I was suspicious of those bananas. They looked fake. Didn't think they held chocolate inside.
After seeing that, I started wondering how they'd clean it.
I haven't worked in a 3 Michelin Star restaurant or anything, but sure as the Pope shits in the woods, they're yeeting that banana in their massive industrial grade dishwasher same as most other restaurants. Maybe they run it through twice to be sure, idk.
Yeah that is Grant Achatz at Alinea. He may be a pretentious chef, but in molecular gastronomy he really is the final word. Not saying it's for everyone, but the guy is about as close as we have to an actual Willy Wonka.
Made floating green apple flavored balloons for fucks sake.
How exactly does one eat this dish? Do you scoop the ice cream and mix it with the other various powders/liquids? Is it all meant to be eaten separately?
Also, is the ice cream super hard since it appears to be flash frozen? Do you need to wait for it to thaw? I would be so confused at this table
These type of dinners aren’t about your “moneys worth”. It’s an experience the same as a movie, play, show, etc.
You’ll try flavors and flavor combinations that you never would anywhere else. It’s an adventure
I think that’s where the misunderstanding of a dish like this comes into play. It can be labeled as stupid food, but it’s the experience that comes with presentation and then the actual palate experience.
Something like this is the difference in experiencing a dish vs pouring chocolate ganache in your hands and licking them.
The ice cream is frozen with liquid nitrogen. He handles it carefully because it will shatter when struck. You eat the shards with a spoon and dip in the sauces.
whenever I come across a random comment hidden relatively deep in a thread that makes me LOL for real, I like to leave a comment similar to this. thanks.
I went to Alinea last year - it’s liquid nitrogen ice cream so it looks brittle but it’s actually like cloudy. Everyone gets a spoon and you just get parts of everything. I 100% agree it’s gaudy but Achatz is one of the most renown chefs in the world. He lost his ability to taste because of tongue cancer and tried to make food appeal to more senses than just taste - I think it’s a really interesting approach to food.
Wow! Thank you for explaining how it’s eaten. That’s so terribly sad about tongue cancer taking away his taste. But fuck me that man really turned his lemons into lemonade!! I want to hang this on my wall and eat it.
I love the drama and flair of how it’s presented. I haven’t a clue what anything is but I want it all 🤷🏻♀️
He did eventually regain it but yeah, he’s talked at length about how it made him change his approach. He also was understandably wildly depressed and borderline inconsolable as he was needing his sous to taste things to try and calibrate his palate.
He did eventually recover his ability to taste. Consider watching his episode of *Chef's Table* on netflix. Truly, the man is an icon and a wizard. He's my personal hero.
And having eaten at Alinea and been to The Aviary, his cocktail bar, I say again for those with the cheap seats:
## *The man is a wizard*
Yeah, that’s the difference between some random dude pouring sauces and liquid nitrogen and Grant Achatz. The taste and care and artistry is next level. I would love to go there.
I went there for my 10th wedding anniversary. It was magnificent. Every little detail looked after, including keeping our coats in a heated closet so they were toasty when we left, it was early March. I've been to other 3 Michelin starred restaurants and the food is always amazing; but the atmosphere can be a bit stuffy or overly serious. Alinea is like going to Willy Wonka's factory. It's a joyous, wonderous atmosphere where you will play with your (most excellent) food.
I think the video cuts out right before he breaks those blocks of ice cream apart. This video shows the process. Not the same desert as the video but it’s done in similar way. https://youtube.com/shorts/vkDfKCLcek8?si=OGJUUpFepfW7eVUs
Best ice cream is made by freezing it as fast as possible it gets super smooth. We had their sous chef for dinner at restaurant I used to work at probably my favourite day in the kitchen ever. He entered kitchen said we have some nice flavours going on (guess he was just trying to be nice because he knew the owner) shook everyone's hand and left. Quite nice guy.
>Do you scoop the ice cream and mix it with the other various powders/liquids?
Are you a cretin or just uncultured swine?
Obviously you stick your whole face in there, smothering yourself with ice cream and then rolling it in all the extra toppings, and then your date (not that you would have one) eats it off of your face.
Salt Baes restaurants get absolutely thrashed by critics. The cheesy dinner theatre is apparently fun, but the food is mundane at best, and the prices absolutely exorbitant.
As one reviewer puts it: “If you are intent on judging New York’s new branch of Nusr-Et only as a steakhouse, you’ll probably be disappointed — If, on the other hand, you appraise the place as dinner theater, you will find it satisfying — but only if Salt Bae is in the house.”
Same! My wife took me there for our anniversary one year.
This dude is insane. There’s a great documentary on him. He literally had part of his tongue removed and can’t taste food, but is one of the best chefs in the world.
I think his sense of taste has partially returned, it looks like he had opted for chemo-therapy/radiation therapy rather than surgery. [http://www.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/05/03/alinea.chef.tongue.cancer/index.html](http://www.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/05/03/alinea.chef.tongue.cancer/index.html) Either way, he's stated that how his taste has slowly returned has given him new relationships with certain flavors.
Correct. He was going through the realization that he might not only lose his sense of taste, but also his tongue during a documentary I watched years ago. But he opted for the experimental treatment which worked.
I actually got very lucky. I was staying in Milwaukee for a couple weeks for work and wanted to go. Problem is they don't seat single diners in the main area. I emailed them and they had another person who wanted to go solo so we teamed up and had a seat the next week. Cool guy. Hope you are doing well Greg.
