Any folks here been to both and have comparisons they would like to share.

Thx,
Phil

I would hesitate to compare Alinea to Moto. They are different dining experiences and I find it unfortunate that they are always lumped together.

Moto is molecular gastronomy at its most innovative. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. Chef Cantu is a really good guy who loves what he does and imparts that to his staff. Dining there is fun. It fuels the imagination but not the soul. I have eaten there and would again but it's not a first choice. I can't recall one thing I ate at my last meal there. I just remember we had a good time.

Alinea is about the food. Grant Achatz's time at the French Laundry is evident, even if he likes to talk about El Bulli being more intriguing tohim. The food and the experience are carefully constructed. The meals come in tasting or tour formats. There are many courses and while I have loved the food I ate there I got a little tired of what I consider an affectation. I understand that when my server explains how to eat something it is so that the diner can fully experience it as it was intended. However, at some point, I just want to eat. I really loathed one dish because it was served with pine needles to which the server poured hot water and told us to imagine being in a forest. To me, that is just more than I can bear without laughing or feeling just annoyed. Their famed truffle explosion is very good and I remember being very fond of the hot potato, cold potato dish.

I hope that this helps.

If you are to be in Chicago and want to try one or the other, I'd say it just depends on your interests. Alinea is more consistent and elegant. Moto is more fanciful and fun.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Een,

aphilla,

I will share with you from my past experience that Een is above reproach when it comes to her recommendations.

Take her seriously.

w+a

I saw a show last weekend about these two places. Not my cup of tea, but Moto seemed downright silly to me. The guy at Alinea was a very serious, technically skilled guy. The way each dish had some type of gimmick was off putting to me, kind of like the story of the pine needles. The servers had to explain how to eat the dish. It seems a little self indulgent and show-offy on the chef's part, with the food coming in a distant second.

They didn't talk about prices, but I'm guesssing cutting all those carrots into miniature cubes must cost a lot of labor.

I've been to Alinea, never to Moto. I haven't been to Moto mostly because I hear too much sillyness about it and if I'm spending $200 per head I want good food, not a science project.

Alinea was likewise silly, I agree with what een said about it- too affected. I also had the forest floor business fed to me and I almost laughed. I also had strip cut pork belly glazed with vermont maple syrup and cooked medium well. It looked a lot like a piece of fried Oscar Meyer bacon hanging on a string, and it tasted just like a piece of bacon hanging on a string. Also, how many ways are there of serving foam? Too many! I liked the food but I wasn't blown away, nor was I amused enough by the show (service, presentation etc...) to go back

I can think of at least two dozen different restaurants I'd go back to before Alinea even with someone else paying the bill. Do a search for some Chicago threads, you'll find some better ideas.

Dining at Moto is the equivalent of paying to be a beta tester of a new piece of software. Sorry. Fool me once, shame on you...fool me twice, shame on me.

Alinea has two fundamental problems. The waitstaff comes across as patronizing even though I'm sure they are only doing what the chef has ordered them to do. And food which needs this amount of tweaking to show well makes me appreciate even more what chefs like Thomas Keller and Charlie Trotter can do by putting things on a plate and letting the patron "figure out" how to enjoy it.

If you're interested in that type of dining, go to Avenues at the Peninsula hotel. Unlike Moto and Alinea, it has figured out how to meld molecular gastronomy with classic plating and serving techniques.

All personal opinion, of course. Your mileage may vary.

Heard the chef of Alinea on The Restaurant Guys podcast. He went on and on about recreating a forest with pine needles. What the hell does this have to do with good eats? I can always go camping to get the true forest effect. The Restaurant boys are usually ready to stomp on this type of nonsense but they let him blather on.

Thanks for all of your responses. I have colleagues from out of town who are coming this July and wanted to go to one or both. For now it seems we are going to Moto. We'll see how it goes....

I think patrons are required to wear welding masks to enter Moto.