the french laundry

excellent service and food. its an experience of a lifetime. they have few tables must reserve 3 months earlier. expensive but like i said its an experience of a lifetime. impossible to go out of there hungry! they are very giving. they serve more than what they have on themenubetween plates. beautiful concept and presentation of plate are something. taste is good didn’t get desapointed at all. people who serves are friendly.

lucky enough to visit thomas keller’s gourmet mecca on august 3rd 2015, it overtook my number one spot which was previously occupied by vila joya in albufeira (located in portugal’s algarve region).

my dining companion had an unexpected allergic reaction earlier on, which was naturally unfortunate, but being the garburator that i am, i ate everything that was put on the table from the foam filled crab dish onward.  this, in effect, comprised every dish except for the beet salad and the supplement for oysters & pearls.

my definition of perfection was redefined by the textures, and intensity and complexity of flavors, all of which were flawlessly balanced on my palate.  the metric of diversity and creativity became somewhat amalgamated by the fact that no single ingredient was repeated over the course of the dinner.  many people are aware of the “sustainability” at tfl, wherein’ they harvest much of their ingredients in their gardens across the street.  plating was the best i've ever seen.  and the standard was just shy of being flawlessly upheld from dish-to-dish, but fell short with the poor texture of the john dory (note: i gauged it against the john dory i was served at vila joya - one of my favorite dishes of all time).  the service was technically perfect, but lacked overall personality imo.  finally, the ambience begins when you’re outside with other guests doing photos by the sign, followed by a stroll through the property – a courtyard [of sorts] with a view of the [at the time of visit] temporary kitchen, and the balcony.  the dining room shows several rooms, and each seat welcomes guests with the famous clothes pin andmenu(which i’m taking the step of having framed).

standouts for me were the black truffle tagliatelle and the fois gras.  to date, the two most impactful dishes i’ve ever had.

worth every penny, and i would go back in a heartbeat.

even though the chef’s tastingmenuonly lists 8-courses (us$295 inclusive of service but before taxes), there was easily 8 dishes within the “assortment of desserts” alone; arrive hungry and ready for a glutinous affair.

your first taste of the french laundry’s craft is with a gruyère gougères, a warm cheese puff filled with a rich gruyère laced béchamel cream. a dreamy intoxicating bite that was later matched by a shiny bun, which was a cross between a buttery brioche and french stick; both satisfying the carb monster in me.

a signature amuse of salmon cornets arrived thereafter, a savoury cone filled with red onion crème fraîche and topped with a “scoop” of micro finely diced raw salmon. the thin crisp cone was buttery, melding with the luscious cream.

as with all menus, the oysters and pearls (in this case, tapioca pearls) was featured – a enduring dish that combines a velvety sabayon pearl tapioca, two cool island creek oysters and briny white sturgeon caviar. it’s fantastic with the exception of a lone oyster that left

still one of my favorites. i admit, i have a bad habit of traveling just for food, most notably dropping everything and flying to spain once reservations at el bulli were confirmed (back in 2008). with that said, what a delight to know one of my favorite restaurants is in my own backyard. french laundry makes just plain amazing food, not a trend chaser and not overly stuffy like some classically french restaurants, but memorable dishes. i always go for the tastingmenuand make a request for the oysters and pearls, the one dish that i would even request for my last meal on earth. the location in yountville is much more relaxed than its new york counterpart per se. though i had a lot of fun in per se, and themenuis similar, i have a soft spot for the original!

disappointing. well for all the hype this is one i should have certainly passed on. the location is beautiful outside (inside is a bit sterile but they are closing for renovations soon, i hope it gets better). we were seated and placed our order. a few minutes later the server came back with a pen and paper and went around to each of us to confirm our order. i have never had that happen to me even in a crappy restaurant! also, the staff all night was uneducated about the food. they stumbled over every dish when it was brought to the table. very unprofessional.

we were asked if we wanted wine. when we asked if they had a tastingmenu(they do not, surprising), the server looked at us like a deer in headlights and said they don't have specific wines for specific courses but she had a novel idea, we could order a bottle of sparkling wine to start, move to a white wine, then a red wine toward the end of the meal. i had not even thought of that, really? we were never introduced to the sommelier (if there even was one?) so we just asked for the wine list and picked the wines ourselves. we ordered 2 different very expensive reds. the first one was brought to the table and served, it was way too cold and was not even left to breathe before pouring so we asked them to decant the second bottle now so it would be the right temperature before we drank it later. should we really have to do this in a 3 star michelin restaurant?

also, the air conditioning was on full boar and everyone was freezing so we asked them to turn it off which they did for about 5 minutes then it went right back on. we were freezing the whole meal (so were all the other guests) and finally almost at the end of dinner were finally offered a pashmina to stay warm. they had probably all been given out to other guests and we were offered one when someone left. would have been helpful at the beginning or better yet turn off the damn air!!!!

the food was ok. nothing super special. my problem with it was every plate that came out was super rich and heavy. there was no variation and by mid meal i was feeling a bit sick for the richness with nothing served to cut it in between.
i don't love fish and when i saw cod on themenui was thankful as that is the only fish i like to eat that is super mild and not fishy tasting. wrong! the cod was super fishy and after one bite i declined the rest. how can fast food chains serve non fishy tasting cod and french laundry cannot? another mystery. also, i am not particularly comfortable with rabbit but in fine dining restaurants i don't mind because they always make it taste so delectable. not tonight! rabbit tasted like rabbit. bummer. another dish i did not care for.

