What's on the menu at the world's best restaurant.

[msmerymac]

It's a damn slideshow, but it's kind of worth it.

While there are many things on the menu I can't/won't eat (I think the live shrimp is probably a bit squicky for most people), I think it's cool. It seems like this restaurant has nailed modern cuisine, molecular gastronomy, and amazing plating techniques, while supposedly still delivering a wonderful tasting meal. The plates look a bit more advanced and less rustic than a lot of American haute cuisine tasting menus, but aren't as far out there as the really modern stuff (WD-50). I like the "foraging" theory more than the "molecules on a plate" theory, I guess.

Granted, I have not yet eaten at any of the restaurants on the top 50 list.

www.huffingtonpost.com/elyse-pasquale/noma-restaurant-menu_b_1507983.html

[heightsyankee]

I would love to go there (since El Builli is closed). It ain't gonna happen but it's a dream of mine. We saw the cookbook somewhere last week, though, and DH said the chef is closing the restaurant while "at the top of his game."

[ecupirate04]

There is nothing in any of those pictures I would eat. Nope.

[karinothing]

May 18, 2012 14:41:14 GMT -5 ecupirate04 said:

There is nothing in any of those pictures I would eat. Nope.

You won't eat the one that is a biscuit topped with cheese and argula?! That seems pretty normal

[Daria Morgandorffer]

I'm such a rube because no. Just no.

[brookles]

I consider myself pretty adventurous, but there are still a few things on that list that I'd balk at eating. Live shrimp = no.

[dev22]

May 18, 2012 14:38:31 GMT -5 msmerymac said:

(I think the live shrimp is probably a bit squicky for most people

OH hell no. Nothing that is still living is going to enter my mouth.

Otherwise, I would totally be adventurous there. I am learning to branch out food wise.

[emilyj]

I enjoy a nice meal out, but this type of dining is beyond me.

And if I'm going to be paying the prices that I imagine this place commands, there is going to be no DIY'ing going on.

[Daria Morgandorffer]

May 18, 2012 14:45:28 GMT -5 brookles said:

I consider myself pretty adventurous, but there are still a few things on that list that I'd balk at eating. Live shrimp = no.

Seriously- I'm in shock that anyone would pay ridiculous amounts of dough to chomp down on a living shrimp.

[msmerymac]

May 18, 2012 14:42:03 GMT -5 @majorwife said:

A Place my Husband Will Never Eat at for $600 Alex. lol

Haha, my husband would be much more likely to eat some of those things than me. Aside from the being-a-vegetarian thing, the little fish through the abelskivers? No. My husband, OTOH, has eaten a whole fish before at this African restaurant we went to. I don't know why he felt like he had to eat parts of the head (including the eye, which he said was disgusting), because at non-African restaurants, you don't do that. But they told him he could, lol.

[heightsyankee]

Well, no, I'm not eating living shrimp either...

[msmerymac]

FWIW, it's $250 per person for all those courses, not including wine pairings.

.... Which is way expensive, but on par with the top restaurants in the US. My husband and I plan to someday get a French Laundry reservation (yeah, right) and plan a vacation around that. I imagine plenty of people spend $1000+ on a weekend at Disneyland or in a casino. *shrug*

[meshaliuknits]

May 18, 2012 14:42:03 GMT -5 @majorwife said:

A Place my Husband Will Never Eat at for $600 Alex. lol

From what it sounds like TGH's list is quite long.

[msmerymac]

Or this, Bunny:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=ErRHJlE4PGI

[brookles]

May 18, 2012 14:53:23 GMT -5 @bunnybean said:

THIS FOOD MAKES ME ANGRY. EVERY DISH LOOKS LIKE A FUCKING NIGHTMARE.

These are the people who would eat this bullshit. Speaking of which, I'm shocked that "thin sliced bull excrement" wasn't on the goddamn list.

;D Ha!

Bunny! You need to be around more.

[ecupirate04]

I lied. There are maaaayyybeee 3 things I'd eat out of all 27. And those are a maybe. Yes, the biscuit seems edible enough.

[doctordonna]

Deer lichen?

