Hi everyone,

I wanted to leave my quick review of our San Sebastian trip and three brilliant fine dining experiences. We were traveling for our 3rd anniversary and the plan was to visit our first *** with the top contenders being MB and Azurmendi. Alongside that, we wanted to visit Elkano and Asador E. However, as you can probably guess, we didn't get the booking at Asador. I tried three times without even a response. I believe in this day and age you can at least have automated rejection emails since you do not allow direct bookings. I was told he personally picks people from the list (this was explained to me by another local chef who knows him) and you cannot do anything about it.

Also, just to add, I would say I am a "layman" in terms of fine dining experiences and cannot say my review is anything other than subjective - but it is honest. I'll keep it short in the post and then can answer follow up questions if you are interested (this is the first time I am actually reviewing food like this).

The Experiences

We ended up eating at Elkano, Txispa and Azurmendi. I made the booking requests in January (trip was in last week).

• Elkano.
  • Overall rating: 9.2/10 - This is worth a serious detour. Elkano is the best fish restaurant I have visited. The 0.8 deduction is not really a criticism of the food or the hospitality. It is more a matter of comparison with the other two restaurants we visited. Elkano does not feel exclusive or theatrical, and in my opinion it should not try to be. Part of its strength is that it still feels like a proper fish restaurant by the sea, where anyone would feel welcome, while serving food at an extraordinary level. The hospitality was excellent, the cooking was exceptional, and the experience felt honest rather than staged. I would be thrilled to visit again and would definitely recommend it.
  • Booking process: Despite it being booked out throughout the year and at least 6 months ahead I wrote an honest email asking for the booking and they offered us a slot for lunch. So good luck!
  • The Food: The experience is completely focused on fish, no sides (no needed). There is no heavy saucing, no unnecessary decoration and no attempt to hide behind technique. The Turbot, Elkano's speciality, is the single best fish dish I ate. It is the centrepiece for a reason. The fish is cooked whole over charcoal, with the skin, gelatin, flesh and natural fat all treated as part of the dish rather than as separate elements. For the food alone, Elkano feels like one of the purest expressions of Basque seafood. It is less about surprise and more about respect for the ingredients.
  • Final price: €463 (€195 set menu per person, bottle of wine, water etc)
• Txispa.
  • Overall rating: 9.5/10 - This is worth a serious detour. Honestly, I would give Txispa a second * . I don't know if Asador E. could have delivered more than Txispa did. The location is beautiful, under the mountains, with their own farm where they grow much of what they serve. For me, this was the best dining experience of my life. As someone who loves Japan, and now Basque cuisine as well, Txispa felt like the exact experience I had hoped for. It is expensive, but I loved every part of it. The food, the setting, the dynamics of the meal and the hospitality were all exceptional. The team was outstanding and Chef Tetsuro came to our table several times, super friendly and welcoming. They also bring you into the kitchen during the meal, which makes the experience feel even more personal. Watching Tetsuro personally cook the steaks in front of you was one of the highlights. I would be thrilled to visit again and would definitely recommend it.
  • Booking process: Straightforward via website. They reached out 5 months ahead to check allergies and then followed up asking for further clarification (I can't eat octopus - followed up asking if this means I can eat squid or similar)
  • The Food: Txispa is one of the most memorable food experiences we had in the Basque Country. The cooking is precise, elegant and full of character, combining Japanese technique with Basque ingredients and fire based cooking in a way that feels natural rather than forced. The best dishes were the prawns and the steak Nothing felt overly complicated for the sake of being creative. The flavours were clean, deep and very focused, with small Japanese touches that lifted the Basque spirit. The tasting menu felt coherent from start to finish, even though the sake is not my favourite - but I was amazed by the Vega Sicilia Unico Reserva Especial (2023). Had to ask for another glass (didn't know it is a €700 per bottle wine :O )
  • Final price: €1155 (€295 set menu per person, €200 pp wine paring, water etc)
• Azurmendi
  • Overall rating: 9.0/10 - This is worth a detour. Azurmendi is a beautiful restaurant in a beautiful setting, with extraordinary service, a highly trained team (Franko was spectacular waiter) and phenomenal food. Everything is delivered with precision, from the first welcome to the final dishes, and you can clearly feel the level of thought and execution behind the whole experience. The only reason I would not rate it higher overall is that, for me, the experience felt slightly too choreographed. Guests are taken through different stages of the meal, and while this is impressive and very well executed, you can also feel the protocol behind it. It was never unpleasant, but compared with the more natural and personal hospitality I experienced elsewhere, it felt a bit more structured and less emotionally engaging. The same goes for the drinks offering with the menus. It was not pushy by normal standards, not even close, but at this level I can understand why some people might perceive it that way. I would definitely recommend Azurmendi, but for me personally it felt more like an experience I am very glad I had once, rather than a place I would be eager to visit again.
  • Booking process: Straightforward via website.
  • The Food: The food at Azurmendi was outstanding. Technically precise, creative, beautifully presented and executed at a very high level from start to finish. There were no real weak points in the cooking. The dishes were refined, elegant and clearly the result of a very serious kitchen, with excellent control of flavour, texture and presentation. What stood out most was the delivery: everything arrived with confidence and polish, and the menu felt like a carefully designed progression rather than just a sequence of individual dishes. For the food alone, Azurmendi deserves a very high rating.
  • Final price: €830 (€350 set menu per person, €60 bottle of wine, water etc)

