> RichAsianKid wrote:

>> A few random thoughts here.
>>
>> First there is presentation. When you start deliberately mixing food
>> together on the table - haha how can you call it an 'art' with
>> those bibimbap or something, in a charred stone bowl or all that lo
>> mein on a sizzling plate? One of the hallmarks of haute cuisine is its
>> emphasis on preparation or presentation technique -not how you
>> reproduce your stomach contents for public view! In fact in haute
>> cuisine often different ingredients are cooked separately to the right
>> degree of 'ripeness' and then mixed together, hence the
>> extraordinary amount of time needed for preparation. Bento boxes -
>> and these are considered cheap Japanese - like 'rice boxes' -
>> nonetheless preserve or at least pretend to preserve this quality.
>> Koreans and the Chinese do not. Else you may as well go for an infant
>> diet or a pureed diet for old people. The fact that everyone digs into
>> a public plate in the case of Chinese - thus sometimes without a pair
>> of public utensil (i.e. chopstick) is yet another 'low class' sign ...

> Increasing respect? Or merely increasing expoloitation of a clientele who
> really have no idea what good or bad Chinese food is?

> I ate at a PF Chang's. Once. Won't happen again.

> On a par with eating sushi at a Todai.

> So far I haven't run into "bad" Korean food which makes me happy.

> On 2006-11-23 20:55:11 -0800, "Musashi" Hosokawa.co.jp> said:
>

>> I ate at a PF Chang's. Once. Won't happen again.

>
> I'll echo that. [snip] It is to Chinese food what the Olive
> Garden is to Italian: formulaic, consistent/predictable and overpriced.

>> On a par with eating sushi at a Todai.

> "ian" cox.net> wrote in message
> news:Scu9h.3128$hz3.1890@newsfe21.lga...

>> RichAsianKid wrote:

>>> A few random thoughts here.
>>>
>>> First there is presentation. When you start deliberately mixing food
>>> together on the table - haha how can you call it an 'art' with
>>> those bibimbap or something, in a charred stone bowl or all that lo
>>> mein on a sizzling plate? One of the hallmarks of haute cuisine is its
>>> emphasis on preparation or presentation technique -not how you
>>> reproduce your stomach contents for public view! In fact in haute
>>> cuisine often different ingredients are cooked separately to the right
>>> degree of 'ripeness' and then mixed together, hence the
>>> extraordinary amount of time needed for preparation. Bento boxes -
>>> and these are considered cheap Japanese - like 'rice boxes' -
>>> nonetheless preserve or at least pretend to preserve this quality.
>>> Koreans and the Chinese do not. Else you may as well go for an infant
>>> diet or a pureed diet for old people. The fact that everyone digs into
>>> a public plate in the case of Chinese - thus sometimes without a pair ...

> I note in the paper that the originator of the Chowhounds web page, now
> sold to CNet is taking a cross-country dining tour and shares and
> interesting observation. All towns seem to have a Vietnamese restaurant
> now. Doesn't surprise me in the least. I predicted it 20 years ago.
> Americans love noodles, chicken soup, egg rolls, and much of the rest of
> a straight-up-the-middle Vietnamese restaurant.
>
> I expect a one-size-fits-all chain to emerge soon.