"Loire21" > wrote in message
...
> The older I get the more I realize that as far as food is concerned,
simpler is
> better. Classic dishes are classics because they're already perfect on
their
> own. Lavender creme brulee may be perfectly nice, but a creme brulee on
its own
> is better. Fries with nothing but salt have it all over seasoned fries, or
> fries with garlic, or pepper, whatever else some enterprising chef decides
to
> put on them.
>
> But chefs, like opera directors, just can't seem to leave well enough
alone.
> They have to innovate. Please, stop innovating, and just give us a
perfectly
> prepared Waldorf salad or Boston cream pie with no fancy frills.
>
> I find myself saying this all the time, as I did this weekend. I sampled
two
> desserts at a rather expensive restaurant: Boston banana cream pie, and
angel
> food strawberry shortcake, both with disappointing results.
>
> As is the custom nowadays, both desserts had been prepared in small
circular
> molds, with fancily decorated sauce surrounding them on the plate.
>
> The Boston cream pie was not topped by a chocolate glaze, but rather by a
thick
> round of hard, rather tasteless chocolate. The cake itself and the cream
were
> quite nice, but the flavor of the banana overpowered them both. The banana
was
> a case of gilding the lily. Just leave the lilies alone!
>
> The strawberry shortcake was encased in a shell of hardened white
chocolate,
> which, I'm afraid added nothing to the cake. The angel food cake absorbed
the
> syrup so that it was a soggy gop. The strawberries and cream were fine.
The
> truth is, a dessert of just strawberries and cream would have been so much
> better!
>
> To our restaurant chefs: Just stick to the basics and we'll all be better
off.

I agree wholeheartedly with your sentiments but not your prescription.
Remember, today's classics were once someone's experiments!


--
Peter Aitken

Remove the crap from my email address before using.