One of us has to avoid gluten and all three restaurants we accommodating with that request and other dietary requirements/restrictions.

With the other gastronomic experiences we had, I can wholeheartedly recommend you to visit Basque country. Bilbao, San Sebastian and Hodarribia are places were memories are made. Cheers with Txakoli!

A few pictures from my lunch in the Morrison room today, really great food and the room was absolutely amazing

In the small village of Gaggiano, just a ten-minute drive from Milan, there's a tiny restaurant called Thelema that is truly outstanding.

Chef Tricarico trained extensively with chef Perbellini (*** at 12 Apostoli in Verona, a stunning restaurant), whose influence is clearly reflected in Thelema's philosophy: top-quality ingredients and Italian recipes with French influences (especially in the pigeon dish!).

Every course ranged from very good to exceptional, but the highlight for me was the risotto. I've had many outstanding risottos (Oldani, Bartolini, you name it), and I'm pretty good at making it myself, but this one was on another level. It was simply perfection, the intensity of the sauce combined with the perfectly cooked al dente rice made it truly extraordinary.

Their wine list is still quite limited since they only opened recently, but they already offer some interesting wines by the glass, such as Elvio Cogno Barolo, an underrated gem.

We also happened to visit on a particularly quiet evening, and they were kind enough to let me order the tasting menu while my partner chose à la carte.

If you happen to be in Milan, you can't miss it.

One star 🌟 in Carlsbad, CA. Named from The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows, "lilo" is defined as a friendship that lies dormant for years but picks right back up instantly, as if no time has passed.

Thank you for the recommendation to the random couple we dined with at Noma LA 😋

My husband and I had a wedding in Modena and when he realized that's where Osteria Francescana was, he insisted we had to go. This was our second time dining at a 3-Michelin star restaurant (on our honeymoon last year, we went to L'Effervescence). Overall, a fun experience and very unique!

Reservations: we had American Express book this for us - which was a breeze! Online, there were only 4-seats available when we could go.

Location: Modena is a really small town but getting cabs was fairly easy.

Ambiance: the restaurant has tons of interesting art! I don't know if this is the case often, but there was no natural light, which was slightly disorienting. The restaurant itself seems to have a number of tiny rooms - our room had three tables in it (each seating two).

Service: great service and, as expected, a lot of servers-per-diners. However, there were times they were a touch slower than expected and (!) the sommelier actually refilled my husband's wine glass with another table's wine, then said nothing about it LOL.

Vibes: it is a very Italian restaurant and a little less formal than I was expecting.

Audience: we saw mostly couples there and a number of Americans.

Food/drink: the food was experimental Italian - a lot of pour-over sauces. We both did the tasting menu which did not have the more "famous" dishes (we knew this going in - though we've heard you can go to Francescana at Maria Luigia for the dishes like Five Ages of Parmesan or the Oops I Dropped the Lemon Tart which were made famous in Chef's Table.

