas Keller was actually at a big Food & Wine event in Aspen. However the man pictured, Corey Lee, the chef de cuisine, really took care of us. The entire evening was a fantastic (if not overly hot and stuffy - it was 109F outside when we started our meal!) experience. To see how the number one restaurant in America does dessert read more

After the proteins were finished, we headed straight to the cheese course. We all had the chef's tasting menu, so we were all presented with "Brescianella Aquavite" French Laundry Garden Beets, Bing Cherry Purée, Toasted Pecans and Watercress Leaves. Now I'm a huge stinky, gooey cheese fan, but I met my match that evening. Partially because I was full, but mostly because of the heat - with it being over 100F outside, earthy, pungent cheese was the last thing I wanted in my mouth.

After they whisked the cheese away (which I know is really sad, I still don't understand how I of all people could let cheese go), we were presented with a beautiful "Glace de Fruits Exotiques" Pineapple "Granité," Lilikoi and Coconut Sauce. This dish was nice and light and my warm palate definitely appreciated the bit of cooling down.

With our palates cleared, it was time for dessert. Jimmy opted for the "Composition de Chocolat Italien" Amedei Gianduja Chocolate "Creme Patissiere," Toscano Nut Brownie and "Nougat Glacé" while I ordered the "Summer Pudding" with French Laundry Garden Lemon Verbena Ice Cream and Summer Berry "Compote." Here's where I'm not sure what happened. I only had one bite of Jimmy's, it was delicious, but not mind-blowing - whereas mine could have been mind-blowing, but instead it was just awkward. I really wish I had also managed to get the size of the spoon it was served with into the picture. In my opinion, it was way too large for the mouth of the glass. When I tried to get a spoonful of all the layers (which when possible, was the best way to eat it), it was nearly impossible. I ended up with mouthfuls of lemon verbena ice cream foam and later, mouthfuls of mushy compote. It was oddly tragic as all the flavors were amazing. Definitely a fault in the plating (or was it simply just the spoon?) and not the dessert itself.

Once our slightly tragic desserts were devoured (I guess they weren't that tragic afterall) we moved on to the mignardises (sweet treats!). First up was either a creme brulée or fruit trifle. Jimmy received the trifle and me the brulée. Upon tasting each other's dishes, we promptly swapped plates. The trifle was a delight, and although I practically had fine dining coming out of my ears, I could have easily eaten another.

Next we were presented with chocolate-covered macadamia nuts and then, a few minutes later, an empty silver plate. At first we were a little perplexed - the wine and food slowing down our thought processes - and then we realized it was for the truffles. That's right it was now time to choose from an assortment of truffles: peanut butter, coffee, strawberry & pepper, caramel, hazelnut. Then, nearly four hours after we began, we were given the check, some shortbread wrapped in ribbon and kindly asked if we would like to "retire to the outside courtyard" where it was cooler. We kindly accepted the suggestion only to realize 10 minutes later that it was by far the nicest way we'd ever been kicked out of a restaurant!

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Exercise in Excess: The French Laundry Part 2

YumSugar — Thu, 21 Jun 2007 08:01:18 -0700

Yesterday I walked you through the first part of my extravagant time at the French Laundry, and while everything I posted was definitely tasty, you guys haven't even seen the meat of the story (bad pun intended). Today I'll take you from fish course to beef and all the lovely bits in-between.

After the foie gras, the next course was either Filet of American Red Snapper with Summer Squash, San Marzano Tomato "Fondue," Cuttlefish and Arugula-Castelvetrano Olive Pudding (shown right) or Spanish Mackerel "En Escabeche" with Hawaiian Hearts of Peach Palm, English Cucumbers, Cilantro Shoots, Haas Avocado "Coulis" and Rangpur Lime "Gastrique" (shown above). I ordered the snapper, while Jimmy ordered the mackerel. When our dishes arrived I was envious of his dish - the presentation was so gorgeous - however after tasting both of them, his fell a little flat and I was certain I picked the winning dish.

To see what's up next (and believe me, the best parts are next),read more

Once the fish was devoured, they presented us with a selection of fresh baked breads. There were some delicious choices, but my favorite was definitely the pretzel bread. [Note to self: get recipe for pretzel bread.]

With the bread out of the way, we moved on to the lobster course, or as the menu said: Lobster Tail "Pochée Au Beurre Doux" with Caramelized Cipollini Onions, Oregon Hazelnuts, Sunchoke Purée and Valrhona Chocolate-Coffee Emulsion. I believe this was my favorite part of the meal, as it was perfectly cooked and paired well with the sauce. Also, whenever anyone asks how my experience was, I immediately tell them about the lobster, so this must've been my favorite part.

After the lobster it was time for either All-Day Braised Kurobuta Pork Belly with Brentwood Corn, Applewood Smoked Bacon, Piquillo Peppers, Fava Beans and "Pimenton Jus" (shown right) or Devil's Gulch Ranch Rabbit Shoulder "Farci Au Ris De Veau" with Jacobsen's Farm La Ratte Potatoes, Lovage, Celery Branch and Apricot Mustard (aka fancy pants rabbit lollipop that my fellow diners wished they ordered instead).

Finally, rounding out the main course, and pushing out my waistline, was the "Chateaubriand" of Nature-Fed Veal with Morel Mushrooms, Green Asparagus, Veal Cheek "Pierogi" and Madeira Sauce. This might actually have been the highlight of the feast. However, at this point I had way too many glasses of wine and far too much brioche to fully enjoy it. In fact, I'm ashamed to say, I actually had to GIVE 1/3 of it to my fellow diners. I also couldn't down all the pierogi, which was a crying shame because they were delicious.

Now wipe up your drool, because after a little breather (seriously, I had to get up for a minute and catch my breath and appetite), we'll hit the cheese & dessert courses tomorrow - so be sure to come back!

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!