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IN THIS ISSUE NOW'S THE BEST TIME TO VISIT NANTUCKET PART ONE By John Mariani WHAT IS BON APPETIT MAGAZINE TRYING TO SELL US? By John Mariani NEW YORK CORNER REGENCY BAR & GRILL By John Mariani NOTES FROM THE WINE CELLAR WHAT I'M DRINKING THIS SUMMER By John Mariani ❖❖❖ NOW'S THE BEST TIME TO VISIT NANTUCKET Part One By John Mariani
“Ant-hill in
the sea,” Herman Melville called it.
The Wauwinet is located at 120 Wauwinet Rd; 508-228-8768. Breakfast, lunch and dinner daily. Sunday brunch.
.
Oddly enough, it’s tough to
find really good restaurants on the Nantucket
seaside, but Cru
(below) is
easily the best. It’s always jammed and
managing partner Jane Stoddard is always there to
direct an amiable crew on how best to appeal to a
casual, hungry crowd willing to splurge on a bottle
of Champagne.
Cru is located at 1 Straight Wharf; 508-228-9278; Open for lunch and dinner daily.
Possibly
the most evocative meal I had on a summer’s evening
was at the renowned American Seasons, (left) whose
dining rooms, both inside and out, pretty much nail
down the word “cozy” to a tee. But it’s a very
well wrought coziness, via lighting at its most
romantic, slatted ceiling, bare tables, candles in
wind funnels, and nature murals of more than a
little interest, as is the menu, which is definitely
not traditional Nantucket.
American
Seasons
is located at 80 Center St; 508-228-7111. Dinner
nightly.
Part Two of this article will appear August 31.
❖❖❖ WHAT IS BON APPÉTIT MAGAZINE TRYING TO SELL US? By John Mariani Is this a Bon Appetit food critic? The announcement of the 50 nominees for the best restaurants of 2014 in Bon Appétit magazine is, not for the first time, cause for gourmets, gastronomes, connoisseurs and foodies to scratch their heads in wondering what the magazine is trying to tell--or sell--us about the state of dining out in America. And what it tells us is that, unless yours is a restaurant that is very edgy, cheaply decorated in worn-out clichés, often highly uncomfortable, and largely ego driven, you haven’t a chance of getting onto such a list. Now, let me say straight away and loudly--and I will repeat this throughout this article: I am in no way criticizing the food in these restaurants, largely because I have not eaten in every one. I have, however, dined in many of them, lavished praise on several, and put some of these same restos on my own list of Esquire’s Best New Restaurants in America. No one has more respect than I do for the hard work and creativity that goes into opening and maintaining a restaurant in America these days. Nor am I questioning the taste of the Bon Appétit writers who searched far and wide, at some expense, for their nominees. What I am questioning is what clearly appears to be an attitude problem here, one that glorifies novelty, youth, eccentricity and hipsterism for their own sake, while ignoring the excellence of those veteran restaurateurs who still believe in setting a good table, offering unique design and décor--often to the tune of millions of dollars--pouring significant capital into an enduring wine list of depth and breadth, hiring a chef who deserves to be paid top dollar for his experience and ability to run a professional kitchen, a service staff that sees to every aspect of their clientele’s comfort, then charges a fair price for the quality level of the entire dining experience. Walk into any of BA’s nominated restos and you won’t find any décor by Adam Tihany or David Rockwell. In most you won’t find widely separated tables--forget entirely about now anathema tablecloths!