Oh, whoops, I just said 'It seems like a silly exercise to say "this place warrants our attention' and then turn around and say "'but there's nothing in this city worthy of our highest rating.'" without realizing that LA didn't get any three-star places. LA is no Chicago, though. Melisse, Spago and Providence are good (really? two stars for Spago?) but Alinea and a few other Chicago places blow them out of the water.

David Hammond wrote: Also Sprach Mariani.

And the Mariani stars (already) go to...
★ ★ ★ Spiaggia — one of the great Italian restaurants anywhere.
★ ★ Charlie Trotter's — set the standard for modern French-American cuisine in town.
★ ★ L20 — a reverie of great seafood in the most refined style.
★ ★ Topolobampo — Rick Bayless's signature Mexican restaurant.
★ ★ Longman & Eagle — the very best of the city's new gastropubs.

And the Santander stars (already) go to...

★ ★ ★ Cemitas Puebla
★ ★ Marrakech Cuisine
★ ★ Thundercans
★ Russell's Barbecue

millerza wrote:True, El Bulli had three stars and was every bit as avant garde as Alinea in the style of food, but from what I gather in the El Bulli cookbooks and shit I've read online (I've never eaten there) the majority of their food still comes on a "plate." It would be ridiculous to discount Alinea because they have novel and exceptionally creative service concepts that are thoughtful and meant to amplify the experience of the food itself, but who knows.

In due respect, I do not like to call one out BUT Ferran has some of the most creative plateware there is to come by in the world! His faces company was creating and selling his custom work years before anyone knew of Alinea. Additionally, in my opinion the comment should be phased as "Alinea was every bit as avant garde as El Bulli" which to this point I still do not agree but for Chicago Alinea is the leader in modern contemporary cuisine right now.

http://faces-usa.com/collections.html

JohnH wrote:In due respect, I do not like to call one out BUT Ferran has some of the most creative plateware there is to come by in the world!

Thank you for bringing a touch of Kanye West to LTHForum.

Santander wrote:

JohnH wrote:In due respect, I do not like to call one out BUT Ferran has some of the most creative plateware there is to come by in the world!

Thank you for bringing a touch of Kanye West to LTHForum.

I wish that I could sing like him and have his money then I could slam everyone and it wouldn't matter!

JohnH wrote:

millerza wrote:True, El Bulli had three stars and was every bit as avant garde as Alinea in the style of food, but from what I gather in the El Bulli cookbooks and shit I've read online (I've never eaten there) the majority of their food still comes on a "plate." It would be ridiculous to discount Alinea because they have novel and exceptionally creative service concepts that are thoughtful and meant to amplify the experience of the food itself, but who knows.

In due respect, I do not like to call one out BUT Ferran has some of the most creative plateware there is to come by in the world! His faces company was creating and selling his custom work years before anyone knew of Alinea. Additionally, in my opinion the comment should be phased as "Alinea was every bit as avant garde as El Bulli" which to this point I still do not agree but for Chicago Alinea is the leader in modern contemporary cuisine right now.

http://faces-usa.com/collections.html

Nothing wrong with calling someone out when he doesn't know what he's talking about. It seems I was speaking from a pretty misinformed place, and have to agree with you on both counts. And I just went through the El Bulli books that I do have and I had forgotten about a lot of the unconventional service approaches they had (especially since the first thing I saw when I opened the book was the Vanilla Welcome, which is certainly not served on a "plate"). And then stumbling onto the entire "A New Way of Serving Food" section in the back really shamed me. So, I guess my concern about Alinea being poorly (and unfairly) received by Michelin for that particular aspect was unfounded, which is good.

And my "El Bulli every bit as avant garde" line was just clumsily phrased, and I wasn't trying to put one ahead of the other as much as just say that the food at each place is sufficiently "out there" to make that element not as much as a concern.

No worries as I am a fanatic when it comes to contemporary cuisine!

It looks like the new list for NYC has been announced:

http://ny.eater.com/archives/2010/10/mi ... vetail.php

Has anyone seen anything for Chicago yet?

