Back from my trip down the coast from Maine to Florida. Last weekend as I said, I attended a private function at Per Se, Thomas Keller's restaurant at the Time Warner building in New York. According to their website, reservations are accepted two months in advance! They have three prix fixe menus all costing $210.00.
We had dinner in West, one of their private function rooms. We must have had six tables of 12 people and there were at least two servers per table. The room was filled with fresh flower arrangements and all the tables were white...white tablecloths, white plates, white napkins, etc.
We had a four course meal planned which seemed to be a mixture of seafood, vegetables, and meat. Our server discretly asked each diner whether any of us had dietary restrictions. I was given courses of vegetables and pasta instead of the salmon and scallops that the other diners had.
Portions were more European than American. I left feeling that I'd eaten, but not feeling totally full or over indulged as one does in some restaurants. My first course was a small rectangle of celery root with candied cranberries, julienned greens, and a light vinegrette. It was a lovely two bites of food that gave me just a taste of what was to come. Everyone else at the table had a sauteed scallop.
Next came a small dish of porcini raviolli with a beurre blanc and truffle foam. It was a beautiful dish. The others at the table had salmon. The main course was a medallion of lamb that was tender and perfectly cooked. Our dessert was a rectangular sliver of chocolate decadence with a decoration of 24carat gold leaf (the only gold leaf that is edible) with a dolop of fresh lemon sorbet and dark chocolate smear on the plate.
After coffee and tea, the cookies came out....and one of the wealthiest women I have ever met took four chocolate cookies, wrapped them up in her napkin and shoved them in her purse..."for bedtime" she whispered to me. When we left, we were handed two chocolate brownies in a Per Se bag.
I have to say that I was so impressed with the service. Glasses were always filled, 6 different kinds of bread and two types of butter were offered by the bread server, and the food was so delicious and fresh. An amazing place.

Enjoy,
Seth