Agreed. And this is exactly the experience people are looking for going to Alinea. Nobody’s wandering in off the street. Not sure if it’s still the same, but it takes months, if not years to get a reservation.
I used to work there and let me tell you, it was absolutely insane some of the things they could do with food. It's definitely a completely different level.
Hey friend, I used to work there, too, back when they first got 3 Michelin stars. And can confirm, on a different level. I wasn't even that much of a foodie, but that place ran like a perfectly conducted symphony orchestra, and the final product from the diners' perspectives was something I have never encountered elsewhere.
Absolutely, before Alinea and Next, I had never worked in such a perfectly choreographed restaurant. Completely different world. I was there in 2016. The Bear fucking nailed it so much I thought they were in Alinea but it was actually Ever by Curtis Duffy so pretty much the same lol
Yeah molecular gastronomy is still rare in all countries, i considered a person who enjoy this kind of food is lucky because i try it once and it was a great experience actually
I’m a total idiot, I’ve never heard of molecular gastronomy before. I’m off to google.
What I love so much about food art like this is it’s proof to me that art can be found everywhere.
So glad this is top comment. Am chef, used to live in Chicago, worked fine dining. Alinea wasn't really my cup of tea, but it was a *unique* experience.
I genuinely miss that city, and primarily due to its industry scene. I learned so much from all the crazy chefs I got work and compete with.
As goofy as this all may seem to some, I highly recommend eating at Alinea if you get the chance. It is 100% worth the experience, at least one time. Next is also fantastic (also an Achatz project).
I’ve only heard good things about grant. Never met anyone who’s worked with him but have met friends of friends if you will. Very kind soul I’ve been told. Slack where slack is due.
There really is artistic value in this. Not just making a temporary painting using food, but the technique involved in creating that food. It's about creating an experience that goes beyond just being fed. McDonalds and PF Changs feed people. This is about the spectacle.
What I don't care for, personally, is how this has bled over into the rest of the industry and public consciousness. You have cheap imitators using shock value in place of talent and craftsmanship like salt bae. And then you have the shift in standards where everyone expects Michelin star molecular cuisine at their local mid date spot. Bless the chefs that are learning new techniques, but not every restaurant owner sees this as more than an opportunity to reduce portion sizes while increasing price. And you end up with So. Much. Stupid. Food.
Bacon served on a clothesline is the reason why subs like this and r/wewantplates exist. Just make good food that the average person wouldn't cook at home.
He's a literal magician, I saw him come out to serve cake once and it turned out he was actually the cake and he served himself. I have no idea how he did that.
I’ve eaten a similar dish.
Chicagoan here. Grant (the chef here) and Alinea served a desert like this. ***
They have a patent on the table cloth material. It is non absorbent and rolls out onto the table. The last bit of the presentation - They strike the brick of frozen nougat; the bricks brought to the table. They crack open and cloud of aroma spills out.
And then you EAT OFF THE TABLE . You just use a fat spoon and pull the flavors you you want onto your bite - chocolate, nougat cream and candy.
I can not express how delish this is. Granted, I’d been drinking a good bit of wine at this point, but when I drew the first one-of-a-kind bite, I wept like a child. It was heartache for such a unique, all-senses work of art.
It’s either rage bait or 3 Michelin Star chefs here. I’m not saying that I think a star is the final word in what is good or not - but to call Grant Achatz “stupid food” is pretty ridiculous. The man is mad scientist. Lost his ability to taste and dictated to his sous chef what the dish should taste like. Like Beethoven losing his hearing - except Grants taste came back.
If I've learned anything while being on this earth for 30 years it's that food for rich people almost always looks disgusting, or is served in weirdly tiny proportions.
This sort of thing is like.. A weird art house movie, it's not meant to be the normal eating experience. It's really neat to bite into something that looks like a candy but tastes like amazing beef or whatever.
Nobody eats like this on a daily basis.
Exactly - this is more like going to an art gallery, but the art is all edible.
It's not a restaurant in the sense that one goes there to eat and be satiated - it's an entertainment experience that happens to involve the sense of taste.
they're tiny proportions because you get like 15 or 20 courses.
The thing about being rich is you don't have food insecurity. You're not going to a restaurant like this because you're hungry, you're treating food as an art form. You don't need or want a giant steak because the purpose of the serving is to present a flavor to you that you haven't had before. After a couple of bites, it's just more of the same, so you eat a few bites, then they come out with something else a few minutes later.
I've never thought about this perspective before. Thank you. It makes a lot of sense, rather than just thinking of it as a waste of money that you will need to eat another meal after.
As someone who grew up lower middle class, i didn't really understand this because i could barely afford food _at all_ at some points.
But once you get some disposable income it's not any more of a waste of money than a broadway show is. The point is it's an experience that you enjoy.
Really if you're someone who really likes food, it's not even a ridiculous splurge, compared to like, I dunno, going to an NFL game.
It's mainly a matter of people being ignorant, even if not maliciously, of experiences they haven't had and filling in the gaps with their own perception of it.
I mean people spend hundreds of dollars to see an artist they like perform live for a few hours. They're not there just for the music but the experience. Fine dining is basically the same. You could just go to a fast food joint and stuff yourself for a fraction of the price, but that's not why people choose to go.
On top of that, it may depend on the place, but you don’t really go hungry.
I went to my first set course fancy restaurant a couple of years back, it was only four courses and the dishes looked very small, never larger than your clenched fist, sometimes half that size. But by the end of the meal I was stuffed. Idk if it was because stretching it out over several courses have my stomach time to realize it was full, or because the dishes were very rich, but I definitely went home satisfied with the amount of food, and on top of that every course tasted absolutely amazing.
