A Final Tribute...



carrot gelee terrine, lobster salad, apples, carrot puree, plantain chip, curry-fennel dressing



crab and indigo rose tomato napoleon, jicama, elderflower-champagne-chive sabayon,
american sturgeon caviar
roasted banana puree, toasted coconut



potato-truffle torte, shaved truffles, scallops, crispy chicken skin, onion puree, chanterelles



pan roasted fluke, braised lettuce, honshimejii, ginger-soy-mirin nage, clams, bacon,
beet-walnut salad



roasted squab breast, celery root puree, peaches, whipped blackberry
savory tuile, caramelized garlic, blackberry-valrhona jus



corn pudding, roasted corn, blackberries, graham cracker, corn cookies,
bitter chocolate sorbet



"rain forest torte", macadamia & cashew nut meringue, preserved cherry mousse,
almond dacquoise, plums, plum sorbet, gianduja gelato

Even though he doesn't deserve one in my book, but who am I to say? Enter the famous and world re known chef and restaurateur; Charlie Trotter! Don't get me wrong. I praised Trotter and his team for years. Hell, decades. Never had eaten at his eponymous restaurant in Chicago until last month, the day before he closed for good. I talked him up and down the block. He rocked. His food stellar. His style like mine. His work ethic and dedication to the craft an example and inspiration for us all to admire and learn from. I ate at his place in Vegas before it was en vogue for celebrity chefs to have their own place in sin city. Awesome experience but eh'. Still...he rocked. He kind of fell out of the limelight a bit as phenomenal chefs like Thomas Keller, Jean Georges V., Eric Ripert, Ferran and Albert Adria, Grant Achatz and the like became more and more popular and set extremely high standards. I didn't turn my back. And even after my disappointing service experience, which I will spare everyone the drama, dirt and heartache, I still admire his contribution to the craft and the industry. Lets just say that for one who is lauded, admired and awarded for excellence in service(hence his book and ever talked about James Beard awards and accolades) he sure was shit on this night. Sad. The kitchen was on fire and right on point. Rudeness to anyone in one's restaurant where one didn't deserve it, is totally uncalled for and appalling. Chef Trotter...YOU needed to hang up your hat and coat and leave this to those who still care. It was obvious you did not. That said...the night I came back, I had already planned a special tasting menu at our chefs table in honor of "Mr. Rude" and his 25 years of great service, food quality and excellence. I could have said to hell with it and started over, which perhaps I should have, but alas, I was stoked about the idea after all, and I was pretty sure my guests would enjoy the novelty and inspiration. After all, there is no denying that he had been an inspiration throughout my years of cooking to our culinary colleagues, our country and the world. Enter the chefs table menu. I put my own spin on it. It was a culmination of ideas from his books, menus, C.T.'s in Vegas, and now his final farewell dinner in Chicago. In hindsight, I feel as though I should have just done a private F-U and been on my way, but I am a professional and I love to cook, even if those that I look up to do not seem to anymore.