Best restaurant experience

[breadnatty08]

Share your most memorable restaurant experience!
Fancy, plain jane, whatever. If it had more to do with your dining partner than the actual meal, those are great ones too.
We eat out A LOT, so it's a little tough for me.
The most exciting meal, has to be at minibar.
Only 6 diners at a time and you sit literally at a bar with 4 chefs who prepare your meal right in front of you (I believe they've changed the format since moving). The bar was in their whole restaurant, but only you 6 get that tasting menu while the rest of the diners eat on a separate one staring at awe with what we get.
It was something around 25 courses, but most were no more than a couple bites. Really amazing experience.
My runner up would be at Green Zebra in Chicago. Being more or less a vegetarian (I'm eating some meat now), this has got to be the best all vegetarian restaurant I've been to. They really put forth an effort to make it a very classy experience unlike some other veggie restaurants like the homely Moosewood. Really recommend it to anyone in Chicago.

 

[lunatic59]

We eat out a good deal, too dread. Where should I start?

Local, our favorite restaurant is Bistro614. It's a small place with a limited menu, but everything on the menu is excellent. Nice atmosphere and great people ... including the clientele. (Highly recommend the pan-fried goat cheese and the Napoleon of roasted beets.)

A little further out is the Black Angus in Adamstown, PA. It's the restaurant attached to the Stoudt's microbrewery. If you love beef and beer ... 'nuf said. Just a word of warning ... Stoudt has become so popular that they've licensed the name to Yuengling and they make a Stoudt's label. It is NOT the same as the microbrews.

Speaking of steak, two blocks off the tulip market in Amsterdam is a steak house that will give you a perfect steak and beer for 10 Euro. Can't beat it. Go when it's warm and eat out in the courtyard!

Great Italian restaurant just off Mozartplatz in Vienna. Don't recall the name but it's on the left behind the statue with the octopus (Which is why my son continues to call it "Squidplatz )

Paris ... ALL OF THEM!

 

[lucky013]

L'Arpege in Paris. 3 Star Michelin.

 

[breadnatty08]

L'Arpege in Paris. 3 Star Michelin.

Jealous like you wouldn't even understand.

 

[SiempreTuna]

Undoubtedly Cellar de Can Roca in Girona, Spain. Started with an amuse bouch which just exploded with flavour, so powerful you though where the heck can he go from here? Then came course after course that showed you. All matched with the most wonderful - and often weird, but in a very good way - wines.

Simply stunning.

It was #3 in the world at the time then jumped to #2. A year later we went to the Fat Duck which had just dropped from #2 to #3 (it's now somewhere in the late 20s I think). Really should have done the two the other way around. As it was, the Fat Duck was actually a bit of a disappointment.

Last week-end, we went to Ferran Adria's Tickets in Barcelona. Tapas on steriods. As awesome as you would expect - amazing flavours and textures and lots of surprises. Biggest surprise may have been the cost: only $85 each for 17 tapas, cava, water, coffee and (superb) service. From arguably the best chef in the world (and certainly the most influential of the last 2 decades).

Outstanding.

Next, we're hoping to go to Mugaritz in San Sebastian for the missus' birthday.

Incidentally, took a look at some reviews of minibar after the OP mentioned it on another thread: I so want to go there!

 

[breadnatty08]

Bringin this thread back since we went to Alinea last week.
Pics and menu.
Wife and I agree this was the best restaurant experience we've ever had.

 

[SiempreTuna]

That looks awesome - the gallery is XXX rated food porn

By strange coincidence, we had our visit to Mugaritz on Sunday. Absolutely awesome. 22 courses plus an amouse bouche of foie gras macaroons (with pig blood replacing the egg white) and petit fours (actually, petit sixes as there were six of 'em ).

We all absolutely loved it.

Not sure if it was the best yet, but it's right up there. It's really hard to compare it with the Cellar de Can Roca as the flavours were very subtle while Cellar is really in your face but I think the Cellar just sneaks it - which you'd kind of expect given the Cellar is currently #1 in the world while Mugaritz is a lowly #4

I did suggest to the missus that we need to go back to the Cellar, just to be sure

 

[breadnatty08]

Man, how do you get to the best restaurants in the world?!

 

[wisguy84]

In the last month I've been to some ridiculous places. I spend a lot of money on food, I guess it's a hobby?

