ronnie_suburban
Thank you for a wonderful recap of the talk with Grant Achatz.
I am eager to dine at Alinea so that I can make a first hand decision on the cuisine and the emotions it evokes.

Incidentally, on Ruhlman's latest blog entry he discusses the talk with Achatz primarily focusing on the term "molecular gastronomy." There are beautiful pictures (taken by Lara) of the dishes referenced in the discussion.

David Hammond wrote:

ronnie_suburban wrote:One of the most interesting parts of the discussion centered on chef Achatz's food philosophy and his underlying goal of evoking emotional responses from diners. He threw off the term "moleculary gastronomy" as inaccurate in describing his cuisine because it fails to convey emotion. The dish Hot potato, cold potato was 'served up,' deconstructed and analyzed, as an example of how emotion factors in Alinea's food.

The issue of "emotion" in the food of Alinea was very interesting to me, and as as you say, Achatz considers it a differentiator between his menu and that of, say, Cantu (though I'm sure Achatz would not make that invidious comparison).

After the talk, I mentioned to Lara, Alinea's photographer, that the three key emotions evoked by Achatz food seemed to be limited to delight, confusion and surprise (I'm not even sure the last two count as emotions). She felt that the use of the term "emotion" is also relevant in the sense that his food conjures memories (of childhood, burning leaves, warm soup on a winter day, etc.), and that these memories trigger emotions. That interpretation certainly seems valid, though I'm not sure, in that sense, how the food of Achatz differs, qualitatively, from the hamburgers of McDonald's or the hot dogs of Gene's and Jude's. That is not meant to demean his efforts in any sense; I'm just trying to get a fix on the "emotional" component which is apparently very important to Achatz.

It was a pleasure meeting you after the event,

Hammond

It was a pleasure meeting you too, David and the plethora of other LTH'ers in attendance, who I'd not met before.

Having eaten at Alinea a few times, I agree that the triggering of memories, possibly those from our earlier years, is a big part -- and possibly the central one -- of the emotional goal at Alinea. But it's possible to enjoy or appreciate the "trick" being served even if the memory being triggered isn't necessarily universal.

For example, there was a ham and pea dish (one version near the end at Trio and another, more sophisticated incarnation early on at Alinea) that was spectacular. In the Alinea version, the 'trick' was a large, linen-covered, plastic pillow upon which the dish was actually served. The pillow, which was filled with mace-infused air, was constructed with many tiny holes which allowed the scented air to escape and envelope the diner as the dish was being eaten. I thought it was immensely successful and very innovative. The dish was delicious and the infused air was a significant part of the dish. However, having grown up in a Jewish home in Chicago's northern suburbs, I can assure you that the ham didn't evoke any particular memories or emotions from my past. It simply worked on its own merits and again, tasted great. So, here's a case where the main emotion for me was surprise. The concept being presented was completely new to me yet it was still a very easy dish to appreciate. The flavors (and aromas, textures, plating, etc.) all play their part in creating something that is both tremendously satisfying and novel.

I think that if there is a difference between the emotion derived from Alinea's cuisine and the others you mention, it's really about the route via which the destination is reached. In many instances at Alinea, it is, as you suggested, about surprise; an unfamiliar combination of elements working together to land the diner in new territory, which then reminds him of something from the past. Whereas at G&J's or McD's, there's a pretty solid level of expectation about what the food is going to be like. On most days, the snap of that hotdog can definitely take you back to hotdogs -- and moments -- of your youth. The potential connection to one's past is much more direct, though not necessarily any less satisfying. One is pure nostalgia and the other is, well I'll just make up a term and call it "neo-nostalgia."

=R=