you know, when i watch your videos, you always have this semi serious tone and face when judging the food, but when you were eating the bbq bare handed, you had this childlike happiness on your face. its great man.
The way he looked up and back in is like getting the Christmas present you most wanted that your parents kept on saying was too much to get. The absolute joy mixed with disbelief that your dreams actually came true 😂
Just want to say that I like the way that you don't try to hide your wealth but also don't flex it so upfront. It is grounded. You enjoy nice things but are immensely appreciative and also have a certain humility and respect for the work of others. It isn't "This isnt good," but rather, "it isn't to my tastes."
Whenever I feel like this concept might get old and that it will be an overload of fancy food you break it up by telling some stories of your trip or the staff or the owner. Love seeing your videos develop and good job keeping them both informative and entertaining
I love your honest, professional, but also genuine tone to all of these videos. No hyperbolic statements, a real interest in the places you go, and an unpretentious attitude towards these fancy looking dishes. Thank you for making these videos, looking forward to even more!
This is one of my favorite videos in a while. The sharp criticisms that Alexander had combined with the gentle praises really brought home the idea that Alexander really is doing his best to review restaurants impartially. I also really love how the video is extended with food that is not *just* from the Michelin star restaurants. Seeing the food from the airplane and the BBQ at the end of the video was fantastic. Also that ending is amazing. Keep it up, I am excited to see the rest of the videos from California!
After watching your old videos too, I really appreciate how you present the wine and service along with the food, and not clumped together at the end. It really only makes sense and is the way to go. These videos are what makes the channel great.
Love the production, editing and story telling. Alex can also provide comprehensive reviews, be super professional in his analysis and yet still show his personality and 'fun' side when he needs. One of my favourite channels by far, which I've been following since 10k subscribers.
Highly amusing that the 3* Atelier Crenn receives a decidely subdued "meh", yet Busters gets a "F*cking Amazing". Maybe a side project of "Alexander Does BBQ"?
This has to be the best channel on TH-cam. The mixture of your enthusiasm, a peek into a unobtainable world and the care you take in delivering the history, the tangents that we as the audience get taken down and the overall production make this unmissable viewing. Bravo
Some of the techniques on display here are extraordinary - those cauliflower gold plated leaves... incredible. Thanks for bringing us on the journey. Looking forward to this California series - TFL was the restaurant that got me into fine dining, so looking forward to that one in particular.
The format of these videos is incredible. Its Chefs Table quality but more personable. Love the history lessons / location introductions and the honest reviews. Look forward to more videos.
Your comment about Busters while wearing normal civvies put a big smile on my face. I like 3 star Michelin restaurants as much as the next foodie, but all that fancy food can get oddly monotonous after a while (both eating and watching). Would be great if you added restaurants that had Michelin potential or just very popular comfort food (as long as it was high quality). The research may be tougher and different but I think it would add variety to your videography. Also, you could do themed shows like your favorite steakhouse(s) in NY, Tapas in Barcelona, Teppanyaki in Tokyo - maybe even compare 2 of the best on the same show. As you know in every great food city there are dozens of great restaurants that do not have a Michelin star. I think viewers would be interested. I know I would be.
The professional reviewers I've found online are nothing but gushes of wonderment, but when I found actual customers, many of their reviews matched yours. The only "wonderment" in several reviews was that the restaurant had 3 stars. No dairy, and pescatarian only. To an outsider, like myself, this would seem like climbing Everest (even more so than normal) to get 3 stars.
…stumbling on here has been such a treat. Your take on the finer things is quite candid yet ideally structured, I find very refreshing as too is the lovely pastry chef. I just love how you presented your experience at Atelier Crenn, oh the soirée of the staff is maddening but oh so American (Native of the Bay Area). In 2012 I had my folks have their 45th anniversary there and had emailed the staff regarding my father’s health and if they can arrange any non alcoholic pairings. They quickly replied and with no hesitation did a superb job. And Miss Crenn herself met them. So I sent her a thank you card with an an Oregon Pinot Noir from my friends Winery. She sent me an invite with my folks to her new Bistro Petit Crenn in 2015 and went in Nov and it was amazing. I sent her more wine as a late Xmas Gift of gratitude for giving my family a memorable evening with Dad for on Christmas Eve he passed. She is an amazing person and glad she is doing great but hot dang the total bill is far from my last visit with Mom in 2018
One of your Best Alexander ! The BBQ at the end.... "it was fucking good" Spoken like a true American ! Enjoy the rest of your stay here. I'm in Santa Cruz, just below San Francisco. I've visited several of these restaurants. We've got it good here in 'Northern California', we really do. Thank you for highlighting this ! Subscribed for a couple of years, bell rung, and ... Enjoy !
