There's this program called La Cruda, an argentinian program which make interviews. In one of them, I found one with Francis Mallmann, a well-known estabished argentinian chef that specializes cooking with fire. He rejected the Michelin stars for their restaurants, loves poetry and is a pleasure to listen his ideas. One of them really got me thinking.
Proposals for mass consumption
Granados, the interviewer asked him about the food culture of some restaurants. The one got me is when he asks about the trending of waiters that comes and serves you all the time. Your glass is empty and comes directly to fill it, Granados asks if this is some kind of training or something that your boss asks you to do it. The response:
(...) there are places where there is an over-attention, yes it bothers, it's arrogant, it's horrible because the place or the business is limited. I link it with being good with serving. I go out with a girl to eat and the waiter comes and says Excuse me, this apple that you ordered is the only one there is in the country from a little tree. That there is in Tucumán...leave me. I know that I ordered the apple, don't announce to me each dish, don't interrupt me while I'm talking to her, I deserve a space, I don't care what the chef or the waiter or whoever want to tell me, is very arrogant and the one who every time you take a drink automatically comes with the bottle, is a school of pushing consumption...When you ask Francis, can I have a nice wine?, I'm not recommend the most expensive, it doesn't seems right to me. I'm going to tell you look this wine is very nice and this other one is very good but it is quite expensive...And then you can choose but that thing that in restaurants they push the sale to you and the waiter pushes the sale, the salad, are you going to eat salad sir?, says the waiter, an entreé?, I don't want it, Oh -he replies- what a shame because there is a fresh spider crab...leave me.
It's the chef arrogancy talking about their dishes. He's the star, not you and your partner, that's the point. Today, restaurants (not everyone) are pushing to talk with the guest and sometimes, you just need to chill and that's it.
I don't know, got me thinking...what do you think?