TO TASTE OR NOT TO TASTE
Image via NYTimes
If you haven’t read it yet, let’s start at square one – Pete Wells’ article of growing infamy that breaks down the downside – and upside, to a degree – of the growing “tasting menu epidemic.” As you’ll read (if you haven’t done so yet), his argument says – to summarize far too succinctly – that tasting menus are wonderful when executed properly, but that the assumption that all chefs are worthy of designing such a menu, and that all diners interested in tasting those creations can afford to partake, is become far too popular.
In other words? The tasting menus should be left to the few and far between high-end restaurant that have earned their stripes amongst the best of the best.
This article has understandably caused quite the stir within the dining community, invoking reactions across the spectrum, both good and bad. One of the most interesting we’ve found is by Bloomberg’s restaurant maven Ryan Sutton on his ever-intriguing blog The Price Hike. More than anything, Sutton refutes Wells’ point that the rampant spreading of the tasting menu’s popularity is excluding a mass population of high-end dining fans.
Want to read more? We’d encourage it. The future of our dining topography is not a topic to be taken lightly, after all.