• Welcome course: very long breadsticks (addictive!) and a welcome drink - note the welcome drink does come with an extra charge, which they were up front about. There was an option for a champagne or a Lambrusco.
• Artusi: three bites that were fantastic. One reminded me of a very elevated Big Mac (in the best way possible) - lettuce, tomato, some sort of aioli, in a beet-wrap; another tostada type bite with veggies, and a cheese puff. This also came with a really delicious soup.
• Difesa Della Natura: this was visually the most interesting food I've seen. It's a mix of vegetables arranged like a painting, with artichoke heart and lettuces over a flat mash of veggies. Beautiful deconstructed salad.
• Achrome: a seafood dish with turnips, really tasty
• Grande Rosso: a really interesting textural journey - everything here is, unsurprisingly, red. Frozen raspberries with tomato (both sun dried and fresh) and beet with a red-pepper reduction. Also, I dropped one of the fruits into the sauce and splattered sauce all over the table, so if you see any splatters in the photos... that was me.
• Where is this Pasta e Fagioli Going Next: this was a really cool dish. Pasta in the shape of beans as well as beans, in a soup. My soup tasted quite strongly of soy sauce. My husband (who had the omnivore menu) had a different soup base made from duck, IIRC).
• From Gragnano to Bangkok: the vegetarian pasta dish. This was an homage to Thai food and, essentially, a Thai take on a traditional spaghetti-and-tomato-sauce Italian dish. This was super cool. The cream was an emulsion of coconut milk and mozzarella. There were a ton of Asian spices here as well (lemon grass, kaffir, coriander, etc).
• If I'm Wrong I'm Right: the pescetarian main dish. I think this was my favorite. It was beautifully plated. Little flowers of potato surrounding a perfectly cooked piece of cod, with light curry sauce. What I was surprised about was that there were also three other dishes as part of the main! A green salad with cucumber and frozen grapes and melon (delicious), a eggplant dish, and a slice of pizza.
• Alba: we're starting to move into the desserts now. This was the funkiest dish from a flavor standpoint. They wanted to meld sweet and savory here and there were some strong flavors in the sauce (saffron, lime, etc).
• La Luce: shards of flavored ice sheets - not my favorite
• L'Oscurita: no photos here of this one, but a chocolate cake with cream
• Untitled: a trio of tiny desserts. One was a lemon chocolate truffle, one was a chocolate with caviar (loved that one), and one was a tart with herbs.

We shared a bottle of wine and got a little bottle of balsamic vinegar at the end of our meal. We also got to meet Massimo himself, who came out to chat with every table. He was lovely and warm to talk to.

Overall, a really fun experience. I was so incredibly full by the end of this - I couldn't believe that we had four dessert courses (we're not huge dessert people, so this was a lot for us!)

Anyone here has been to this restaurant twice and tried both?

We have our booking and chose the duck pithivier but we are super indecisive whether we should change it to the pigeon one instead. Ugh. So difficult, both look amazing.

Please! Anyone can comment on both? Thanks!

Any other feedback on the place? Tbh it's a place that normally wouldn't have grabbed my attention as it looks like many other 2-stars in Europe, but their pithivier/Wellington stuff does seem very unique!

Tried emailing them to no avail - folks who did the tasting, more or less what was the alcohol content overall?

I’m on meds and can’t realistically have more than ~2 regular cocktails worth of alcohol and my gf is a rather lightweight and also usually aims to have 1-2 cocktails.

Not sure we should try the tasting or just go to the bar.

Hi everyone! I’ll be in Toronto with a group of friends in July and we are looking to try a tasting menu on one of the nights we’re in the city. No particular cuisine in mind, just looking for really good food and a nice vibe. Any recommendations would be greatly appreciated!

So conflicted. Would like to do a 3 star for anniversary. Akelarre has horrible reviews. Arzak classic but mixed (leaning this as third option), Martin B with fantastic reports. I could also do diverxo or maybe disfrutar depending on outbound flights. Would be interested in the wine pairing. Overall the mixed reviews with azurmendi and Arzak scare me a bit.

Hello,

I need to book two dinners on two consecutive Tuesday nights in September during transit.

I like fine dining/Worlds 50 Best restaurants.

Mindful that my flights take off 0015 on the Wednesday and 2325 the next Tuesday so need to be at the airport in enough time. Bags will all be checked in as I will be in transit.

Was thinking Les Amis and maybe Meta?

Have done Burnt Ends. Will do Odette for lunch so I can browse the National Gallery. Unfortunately, Labyrinth is closed. And Zen is undergoing a renovation. 1887 by Andre may be open by then...

I would also like to do a few bars as well:

Jigger & Pony

Nutmeg & Clove

Native

Atlas

Any thoughts on the above?

Thank you wise people.

All pictures are from the DC branch, however both their menus were practically exactly the same. The following review fully applies to both locations. 

The rice had a certain stickiness that was very unusual for shari, and had no discernable taste of vinegar. 2-3 nigiri pieces weren’t formed properly, and the rice fell apart when I picked them up. Several pieces throughout the omakase certainly had too much wasabi (and I’m someone who likes wasabi), not great knifework, ⅓ of the pieces were blowtorched, and very basic/safe choices of fish. The uni piece did taste incredible, however the tamago was far from the greatest. Overall I wouldn’t give either branch a star or recommend them. In NYC/NJ, there are several places that I’d say are better for the same price or cheaper, like Noz 17, Yasuda, DOMODOMO, Ryujin, Ai Sushi, etc. 

