The French Laundry

All of my adult life i have known of this restaurant tucked away in the gourmand outpost of Yountville, California and known it was celebrated as the best restaurant in the United States. It was warned by our concierge at the very posh club level at the Ritz in San Francisco to not inflate the image and expectations to the point I would be disappointed. I did not have to be warned. I am very objective about all restaurants, and I try, no matter if it is El Bulli or somewhere better, to go in thinking this still has to pass MY test. I did, however expect this restaurant to be near the forefront of my dining experiences.

We had been in Napa for awhile, so we stopped by the Napa Style store to change into our nines, and bumped into Michael Chiarello. Super nice guy, he hollered at us as we walked in, "Hey, You guys want some wine?" We had just been talking about how he probably would not be there. And then not only was he there (at a table for four with three other young food industry professionals) but he wanted to make us feel very welcome. We chatted for 10 minutes off and on, and his wine was the best I had had all day. We drove four blocks to the FL and parked ourselves, then walked through the blue door. Oh that blue door that Chef Keller poses by. Once inside we were immediately shown to our upstairs table, past many empty tables downstairs, a gesture that always makes me feel like a second rate diner. We were seated next to a couple that looked like they had flown in from Tokyo to dine- no I'm serious. After water we were delivered menus, we settled in with champagne, $26 a glass, and it was worth every sweet drop. We were delivered the always present salmon croquette atop a cone. They were divine. My first course was the oysters and pearls. Three small artisanal oysters and a generous portion of fresh beluga caviar from the Caspian Sea. This dish was a wonderful start. The third course was a butter poached lobster tail that was very good. it was served with globe artichokes and piquillo peppers. The 4th course was a fried madara (fish) and was superb. The 5th course was a rabbit loin, it was pretty good. Not nearly as good as the one Charlie Trotter delivered to my table in Chicago, though. My dad had the couer de veau for this course. that is a veal heart for non-francophiles. I do not do organ meat except foie gras, which leads back to course two. (keeping you on your toes, I know) the torchon of moulard duck was absolutely wonderful. It had some Michigan cherries and turnips, with a pine nut nougatine. I guess it was worth the $30 supplement. The only better pate i had eaten was at restaurant gary danko just to the south in fog city. The 6th course was the best. It was a steak from the snake river farm in Idaho that was a cross between Wagyu and western steer. It was only fed grain for the last year of its life instead of the last two years as they do down under. What this did is add the marbling , but not to the point where it took out all of that great domestic flavor that you lose in Kobe and Wagyu. The cross was very innovative and provided a taste nuance that I had never tasted. This dish was excellent x 2. The next course was cheese. It was called lancashire, from England. This is always one of my favorite courses. Kind of a mellowing out of the taste buds to get ready for sweeter dishes. the cheese was served atop a very hot portion of fiber, sorry that's as close as i can get. it was shaved tableside and enjoyed by all. Next a sorbet and finally desert- asian pear with three fried rice balls and a dollop of guanabana sorbet. Jennifer had a chocolate box that was filled with peanut butter filling. The parents had chocolate ribbons. All three were lackluster in my eyes. I'd seen it at Le Bernardin a year earlier. I expected to leave this set of entertainment as seriously spectacular, innovative and awe inspiring. i mean come on, any chef who is any chef has some ties to this place if not being personally reared by Chef Keller.





ok- with all of these dishes being described as excellent, what should I rate this establishment?well well- let me say that The Inn at Little Washington and Per Se beat the pants off this restaurant. The dishes were good, but uninspired (thanks Cathy). The servers were great, but two were easily stumpable. The decor was fresh, but had no personality. And my biggest hope was to meet Chef Keller. abashed- he was on a book tour for 5 weeks. was he though? a clerk at napa style said he saw him the day before- granted he looked somewhat suspect. But even the servers were kind of beat around the bush about this topic. "He's around" were the words used twice, as his dwelling is connected to the restaurant. I badly wanted to meet this man, as i have read so many good things about him and how nice and genuine he is, and how hands-on he is. well he was none of those to me, because he was not there. I am now 0/2 on tries to meet him. Is this restaurant five star, yes. I now need only five more to have eaten at all 17. I am missing the white barn inn, joel rubuchon in vegas, the dos brisas outside Houston, masa, and the dining room in buckhead (I did have breakfast in the restaurant). The FL got beat by the two I mentioned along with Le Bernardin, Alex, Charlie Trotters,and maybe Alinea. It did beat the woodlands (barely), the Georgian Room, the Dining room in san fran, le Bec Fin, and Jean Georges. I only used current five star holders on this list. This restaurant was very very good, but not the best of the best. I'm sure it will evolve back into stellar qualities, but when the chef is away... AE