'World's finest restaurant' El Bulli to close permanently

The Telegraph ^ | 2/13/2010 | Harriet Alexander

[Anitius Severinus Boethius]

True food genius must start somewhere, and sometimes it’s in the kitchen of a foam artist.

Consider this: until the early 1950’s, peanut butter was without it’s boon companion, jelly.

Peanut butter was a newer food that many people liked, but they had a hard time adding the right flavors to it. Oscar Meyer even tried a peanut butter and bologna combination spread in an attempt to marry the unique taste and texture of the new food to the appropriate companion.

Finally, kids around the country coalesced around jelly as the end all be all peanut butter companion.

(Although marshmellow cream, bananas and Nutella still each share peanut butter on occasion)

[3catsanadog]

Your kidding? This is food?? To eat???

I'm not going to comment on exactly what it looks like to me, but I do work in a hospital - in the ICU - and let's just say, when I saw that pic I was reminded of some yucky things I see at work. I'll leave it at that.

[1010RD]

hugely-oversubscribed restaurant

Too many customers.

[Nateman]

No wonder he’s closing. He has the restaurant working half the year with nobody paying? With people lined up to get in to pay high prices? He deserves to lose.

[CaptRon]

famed for its avant-garde cuisine at the hands of celebrated

Never heard of him. Or her. Or whatever.

[1010RD]

Mayonnaise, bologna, and bananas...mmmm

[ari-freedom]

it looks like

in a sandwich

[Larry Lucido]

“No lamb brains for you!”

[wideawake]

I like a good "scattered, smothered and covered" myself, but I would have liked to have eaten at El Bulli as well.

What I don't understand is how a restaurant that was packed to overflowing every single night from the day he reopened it, and where a dinner for two cost at minimum 250 euros, could be losing money.

Most restaurants fail, but they fail because they cannot attract enough customers to cover the rent.

El Bulli had the perfect situation: three Michelin stars, no empty tables ever, and a clientele that did not care how much the tab was as long as they got a table.

Not only that, but talented chefs worked there at minimum wage just to have El Bulli on their resume.

Someone was robbing that place blind.

[CaptRon]

Parmesan marshmallows, popcorn clouds, lambs brains with sea urchins and sea grapes, and chocolate sablet with verveine and hazelnut.

If I even knew what most of that was I would puke.

[ari-freedom]

I think I’ve seen him on Bizzare Foods with Andrew Zimmern

[CaptRon]

I’ll miss the chocolate sablet with verveine and hazelnut, as I’m sure we all will.

[TASMANIANRED]

Only if the mustard is horse radish.

[USMCPOP]

Maybe he should pick up a profitable franchise.

[CaptRon]

I’ve made hamburgers with peanut butter and I gotta tell ya, it’s darned good.

[ari-freedom]

well, I’d change the pickle to a garlic spicy sour.

[CaptRon]

Geez. At least call it what it is, which is probably liver ice cream with a lung sauce.

[ari-freedom]

thai peanut butter sauce might work

[CaptRon]

Seriously, regular Skippy. Got it from Alton Brown. It’s good.

[proudofthesouth]

Cracker Barrel - yummmm

Have you had their chicken fried chicken (boneless fried chicken breast) with sawmill gravy? Its to die for!

I'm off on Monday. You just reminded me that I need to go there for lunch.