Chapter 124 Michelin Restaurant in Messina
Xiao Peng quickly found out what Fabian was good at.
Fabian quickly restocked Xiao Peng's ship in Palermo and was ready to depart at any time. However, he was not in a hurry to return to France with Pascal, but wanted to practice with Xiao Peng first!
Damn, isn't it just a place to have fun? You talk so elegantly, and you even put it into practice!
You made me angry and thought that just by coming over to apologize and taking me out to have fun, that would be the end of it?
I have to forget it! Go! I have to go! I'm not a stingy person!
Fabian rented a car from a car rental company and took Xiao Peng and Pascal along the highway from Palermo all the way north to another port city in northern Sicily.
This city is located at the northernmost tip of Sicily, across the sea from the Apennine Peninsula in mainland Italy. Although Palermo is the capital of Sicily, Xiao Peng really thinks it is more beautiful and more lively here, which may be due to the fact that there are more tourists here.
"Fabian, where is this? It's so beautiful!" Xiao Peng asked curiously.
Fabian said, "This is Messina, hey, I've wanted to come here for a long time!"
Xiao Peng's face was filled with black lines: "You have never been here?"
"Of course not! Otherwise why would I drag you here?" Fabian said as a matter of course.
Xiao Peng gave him the middle finger.
Fabian, however, looked nonchalant: "Don't worry, Xiao, I've made all the necessary preparations this time! Don't worry, everyone follow me!"
After saying this, in order to prove that he was not talking nonsense, he took out a map from his pocket, and there were marked records on it.
Xiao Peng said helplessly: "Fabian, don't you know how to use Google Maps?"
"Of course I did. I just wanted to show you that I wasn't talking nonsense!" Fabian said as a matter of course.
Pascal said, "So, dear cousin Fabian, where are we going now?"
Fabian said, "Of course, we need to fill our stomachs first! There's a restaurant there with two Michelin stars, known as 'a must-try restaurant in Messina.'"
Xiao Peng said helplessly: "You have done a very thorough preparation!"
He said this but he was still very curious in his heart.
The founder of French tire company Michelin never imagined that his whimsical idea to publish a travel guide called the Michelin Guide (PS: Two guides, to be exact: a red guide for food and a green guide for travel) would eventually become a global benchmark for culinary excellence. While regular restaurants are rated with forks, gourmet restaurants are rated with stars, with three stars being the highest and one the lowest. It's no exaggeration to say that every star increase or decrease can impact a restaurant's monthly revenue by millions!
But Xiao Peng really has no good feelings towards Michelin restaurants in France! At least that’s the case with the Michelin restaurants in Marseille.
France is the birthplace of Michelin restaurants, so it is also the country with the most Michelin restaurants in the world. Marseille has a Michelin three-star restaurant called "Petite Nice". It is located near the Old Port of Marseille.
This restaurant has a long history. It was founded in 1917, received a Michelin star in 1977, and was upgraded to a Michelin star in 1981. In 2008, it finally became the only Michelin three-star restaurant in Marseille. It is truly a century-old restaurant!
This restaurant has a truly stunning view, with floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the sea, perfect for enjoying your meal. It's known as the best seafood restaurant in Marseille. Chef Gerald Passidat is known as "the best seafood chef in Marseille."
Sounds intimidating, right?
Xiao Peng went there for lunch once. It was a seven-course set meal, and it was also called the "Evolution" set meal. I don't know what the connection between this word and this set meal is. Anyway, Xiao Peng felt very disappointed after eating it.
The appetizer was a shrimp cocktail, which sounded rather grand, but was essentially a small red wine glass with a vegetable salad, chopped foie gras, and a few shrimp topped with a cocktail sauce made from mayonnaise and ketchup. The remaining dishes included a "raw sea snake fillet with bergamot zest"—in Japan, this would be called "eel sashimi with a little lemon slice"; a "grilled fish with fennel sauce"—a sea bass gutted and stuffed with spices, then grilled with red pepper flakes; and finally, an anemone fritter, a "saffron potato and fish soup," a "sardines in sauce," a "chocolate caramel ball," and a selection of snacks. This single-person set menu cost 305 euros, excluding tax and drinks.
Whether it tastes good or not is another matter. Xiao Peng could eat five servings of this set meal without even taking off his belt! A five-centimeter sardine, a three-centimeter-long squid, and a little sauce make up one dish.
Of course, if those "ladies" in China were to say, look at how beautiful the plating is? How elegantly such a small amount of food tastes? French cuisine is all about refinement!
But isn’t the purpose of food to fill your stomach?
Besides, the taste wasn't that amazing! Perhaps because Xiao Peng didn't eat much French food, his impression was just so-so. Xiao Peng felt that the grilled sea bass there wasn't as good as the one he grilled himself.
It’s not surprising at all that Xiao Peng thought the food was not tasty: in fact, Michelin doesn’t think Chinese food is that good either.
The three major cuisines in the world are French cuisine, Turkish cuisine (halal cuisine) and Chinese cuisine, and Chinese cuisine has the fewest Michelin-starred restaurants.
What are the criteria for Michelin restaurants? They are evaluated by a team of so-called "food spies," who visit the restaurant at least 12 times a year to assess the average quality. The final decision is made by Michelin headquarters.
Where is Michelin's headquarters? It's in France!
The proud French believe their tastes represent the world's palates, and that whatever they consider delicious is the best. Turkish cuisine, after all, is the other side of the Mediterranean. French cuisine is ubiquitous, with the "Grilled Papa" (baked papa) being a prime example. Therefore, Michelin restaurant selection primarily focuses on French and Turkish cuisine.
How could it be possible for people who had little experience with Chinese food to praise its excellence? Consequently, Michelin-starred Chinese restaurants are generally concentrated in major Western cities like Paris and New York. They often serve the kind of "modified" Chinese cuisine that Chinese people dislike. Even the few Michelin-starred Chinese restaurants in China fall into this category.
But no matter what, Xiao Peng has never eaten at a Michelin restaurant in Italy.
He is looking forward to the delicious food here.
Although Italy and France are neighbors, their culinary styles are quite different. Italy is nicknamed "the China of Europe" because of its culinary style.
Xiao Peng certainly wanted to experience Italy's Michelin-starred restaurants. But upon arriving at the restaurant called "Three Petals of Citrus Leaves," Xiao Peng's first reaction was, "Fabian, are you sure we're eating here? I don't think it's credible."
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