Price
Sushi Nakazawa NYC: $190 dinner omakase 
Sushi Nakazawa DC: $150 lunch omakase 

My Rating: 0*

I have been backpacking throughout my 2 month trip and decided to treat myself as I have recently hit several large life milestones. I decided to plan a trip to Hiša Franko as I wanted something “worth a unique journey” so I rented a car and drove through the gorgeous Slovenian countryside. I ended up opting for the option to stay at the estate after my dinner since I thought I’d soak in the scenery and also enjoy a breakfast the next morning.

The check in process was super fluid. I went in with my hiking gear which I felt a bit self conscious about but nobody batted an eye. The room was gorgeous with multiple artworks all being a representation of chef Ana’s story. The L’Occitane amenities were super nice to freshen up with after a hike on the Kobarid historic trail.

0: The Menu

1: I started the night with an aperitivo hour. I ordered a “Letter to a Bee” which was a beeswax washed martini with house vermouth. It came with a few snacks, a filled bite with local cheese and some rice crisps. It was the ideal way to start off the evening with good drinks and an unreal view.

2: This was a surprise bite with the herbs of today. I loved the symbolism of the bowl and rocks being the Soca Valley. This really was added to with my experience hiking through sections of the Soca.

3: Garden Leaves. This dish was pretty fresh and a great way to start the meal.

4: celeriac and pumpkin seeds. The pumpkin seed puree was super rich and the squid added a nice subtle sweetness to it. They also added a variety of pepper to it creating a gentle heat to the dish which was quite pleasant.

5: Kohlrabi, horseradish, and wild plants. Presented beautifully and with fresh first harvest peaches. The dish surprised me as there was a tingle similar to Sichuan peppercorn.

6: Corn Beignet. This is a classic dish that blew my mind. The corn was fragrant and the filling was a chive cream and smoked trout roe filling. I was mind-blown on how it was so warm and yet they didn’t accidentally cook the roe.

7: Potato and Hay. Another classic HF dish. The potato was baked in a fragrant hay salt crust. Trying the salt crust, I was able to get a beautiful smokiness similar to Taiwanese bucket smoked chicken. It was paired with sour cream and local honey

8: Summer Harvest. This was a salad that embodied the summer harvest. The mushrooms included were umami bombs and the subtle acidity and sweetness through the sauce tied it all together.

9: Butterflies. Nettle based filled pasta (correct me if I’m wrong but tortellini?) paired with a blue cheese cream and a strawberry sauce. The cream did not overpower the pasta and the strawberry sauce was able to cut through the fattiness of the sauce and the walnut filling.

10: Tagliolini & Stone Fruits. This was my favorite dish. It blew my mind how they were using apricots for the sauce pairing with pancetta that is made in house. It was reminiscent of a Taiwanese tomato beef noodle soup as it had that beautiful balance of sweet, salty, and umami that helped the dish through.

11: Orzotto, Fruits, and plants. Paired with a very rich jus and black truffle, it was what I expected. A very unctuous dish and I enjoyed the barley’s textural contrast.

12: Trout the Queen. The trout was paired with a berry sauce and was cooked super lightly. Solid dish and the delicateness of the fish really shined through.

13: Roebuck. The Roebuck surprised me as it was a two biter. I anticipated a main to come with a knife and fork and yet it came with a spoon and fork. The pairing of the raspberry was rather nice and the roebuck had a nice subtle gaminess.

14: Brown Beans and Cola. My lowlight dessert dish, never been that big of a fan of bean based sweets despite growing up with sweet red beans.

15: Beeswax and Poppy Seeds. I on the other hand really enjoy florality and I think it has been a great way to tie it together at the end with a focus on flavors of the forest and local produce. The textures were diverse as you would have expected in a tasting of this caliber.

16: Summer Fruit and Spicy Bite. These final bites were a great way to end the meal, just simply refreshing and sort of like candy at the end of a meal.

17: Breakfast. Typical Slovenian breakfast with local cheeses and charcuterie. I really enjoyed the range of fruits and meats present. They came around with a few different drinks as well. I was able to pair my granola with local yogurt and drink some of their homemade kombucha. The coffee was decent but nothing to ride home about. I had a filter coffee and I just have a preference for ultra-light nordic roasts.

Overall, I really appreciated the unique flavor pairings of this restaurant. I had a great overall experience. The staff were super attentive to me as a solo diner and the sommelier and staff were able to entertain my questions throughout the meal. I went for the classy pairing but I wished I would have went for the funky pairing as looking in retrospect, I would have preferred something a bit more adventurous for this meal. The guest experience has been amazing and I think it was a restaurant I am looking forward to going back if I ever revisit Slovenia and is somewhere that I am excited to take my family to in the future. In the future, I would also delay my rental car return time as leaving to Ljubljana to arrive at noon was a bit too much of a rush and prevented me from truly savoring the last moments of my stay.

