January 21st: Chez Panisse

I can definitely see why the cozy Chez Panisse was rated one of the best restaurants in the country. First off, all of the people were so kind to us. When we first got there, the general manager spoke with us individually about what Chez Panisse is all about, and the other organizations Alice Waters began because of her love for food and her community. This was really fascinating because you don’t hear many stories about a restaurant doing anything more than cooking and serving food, but Alice Waters began many different organizations since opening her doors. Also, an observation I had the second I walked through the doors, into the comfy dining room, was that the kitchen was open. That means people could watch their food being made as they are waiting for it. This cuts down the chance of any funny business behind the kitchen doors, and you are able to see every step the chefs are making. There are no secrets in this kitchen, and that is something I really liked. While the friendly people and open atmosphere were a large part of why this was such a great restaurant, the main reason is because of the food. If you are looking for your usual chicken fingers and hot dogs, this is not the place for you. The menu had so many unique items on it I was a little surprised. I ended up deciding on the Bob’s castel franco salad with marinated beets and green goddess dressing, grilled Soul Food Farm chicken breast with curly endive salad, roasted parsnips and sage, and the pink lady apple and wild flower honey tart for dessert. There were only two things on that list that I had ever had before, chicken breast and the tart, so I was excited to see what everything else tasted like. The salad came first, and this was anything but ordinary. Again, this dressing was very refreshing, and the lettuce, while it didn’t look like any lettuce I had ever seen before, was surprisingly good. Next came a side pizza that I didn’t know was part of the meal, but I was glad that it was sent out. They gave a regular pizza a little pizzazz by adding spicy sausage, onion, and some herbs. I was glad I was able to eat two pieces of this pizza pie, which I don’t think I have ever said before. When the main meal came, I was a little bit surprised. First off, I was surprised by the amount of food. The huge plate was filled was with food. Second, there were a few things that weren’t listed on the menu that were thrown into the meal that I didn’t expect to see. One of those items was a piece of bread covered in a chicken liver paste. I didn’t think I was going to like this, but, wanting to try everything they gave me, I took a bite and really enjoyed it. I ended up eating that whole piece of toast. Also, on top of the endive salad were some squash and parsnips, and a lot of them. I cautiously tried the first one of each, but after that, I found my self eating them like they were something I had had a million times. My favorite part of this main meal, however, was the chicken. This could have been the best chicken I have ever had in my life. It was full of juice and flavor, and was the perfect tenderness. Also, the thin layer of skin on the top part of the chicken was cooked perfectly. I ate every last piece of chicken on my plate, and it was so good, I didn’t even realize how much of it I ate until it was all gone. A few seconds after I basically licked my plate clean, and it was taken away, I felt my mouth start salivating about the apple tart I saw being made downstairs. Before it was placed in the oven it looked wonderful, so I could only imagine how good it was going to look when it was placed in front of me. It looked better than I could have imagined. The flakey crust had risen to a perfect height, and the sweet apples were sitting flawlessly in a row. As an extra treat, there was a scoop of a tangerine ice cream. I don’t think I stopped to take a breath once I started eating that dessert. There is no word that could do that dessert justice but if I had to choose one it would be perfection. If you couldn’t tell by what I wrote above, I absolutely loved everything about this restaurant. What was also really nice was that all of the ingredients were fresh. This makes me feel a lot less guilty about how much food I consumed in that one sitting.