From the Trenches      11/19/2008  

Success for Corton is Success For New York and the Rest of Us


In our ongoing series From the Trenches, some of the top men in the business give us a glimpse of what they have to deal with day in and day out to compete. Today’s correspondent is Jason Hall, Executive Chef at Mia Dona, and Michael Psilakis’s underboss at Anthos and Kefi.

I saw that Corton just received a four-star review from Adam Platt. I’m really glad for those guys, because if a restataurant as ambitious as Corton can succeed in this environment, that’s great for the rest of us that are doing fine dining. It’s hard out there now. People are making less money and the cost of food is going up. But I think it says a lot for the city that restaurants like Corton are out there trying to do great work. There are a lot of restaurants that could be dumbing down there menus, skimping on good ingredients, and so on. But they’re not. They’re trying to do something unique and different, and not just rip off somebody else’s concept. That’s the kind of restaurant that makes New York what it is. You don’t see Per Se becoming a Bouchon Bakery, or Anthos turning into Kefi; New York needs the really elevated restaurants. That’s why people come here to cook. That’s why the city is what it is, because our best chefs are out there pushing and being creative, and the customers are supporting them. I really hope Corton succeeds. It deserves to.

Related: Drew and Paul Lift the Curtain on Corton

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