I don’t always agree with specific focus points in Alex’s videos but that’s because we expect a different experience from our dinner. But I do appreciate and respect Alex expertise and opinion very much
@@snoopycs1102 by giving his opinion, his engaging movement in the channel, already 3 replies, this helps the channel grow and to be recommended to more people, so most likely Alexander and his team do care.
Great review Alex, you are really at the forefront on this platform when it comes to give great insights of high-end restaurants 👏 Keep up the fantastic job you and the team are doing 👍
Definitely the best subscribe click of the year so far for me. Keep it up Alexander 👍This series seems exciting. I bet we gonna see a lot of green starred restaurant in California, they got all the ingredients in their backyards. Also love the wineries and vineyards history bits, they should be in every videos 😄
The entire reservation at Atelier Crenn is prepaid on Tock, hence the deduction there. Same at Alinea for instance, or for The Fat Duck over here in the UK (also using Tock).
Yes, they charge you ahead for each diner + 20% gratuity. You have the option to select your wine/drink pairings when you book online as well, or defer until your actual dinner. Also, you can not change date/time. You would have to sell/transfer the reservation via Tock. [This would strictly be for exactly what you paid for, can not charge an additional fee. You would have to do that via some other method outside of Tock.]
Yes I saw that too, as a european I will never understand this tip and extras culture.. btw, I saw there was a 20% service included what does that actually mean? does it mean the staff gets automatically 20% and you dont have to tip?
Nice one your video and impressions gave me the same feelings you explained . Just back from Barcelona where i visited a non stars restaurant and a high level rated restaurant and honestly the non stars restaurant was for me the better one . Grts
I’ve been waiting for this for so long I can’t wait to see all of these restaurants. Keep up the great work and there’s a busters bbq close to where I live so now I gotta try it
I know that reviews are heavily biased by the reviewers preferences. That said I do enjoy the way you break down what and why you like something. I also enjoy that you acknowledge that something can be well made and executed but still not for you. I have not had the same opportunity to enjoy fine dining as you have but in my limited experience I have had some dishes that were beautifully crafted yet did not strike the right note in me leaving me feeling like it was just adequate. I look forward to checking out your other reviews and videos, Cheers!
Your criticism at 12:06 is very similar to a criticism I had dining at another California restaurant, this one with 2 stars, Providence. The service was very attentive, but they were constantly hovering, tried to take a dish or two away early, and we had two different servers ask if we wanted more wine back-to-back. It was also a more crowded/compact restaurant, and so it felt a bit overwhelming
It's always fun to see others opinions. I've had the same menu and I very much enjoyed the dishes that didn't work for him. With service I completely agree. It almost seems like parody the way they hover over you.
My wife and I ate at Atelier Crenn on 10/31/2024, Halloween - about 4 months after this video was posted. Many of the same items were on our menu and I recognize some of the staff. The service, we thought, was excellent. With that said, any guest that toured the kitchen was greeted with the same, loud, boisterous "au revoir" upon departure, and it seemed a bit gimmicky. Regarding the food: some of it was bland and lacked pizzazz. Quite frankly, I didn't find the food to be 3 Michelin star worthy (and in fact, we ate at Press in St. Helena 2 days later, and the food was much better, and Press has 1 Michelin star). It was good, no doubt, but not great; forgettable really. The pastry dishes were more interesting than the main courses. Lastly, I ordered a glass of wine costing $100. It was spectacular. I was bummed that the same bottle of wine sold for $51 down the block, and AC sold a glass of it for $100. To me, that's not the way to treat your customers. I understand making a profit, but that is a bit much. If you're looking for a better experience for cheaper, go to Napa and check out The French Laundry or even Press. I would not recommend Atelier Crenn.
