Louisa Chu breaks that news that Alex Stupak, former Alinea pastry chef, is planning to open a Mexican restaurant in NYC.

Stupak: I’m also working on a business plan for my own restaurant in Manhattan, but that’s a good two years away.

Chu: Is it going to be experimental Mexican, like Enrique Olvera’s restaurant Pujol?

Stupak: No, it’s going to be highly traditional and family style. It’s going to revolve around fresh, handmade tortillas, and everything will be brought to the table and passed. Lauren is Mexican on her mother’s side. I’m going to be the chef. Lauren’s title is the tough one to define. She’ll be the pastry chef, but she’ll also be the liaison between front and back of the house.

Chu: Are you serious?

Stupak: It’s the food we really love to eat and cook and serve to each other at home. It’s going to be delicious food at lower prices. When we go out we don’t like to get dressed up and sit for four or five hours—I mean, sometimes we do. But that kind of restaurant is not in my heart right now. We’re going to take regional specialties and try to perfect them. My favorites are Yucatán and Oaxaca.

http://www.chow.com/stories/10996

A friend who lives in New York and Alinea have birthdays one day apart and back at the beginning of May, he decided to come to town to celebrate both occasions. He invited me to join him and I happily obliged. It had been about 6 months since my previous visit, which was my longest interval ever and it was great to be back at "The Big A" (© yellow truffle), where we enjoyed several totally new dishes, a few old favorites, and refined versions of some dishes that we'd tasted in the past. Below is a mostly chronological pictorial recap of our meal, with some random comments and notes (please forgive any errors/omissions). Dish descriptions/ingredient listings are taken directly off the menu. We also enjoyed the 'upgraded' wine pairings, which I've listed in gray beneath the pictures of the dishes with which they were initially served. Keep in mind that some pairings are intended to match up with more than one course . . .


Steelhead Roe | coconut, lime, vanilla fragrance
Cocktail of Louis Roederer Brut with Roussanne, Spiced Mead and Curaçao
The meal kicked off with a variety of bright intense flavors, all rolled into one bite that was fragranced by the vanilla bean 'serving piece.'



Lemongrass | oyster, sesame, yuzu
Here, the lemongrass is actually used as the serving vessel for the oyster and other elements. This was a clean, robust and aromatic bite. The block on which the dish is perched is actually part of a previous Alinea centerpiece, which incorporated honeycomb.



Yuba | shrimp, miso, togarashi
A reprise of a satisfying dish that I enojoyed at my previous Alinea meal. It's a super savory combination of flavors and textures, and the heat, provided by the togarashi, was just right.



White Asparagus | licorice vinegar, honey, meyer lemon
Alois Lageder Moscato Gallo "Vogelmaier" Alto Adige 2006
We were told that this white asparagus takes 2 years to grow. Partially visible under the white sauce are meyor lemon-flavored tapioca balls. The honey is in the form of a crisp, which lay atop the spears in Stonehenge form.



Spring Garlic | parsley, lemon, chicken
Parsely, lemon and chicken comprise the flavor-concentrated bite on the fork. Beneath them, spring garlic takes the form of an intensely aromatic soup, which is sipped directly from the cup after the bite is taken.



Ice Fish | shellfish, horseradish, parsley
Fonthill "Sea Air" Verdelho, McLaren Vale, S. Australia 2006
Again, great flavors here and an absolutely breaktakingly beautiful plate that called to mind a romantic glimpse of the bottom of the sea. You can almost imagine the components on the plate swaying gently back and forth.



Bread Service (clockwise from top left: herb bread, oolong tea 'bagel,' olive, savory scone)
These four breads (along with artisanal goat butter and cow butter, which is made in house) were served, in this order, at various points during the meal, beginning with the buttery herb bread. I'm sorry I can't remember more details because they were great. Breads are made in house and really enhance the dining experience. As the courses come, it's nice to have a sauce-sopping medium.



