Tags
I have had the great fortune to have dined in quite a few 3 star and 4 star quality restaurants. It is difficult to decide which is my favorite. Some meals were in celebration of something such as an anniversary and some were a fantastic meal with the children and seeing the joy and appreciation in their eyes.
There are 3 meals that are tied in my mind. All three restaurants are French and all 3 are in New York City. The first restaurant called Lespinasse stands out because it was our 2nd wedding anniversary and the restaurant was located in the St. Regis Hotel on Fifth Avenue. I felt so special celebrating in such a grand restaurant. We ordered the Fall themed prix fixe menu and were not disappointed in the least. The appetizer was the most delectable creation of a sautéed piece of Foie Gras served with a rich onion marmalade and a sweet and sour red currant reduction. It simply melted in my mouth, combining the three different flavors and letting my taste buds slowly figure out what is traveling through their domain. The service was exceptional and at dessert time, when I wasn’t thrilled by the dessert cart, my husband suggested that I have another go at my exquisite Foie Gras, which I so happily did. I have to this day never had another rendition of a Foie Gras as delicious as this one was.
My second favorite was at the restaurant right across the street from Lespinasse, La Cote Basque. What made this meal so spectacular is that we were served as royalty by my father’s best friend and his other good friend, le Docteur. Our every need and desire was anticipated, the meals was sumptuous and we even were given the desert as a gift. Two decadent chocolate souffles. We were also seated in a special table, a semi circular banquette, all for us.
The third was pure gluttony on our part, it was almost, operative word being almost, embarrassing. My husband and I were at the Bernardin in New York waiting for a friend of my husband’s. After waiting for 45 minutes, I was dying of hunger, so my husband brilliantly said, he’s not coming, let’s order. Hooray, I get to eat! We both ordered the tasting menu, that means that you are served about 7 or 8 courses but each course is tiny perfect expression of the actual dish, just enough for you to acquaint your taste buds with the proper flavors. The Bernardin is primarily a seafood restaurant and the chef’s imagination is staggering because we couldn’t find any redundancy with a single tiny course offering. Here is where it gets gluttonous, as we are at the desert tasting part of our dinner, my husband’s friend arrives hungry! Believe it or not, my husband and I settled in for round two because there were still a few tiny dishes that we were curious about. Once again we feasted like royalty and it was grand.
I absolutely love to cook but what these three chefs and their staff create within their kitchens is beyond anything I can ever hope to attain. The imagination, the artistic achievement, the creativity, the pure appreciation of flavor and the consistency that they achieve night after night is something to be admired and respected. I truly appreciate the demands of a true chef especially in light that I lack the singular talent for it.
It’s so nice to appreciate others who cook and do so well. I am not a cook, and admire others that do so. I don’t like to cook or bake much, but I do love to clean the mess up. I am the organizer or clean freak, my other half does the rest. 🙂
My favorite restaurant closed. It was a place I’d go to with my family when I was a kid. It was the best Italian restaurant around, Sicilian. I still remember the taste of the sauce. mmmmm
Isn’t it both amazing how long the food memories can last and a curse, especially when that memory is doomed to stay a memory. There is a dish from a Thai restaurant that closed the year my father passed away that had our favorite dish and every once in a while my taste buds can almost taste the special sauce. They are still wonderful memories. 🙂
Absolutely 🙂
😀
Hi Laurie, I see you’re reading “Fay” thanks so much for following the story, (there’s no pressure to continue the story). But in case you didn’t know, I never finished it. There are posts talking about why. I had a blogger who was interested in finishing it for me, but I believe she may have decided against it because it gets confusing. If you continue reading, and you get to the end, if you’re interested in finishing it, let me know. I’m curious how it will end myself lol. sagedoyle@yahoo.com And like I said, don’t feel like you need to keep going since I caught you. It’s been a while since I’ve posted anything about it, so you’re the only one currently reading it. Not easy to miss. Take care, Sage
My curiosity is piqued by the story, I’ll keep reading until I get to the “end”. You have an interesting imagination, mine isn’t so creative. I’m currently involved in “writing” a book, I’m on hiatus for now but come November 1, I will be getting back to it with National November writing month. I am looking forward to my next installment of Fay.
Well that’s awesome, best of luck working on your book. And thank you. This was a story I started ten years ago, then when I began the blog I posted what I wrote then continued it. I stopped writing it long ago because I didn’t know what to do with it or where it was going, and it was kind of weird. So I gave it a shot, and I had the same result. But who knows, maybe I’ll finish it some day. Let me know if you change your mind though… lol
Thanks, I need some luck, my hiatus was due to an impasse which I am hoping that Nanowrimo will remedy. I’ll keep reading and like you said “who knows” lol. 😀
We all have our impasses from time to time 🙂
Funny thing is….I cannot. There are so many places i like but in such different ways that they are not comparable. It is not just food for me, but also, the ambience. I hate crowded places, noisy places. Obviously the food should be good….but I am glad to find even one thing I really like….and I just order that….not everything has to be great. Sorry, that sounds mad. Just having a day of that I guess.
I am not a fan of crowded places either. Thanks for commenting 🙂
Every time I go to a 5 🌟 resturaunt, I always remember the ambiance, the service and the way all is perfectly executed by the staff.
Great post.
Thanks you 🙂 I feel the same way, it is often such a memorable experience that stays with you long afterwards. 🙂
🍴