However, we still have Tom "The Don" Colicchio to do the culinary establishment proud. Everything he says is spot on. He is principled, knowledgeable, and I hope people learn from what he has to say. Tonight, he gave us the quote of the day, the week, the month, year, fuck...the century:
"I don't think risotto makes a very good garnish. Risotto is a dish all by itself."
With all the food mags and blogs talking about 'trends' for 2009, I only hope to see one trend: going back to basics. Learn how to actually make risotto. Stop serving "sushi" with mango, cream cheese, and other random ingredients that are an utter disrespect to pristine fresh fish. Stop making dishes that are defined by individual components that are no greater than the sum of their parts. We have gotten way ahead of ourselves when it comes to cuisine in this country. Let's slow down, learn, think, and go back to basics.In saying all of this, I am talking about restaurants in general, not Top Chef contestants. Sorry if that wasn't clear. I don't really care about that Top Chef that much!
Sorry if this feels like a diary entry.
10 comments:
Interesting point but I think a lot of what Top Chef is about is competition and trying to prove why you're better than one another. This can often lead to choking on new ideas, poor execution and over the top unnecessary dishes.
dude, youre so right. i hate this years group of "cooks". the only real joy i got out of last nights episode was when toby made the wmd comment, and cat food allusion. best gift i got all holiday season was 2 of those hacks being eliminated.
Hillary - I wasn't very clear in my comment...the second paragraph was loosely linked to the quote, but I was talking about restaurants in general, not Top Chef. There are far too many restaurants serving that kind of food. I'll amend the post to indicate that.
Patrick - seriously. Doesn't it make you want to try out?
Philly rolls are good, Jon. Really.
Ugh. Gross.
Well, not gross. They're edible. But then you're paying for someone to shape some sticky rice in a circle with some clunky ingredients that mask the poor quality of the fish.
Sushi is an art form rooted in tradition. We've completely bastardized it. For a long time, I was part of the problem: I ate sushi from Genuardi's, I went to that all you can eat place on Sproul. I'm done with that now. Join!
I'll join you when my pockets are deeper. I'm going to an All You Can Eat place in a few weeks and I'm really looking forward to it. Btw, it was Scott Young who introduced me to the joys of all you can eat sushi. Blame him.
Heh. My pocket's aren't any deeper than yours. I just cut back sushi intake.
My point is that those places rip American diners off. They play on the fact that Americans are easily wowed by trends and packaging. I'm not saying Masa is the only sushi we should eat, but all you're getting in an AYCE is bad quality fish on densely packed rice. In Japan, sushi chefs train for year just to learn how to pack the rice loosely enough so that it crumbles in your mouth (also why they eat sushi with their hands, not chopsticks). In an AYCE , they pack the rice densely so you'll get full quickly. I'd rather eat 3 tacos and a beer, and save my money.
Hey, I went to AYCE plenty of times. Maybe even with Scott. Now I will repent.
People are easily wowed by trends and packaging. Japanese culture is just as susceptible to those things as American.
Agreed about Top Chef, and I also thought that quote was great. I've used risotto as a side dish type thing before (here), and it just doesn't work well. In addition to the perfect unity of a bowl of risotto, and how using it as a side or garnish destroys that, it also isn't good to eat that way: risotto must be eaten when it's hot, and putting it as a side or garnish with meat on the plate inevitably means no one will eat the risotto first. I wouldn't do it that way again.
However, I'm all for trying new things together, when they don't mask quality ingredients but rather enhances them. Incidentally, I have to yet to go to sushi in SF that I was impressed by. I haven't been to Sebo yet
It just posted my comment before I was done. I don't know what happened.
Anyway, I was going to say I've tried to go to Sebo multiple times, but couldn't get in.
"People are easily wowed by trends and packaging. Japanese culture is just as susceptible to those things as American."
1. Just because some bad things exist in every culture doesn't mean I can't rail about it in mine. I would think that most governments have some degree of corruption, and though our government might not necessarily be the worst, I'm still going to rail against it.
2. This is a food blog. Though the Japanese have a weird fetish with packaging and Hello Kitty and shit like that, I still have far more respect for their food culture. Since that's all I'm concerned with on this blog, I don't think it's ludicrous to say that we have a very short attention span when it comes to food, and that we are easily convinced by flashy packaging. We did invent fast food (the Mickey D's kind) after all. Yes, I'm well aware that fast food is popular abroad too. However, it's not in the same scope as it is here. Go to a small village in Japan, and compare it to the food options here. The Japanese still prefer ramen for lunch instread of BK or KFC.
3. Even if it were the case that the Japanese have the same problems in their food culture, the things that sets us apart is our diversity, which you would think encourages curiosity. Instead, we have found a way to bastardize most 'foreign' food: go to any Chinese restaurant outside of a major Chinese community, or to Taco Bell. I don't go to Japan expecting to eat anything good outside of Japanese food. Same in France (with the exception of falafel!). However, America has the potential to have a great smorgasbord of dining options.
4. When it comes to sushi, which is an art form as much as it is food, I think that sushi makers should be experts at their crafts before trying to reinvent it. I've rarely had the proper rice consistency in the sushi I've tried here, mostly because I think people don't know that this is what sushi is all about.
- I don't mind new combinations, but it's when 'creativity for creativity's sake' drives the culinary process that I wonder if we need to chill out a little and go back to basics. I don't know if you ever went to Farrah Olivia in Alexandria, VA, or Tailor, in NYC, but that's how I felt when I left those places (though desserts at Tailor were great).
- I haven't been to Sebo either. Heard it's pretty good. Like you, I've found sushi options here to be pretty sad (and that's why SF has such a bad reputation for sushi). The only exception to this is random place in Oakland called Ichiro. It's in a slightly sketchy neighborhood, but the fish is excellent and the prices are quite low.
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