This is literally free consultation I wonder if any of these chefs or owners watch these videos for tips for continual improvement? On a separate note I love the thoughtfulness in these videos and the specificity with regards to what you like and how to improve some stuff. I wonder if you could do a video on 1,2 and 3 michellin star restaurants in the same type of cuisine or region to see the difference in what you get per michellin star
Alexander, you're on point about the service being lacking. Having dined in many Michelin Star establishments in Europe and in the United States, it just feels like the United States tends to have a much more mechanical style of service with more room for the service team to express their individual prejudices and attitudes - maybe it's a cultural/social thing. For example, your ethnicity, age, etc. are from my experience as being on the younger side of your average fine dining guest and being of Asian descent, are somewhat factored in and sometimes staff/chefs will act less friendly/hospitable to you based on some of those factors it seems. Three star restaurants in the U.S. don't have as much room for error like what I've previously described, but I've had some horrible experiences at many one and two-starred establishments where if the service is bad and you give a lower tip than what was customary, the staff would bat you with an side-eye or give you an cold attitude/demeanor, and at best the service in the U.S. is just professional and mechanical with little room for dialogue or conversation with the service team like what you experienced at Atelier Crenn. Although I haven't personally been to Atelier Crenn, the service is quite similar to that of Quince in my opinion, although everybody was respectful even if there wasn't much flavor to the service. I've found the best service I've probably had was at Thomas Keller's Per Se, and at Single Thread Farms. Meanwhile in Europe, almost all of the establishments I visited were not only professional but had flair to their service, which really made it stand out.
Good read. Having only been to European Michelin starred restaurants, the service is almost always great and tailor made to the table. Usually they start out formal and with every interaction they know how to cater a little bit more to the overall feel of the table and even communicate that piece of knowledge to the rest of the staff.
@@robdielemans9189 Exactly! I'm glad we feel the same way! In my experience European head chefs will also oftentimes even come out of the kitchen and have a chat with all the guests dining one by one and have some conversations on the food, and even ask for some constructive criticisms. Combined with what you said as well about how the entire service staff in Europe is well versed and well communicated, I think this level of professionalism and hospitality is something that the U.S. fine dining establishments could learn from as well.
@@Joe_Ingles the attitude "overly polite but with a blatant lack of empathy" is what I've heard about US services. Not surprising that it extends to Michelin star restaurants as well.
An interesting California wine fact is that the winemaker for Chateau Montelena at the Judgment of Paris was Miljenko (Mike) Grgich, who went on to found Grgich Hills wines. Mike just passed away last year at age 100. His Grgich Hills Judgment of Paris Chardonnay is their effort to make a chardonnay just like the one that won for Montelena. Enjoy California wines, but don't limit yourself to Napa. There are many other wonderful AVAs in California. I look forward to this series of videos.
I love these videos, but good Lord do they hammer home how much it sucks to not be able to do this kind of thing. Alexander is great, and the channel itself is informative, but, ya know, these are once-in-a-lifetime experiences for most of us.
My family and I had a similar experience at Atelier Crenn. It was good, as expected from a 3 Michelin star restaurant, but a bit underwhelming. No dish really wowed us. The deserts were also the best part of our meal though.
I appreciate your candid reviews. Service expectations in USA are definatley different. Either way the service team certainly needs to adjust. I much prefer the European style of service. Many thanks to you.
Forlorn Hope wines are fabulous. Speaking of Chateau Montelena, I recently opened a bottle of a bottle of their 1985 Cab. I wasn't expecting much - maybe even "asparagus water" - but it was amazingly fantastic.
you know, when i watch your videos, you always have this semi serious tone and face when judging the food, but when you were eating the bbq bare handed, you had this childlike happiness on your face. its great man.
The way he looked up and back in is like getting the Christmas present you most wanted that your parents kept on saying was too much to get.
The absolute joy mixed with disbelief that your dreams actually came true 😂
Real food .... All the luxury in the world can't beat comfort food.
@@tobasco4843 it beats it almost every day for me
He’s very diplomatic with his criticism and I love his accent
@@jamm8284 Parasocial is not just a funny word
Just want to say that I like the way that you don't try to hide your wealth but also don't flex it so upfront. It is grounded. You enjoy nice things but are immensely appreciative and also have a certain humility and respect for the work of others. It isn't "This isnt good," but rather, "it isn't to my tastes."
It’s because it feels like he’s just talking about his hobbies. He comes off as very honest and genuine
The meals are paid for via YT advertising, these reviews are a side project / micro-business for him, and looks like a great business too!