Green Almond | sweet, hot, sour, salty
A nice one-biter that, like so many Alinea creations, delivered its flavors and taste sensations in slowly unfolding phases.



Short Rib | Guinness, peanut, fried broccoli
Paolo Bea Montefalco Riserva "Pipparello," Umbria 2003
A hearty dish that showcased bitter and countered it with the fatty richness of short rib. The texture contrasts here, ranging from firmly crunchy to soft and gelatinous, were fantastic, too.



Hot potato | cold potato, black truffle, butter
This dish has been well-documented. Suffice it to say it's classic comfort food in typically novel Achatz form.



Carrot | smoked paprika, orange
Sweet, smokey and bright.



Pork Belly | smoked paprika, polenta, pickled vegetables
Oberhäuser Brücke Riesling Spätlese, Hermann Donnhoff, Nahe 2006
We ate these delectable one-biters of bbq so fast, we joked that the pedestals on which they were served were delivered to the table empty. Shortly thereafter, the crew delivered another round of them to the table, warning us that they'd be watching us closely this time.



Chicken Skin | truffle, corn, thyme
Alinea joins the very small group of restaurants I know that serve chicken skin as a dedicated dish and they do it masterfully. This was just sensational.




Mango | soy, foie gras
In this dish, the delicate, crispy tube is made from mango and the rich foie gras inside it is just perfect. The soy accent brings the main ingredients into tight focus.



Rhubarb | ginger, basil
Over my meals at Alinea I've had a few incarnations of this cocoa-butter ball shooter but I (and a few others at our table) thought this one could be the best of all. The ball breaks/melts in the mouth, delivering its intensely-flavored contents in an imaginative and effective way.



Transparency | raspberry, rose petal, yogurt
Another Alinea favorite brought back. As the progression heads back to savory, this tart and sweet course refreshes wonderfully. It's so light and, dare I say it . . . waffer-thin.



Centerpiece | (temporary)
At this point in the meal, these centerpieces were placed on the table. At first, they looked like the back end of an arrow that was made with radicchio. Later, we'd learn what they actually were.




Fava Beans | lavender, banana, pecorino
Eric Texler Condrieu "janrode," N. Rhône 2006
What can one say about pairing fava beans and banana? It doesn't sound like it would work at all, but it did more than work -- this combination was truly inspired.



Honeydew | Benton's ham, pine, mastic
Another great one-biter, which paired salty, smokey ham with sweet and aromatic honeydew.



Lobster | peas, ramps, mint vapor
This one may have been my favorite dish of the entire meal. The 'sauce' under which the lobster was served was so delicious, so buttery, that I almost could not contain myself.



Lobster | peas, ramps, mint vapor
Di Giovanna "Gerbino" Rosatto di Nerello Mascalese, Sicily 2006
This dish incorporated the same ingredients as the lobster dish served right before it but in completely different form. Delicious and very cool.



Wagyu Beef | black truffle, potato, Blis Elixir
Alain Burguet Gevrey-Chambertin "Mes Favorites" 2001
This dish started out with a cube of yukon gold potato wrapped in black truffle. From there, our centerpieces, which turned out to be ultra thin slices of Japanese Wagyu beef that had been frozen with liquid nitrogen, had thawed. They were then unfurled and placed atop the potato/truffle cubes. From there, the combination was drizzled with Blis Cherry Elixir and then, finally, topped with a fresh leaf of thyme. Wonderful in every way.



Black Truffle | explosion, romaine, parmesan
An old favorite, which dates back to chef Achatz's Trio days, makes an anniversary appearance and, for me, this one is great every time. Explosive black truffle magnficence!



Lamb | mushroom, red wine, diverse embellishments
Alban Vineyards "Alban Estate" Grenache, Edna Valley 2005
Here, tender lamb is accompanied by nearly uncountable 'diverse embellishments,' like enoki mushrooms, lentil salad and a pierogi made from beet. I think it would take a normal person a few days to assemble such a dish, if they could ever even conceive of it (doubtful).




