Pretentiousness of some critics and their followers!

Old Salt

Old Salt

Senior Member
Location
New Brunswick, Canada!
I have brought up the subject at various times but I have a problem with some food, arts and movie critics because of their pretentiousness, and the people who love to follow them for the prestige of being avant garde!

The article below is well worth reading, since it is about a hotel that got Michelin Stars despite having horrible food and it makes Michelin ratings look bad and insincere!

Bros., Lecce: We Eat at The Worst Michelin Starred Restaurant, Ever
 

A 27 course tasting meal is absurd on it's face. It appears the pretentiousness is on the restaurant in this case.

It seems like the reviewers were led astray by prior reviews and wanted something to eat besides foam. Can't blame them and in the end the Michelin franchise is safe!
 

Old Salt said:
I have brought up the subject at various times but I have a problem with some food, arts and movie critics because of their pretentiousness, and the people who love to follow them for the prestige of being avant garde!

The article below is well worth reading, since it is about a hotel that got Michelin Stars despite having horrible food and it makes Michelin ratings look bad and insincere!

Bros., Lecce: We Eat at The Worst Michelin Starred Restaurant, Ever
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What a nightmare!
 
I don't know...I read that and looked at the servings and I gotta say...I don't think they're that far off.
 
Old Salt said:
I have brought up the subject at various times but I have a problem with some food, arts and movie critics because of their pretentiousness, and the people who love to follow them for the prestige of being avant garde!

The article below is well worth reading, since it is about a hotel that got Michelin Stars despite having horrible food and it makes Michelin ratings look bad and insincere!

Bros., Lecce: We Eat at The Worst Michelin Starred Restaurant, Ever
Click to expand...
If you haven't watched it, watch The Menu. It is a sometimes hilarious and sometimes scary dark comedy about a group of food critics who are invited to dinner by a famous chef in his restaurant on a small island. The trailer isn't that engaging, but it is a great movie! There are a few "gasps" and lots of laughs.


And speaking of chefs, let's talk about pretentious chefs. I was with an upscale cruise line who hired a famous chef whose restaurants have won numerous James Beard awards to develop new menus, and even open restaurants with his name, onboard our ships. Our marketing department could only use one picture, approved by him, in our advertising, he had remote cameras in the galleys to monitor the cooking process and required the cooking staff put garnish on with tweezers. I know he wanted to maintain the experience at sea that one would have on land but I found the whole thing ridiculous. His contract has ended.
 
seadoug said:
If you haven't watched it, watch The Menu. It is a sometimes hilarious and sometimes scary dark comedy about a group of food critics who are invited to dinner by a famous chef in his restaurant on a small island. The trailer isn't that engaging, but it is a great movie! There are a few "gasps" and lots of laughs.


And speaking of chefs, let's talk about pretentious chefs. I was with an upscale cruise line who hired a famous chef whose restaurants have won numerous James Beard awards to develop new menus, and even open restaurants with his name, onboard our ships. Our marketing department could only use one picture, approved by him, in our advertising, he had remote cameras in the galleys to monitor the cooking process and required the cooking staff put garnish on with tweezers. I know he wanted to maintain the experience at sea that one would have on land but I found the whole thing ridiculous. His contract has ended.
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Are you referring to Chef Thomas Keller or someone before him?
The best food I've ever had on a cruise ship has been on Oceana with their Chef Jacques Pepin inspired menu. The food served in the specialty restaurants for dinner was superb!
 
seadoug said:
If you haven't watched it, watch The Menu. It is a sometimes hilarious and sometimes scary dark comedy about a group of food critics who are invited to dinner by a famous chef in his restaurant on a small island. The trailer isn't that engaging, but it is a great movie! There are a few "gasps" and lots of laughs.