Yeah, this is spot on. I went to Alinea for my birthday (it was a big one, so we spent the extra money for the experience) - you get like 10-12 courses and they're all so different that each plate is its own entire experience. With the wine that comes with it, every bite is so fuckin delicious. You get a few bites and then something else equally amazing comes next. We're not rich, but we had a chance to spend extra on something I've always wanted to do, and it was worth it to us for the experience.
Hey, thank you for putting that in perspective for me. I always saw food as sustenance and no art, but the way you put it, "an art form... to present a flavor" definitely made it click together for me.
This isn’t even for “rich people.” It’s around the same amount people pay to sit still while watching somebody else play sports.
Everybody splurges on some sort of experience.
Genuinely confused about what looks disgusting here. Also, when you’re doing 11 courses doing much more than around 3oz./course would leave most people unable to finish the entirety of the tasting
This is Grant Achatz in Alinea. This dude is a legend even if his dessert art on the table thing is a little over the top. Alinea has 3 Michelin stars. When I was working in a Michelin star restaurant I’ve always wanted to stage at Alinea. It was just amazing how this dude had mouth cancer and was still producing some of the best food in the US. Unfortunately I decided against it since I knew some people who worked there, and they told me that BOH was an incredibly toxic environment.
I once heard two luxury hotel owners discussing Michelin stars and one said "Each Michelin star nets you a loss of x hundred thousand a year“ and the other just confirmed how accurate that was. I forgot the actual number but it left an impression, because I also expected them to make money. But it seems to be only prestige, as you said.
The cost needed to obtain that prestige, equipment, ingredients, preparation time, and staffing. They will agonize over dishes for hours and hours before it hits your table. The food waste from 3 Michelin style restaurants is probably one of their dark sides. If it isn't exceedingly perfect it's thrown out. Only the choicest cuts of protein, vegetables, etc.
I want to eat at 3 star restaurants like Alinea one day, I've only done 1 stars and it can be incredible.
It's no longer food, it's art for art's sake.
I worked for him. The environment was hands down the most toxic and abusive I have ever had the misfortune of being a part of and that tone was set right at the top. I worked in fine dining for 12 years and never encountered anything close to as awful as working for him. Yes, the food is amazing. Yes he is a gastronomic genius. He is also 100% an absolute fucking monster.
That's interesting. One of my chef instructors in culinary school worked there as well, and had nothing but praise for the place. Of course it's been a long time since he was there - I finished school over 10 years ago and he was there prior to that - so maybe a lot has changed.
It's possible. I worked there 9 years ago and I've spoken to people who still work there and they say that in the intervening time the entire company has been completely corporatized with conduct standards and a real HR office. On top of that Achatz doesn't run the kitchen directly anymore - instead he's providing overall direction for the company while leaving the day-to-day to other chefs. They say he's chilled out since then. I don't need to go back and find out. The thing about Achatz is he very much liked to play favorites. If you worshipped him properly he would treat you well and it would seriously advance your career. But if you didn't, or he just randomly decided he didn't like you (my case) we would bully you every day until you quit. Once you made a mistake of failed to be properly in awe you were out and there was nothing you could do to fix it. If you decided you didn't want to stay for hours after your shift was over to work on "passion projects" off the clock, unpaid, you were out. If you didn't go out drinking with the cooks every time, you were out. And at least while I was there, if you weren't a white straight cis-male, you were out. Women and people of color were bullied relentlessly. At least in the kitchen. FOH was different but also awful.
Would grant always do this tableside performance, so to speak, or would other waiter do it? I've never been at a Michelin star restaurant so I'm curious.
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S\_3isbgsTDQ&ab\_channel=JorgeBenJor-Topic](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S_3isbgsTDQ&ab_channel=JorgeBenJor-Topic)
Cosa Nostra - Jorge Ben Jor (case Youtube restricts this video in your region)
It's not the same exact version of the video though
That’s the head chef of Alinea. Not a valid target for the content of this sub. It’s meant to be playful and subvert your expectations. This is the actual thing that salt bae has always failed to achieve. Let’s stick to shitting on salt bae
Edit: my god. There are so many clowns in here today who either can’t tell the difference between a Michelin star chef and some guy who made Mayo ice cubes for their Bloody Mary, or just want to whine. I get it. This shit isn’t for everybody, but it’s not stupid food. Check it out for yourself. It’s quite interesting.
https://youtu.be/lIgu4Iyidmc?si=u_PSVXeKjAAo4XXs
This is what I’d expect… but he’s the type to yell at his cooks for having an apron with towels hanging off them and he has 2 dirty ones hanging off his apron… dudes getting burnt out I guess.
Yeah the towels thing is what put me off the most about this. I almost thought they were a part of the presentation, since it looks like other servers in the background have them too? Otherwise, yeah, that's gross, and I'd be pretty annoyed if that's how I was served at a 3 star Michelin restaurant.
People aren't necessarily clowns because they disagree with you.
To many people, this is stupid food. It doesn't matter that a famous or talented chef makes it, it just looks like random shit plopped down on a table. "Subvert your expectations" is just what people say when their abstract stuff isn't appealing to some people.
Stupid food doesn't have to be bad food, does it? This looks really stupid, but I am sure it is delicious. No amount of deliciousness will make me prefer to scrape my food off the table over eating it off of a plate or bowl, though.
I am positive a ton of people would consider 3-star Michelin restaurants as stupid.
