Chef Achatz recently posted a vide of a new variation to the Silpat table top dessert to Youtube.

Vitesse98 wrote:With all the attention given to Next, both from the forum (and from Achatz himself, apparently, who has been spending much of his time and energy on Next), updates to this thread are relatively few and far between (obviously there are other factors at work, too ... $$$). But what's new at Alinea? Any radical breakthroughs? And quality fluctuations? Any surprises? Too few surprises?

I haven't been in over a year. I'd love to go back, but it's just a pain getting the reservations. They posted a video of a new dessert recently that really makes my mouth water.

I really wish those video soundtracks would steer away from the whimsical so much and offer, I dunno, a blast of the Ramones or something.

Who is the number 2 at Alinea right now? Because I want to eat at the place he/she inevitably opens, given that this person must have a whole lot of responsibility these days.

Alinea reservations will soon be tickets according this this article

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/0 ... lp00000008

Does anyone still eat at Alinea?

Alinea 12.0224


Centerpiece #1 . . . for a course down the menu



Char Roe | carrot, coconut, curry
Pairing: Cocktail of Gimonnet Brut with St. Germain and Esterhazy Beerenauslese



Washed Ashore



Oyster Leaf | mignonette



King Crab | passionfruit, heart of palm, allspice



Mussel | saffron, chorizo, oregano



Razor Clam | shiso, soy, daikon
Pairing: Barth "Charta" Riesling, Rheingau, 2010



Tabletop Vacuum Pot (a la Aviary) for an upcoming course



Woolly Pig | fennel, orange, squid



Scallop | acting like agedashi tofu
Pairing: Vina Godeval, Valdeorras, 2010



Broth served with Scallop course



Ice | beet, hibiscus, licorice



Black Sea Bass | caponata, mint, panella
Pairing: Comtesse Bernard de Cherisey "Hameau de Blagny" Puligny-Montrachet, 2007



Caponata (mint and panella not pictured)



Centerpiece #2 - for a course down the menu



Hot Potato | cold potato, black truffle, butter



Wild Mushrooms | juniper, sumac, shallot
Pairing: Lignier-Michelot Morey-Saint-Denis "Aux Charmes," 2007



Venison | red cabbage, mustard, paprika
Pairing: Prats & Symington "Post Scriptum," Douro, 2007



Venison | red cabbage, mustard, paprika



Venison | red cabbage, mustard, paprika



Black Truffle | explosion, romaine, parmesan



Squab | inspiried by Miro
Pairing: Valpolicella Classico Superiore "TB" Bussola, Venito, 2006



Anjou Pear | onion, brie, smoking cinnamon
Pairing: The Rare Wine Co. "Boston Bual" Madeira



Anjou Pear | onion, brie, smoking cinnamon



Ginger | 5 other flavors



Winter | in New Hampshire
Pairing: Dashe "Late Harvest" Zinfandel, Dry Creek, 2009



Winter | in New Hampshire



Balloon | helium, green apple



Dark Chocolate | butternut squash, lingonberry, stout
Pairing: Domaine du Mas Blanc "Rimage La Coume," Banyuls, 2007



Dark Chocolate | butternut squash, lingonberry, stout



Dark Chocolate | butternut squash, lingonberry, stout



Dark Chocolate | butternut squash, lingonberry, stout



Dark Chocolate | butternut squash, lingonberry, stout



Dark Chocolate | butternut squash, lingonberry, stout

=R=

Beautiful shots!

Thanks Ronnie and Julie it was truly a night to remember!

Nice to see the progression with the dessert course.

We had this menu last night and really enjoyed it. The whole fish was described as a "preview" of the Next Sicily menu. I also wouldn't be surprised to see something like the scallop show up on the Kyoto menu (this was acknowledged with a wink from our captain).

Having not been to Alinea in a few years it was great to see that they haven't lost a step. They're still operating on a whole other level than any other restaurant in Chicago. Food, service, everything.

Great photos, as always I knew you were intending on going back soon! Glad you enjoyed your meal.

How much stout was in that final dessert?

jesteinf wrote:The whole fish was described as a "preview" of the Next Sicily menu.

Without a doubt, my favorite course of the night. The fish was awesome in every way and that caponata was every bit as good. I also loved the fried, chickpea flour crisps that were served with it.

Hurdler4eva wrote:Great photos, as always I knew you were intending on going back soon! Glad you enjoyed your meal.

How much stout was in that final dessert?

Thanks. It had been over a year since my last visit to Alinea. My favorite part was seeing our friends' (Mr and Mrs. madcow1 ) reactions to the experience, since they'd never been there before.