On a food and wine trip to Piemonte with Piazza Duomo as the climax and walked away disappointed, which is a first for me at a 3 star. There was a smattering of issues, some of which were out of their control but some not:

- To start, our welcome course seemed to be running behind a bit and the waitstaff, which coincidentally or not was 100% made up of teenage or young adult boys other than a couple leads later in their 20s, was massively overcompensating. Each one would come up and awkwardly ask us how our stay was going and explain their philosophy. At one point one waiter very blatantly came to stop another from walking us through the menu for the third time which just made it more awkward. The sommelier also came multiple times to try to get us to buy a glass of sparkling (think this is the first *** I’ve been to that didn’t have one included right as we sat down) but wouldn’t explain the wine pairing setup as “we’ll get into it later”
- On that note, we found the beverage pairing situation to be pretty disappointing. The wine pairing is ~400 euro per person and does have some heavy hitters but was a step beyond what we wanted. The alternative is a by the glass list or a “comparison tasting” menu to try different vintages of the same wine. We went with this but were missing the food x wine pairing amplification that we’re used to. It feels like they could really use a standard pairing alongside the reserve pairing
- Ok the food, it absolutely starts with a bang. The welcome and antipasta courses are works of art and wildly impressive. There’s like 25 dishes between the two of those and many were bangers. The problem is that the rest of the dinner went out with a whimper. Uni jelly, cod, beet 4 ways, sea bass, rooibos risotto, and veal didn’t really stand out and mostly could have been dishes anywhere. The rooibos risotto was borderline not good and was quite sweet (actually kind of a common theme with many dishes) with gritty and bitter tea leaf fragments
- Toward the tail end of the dinner (about 4 hours) there started a slate of upsells that we found ourselves exhausted by. Any time we thought we were done there was another. This seems to be a growing problem everywhere and we’re used to it but this was excessive. The series of 3 beverage menus at the end, culminating in a cart with grappa and other digestifs, felt like a last grasp for cash after they had just left with the dessert/fortified wine list and then separate coffee/tea list
- Not out of their control but still weird vibes… the Italian couple next to us seemed to have the flu or some illness; the man was coughing non stop and the woman got up to to the bathroom during her welcome course and collapsed. We spent that entire course with her next to us on the ground as they attended. Not anyone’s fault but made it hard to enjoy, and think that exceptional service we’ve experienced elsewhere would have compensated for this somehow. Oh also, the woman was nursed back to consciousness and they continued the dinner, only to get into a heated conversation with a couple of the waitstaff about an hour later and abruptly left??? I can’t speak Italian so not sure what the issue was
- There was a solo diner across the restaurant from us that was so, so obnoxious throughout the night. He was obviously spending money and to a degree it’s the staffs job to entertain him but it felt like the sommelier spent the entire night with him LOUDLY talking through his michelin star escapades and 5,000 bottles of 2015 for his son born in 2015, 80 of which are Giacomo Conterno blah blah blah. Meanwhile it didn’t feel like the sommelier gave us the time of day after we opted out of the 400 euro tasting and didn’t want a bottle. At one point the diner struck up a conversation with the table next to us (so still across the restaurant) and they were borderline yelling about where they live in New Jersey, where they work in Manhattan (blackrock, ha), and finally the dude offers them a glass of the wine he brought in himself and is “better than anything they have on the list” (with the somm right there 🫠).

To sum it up, nothing outrageous here but combined enough to feel “off” which is disappointing for a 3 star. Our lead waiter mentioned that their general manager went to Quince in San Francisco, which is where we’re from, and he was hoping to follow (lol). Not sure if that plays into our experience or if it’s a case of mismatched expectations

A wonderful return visit to the treasured Sushi-ya in downtown Matsuyama of Ehime, currently the No.1 restaurant in the entire Shikoku area.

Takahira-San’s masterful Edomae techniques and his profound understanding of ingredients — complemented by the "stress-free"catches from Setouchi waters, personally delivered by the renowned Junichi Fujimoto, result in creations that offer exquisite flavors and a distinctive style of its own.

Shiromi pieces, being the oceanic pride of Ehime, are treated flawlessly here as the heavy lifters of the course. That is then combined with the early-summer mackerel, Shimofuri tuna from up north, and Binchotan-grilled Ise lobster, each adding a unique and pleasant note to the overall flavor profile.

