While Time Magazine has declared 2011 as the "year of the protester," what gets lost in that hoopla are the origins of the protest. And those origins point back to what is, or what is not, on our collective plates.
Food Year In Review: Wall Street, You Suck!
Foodies, Rejoice! Keller Coming to LA
So it finally looks like the rumors were true: famed chef Thomas Keller will indeed be opening a branch of his restaurant Bouchon in Beverly Hills. We mentioned this earlier in the week, but the arrival of the true American top chef in the City of Angels warrants a closer look. The Los Angeles Times and EaterLA have both confirmed that this third incarnation of Bouchon (there is already one in Vegas and one in the Bay area) will be moving in to the Gardens building on Canon Drive. No, Keller himself will probably not be in the kitchen, but he has chosen Rory Herrmann of New York's Per Se (another Keller restaurant) as head chef. Expect the location to be ready for opening by fall 2009 -- although given Keller's reputation, you should probably start planning your reservations now. It's not a stretch to say that this may be the biggest and most scrutinized restaurant opening in L.A.'s history.
Cooking Highbrow, Craving Low
We couldn’t help but notice mention of a couple local Cali institutions in Jane Levere’s NY Times piece about the remarkably unsophisticated daytime food tastes of contemporary culinary luminaries. Turns out famed New York-based chef Daniel Boulud recently visited the Apple Pan, while French Laundry and Per Se super star chef Thomas Keller relishes the In-N-Out burger—fries—shake—trifecta.
No LA Per Se
On Friday, November 12, 2004, Los Angeles Times food writer and author Russ Parsons interviewed superchef Thomas Keller, owner of The French Laundry and Bouchon restaurants, as a supplement at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art's latest art exhibit "From Renoir to Matisse: The Eye of Duncan Phillips."

