21 September
Paris, despite a relentless onslaught of techno-goblins, was glorious. My friend Mary, who happened to be in Paris when I was, told me yesterday that Mercury has been sitting square in retrograde for the last few days (Mercury being the god of communication, retrograde being the definition of “No way, Jose.”). Small frickin’ wonder. So many techno-dead ends, computer breakdowns and communications false starts could not have been my fault, right?
Right. Whatever.
I always wanted to experience a three-star Michelin meal. I promised myself on this solo adventure that I would be generous with myself. As I said in the last missive, I couldn’t gain access to the two restaurants in San Sebastian that are at the top of most food enthusiast’s lists – Mugaritz and Arzak. So I opted for door number two – Akelare. Still in the top 10% and boasting three Michelin stars of its own.
It’s been nearly three years and this was the one place I didn’t take copious notes about the food. Sorry. But I did get some good pics. Here are some images from the meal, starting with my approach to the restaurant, then the ambiance inside, and finally the presentation of the food. I even took some amateur movies. What it lacks in drool-worthy prose, it makes up for in visual sumptuousness.
(This is a long one, but worth the read. Grab a cup of tea and enjoy.)
September 2017
Some background. This culinary adventure has been in the making for nearly two years. When I first heard about San Sebastian, Spain, I had no idea this sleepy little former fishing village had such an esteemed culinary reputation: more Michelin stars per square meter than any other city. For such a small corner of the culinary universe, San Sebastian has some highly-talented, world-celebrated chefs with truly inspirational relationships to food; a passionately gastronomical culture.
Three years ago, I started to put together what was going to be my fourth culinary tour to Europe. My first was called Ten Days to Tuscany. We did Florence, Sienna, Rome, and some of the hill towns in Tuscany. Twelve people. The second and third were both a week’s cruise along the Canal di Midi in the South of France, on a slow-moving hotel barge, then most of a week in Paris. Twelve people each. One big reason I wanted the barges was because of their pace. Sometimes you could actually walk along the shore faster than the barge would meander up the canal. You were given a clear opportunity to slow down and savor the moment.
Dance is the Siamese twin of music. They’re connected at the beat.
I have always loved dancing, starting with doing the twist with my mom in my PJ’s in my living room listening to Elvis Presley. American Bandstand, high school square dancing, sock hops, the crawl, the hustle, the jerk, the bump, disco, the electric slide (man was that fun getting the whole dance floor going), the carlton (which is how you danced all the way through the 80’s) and finally, yes, I did my share of slam dancing in the punk clubs (although in those days I was skinny as a rail and it was fun the first dozen times, then it just hurt).
I’ve cooked a couple hundred lunches already in my just-over-a-year stint as Resident Chef at Couchsurfing. That’s a lot of recipes. I try and switch it up, keep it fresh and interesting, and only repeat once in a while.
Before Couchsurfing, I was a personal chef for 11 years, and my specialty during that time was cooking for people with food allergies and sensitivities. I know my way around gluten, dairy, soy, shellfish and peanuts (the five most pernicious) and dozens more pesky ingredients. My current customers are millennial techies, and only a few have food concerns, so this gig has been a piece of cake.
My second visit in a month. First was solo and one of the most soul-satisfying dinners I’ve had in a while (you can read about it here). This second time I hosted a table through Nommery, a dining-out-with-new-friends company (see post), and had the pleasure to dine with folks I’ve dined with numerous times, as well as two newbies.
Bullseye Records of Canada