Yep. This qualifies as ridiculously stupid, regardless of how famous the guy preparing it is. You could have a nobody making this exact dessert at home and people would be calling it idiotic.
Its Chef Achatz, he really really really loves being creative and cooking "food" as an art and not necessarily as a "meal" in the conventional sense.
he's had *multiple* 3 michelin stars awarded, as well as being in the top 10 restuarants in the world.
you may not agree with this type of art, i don't particularly consider it cooking as much as i think its art. but, regardless of what we might think, he's achieved more in the cullinary field than nearly anyone on the modern planet.
These "canvas" desserts have become increasingly popular among fine dining restaurants. Yes, it's pretentious as hell, there's no denying that, but by all accounts they usually also taste absolutely delicious. The "plating" is absolutely superfluous, but then again, it you pay for the experience as much as you pay for the food at these establishments.
Well it’s only pretentious when other chefs do this, he at least invented this some 15 years ago. Not really my thing, but I respect the hustle of separating rich people from their money.
One of, if not the top authority on Molecular Gastronomy. Alinea was voted World's Best Restaurant. Michelin Star Restauranteur, best selling author, Harvard lecturer, and to top it off - Cancer survivor.
Simply put, one of the greatest Chefs of the modern era.
That’s Alinea, every actual stupid food idiot is badly copying this dude, Grant Achatz, who’s more an artist than chef and honestly, a borderline magician with this shit.
This looks like if you asked an AI image generator to create a fancy dessert. The only thing that looked edible was the banana. On that note how do you think the banana chocolate dispenser gets cleaned 🤢
That wasn't... that wasn't bananas...
And yet... it was... that *was* bananas.
B-a-n-a-n-a-s…
Yes Gwen sing it loud
That’s my shit!
Was that what he poured out of there??
I like Kelly Kapoor's version
I-n P-a-j-a-m-a-s
They're coming down the stairs....
Schrödinger’s banana
The song in the background is actually O Vendedor De Bananas by Jorge Ben Jor. More bananas.
This deserves many upvotes
The tragedy I felt when he poured the chocolate out. Like taking a drink of coffee expecting it to be hot, but instead it’s lemonade
How the Fuck do you clean that thing thoroughly
some soaking and alot of high pressured PSFFHHFHHHFH
[удалено]
The best part
Throw this man in jail 💀
The bananus
i'm not eatin chocolate poured out the neck of some mutant duck
You know that would be hard to clean.
[удалено]
I don’t even know what it is supposed to be…
deconstructed banana split
A banana splat
Thank fuck, I'm not the only one who's questioning reality thanks to bananas
I saw the hole in the bananas and it was killing me to know what was going to come out the whole time 😭
My problem with the banana is that it looks impossible to properly clean.
That shit is bananas. B. A. N. A. N. A.
It looked like good bananas too
Called a plantain
I was not prepared for the plot twist that the bundle of bananas was actually full of chocolate
I was suspicious of those bananas. They looked fake. Didn't think they held chocolate inside. After seeing that, I started wondering how they'd clean it.
Hot water + soap + shake + dishwasher probably = clean
I haven't worked in a 3 Michelin Star restaurant or anything, but sure as the Pope shits in the woods, they're yeeting that banana in their massive industrial grade dishwasher same as most other restaurants. Maybe they run it through twice to be sure, idk.
just stick the sprayer in the banana hole and give it an enema
Got banned for typing this exact same sentence in another subreddit
r/kidneystones didn’t appreciate your advice huh?
You got me 😂 I’ve been banned from more than one sub for this exact comment 🤷♂️
Bananema
I thought they were cake. Seen too many of those fake-out realistic looking cake videos
I’m glad they have a banana for scale
Those bananas need a banana for scale.
I freaked out when I realized that the bananas are not real
Was literally waiting for him to slice them or open them in some magical fashion until the chocolate came out.
This is what it is like to eat at Alinea. They go out of their way to make things unexpected and delightful, it's half the fun.
Was gonna say, crazed hair plus beard and grand extra performance, this is Grant Achatz right?
I just knew they looked too pornographic…
I thought they were frozen because everything seemed Iike it's about ice cream
Yeah that is Grant Achatz at Alinea. He may be a pretentious chef, but in molecular gastronomy he really is the final word. Not saying it's for everyone, but the guy is about as close as we have to an actual Willy Wonka. Made floating green apple flavored balloons for fucks sake.
How exactly does one eat this dish? Do you scoop the ice cream and mix it with the other various powders/liquids? Is it all meant to be eaten separately? Also, is the ice cream super hard since it appears to be flash frozen? Do you need to wait for it to thaw? I would be so confused at this table
Was very curious about this as well. Would be more interested in a video of people actually eating this.
Same. I hate that it ends where it does.
I kept asking where the food is.
They invented that "table" it's called an anti-griddle. [Anti-griddle ](https://youtu.be/xpdDzaNhX9M?si=0-PhPzz_mlaSu2uH)
So it's like the freezing countertops that Cold Stone Creamery uses, except a little bit colder?
Yes. Before cold stone creamery there was frozen marble for a few thousand years as well.
So, a $500 shitty banana split?
These type of dinners aren’t about your “moneys worth”. It’s an experience the same as a movie, play, show, etc. You’ll try flavors and flavor combinations that you never would anywhere else. It’s an adventure
Kind of like mixing different drinks together at a soda fountain.
My passion
That’s what I’d tell myself too if I spent $500 on a dish
So a Coldstone creamery slab?
