French Laundry &Wild Asparagus

Posted by Jacqueline Church Apr 12, 2006

French Laundry

Perusing eGullet.org's active discussion boards, I was interested to see the huge volume of traffic generated by someone's post about their recent experience at the famous Thomas Keller restaurant, French Laundry. As a yet-to-be-upgraded member, I am not entitled to enter the discussion there, so let me offer some thoughts and one diner's (actually 6 diners') experience at this acclaimed establishment here. Quite possibly, this will mean that reservations at any future TK restaurants will require use of a pseudonym, but it's a small inconvenience really, when I see the almost unanimous reverence for the place. Allow me to offer another view.

Planning to make Patton proud

Planning a trip to the left coast always entails advance planning the likes of which are seldom seen outside of war maneuvers. There are friends, there are family, there are new restaurants, good food, vineyards, there's so much to fit in! This particular trip (2003) offered the possibility to dine at French Laundry with one of my best friends, her partner, a friend of hers and her husband, and, as I came to learn: much strategizing. The five Californians informed me, this was not your usual experience of picking up a phone and simply making a reservation. Oh no. This required beaming from PDAs, synchronizing calendars, and (due to my habitual failure to guess the proper direction of the bi-coastal time differential,) synchronization of watches. Not so subtle reminders flung in my direction sounding much like those offered when teaching a first grader how to tell time. I'll admit it. Sadly, this not far off the mark.

Well, I assumed the foodies I loved were simply pumping up my expectation and reverence for my first visit to this Mecca for gourmands. Oh no. As the weeks prior to the trip passed, reminders and calendar checks flew cross country. Who would make the first call at the very moment of the restaurant's opening? And, were we sure, let's check again, on the exact number of weeks prior to our desired night of dining we would orchestrate the calling? You see, the absolute earliest one could request the privilege of a table, was something on the order of 3 months (was it six?) I cannot recall the actual number, but I was sure it was an absurd exaggeration. Not so.

Due to the highly coordinated and finely synchronized calls, we were able to secure a table for six in the very same weekend months ahead, that we were destined to be in range of the vaunted temple of cuisine. If, all six of us could be there at 5:30, the only option available the whole period of time we'd be there. If memory serves, this required everyone else to leave work (in SF) early enough to avoid rush hour traffic and make it to the restaurant by 5:30.

Through machinations and coordination that would have made Patton proud, we all managed to arrive, before the doors opened. Thrilled to have pulled this off, on this early warm June evening, we could only imagine what thrills awaited us. (Stay tuned.)

Next chapter: Asperges Sauvages, French Laundry Disappoints, La Toque Excels