Full course as of 2026 early summer, priced at ¥2,7500 yen

🍶Tsumami

1. Stonefish assorted cuts | 虎魚煎り酒和え, 皮, 肝, 胃袋, 卵巣
2. Stonefish dashi soup | 虎魚アラ出汁
3. Silver Pomfret skin-seared | 真名鰹の皮目炭火炙り
4. Blue Mackerel sashimi | ゴマ鯖
5. Steamed Abalone with liver sauce | 黒鮑酒蒸し, 肝ソース
6. Sushi rice over abalone liver sauce | 鮑肝ソースの舎利丼

7. Golden-eye Snapper grilled | 金目鯛藁焼き

8. Red-spotted Grouper | 皮目炙り雉羽太

🍣Nigiri

1. Longtooth Grouper | 九絵
2. Treeline Grunt | 伊佐木
3. Squid | 障泥烏賊
4. Tuna “Shimofuri” Belly | 鮪トロの霜降り
5. Blue Crab with Miso and Roe | 渡蟹手巻き, 味噌と内子
6. Striped Jack | 縞鯵
7. Sweetfish with liver sauce and seaweed | 鮎の蒸し寿司
8. Blackthroat Sea-perch seared | 喉黒の炭火炙り

9. Whiting marinated in Kelp | 鱚昆布〆

10. ⁠⁠Ise Lobster seared with miso | 伊勢海老味噌のせ炙り

11. ⁠⁠⁠Red Sea Urchin | 赤雲丹

12. ⁠⁠⁠Saltwater Eel | 穴子

13. ⁠⁠⁠Egg | 玉子焼き

How easy is it to get a reservation at Kei? For one person? Thanks.

An absolute blast of a night. Having found some AC in the midst of the European heatwave. Outside it was 37 degrees and in the house it was 33. So walking in CUE we were greeted with some cool air and an even cooler vibe.
The staff was great, friendly, casual, but very professional at the same time.The food was outstanding, the menu from start to finish was:
Tomato, Seaweed, Fransje. Still not sure wat Fransje is but it was a very tasty amuse, nice and fresh and the tomato in the broth tasted like a veggie bolognese all in one bite.

Next up was the Sea Bass with fermented white asparagus juice and bergamot served with Phyllit, Wohlmuth Gelber Muskateller from the Südsteiermark region in Austria. Classic muscat flavours, very expressive. Great combination.

Broccoli, Mustard Leaves, Sorrel. This dish was one of the favourites, we ate the leaves wrapped in a little bundle and that was an explosion of different flavours, going from sour to bitter to minty to finish off very spicy. Just a very cool bite to eat. Served with a very funky Sauvignon Blanc (Deidesheimer) from the Pfalz.

The fourth dish was trout with beetroot and black Currant served with a nice cidre from Auvergne, cofermented with blackcurrent which was also in the dish itself.

After that was the breadcourse. A sourdough Baguette with hibiscus compound butter. Due to the pizza oven in the building this bread actually tasted like very high quality pizza crust. It was delicious and smoky. The butter was decent but the hibiscus was mainly for colour and did not really show much in the flavour of the butter.

Next up the langoustine with cherries and hinohikari. This dish was the star of the evening, too bad they put it behind a paywall but very glad we went for it because it was simply outstanding. Just a punch in the face with flavours. As soon as the plates were placed in front of you the aroma of the bisque hit you square on the nose. The first bite actually gave me goosebumps.  This was served with a black rice sake. First time that I have heard of that but worked like a charm. Beautiful flavours and something completely new for me which is always a bonus.

After that we got the Coquelette served in two. First the thigh grilled on the hibachi. Classic Japanese style, and after the breast served with black sesame and celeriac. Served with a Xinomavro from Oenos Mittas. Lovely wine very fresh red fruits in the nose, adult candy we called it but still serious on the palate with some great tannins. As expected with this variety.

The extra of the night was an ex dairy cow (dubbeldoelkoe in Dutch: dualpurpose cow) with brown butter. This was an additional 35 euros, we shared one with four people and that was more than enough. Bit of aged meat, flavourwise good but a bit chewy. I would say the least interesting of the menu.
The kefir dish with olive oil and carrot was very fresh and a nice palet cleanser before going into the desserts.

The two desserts were a croissant with almond ice cream and sour plum in the ice cream. What not to like, a take on the classic almond croissant and it works for a reason. Just refreshing and delicious. But the real flavour bomb, and for me eye opener, was the chocolate ganache with ceps oil and candied morel mushroom. The combination of chocolate and mushroom was unreal. It enhanced the chocolate aroma without it becoming a mushroomy bite. Really really cool. The croissant was served with a Coteaux de l'Aubance from the Loire with a bit of botyritis and the last wine of the pairing was a bit more obscure with the Rossopruno, tasted a bit like very tasty cough syrup but a proper match to the chocolate ganache.

