Fine dining, or the 500-1000$ meal

[Ancalagon]

Hello

This evening, my uncle, mother, cousin and I went to the Baccara restaurant at the Lac Leamy Casino (see http://www.casino-du-lac-leamy.com/lacleamy/nav/en/restaurants-bars/baccara). This is a pretty fancy place - you need a suit jacket to get in - "t-shirt and shoes" won't cut it - and the service is impeccable. There was a woman playing harp for the background music.

I'm guessing at how much it costs, because my uncle didn't let us see the bill (I insted to chip in several times, but oh well). I know the food was 70$ each, but it was unclear if it was "70$, 90$ with wine" or "70$, add 90$ for the wine" (with extras, taxes and tip, this would bring the tab to about a 1000$...)

There were five courses, and with each of them they would bring a glass of wine specially chosen to match the food. I like wine, and I have to say that they indeed know what the heck they are doing... and the more I think about it, the 1000$ amount becomes likely...

I was talking to a friend before going and joking around saying that we were going to eat very good food - or at the very least, food that was very overpriced. However, I think it was worth every damn penny as it probably was the best meal I've ever had in my life.

I'm not really sure why I'm posting this (too much wine?) but erm, anyone else had experience in fine dining?

Ancalagon

[Atticus_of_Amber]

Hello

This evening, my uncle, mother, cousin and I went to the Baccara restaurant at the Lac Leamy Casino (see http://www.casino-du-lac-leamy.com/lacleamy/nav/en/restaurants-bars/baccara). This is a pretty fancy place - you need a suit jacket to get in - "t-shirt and shoes" won't cut it - and the service is impeccable. There was a woman playing harp for the background music.

I'm guessing at how much it costs, because my uncle didn't let us see the bill (I insted to chip in several times, but oh well). I know the food was 70$ each, but it was unclear if it was "70$, 90$ with wine" or "70$, add 90$ for the wine" (with extras, taxes and tip, this would bring the tab to about a 1000$...)

There were five courses, and with each of them they would bring a glass of wine specially chosen to match the food. I like wine, and I have to say that they indeed know what the heck they are doing... and the more I think about it, the 1000$ amount becomes likely...

I was talking to a friend before going and joking around saying that we were going to eat very good food - or at the very least, food that was very overpriced. However, I think it was worth every damn penny as it probably was the best meal I've ever had in my life.

I'm not really sure why I'm posting this (too much wine?) but erm, anyone else had experience in fine dining?

Ancalagon

About a year ago I took Morbidity out to "Level 41" in Sydney and we had the degusttion menu with matched glasses of wine to each of the, IIRC, 8 courses. I had been planning to propose there but we made the mistake of having a cocktail before dinner and by the fourth course Morbs was totally drunk and I wasn't far behind. I decided it would be better to hold off proposing until I could be sure she'd remember it.

But the diner cost about A$600 - about US$500 I suppose.

Worth it - if you're earning a reasonable income and you do it about once a year. The food and the wine and the service were fantastic. And the view over the harbour is, of course, amazing.

What boggles my mind is that I know of senior lawyers in Sydney who go there once a week!

[Ancalagon]

About a year ago I took Morbidity out to "Level 41" in Sydney and we had the degusttion menu with matched glasses of wine to each of the, IIRC, 8 courses. I had been planning to propose there but we made the mistake of having a cocktail before dinner and by the fourth course Morbs was totally drunk and I wasn't far behind. I decided it would be better to hold off proposing until I could be sure she'd remember it.

But the diner cost about A$600 - about US$500 I suppose.

Worth it - if you're earning a reasonable income and you do it about once a year. The food and the wine and the service were fantastic. And the view over the harbour is, of course, amazing.

What boggles my mind is that I know of senior lawyers in Sydney who go there once a week!

I really had to take it easy on the wine - I drank about 2/3 of each glass, because otherwise I would have gotten pretty drunk.

My relatives all took the degustation menu, while I took a more "traditional" meal - but I took the wine option as well. They had caribou as their main dish, while I had a piece of milk-fed piglet - without a doubt, the best pork I've had in my entire life. We had a pretty spiffy view on the lake, but I think that it probably wasn't as good as a harbor.

I think eating like this once a week would really lessen the appeal. It probably would ruin me as well...

[Black Angel]

...

[Black Angel]

I love a degustation meal with matched wines, unfortunately the budget doesn't love it as much! :D We have had a couple of memorable occasions though...

Magill Estate, (at Penfolds winery) overlooking the city, on the night Coopers proposed. Fantastic meal, service and view. We were also quite tipsy by the time we got home where he proposed, but luckily I DO still remember it! :) We also ate there again earlier this year to celebrate paying off our loan. Price for 2 would be about A$500 (US$450) or perhaps a little more.

We've also eaten at the Adelaide Hilton, where the menu as also fantastic, to celebrate our second anniversary. It's about the same price, but I prefer the view at Magill Estate.

Anc - I agree with you about lessening the appeal to do it more often. It's so nice to have it as a special memory.

Atticus - Level 41 sounds great, we must try it for a special occasion when we are in Sydney next (not that it will be any time soon). And how did you propose if you didn't do it then?

[Ancalagon]

one of the thing I kept thinking was "If I want to impress a woman, I'm bringing her here!"

[Janos]

I've done it a few times. We have a host of good places around SoCal to do it, most have Ocean Views, courses varying of steak and seafood, and a host of wines and liquors to go with it. Fresh abalone alone will run $70-100 at a nice place. Fortunately (unfortunately for my wallet) my parents were kind enough to give me a decent wine education, so I can order a decent bottle. Paying for it is another matter though.

For my lady's birthday this year we dropped right around $600 for a fine meal. We're still enjoying the memory of it five months later.

[TiQuinn]

My wife and I have done it a couple of times for special occassions. We went to the French Laundry in Yountville, CA and the Inn at Little Washington out here in Virginia, and both ran us about $600 to $700 with the wine. A lot of folks get turned off by the price, but for my wife and I, it's a rare treat. The food is off the charts, but it's that special attention to little details that they have: the impeccable service, the presentation, the decor, the little "extras"...that extra course they slip in compliments of the chef that just make you feel all special and stuff.

[Sobek]

I love a degustation meal with matched wines,

Please tell me what this means. I can get the technical definition, but I'm just not understanding how it works.

I guess that's what I get for living out in the cornfields.

[TiQuinn]

Please tell me what this means. I can get the technical definition, but I'm just not understanding how it works.

I guess that's what I get for living out in the cornfields.

It's a dinner that comes in several smaller courses and each course comes with a different wine that pairs well with the dish. Some restaurants will offer it in addition to larger portions where you'll just order a couple of courses, and others only do the degustation menus which can change week to week or depending on what's in season.

Do an image search for degustation meal and you'll get an idea for the size of the courses.

[Dawnstar]

Never had a meal like what you guys are describing but sure does sound like something that I would love to do sometime in my life. Now that is not to say that I did not have a great meal someplace. But the bill was no where near the 600-1000 dollar mark and there were not several courses with the wines to go with it. So I am going to stop there.

[Prorpger]

Rent and a car payment....fancy meal....rent and a car payment...fancy meal...rent and a car payment


Going to have to go 'rent and a car payment'.