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| - "The secret to happiness is low expectations." I lived by this mantra for a very long time, but allowed myself to slide a little bit when I booked a table at Bouchon. I'd been to Thomas Keller's slightly better known restaurant in California, and had been so completely blown away that I figured Bouchon should offer something damn good in its price range.
Not quite. We had an attentive, polite, and gregarious waiter who made us feel very much at ease and gave enthusiastic recommendations. There was nothing he could do to deter us from ordering the half lobster (which my friend wanted to try) and the foie gras (which after two outstanding experiences at FL was a must order for me) and he recommended the halibut entree also.
He warned us that the foie gras was large and a terrine rather than a single fried piece, and suggested we order not too much more. I should have listened. Somehow 5 oz of foie gras didn't strike me as a massive amount, but it was, as in enough for a table for six. And not particularly good. It tasted more like patee than the foie gras. Serving a massive overpriced portion of mediocre food goes completely against what I understand TK's philosophy on food to be. Keller says you should give customers not quite enough of something, so that they can enjoy just a taste of several things while remaining hungry for additional offerings. But this was easily the least rich, least buttery foie gras (including terrine) I've ever had, and there was just way too much for two people. In fact, there was enough that we gave the rest of it to the couple next to us, who dug into it with enthusiasm, and they still left more than a third of it by the time they were done. Instead of making their best waiters hedge to the customers on the foie gras, they should just take it off the menu.
Anyway, the lobster was excellent albeit pricey, and was served with a buttery mustard sauce that was simply a perfect match. This was by far the most successful savory dish that we tried. Again we were reminded of the not-quite-top-quality dining experience by the amount of fighting required to extract the half lobster from its shell. I'm not the world's slickest guy with a lobster cracker, but this got damn messy, as in almost for our neighbors too.
We also ordered the halibut on waiter's suggestion which had a nice texture but near zero flavor on its own. Fortunately, it was served on top of some vegetables and a sauce that matched it nicely, and brought the flavor into detectable range.
As for the complimentary bread and highly not-complimentary house blend of red wine, both were reasonably pleasant. The bread didn't stack up very well in terms of flavor or freshness compared to what we'd enjoyed at Olives earlier that day. Upon our request, they also brought out some locally carbonated water they made using that special Norwegian machine. For fear of sounding like a yuppie @$$hole I usually don't go bonkers about water, but this water tasted particularly crisp, clean, and cool. Is this psychological or is it actually better?
We finished with a wonderful creme brulee dessert which had the perfect level of sweetness and crispiness. The top layer seemed thinner than usual, and this was a good thing. Bravo.
Anyway, despite the heroic efforts of our waiter, Bouchon scored bigger failures (foie gras, halibut) than successes (water, creme brulee). This is no tragedy, but given the $200 cost including two glasses of wine and tip it's tough to justify going back. Mon Ami Gabi and Olives both had more knockout items at a substantially lower price. TK, I believe in you! Fix this!
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