Ah the coveted reservation at the French Laundry restaurant- finally got one at 9pm on a Wednesday, 2 days before my birthday. 9 courses- Every item was cooked to perfection. Every little vegetable on the plate was so sweet and the meats and fish so fresh.
You experience the root taste of every dish: for example, the seared foie gras is cripsy on the outside and warm and pink on the inside, the Maine lobster tail is cooked to perfect sweetness and tenderness, the duck breast & beef medium rare yet tender.
However, as perfect as the 'cooking' was, the dishes lacked creativity. There were no mind blowing sauces, no imaginative constructions, no perfectly balanced pairings. If anything, some of the pairings & constructions seemed incongruous. For instance the cheese course paired the fried bacon bits was odd.
The wonderful caviar with oysters sat on a bed of smooshy tapioca balls- texturally this just did not work. The flounder sashimi with cucumber was very mild and subtle- it needed somethin' somethin' more to bring out the flavor. The duck breast, the sturgeon and beef as perfectly cooked as they each were, they could have used a more exciting sauce pairing (this is French cuisine after all- it's ALL about the sauces- oui?).
As for constructions- the sweetbreads stuffed in the rabbit shoulder was unique. The most memorable course ironically was the nectarine sorbet- I could have eaten a whole bowl of that- it was such a concentrate burst of nectarine flavor- YUM! 2nd most memorable was the lobster in the carraway sauce- I love lobster what can say!
The deserts were disappointing- nothing special there. And the foie gras terrine was OK- certainly not worth the $30 supplement.
Service was impeccable as it should be expected. The interior decor suprising bare bones: white walls, low celings, no paintings, no floral arrangement beyond the little posie of white flowers on the tables. All I can say is- yes finally, I've been there and ate that and now it's time to move on.
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