I had the same Alinea meal as posted above. It was really fun. I'll be headed back in November (and hopefully to Next's Bocuse D'or menu if I can get a god damn ticket...). Atera is also great - that was maybe 2 months ago? I hear their menu changed recently and it isn't as great, but chef Matt will switch it up soon enough.

I had another 3 paragraphs typed up but deleted them because I was a restaurant-name-dropping whore. I can post more if people really care, hah!

 

[wisguy84]

That looks awesome - the gallery is XXX rated food porn

By strange coincidence, we had our visit to Mugaritz on Sunday. Absolutely awesome. 22 courses plus an amouse bouche of foie gras macaroons (with pig blood replacing the egg white) and petit fours (actually, petit sixes as there were six of 'em ).

We all absolutely loved it.

Not sure if it was the best yet, but it's right up there. It's really hard to compare it with the Cellar de Can Roca as the flavours were very subtle while Cellar is really in your face but I think the Cellar just sneaks it - which you'd kind of expect given the Cellar is currently #1 in the world while Mugaritz is a lowly #4

I did suggest to the missus that we need to go back to the Cellar, just to be sure

FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCCCCCCCCCCCCCCKKKKKKKKK! So jealous! I would love to go there. Do you have pictures I could drool over?

 

[SiempreTuna]

Man, how do you get to the best restaurants in the world?!

You book a looooooooong way in advance

We booked Cellar and Mugaritz over 6 months ahead of time. The Fat Duck was different as they only take bookings 3 months ahead which meant calling precisely 3 months before we wanted to eat (a birthday) then spending about 40 minutes basically hitting re-dial on their reservation line .. Though it's probably not so tough to get in there now ..

On the upside, all that lead time does give you a chance to save up

I had another 3 paragraphs typed up but deleted them because I was a restaurant-name-dropping whore. I can post more if people really care, hah!

I think that's the entire point of the thread

So jealous! I would love to go there. Do you have pictures I could drool over?

Of course! The problem with these long menus is that half way through, you've already forgotten what you ate earlier. Pictures are a absolute must

If I remember, I'll post some tonight ..

 

[breadnatty08]

Getting into minibar was a complete fluke. They moved and expanded so I'm not sure if it's the same deal, but they only take bookings a month out. You have to call exactly 30 days ahead at 10am or you'll miss out.
At the time it was only 2 seatings a night of 6 people each, so 12 total! I had gotten help from my former boss who used to work for Jose Andres and so we got a call the day of saying they had a couple who hadn't confirmed their reservation. We had to wait until 4pm for them to give it away. Got it and found out it was the last service they were doing for a couple months!

 

[SiempreTuna]

As promised, a couple of pictures from Mugaritz:

 

[breadnatty08]

^ Some descriptions?
The final one just reminds me of French Laundry's caviar cones.

 

[SiempreTuna]

I actually managed to find the menu so the first one is Turbot Pil-Pil and Roe, the second one is Squash and Dressed Cucumbers, Green Lemon and Olives and the cones are kind of caviar, they're Candy Caviar (the silver 'pebbles' the cones are stuck in were also edible).

Have to say, the names don't do the dishes any justice ..

Plus, I just realised I didn't get a picture of the edible stones

 

[mikedt]

Chinese cuisine in China, much better than anywhere else.

Three local restaurants.

Spoiler

 

[64MarcoV]

I don't like the fancy Gourmet restaurants were you get big plates with less to nothing on it. I like the small plate with a big sirloin or steak hanging over the edges.

Where we live the "all you can eat " joints are booming. Reasonably new is the All You Can Eat indoor BBQ restaurant. On internet there coupon auctions so we can eat with 2 for the price of 1.

Even in Asian Restaurants the AYCE way is business as usual. But all the restaurants don't like spilling of food. So don't take more than you can eat.

 

[sfbloodbrother]

I remember when I was little we went to this place called White Cottage. It's an Italian pizza place. Really is the best pizza that I ever ate. I rated it on google plus as the best pizza that I ever ate.

 

[breadnatty08]

Always a fan of good pizza!

The lady treated me to dinner out at one of the new hot spots in DC called Rose's Luxury. It really lived up to the hype (like most places don't) and I loved it. Food, service, beverage, all spectacular. Can't wait to go back.
Roses Luxury

 

[bluelogic]

One of my favorite places to eat is Sukhothai, it is a Thai restaurant based in Leeds,UK.

I can't believe how they do it, the found tastes amazing every time we have been.

I think a sub thread to this should be the best takeaway place, but it can't be the same as the restaurant.

 

[confident]

best experience- when you have tasty food for free... love it!!