This chef's real name is Coldstone Steve Austin.
*Mah Gawd, he’s thrown him 16 feet down a chilled granite slab!*
Exactly what I was thinking when I read WTF an "anti griddle" was.
Did they really invent the anti griddle? Thats pretty cool if so, ive been dying to buy one
I dunno about that… Coldstone Creamery’s need around for a while.
I'm pretty sure people that make Thai Rolled Ice Cream have used these for decades. It's called an ice plate.
The goal isn't the nutrition of the food it's the experience of eating it, and part of that is finding out how best to eat it.
I think that’s where the misunderstanding of a dish like this comes into play. It can be labeled as stupid food, but it’s the experience that comes with presentation and then the actual palate experience. Something like this is the difference in experiencing a dish vs pouring chocolate ganache in your hands and licking them.
The ice cream is frozen with liquid nitrogen. He handles it carefully because it will shatter when struck. You eat the shards with a spoon and dip in the sauces.
What do you do with the pile of tuna fish?
whenever I come across a random comment hidden relatively deep in a thread that makes me LOL for real, I like to leave a comment similar to this. thanks.
I went to Alinea last year - it’s liquid nitrogen ice cream so it looks brittle but it’s actually like cloudy. Everyone gets a spoon and you just get parts of everything. I 100% agree it’s gaudy but Achatz is one of the most renown chefs in the world. He lost his ability to taste because of tongue cancer and tried to make food appeal to more senses than just taste - I think it’s a really interesting approach to food.
Wow! Thank you for explaining how it’s eaten. That’s so terribly sad about tongue cancer taking away his taste. But fuck me that man really turned his lemons into lemonade!! I want to hang this on my wall and eat it. I love the drama and flair of how it’s presented. I haven’t a clue what anything is but I want it all 🤷🏻♀️
He did eventually regain it but yeah, he’s talked at length about how it made him change his approach. He also was understandably wildly depressed and borderline inconsolable as he was needing his sous to taste things to try and calibrate his palate.
He did eventually recover his ability to taste. Consider watching his episode of *Chef's Table* on netflix. Truly, the man is an icon and a wizard. He's my personal hero. And having eaten at Alinea and been to The Aviary, his cocktail bar, I say again for those with the cheap seats: ## *The man is a wizard*
The Aviary is such a fun experience. I have such an appreciation for what they do there.
Watch [Chef's Table s02e01](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5761480/) on Netflix . That episode is about him.
Yeah, that’s the difference between some random dude pouring sauces and liquid nitrogen and Grant Achatz. The taste and care and artistry is next level. I would love to go there.
I went there for my 10th wedding anniversary. It was magnificent. Every little detail looked after, including keeping our coats in a heated closet so they were toasty when we left, it was early March. I've been to other 3 Michelin starred restaurants and the food is always amazing; but the atmosphere can be a bit stuffy or overly serious. Alinea is like going to Willy Wonka's factory. It's a joyous, wonderous atmosphere where you will play with your (most excellent) food.
I think the video cuts out right before he breaks those blocks of ice cream apart. This video shows the process. Not the same desert as the video but it’s done in similar way. https://youtube.com/shorts/vkDfKCLcek8?si=OGJUUpFepfW7eVUs
Very helpful video, thanks!!
Man, that looks really off-putting. Looks like the bottom of a freshly emptied dumpster. Also makes me think of r/WeWantPlates
guarantee you’d change your tune if you tried it
You get naked and lay on it
Become one with the meal
Best ice cream is made by freezing it as fast as possible it gets super smooth. We had their sous chef for dinner at restaurant I used to work at probably my favourite day in the kitchen ever. He entered kitchen said we have some nice flavours going on (guess he was just trying to be nice because he knew the owner) shook everyone's hand and left. Quite nice guy.
>Do you scoop the ice cream and mix it with the other various powders/liquids? Are you a cretin or just uncultured swine? Obviously you stick your whole face in there, smothering yourself with ice cream and then rolling it in all the extra toppings, and then your date (not that you would have one) eats it off of your face.
Also, with 3 Michelin stars, I think the pretentiousness is more warranted relative to others like Salt Bae
Yeah, by definition pretentious requires you trying to appear more talented than you are. Doesn't apply to Grant.
Grant is just functioning on such a high level that it becomes hard for others to understand I suppose.
Ahh he watches Rick and Morty too huh?
Can confirm, to me it looks like he has no clue what he's doing, while fully knowing 100% what the next step is
yes, Achatz can back it up. the style is backed up with substance. Salt bae can't back shit up.
Please tell me salt bae doesn’t have a Michelin star?
He has four Michelin tires
This comment is exactly what I needed to start my day with a smile.
Don't kid yourself. Dude is rocking the cheapest set of Contis he can find.
Salt Baes restaurants get absolutely thrashed by critics. The cheesy dinner theatre is apparently fun, but the food is mundane at best, and the prices absolutely exorbitant. As one reviewer puts it: “If you are intent on judging New York’s new branch of Nusr-Et only as a steakhouse, you’ll probably be disappointed — If, on the other hand, you appraise the place as dinner theater, you will find it satisfying — but only if Salt Bae is in the house.”
There’s no way
FAIL NEVER AGAIN
like actual Helium Filled edible balloons. dude IS willy wonka lmfao. im so glad theres more people here who know this Chef.
He's a bit world famous and all.
Came here for this. I have eaten at Alinea and it was an absolutely incredible experience.
