y do have some amazing stuff happening there, and I would love to eat there. Now that the preface is out of the way, the news is this. They are going to do the same with drinks. And apparently time periods. Now that Achatz has solidified Alinea's consistency, he has turned mind to a few other projects as well. Aviary will be their cocktail bar. This is the cocktail bar of the future, ladies and gentlemen. No simple G&T here. Let the video explain.
If you liked that, I highly recommend going to check out the others flicks. Some of the stuff is mind-blowing. I'm a gin and tonic man myself, but I particularly like ol fashion "in the rocks", because I think it's hilarious.
Beyond my rampant alcoholism, there is another story. Next restaurant. No, not next restaurant. "Next" restaurant. Nevermind.
The website is http://nextrestaurant.com/ and the story is as follows. They are going to do dinners exploring places in time. For example, Paris 1912, or Tokyo 1960,or where/whenever. The possibilities are pretty much endless, though I worry about Rome, 200 B.C.E. or something similar, where everything is pretty much fermented beyond recall. I'm sure those fine folks would find a way to make it delicious. Like they made this octopus delicious.
The reason I mention this restaurant as a concept I like is that it pretty much encapsulates a meal as a place in time. I find this doesn't happen at many of today's restaurants, and perhaps that is their biggest failing. It also is, in my opinion, Alinea's biggest strength. A restaurant whose decor, ambiance, and food are all in line with one another will always provide a stronger showing with it's food than one which has no attention to history, and serves fusion in a classical french setting. This isn't a stab at any one restaurant, just a trend I've begun to notice.
People are keen on exploring, and that is important, but so is context. If I went to a sushi parlor in Kyoto and was served minestrone soup, I would sense something amiss, and the soup would suffer for it. This is an integral part of the dining experience. The best way to enjoy Panang Curry is from a hawker in Thailand, eating it on the beach or while the sun rises over a temple. I assure you that this will improve the flavour. Obviously this only applies within reason, but it is an important factor. Next restaurant should be, if done correctly, the pinnacle of this. I'm excited to see what they pull off.
They are also introducing a couple other new contexts to their "performances". You have to buy tickets. It's a full night out, entering another world. The idea is that it is like "dinner and a show" except all in one. Really, Grant is just like a food buddhist, harmonizing everything together. Alright, that's bullshit, but you get the idea.
That is it for now. I'm working on lining up the interviews and getting all the "ducks in a row", as the generation before mine would so randomly put it. See you soon.
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