Thank you for your compliments! Glad you enjoyed the BBQ. Be sure to let us know next time you swing through. We appreciate you! ~Buster
Whenever I feel like this concept might get old and that it will be an overload of fancy food you break it up by telling some stories of your trip or the staff or the owner. Love seeing your videos develop and good job keeping them both informative and entertaining
wrrr
I love your honest, professional, but also genuine tone to all of these videos. No hyperbolic statements, a real interest in the places you go, and an unpretentious attitude towards these fancy looking dishes. Thank you for making these videos, looking forward to even more!
This is one of my favorite videos in a while. The sharp criticisms that Alexander had combined with the gentle praises really brought home the idea that Alexander really is doing his best to review restaurants impartially. I also really love how the video is extended with food that is not *just* from the Michelin star restaurants. Seeing the food from the airplane and the BBQ at the end of the video was fantastic.
Also that ending is amazing. Keep it up, I am excited to see the rest of the videos from California!
You are going to be a great ambassador for the food community in the coming years
Stay humble, friend
wrr
Humble? Okay.
Man I love that you also include a small history lesson of the area with your videos, huge props to the whole team
After watching your old videos too, I really appreciate how you present the wine and service along with the food, and not clumped together at the end. It really only makes sense and is the way to go. These videos are what makes the channel great.
I've watched Alex eat countless $1000+ meals since I found his channel, and have never seen his face light-up like it did when eating that BBQ.
which video is it
@@ilovetolearn999 this video
@@ilovetolearn999 This one. It's at around 16:19.
@N-Soc88 thanks for the time stamp
Love the production, editing and story telling. Alex can also provide comprehensive reviews, be super professional in his analysis and yet still show his personality and 'fun' side when he needs. One of my favourite channels by far, which I've been following since 10k subscribers.
I’m with you. The warmth and delightful personality of the pastry chef stole the show.
Highly amusing that the 3* Atelier Crenn receives a decidely subdued "meh", yet Busters gets a "F*cking Amazing".
Maybe a side project of "Alexander Does BBQ"?
wr
I mean, it is entirely different. The 3* will be graded based on an entirely different scale. Texas BBQ will always be Texas BBQ,
Because BBQ was tested by time and tasted by millions.
@@ZattaBoy BBQ folk don't let Michelin in because all those tire salesmen do is jack up prices and make nice affordable things into rich people shit
Thats because Michelin star restaurants are jokes. Pretention. Just ask MPW
This has to be the best channel on TH-cam. The mixture of your enthusiasm, a peek into a unobtainable world and the care you take in delivering the history, the tangents that we as the audience get taken down and the overall production make this unmissable viewing. Bravo
Some of the techniques on display here are extraordinary - those cauliflower gold plated leaves... incredible. Thanks for bringing us on the journey. Looking forward to this California series - TFL was the restaurant that got me into fine dining, so looking forward to that one in particular.
The format of these videos is incredible. Its Chefs Table quality but more personable. Love the history lessons / location introductions and the honest reviews. Look forward to more videos.
i don't know why this channel doesn't have over 1mil followers yet...
best food critic of the 21st century.
I love your reviews, Alexander. Your perspective is very refreshing and it's nice to see reviews that are not just honest but also constructive.
wr
That barbeque was so fucking good Alexander had to say it to make a point 😂
I burst out laughing when he said that. Glad to know he appreciates both fine dining and simple, soulful food
wrr, outx, can outx etc any nmw s perfx
Your comment about Busters while wearing normal civvies put a big smile on my face. I like 3 star Michelin restaurants as much as the next foodie, but all that fancy food can get oddly monotonous after a while (both eating and watching). Would be great if you added restaurants that had Michelin potential or just very popular comfort food (as long as it was high quality). The research may be tougher and different but I think it would add variety to your videography. Also, you could do themed shows like your favorite steakhouse(s) in NY, Tapas in Barcelona, Teppanyaki in Tokyo - maybe even compare 2 of the best on the same show. As you know in every great food city there are dozens of great restaurants that do not have a Michelin star. I think viewers would be interested. I know I would be.
Ottimo commento
Love that you take us all with you through the entire experience each time and the honesty. 💯
The professional reviewers I've found online are nothing but gushes of wonderment, but when I found actual customers, many of their reviews matched yours. The only "wonderment" in several reviews was that the restaurant had 3 stars. No dairy, and pescatarian only. To an outsider, like myself, this would seem like climbing Everest (even more so than normal) to get 3 stars.
I love the bits of history and storytelling in your videos. Great work!
