The best and the worst, all in one day

I flew on two planes today, and I ate two meals, and each pair yielded examples of the best and worst of travel.

The first flight went as perfectly as one could ask: I received an upgrade to first class, the plane left on time and arrived early, my row-mate was quiet, and I was able to finish a lot of work. I left the plane feeling better than when I entered it.

The second flight, by contrast, proved to be a nightmare. Though I had an exit row, the leg space was minimal.  I was by far the smallest of the three of us in the row, and my shoulders were definitely the narrowest, so none of us had any space. Rather than all suffering, however, the guy in the middle decided to launch an attack for the available space. He spread his shoulders and elbows into both me (aisle) and the other guy, and whenever we tried to regain any space, he'd raise his arms and push back. I didn't want to end up in a fight on a plane, and apparently the guy in the window seat decided the same thing, so we just took it and leaned away from the guy in the middle. By the end of the flight, I was so angry that it took all of my self control to exit the plane calmly.

My first meal was on the first flight, and it was a wilted salad flanked by a wooden piece of the Chicken of Great Despondency (patent-pending by American Airlines). I've eaten a lot of rubber chicken, but this was wooden chicken. Every bit of the salad was droopy and almost as sad and defeated as the chicken, but in a wet, wilted, go-ahead-and-try-to-eat-this-veggie-mush sort of way.

My second meal was dinner at the amazing é by José Andrés. It's very late, and I have to get up very early, so I must save the full review for later. Suffice for now to say that the meal was world-class, the staff's performance exemplary, and as a bonus, all nine of us in the dining room got along well, were foodies, talked and laughed a great deal, and generally made a great meal even better.

More on this meal later, but if you're in Vegas and can afford the time and cost--it's not cheap, but it's worth the tab--definitely check out é by José Andrés.

On the road again: Las Vegas, day 5

I'm home after a long day of traveling that included the worst food anyone has ever served me on a plane and an hour-long flight delay, yet was generally a good trip.

Catching up on work, however, has kept me up until nearly six a.m., so I'm skipping out.

For your amusement, here's me next to one of the fine items Las Vegas has to offer.

(As always, click on an image to see a larger version.)

Okay, you can have Kyle, too, with bonus demon eyes, as he checks out the box on stage at the Penn & Teller show.

Fine!  You want more; you got it:  a salt-crusted entire foie gras at e by Jose Andres.

With that, I go to bed. 

On the road again: Las Vegas, day 4

A marathon shut down the Las Vegas strip for much of the afternoon and evening today, so getting about town was more than a bit of a struggle.  None of that mattered, however, because today's only travel challenge was one I was sure to meet:  Getting to the Cosmopolitan casino for dinner at e by Jose Andres. 

e is to Jaleo, where we ate last night, as minibar is to Cafe Atlantico: a restaurant within a restaurant, a small space in which a team of chefs perform feats of food magic using the latest modernist tricks.  In the case of e, the goal was to serve entirely Spanish cuisine while using all the techniques that Jose Andres learned at el Bulli--and more.  The space seats only eight diners, and e offers only two seatings a night.  As you can see from the Web site link above, you email for a reservation and then hope for the best.  I was lucky enough to get in tonight. 

The meal itself was 27 small courses, many of them only a single bite, each of them wonderful.  I didn't taste a single bad thing.  As modernist meals tend to do, this one surprised us and made us laugh even as we were oohing over how good each taste was.  From the first warm-up appetizer to the last of the several desserts, every single dish was delicious, beautiful, and surprising. 

I could go on and on, but I have work to do, so I'll end with a simple bit of advice:  If you're in Las Vegas and can possibly get into e by Jose Andres, do it.  The meal is not cheap, but it is worth all you'll pay for it and then some.  It's one of the very best dinners I've had.