What a dustup was caused by A.A. Gill's piece in Vanity Fair about L'Ami Louis. Everyone from Francois Simon to anonymous bloggers on Chowhound got their knickers in a knot. Why? What did he say?
Well,
-that it was full of English-speakers
-that it served substandard food (Exhibit One: the foie gras)
-that it pretends to be "the" undiscovered find of the century
-that it was overpriced and
-it was "the" worst (not one of but the) worst restaurant on the planet.
But they seemed to get even more excited (Boy I'd love to have had sphygmomanometers on them) by how he said what he said and how he writes in general, to wit:
-he's potty-mouthed
-he hates food
-he hates restaurants
-he's crude, uncouth, uncool, etc.
Now let me declare my conflicts of interest up front. I've been reading Gill since he started reviewing, not at all to see where to eat but because he's a hoot - I probably wouldn't go to Garrison Keillor's recs either although he's funny as can be. And his fouly mouth really doesn't cause me much angst.
As I was riding to my lunch date I read first Mr. Simon's full page spread on Gill and L'Ami Louis and then the article a couple of pages away that said 10 of 14,000 - that's right .07142 % of CRS (those are the monsters with the clubs and shields who attack or counter-attack unruly demonstrators at manifs) members are women - .07142 %. Miniscule. What does that have to do with L'Ami Louis? Well, if my rapidly deteriorating memory is correct this one last time, my last brush with said CRS guys (and there .0000% women in those days) was in the "unrest" of 1968. And it was my first meal at L'Ami Louis, when it:
-was full of English-speakers
-served substandard food (Exhibit One: the foie gras)
-pretended to be "the" undiscovered find of the century
-was overpriced.
Colette and I kept being told by friends and advance scouts that they'd found this really unknown and authentic place/bistro in the 3rd - you've got it. And a couple of times we were suckered into going.
But things never changed, except the old guy got disabled and died; the waiters lost their basketball tossing skills with your coats and the potato galette no longer seemed a reason go.
And more importantly, I stopped listening to these tipsters and started trusting hipsters.
AA Gill's assessment that L'Ami Louis Louis is "the" worst resto in the world is the one thing I would contest him about but that's because he's been deprived of my experiences eating at some really bad places.
But AA Gill's review, like L'Ami Louis, is past its shelf-life, so who cares this month?
Where I was going on the #31 bus (which is better for the 17th Arr. Bermuda Triangle than any metro) was:
Comme Chez Maman
Well,
-that it was full of English-speakers
-that it served substandard food (Exhibit One: the foie gras)
-that it pretends to be "the" undiscovered find of the century
-that it was overpriced and
-it was "the" worst (not one of but the) worst restaurant on the planet.
But they seemed to get even more excited (Boy I'd love to have had sphygmomanometers on them) by how he said what he said and how he writes in general, to wit:
-he's potty-mouthed
-he hates food
-he hates restaurants
-he's crude, uncouth, uncool, etc.
Now let me declare my conflicts of interest up front. I've been reading Gill since he started reviewing, not at all to see where to eat but because he's a hoot - I probably wouldn't go to Garrison Keillor's recs either although he's funny as can be. And his fouly mouth really doesn't cause me much angst.
As I was riding to my lunch date I read first Mr. Simon's full page spread on Gill and L'Ami Louis and then the article a couple of pages away that said 10 of 14,000 - that's right .07142 % of CRS (those are the monsters with the clubs and shields who attack or counter-attack unruly demonstrators at manifs) members are women - .07142 %. Miniscule. What does that have to do with L'Ami Louis? Well, if my rapidly deteriorating memory is correct this one last time, my last brush with said CRS guys (and there .0000% women in those days) was in the "unrest" of 1968. And it was my first meal at L'Ami Louis, when it:
-was full of English-speakers
-served substandard food (Exhibit One: the foie gras)
-pretended to be "the" undiscovered find of the century
-was overpriced.
Colette and I kept being told by friends and advance scouts that they'd found this really unknown and authentic place/bistro in the 3rd - you've got it. And a couple of times we were suckered into going.
But things never changed, except the old guy got disabled and died; the waiters lost their basketball tossing skills with your coats and the potato galette no longer seemed a reason go.
And more importantly, I stopped listening to these tipsters and started trusting hipsters.
AA Gill's assessment that L'Ami Louis Louis is "the" worst resto in the world is the one thing I would contest him about but that's because he's been deprived of my experiences eating at some really bad places.
But AA Gill's review, like L'Ami Louis, is past its shelf-life, so who cares this month?
Where I was going on the #31 bus (which is better for the 17th Arr. Bermuda Triangle than any metro) was:
Comme Chez Maman
5, rue des Moines in the 17th (Metro: Rome, Brochant)
T: 01.42.28.89.53
Closed Sundays
Weekday formula is 15 E, a la carte 35-50 E.
T: 01.42.28.89.53
Closed Sundays
Weekday formula is 15 E, a la carte 35-50 E.
A.A. Gill really hates food, though.
What he does love is the lower digestive system, the source of 100% of his easy, sickeningly overused metaphors.
Posted by: Ptipois | March 25, 2011 at 05:22 PM
John, you've hit it spot on. Like nitrogen and glycerin, L'Ami Louis and A.A. Gill are the perfect match.
Posted by: John Whiting | April 02, 2011 at 03:37 PM
aa gill succeeds at what he does best: attracting attention. Which is his purpose (selling his articles). But seriously, if you read aa gill's tastes, he has a tendency to fall for novelty (el bulli, noma, etc), so no surprise that L'Ami Louis is not his thang
Posted by: S Lloyd | July 18, 2011 at 01:26 AM