…stumbling on here has been such a treat. Your take on the finer things is quite candid yet ideally structured, I find very refreshing as too is the lovely pastry chef. I just love how you presented your experience at Atelier Crenn, oh the soirée of the staff is maddening but oh so American (Native of the Bay Area). In 2012 I had my folks have their 45th anniversary there and had emailed the staff regarding my father’s health and if they can arrange any non alcoholic pairings. They quickly replied and with no hesitation did a superb job. And Miss Crenn herself met them. So I sent her a thank you card with an an Oregon Pinot Noir from my friends Winery. She sent me an invite with my folks to her new Bistro Petit Crenn in 2015 and went in Nov and it was amazing. I sent her more wine as a late Xmas Gift of gratitude for giving my family a memorable evening with Dad for on Christmas Eve he passed. She is an amazing person and glad she is doing great but hot dang the total bill is far from my last visit with Mom in 2018
Great review as always. The presentations looks absolutely amazing!!
.
One of your Best Alexander ! The BBQ at the end.... "it was fucking good"
Spoken like a true American !
Enjoy the rest of your stay here. I'm in Santa Cruz, just below San Francisco.
I've visited several of these restaurants.
We've got it good here in 'Northern California', we really do.
Thank you for highlighting this !
Subscribed for a couple of years, bell rung, and ... Enjoy !
The eyes lighting up after tasting the BBQ😅
wr
I feel so much more connected to him now!
This native San Franciscan (now Sonoma resident) hopes you'll return soon, Alexander! Your station is THE BEST! Cheers! Craig
I'm glad to see more restaurants giving attention to non- alcoholic beverage programs, would've loved some detail about the juice pairing here.
Love this format and the professionalism it's conducted in 👍
Best video yet. Love your comment with the BBQ!
The quality of every one of these videos is so great, keep up the excellent work
I don’t always agree with specific focus points in Alex’s videos but that’s because we expect a different experience from our dinner. But I do appreciate and respect Alex expertise and opinion very much
Me too !!
No one cares about your opinion tho
@@snoopycs1102 by giving his opinion, his engaging movement in the channel, already 3 replies, this helps the channel grow and to be recommended to more people, so most likely Alexander and his team do care.
I just love your videos... They're like a calm moment between the fast videos and shorts here on TH-cam. Keep up the great work! 🙏👍
Love that you visited the winery and gave us the history from it, thank you!
As a San Francisco native, really enjoyed watching you enjoy this fun town 😊 hope y’all ate well and had a great trip
Great review Alex, you are really at the forefront on this platform when it comes to give great insights of high-end restaurants 👏 Keep up the fantastic job you and the team are doing 👍
Might be one of your best videos so far, great job! Looking forward to the next chapter in California.
The creativity and artistry is second to none. Really appreciate creme de la creme
I like how you showed us the receipt of your bill. It’s a nice touch to the video. Please keep doing that 👍🏽
Definitely the best subscribe click of the year so far for me. Keep it up Alexander 👍This series seems exciting. I bet we gonna see a lot of green starred restaurant in California, they got all the ingredients in their backyards. Also love the wineries and vineyards history bits, they should be in every videos 😄
I've really enjoyed the concept of most of Crenn's food since I saw them on iron chef. Always fresh and innovative!
I never miss your vidéos now ahah
Great ambassador for the food community.
You really are our "inspecteur pour le guide Michelin" ahah
Loved the stop 🛑 to try buster bbq 🍗. I like that you liked it good food is good food
Hope you enjoyed your tour of California, so cool to see content closer to home
Can't wait for the rest of this series!
The red flower in a field of snow is Chef Diana Zaldivar!
Never expected to see my house in Alexander's videos but here we are at 0:49 😂
thx im coming right now
Me too
@@Elias-iy1dywonderful what do you want for dinner honey ❤
For those asking Tock is a website he used to book the restaurant it likely required him to pay a deposit hence the
- $1000 off
The entire reservation at Atelier Crenn is prepaid on Tock, hence the deduction there. Same at Alinea for instance, or for The Fat Duck over here in the UK (also using Tock).
Yes, they charge you ahead for each diner + 20% gratuity. You have the option to select your wine/drink pairings when you book online as well, or defer until your actual dinner.
Also, you can not change date/time. You would have to sell/transfer the reservation via Tock. [This would strictly be for exactly what you paid for, can not charge an additional fee. You would have to do that via some other method outside of Tock.]
i love this format
and it was nice to see you also eat normal people food and not just michelin star food.
i really like your content. I just noticed that the music in this video, atleast in the beginning, was very loud. Keep up the good work!
