|
Jet... I don't see it as jeers but rather that some were taken aback by your position given your thread on food and art. No one here would suggest you are wrong to feel the way you do, just that they are surprised (interested?) that you've taken that point of view and think that you might reconsider your position or, at the very least, expound upon it.
At least that's the way I read it.
As for your comment about Akron, that's just the point I was trying to make. While Akron might not be the best example (you need patrons who will pay for what you are doing and if you are pushing the envelope of taste, ingredients, flavours, etc you are not going to stay in business for long in Akron) it is true that if someone wants to fly under the radar they can go unnoticed. I pointed out earlier that Noma, the number one restaurant, is in Copenhagen and Copenhagen might as well be Akron for the number of people who considered it a foodie destination before Noma started doing their thing a few years ago. The reason Noma is where it is, besides the fact that they have a talented chef and offer a good product, is because they know how to play the game. The chef and his team travel to the important food expos and competitions, they stage events like Looking North, where they fly in a pile of Michelin starred chefs to cook with Scandinavian ingredients for prominent foodies and food journalists. It also doesn't hurt the chef trained under Ferran Aidria (the owner and chef at El Bulli often seen as the best chef in the world).
In other words, his backwater is no longer a back water because he did not choose to fly under the radar. Had he wanted to just do his thing in peace, he could have cranked out good food to the good folks of Copenhagen and never said boo. In that case, he would have been just like the amazing chef in Akron.
That all said, yes, being in NYC, makes a big difference because it's easier to access the foodies and reputation makers BUT (big but) it's also a crucible. If you aren't good, and sometimes even if you are (see Thomas Keller's first efforts in NYC), you will crash and burn very quickly and given the vast number of restaurant there, you have to work just that much harder to earn and keep the respect of your peers and clients.
It's a very tough business. Especially if you want to be at the top.
__________________
"My hands are on fire. Hands are on fire. Ain't got no more time for all you charlatans and liars."
- Old Man Luedecke
|