ad hoc with Thomas Keller

There was a nice ad hoc event at ad hoc on Sunday night of Memorial Day weekend 2009. The highlight for Pam and me this weekend was suppose to be dinner at Thomas Keller's ad hoc in Yountville. Dinner was wonderful. The food was tasty and the portions were generous. Instead, the real treat was meeting Thomas Keller at ad hoc. Actually, I spotted him and mentioned sighting to Pam. It was Pam that had the courage to introduce herself and sought guidance on how to get reservations at French Laundry, one of the food meccas in the U.S.

Not sure how busy ad hoc was back when the economy was running on all gears, but things seems to have slowed. We took the 845pm reservation because that was available. We showed up about 45 minutes and got seated without a hitch. The restaurant was busy but there were empty tables. Okay, ad hoc is the least expensive of the Keller empire, except for Bouchon Bakery. We were not successful in our efforts to be white knights coming to a rescue of a canceled reservation at the French Laundry, but we did get a step closer. For the first time in years, Pam got through voicemail and actually spoke with a live person. Lets see if our new secret techniques will bring us more luck.

Flour & Water

Flour & Water is off to a good start despite some growing pains. Our table of six entered within one week of opening day. The highlights were the pizzas, the soup and the big surprise was the chicken. It has been some time since I can remember biting into a piece of chicken breast that was so flavorful, tender and outright juicy. Little did I know the wonderful results of cooking chicken under a brick. The last time I had a piece of chicken breast that stood out in my mind like this was my first time at Bouley, my favorite restaurant in NYC. Not to say that cooking under a brick is equivalent to sous vide, they are different. But the flavors, the tenderness and the juiciness stood out for me in both cases. The fun part about the experience at Flour & Water is that the dish cost a fraction of what it did at Bouley.

Celebrating Valentine's a day early

February 13, 2009
Valentine's day will be spent skiing in the Sierras at Northstar. We don't expect to do much fine dining there so we opted for the Salt Room in downtown San Fran. The food was fine but nothing to write home about. Pam's lamb shank was tasty, but it could have been more tender. My pan seared yellow tail tuna was a bit salty. The spelt did remind me of barley as the waitress described and the saffron aioli was was tasty. All in all, the dish was good, but the chef should have given the yellowtail more respect by serving it as sashimi.

The idea of mochi ice cream for desert came up and got shot down. He he. That was a risky proposition, especially for a v-day dinner. Luckily, the main plan was a banana cream tart from Tartine, one of Pam's favorite desserts and places for dessert. I was also so clever, even if I say so myself, to have her find her valentine's day card attached to the dessert box in the fridge. Pam, of course, is smarter than I thought (she is watching me type so I should be in trouble soon). The envelope opening revealed the Bill-Academy award for best pretend acting pissed. The dessert saga had a happy ending for all and all a goodnight. Gotta go pack for the ski trip now...