And speaking of chefs, let's talk about pretentious chefs. I was with an upscale cruise line who hired a famous chef whose restaurants have won numerous James Beard awards to develop new menus, and even open restaurants with his name, onboard our ships. Our marketing department could only use one picture, approved by him, in our advertising, he had remote cameras in the galleys to monitor the cooking process and required the cooking staff put garnish on with tweezers. I know he wanted to maintain the experience at sea that one would have on land but I found the whole thing ridiculous. His contract has ended.
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Thanks for the tip, @seadoug, "The Menu" looks interesting and I will definitely try to find it in one of my streaming sites. Re. James Beard awards and similar ones, my daughter and I watch quite a few cooking shows and I am always stunned when it comes to all the artistically decorated plates, with their foam, and swirls of sauces and leaves decoratively placed on tidbits that are no larger than a mouthful. And normal sized portions of food being condemned by the judges for not looking interesting enough! Food as an art form!
 
MrPants said:
Are you referring to Chef Thomas Keller or someone before him?
The best food I've ever had on a cruise ship has been on Oceana with their Chef Jacques Pepin inspired menu. The food served in the specialty restaurants for dinner was superb!
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I'll send you a PM.
 
againstthegrain said:
A 27 course tasting meal is absurd on it's face. It appears the pretentiousness is on the restaurant in this case.

It seems like the reviewers were led astray by prior reviews and wanted something to eat besides foam. Can't blame them and in the end the Michelin franchise is safe!
Click to expand...
I agree! The critics were the good guys in this instance and it was Michelin and this restaurant who were the pretentious ones!
 
MrPants said:
Are you referring to Chef Thomas Keller or someone before him?
The best food I've ever had on a cruise ship has been on Oceana with their Chef Jacques Pepin inspired menu. The food served in the specialty restaurants for dinner was superb!
Click to expand...
I loved Chef Jacques Pepin and his food! I never sampled it but it always looked delicious! Without a bit of pretense, too!
 
I usually don't pay attenton to critics (especially food critics), analysts and the like. They come off like they are experts in whatever field they are providing critiques for. More often than not, I totally disagree with their assessments. I rarely like the movies critics make a big deal about, including many Oscar winning films.

My sister and I ate at a restaurant in Atlantic City that boasted about having a nationally well known chef. When she got her salad, it literally looked like someone had gone out to a tree, picked off some leaves and threw it in the plate. Not only did we have to wait a long time for it, she wound up having to send it back!

Speaking of which, Yelp is supposed to be a place to leave reviews and give readers a sense of what's good and what's not. I found out from personal experience that Yelp's system is biased in some instances. I wrote a review about a bus company that served Atlantic City passengers. Their buses were actually dangerous in many ways; even the drivers complained. Yet I saw the company listed as a 5 star company on a Yelp page.
 
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againstthegrain said:
I wonder if the restaurant knew the reviewers were coming beforehand and took it upon themselves to make a 27 course dinner.
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I googled the restaurant and these 27 course meals were common. It fluctuated between hate and love. One comment was how amazing that they could serve foam and you really believed you were eating a piece of beef. They say there’s a sucker born every minute. 😉
 
Every anniversary, my son & DIL are gifted by her parents to a tasting menu at one of NYC five stars. One year, son told me bill was a few bucks short of a thousand dollars. Yeah, you heard me right. I gagged.
 
Pepper said:
Every anniversary, my son & DIL are gifted by her parents to a tasting menu at one of NYC five stars. One year, son told me bill was a few bucks short of a thousand dollars. Yeah, you heard me right. I gagged.
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Aside from the price, what was their opinion of the food?
 
At one of their dinners, Gwyneth Paltrow & her mom Blythe Danner were flitting around the restaurant, making sure they were seen, esp. Gwyneth.
 
Old Salt said:
And I'm willing to bet that homemade Macaroni and Cheese or a P & J sandwich would have tasted better! :ROFLMAO:
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It was elegant and gracefully served. I was told the food. was delicious. For me, a thousand dollars for one restaurant meal for two people...........I guess if one has the means it's not my business, but I remember my heart hurt when I heard the price.
 
Pepper said:
It was elegant and gracefully served. I was told the food. was delicious. For me, a thousand dollars for one restaurant meal for two people...........I guess if one has the means it's not my business, but I remember my heart hurt when I heard the price.
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I can certainly sympathise! My daughter and SIL were recently given a gift certificate to a critically highly praised restaurant and ended up paying $ 200.00 for a pretentious small meal. They had to go somewhere else afterward since both were still hungry.
 
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