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The wife and I tried a Michelin Star restaurant, along with some restaurants in Toronto without the star, but with tasting menus. I can mirror the sentiment fr

The wife and I tried a Michelin Star restaurant, along with some restaurants in Toronto without the star, but with tasting menus. I can mirror the sentiment from this article. Tasting menus are absolutely phenomenal, and worth the money, though of course I couldn't afford to have that every single day. The idea of paying good money to a chef so they they can thoughtfully procure food instead of buying slabs of meat in bulk, and prepare it in such a way as to arouse the senses, is not really that wild of an idea (perhaps paying a multiple of a standard meal would be offensive to some, I get that.) My only criticism is that while the food is frickin' amazing, you only get one bite of it, per dish. Maybe two. Maybe that's part of the appeal.

jonny_eh 5y ago
> you only get one bite of it, per dish I suppose that gets you to savour it?
- vmception 5y ago
  At the famous El Bulli, there was speculation and accusation that they were using toxins and poisons. Vigorously denied of course, but perhaps the small sizes allowed for this level of discretion. When I read in this article that the author was for sure they weren't using magic mushrooms or some other kind that would cause a more immediate effect, I was thinking “for suuuuure?” I’ll allow it
- munificent 5y ago
  "gets you to" has a negative connotation. I think a better way to say it is that it helps you appreciate the large number of courses without getting stuffed or having your senses exhausted. Imagine going to a concert where the band says they are going to play their entire catalog front to back. If you're about to listen to 50 songs, you probably don't want them to also play the extended versions of each one at full blast if you have any hopes of making it through the show.
Mikeb85 5y ago
> My only criticism is that while the food is frickin' amazing, you only get one bite of it, per dish. Maybe two. Maybe that's part of the appeal. I mean, there's a limit to how much you can eat before you start feeling bloated and over-full. More food per course = less courses. Lots of Michelin starred restaurants in Europe offer tasting menus + a la carte menu (ie. menu where you can choose items) with larger portions. In North America though, most high-end restaurants do one or the other.

jonny_eh 5y ago

> you only get one bite of it, per dish I suppose that gets you to savour it?

vmception 5y ago
At the famous El Bulli, there was speculation and accusation that they were using toxins and poisons. Vigorously denied of course, but perhaps the small sizes allowed for this level of discretion. When I read in this article that the author was for sure they weren't using magic mushrooms or some other kind that would cause a more immediate effect, I was thinking “for suuuuure?” I’ll allow it
munificent 5y ago
"gets you to" has a negative connotation. I think a better way to say it is that it helps you appreciate the large number of courses without getting stuffed or having your senses exhausted. Imagine going to a concert where the band says they are going to play their entire catalog front to back. If you're about to listen to 50 songs, you probably don't want them to also play the extended versions of each one at full blast if you have any hopes of making it through the show.

Mikeb85 5y ago

> My only criticism is that while the food is frickin' amazing, you only get one bite of it, per dish. Maybe two. Maybe that's part of the appeal. I mean, there's a limit to how much you can eat before you start feeling bloated and over-full. More food per course = less courses. Lots of Michelin starred restaurants in Europe offer tasting menus + a la carte menu (ie. menu where you can choose items) with larger portions. In North America though, most high-end restaurants do one or the other.