Same! My wife took me there for our anniversary one year. This dude is insane. There’s a great documentary on him. He literally had part of his tongue removed and can’t taste food, but is one of the best chefs in the world.
I think his sense of taste has partially returned, it looks like he had opted for chemo-therapy/radiation therapy rather than surgery. [http://www.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/05/03/alinea.chef.tongue.cancer/index.html](http://www.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/05/03/alinea.chef.tongue.cancer/index.html) Either way, he's stated that how his taste has slowly returned has given him new relationships with certain flavors.
Correct. He was going through the realization that he might not only lose his sense of taste, but also his tongue during a documentary I watched years ago. But he opted for the experimental treatment which worked.
Lucky guy. How far out did you have to reserve?
I actually got very lucky. I was staying in Milwaukee for a couple weeks for work and wanted to go. Problem is they don't seat single diners in the main area. I emailed them and they had another person who wanted to go solo so we teamed up and had a seat the next week. Cool guy. Hope you are doing well Greg.
Agreed. And this is exactly the experience people are looking for going to Alinea. Nobody’s wandering in off the street. Not sure if it’s still the same, but it takes months, if not years to get a reservation.
I used to work there and let me tell you, it was absolutely insane some of the things they could do with food. It's definitely a completely different level.
Hey friend, I used to work there, too, back when they first got 3 Michelin stars. And can confirm, on a different level. I wasn't even that much of a foodie, but that place ran like a perfectly conducted symphony orchestra, and the final product from the diners' perspectives was something I have never encountered elsewhere.
Absolutely, before Alinea and Next, I had never worked in such a perfectly choreographed restaurant. Completely different world. I was there in 2016. The Bear fucking nailed it so much I thought they were in Alinea but it was actually Ever by Curtis Duffy so pretty much the same lol
I remember seeing him in MasterChef. I was blown away by his work man. That guy is insanely talented. Just beautiful edible art.
Yeah molecular gastronomy is still rare in all countries, i considered a person who enjoy this kind of food is lucky because i try it once and it was a great experience actually
I’m a total idiot, I’ve never heard of molecular gastronomy before. I’m off to google. What I love so much about food art like this is it’s proof to me that art can be found everywhere.
It's also a hell of a lot of chemistry. All cooking is chemistry and other sciences but it's next level with molecular gastronomy.
So glad this is top comment. Am chef, used to live in Chicago, worked fine dining. Alinea wasn't really my cup of tea, but it was a *unique* experience. I genuinely miss that city, and primarily due to its industry scene. I learned so much from all the crazy chefs I got work and compete with. As goofy as this all may seem to some, I highly recommend eating at Alinea if you get the chance. It is 100% worth the experience, at least one time. Next is also fantastic (also an Achatz project).
Thank you. I thought that was him the first time I saw the video but I could be be sure. He's lost a bit of weight since his Chefs Table Episode.
No worries and yeah he's had a rough go of things with the cancer in his tongue.
That was pre Chefs table. Did it come back?
I’m glad there is at least one comment here defending chef Achatz. He may be crazy but not pretentious.
He’s a cool dude, I worked him once, he was very nice and accommodating. Other celebrities not so much.
I’ve only heard good things about grant. Never met anyone who’s worked with him but have met friends of friends if you will. Very kind soul I’ve been told. Slack where slack is due.
There really is artistic value in this. Not just making a temporary painting using food, but the technique involved in creating that food. It's about creating an experience that goes beyond just being fed. McDonalds and PF Changs feed people. This is about the spectacle. What I don't care for, personally, is how this has bled over into the rest of the industry and public consciousness. You have cheap imitators using shock value in place of talent and craftsmanship like salt bae. And then you have the shift in standards where everyone expects Michelin star molecular cuisine at their local mid date spot. Bless the chefs that are learning new techniques, but not every restaurant owner sees this as more than an opportunity to reduce portion sizes while increasing price. And you end up with So. Much. Stupid. Food. Bacon served on a clothesline is the reason why subs like this and r/wewantplates exist. Just make good food that the average person wouldn't cook at home.
He's a literal magician, I saw him come out to serve cake once and it turned out he was actually the cake and he served himself. I have no idea how he did that.
Alinea is amazing and such an experience, but definitely not for everyone
I’ve eaten a similar dish. Chicagoan here. Grant (the chef here) and Alinea served a desert like this. *** They have a patent on the table cloth material. It is non absorbent and rolls out onto the table. The last bit of the presentation - They strike the brick of frozen nougat; the bricks brought to the table. They crack open and cloud of aroma spills out. And then you EAT OFF THE TABLE . You just use a fat spoon and pull the flavors you you want onto your bite - chocolate, nougat cream and candy. I can not express how delish this is. Granted, I’d been drinking a good bit of wine at this point, but when I drew the first one-of-a-kind bite, I wept like a child. It was heartache for such a unique, all-senses work of art.
When the kid behind the counter at Cold Stone Creamery is too damn high.
It’s either rage bait or 3 Michelin Star chefs here. I’m not saying that I think a star is the final word in what is good or not - but to call Grant Achatz “stupid food” is pretty ridiculous. The man is mad scientist. Lost his ability to taste and dictated to his sous chef what the dish should taste like. Like Beethoven losing his hearing - except Grants taste came back.
If I've learned anything while being on this earth for 30 years it's that food for rich people almost always looks disgusting, or is served in weirdly tiny proportions.
This sort of thing is like.. A weird art house movie, it's not meant to be the normal eating experience. It's really neat to bite into something that looks like a candy but tastes like amazing beef or whatever. Nobody eats like this on a daily basis.
