Adrian Posted June 10, 2015 Share Posted June 10, 2015 No, it is for me, it will just not be the place that shows up on the list of restaurants the foodie rainmaker partner asks me about when he's planning his trip to nyc. Jean George's, emp, Batard, mission Chinese, spotted pig will all make the list. The question is why those and not this. The answer is how it presents itself (the name, the hotel, the marketing [god, the marketing], the cocktail list, the inevitable yelp reviews mentioning the "French" service). I doubt kreuthers new place will present itself like this. I wish this place didn't. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Wilfrid Posted June 10, 2015 Author Share Posted June 10, 2015 I still don't have a clue why you think Kreuther's place would be different. Actually I do, and it's that you've internalized a very compelling but false picture of Chevalier. French service? The current manager is ex-The Modern, not French, and trained by Danny Meyer for years. The sommelier is French, some of the servers are. Happens at the best places. There are only eight reviews on Yelp. Not so much crowd-sourcing as bus shelter sourcing. Here's the only reference to French service: "the refined French service". I see two complaints about the service; one from someone who didn't like the food--so what's that worth, and the other from someone who gives no details and might not even have been to the place. Check HK's other reviews, and ask yourself how reliable that source is. His/her top pick is Little Prince: "Very cute and comfortable restaurant. The food was delicious. I had the gratin burger and it was juicy and filling. My guests had salads and steak and they were both very pleased. The service could be little faster." Five stars. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
oakapple Posted June 10, 2015 Share Posted June 10, 2015 There are only eight reviews on Yelp. And none complained about the price of the cocktails. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Sneakeater Posted June 10, 2015 Share Posted June 10, 2015 Fools! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Wilfrid Posted June 10, 2015 Author Share Posted June 10, 2015 I'd love to know what H.K. ordered. If anything. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
oakapple Posted June 10, 2015 Share Posted June 10, 2015 Actually if only we had a time machine and Adrian could to Atelier and Chevalier on consecutive nights. In fairness, I don't think Kreuther's new restaurant is going to be a clone of Atelier circa 2004. Adrian's criticism (rightly or wrongly) is that Chevalier is not a restaurant built for 2015's clientele. He grossly exaggerates the problems, but I would admit there are some. I do think Adrian is imagining that Kreuther is much more of a progressive than he actually is. There aren't huge differences in service style between Chevalier and The Dining Room at The Modern, the only Kreuther restaurant that we can evaluate now. The set of people who'd hate the former, but eagerly recommend the latter, is probably small. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Wilfrid Posted June 10, 2015 Author Share Posted June 10, 2015 Spot on. And indeed note that Chevalier's GM is the former GM of The Modern. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Sneakeater Posted June 10, 2015 Share Posted June 10, 2015 The set of people who'd hate the former, but eagerly recommend the latter, is probably small. I could not disagree with this more strongly, and I think this is EXACTLY what you and Wilfrid are missing. The young hospitality business people I talked about before -- the ones who universally hated Chevalier -- will, I am sure, like the new Kreuther a lot, and constantly recommend The Modern. And the reason is precisely the different signals the restaurants send out, as described by Adrian. I think his point about the "foodie" rainmaker partner is even more telling than mine about the young concierges and their associates. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Wilfrid Posted June 10, 2015 Author Share Posted June 10, 2015 The Modern, deftly avoiding formality and stuffiness: Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Wilfrid Posted June 10, 2015 Author Share Posted June 10, 2015 My only response to Sneak is that Chevalier could and should do more to market Gallante and the food. It's downright dumb for anyone who cares about food at that level to skip Chevalier because...well, I still don't really know why. The name of the hotel or something? I dismiss the cocktail price differential as beaten to death. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
oakapple Posted June 10, 2015 Share Posted June 10, 2015 The young hospitality business people I talked about before -- the ones who universally hated Chevalier -- will, I am sure, like the new Kreuther a lot, and constantly recommend The Modern. Well, here was Adrian's list "Jean George's, emp, Batard, mission Chinese, spotted pig will all make the list." That is a list I can believe. The Modern has a very low Q-score among the food set. Not that it deserves this, but it does. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Wilfrid Posted June 10, 2015 Author Share Posted June 10, 2015 Chevalier is so much better than Batard. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Sneakeater Posted June 10, 2015 Share Posted June 10, 2015 They talk about The Modern all the time on Chowhound. (Not that I have any more respect for CH than you do -- but it is indicative of what self-styled "foodies" talk about.) Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Wilfrid Posted June 10, 2015 Author Share Posted June 10, 2015 At that level of discussion, I assume it's getting the Danny Meyer pass. If you're Meyer or Jean Georges, you can bidet until the cows come home without people objecting. Or indeed Michael White. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Sneakeater Posted June 10, 2015 Share Posted June 10, 2015 Chevalier is so much better than Batard. I certainly agree that it's better -- but I'm not sure about "so much" better. (I'd have to eat at Chevalier again to form that opinion, I guess.) Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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