did i change? or did the restaurant change?

tartine W4th & W 11th

on most weekends in 1996, i used to wait at the traffic light with john for a 2-top at tartine, bottle of wine in tow, staring down the lucky diners who'd beaten me to the queue, who were enjoying themselves seated at an outdoor table. tartine was always a modestly priced, charming, tiny bistro for new yorkers who didnt mind waiting an hour for an amazing meal of value.

on friday shorty and i went to tartine, and i was so so sad. what happened to the charm? more importantly, what happened to the fries?

the salmon gravlox was tasty - tangy, delicate in texture, non-fishy. but what's with the spicy chicken? i rarely taste food and say to myself: too many shallots. food should be never too much anything.

tartine always had crisp perfect pomme frites. the frites at tartine were an optimal cross between les halles and mcdonalds, but with more fat, more depth, more crunch. but today they were soggy. limp. flacid, even. sad.

shorty had a poached pear that was tasty. then he had a rib-eye that was gray. served of course with the sorry fries.

so the answer to my question, i presume, is that both i and the restaurant changed. my palate, in 10 years of eating anything and everything anywhere and everywhere, has evolved to ...maturation, i hope, whereas the restaurant has evolved to become something different.