What's The Best Dining Experience You Have Ever Had?

Here's the backstory: The year is 1988, and I flew into Houston to pick up my PhD from U of H. (I have only been to two graduations in my life, kindergarten and the PhD.) Afterward, I took my in-laws to dinner at the Plaza Club, which is on top of what used to be called the Shell Building. The restaurant was a private club on top of say a 50-60 story building. Back then, the only way you could get in was by being a Shell exec or having an AMEX Platinum card, which is how I got in.

Memory is fuzzy, but I can't remember more than a dozen tables. The deal was the table was yours for the night. There was no menu, no specials, and the waiter didn't tell you his name. It began with drinks. Then the waiter asked what we wanted for appetizers. Much later, he asked if we were interested in ordering dinner. Again, there was no menu. They were ready to prepare anything you wanted. If you couldn't come up with something, the waiter would make some suggestions. Frankly, I don't remember what I had. I'm guessing a filet. Wine, dinner, soup to nuts, the experience took hours, and there was no pressure to finish.

What made it even more memorable was a line of thunderstorms moved in, so we're sitting 50-60 stories up in the middle of a raging thunderstorm with lightening streaking across the evening sky, while we are safe and dry. It was beautiful.

Oh, and there was no check and no tipping. I had no idea how much everything cost until I got my statement. As I recall it was fairly reasonable, all things considered.

I have been back to the Plaza Club a couple of times for functions, but I think the restaurant is closed. Too bad, it really was a memorable evening.

How about you?

 

Vini Veritas in Italy. Brother and his wife took us there on our last visit.
Dinner took six hours.
The most incredible food and experience I've ever had.
We talk about it to this day.

 

Most memorable:

I organized a dinner cooked by Chef Walt Sheib, the former head chef of the White House under both Bill Clinton and George W Bush. Four outstanding courses, each served with a story behind the origin of each: which member of the First Families found it to be their favorite and how the dish came to be.

And wine pairings with a true sommelier. It was, if I do say so myself, outstanding.

Scheib unfortunately passed away last June. So it won't be repeated again.

Matt
Image Unavailable, Please Login
Image Unavailable, Please Login

 

It took us seven years to be able to afford a honeymoon. We had our seventh anniversary dinner at the Bealieu de Eze, a lovely restaurant cut into a cliff above the water just outside Monte Carlo. We sat outside. There was a full lunar eclipse of the moon during our dinner. We had Taittinger Champagne and scrambled eggs with truffles, then duck with raspberries, and a Clos de Mouches to drink with it. I will never forget it. Our 45th anniversary is this Sunday and this thread reminded me to replicate that dinner in our kitchen, so thanks my friend TexasForever. It goes without saying though, that I will not be able to find a 1970 Clos de Mouches.

 

Congrats on 45. My 40th is coming up. But I understand being broke. I think I spent $200 on rings at Zales, and I had to finance that. Seems so long ago.

 

Wow - that sounds like an awesome night to remember!

 

Belated and early congrats on the anniversaries! We're newbs, been at it only 17 years.

Our friends are getting serious, and were talking wedding rings this past weekend. My wife showed them the $50 (for two!) rings we bought at the Zales outlet in Vegas. I've tried get my wife to buy a ring more befitting her exalted status as the wife of a Ferrari owner, but those rings now have sentimental value far beyond anything I could afford.

OK, back on topic. Best meal. I think it was the dinner we had @ Le Cirque, Bellagio. Front row seat for the fountains, magical dinner with the woman I am lucky to go through this journey called life with. And, I have our very own Keith to thank for the reco and advice on where to sit.

Cheers...T

 

The best dining experience? Probably the most pampered and well taken care of was at The Herb Farm in Woodinville, WA. It's a fixed menu 8-9 course meal with wine and drink pairings. Amazingly attentive and friendly staff and impeccable service. The food was pretty incredible but honestly I'm probably more of a down-home-cooking kind of guy. It was nice to try though and the overall experience was probably one of the best of my life.

They generally do a 100 mile dinner once a year where everything, and I mean EVERYTHING is from within a 100 mile radius of the restaurant. Even down to the salt, herbs and spices, wine....etc. I'd like to try that one of these years just because it really intrigues me.

The Herbfarm : A Celebration of the Food and Wines of the Pacific Northwest.

 

Thank you Tom C. for the kind words.

 

Have had many great meals, but the one that really stand out was in Orlando in summer 2012. I had just finished taking a strenuous certifying exam, and my girlfriend flew into town just after I finished my exam. Went to Disney boardwalk hoping that they would have a good steak house, and they didn't Was walking around and it began pouring. Googled fine restaurants and Bull & Bear came up at the Waldorf Astoria. Took a cab there, and we were soaked and were wearing t-shirts and shorts. Asked them about attire and they said don't worry. Usually I dress up when I go out to steak houses, but this was a last minute thing.

Got there, and the place was beautiful. The meal was phenomenal, and everyone from the manager, to the waiter, etc. were all top notch. We were treated like royalty even though we were dressed like slobs. I picked out a bottle of wine and the sommelier came over and said it was an excellent pick. I recall the wines being priced only 2x market values. Discussed this with him as most wines are 3-4 times market value at top restaurants, and he said they do not up charge a lot on the wines. The group next to us asked about the wine and we began talking and I had the sommelier pour him a glass. They loved it and ordered a bottle as well. Then we began talking about wines. After dinner, the guy at the other table bought me a scotch and we talked about scotches.

What a beautiful evening. Only way it could have been better is if I could have finished it off with a good cigar. Have been back there 2 more times since. It is still great, but I feel that the first time was special because it was a last minute unexpected thing, and everything from the ambiance to the service was perfect.

 

How did your dinner go?

 

I think a recurring theme in these stories is great service and great company. The food just has to not be meh. 😀 In fact, the beet veloute I had at Le Cirque was meh (I think someone tried to warn me off it). The white truffle risotto, on the other hand, was divine...T

 

Alinea in Chicago.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

I agree with your assessment. I actually went with an ex of mine but we still talk occasionally and neither of us were seeing anyone else. We treated ourselves for our birthdays, hers is less than a month after mine.

For me at least, it was much more the experience than it was the food. Don't get me wrong, the food was pretty amazing and some of the wine was fantastic. It's actually the way I'd love to eat more often when out with family or friends. Long slow dinner, lots of small courses or dishes, and just enjoy the experience and the company. And yes the service was impeccable. Even to the level of replacing your napkin every time you left the table.

 

Seen that place on TV. Bucket list destination. Details? 😀
T

 

The white truffle risotto at Le Cirque is easily one of the top three dishes I have had in the past year. My wife and I were able to replicate everything about our meal Sunday evening at Reserve de Beaulieu except the wine. We drank one of my best bottles, a 2000 Dom. Leroy Pommard.

 

It's in my all-time "top 5" list. Sounds like a great meal...T

 

I was invited to lunch at an acronymed agency in the Northeast several years ago.

Had to get cleared, in advance, to even enter the campus. I had to leave my phone in the car once I got to the parking area. Had to be escorted while inside the building everywhere we went. The tour on they way up to the Agency Dining Room was priceless and informative beyond belief.

The menu was simple but perfect, the service was incredible, the view over the tree line and past the river was clear and you could see for miles.

Knowing that even the very best concierge could not get you a reservation , made it an overall amazing experience. Opportunity even.

How do you beat the ambience?

S

 

I agree. And as my Father used to say, "Things are always better when they're shared."