On a sidenote, my wife and I were eating at Le Bernardin last week, and a few tables away was Jean-Luc Naret, director general of the Michelin guide, having lunch with Pierre-Henri Gourgeon, president of Air France, and Maguy Le Coze, co-owner of the restaurant. Eric Ripert did come out to chat for 10 minutes or so, but he was mostly in the back of the house.

I believe the guide is scheduled to come out next month.

I just came across this critique of the Michelin Guides' style, which I thought might interest folks here:

From Josh Ozersky in Time
I agree with his criticism of the style and lack of precision:
"the write-ups in the book itself are incredibly banal and uncritical. They sound like something from an in-flight magazine. . . . Of Le Bernardin, one of only five restaurants in New York City to get three stars, we are told "[Chef Eric] Ripert is a master of seafood, and his understanding of fish combined with his French technique makes for an unforgettable meal." All righty then! The formula is always the same: a snappy intro, a quick description of the room and service, and then a few lines about food invariably follow, with a cascade of food-copywriting clichés like "perfectly cooked," "wonderfully crispy," "succulent," "a gorgeous tangle of fresh spaghetti," etc., etc. It's not that Michelin is wrong — Le Bernardin is one of the best restaurants in the world by any measure — but you wouldn't know why from this entry."

But I disagree with this:
"The foodies in any given city are sure to wildly overrate their local restaurants, and to ask a Texan to judge a quenelle is as silly as hoping to find a barbecue expert in the sixth arrondissement."

I agree that many cities suffer from an excess of boosterism in their restaurant reviews. But I strongly disagree that I need a native expert to say whether a particular restaurant is good.

Less than a month from now the official Michelin Restaurant Guide Chicago 2011 will be released. It's more or less safe to assume that Alinea will be awarded 3 stars. Here are 2 questions:

• How many will be awarded 3 stars? I would say 3.
• Which one will be awarded 3 stars? I would vote for L20 and Les Nomades (though both are more like 2-star material, IMO)

Your thoughts?

--B

There's going to be one 3-star and it's going to be Alinea.

^ I thought so too. But rumor has it that more than one restaurants have been visited many (around 10, IIRC) times, which is a sign that they will be very highly rated.

--B

I have a feeling that L2O might be in the running, too. I personally loved my experience, and it seems like the kind of place they'd like. I have not been to Tru, but I have a feeling another restaurant (other than Alinea) will snag a surprising 3 stars. All I'm sayin' is to keep your eyes open

We're of course not Paris, but if this were the Michelin Paris team, no restaurant would get ***.

But the Michelin guide in the USA is a bit different than in France. I predict Alinea and L2O. IMHO no one else comes close.

DutchMuse wrote:We're of course not Paris, but if this were the Michelin Paris team, no restaurant would get ***.

I totally disagree with this. I'm in Paris now and have eaten at a few 2 and 3 star places over the past 10 days. IMO, there is no way Alinea does not compare favorably with these top places on every level. It is world-class in every sense and totally deserves 3 stars in any context.

=R=

I don't think he was saying they weren't deserving. He was saying they wouldn't get them from the French team.

Mike G wrote:I don't think he was saying they weren't deserving. He was saying they wouldn't get them from the French team.

I understand completely. That's why I only quoted that specific portion of his post.

Throwing aside unknown political forces and based on merit alone, I believe Alinea would be awarded 3 Michelin stars, even if it were in France. I don't, however, think any other Chicago restaurants would.

=R=

ronnie_suburban wrote:

Mike G wrote:I don't think he was saying they weren't deserving. He was saying they wouldn't get them from the French team.

I understand completely. That's why I only quoted that specific portion of his post.

Throwing aside unknown political forces and based on merit alone, I believe Alinea would be awarded 3 Michelin stars, even if it were in France. I don't, however, think any other Chicago restaurants would.

=R=

I don't know, or particularly care for Paris and its cuisine or this Michelin star business,* but I am curious why you think that the "Paris team" wouldn't give any restaurant beyond Alinea three stars? Service, ambiance, food, an aversion to forward-thinking?

Thanks,

H


*Which it is, precisely; I've only eaten at two restaurants I think deserve the highest culinary accolades - Noor Mohamadi, a Nihari specialist in Bombay and El-Mahrous in Cairo, a ful stand.

Because we're not France.

Mike G wrote:I don't think he was saying they weren't deserving. He was saying they wouldn't get them from the French team.

