July 19, 2004
New Rules By and For the Blogduce!
1. Do not go out to review a French restaurant when you are in the early stages of fighting a sinus infection.
2. If you do violate rule 1, have red wine anyway, if it goes with your meal.
3. Prepare to pay the consequences.
4. Drink a lot of water to mitigate said consequences.
5. Avoid the espresso, since the French have no idea how to brew a good coffee of any sort, and you will need a good espresso to fight the sinus infection. Go home to have it. Also it gets tedious having to pan awful restaurant-made espressi all the time (why, oh why don't they just take the time to learn to make it? Those machines are so expensive, there is no reason to not learn how to use them).
But for the French, forget it. You see, the French were anxious to use up their awful West African beans from their own colonies, so they invented the "technique" of incinerating them (they call it "French Roast" but it really means charred). The stuff that was even too awful to foist on the French palate was shipped to New Orleans, where they found roasted chicory root to make it a little more drinkable (and cheaper, to boot).
I don't understand why it is still so, however. The French have access to good beans, they have a vital cafe culture, and even the Englisch are starting to learn how to cook. So why don't the French learn to make coffee? Fer cryin' out loud the Krauts make good coffee (or at least as good as drip coffee can be)!
Anyway, the restaurant was good, Amalia ate escargots for the first time (with a Pernod/garlic/herb butter). She said it was too spicy (!?!), but had seconds anyway. The waiter was most accomodating when she wanted ketchup to go with her pommes frites. It arrived in a lovely crystal serving dish. Major Points! Almost makes up for the fact that the tomato salad was served too cold.
Of course they were good pommes frites and did not really need ketchup (although a dip in the beurre rouge of my steak was mighty nice).
Next time I have to review a restaurant when I am sick, it will be a pho place!
Posted by erik at July 19, 2004 10:19 PM | TrackBackCacciaguida,
I should clarify. I am half German and half Italian, but my tastes in coffee are 100% wop. When I say "coffee" I mean espresso (and there better not be any milk in it after 10am). For the sake of an exotic treat, I will once in a great while drink a cup or four of drip coffee or Greek coffee of French press or whatnot.
It is the poor quality espresso that gets me. They charge enough for it. They buy or lease tremendously expensive machines and often buy good beans. Why let the meal end with that little cup of overextracted bitterness? It always seems such a shame. In the Bay Area it is a little better, with a handful of top restaurants that can actually make espresso properly.
Posted by: Erik Keilholtz at July 23, 2004 9:41 AMI haven't had good escargots in ages. Mmmmmm!
I don't expect good coffee at otherwise-good restaurants. IHOP does coffee great; why should the great restaurants try to do it better?
Posted by: Cacciaguida at July 22, 2004 8:00 PM