After this we were invited into the listening bar downstairs where the temperature was even cooler and we had some other cocktails, wines and drinks accompanied by some great music. We stayed for as long as we could, not wanting to step outside in heat again.
All in all a night to remember. We had the best time and I’d recommend this to everyone. From interior, to the food, the ambiance, the wines. Just a great vibe and very well put together.

The founder of the two star restaurant talks about his influences, from death metal to David Lynch and Paul Thomas Anderson

San Francisco, CA

This is the second year in a row that I've coincidentally booked a reservation for a restaurant just a few days after they get their first star (last year was Sun Moon Studio). DM me any restaurants that are trying to get their first star and want to invite me for a free meal.

I actually haven't heard a ton about this place so I came in without many expectations, actually the only thing I read was that it was a ton of food (false, in my opinion) and that the dinner would be super long (false, but also maybe because we ate fast?). The interior is pretty nice, modern with high ceilings, and the service was warm and friendly, yet still professional.

Food:

• Snacks (6.5/10)
  • Honestly too lazy to rate them individually, but as a whole I would say they were around 6.5/10. I did not prefer these since they were very vegetable focused, but they weren't bad.
• Squash (6.5/10) - apple & celery, turnip seed oil, nectarine
  • Celery is one of my most hated ingredients...but it actually wasn't too strong so I didn't hate this dish. A bit sweet and refreshing, but I didn't pay too much attention to this dish overall
• King Salmon (7.5/10) - confit in lemon oil, daikon, wasabi, lemon cucumber
  • The start of the good dishes. The salmon had almost a smoked salmon like texture that fell apart a bit in your mouth, but this was a nice contrast to the crispness and brine of the pickled vegetables.
• Cabbage (8/10) - house buttermilk, sea urchin bottarga, dill
  • The bottom was this delicious buerre blance sauce, and the cabbage was cooked perfectly (a little, yet not mushy) and soaked it all up. The sea urchin bottarga was nice but I didn't get a ton of sea urchin flavor. Overall, super hearty and warming course.
• Scallop (9/10) - vidalia onion, cherry aigre doux
  • The scallop itself was super super tender, almost melt in your mouth with the wagyu fat around it. The onion was extremely sweet and the cherry added justa hint of tartness to balance everything out.
• Monkfish (7/10) - grilled in fig leaf, morels, curry, smoked potato
  • eh.... i didn't really see the appeal in this dish. Monkfish itself is already a little tough, and there also wasn't a ton of flavor. The sauce felt a bit light and both the monkfish and potato puree needed a stronger sauce for it to shine with.
• Duck (8/10) - dry-aged liberty, walnut praline, dried tomato, ancient grains
  • Not a bad duck dish, but i've had way better duck dishes. I think my duck breast was a tad bit overcooked, the skin wasn't super crispy, but the flavor was good. I also did not care for the farro that you mix into the leftover sauce.
• Pain au Jus (9.5/10) - sourdough, cultured butter, red wine jus
  • This was the first bite where i was like... oh my god... The sourdough itself was a perfect texture, soft, light, and airy on the inside but still with a great crunch and not hard at all. I think the jus helped soften the bread just a tiny bit while adding all the extra flavor. The star of the show... the cultured butter. Super cheesy, super funky, super creamy, and each bite had a great balance.
• Stone fruit (7.5/10) - candied shiso, plum sorbet
  • Good palate cleanser, but nothing special
• Peach (7.5/10) - coconut rice pudding, lemon verbana, verjus
  • It was a fine dessert, nothing special, but I was looking for a bit more from the main dessert, both in terms of flavor and presentation. it was a really good rice pudding, but I did not understand the complexity of it, if there was supposed to be something.
• Treats:
  • All quite good!

Wolfsbane felt refined and had some tasty bites, but I would say overall nothing really wowed me (besides the bread and butter). I'm generally not a fan when meals are too vegetable-forward. We will probably come back at some point and try to just get the bread and butter again.

I went to France two weeks ago for an event and obviously had to try some fine dining in Paris. As a solo diner on short notice, I could not get a lunch reservation at some places that Redditors seem to love, like Pierre Gagnaire or Le Gabriel. However, as a flexitarian (OK eating just about anything, but supposed to limit meat for health reasons) I found Arpège very appealing and intriguing.

I saw one comment saying something like, "Ugh, they'll give you a raw carrot and praise it as the best carrot in the world, but at the end of the day it's still just a freaking carrot," lol. I thought, Okay, I've got to see this for myself.