--or fine china and silverware. You won’t find a pleasingly dressed wait staff. Instead, you will find a banality of design clichés--exposed brick and duct work, hanging exposed light bulbs, antique tiles, salvaged wood, old counter stools--that were new-ish ideas a decade ago. You’ll find cramped quarters, diner counters with backless stools that don't spin, ear-splitting noise, crappy music, hour-long waits, no-reservations policies, a wine stock made to last no more than a month, and a staff, however amiable, wearing whatever they felt like that morning. And that's what you're paying top dollar for. The argument goes that one shouldn’t care about any of that if the food is "freaking" good. And, again: I am in no way criticizing the food in these restaurants, although, perusing many of the menus from the list, I have to wonder if those with three items as main courses, one of them a salad, another a hamburger, really rise to the ideal of “best.” Maurice in Portland, OR, is a bakeshop and luncheonette; Thai-Kun (right) in Austin is a food court; Palace Diner (below) is, well, a diner; Rose’s Meat Market & Sweet Shop (above) in Durham, NC, is a sandwich spot--“not actually a restaurant,” says BA--The London Plane in Seattle is a grocery with lunch items. Do these really qualify as candidates for the best restaurants of 2014? Yet you’ll pay as much or only slightly less for the food at these places as you would at a restaurant that spent heavily on décor, staff, kitchen and amenities, often in very high-rent neighborhoods. For instance, BA’s choice of Coltivare Pizza & Garden in Houston (which takes no reservations) charges $30 for pork with creamer peas, corn, tomato broth and peaches. Odd Duck in Austin charges $41 for lamb shoulder with chickpeas, yogurt and naan. At High Street Market in Philadelphia, with its coffee shop booths and backless stools, you’ll pay $22 for tortelloni with asparagus, guanciale and vegetable ragôut. The $10 dessert is now ubiquitous. These prices are high, and included in them may be cheap wine glasses or Mason jars, paper napkins, tin ware, mismatched china, Formica tabletops, dime store salt and pepper shakers, a single washroom for both sexes, and nothing to buffer the noise. Quaint and casual shouldn't cost so damn much. Yet the same people who rave over High Street Market's $22 tortelloni balk at paying $25 for the tortelloni with robiola, mascarpone, asparagus and basil at the very elegant Ristorante Morini in NYC, or the risotto with imported scallops, shrimp, lobster, clams, cuttlefish and octopus for $24 while lounging in a cabana at the very posh Bartolotta in Las Vegas (below). These large restaurants, by the way, are as jammed as any on BA’s list of places with six stools. What BA is pushing is an agenda that insists fine dining is either dead, no fun or simply transformed into anything at all as long as it tastes "freaking" good. One has to wonder if the words “fine,” “refinement” and “exquisite” mean more to BA’s writers than their overuse of worn-out phrases like “really tasty,” “seriously delicious,” “outrageously delicious,” “heavy on indulgence, luxury, and--of course--deliciousness,” “the whole experience is a trip,” “beyond satisfying,” “as right now as it gets,” “couldn't feel more of the moment,” “awesome cocktails,” “watch the chefs do their thing” and “manages to marry sophisticated techniques with a dorm-room stoner's idea of flat-out deliciousness.” They sound like what you might have read in The Village Voice back in 1968. Such hipster prose is hardly surprising since, as the director of one city’s tourist board told me, “The Bon Appetit writer who came to town told me he didn't want to eat anywhere the chef didn’t have tattoos.” I don't think he was kidding. Indeed, it appears that if a restaurant has any pretensions at all to elegance, subtlety, refined and beautiful design, an experienced staff and a great wine list, BA has next to no interest in it. Where are superb new restaurants like NYC’s Bâtard, Rôtisserie Georgette and Beautique (below), where the staff is in designer outfits, the china is by Vera Wang and the seat fabrics by Jean-Paul Gaultier? Fiola Mare in DC, which has a glass wall and verandah over the Potomac, gorgeous marble bar, roomy banquettes, and tufted, turning stools with backs? Marti’s in New Orleans, with its historic murals, swag curtains and exquisite chandeliers? St. Cecilia in Atlanta, with soaring ceilings, gorgeous leather booths, and first-rate wine list? They likely were not considered because they don’t fit the funky cool mold. Even "casual chic" has become a suspect term. True, you can't eat the furniture but dining in such places is not an ordeal and you pay accordingly for the fine cuisine and decor, as you would for