As for the stout, I don't know how much there was but I'm guessing it was the primary component in the darker sauce you can see in the pics. We didn't ask, though, and it wasn't mentioned.

=R=

ronnie_suburban wrote:
As for the stout, I don't know how much there was but I'm guessing it was the primary component in the darker sauce you can see in the pics. We didn't ask, though, and it wasn't mentioned.

That's correct, at least based on the description we got at the table. I didn't find it overwhelming, but Marissa (who is generally beer-averse) didn't really like it.

Photos spectacular, as always.

Could you describe the place of the deer meat in "Venison | red cabbage, mustard, paprika"? Was it liquified or foamed or what...and did you like it?

David Hammond wrote:Photos spectacular, as always.

Could you describe the place of the deer meat in "Venison | red cabbage, mustard, paprika"? Was it liquified or foamed or what...and did you like it?

Looks like chunks of braised deer are put into the cabbage wrapper. They had short rib in pasta when I was there, and also had pork belly in a previous rendition as well.

Dlongs wrote:

David Hammond wrote:Photos spectacular, as always.

Could you describe the place of the deer meat in "Venison | red cabbage, mustard, paprika"? Was it liquified or foamed or what...and did you like it?

Looks like chunks of braised deer are put into the cabbage wrapper. They had short rib in pasta when I was there, and also had pork belly in a previous rendition as well.

This is correct. They were tender, perfectly-cut chunks of venison. I'm guessing they were cooked en sous vide but I'm not sure. I had the short rib pasta incarnation of this dish, too, when I was there in October of 2010. It's documented in this post.

=R=

I was confused as hell, and now I see why. There are two pix labeled "Venison | red cabbage, mustard, paprika." I'm asking about the one that comes right after Wild Mushrooms and is paired with Prats & Symington "Post Scriptum," Douro, 2007.

David Hammond wrote:I was confused as hell, and now I see why. There are two pix labeled "Venison | red cabbage, mustard, paprika." I'm asking about the one that comes right after Wild Mushrooms and is paired with Prats & Symington "Post Scriptum," Douro, 2007.

Yes, there are 3 pictures of that course which, I hoped, would show its progression. The venison is actually served from the little pot into the cabbage leaf after the frame that holds the cabbage leaf is assembled by the diner. The other items are essentially the condiments.

=R=

ronnie_suburban wrote:

David Hammond wrote:I was confused as hell, and now I see why. There are two pix labeled "Venison | red cabbage, mustard, paprika." I'm asking about the one that comes right after Wild Mushrooms and is paired with Prats & Symington "Post Scriptum," Douro, 2007.

Yes, there are 3 pictures of that course which, I hoped, would show its progression. The venison is actually served from the little pot into the cabbage leaf after the frame that holds the cabbage leaf is assembled by the diner. The other items are essentially the condiments.

=R=

I should have figured that out. Thanks, ronnie.

David Hammond wrote:

ronnie_suburban wrote:

David Hammond wrote:I was confused as hell, and now I see why. There are two pix labeled "Venison | red cabbage, mustard, paprika." I'm asking about the one that comes right after Wild Mushrooms and is paired with Prats & Symington "Post Scriptum," Douro, 2007.

Yes, there are 3 pictures of that course which, I hoped, would show its progression. The venison is actually served from the little pot into the cabbage leaf after the frame that holds the cabbage leaf is assembled by the diner. The other items are essentially the condiments.

=R=

I should have figured that out. Thanks, ronnie.

Nah, I was lazy.

=R=

The venison was one of the weaker dishes on this menu, perfectly prepared, but really trying too hard (simply a showcase for the assemble-it-yourself presentation cradle). The presentation was too forced and didn't really enhance the experience. Ditto for the "spoons" course. They were far more visually-inspired than culinarily-inspired (is that even a word?). Both were a little flat, for my tastes. Nearly all the other dishes made sense, these two seemed like afterthoughts. All told they were trivial speedbumps, but the dinner would have been better without them.

They must be changing the menu soon, non? I had pretty much the same set of dishes in late December. The Siciliy course was, without a doubt, the best thing I ate last year.

chezbrad wrote:They must be changing the menu soon, non? I had pretty much the same set of dishes in late December. The Siciliy course was, without a doubt, the best thing I ate last year.

Definitely soon.

I don't tweet. But the Lovely Dining Companion does. And for all those of you out there who are also non-tweeterers, she shared something with me that you might enjoy from Grant Achatz:

"I just did a chocolate table presentation and guests said 2 me. 'Is this your only job?' Why yes, Yes it is. I love it when they don't know."

