I promised I would report on how things went at Per Se
It was flawless. A little puffball with Gruyère, a tiny cornet with poached salmon and crème fraiche. My bouche was amused! The first appetiser: 'Oyster and pearls' – 2 oceanic oysters with sago and caviar which popped extra flavour into the mouth. This I am adding to my last meal wish-list. A perfect pause later, a brick of foie gras terrine on a crunchy pistachio base with apricot jelly on top, mitigating the richness of the foie gras. A delightful fillet of red mullet. A small fillet with no dryness. And pork belly with a sour cherry conserve which cut the intense fat. We then went on to Wagyu beef or carre d'agneau. While our friends sighed over the Wagyu we chose the latter. I can honestly say that this was the single most delicious piece of meat I have ever eaten in my life. What made it so perfect? Believe me, I wish I knew. MOH and I exchanged dreamy looks. A pre-dessert, then Manchego cheese just right, and then a chocolate trio with a brick of parfait with an icing of jelly. I realised something about the meal. It was a symphony, with refrains that came round; a reference to the foie gras in the chocolate dish and others, so that the appearance was harmonious, as were the flavours, as was the service. It seems to me that a meal at Per Se is a piece of divine music and that their aim is to give you harmonious delight. Thank you Per Se. – And even more, thank you to our friends, who treated us to a memorable evening.
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10 Comments:
Thank you, Foodlexi, for the follow-up. You're lucky to have such friends! [And if you're just joining this conversation, Foodlexi's original inquiry about Per Se appeared here: Coming to New York soon - Where do I buy the *best* ingredients?]
Adam Kuban at 10:28AM on 05/23/08
I'm glad they managed to overcome your original reserve about what note they could hit, foodlexi. :) It does sound perfect, indeed. And there is no higher praise when considering that type of dining experience than "flawless", when one considers the choreography involved in producing it.
Interesting (and wonderful) that you felt the meal as a symphony. Very apt.
I usually feel of these sorts of dining experiences as a dance (a joyful one done by someone who can fly of course), and can see the lines of choreography drawn under it all.
And I always think - always - of how intensely the service staff helps deliver this experience. It may start with the food in the kitchen and the chef but the entire thing could go to the dogs without that silent teamwork that places the food before the diner with perfect timing and impeccable attitude (something that can not be taught, exactly, but that must reside within those who carry the love of the food so to speak to the diner's hand).
Great balance/dance of flavors and notes in the meal you described. I wonder if the lamb was pre sale. Could be that the US is producing this now? Worth investigation! :)
Ah well. I'm glad New York did itself proud. :D
Karen Resta at 11:43AM on 05/23/08
Lovely to hear from you Karen, and I am sorry to have been slow posting this. I completely agree with you about great meals. How right you are that great cooking can be wrecked by misjudged delivery, untimely interruptions, the over-reverence with which the food is sometimes proffered. And, on the other hand, pretty average cooking can be greatly enjoyed in good company with willing and enthusiastic serving staff.
More like a dance for me than a symphony was the wonderful and hilarious Fat Duck in the UK. There the focus is definitely the food. It is a piece of theatre, with active performances by staff and chefs to produce something at which you are both a spectator and a participant. If you enter the joke, they love it and the performance becomes more refined and wonderful. But I think I can truly say that Per Se provided the best meal I have ever eaten.
Have a look at http://www.whatamieating.com/?b=1&d=1&t=main&s=egg+cream&r=All
Foodlexi at 2:21PM on 05/23/08
Thanks Adam. I ran out of space to refer to the previous thread. And, boy, am I lucky to have such friends.
I had such a good time in New York - Who couldn't? I photographed some new food items and met yet more enthusiastic food producers. And now I am sitting back at my computer in Cambridge in the UK, with birdsong and blossom and the explosive greens of English May (though I have to say that the greens in the Botanic Gardens in the Bronx a couple of weeks ago took some beating), And you there have amazing birds. Even where we were staying we chanced on a cardinal hopping about. Here all our small brown birds hide in bushes!
Anyway - a huge thank you to all the people who came up with so many wonderful suggestions - and nice to know that I have some left over to visit when I next come - not least Fairway. Can't wait for my next visit.
Foodlexi at 2:30PM on 05/23/08
I am not sure if I should do this, but if any of you who held my hand through the process leading up to my going on the radio are interested to hear it, there is a podcast under "5/9/08 Friday: What Am I Eating?" at this url:
http://www.wpr.org/HereOnEarth/archives.cfm
There are some pretty good other food programmes by Jean Feraca at 'Here on Earth'. I've listened to a handful now, and they are really pretty good.
Special thanks to PerkyMac who suggested hard sweets. I took a handful along and I think you can hear me chomping on them a couple of times. I also had a dreadful cough and managed to turn of my microphone a couple of times *just* in time.
Foodlexi at 2:37PM on 05/23/08
Sounds like a downright poetic experience. Thanks for sharing - you made it entirely clear that Per Se is worth every penny and lives up to its press.
chiff0nade at 2:42PM on 05/23/08
That sounds amazing! Thanks for the report, Foodlexi. I've read a lot of reviews of Per Se, all extolling its virutes, but somehow I'm more inclined to believe someone posting on Serious Eats than a famous critic. (Unless you're a cleverly-disguised Frank Bruni.) Now I'm putting Per Se on my must-try list!
butterface at 9:20PM on 05/23/08
Fascinating interview! You are such a natural with a microphone. Dare I say that you were smoother and more polished than your interviewer? I admit to being a sucker for that beautiful English accent. Your poise and grasp were very professional and fascinating.
Your trip was a rousing success, then? I'm so happy for you. You've come up with quite a challenge for yourself and seem to be on the winning side. I see great things coming of this, in addition to trying anything and everything in the food world. Congrats and keep up the good work!
p.s. How nice of you to think of me and glad my little tip was helpful!
No amusing leftovers??? ;-D
PerkyMac at 10:56PM on 05/23/08
@Butterface - I wish I were a cleverly disguised Frank Bruni as then I would get to eat for a living! Although I suppose I sort of do already....
@ PerkMac - What lovely comments. I knew more about what we were talking about than Jean. I feel for presenters, that they have to brush up and become expert on something overnight. That's why there's so much misreporting I imagine - that they hear some 'punchline' in amidst the serious information and grab at it like a lifeline and then get distracted from the reality of what may be going on. I do know that, on every occasion that I have seen a documentary or heard a radio programme about something I really know about, it is always nonsense.
Anyway, as MOH says, I have a good face for radio!
Foodlexi at 4:50AM on 05/24/08
MOH has just e-mailed me from Japan and I quote:
Although a god quip "MOH, by the way, never said that you have 'a
lovely face for radio'...MOH thinks you have a lovely face ...full stop."
He's coming home tomorrow. Yay. And I shall have to cook him something special......
Foodlexi at 2:14PM on 05/24/08