LEO's Eat'N'Blog: Oakroom foams over the top

[Robin Garr]

<table border="0" align="right" width="310"><tr><td><img src="http://www.louisvillehotbytes.com/oak_foam.jpg" border="1" align="right"></td></tr><tr><td>"Culinary foam": A mound of glistening orange white chocolate froth drooling off your Oakroom dessert is airy and succulent, but it's not so easy to look at on the plate. Photos by Robin Garr.</td></tr></table>LEO's Eat 'n' Blog with Louisville HotBytes

"Culinary foam" - trendy for decades in the upper reaches of dining-as-theater - is one of the more striking "molecular gastronomy" inventions of Spanish Chef Ferran Adrià of El Bulli near Barcelona. The flavored foams - aerosol squirted onto food - add subtle tastes, and they signal that the chef is "with it."

Adrià has been foaming since 1995, and now foams have made it to Louisville, where Chefs Todd Richards and Duane Nutter and Pastry Chef Ethan Ray are making their mark with foams, smears and sauces, dispensed from martini shakers or spread in thin, colorful layers across your plate.

The Oakroom crew does molecular gastronomy very well: The white-chocolate-orange foam on a succulent chocolate trio dessert plate the other night was intensely flavored yet light as air. But much like a raw oyster (and I choose the analogy advisedly), a mound of glistening froth drooling off your food isn't easy to look at on the plate.

The Oakroom wins my affection - and my 90-plus rating - for its creative spirit. But it comes at a price: Dinner there can set you back more than most any restaurant in town. And I have to wonder if these guys have moved so close to the bleeding edge that they risk leaving much of the hotel's clientele behind. An Oakroom dinner is spectacular for hardcore foodies, but by the time the dessert plates arrive, it can seem a bit relentless.

Full reports in LEO and on LouisvilleHotBytes.

I seen some of the replies on the Wine Forum...I does not look very good. Kind of like something my cat heaved up a few days ago.

[Robin Garr]

I seen some of the replies on the Wine Forum...I does not look very good. Kind of like something my cat heaved up a few days ago.

I'll put it this way: People who don't like innovative or imaginative concepts in their cookery would probably be better off at Denny's than the Oakroom. That's okay. There's plenty of room for both.

After reading the posts on the Wine Forum...My comments...although much more suttle then the ones posted...others have the same feeling....I guess it is whatever floats your boat....

[Robin Garr]

After reading the posts on the Wine Forum...My comments...although much more suttle then the ones posted...others have the same feeling....I guess it is whatever floats your boat....

I wasn't talking only about you, Robert. I'm saying that <i>anyone</i> who finds creative, innovative and cutting-edge culinary techniques objectionable has plenty of alternatives, and Denny's seems to me to be an appropriate option for anyone who feels like that.

There's a wide range of possibilities between The Oak Room and Denny's.

[Robin Garr]

There's a wide range of possibilities between The Oak Room and Denny's.

Of course there is! In this instance, though, I thought it wise to err on the side of caution and suggest a venue where one need have no fear of being surprised by innovative dishes.

There's a wide range of possibilities between The Oak Room and Denny's.

Of course there is! In this instance, though, I thought it wise to err on the side of caution and suggest a venue where one need have no fear of being surprised by innovative dishes.

Robin,

I am a little disappointed that you do not recognize the innovation that is the Lumberjack Slam®.

[Robin Garr]

I am a little disappointed that you do not recognize the innovation that is the Lumberjack Slam®.

Your point is well-taken, sir.

However, if it comes out with foam on it, I'm sending it back.

I really liked the pic of Todd in Velocity today. He has 2 sword like knives ready to do business. I couldn't find the pic online, so if you want to see it you have to go pick up your free copy.

[Robin Garr]

I really liked the pic of Todd in Velocity today. He has 2 sword like knives ready to do business. I couldn't find the pic online, so if you want to see it you have to go pick up your free copy.

This pic appars to be associated with the mention of Todd in the Web edition. Is the one in the paper different?

<img src="http://cmsimg.courier-journal.com/apps/pbcsi.dll/bilde?Site=B2&Date=20070418&Category=VELOCITY01&ArtNo=704180947&Ref=AR&Profile=1065&MaxW=500&title=1">

I really liked the pic of Todd in Velocity today. He has 2 sword like knives ready to do business. I couldn't find the pic online, so if you want to see it you have to go pick up your free copy.

This pic appars to be associated with the mention of Todd in the Web edition. Is the one in the paper different?

<img src="http://cmsimg.courier-journal.com/apps/pbcsi.dll/bilde?Site=B2&Date=20070418&Category=VELOCITY01&ArtNo=704180947&Ref=AR&Profile=1065&MaxW=500&title=1">

I saw that pic online. It's not the same one in the actual paper. It's worth picking it up this week just for that.

I wasn't talking only about you, Robert. I'm saying that <i>anyone</i> who finds creative, innovative and cutting-edge culinary techniques objectionable has plenty of alternatives, and Denny's seems to me to be an appropriate option for anyone who feels like that.

Now hold on there pilgrim..... I don't find innovative techniques objectionable overall. BUT, sometimes your gut overrules the brain. Example, a local innovative chef served a lobster citrus salad in a glass cone settled into a glass globe filled with water and a live GOLDFISH! It looked really cool. I was impressed, but it gave me the creeps to see something moving around (in peripheral vision) near what I was raising to my mouth!

Foaming desserts? Sounds like a cool idea, but I keep hearing myself say...ever heard of a spittle bug? Doesn't mean I'm ready for Denny's.

Lets go...They are open all night

[Robin Garr]

Now hold on there pilgrim..... I don't find innovative techniques objectionable overall. BUT, sometimes your gut overrules the brain. Example, a local innovative chef served a lobster citrus salad in a glass cone settled into a glass globe filled with water and a live GOLDFISH! It looked really cool. I was impressed, but it gave me the creeps to see something moving around (in peripheral vision) near what I was raising to my mouth!

Ick! You've made your case, Lisa!