Absolutely loved seeing some wine names that I actually live around in this video
Finally you told us about the sweets ( desserts & Petit fours) ABOUT TIME!
Tacking on a 2% surcharge for health coverage to a $1500 meal is peak USA. But it tracks with a chef/owner having their waitstaff doing laps.
Yes I saw that too, as a european I will never understand this tip and extras culture.. btw, I saw there was a 20% service included what does that actually mean? does it mean the staff gets automatically 20% and you dont have to tip?
It's a California thing, trust me other states are not like California, we call it commiefornia
Nice one your video and impressions gave me the same feelings you explained . Just back from Barcelona where i visited a non stars restaurant and a high level rated restaurant and honestly the non stars restaurant was for me the better one . Grts
I’ve been waiting for this for so long I can’t wait to see all of these restaurants. Keep up the great work and there’s a busters bbq close to where I live so now I gotta try it
Love to see shouting out the staff, from the people by the people
im not even into fine dining and i love this channel.
Can't wait to watch this and look forward to where you are going in the area I call Home. Lots of stars to choose from!
Enjoyed your honest review where you weren't afraid to point out the negatives in your opinion. I wonder if there was a stop by the tenderloin...
Great video once again!
So when are we getting the BBQ place review?
I'm happy that you will have us..... on board.
5:10 the ant on the table😭
I know that reviews are heavily biased by the reviewers preferences. That said I do enjoy the way you break down what and why you like something. I also enjoy that you acknowledge that something can be well made and executed but still not for you. I have not had the same opportunity to enjoy fine dining as you have but in my limited experience I have had some dishes that were beautifully crafted yet did not strike the right note in me leaving me feeling like it was just adequate. I look forward to checking out your other reviews and videos, Cheers!
Damn, your tailoring is always on point
Yeah I'm pretty sure he's getting almost all his stuff done bespoke
suave and v attractive.
3:06
LOL! Reminds me of my brother when he reach 21, he told me not to stop him from having his first beer 😂
So happy to see you went to California! Cheers.
Your criticism at 12:06 is very similar to a criticism I had dining at another California restaurant, this one with 2 stars, Providence. The service was very attentive, but they were constantly hovering, tried to take a dish or two away early, and we had two different servers ask if we wanted more wine back-to-back. It was also a more crowded/compact restaurant, and so it felt a bit overwhelming
You eating the barbecue at the end was hilarious 😂😂😂
It's always fun to see others opinions. I've had the same menu and I very much enjoyed the dishes that didn't work for him. With service I completely agree. It almost seems like parody the way they hover over you.
Would love to see a videos on some non-michelin restaurants as well!
really like the added travel content, keep it up :)
Been waiting for this one!
Thoroughly enjoying these vids
Same here. Glad I found this channel.
My wife and I ate at Atelier Crenn on 10/31/2024, Halloween - about 4 months after this video was posted. Many of the same items were on our menu and I recognize some of the staff. The service, we thought, was excellent. With that said, any guest that toured the kitchen was greeted with the same, loud, boisterous "au revoir" upon departure, and it seemed a bit gimmicky. Regarding the food: some of it was bland and lacked pizzazz. Quite frankly, I didn't find the food to be 3 Michelin star worthy (and in fact, we ate at Press in St. Helena 2 days later, and the food was much better, and Press has 1 Michelin star). It was good, no doubt, but not great; forgettable really. The pastry dishes were more interesting than the main courses. Lastly, I ordered a glass of wine costing $100. It was spectacular. I was bummed that the same bottle of wine sold for $51 down the block, and AC sold a glass of it for $100. To me, that's not the way to treat your customers. I understand making a profit, but that is a bit much. If you're looking for a better experience for cheaper, go to Napa and check out The French Laundry or even Press. I would not recommend Atelier Crenn.
What an experience for your godson! Always great to see your take on these restaurants!
The march of the Crenn staff would kill the experience for me- thank you for your honest review!