Mike is right. And the biggest reason I think Alinea wouldn't get it in France is the service is not up to Paris *** standards in their eyes.

As for me, I've loved every time I've dined at Alinea and consider it a world class destination. But if they put the same restaurant in Paris, I don't believe the Michelin team there would give it 3 macaroons because it doesn't fit their model. (This is Steinberger's argument in his book "Au Revoir to All That"; diclaimer--Mike is a friend of mine).

eatchicago wrote:

Katie wrote:Seeing how stingy/careful/judicious Michelin is about giving out any stars at all, I personally think it's crazy talk to expect more than a couple of single stars bestowed on restaurants in the Chicago area.

NY currently has somewhere around 55 restaurants with at least one Michelin star. SF has around 45. You think anything beyond a couple single stars in Chicago is crazy?

Revisiting this, what I was thinking at the time and meant to say was, a couple of multiple stars. No opinion on the number of single stars.

Habibi wrote:

ronnie_suburban wrote:

Mike G wrote:I don't think he was saying they weren't deserving. He was saying they wouldn't get them from the French team.

I understand completely. That's why I only quoted that specific portion of his post.

Throwing aside unknown political forces and based on merit alone, I believe Alinea would be awarded 3 Michelin stars, even if it were in France. I don't, however, think any other Chicago restaurants would.

=R=

I don't know, or particularly care for Paris and its cuisine or this Michelin star business,* but I am curious why you think that the "Paris team" wouldn't give any restaurant beyond Alinea three stars? Service, ambiance, food, an aversion to forward-thinking?

This is all so completely hypothetical because we're talking about situations that simply don't exist. What I was saying is that in a 'blind' experience, I believe that Alinea would certainly compare favorably with 3-star spots in Paris. In other words, if the Paris team were plunked, blindfolded, into Alinea, and they had no idea they weren't in France, and everyone in the restaurant spoke French, I believe the experience itself would warrant 3 stars.

In my experience, I can't think of another Chicago spot that quite measures up in food, service, ambience, etc. For me, there are several that come close but none that reach the same overall level. But this recent piece by Kevin Pang at the The Stew -- plus some other recent chatter I've heard -- has me thinking that I could be wrong in my belief that Alinea will be the only Chicago restaurant to receive 3 stars. L20, Avenues, Les Nomades, Everest, Tru, Sixteen . . . I suppose they all have a realistic shot, too . . . and there are others, no doubt.

I have to admit that I'm very excited for the announcement and look forward to learning the results on 11/17 (even though I feel a bit odd about caring about them as much as I do).

=R=

Speaking of Michelin in CA, I noted with interest that Chez Panisse just lost its star. . .

Pardon my ignorance, but does Charlie Trotter's not rate in these discussions anymore?

ews wrote:Pardon my ignorance, but does Charlie Trotter's not rate in these discussions anymore?

Interesting question and I've been wondering about how Trotter's would fare ever since the Michelin-Chicago guide was initially announced. In my experience/opinion, there's no way it warrants 3 stars and I'm not even sure it warrants 2. I'm sure others will disagree -- because it certainly has its fans -- but my last meal there was nothing to be proud of. This may be a controversial statement but if Trotter's gets awarded 3 stars, I think it would say more about Michelin's lack of credibility than about the actual experience at Trotter's.

=R=

My last meal at Trotter's was 20+ years ago, so I don't know nothin', but nothing would surprise me about a guide petrifying in print the conventional wisdom of a decade ago.

Mike G wrote:My last meal at Trotter's was 20+ years ago, so I don't know nothin', but nothing would surprise me about a guide petrifying in print the conventional wisdom of a decade ago.

Me neither but interviews with Jean-Luc Naret (Michelin's Director) have me encouraged that Michelin is going to be very current in their Chicago ratings. We shall see . . .

=R=

Is anyone else holding a Michelin star announcement party on 11/17? Mine is to include a celebration of last season's Dancing With The Stars winner, an in depth interview with Mike G about who is most likely to make it to this year's Superbowl, and watching the evening's broadcast of Wheel of Fortune. Party to be held at 5 Guys. Stay tuned for a post on the Events Board.

Clues about possible winners…unlikely to shock you