Squab | chocolate, blueberry, hazelnut
Francis Darroze "Reserve Speciale" Bas Armagnac
As we moved closer to our dessert courses, chef Achatz sent out a dish that really challenged my preconceived notions. Here squab breast was encased in an unsweet 'bar' of soft chocolate. Looking at it, it just didn't seem right but the flavors absolutely worked together, especially accented by tart blueberry in 2 forms. As someone at our table noted, this would have been an interesting one to have been blindfolded for. In any event, the dish was very successful in that it was delicious and thought-provoking.



Bacon | butterscotch, apple, thyme
Another Alinea favorite brought back for the anniversary meal. This is such a great combination of flavors, aromas and textures. Thank you sir, may I have another?



Strawberry | violet, niçoise olive
Fantastic combination of flavors, again, released in phases via varying temperatures. This was no bigger than the tip section of my pinky yet conveyed 3 distinct, intense flavors in succession, which was truly impressive.



Persimmon | carrot, red curry, spice strip
Hans Nittnaus Beerenausiese "Cuvée Premium," Neusiedlersee, Austria 2003
I loved this dish because I love fruit and pastry desserts and that's ultimately what this was a deconstructed version of. In the back, right corner, you can see a piece of film, which we were instructed to place in our mouths first. As it dissolved on the tongue, the sweet spices it conveyed were released and the walls began to breath (ok, just kidding about that second part). That burst of flavor carried through and 'condimented' the rest of the dish in a very balanced way.



Dry Shot | pineapple, rum, cilantro
Simple but novel and very tasty. We were instructed to tear off one end of the envelope and pour its contents directly into our mouths. It was like a thoughtful trail mix and since I'd finished off many a bag of chips in nearly the same manner, I really appreciated it.



Chocolate | egg, pomelo, smoke
Rare Wine Co/Vinhos Barbello "New York Malmsey" Special Reserve Madeira
I'm sure that chef Achatz hates being compared to Willy Wonka but when you put out dessert plates like this, it's going to happen. There was so much going on here, it's hard to describe. A fantastic adventure in sweet, which delivered on so many levels.



Sweet Potato | bourbon, tempura, cinnamon incense
We finished off with one of my favorite Alinea bites. Tempura'd sweet potato and bourbon on a smoldering stick of cinnamon, which was delectable, as always.

It's always great to go back to Alinea and see how things have progressed. On this night, there was a bow to the past, an intense focus on the present and an eye on the future. As usual, we were blown away by the experience because every aspect of it was conceived and accomplished at such a high level. But at its core, Alinea remains a fun, extraordinarily approachable and delicious experience. If you are interested in experiencing greatness and you haven't been to Alinea, you're depriving yourself.

=R=

A big congrats to Chef Achatz -- and the entire Alinea family -- on his winning the 2008 Beard award for Outstanding Chef, a well-deserved honor. The news broke just a short time ago . . .

Alinea's Grant Achatz took top chef honors at the James Beard Awards in New York Sunday evening, winning the Outstanding Chef Award. The award salutes "a working chef in America whose career has set national industry standards and who has served as an inspiration to other food professionals."

Grant Achatz wins top Beard honor, Outstanding Chef; Nahabedian grabs Best Chef: Great Lakes

=R=

Great news and well deserved! Congratulations to Chef Achatz and everyone at Alinea!

I couldn't find another, newer and more general thread on Alinea, so I'll post this here...hope that's okay.

We visited Alinea on our Chicago trip as one of our two "fine dining" nights in Chicago (the other was Moto, write up follows...).

But actually I don't think that the old-fashioned term "fine dining" does justice to Alinea - Alinea is, as many here know, rather an overall "experience" than a mere "dinner". And I mean that in the best sense. To put it in one sentence: our evening at Alinea was, in my opinion, the best dinner of our 3 1/2 week tour through the US...(my fiancee liked LA's "Providence" better).

I won't give a dish by dish account of the menu, since many dishes have been discussed before - and because I don't really think that the Alinea experience is about individual dishes.

