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 Post subject: Topolobampo!!! Alinea!!!!!!!!!!!!!
PostPosted: Tue Feb 03, 2015 10:26 am 
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Joined: Sat Dec 20, 2008 5:35 am
Posts: 2305
Location: Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada
For a 'forbidden' Christmas gift, my wife kidnapped me to Chicago, IN JANUARY!, to visit these 2 FINE restaurants - each was wonderful in entirely different ways.

Topolobampo is Rick Bayless's highest end Mexican restaurant: great food, very unique & delicious, with excellent service and quantities large enough that we kept downsizing our order from the 7 tastings to 5 to 3! I grew up in southern California, lots of Mexican friends and meals but this is another world. Relatively expensive with the wine pairings and margaritas but it is something we will only do once this lifetime.

Alinea is the creation of Grant Achatz, food wizard extraordinaire. voted #1 in America, 3 Michelin stars, superlatives cannot end for this place. This is food as theater and we want an encore! Impeccable everything. Ultra expensive, especially with the deluxe wine pairings but the wines were fabulous and paired perfectly - except for 2 that were okay. 17 courses, none of which were recognizable: for instance, one dessert was a silver bowl holding a type of shaved ice upon which sat a perfectly clear 'bowl' made of ice into which bowl was a different type of shaved ice! So, basically, 4 'whitish' things made of different types of ice. The dessert? The last shaved ice tasted of the finest dark chocolate :o :!: Every course was equally beguiling :D :D :D

We're saving our pennies...


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 Post subject: Re: Topolobampo!!! Alinea!!!!!!!!!!!!!
PostPosted: Tue Feb 03, 2015 11:13 am 
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Joined: Tue Dec 23, 2008 8:06 pm
Posts: 935
I am so jealous. I have wanted to go to Alinea since I first read about it.

--Lisa


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 Post subject: Re: Topolobampo!!! Alinea!!!!!!!!!!!!!
PostPosted: Tue Feb 03, 2015 11:19 am 
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Joined: Sat Dec 20, 2008 5:35 am
Posts: 2305
Location: Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada
The first book by Grant Achatz, http://www.amazon.ca/Life-Line-Chasing-Greatness-Redefining/dp/1592406971/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1422983698&sr=1-3&keywords=achatz%2C+grant is an extremely good read in and of itself let alone for the food/cooking factor. I'll review it soon under BOOKS.

His coffee table size book is a wonder and features recipes and at least 3 pages of 'necessary' equipment; I'm guessing a mere $10,000+ :o :lol: :roll:

When I first read reviews of Alinea I was put off by some of the comments but after reading about him, his suffering and determination, I have done a complete about face.

He was the honorary chair at Bocuse D'Or this year.


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 Post subject: Re: Topolobampo!!! Alinea!!!!!!!!!!!!!
PostPosted: Tue Feb 03, 2015 12:55 pm 
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Joined: Thu Dec 18, 2008 1:03 am
Posts: 5280
Location: Portland, OR
Wino,

Wow, sounds awesome.

_________________
The Fuzzy Chef
Serious Chef iz Serious!


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 Post subject: Re: Topolobampo!!! Alinea!!!!!!!!!!!!!
PostPosted: Tue Feb 03, 2015 2:25 pm 
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Joined: Tue Feb 03, 2009 5:03 pm
Posts: 1149
I have the utmost respect forAtchez, but sometimes I find the extremes of deconstruction a bit, well, silly. There are several blogs of folks who have cooked their way through Alinea At Home, with varying degrees of success. There is one video, where the blogger gets to stage for a day at Akinea, and when Atchez's mentions that a recipe may have an error- the blogger is astonished. I will try to find the link.


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 Post subject: Re: Topolobampo!!! Alinea!!!!!!!!!!!!!
PostPosted: Tue Feb 03, 2015 3:21 pm 
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Joined: Sat Dec 20, 2008 5:35 am
Posts: 2305
Location: Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada
All - If you want a very good look into him watch SPINNING PLATES free on Netflix. It's is really about 3 restaurant stories but the parallels are very nice.


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 Post subject: Re: Topolobampo!!! Alinea!!!!!!!!!!!!!
PostPosted: Fri Feb 06, 2015 5:05 pm 
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Joined: Sat Jan 08, 2011 6:33 pm
Posts: 954
Location: Northern California
Wow! Am going to Chicago in June!


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