the french laundry

the french laundry the french laundry where do i even begin with this review? ever since i can remember, i had always wanted to go to the french laundry . it's been on my bucket list so when the bf and i planned a trip to napa, we thought we had to at least try to get a table. chef thomas keller's the french laundry was the firstrestaurantto get three michelin stars (the highest honor) when michelin came to the us in 2006. it's no surprise that it's kept those three stars every year since. anthony bourdain named it "the bestrestaurantin the world, period" and it's been named the bestrestaurantin the world in 2003 and 2004. therestauranthad been under construction for several months while it underwent a major renovation. the dining room was left untouched, while the kitchen is being completely rebuilt. i thought we'd have no chance of getting in, especially since therestaurantwas still closed a week before we were going to napa. luckily for us, i saw on twitter that therestaurantwould be reopening with a temporary kitchen the week of our visit! i immediately tried calling the reservation hotline and after six attempts, i got through to be put on hold for twenty minutes. once i was put through the line, i was told therestaurantwas booked for two months (they take reservations two months to the day). i was told there was a wait list and put our name down in case there were any cancellations during the three days we were in town. i sadly hung up the phone and that was that. when the bf and i arrived in napa, i made him drive by the french laundry so i could at least get a glimpse if we weren't able to eat there. i creepily took photos of therestaurantand peered into the windows to get a closer look. the building therestaurantis housed in dates back to the 1900s and is in the national register of historic places. the building was originally built as a saloon in 1900 then later became a residence and a french steam laundry (hence the name the french laun

michelin guide - 3 stars. 
the french laundry in napa valley is a 3 michelin starrestaurantsurrounded by wine vineyards, built in 1890 as a french steam laundry house. the dining room has 15 tables, private dining area, and garden seating. the wine list exceeds 100 pages with two unique nine course tasting menus offered. the focus is more on nouvelle cuisine with a pinch of classic french, and the use of sustainable local fruits and vegetables from their garden or local farmers. this is a review of my dinner experience

best chinese food i've had in years!!  tell the chef, "nice try".  this was the firstrestaurantwhere the food tried to eat me.  everything was as undercooked as ice water.  i sent the food back to the kitchen, the waiter back to mexico, and the chef back to ely, nevada on a trailways bus - first class of course.

the french laundry. say just those three words to any foodie and you'll immediately elicit a response. then, tell them you got reservations and the look of awe takes over. why? because the french laundry is one of the most famous restaurants in the world. having garnered three stars in michelin rating system for the past six years in a row, having been named by many as the toprestaurantin the world, and having maintained a ranking in the top 50 restaurants in the world, the french laundry has more accolades than most restaurants have utensils.

was beyond excited to secure a booking for the french laundry for our short stay in napa. had phoned and been online months prior in the early hours from australia. have dined at many michelin star restaurants and love a degustation - and i wanted to love thisrestaurantas much as others, but it was honestly underwhelming. it may just be our tastebuds, but unfortunately we really didn't like any of the dishes. i eat most things, but the food was too rich and very strange in flavour. for the price we paid (especially supplementing a few of the extra options) - we really expected some 'wow' dishes and some exemplary service, but sad to say, just not the case.

therestaurantin nestled in a quaint and homey area in yountville, california. it has a “coming home to grandma and grandpa’s house in the country” kind of feel. there’s a garden right across the street, which is where tfl farm their fresh vegetables. the hosts were very pleasant and greeted us nicely. despite the recognition and caliber of the restauarant, the service is still very warm and casual…

amazing!. my husband and i along with another couple dined at the french laundry last week and thought it was an unforgettable experience! my husband isn't a "foodie" so initially i was worried that he wouldn't enjoy the dinner as much as i, but he loved it! so many surprises, great service and romantic atmosphere! bestrestaurantever and we have traveled the world! my mouth is still watering!

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 tasting menu (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 the menu i 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 everyrestaurantwe 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. hisrestaurantthe 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 the menu that 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 the menu to 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.

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, therestaurantis 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 tasting menu (with a vegetarian option), which changes daily. therestaurantand 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

very disappointing cuisine. the view is one of the world's best.
too bad about the food...there were four in our
party and none of us had anything that truly
"wowed" us. in fact, the sweetbread entree
was the worst of that food i've ever eaten!

this was the onlyrestaurantin a week of napa
valley dining that did not live up to our expectations.

....for those who may not know, the french laundry just might be the most iconicrestaurantin the united states. opened by chef thomas keller in 1994, therestauranthas twice been named best in the world byrestaurantmagazine (2003 and 2004), and has been awarded the full three star rating by michelin since the guide debuted in the bay area in 2006. the cuisine can be described as french with american influences, and most of the produce served comes from the restaurant's garden across the street. while he still the restaurant's head chef, keller's role in the restaurants day to day happenings has lessened over the last decade. the restaurant's current chef de cuisine is timothy hollingsworth, a young man of just 32 who never attended culinary school and worked his way up in therestaurantover a seven year period.

we got a reservation and it's worth every penny. since it was our honeymoon we got complimentary menus to take home and since we were the last patrons in therestaurantand the sommelier found out we were active duty we got to go back in the kitchen and meet the chefs. quite the experience.

opened in 1994, this world-famousrestaurantfrom thomas keller deserves its stellar reputation. each day two nine-course meals are designed and no single ingredient is ever repeated throughout the meal.

the french laundry lives up to its stellar reputation in terms of food and service. the four of us arrived a few minutes before therestaurantopened. we waited in the quaint courtyard along with a young couple who seemed nervous and wearing their "sunday" best. very cute. once inside, we were taken up to the second floor where there were about five tables, most of them for larger parties (4 ), along with one two-top. the napkins came with a clothespin sporting "the french laundry" name in royal blue. nice. souvenirs.