To me, it is about the overall experience -the mixture of a nearly flawless, ballet-like service, the reduced, Zen-like and atmospheric interieur design, a very "concentrated", yet surprisingly relaxed and funny staff and, of course, the unusual dishes.

Even though I really have a hard time remembering most of the dishes we had, I found the whole experience just wonderful - it was like we didn't want it to stop...which shows once again that you just cannot separate the food from all the other factors in a dining experience.

Sure, the servers might (to some) seem "intrusive" or "self important" at times, interrupting a conversation to explain the next course or talking endlessly about the wine. But if you know this in advance, it can be part of the fun – to us, it was!

We had the "Tasting", which amounted to 18 "bubbles" on the printed menu we were given at the end.

I had the upgraded wine pairing and the only irritation of the evening was that the sommelier was reluctant to split the pairing for my fiancee and me – he just offered to give her a "pour" of each wine. In he end this was okay since my fiancee doesn't drink much wine (and prefers red) and I ended up drinking her "pours" as well on many courses. Still, it was a bit strange service-wise.

But to talk a bit more detailed about the food: Most of the dishes tasted really good, but only 5 were truly "outstanding":

"Celery, pork belly, shiso, sudachi"
"Wagyu, maitake, date, bliss elixir"
"Rhubarb, ginger, basil"
"Strawberry, violet, olive"
"Sorrel, honey, fennel, poppy seeds"

These dishes were original, innovative and – had a lot of taste. Really some of the best I ever had. But maybe it says something about Alinea's cuisine that 3 of the 5 are "one biters".

Many other dishes, especially the "bigger" courses, didn't leave such a lasting impression, taste-wise. They were all good to very good, of course, but not as memorable.

There was even one glitch, namely that the "Lamb, potato, sunflower, sweet spice" course was barely lukewarm – but this was the weakest course anyway, mostly because the potoato-chip-like-"sculpture", in which the lamb was wrapped, was totally trivial and distracted way too much from the rest.

The "Duck, foie gras, mole flavors" course, on the other hand, would have made my top-list, but it was so intense and rich that it would have been better as a 1- or 2-biter. The size that it was, so late in the menu, it lost impact.

Same with the "whole wheat, almond, apricot, chervil" dessert – very nice, but way to rich (and not so well balanced: the whole wheat was way too much in relation to the other ingredients)

The hot potato/cold potato was very good, as well, but maybe I expected too much after reading so much about it – it left me underwhelmed (but the "hot" potato was only lukewarm, so maybe the dish didn't work as well as it should/could.)

And after looking into Achatz' cookbook I think that with some dishes there is a discrepancy between the amount of work that goes into the preparation and the effect/taste of the final product (the "transparency" would be an example).


Anyway, what I want to say with those critical points is that even though not all dishes at Alinea are "great", I think that Alinea is a great restaurant, for the reasons given above.

Upon analyzing the menu afterwards, one could even come to the conclusion that Alinea's cuisine is, all in all, not as "outstanding", as so many people say. But somehow these guys work magic – and it makes one (or me, at least) want to go back as soon as possible...

I had another very enjoyable and memorable meal at Alinea last month. There were some new things, some refinements of dishes I'd had before and some old favorites . . .


Trout Roe | coconut, hyssop, passionfruit
Loved this new dish -- a great combination.



Lemongrass | oyster, sesame, yuzu
Here, the lemongrass is the vessel for the briney-fresh oyster which paired very well with the sesame and yuzu.



Tomato | basil, mozzarella, olive oil
A gigantic meringue-like mozzarella island with tomato in many forms and basil leaves and oil. A completely fresh take on the Caprese Salad.



Cauliflower | five coatings, three gels, apple
I could have eaten several of these. I loved the cauliflower, the coatings, the gels . . . it was delicious and quite harmonious.



Crabapple | foie gras, brown sugar, sorrel
Refreshing, complex bite in which the flavors hit the palate in succession.