Lovely!

spinynorman99 wrote:The venison was one of the weaker dishes on this menu, perfectly prepared, but really trying too hard (simply a showcase for the assemble-it-yourself presentation cradle). The presentation was too forced and didn't really enhance the experience. Ditto for the "spoons" course. They were far more visually-inspired than culinarily-inspired (is that even a word?). Both were a little flat, for my tastes. Nearly all the other dishes made sense, these two seemed like afterthoughts. All told they were trivial speedbumps, but the dinner would have been better without them.

I dined at Alinea in November and was disappointed by these two dishes as well, especially the cabbage dish as I thought the cabbage was too thick, waxy, and overwhelming to serve as a good wrapper. However, my dining companions and I took major issue with two other points of the meal, one of those being the beloved Sicilian family style meal. For us it was a whole fish and two large sides presented with a, "Don't feel obligated to finish the entire thing." Which we didn't, we couldn't, if we did we likely would have missed out on future courses. It made everyone uncomfortable that they served food that was not intended to/could not be fully eaten just to break expectations. They crossed a moral line with our table at least. However, my other criticism was the service atmosphere, aside from general coldness (which they could be going for and it just makes me personally uncomfortable) it was a general sentiment at the table that they were babying us/dictating our experience that rendered the meal less exciting. For example, we were served the same oyster leaf that Ronnie has pictured above. When it was presented to us the server said, "You'll find that it tastes exactly like oyster." (verbatim) I am familiar with oyster leaf (through taste not explanation), however this did not even taste like oyster. This is just one example as the chef's intentions were repeated almost with every course, disallowing the diners from creating their own relationship with the food being served. I want to be surprised eating at a restaurant such as this and I felt that this detracted from the surprise. There are some dishes that remained enjoyable regardless, but during the multi-course tasting they were heavily outweighed by the dishes that were lacking and I cannot help but feel that they would be more enjoyable without the extensive discussion beforehand. Just simple instructions on how to consume please.

tangela wrote:However, my other criticism was the service atmosphere, aside from general coldness (which they could be going for and it just makes me personally uncomfortable) it was a general sentiment at the table that they were babying us/dictating our experience that rendered the meal less exciting. For example, we were served the same oyster leaf that Ronnie has pictured above. When it was presented to us the server said, "You'll find that it tastes exactly like oyster." (verbatim) I am familiar with oyster leaf (through taste not explanation), however this did not even taste like oyster. This is just one example as the chef's intentions were repeated almost with every course, disallowing the diners from creating their own relationship with the food being served. I want to be surprised eating at a restaurant such as this and I felt that this detracted from the surprise. There are some dishes that remained enjoyable regardless, but during the multi-course tasting they were heavily outweighed by the dishes that were lacking and I cannot help but feel that they would be more enjoyable without the extensive discussion beforehand. Just simple instructions on how to consume please.

While I've heard this from others (especially the impersonal service part) I have yet to experience it. It may well be that my very outgoing wife invites friendly banter but I've not experienced anything other than attentive service and pleasantly friendly waitstaff. Our recent visit was enhanced by the friendliness of all the servers and I didn't mind the explanations. The size of the fish course was surprisingly large but that, too, was not a distraction, and, for us at least, was an interesting detour.

My experience mirrors that of SpinyNorman. I had the best meal of my life at Alinea a few months ago. In addition to the food being so creative, fun, interesting and tasty what really made this my best meal was how incredible our servers were. We felt spoiled by all the attention we received and found our servers to be extremely polished, yet personable (they even cracked some jokes with us and chatted with us not just about the food). I personally enjoyed the explanations of the various courses.

I do agree that the oyster leaf did not really taste like an oyster *(though I still loved that course) and the only dish I did not enjoy was the one with all the spoons. The venison however was one of my favorites and aside from the spoon course everything else ranged from very good to amazing.

I had such a great experience that I am taking my father to Alinea for his 70th birthday in a couple of months. I look forward to seeing what has changed on the menu in between my December 2011 visit and the upcoming May 2012 reservation.

ronnie_suburban wrote:
Balloon | helium, green apple

How was this? It sounds very cool, from what I've read.

There have also been some articles I've read (here and here) about how Achatz would like to change the dining experience at Alinea, changing the environment to fit the food. Very interesting stuff.

Does anyone have any idea as to when the menu usually changes between Spring/Summer? I have reservations in about three weeks and am wondering what the likelihood of me getting the current menu would be? Thanks a lot.

There is only small changes from spring to summer; fall and spring are generally the major changes with just tweaks in summer and winter.

We've been waitlisted here for 2 months. With just a few more weeks to go, is there any hope that we get in? Do waitlisters frequently get in in the last few days or should I start looking to make other plans.