I have discovered only one advantage to the 100-mile distance that separates me from Lisa during the week: she lives about fifteen minutes away from the Culinary Institute of America, and the judge for whom she clerks is friendly with some of the instructors. For my birthday, she was able to use her connections to finagle us a table at the Culinary's most famous restaurant, Escoffier.

Named for the lionized chef who virtually invented the modern system of restaurant management and penned the bible of classic French cuisine, Escoffier is where the Culinary's upperclassmen finally get a chance to test their mettle. In their last year of school, they begin working in the back of the house, learning the menu inside and out by working the various stations that make a french restaurant kitchen: sauté, sauces, garde manger, pastry, and so on. Armed with their intimate knowledge of each of the restaurant's dishes, these budding chefs are then sent into the dining room, where they learn the regimented discipline of classic french dining room service as waiters and waitresses. It is almost a crime to dine at the Culinary's restaurants without engaging your server in a discussion of the menu; a waiter who has not only tasted but actually prepared each dish on the menu will never steer you wrong. One day soon these young professionals will go on to work in the finest kitchens in the world; some of them will be the superstars of the next generation of chefs. At Escoffier, they learn how each element of a first-class restaurant works down to the smallest detail; they are eminently prepared for the challenges that await them.

Borrowing a page from Clotilde, I'll be posting about this meal over the course of the week. All you get today is the amuse-bouche: a tiny profiterole filled with creamy lemon aioli, smoked salmon, and dill. The next few posts will include photos, so keep coming back for more.