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The San Francisco Bay area consistently leads the country in reckless social policies and irresponsible governance. Liberal journalists now openly lament how the nutty local wokesters running municipal departments are all but demanding negative coverage on Fox. And even among the region’s successful tech executives, far too many have been putting their thumbs on the scale in America’s digital debates. But let’s not forget that the area remains a jewel of U.S. technology. And if you believe the experts, it’s now the place where people create the country’s most delicious dinners.
Deep-blue governance may not make life affordable for people on modest incomes, but the wealth generated by software and semiconductors appears to be enabling a summit of culinary achievement.
Linda Zavoral
of the San Jose Mercury News reports:
On Monday night, the Michelin Guide revealed its 2022 California guide to culinary excellence, and while the stars say the Bay Area still rules the state’s destination-dining scene, Southern California is coming on strong with additions to the guide.
At the live Los Angeles ceremony, the acclaimed San Diego restaurant Addison moved up to the prestigious three-star level, joining the six Bay Area restaurants long honored for what Michelin calls “exceptional cuisine, worth a special journey.” California is now home to seven three-star restaurants, half of the nation’s total of 14…
“California is a culinary powerhouse with a lot of home-grown talent,” Gwendal Poullennec, international director of the Michelin Guides, said Monday, adding that he believes the awards reflect the dynamism in this state.
Ms. Zavoral describes a vetting process that is not entirely transparent:
As with all changes in star levels, Michelin inspectors, who review anonymously, make no comment regarding deletions from the guide. As per Michelin protocol, they revisit all previous winners and new prospects with five criteria in mind: quality of the meal; harmony of flavors; mastery of technique; personality of the chef and their cuisine; and consistency between each visit.
Maybe this is not the best week to appeal to the authority of experts, especially ones that claim to have experience in clandestine services.
Steph Rodriguez reports for SFGate:
As an undercover Michelin Guide restaurant inspector, one must never be seen.
They’re like the secret agents of the culinary industry. They dine at the most prestigious restaurants — all under the guise of anonymity. Those who operate within this completely nameless profession have dedicated themselves to providing foodies and travelers alike with the world’s top-notch recommendations for more than a century.
It certainly sounds more wholesome than trying to dictate which political stories should be published and which should not. Ms. Rodriguez adds:
“Keeping anonymous, that’s a challenge,” Michelin’s chief anonymous inspector told SFGATE. “It’s interesting. It’s something that we think of every day, but it’s really no easy feat. And it’s something that is paramount to the success of our position as inspectors doing what we do.”
It’s important for inspectors to remain undercover because it’s the only way to ensure that Michelin’s trusted secret diners receive the same culinary experience as any regular guest.
Is it possible that the Michelin staff has a greater sense of professional integrity than the people who’ve been running the FBI? A deep dive into the files suggests that diligent professionals are at work—and they’re not afraid to make brave calls. Ms. Rodriguez notes:
As far as the most memorable bites the anonymous chief inspector tasted across more than 300 dining destinations during lunch and dinner service, there was a particular sweetbread dish with Japanese black curry he thought was “absolutely phenomenal.”…
“So many bites over so much time,” he said. “When I look back at the inspector’s report, that was something that was really, really notable and just speaks to what the chef is doing there combining traditional techniques with the chef’s background and modern products — so it was just really fabulous.”
The secret agent also told SFGate that San Francisco continues to attract talented chefs, along with the ones grown locally. This is certainly a bullish sign for San Franciscans wondering about the future of their city.
On the other side of the country, Michelin recognizes five New York City restaurants with its coveted three stars. But just across the Hudson River in New Jersey, the dining scene carries less respect. This column recently heard from a successful New Jersey restaurateur who described the extreme difficulty of recruiting top kitchen talent to this beautiful corner of the universe. Sometimes he even manages to persuade talented young chefs to cross the Hudson and explore the magic of the Garden State. But somehow they always find their way back to Brooklyn.
For those devoted to fine dining it may seem rather unfair. New Jersey has expensive and dysfunctional governance just like California and New York, yet it’s no chef magnet.
A story today from Esther Davidowitz in the Bergen Daily Record is not exactly lightening the mood:
Restaurants don’t last forever. They come and they go. We’ve (kind of) gotten used to it, although every closure bums us out. Some break our hearts. Yes, we miss the food — we’re food lovers, after all. But that’s not all. Restaurants mean so much more to us than a good burger or a tender steak. They are the places in which we made memories. They’re where we celebrated birthdays, anniversaries, holidays, promotions and graduations. It’s where we spilled our guts out to friends, where we cried and where we laughed, It’s where we spent hours upon hours just enjoying — food, drink and the people we love. This year our hearts were broken time and time again. We bid them our heartfelt adieu here.
But if culinary creators find something alluring about malign governance, perhaps they’ll accept a Garden State welcome. New Jersey is now in a category all its own. The Tax Foundation’s latest state business tax climate index finds that New Jersey finishes dead last among the states, even behind California (ranked 48th) and New York (49th). The Tax Foundation observes:
New Jersey… is hampered by some of the highest property tax burdens in the country, has the highest-rate corporate income taxes in the county, and has one of the highest-rate individual income taxes.
Additionally, the state has a particularly aggressive treatment of international income, levies an inheritance tax, and maintains some of the nation’s worst-structured individual income taxes.
Other than that, its tax burden is reasonable? Well, not exactly, because the hidden burden of likely future tax hikes is also massive. That’s because, even as the state’s politicians impose an enormous tax burden, it’s not nearly as large as the promises they’ve made. The Pew Charitable Trusts reported earlier this year:
New Jersey’s unfunded pension liability was the largest of any state at 20.2% of its total personal income. The state’s liability has also risen the fastest since fiscal 2007.
Now we’re really cooking!
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James Freeman is the co-author of “The Cost: Trump, China and American Revival.”
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(Lisa Rossi helps compile Best of the Web.)
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