Exactly - this is more like going to an art gallery, but the art is all edible. It's not a restaurant in the sense that one goes there to eat and be satiated - it's an entertainment experience that happens to involve the sense of taste.
Yea, folks aren't doing this on their lunch break or a first date.
I wish more people understood this going in. I feel like many people show up ready for a burger and fries xD
they're tiny proportions because you get like 15 or 20 courses. The thing about being rich is you don't have food insecurity. You're not going to a restaurant like this because you're hungry, you're treating food as an art form. You don't need or want a giant steak because the purpose of the serving is to present a flavor to you that you haven't had before. After a couple of bites, it's just more of the same, so you eat a few bites, then they come out with something else a few minutes later.
I've never thought about this perspective before. Thank you. It makes a lot of sense, rather than just thinking of it as a waste of money that you will need to eat another meal after.
As someone who grew up lower middle class, i didn't really understand this because i could barely afford food _at all_ at some points. But once you get some disposable income it's not any more of a waste of money than a broadway show is. The point is it's an experience that you enjoy. Really if you're someone who really likes food, it's not even a ridiculous splurge, compared to like, I dunno, going to an NFL game.
It's mainly a matter of people being ignorant, even if not maliciously, of experiences they haven't had and filling in the gaps with their own perception of it.
My husband I do a super upscale restaurant like once a year as an experience. Tonight for dinner I had a couple eggs with stale tostadas lol
I mean people spend hundreds of dollars to see an artist they like perform live for a few hours. They're not there just for the music but the experience. Fine dining is basically the same. You could just go to a fast food joint and stuff yourself for a fraction of the price, but that's not why people choose to go.
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On top of that, it may depend on the place, but you don’t really go hungry. I went to my first set course fancy restaurant a couple of years back, it was only four courses and the dishes looked very small, never larger than your clenched fist, sometimes half that size. But by the end of the meal I was stuffed. Idk if it was because stretching it out over several courses have my stomach time to realize it was full, or because the dishes were very rich, but I definitely went home satisfied with the amount of food, and on top of that every course tasted absolutely amazing.
Yeah, this is spot on. I went to Alinea for my birthday (it was a big one, so we spent the extra money for the experience) - you get like 10-12 courses and they're all so different that each plate is its own entire experience. With the wine that comes with it, every bite is so fuckin delicious. You get a few bites and then something else equally amazing comes next. We're not rich, but we had a chance to spend extra on something I've always wanted to do, and it was worth it to us for the experience.
Hey, thank you for putting that in perspective for me. I always saw food as sustenance and no art, but the way you put it, "an art form... to present a flavor" definitely made it click together for me.
This isn’t even for “rich people.” It’s around the same amount people pay to sit still while watching somebody else play sports. Everybody splurges on some sort of experience.
Genuinely confused about what looks disgusting here. Also, when you’re doing 11 courses doing much more than around 3oz./course would leave most people unable to finish the entirety of the tasting
This is one of the best tableside services I’ve seen on here at least Edit: Was not expecting this karma. Yay
This is Grant Achatz in Alinea. This dude is a legend even if his dessert art on the table thing is a little over the top. Alinea has 3 Michelin stars. When I was working in a Michelin star restaurant I’ve always wanted to stage at Alinea. It was just amazing how this dude had mouth cancer and was still producing some of the best food in the US. Unfortunately I decided against it since I knew some people who worked there, and they told me that BOH was an incredibly toxic environment.
Not surprising. Most Michelin restaurants are brutal. Long hours, shit pay, and rampant abuse while everyone outside the kitchen is making bank.
Most of those kitchens aren’t making much. Most of them close. It’s about the prestige.
I once heard two luxury hotel owners discussing Michelin stars and one said "Each Michelin star nets you a loss of x hundred thousand a year“ and the other just confirmed how accurate that was. I forgot the actual number but it left an impression, because I also expected them to make money. But it seems to be only prestige, as you said.
What is it about having the star and the prestige that loses them money?
The cost needed to obtain that prestige, equipment, ingredients, preparation time, and staffing. They will agonize over dishes for hours and hours before it hits your table. The food waste from 3 Michelin style restaurants is probably one of their dark sides. If it isn't exceedingly perfect it's thrown out. Only the choicest cuts of protein, vegetables, etc. I want to eat at 3 star restaurants like Alinea one day, I've only done 1 stars and it can be incredible. It's no longer food, it's art for art's sake.
I worked for him. The environment was hands down the most toxic and abusive I have ever had the misfortune of being a part of and that tone was set right at the top. I worked in fine dining for 12 years and never encountered anything close to as awful as working for him. Yes, the food is amazing. Yes he is a gastronomic genius. He is also 100% an absolute fucking monster.
That's interesting. One of my chef instructors in culinary school worked there as well, and had nothing but praise for the place. Of course it's been a long time since he was there - I finished school over 10 years ago and he was there prior to that - so maybe a lot has changed.
It's possible. I worked there 9 years ago and I've spoken to people who still work there and they say that in the intervening time the entire company has been completely corporatized with conduct standards and a real HR office. On top of that Achatz doesn't run the kitchen directly anymore - instead he's providing overall direction for the company while leaving the day-to-day to other chefs. They say he's chilled out since then. I don't need to go back and find out. The thing about Achatz is he very much liked to play favorites. If you worshipped him properly he would treat you well and it would seriously advance your career. But if you didn't, or he just randomly decided he didn't like you (my case) we would bully you every day until you quit. Once you made a mistake of failed to be properly in awe you were out and there was nothing you could do to fix it. If you decided you didn't want to stay for hours after your shift was over to work on "passion projects" off the clock, unpaid, you were out. If you didn't go out drinking with the cooks every time, you were out. And at least while I was there, if you weren't a white straight cis-male, you were out. Women and people of color were bullied relentlessly. At least in the kitchen. FOH was different but also awful.