Chicken Liver | bacon, caramelized onion, vin santo
Thank you sir, may I have another? The bacon, liver and onion sang together. I loved the restrained sweet accent provided by the gelee of vin santo and the crunch was perfect.



Pear | olive oil, black pepper, eucalyptus
Here, the rich olive oil countered the sweet pear wonderfully.



Cobia | tobacco, radish, cedarwood
Delectably fresh cobia was the star and the burnt cedarwood aroma was a provocative 'condiment.'



Celery | pork belly, shiso, sudachi
Super tender and tasty pork belly bite was great and the bit of 'soup' below the forkful was a zesty chaser.



Short Rib | Guiness, peanut, fried broccoli
This dish gets tighter every time I have it. I wouldn't be surprised to see this one disappear soon because chef tends to retire them for a while once he feels he's 'perfected' them. This one should be an Alinea hall of famer.





Lamb | saffron, poppy seed, pistachio
Loved this rich, flavorful meat 'stew,' which included sweetbreads. Supreme umami hit.



Rabbit | prune, shallot, burning leaves
This fried bite was savory and came mid-meal. At my last few Alinea visits, it was sweet and came near the end. The flavors were wonderful and complemented nicely by the burning leaf aroma.




Foie Gras | salsify, chestnut, quince
I'd never seen any pots or pans in Alinea's dining room before and the surprise of the moment prevented me from getting a decent picture. Inside the pan was a full lobe of foie gras, which had been pan-roasted with some intoxicating aromatics. A few courses after the chef showed us the lobe, we were served one of the best foie gras dishes I've ever had. I loved the fantastic sear, the unctuous creaminess -- especially paired with the salsify, chestnut and quince. A dish for the ages.



Concord Grape | yogurt, mint, long pepper
Some new, delicious, seasonal flavors in a familiar container.



Transparency | of raspberry, rose petal, yogurt
I always enjoy this beautiful and palate-tingling dish.



Hot Potato | cold potato, black truffle, butter
Another Alinea classic. I'm so glad this was on the menu because it's one of my very favorites.



Yuba | shrimp, miso, togarashi
This is another one of my favorites, so I was very glad to see it again. I just love all the elements. The crunchy fried yuba is delicious, as are the fresh shrimp wrapped around it and the togarashi-spiced miso mayonnaise.



Alaskan King Crab | popcorn, butter, curry
So much going on here and it really was a massive course. The sub-theme here was butter, which masterfully unified the crab and the corn elements.





Wagyu Beef | maitake, smoked date, Blis Elixir
As documented in my posts upthread, the sublime Wagyu is initially brought to the table as a centerpiece. Once it tempers, it's assembled at the table into a delectable dish with the other components.



Black Truffle | explosion, romaine, parmesan
No matter how many of these I eat, it's never enough. If served enough of them, I'd probably give myself truffle poisoning



Venison | potato, sunflower, sweet spice
A beautiful dish in which the delicious flavors and multiple textures created a wonderful medley.



Bacon | butterscotch, apple, thyme
Chef Achatz was serving this dish long before bacon was cool as it is now. It's still one of the very best applications I've ever had -- novel and completely delicious but not ridiculous, like so many bacon concoctions can be.



Strawberry | violet, nicoise olive
Another provocative but highly effective combination of flavors. The varying temperatures of the individual components allow for the flavors to hit individually in succession rather than in combination.



Dry Shot | pineapple, rum, cilantro
Tropical and refreshing.



Pumpkin | gruyere, Blis maple syrup, smoke
One of the few dishes I've had at Alinea about which I wasn't crazy. Here, the gruyere was in the form of a liquid filling inside the pumpkin 'flan.' For me personally, this ambitious combination did not work so well.



Chocolate | fig, olive, pine
Even though I'm not a huge fan of dark chocolate, I loved this dish because of the way the other components supported the chocolate. The pine was in the form of a raw pine nut soup, which is not pictured here.



Dry Caramel | salt
This starts as a powder and becomes a rich, salty caramel when chewed. A great final bite.