our friends wanted a cognac at the end of the meal to help cut the richness of all the food and were given the list but nothing on there worth ordering. another disappointment.

all in all it was an extremely overpriced dinner for the experience. they have not received any accolades in the last several years and are resting on their laurels. they received their 3 star rating way back in 2006. i doubt anyone from michelin has been back and keep awarding them their 3 stars because they are too lazy to check in and see what is really going on!
we just returned from a 3 week vacation in france and every restaurant we ate at was 3,000 times better than french laundry hands down. i feel completely cheated out of my $1,000 dinner for two. a complete let down. i would never recommend this to anyone. my husband has clients that want him to bring them here but after this experience i am politely refusing to go. i cannot sit through another meal like it.

the ballet of fine dining. eating at the french laundry is not just a night out for supper, it is an experience. chef thomas keller has consistently been touted as one of the best chef's in america if not the world. his restaurant the french laundry has been also consistent in it's ranking as a top dining destination in the country. the french laundry is adventurous in it's approach to food. there are items on themenuthat will bewilder even the most discerning of diners. there are items on the tasting menus that may not appeal to everyone particularly when you do nine to thirteen courses. it's bound to happen, kind of like "the law of averages", for me it was a foie gras mousse, not my cup of tea, but there were plenty of other items on themenuto appease my pallet. with the food aside, the most important aspect for me, that sets the french laundry apart from most other restaurants is the service. while there are many restaurants serving incredible food, no one serves a diner like the french laundry. on the evening we were there, a tuesday, no less than 10 different people serviced our meal. watching the staff work the room, virtually unnoticed by most, was like watching ghosts moving through a room, serving patrons without them knowing how it happened. the staff moved around patrons and each other like their movements where choreographed, like a ballet, and i am sure they were. it was a pleasure to watch, and to experience first hand. for those that doubt the possibility of getting a reservation, you are correct in that it can be difficult, however, i am a person who traveled from canada, with no connections and i managed to get a reservation. if i am in napa, sonoma or yountville again, i would go back, reservations pending.

rather than do a recap of my favorites restaurants of 2013, i thought i would share the details of my visit to foodie mecca…aka thomas keller’s the french laundry . getting the reservation this was an absolute stroke of luck/genius that i owe entirely to my husband. after reading all the blogs and exhaustively trying the phone tricks (french laundry became number 1 on my speed dial), he somehow managed to score the one open-table reservation that opens up at 12:15 pm for two people at lunch. this was after checking everyday and often. the little touches the 9 course tastingmenuchanges daily and you can bring home the memories to make the meal last a lifetime. ourmenuwas personalized and commemorates our wedding anniversary, as well as the anniversary of our lunch at french laundry and it’s given to you on your way out along with a list of where you food came from. i also took the napkin holders…which might not have been mine to take…but no one saw me themenuhere is a look at our

dream come true!. i had been dreaming about going to this resturant for years... and when i finally got a chance to go, i was not dissappointed. the service was impecable and the food exquisite. it is, of course, for special moments as the pricing is step but well worth the experience. a special favorite was all of the mini-bread that they served throughout (attention to detail) and their seamless transition of themenufor a person with serious food allergies. thank you for an amazing dinner!

the french laundry had been at the top of my bucket list for many years. so when i recently had the opportunity to dine there with my twin daughters, i jumped on it. owned by chef thomas keller for the past 18 years, the restaurant is located in yountville in napa county, california and is housed in a century-old stone building that was once a french steam laundry. for both lunch and dinner, the french laundry offers only a fixed price tastingmenu(with a vegetarian option), which changes daily. the restaurant and keller have won basically every major culinary award in the country so, needless to say, reservations are incredibly difficult to obtain. having heard about the french laundry for so many years, i wondered whether it would ultimately disappoint. but it more than lived up to the hype. it was magical and extraordinary; the best dining experience i have ever had in this country and one of the two best i’ve had ever had in the world. our lunch lasted four and a half hours and co

with regard to food… nothing particularly stood out. there were dishes i enjoyed a lot, and there were dishes that didn’t appeal to my tastes. some dishes were too big – i mean, look at that cheese course. after eating ten courses prior to that, how could i eat that much cheese? (i didn’t.) other courses just felt out of place. the regularmenuis nine courses, and we were served far beyond that.

the format is always the same at the french laundry. all guests select from the two unique nine-course tasting menus created for that day; one is the chef’s tasting and the other a tasting of vegetables. both menus are $270 each, tip is included, but supplements are extra. personally, i wouldn’t pay $270 for a tastingmenuof vegetables, but that’s just me. i was told that there was no set wine pairing to go with themenuas they prefer to offer suggestions based on your wine preferences. thankfully they assisted us with making our choices as the ipad winemenu(very cool) was a large and intimidating list.

the chef’s tasting was wonderful, and reaches the pinnacle of culinary arts. there were elements that did not agree with my personal palate, but that is really nobody’s fault. on the other hand, the tasting of vegetables did not live up to my expectations, and cannot match up against the “regular”menuin terms of flavor and creativity.

serving blue fin tuna: no excuse!. blue fin tuna, wild caught or farmed is just not right on any menu. i had a "coveted" reservation and just looked at themenuand i'll find another place…
from the ny times: "tuna's end"
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/27/magazine/27tuna-t.html

hey tom, give your colleague eric ripert (le bernardin, ny) a call and get schooled on sustainability.