Is Alinea the Best Restaurant in the US?

So, dear hearts, Mr. Fashionista and I had the good fortune to go to Grant Achatz' restaurant Alinea, which was recently awarded three, count 'em three, Michelin stars. Oh and it was also named the best restaurant in North America. The question is, of course, does Alinea deserve all of these accolades?  

In a word: YES! At least for us it was our first adventure into 3 star restaurant land. We had been to a handful of the two star restaurants around town, but not the couple of 3 star joints yet. And let's just say this: one little star is the difference between memorable and unforgettable.

And what was so unforgettable? Well, we had 20 tasty and completely fun and unique courses. Let's break it down for you (spoiler alert--if you are going any time soon, do not read this as we'd hate to spoil the surprise!):

Courses 1-3: Crazy cocktails in one-inch square gelatin form. Specifically, they were LEMON (luxardo bitter, luxardo amaro, grapefruit); APPLE (laird's apple brandy, grenadine, thyme); and SQUASH (cynar, carpano antica, flor de cana 7 year).

In other words, super fancy jello shots. Fun, but not necessary, and the only courses I could have done without to be honest. Still I really enjoyed the sentiment and think it added to the fun of the meal.

Celebrity Chef Shout Out: Stephanie Izard

Hello dear hearts,

Mr. Fashionista and I recently had the chance to try Top Chef Season 4 Winner Stephanie Izard's new restaurant Girl and the Goat, which specializes in small plates and has a bit of a gastropub vibe to it. In a word, it was delicious.

We were big fans of Ms. Izard's previous restaurant, Scylla, and were rooting for her the whole time on Top Chef. So, congratulations on your new endeavor Steph.

If you happen to make your way to Chicago, be sure to get your reservation and pay for the bread (ours came with raisin walnut butter and carrot oil). It is so worth it. Other highlights included the fennel and blueberry salad, the prawns stuffed with duck and the pig face. The pig face, which I thought was just a cutesy name, was actually an accurate description of what we ate. Never knew pig jowls and chin could be so tasty. Finally, we had a corn nougat dessert that I am still salivating over.

Also, try to score the money table, which basically consists of a couple of bar seats looking directly into the kitchen. We were fortunate enough to be able to sit there and had front row seats to watch Ms. Izard in action. She was there the entire time, overseeing everything, as any good exec chef should be. She was also totally oblivious to my obvious starstruck attitude and attempts to sneak photos of her. 


To check out the yummy menu: http://www.girlandthegoat.com/

Part 4: Best of Bourdain in Europe: Provence

Choosing the best Bourdain episode in Europe was by far our most difficult task. We love many of the episodes Anthony taped in the Old World. Also, Mr. Fashionista and I have a special fondness for Italy (which is where we tied the knot) and Rome, Sicily and Venice were all in the running here. But, alas, we had to go with Provence for our favorite episode. Why?

1. Perfect lighting. As Bourdain explains, Provence is “where great painters painted." The lighting in Provence is one of the many reasons so many famous artists portrayed this gorgeous region of France in countless priceless paintings. And Tony's film crew manages to capture that famous lighting on film. The effect is breathtaking.

2. Making aioli the old fashioned way. This comes into play a couple of ways. First of all, Tony has to make a meal for some super picky French diners. They want it the old-fashioned way or not at all. And what we discover is that many provincial traditional dishes are somewhat difficult to make the old-fashioned way. Case in point: aioli is made in a mortar and pestle from garlic and olive oil only. In other words, adding an egg is for little girls who cry for mommy. And we quickly see that even old ladies in Provence can grind out the aioli without the egg. Tony better be prepared to do it the right way or not at all. Tony stresses the entire episode over his traditional meal, which provides for some good comedy. In the end, his meal is appreciated by the locals, but they also let him know his food is most definitely not a la provencale, thank you very much.

Part 3: Best of Bourdain in South America: Ecuador

Ecuador. Before this episode, I was vaguely aware that there was a cute colonial capital and that lovers of Darwin traveled here in packs to look at strange lizards on the Galapagos Islands. In other words, I was only mildly interested in visiting. After this episode, however, I was ready to buy my ticket to some delicious food and beautiful scenery. So, why was this our favorite South American episode?

1. Street Food in Quito. The real star here is actually the colonial town of Quito itself. An adorable town, with lots of beautiful old buildings and an energy to it as well. Plus, I love empanadas.

Beautiful Quito.

Part 2: Best of Bourdain in North America: The Rust Belt

So, oddly enough, it wasn't San Francisco or even New Orleans, which grabbed the top spot for best Bourdain show in North America. Instead, Anthony's adventures to Detroit, Baltimore and Buffalo with his buddy Zamir was our favorite No Reservations episode in North America. Why? Three reasons.


1. Snoop from the Wire. Tony and Felicia "Snoop" Pearson from HBO's best show ever, "The Wire", eat at Mo's Seafood in Baltimore. Snoop is just as gritty and compelling as her character on HBO was, but you kind of get the impression she's playing Tony a bit as well. Regardless, this gal has definitely lived a rough life. While Mo's Seafood does not look particularly appetizing, it feels real, and a highlight of the show is when Tony buys the patrons, who look like extras from the Cher classic movie, "Mask", an electric blue cocktail, called the "Obama". Which is actually kind of hysterical.

Port of Baltimore, Setting of HBO's The Wire, Season 2.

Part 1: Reservation for Two, Mr. Bourdain

Happy Sunday Dear Hearts,

Nooooooooooooooooooooo Reservations! Two words were never as sweet to mine ears.

The day Anthony Bourdain got married, I wept.Witty, cranky, world-traveling chef, with a heart of gold. What's not to love? My love for him is strange and strangely Oedipal. Also, kind of have a crush on Dr. House.

Mr. Fashionista is appropriately creeped out.

Hoecakes with Sauce

So, Mr. Fashionista says to me "my mom used to make really good hoecakes, yeah really good hoecakes before she got on the sauce." He, of course, said this in such a way to make me think it was something terribly dirty and I had to look it up. Now, dear hearts, I'm originally from the South, but I still didn't know this word.

Hoecake: (n) hoecake (thin usually unleavened johnnycake made of cornmeal; originally baked on the blade of a hoe over an open fire (southern))

Recipe for Hoecakes:

1 1/2 c. corn meal
1 c. all-purpose flour
1/4 c. Crisco oil
1 1/4 c. buttermilk
1/3 c. sugar
2 eggs, beaten
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. soda

Combine cornmeal, flour, sugar, salt and soda in medium bowl. Add eggs, oil and buttermilk. Stir just until ingredients are moistened. Pour into heavily oiled skillet 1/4 cup of batter for each hoe cake. Fry over medium-high heat 1 or 2 minutes or until golden brown on each side. Use additional oil if necessary. Drain on paper towels. Serve immediately.

DISCLAIMER: Mr. Fashionista would also like everyone to know that his mother is not and has never been "on the sauce."