Nowadays it seems that you’re more likely to get your food served to you on a wooden plank than on ceramic.
And it seems the world of fine dining can’t resist the allure of a trend which seems to be confusing celebrities and the public alike. According to Twitter, the husband of ex-Eastenders actress Tracy-Ann Oberman tried to eat a napkin served on a block of stone in a Michelin-starred restaurant. Yep, I’ll let you take a minute to read that sentence again.
My husband tried to eat the white thing. I mean c’mon. Isn’t everyone’s napkin inflated with water then served in a wooden medieval stone????
Oberman – who is best known for playing landlady of the Old Vic Chrissie Watts – took to Twitter to slam the restaurant run by celebrated chef Martin Berasategui. She and husband Rob Cowan were confused by the Spanish restaurant’s take on haute cuisine, saying the amuse bouche was ‘served with a reverence that bordered on religious fervour’.
And to further add to their confusion, the pair were served a white dish in a rope-bound block of stone which Cowan proceeded to take a bite out of – only to find out it was his napkin. According to the Mail Online, the 51-year-old wrote: ‘You know it’s a Michelin star when the napkins are inflated with water in a Neanderthal carver holder. ‘Rob tried to eat it. They were horrified. Bloody Michelin pretentiousness.
‘Delicious food served by acolytes of nonsense on receptacles of pure folly. minireview.’ She directed her posts at Twitter account We Want Plates, which says it is on a ‘global crusade against serving plates on bits of wood and roof slates’
Posting to the chef she added: ‘Your food was exquisite, your presentation a tad pretentious but your staff were so patronising. It’s a restaurant not a church.’ Berasategui has eight Michelin stars across his 12 restaurants, where a 14-course tasting menu can cost up to £200 and an ‘oyster with iced cucumber slush’ costs £44. The menu is emblazoned with the words ‘we would destroy the spirit of these dishes if we served them in very large portions. ‘I only conceive the following dishes in small portions with the brevity of three or four mouthfuls.’ Is it not known at which of Berastagui’s restaurants the pair ate at.