a Zegna suit or Ferragamo loafers. The BA restaurants are more the equivalent of $300 blue jeans. Also surprising is that so many of Bon Appetit’s candidates for Best New Restaurants of 2014 actually opened way more than a year ago, including Serpico in Philadelphia, Trois Mec in L.A., Sir and Star in Olema, CA, Uncle Boons in NYC, Ribelle in Brookline, MA, Gunshow in Atlanta, and others. So, why they are being considered for 2014 is a puzzle? Once again: I am in no way criticizing the food in these restaurants. I applaud them all and hope you try them out. But the problem with BA’s list is that it is so lopsided. However seriously one wants to take the Michelin Guides or the controversial Restaurant magazine awards, the number of jam-packed, very high-end, highly creative, innovative and well designed dining rooms run by some of the great master chefs on the planet on those lists make it obvious that such restaurants are far from moribund and cannot be ignored, unless one’s purpose is to deny that they have anything to do with that empty phrase “the way we eat today,” which actually means, “the way our editors ate last month.” Apparently "we" does not include those people who pack restaurants like The French Laundry in Yountville, CA; Blue Hill at Stone Barns in Tarrytown, NY; Tony's in Houston; and Joël Robuchon in Las Vegas. To consider for inclusion only restaurants--even those that are “not actually a restaurant”--with a hipster edge and to sniff at all else is like a theater critic reviewing only Off Broadway shows, a film critic only indie productions, a music critic only hip hop, or an automotive critic only compact cars. There’s plenty to love among such enterprises, but they are not the whole story of what goes on in those worlds. Apparently, BA editors think only their restaurant choices are. ❖❖❖ NEW YORK
CORNER
By John Mariani REGENCY
Loews Regency Hotel 540 Park Avenue (at 61st Street) 212-339-4050 regencybarandgrill.com
The re-opening of the
Loews Regency Bar & Grill is occasion to
applaud, but not
because it has now filled the void it left upon
closing for the Power Breakfast crowd that used to
fill it every weekday morning. So, let the honchos claim their spot at breakfast. I’ll go back for the food and wine at dinner. One caveat, the major misfire at the restaurant when I visited two weeks ago was a slack staff that seemed far more interested in re-setting tables than paying attention to guests. But then, I’m not Reverend Al.
Breakfast: 7-11:30 a.m. Lunch: 11:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Afternoon tea: 3:30-5:30 p.m. Dinner: 5:30–11 p.m.
. ❖❖❖ NOTES
FROM THE WINE CELLAR
WHAT I'M DRINKING THIS SUMMER By John Mariani Having had
the most beautiful New York summer of my life, I
have put away all
thoughts about warm weather wines versus cold
weather wines--in itself a
rather useless pursuit--and just pluck wines from my
cellar or at a restaurant
to go with whatever I am eating. Here
are several I have been enjoying immensely this
month.
2005 Domaine Chevalier Père et Fils Corton Rognet ($110) - For those who cannot bring themselves to lay out exorbitant money for a first-rate red Burgundy, this may be a more moderate option. The vineyard, near Aloxe-Corton and Corton Charlemagne, produces a wine with typical Burgundy finesse in a somewhat lighter style, and the 2005, if you can still find it, has evolved beautifully to a maturity that makes it a wonderful wine with poultry or game. 2011 Patrick Javillier ‘Les Tillets” Meursault ($50) - Most of this domaine’s wines are Chardonnay and Javillier is one of the finest producers, a believer that longer time on the lees produces more character, and this beauty can only get better over the next five years. But its honeyed hints and its superb aromatics make it well worth drinking right now with any seafood, not least one in a rich butter-based French sauce. Les Tillets, by the way, refers to a medieval lime tree. 2011 Benjamin Leroux Clos de la Cave des Ducs Volnay Premier Cru ($100) -Volnays are iffy wines from the Côte de Beaune, so it’s important to know the producer. Its reds are light in color, but this Premier Cru shows the wine at its best. The vineyard is managed biodynamically and the terroir of the small estate shows in its richness, power and mineral strength. It is still developing and should emerge in a couple of years as a grand expression of Volnay. 