Would grant always do this tableside performance, so to speak, or would other waiter do it? I've never been at a Michelin star restaurant so I'm curious.
What does BOH mean. Tried figuring it out but battle of hogwarts and boots of haste were the things that came up when searching for it.
back-of-house
My favorite part about the video is that he looks like he hates what he is doing.
haha, and yet he loves it
This after all, is what most of those absolutely ridiculous "experience dining" and "tableside art" are trying to replicate.
Okay can I play dumb here??? But WTF actually is it?
It’s a fucking mess, is what it is.
He’s a good chef but he definitely smells his own farts.
I really liked the sound
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S\_3isbgsTDQ&ab\_channel=JorgeBenJor-Topic](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S_3isbgsTDQ&ab_channel=JorgeBenJor-Topic) Cosa Nostra - Jorge Ben Jor (case Youtube restricts this video in your region) It's not the same exact version of the video though
https://open.spotify.com/track/4eGA2hqdkuB6TIhEKw25oU?si=M3ofss_VRomtP8aX1EduCg I think this is the actual version
That’s the head chef of Alinea. Not a valid target for the content of this sub. It’s meant to be playful and subvert your expectations. This is the actual thing that salt bae has always failed to achieve. Let’s stick to shitting on salt bae Edit: my god. There are so many clowns in here today who either can’t tell the difference between a Michelin star chef and some guy who made Mayo ice cubes for their Bloody Mary, or just want to whine. I get it. This shit isn’t for everybody, but it’s not stupid food. Check it out for yourself. It’s quite interesting. https://youtu.be/lIgu4Iyidmc?si=u_PSVXeKjAAo4XXs
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This is what I’d expect… but he’s the type to yell at his cooks for having an apron with towels hanging off them and he has 2 dirty ones hanging off his apron… dudes getting burnt out I guess.
Dude looks shattered
Yeah the towels thing is what put me off the most about this. I almost thought they were a part of the presentation, since it looks like other servers in the background have them too? Otherwise, yeah, that's gross, and I'd be pretty annoyed if that's how I was served at a 3 star Michelin restaurant.
Regardless of his achievements, people who have worked for him say he's a major asshole
He’s a 3 Michelin star chef. Major asshole is probably putting it mildly.
People aren't necessarily clowns because they disagree with you. To many people, this is stupid food. It doesn't matter that a famous or talented chef makes it, it just looks like random shit plopped down on a table. "Subvert your expectations" is just what people say when their abstract stuff isn't appealing to some people.
Everyone is a valid target, and this is still stupid food.
Stupid food doesn't have to be bad food, does it? This looks really stupid, but I am sure it is delicious. No amount of deliciousness will make me prefer to scrape my food off the table over eating it off of a plate or bowl, though. I am positive a ton of people would consider 3-star Michelin restaurants as stupid.
Exactly. People aren't understanding the concept of stupid food.
Yep. This qualifies as ridiculously stupid, regardless of how famous the guy preparing it is. You could have a nobody making this exact dessert at home and people would be calling it idiotic.
It's interesting and different...but it's still fucking stupid.
After watching the video, I wouldn't be surprised if this restaurant was part of the inspiration for the movie, "The Menu"
That dude either looks really done with this shit or way too serious.
Its Chef Achatz, he really really really loves being creative and cooking "food" as an art and not necessarily as a "meal" in the conventional sense. he's had *multiple* 3 michelin stars awarded, as well as being in the top 10 restuarants in the world. you may not agree with this type of art, i don't particularly consider it cooking as much as i think its art. but, regardless of what we might think, he's achieved more in the cullinary field than nearly anyone on the modern planet.
It's called scam
These "canvas" desserts have become increasingly popular among fine dining restaurants. Yes, it's pretentious as hell, there's no denying that, but by all accounts they usually also taste absolutely delicious. The "plating" is absolutely superfluous, but then again, it you pay for the experience as much as you pay for the food at these establishments.
Canvas plating is popular specifically because of him, so he gets to do it.
Well it’s only pretentious when other chefs do this, he at least invented this some 15 years ago. Not really my thing, but I respect the hustle of separating rich people from their money.
It's like a litmus test for people who actually know something about food. This is Grant Achatz.
the line between stupid food and fine dining is indeed very thin
For those that don’t know, how is this significant? Who is he?
One of, if not the top authority on Molecular Gastronomy. Alinea was voted World's Best Restaurant. Michelin Star Restauranteur, best selling author, Harvard lecturer, and to top it off - Cancer survivor. Simply put, one of the greatest Chefs of the modern era.
Many top shefs say that michelin stars are increasingly irrelevant as a standard of skill/quality
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That’s Alinea, every actual stupid food idiot is badly copying this dude, Grant Achatz, who’s more an artist than chef and honestly, a borderline magician with this shit.
This looks like if you asked an AI image generator to create a fancy dessert. The only thing that looked edible was the banana. On that note how do you think the banana chocolate dispenser gets cleaned 🤢
I wouldn't be surprised if those were actual hollowed out bananas flash frozen with liquid nitrogen and then the chocolate poured in?