This is literally free consultation I wonder if any of these chefs or owners watch these videos for tips for continual improvement? On a separate note I love the thoughtfulness in these videos and the specificity with regards to what you like and how to improve some stuff. I wonder if you could do a video on 1,2 and 3 michellin star restaurants in the same type of cuisine or region to see the difference in what you get per michellin star
Alexander, you're on point about the service being lacking. Having dined in many Michelin Star establishments in Europe and in the United States, it just feels like the United States tends to have a much more mechanical style of service with more room for the service team to express their individual prejudices and attitudes - maybe it's a cultural/social thing. For example, your ethnicity, age, etc. are from my experience as being on the younger side of your average fine dining guest and being of Asian descent, are somewhat factored in and sometimes staff/chefs will act less friendly/hospitable to you based on some of those factors it seems. Three star restaurants in the U.S. don't have as much room for error like what I've previously described, but I've had some horrible experiences at many one and two-starred establishments where if the service is bad and you give a lower tip than what was customary, the staff would bat you with an side-eye or give you an cold attitude/demeanor, and at best the service in the U.S. is just professional and mechanical with little room for dialogue or conversation with the service team like what you experienced at Atelier Crenn. Although I haven't personally been to Atelier Crenn, the service is quite similar to that of Quince in my opinion, although everybody was respectful even if there wasn't much flavor to the service. I've found the best service I've probably had was at Thomas Keller's Per Se, and at Single Thread Farms. Meanwhile in Europe, almost all of the establishments I visited were not only professional but had flair to their service, which really made it stand out.
Good read. Having only been to European Michelin starred restaurants, the service is almost always great and tailor made to the table. Usually they start out formal and with every interaction they know how to cater a little bit more to the overall feel of the table and even communicate that piece of knowledge to the rest of the staff.
@@robdielemans9189 It's the tipping culture. They think that hovering around and being overly attentive will lead to a bigger tip.
@@robdielemans9189 Exactly! I'm glad we feel the same way! In my experience European head chefs will also oftentimes even come out of the kitchen and have a chat with all the guests dining one by one and have some conversations on the food, and even ask for some constructive criticisms. Combined with what you said as well about how the entire service staff in Europe is well versed and well communicated, I think this level of professionalism and hospitality is something that the U.S. fine dining establishments could learn from as well.
@@Joe_Ingles the attitude "overly polite but with a blatant lack of empathy" is what I've heard about US services. Not surprising that it extends to Michelin star restaurants as well.
the winery! i pray it becomes one of the finests in the world, congratulations!
An interesting California wine fact is that the winemaker for Chateau Montelena at the Judgment of Paris was Miljenko (Mike) Grgich, who went on to found Grgich Hills wines. Mike just passed away last year at age 100. His Grgich Hills Judgment of Paris Chardonnay is their effort to make a chardonnay just like the one that won for Montelena. Enjoy California wines, but don't limit yourself to Napa. There are many other wonderful AVAs in California. I look forward to this series of videos.
I really liked Atelier Crenn, probably one of the best fine dining restaurants I've been to.
Thank you for doing this review! I live in the Bay Area and was waiting for you to do a proper review of this restaurant!
The definitive fine dining channel on TH-cam.
Wonderful to see Chateau Montelena mentioned here. Bottleshock is a fun movie worth watching, thanks to the great Alan Rickman.
Love the videos. Always fun and well done.
OMG that was amazing, the food was sooo nice,
I love these videos, but good Lord do they hammer home how much it sucks to not be able to do this kind of thing. Alexander is great, and the channel itself is informative, but, ya know, these are once-in-a-lifetime experiences for most of us.
I'm so glad you enjoy Texas style BBQ. It's my favorite as well.
I’ve been eagerly awaiting this series
alexander keeps it real everytime
I've been eagerly waiting for this series to drop!!! Super excited to see the future reviews of restaurants in and around the Bay Area.
I see a fly on table at 5:12 please take star away😂
Hi
Alexander. Love your videos…you’re an aviation TH-camr now ❤
My family and I had a similar experience at Atelier Crenn. It was good, as expected from a 3 Michelin star restaurant, but a bit underwhelming. No dish really wowed us. The deserts were also the best part of our meal though.
I appreciate your candid reviews. Service expectations in USA are definatley different. Either way the service team certainly needs to adjust. I much prefer the European style of service.
Many thanks to you.
would be great to also get a more detailed view of the non-alcoholic pairing!
Yes, I would love to see what is contained in the juice pairing.
I'd love if you also did reviews of food places that aren't fancy restaurants -- like more BBQ places!
yo the barbeque lmaoooo you should do a bbq tour in the southeast USA!
Forlorn Hope wines are fabulous. Speaking of Chateau Montelena, I recently opened a bottle of a bottle of their 1985 Cab. I wasn't expecting much - maybe even "asparagus water" - but it was amazingly fantastic.