KAZOWY! Ok, here we are puttin’ on a major feed at The French Laundry out in Yountville, California located in the Napa region of the state. . .and all I can say is, “WOWEEWOWOW!”
The French Laundry is owned and run by a dude called Thomas Keller. This place opened about 20 years ago, and in that time Thomas and his restaurant have won just about every chef and restaurant award that one can win, including the coveted label of “The World’s Greatest Restaurant” from 2006 to 2007.
Is this still the world’s greatest restaurant? I don’t know. But what we do know is that right here and right now this place is wonderful and as rockin’ and rollin’ as it probably has ever been. . .we can’t imagine ingredients of a higher quality prepared with greater skill and creativity anywhere else. There are certainly other different great dining spots, but there most certainly is no place “better” than this. Let’s break it down for you:
We enjoy a 1-hour ride up here from Sausalito through the wonderful rolling hills of Sonoma and Napa…we arrive at the restaurant and there is a buzz outside as folks are snapping photos and enjoying the garden across the street where many of the veggies on the menu are grown…we are greeted briskly yet warmly by a hostess who whisks us to our table…our waiter greets us enthusiastically and begins guiding us through our lunch experience…a group next to us has brought their freakin’ 1-year-old baby to the restaurant–it cries a bit, makes baby noises, I am slightly jarred by this–they couldn’t find a damn babysitter?!–really??!!…our waiter brings us champagne–ah, I am better now…we order two tasting menus–10 courses of magic..we order bottles of white (dry reisling) and red (cabernet) to correspond with the progression of the meal…our waiter throws in a couple of complimentary glasses of Montrachet to push the baby sounds farther away–mmm, aaaahh!–we love this guy…the meal progresses without a hitch–we devour delectable cheese balls, a cone cheese thing, oysters and caviar, foie gras, butter-poached lobster, yogurt-crusted sea trout, wonderful quail, a magical piece of lamb, goat cheese, a mind-boggling array of desserts, and some damn tasty coffee. The bottomline: EVERYTHING is cooked PERFECTLY and EVERYTHING tastes REAL, i.e, the lamb tastes like lamb, the lobster tastes like lobster, etc. Simple, straightforward, and celebratory. . .jaaaa!!
If everyone on Earth could eat at this restaurant one time, then there would be no more human conflict anywhere. . .if only.
I hope you can eat here some time. . .Thomas Keller and The French Laundry have the power to make you go “aaaaahh” real big and silly-like. AAAAAHH!!
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It’s lovely and delectable out there.
GlobeHug 