Michelin star madness!

What great taste Old Goat has.

I read where a Chef has asked to have his Michelin stars removed so he can do cooking without wondering if the judges are examining every dish

Yes Oldgoat really spoiled us!

It would grieve me to spend a lot of money on a tiny bit of food.. however nice it was.
I remember in a lovely, expensive place being served peas, one at a time, by a waiter who kept stopping and looking at me, waiting for me to stop him when he had dished up about six.

It grieved me greatly to spend so much on such flim flam but it was out of our hands and was just this person being kind. We certainly won't be doing anything like it again!

Flim flam that's a lovely expression. It was a nice gesture of thanks though. What did you have to eat, if you don't mind saying?

Jane10 I know what you mean. A couple of years ago I took husband to a fancy, expensive restaurant for his birthday and it was all "style over substance". We still chuckle about the starter - it was cold and we had anticipated it to be hot. Unsure, we didn't want to ask so as not to make fools of ourselves so we ate it - as my gran used to say - with "long teeth". There was a lot if flim flam on that occasion too.

Scallops, Venison and Cheesecake is the quick answer but they were all served in very exotic ways eg the cheesecake included rhubarb presented in 7 different (microscopic) ways. There was a nice pre starter and a pre pudding! It was all lovely but somehow...

Scallops, venison, cheesecake sounds lovely, without anything being flim flammed.

Yes, making my mouth water....and I’m starting Frugal February tomorrow!

Me too!

The Michelin star thing works in other ways too, there was the case of the chef who killed himself because he thought he was about to lose a star

I suppose a Michelin star is a recognition of cooking skill so upsetting to be told that you're no longer good enough. Food snobbishness gone mad. Poor man.
DH wondered if the service was part of qualifying for a star. There seemed to be masses of staff and little touches eg a furry stool brought for my handbag!

It must have been a very good restaurant, only decent ones provide a stool for your Louis Vuiton.
This is exactly how food should be presented, small amounts for taste and texture and presentation is all.
We ate in a three star Michelin restaurant in France that were so far up themselves it was hair-raising, they even escorted ladies from the table to the bathroom. When we got the bill we thought we had paid for every diner by mistake

Harrigran, your post reminds me of the time my elderly mother asked the maitre d to point the way to the lavatory. He gallantly offered his arm and escorted her to a nearby doorway which he opened with a flourish to expose the staircase leading to the facilities. She looked directly into his eyes and in a very imperious tone said "Sir, by the time I reach the top of those stairs I will have wet myself."
He then kindly led her to another loo much farther away but on the same level, with a huge grin on his face. On subsequent visits he treated her like royalty.

Remember the King with no clothes!

I too was priviledged to sup OG beautiful wine, It was. superb, as were the glasses and salver with with which she presented.

The food all provided was as proscribed, Burns Supper, but a lunch.

My fave is Scallops which barely reach the pan, should eat them raw cevice style AKA S America, the lemon juice does the job

I like my food served on a plate, nicely cooked, and with large portions, for a reasonable price.

I like good food well presented but hated nouvelle cuisine when it was the fashion.Food is my hobby ,I even went back to college in my 30's to get my City and Guilds and loved every minute .I do complain if something isn't right which my OH would just accept but if you're paying a fair amount of hard earned cash for a plate of food it SHOULD be right .Luckily we live in an area where there's an abundance of good restaurants where the price isn't extortionate .

A friend of DD's was taken too Hester Blumenthal's restaurant, The Fat Duck. They had the tasting menu.

On the way home they stopped off for fish and chips because, although they had many courses, all were no more than a mouthful and they were still hungry.

As JollyG says, the Burns lunch was lovely. I enjoyed it all especially Cascat's delicious miniature cheese scones and chorizo palmiers.

One of our current students (for those who may not know, I am an administrator at a fine furniture making school) was executive head chef at one of Gordon Ramsay's restaurants, and he was talking about the Michelin star system the other day.

Apparently they measure different things once you have your first star, I will check it out with him and report back!

Interesting that he's given up on it Phoenix. Sounds like a real change if life for him.

Jane10 so many of our students are on a complete life change, we have one that was pretty high up with Apple, came for a one week course in early September, got the bug and decided to take a one year course, started first Monday in October!

We also currently have a Sicilian ex geologist, a Nigerian who has his own medical logistics business, a lovely Welsh person who completed a degree in architecture at Uni, but decided she would rather work with wood, a semi retired GP taking three months out to further his skills in what was previously just a "hobby".

Today I was showing round a chap visiting from South Africa who has just completed an Economics Degree, but wants to design and create in wood!

Gosh. I bet its a very therapeutic activity. I suppose it ties in with the current trend for 'authenticity'. Do the men all have beards and wear tartan shirts?!