For me, Alinea remains the most distinctive and important restaurant in Chicago. In my opinion, there's no other place in town where an experience like this can be had. The food is the very definition of original, the well-crafted wine program is an intrinsic part of the food like no place else, and the service is superior while also being friendly and down to earth.

=R=

Ron, looks like another fine time at the "The Big A" (© yellow truffle). It is nice to see (and hear) that the quality of the dishes are still top notch. Thanx for sharing. And now for some comments, questions and observations...

Foie twice. Black truffle twice. Bacon twice (if you count pork belly, then thrice). There seems to be a few overlap of ingredients here. Must be transitioning into the winter menu.

Was there bread service this time around?

Just an observation, but has the design of the bow changed, or is the bacon and other elements getting smaller? Following is the bacon dish from the first day.


Harmonious. I love the use of this word in describing the (cauliflower) dish. I have never thought of a dish as "harmonious" (air quotes please). I guess I am just going to have to try this one out.

Truffle poisoning. How about death by truffles, instead. Lol. Remember, it's never enough until your heart stops beating (from the New Order song Shellshock).

That foie thing, nice touch. Was this something that they did for all the other diners there, or because you are a S.V.I.P. The foie dish seems to be a fairly traditional presentation and preparation. Must be transitioning into the winter menu.

I am interested in the Cobia dish. You had mentioned a burnt cedarwood, was it smoking when it got to your table? Do you have a photo that shows more of the dish?

What's with the container for the Dry Caramel. Seems kinda off the shelf. Is Martin on vacation?

Was Chef Achatz there, or is he still out promoting the book? Also, I hear that a certain John Peters is back in the kitchen. Can you confirm this?

27 courses, yeah baby! Now did they bring out each course at once, or did they gang them up a couple of courses at a time. Reason I ask, was that earlier in the year, they presented us with multiple dishes in one serving. Following are three occasions (in one meal) where they brought out two or more items.


Lemongrass, Sea Urchin, Nasturtium (course 2, 3, 4)


Hot Potato, Black Truffle Explosion (course 10, 11)


Watermelon, Dry Shot, Transparency, Strawberry, Bacon, Foie Gras, Rhubarb (course 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19)

yellow truffle wrote:Foie twice. Black truffle twice. Bacon twice (if you count pork belly, then thrice). There seems to be a few overlap of ingredients here. Must be transitioning into the winter menu.

Yes, definitely a 'transition' menu. There's an old saying in filmmaking: "never use anything once." I liked seeing that axiom applied to the progression at Alinea because I think it really highlighted chef' Achatz's creativity and abilities.

yellow truffle wrote:Was there bread service this time around?

Yes and I really enjoyed it but didn't take any notes. My favorite was the knotted tea bagel, which has a intense but not overpowering flavor and a perfect bagel-like density. Both goat butter and house-made cow butter were served with the breads.

yellow truffle wrote:Just an observation, but has the design of the bow changed, or is the bacon and other elements getting smaller? Following is the bacon dish from the first day.

I think the bacon's size changes, depending on how many other courses are being served. From what I can tell, the bow itself seems to be the same size but I know that being a professional, you pay more attention to the design elements than I do.

yellow truffle wrote:Truffle poisoning. How about death by truffles, instead. Lol. Remember, it's never enough until your heart stops beating (from the New Order song Shellshock).

I'm willing to push the envelope on the truffle-eating and you can call it whatever you like!

yellow truffle wrote:That foie thing, nice touch. Was this something that they did for all the other diners there, or because you are a S.V.I.P. The foie dish seems to be a fairly traditional presentation and preparation.

LOL, not sure what the "s" stands for but yes, it seemed like it was just for us, although, obviously, we were not served the entire lobe. It was about as traditional a dish as I've encountered at Alinea and it probably goes without saying that the execution was perfect. You know, right before the now-repealed foie gras ban, there were all sorts of foie gras menus and meals going on all over town. During one of them, I came to the realization that for me, the best foie preparation is a simple, well-seared slab with a savory sauce and a bit of aromatic fruit. I've probably had foie gras prepared 30+ ways and this is the preparation that I always love the most. So, needless to say, this rendition really spoke to me.

yellow truffle wrote:I am interested in the Cobia dish. You had mentioned a burnt cedarwood, was it smoking when it got to your table? Do you have a photo that shows more of the dish?