[moreace01]

Yeah I don't know. Half of the food is black or brown. It does not look all that appetizing. And no way - I draw the line at live creatures. That is just wrong. I have a moral objection or something...

I'm kind of over small plates to be honest. I can never remember what I ate cause I never get enough of it to make any kind of impression. We ate at Joel Robuchon in Vegas and all I can remember is...we got sick afterwards. Oh and I think that we had some sort of relatively raw beef slider - and the reason I remember is cause that is what we are blaming our illness on.

[ecupirate04]

May 18, 2012 15:22:48 GMT -5 doctordonna said:

Deer lichen?

Yea. I saw that and did that thing dogs do when they hear a high pitched noise.

[doctordonna]

May 18, 2012 15:52:41 GMT -5 ecupirate04 said:

May 18, 2012 15:22:48 GMT -5 doctordonna said:

Deer lichen?

Yea. I saw that and did that thing dogs do when they hear a high pitched noise.

I'm still confused on whether or not it's lichen-like food made of deer meat or if it's lichen that deer eat.

Or would deer-meat lichen be called venison lichen?

I do like the idea of edible centerpieces. But I would prefer said edible centerpieces to come from the candy room in the original Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory.

If someone were to create that room in a restaurant, I would be there every day.

[wawa]

I am not excited by most of that food. Which makes me sad, because generally I'm a huge fan of weird food.
The little sandwhiches with chicken skin and duck skin look kinda awesome.

Deer lichen are a lichen that deer eat. Not lichen made of deer. It's just the name of the plant.

ETA: I say that...but I could be wrong. I know that there is a such a thing as deer lichen, that grows and is a plant. Whether that is what this dish is made of is another question entirely.

[ttt]

Really? People pay big bucks to eat moss?

[ttt]

OK the walnut thing looks good actually.

[msmerymac]

I like the grass in a pot. The dirt is made of hazelnuts! It reminds me of the "worms in dirt" my mom would make when I was a kid. I think it was crushed up chocolate cookies and gummy worms or something. I remember pudding or cool whip being involved? Hmm.

[doctordonna]

May 18, 2012 16:21:11 GMT -5 msmerymac said:

I like the grass in a pot. The dirt is made of hazelnuts! It reminds me of the "worms in dirt" my mom would make when I was a kid. I think it was crushed up chocolate cookies and gummy worms or something. I remember pudding or cool whip being involved? Hmm.

I loved those desserts.

[starlily]

I'd give most of those items a try, except for the deer lichen/moss, live shrimp, and the one with the whole fish (I can't deal with fish heads).

[basilosaurus]

I'm pretty adventuresome with food, so I'd try most of it, but it doesn't excite me a ton, either. I'll admit, I'm really intrigued by dehydrated scallop chips. And a few of the fish dishes look really really good. It's just that I can taste a bit too much of the Danish when I look at it, and those are flavors I love.

The whole tiny fish fried doesn't bother me. I've eaten those before, although the head was chopped off. Live shrimp were served at our favorite sushi place where we lived in Japan. I didn't have them, but I have eaten delicious raw shrimp. It takes a bit to get past the texture and appreciate the flavor, though.

[Daria Morgandorffer]

So if one eats live shrimp, does one eat the shrimp poo vein as well?

[y4m]

Y4M funfact: I got in a pissing match on twitter with Chef René Redzepi, who runs this restaurant, because posted something really shitty about people dining out with food allergies.

[msmerymac]

May 18, 2012 18:04:31 GMT -5 y4m said:

Y4M funfact: I got in a pissing match on twitter with Chef René Redzepi, who runs this restaurant, because posted something really shitty about people dining out with food allergies.

That's kind of cool. I got in a twitter fight with Ludo Lefebvre's wife once. But yours is better.

Chefs tend to be really shitty about things like that. They're also shitty about veganism, vegetarianism, gluten-free diets. They want everyone to be able to eat everything. Because it's all so AWESOME. If you can't, sucks to be you. If you WON'T, you're a moron. I've heard the same spiel from Anthony Bourdain, Gordon Ramsay, blah blah blah... Some people think there are things more important than foie gras and shell fish. Like their principles. Or, not going into anaphylactic shock.