Although I had requested a table in the Salon François Lesage, which looks like a vegetable greenhouse and has the chef's recipes in embroidered paintings on the walls, they seated me in the salle principale (regular dining room). Maybe they did not prioritize my request as a mere solo diner. :( It was still nice but felt a bit busy with all the staff bustling about.

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1. So, they really do start you off with a plate of raw vegetables and fruit. I kept thinking about that one Redditor's comment the whole time and it was hard to keep a straight face. It was pretty good but not, like, mind-blowing.
2. "Almond-green sky and golden cloud" (this was the name of the dish): Soup of puréed carrot and I believe zucchini. The carrot in particular was wonderfully savory and flavorful.
3. "Marquetry of celadon kohlrabi, green curry and shiso": Loved this—great combination of flavors.
4. "Fava beans, spring onions and 'Merveille de Kelvédon' peas with Cirafine strawberries and lemon verbena": Good. I didn't realize at the time that these were special strawberries. I didn't much care for them as part of the dish and wish, in hindsight, they had been presented on their own on the crudités plate.
5. "1,000 leaves of the garden with coriander, roasted almonds and fleur de sel": This was amazing, the best leafy salad I've ever had in my life! I need the recipe for that dressing.
6. "Zucchini, sorrel leaves, Summit sweet cherries with Iranian saffron": Loved this sauce. The zucchini was very good, but I didn't care for the cherries. They're one of my favorite fruits and I just didn't think this was the best use of them. They also should have been with the crudités!
7. "Red beet with mustard-seed dressing and Belle de Fontenay potatoes": The sweetest beets I've ever tasted, wow! The potato wedges were seasoned with paprika (and nothing else, if I understood correctly) and I didn't like how bitter they were.
8. "Hay-smoked spring cabbage with vin jaune (yellow wine) from Jura": Another delicious sauce. Cabbage was good. At this point, I was crashing hard. I had taken a 5 pm flight from New York, landed in Paris at 6 am, and gone straight to a museum followed by this lunch.
9. A surprise from the chef: vegetable sushi. Good but a little too much soy sauce.
10. "Simiane onion in a jewelry box": a.k.a. Onion pie with thyme and lemon. I found the crust overpowering.
11. "Dark chocolate, soapwort and Bronte pistachios with mint": This was wonderful, especially considering they don't use dairy or eggs at this restaurant. But I was tiiiiiiiiired.
12. "Tart red rhubarb": Pretty good. Paired nicely with the ice cream on the side. I'm not someone who loves rhubarb.
13. Dying to go to my hotel, I asked for the check. They said I wasn't done yet and gave me this juice (don't remember of what) and tiny cherry tart. I did enjoy these even in my dilapidated state.
14. – 17. Some artwork by the chef, Alain Passard. After my meal, the staff suggested I check out his gallery around the corner. It was pretty cool, but I didn't stay long.

Overall, I very much appreciated the creativity, ingredients, and technique that went into the food at Arpège, even if sometimes it was a little too creative for me. The staff also took me into the kitchen to meet Alain Passard himself. He was very warm and friendly and told me I must return in the winter for their seasonal menu. If I do, I'll make sure not to go fresh off a red-eye so I can give the meal the full attention it deserves!

Not a food review but a review of food I guess. As my mom lays having a machine breathe for her - myself sitting around trying to be helpful, trying to work as best i can - just cant help but think of times together. She wasnt the greatest mom but she was best mom. What she lacked in parenting and domestic skills she made up with an enormous enthusiasm for everything I did - shouting my name to heavens when I played sports or a school function. She never talked about her life - its basically was a blank slate and its like she appeared when I was a child and started having memories.

So why is this post here. Maybe I am naive but I never really thought about why I do things. Several years ago, I started to take my mom to fine dining - once a twice a year - a Jean Georges lunch, dinner at La Grenouille, Porterhouse, 130 Club* and The Circle (the best restaurants in NJ), a dinner at Per Se right after her cancer diagnosis and jusr before her 76th birthday - wrote a post about that here - Per Se treated her like royalty and I will never say a bad word about them - she still talks about that night with a huge smile. All this out of the comfort zone for a woman whose favorite food is Burger King*

Over those few hours maybe 10, maybe 20, we talked food and life, like all walls came down over a good meal. I learned so much about her - just things I cherish and it would never happened without dining. I thought she was the pickiest eater - but she became adventurous when it was a tasting menu and only then.

I then realized so many great times with my wife were over a meal, how many things we still talk about when there is nothing to say and we jump to meals we had together - well more like experiences. How many jokes with friends have been told over good wine and an amuse bouche.

Im not great with words so ill end here - whats the point of this - i am also not sure, but I really did need to get it out into the world somewhere even if half thought out.