Menus are strange beasts. I am out at a restaurant and one is plunked infront of me, and I flip through its many pages. It rarely occurs to me to ask the waiter “what’s best”. Clearly something on there must be. But then if the chef is cooking twenty meals at any one time it follows that
a) there has probably been prep work so it isn’t as fresh as could be
b) he is not spending as much time on my meals as I hope
Considering that there is not a foodstuff that I don’t actually like, then it just boils down to what I fancy on the day. And sometimes I just want something good.
Cafe Des Ami, on the river front in Hoi An works slightly differently. You turn up and are given a big thick menu. Except it is not a menu, its a book of recommendations from previous diners. You see there isn’t a menu. Just a seafood meal and a vegetarian meal. And a very smiley head chef Mr Kim. For 100,000 dong he will knock you up his four course meal du jour, and throw in two beers (this is about three pounds). He won’t tell you what it will be, and will brook no argument over the contents. To right, he is a great cook, and the meal is fantastic and if you don’t like it that is your problem.
I would like this to be extended elsewhere. Remove the tyranny of choice from me. Let me go and just be served a nice meal,like what would happen when I go to a mates house for dinner. But by pros. Let the chefs cook what they want to cook, to enjoy it and make it great.