Plan B Forum

At Atelier Crenn in San Francisco, the menu reads like a poem. Dishes include “Autumn has come with its cool breeze” and “Where the broad ocean leans against the Spanish land.” One of chef Dominique Crenn’s signature dishes, “A walk in the forest,” sounds comparatively straightforward. But even though its name is (relatively) simple, the dish itself is highly conceptual and innovative.



The inspiration came from Crenn’s childhood in Brittany where she would forage in the forest with her father for things like mushrooms and blackberries. “I wanted to recreate that entire experience,” she says. “You know that feeling when you eat a mushroom and it kind of takes you back to earth? I want anyone who has this dish to feel like they are eating mushrooms in the forest.”

To make the dish, Crenn starts by burning a pine meringue on the bottom of a plate, adding a basil soil and a pumpernickel soil. She then adds a variety of mushrooms all prepared differently—sautéed, dehydrated, pickled and marinated. To finish, she sprinkles on hazelnut praline and herbs like sorrel or onion flowers. “It’s not just about texture or flavor of acidity or bitterness,” Crenn says. “It’s about feelings, memories, visuals, a story.”

“It’s about feelings, memories, visuals, a story.”

Joe Guy wrote:It looks like a meal that someone has already eaten...

Summer has come with its cool breeze
Oceanic feeling of white dust, but crunchy
The sea began to roll and swirl, in the exotic tide
Its whimsically ebullient red umami
Meeting pretty pink lips, eyes so big
Come with me and look into the green light
Strolling on, in the orchard,

The rawness of those soft-footed creatures
Singing, the wild bird will fly away into the smoky sky
Sipping slowly on the sweetness of the earth
Walking deep in the woods,
As the earth might have something to spare
A precious token
Summer has come and is full of sweet surprises
Sweetness, bounty, thanks

u·ma·mi
/o͞oˈmämē/
noun
noun: umami
a category of taste in food (besides sweet, sour, salt, and bitter), corresponding to the flavor of glutamates, especially monosodium glutamate.

Lord Jim wrote:

Joe Guy wrote:It looks like a meal that someone has already eaten...

That was my immediate reaction...

As "visuals" go, that one leaves a lot to be desired...

The website is absolutely hilarious...

Here's what you get when you click on "Food Menu":

Summer has come with its cool breeze
Oceanic feeling of white dust, but crunchy
The sea began to roll and swirl, in the exotic tide
Its whimsically ebullient red umami
Meeting pretty pink lips, eyes so big
Come with me and look into the green light
Strolling on, in the orchard,

The rawness of those soft-footed creatures
Singing, the wild bird will fly away into the smoky sky
Sipping slowly on the sweetness of the earth
Walking deep in the woods,
As the earth might have something to spare
A precious token
Summer has come and is full of sweet surprises
Sweetness, bounty, thanks

"Yes, I'll have the cool breeze to start, and then the exotic tide (medium rare) with a side order of smoky sky..."

Singing, the wild bird will fly away