It was smoldering, slightly. Here's a pic of the aftermath . . .


Burnt Cedarwood from the aforementioned Cobia dish

yellow truffle wrote:What's with the container for the Dry Caramel. Seems kinda off the shelf. Is Martin on vacation?

I'll let you take that up directly with chef Achatz

yellow truffle wrote:Was Chef Achatz there, or is he still out promoting the book? Also, I hear that a certain John Peters is back in the kitchen. Can you confirm this?

Yes both of them were there. It was very comforting to see chef Peters in the kitchen when we arrived at the restaurant. It reminded me a bit of the old days (4 years ago, LOL).

yellow truffle wrote:27 courses, yeah baby! Now did they bring out each course at once, or did they gang them up a couple of courses at a time.

There were a few times when more than one course was brought out at once and I really appreciated that change of pace. IIRC, Crabapple, Chicken Liver and Pear were all served together as were Bacon, Strawberry and Dry Shot.

The meal was also fun because I shared it with a friend who is a food-industry professional and who'd never been there before. As you know, it's great experiencing Alinea through the eyes of a first-timer. Even though his expectations were high, he thoroughly enjoyed the experience.

=R=

Alinea further redefines dining experience by allowing for limited free will

Tomorrow, I’m going to have a conversation with Chef Achatz about how he uses sound in his restaurant (for a series I’m producing for WBEZ).

Question: of those who’ve eaten at Alinea, do you remember what, if any, music was playing in the dining room and do you recall if sound was a noticeable component of any of the dishes you had?

David Hammond wrote:Tomorrow, I’m going to have a conversation with Chef Achatz about how he uses sound in his restaurant (for a series I’m producing for WBEZ). ...

Sounds (lol) interesting.

David Hammond wrote:... Question: of those who’ve eaten at Alinea, do you remember what, if any, music was playing in the dining room and do you recall if sound was a noticeable component of any of the dishes you had?

I recall only once, where there was sound introduced, New Year's Eve 2005. Actually flamenco dancers, and the guitar player, was a sort of intermezzo introduced close the magic hour. They played once, and for about 8 minutes per room (4).

Flamenco sounds perfect: wild yet in control, kind of like the food at Alinea.

Control is a big issue here; as I remember, the dining room and kitchen were very low key. Kevin Boehm of the Boka Group told me that he thought there were speakers above every table so that sound could be channeled to individual groups but not the restaurant as a whole; he would be sensitive to that kind fo thing, and may very well be right, but I honestly don't recall if I heard any "piped in" music at Alinea.

David Hammond wrote:Question: of those who’ve eaten at Alinea, do you remember what, if any, music was playing in the dining room and do you recall if sound was a noticeable component of any of the dishes you had?

Do they ever play music there during normal service? I don't recall hearing any on my past few visits. I wonder if I just blocked it out subconsciously. Every time I've dined at Alinea, the atmosphere has always been hushed, people talking in very low voices and such. The only sound I hear is the clink-clink of tableware and the occasional "oooooohs".

Puppy wrote:

David Hammond wrote:Question: of those who’ve eaten at Alinea, do you remember what, if any, music was playing in the dining room and do you recall if sound was a noticeable component of any of the dishes you had?

Do they ever play music there during normal service? I don't recall hearing any on my past few visits. I wonder if I just blocked it out subconsciously. Every time I've dined at Alinea, the atmosphere has always been hushed, people talking in very low voices and such. The only sound I hear is the clink-clink of tableware and the occasional "oooooohs".

Sensory overload describes my experience at Alinea, and the senses involved are mostly taste, touch, smell and sight. Sound has got to be an element, but I'll be damned if I can remember the role it played in the dinner, either as music or as coming from the food itself.

