tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19908578.post115999754900014326..comments2023-10-19T12:04:32.971-07:00Comments on The Finicky Lawyer: French Laundry RevisitedFinickyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07515169554765172390noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19908578.post-37753492006715959602007-01-21T12:56:00.000-08:002007-01-21T12:56:00.000-08:00Ah ha - another lawyer food blogger! I suspect my...Ah ha - another lawyer food blogger! I suspect my job might be just a leetle bit less heinous than yours - I work at the State AG's office (shhh, don't tell anyone!) but it's still work. I find food blogging a very pleasant diversion and I think you will to. I come to the Bay Area pretty often (I lived there for a few years, though I'm a San Diego native and am back here now) so SF blogs and restaurant news always interest me. I will be checking back in!Alice Q. Foodiehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13477466400681164056noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19908578.post-1160013223442754222006-10-04T18:53:00.000-07:002006-10-04T18:53:00.000-07:00It's difficult to compare with a six-year old memo...It's difficult to compare with a six-year old memory, which is why I kept going back to my experience at Per Se five months ago, which really was perfection from beginning to end. I also think that our collective impressions are colored by the fact that restaurants generally, and particularly in the San Francisco Bay Area, have gotten progressively more sophisticated and better overall. It is much harder to be an elite establishment now, sort of like the first time a figure skater executed a triple axel in competition versus the present when only a quad would impress. I thought my latest French Laundry experience was quite lovely, but Per Se was better.<BR/><BR/>With respect to the wine issue, I should explain better. I am a bit of a wannabe wine geek, and as much as our server tried to help, in the end, he had to solicit the help of the sommelier to fully respond to my detailed questions. Had I not been compelled to read the wine list from cover to cover first and interrogate our server before arriving at a decision, we most likely would not have had to do without for two courses.<BR/><BR/>French Laundry continues to be the restaurant that chefs around the country aspire to be, and that can only mean better and better food. That makes me happy. While I wish it cost less, from a personal credit card standpoint, it is still much less expensive than a night at an exclusive hotel, cheaper than some bottles of wine, and for me personally, the mental equivalent of a vacation.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19908578.post-1160005809284907502006-10-04T16:50:00.000-07:002006-10-04T16:50:00.000-07:00Interesting review. How did you think TFL compare...Interesting review. How did you think TFL compared to your first visit six years ago? My first visit was in 2000 as well, and I'm convinced that -- over the course of multiple visits scattered over the intervening years -- the restaurant has progressively slipped. It's still outstanding, of course, and probably a bit better than its nearest local rivals. But the service is not what it once was, and some of the courses are not quite as spectacular as <I>all</I> of them used to be. <BR/><BR/>Interestingly, both of my criticisms seem to be supported by your review. The fact that you had to endure two courses without a beverage, for example, is not nitpicky in my book -- it's inexcusable at a restaurant of this caliber, particularly when it's charging $210 per person. But perhaps that's just me...NShttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08077372590229656066noreply@blogger.com