All together, a meal at the French Laundry can run up to 13 courses and take four hours to eat. After the fourth separate dessert course, you may want to ask for a white flag to signal your surrender. Finally, the desserts come, and come, and come. From the start, waiters and footmen ply you with extras-an amuse-bouche here, an extra middle course there-and if you mention that someone else has something on their plate that you’d like to try, it appears in front of you as if by magic. The sommelier is at your beck and call to assist with a wine list that weighs several pounds. The waitstaff can help you identify anything you don’t recognize or if you’re having trouble making a decision. Most people familiar with the world of high-end food know that the best restaurant in California, and possibly in the United States, is the French Laundry.You’ll have a few either-or choices as you run down each list-usually you’ll see two options for the fish course and two options for the entrée. The menu, which changes often, offers two main selections: the regular nine-course tasting menu and the vegetarian nine-course tasting menu.
Even if you’re new to this level of dining-and most people are-you’ll be made to feel more than welcome. You’ll be led to your seat in one of the small dining rooms by one of the many immaculate black-and-white-clad staff. From the moment you walk in the door of the rambling Victorian, you’re treated like royalty. Once you’ve obtained that all-important reservation, the fun begins. The reason for this reputation starts and ends with restaurateur Thomas Keller’s indisputably amazing French Laundry (6640 Washington St., 707/944-2380, dinner daily 5:30–9 p.m., lunch 11 a.m.–1 p.m. The tiny town of Yountville boasts perhaps the biggest reputation for culinary excellence in California-a big deal when you consider the offerings of San Francisco and Los Angeles.
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