David Hammond wrote:... Kevin Boehm of the Boka Group told me that he thought there were speakers above every table so that sound could be channeled to individual groups but not the restaurant as a whole; he would be sensitive to that kind fo thing, and may very well be right, but I honestly don't recall if I heard any "piped in" music at Alinea.

There was a design for directed speakers above each table, but that was scrapped and never made it on opening night, and IIRC never was installed.

David Hammond wrote:

Puppy wrote:

David Hammond wrote:Question: of those who’ve eaten at Alinea, do you remember what, if any, music was playing in the dining room and do you recall if sound was a noticeable component of any of the dishes you had?

Do they ever play music there during normal service? I don't recall hearing any on my past few visits. I wonder if I just blocked it out subconsciously. Every time I've dined at Alinea, the atmosphere has always been hushed, people talking in very low voices and such. The only sound I hear is the clink-clink of tableware and the occasional "oooooohs".

Sensory overload describes my experience at Alinea, and the senses involved are mostly taste, touch, smell and sight. Sound has got to be an element, but I'll be damned if I can remember the role it played in the dinner, either as music or as coming from the food itself.

No music. Yet?

yellow truffle wrote:

David Hammond wrote:... Kevin Boehm of the Boka Group told me that he thought there were speakers above every table so that sound could be channeled to individual groups but not the restaurant as a whole; he would be sensitive to that kind fo thing, and may very well be right, but I honestly don't recall if I heard any "piped in" music at Alinea.

There was a design for directed speakers above each table, but that was scrapped and never made it on opening night, and IIRC never was installed. ...

Source. See post 310 and 311.

Sound has been discussed a few times on eGullet.
Alinea Project Forum.
Alinea Post.

Yellow Truffle, thank you so much for the links. Achatz expanded a little on the "sound spotlight" concept, explaining that he thought it might be interesting to use this focused sound in a "textural" sense, to beam the audio of, say, crunching potato chips to a table that was eating something very non-crunchy.

Achatz wrote in the Alinea book that “The sudden tempo change in a song suggests a dish that will achieve a similar shift in menu flow, breaking a monotonous sequence of flavor profiles." I asked about this, and it turns out the music that he found most helpful in inspiring flow-shift was Rage Against the Machine, which is kind of surprising, given the near silence of his kitchen and dining rooms.

Well, no sound or music in the restaurant last night, but who cares with food this good.

I won't go into excruciating detail but we had yet another outstanding dinner at Alinea last night. We did the Tasting, with a few additional courses sent out by the kitchen and there was not a clunker in the group. Achatz's cooking continues to evolve (a Thai inspired dish of lettuce, cucumber and pork belly), challenge/jar the diner (the Escoffier course), play with the diner (the infamous "table-side" dessert), and highlight superior ingredients (a melt-in-your-mouth piece of Wagyu beef, heirloom tomatoes with figs and cheese).

Service, as always, was friendly and informed.

My wife and I have now celebrated our first two anniversaries at Alinea, and I can't think of any good reason to deviate from this tradition.

David Hammond wrote:
... Question: of those who’ve eaten at Alinea, do you remember what, if any, music was playing in the dining room and do you recall if sound was a noticeable component of any of the dishes you had?

I was there two weeks ago and had an earlier reservation and there was no music. I recall b/c my friends and I commented about how quiet it was when we were there, almost to the point of feeling a little awkward.

Shaggywillis wrote:

David Hammond wrote:
... Question: of those who’ve eaten at Alinea, do you remember what, if any, music was playing in the dining room and do you recall if sound was a noticeable component of any of the dishes you had?

I was there two weeks ago and had an earlier reservation and there was no music. I recall b/c my friends and I commented about how quiet it was when we were there, almost to the point of feeling a little awkward.

I was in the kitchen last week in the early afternoon and there was no sound except the chopping knives and an occassional whir of some mixing device. No talking. Everyone very focused.