2012 Isole e Olena Collezione Privata Chardonnay ($38) - Not all Italian chardonnays hit the high notes of Angelo Gaja’s masterpieces, but this far more modestly priced example gives a lot of pleasure for the money. The name refers to two estates owned by the De Marchi family in Tuscany, and, while better known for their Chiantis, they produce this fine, lush white wine whose grapes receive a great deal of sun and are harvested fairly late. 2013 Franciscan Estate Napa Valley Sauvignon Blanc ($17-$20) - There are no more than a handful of California Sauvignon Blancs I care to drink because too many are cloyingly grassy and too floral. This fresh entry is, however, much closer to a crisp Sancerre while still showing off its bold California grip on the palate. No color to speak of, but the flavors are all arrayed in a charming balance of fruit and minerals. And the alcohol level at 13% is totally sensible for a white wine. 2010 Williamsburg Winery Adagio ($72) - This price tag for a wine made in Virginia may put some people off, but it is a very good and very persuasive argument that the state’s wines now demand respect. This is a Bordeaux blend of 42% Cabernet Franc, 30% Merlot and 28% Petit Verdot--no Cabernet Sauvignon--yet it has enormous depth and complexity picked up from 18 months in oak, and the winery’s keeping the alcohol down to 13% is much to be applauded. ❖❖❖
Physicist
Manuel Linares has created an ice cream that changes
color as you eat it, made from "entirely natural
ingredients."
WHY THERE'LL
ALWAYS BE AN IRELAND
❖❖❖
Wine Column Sponsored by Banfi Vintners
The Man in
the Window Christian Scrinzi know where he stands. ❖❖❖
Any of John Mariani's
books below may be ordered from amazon.com.
❖❖❖
FEATURED
LINKS: I am happy to report
that the Virtual
Gourmet is linked to four excellent
travel sites: Everett Potter's Travel Report: I consider this the best and
savviest blog of its kind on the web. Potter is a
columnist for USA
Weekend, Diversion, Laptop and Luxury Spa Finder,
a contributing editor for Ski and a frequent contributor
to National
Geographic Traveler, ForbesTraveler.com
and Elle Decor.
"I’ve designed this site is for people who take
their travel seriously," says Potter. "For
travelers who want to learn about special places
but don’t necessarily want to pay through the nose for
the privilege of staying there. Because at the end
of the day, it’s not so much about five-star
places as five-star experiences." THIS WEEK: 5
MYTHS ABOUT AIR MARSHALLS
Eating Las Vegas is the new on-line site for Virtual Gourmet contributor John A. Curtas., who since 1995 has been commenting on the Las Vegas food scene and reviewing restaurants for Nevada Public Radio. He is also the restaurant critic for KLAS TV, Channel 8 in Las Vegas, and his past reviews can be accessed at KNPR.org. Click on the logo below to go directly to his site.
Tennis Resorts Online: A Critical Guide to the World's Best Tennis Resorts and Tennis Camps, published by ROGER COX, who has spent more than two decades writing about tennis travel, including a 17-year stretch for Tennis magazine. He has also written for Arthur Frommer's Budget Travel, New York Magazine, Travel & Leisure, Esquire, Money, USTA Magazine, Men's Journal, and The Robb Report. He has authored two books-The World's Best Tennis Vacations (Stephen Greene Press/Viking Penguin, 1990) and The Best Places to Stay in the Rockies (Houghton Mifflin, 1992 & 1994), and the Melbourne (Australia) chapter to the Wall Street Journal Business Guide to Cities of the Pacific Rim (Fodor's Travel Guides, 1991).
MARIANI'S VIRTUAL GOURMET
NEWSLETTER is published weekly. Editor/Publisher: John
Mariani.
Editor: Walter Bagley. Contributing Writers: Christopher Mariani,
Robert Mariani, John A.
Curtas, Edward Brivio, Mort Hochstein, Andrew Chalk,
and Brian Freedman. Contributing
Photographers: Galina Stepanoff-Dargery,
Bobby Pirillo. Technical Advisor: Gerry McLoughlin.
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