Inventive approaches to classics like shrimp gumbo, steak and potato, butternut soup, mushroom risotto, carrot cake... etc.
I feel that it is fair to judge similar caliber restaurants against each other. On the spectrum of avant-garde cuisine, I would have to give kudos to Alinea over Graham Elliot. In the dishes that worked, Grant Achatz was brilliant. That said, where Alinea sometimes stumbled was attempting dishes that were novel for the sole sake of surprising the diner. (Execution without reason, even in the artistic, postmodernist sense, is a flawed trait.)
I thoroughly enjoyed the tasting menu at GE. The courses were still chic, daring, and thoughtful; they prompted us to ask ourselves, "Wow... What exactly am I eating?"
But, after a few more chews... "Oh, I get it."
Unlike our experience with Chef Achatz, Graham Elliot consistently managed to bring the journey full circle. For the undecided, I would recommend GE over Alinea.
My husband took me here on our first wedding anniversary. This was ou first chef style multiple course dining experience. We took the ultimate chef's eperience and they catered to our vegetarian needs. The food was great with amazing flavours that were new to me, but the service was very slow!! We were there for over 3 hours! Overall nice experience, but may not go back considering the time consuming experience and the high expense!
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