Of Jonathan Gold, Destroyer, restaurant reviews, semantics and logomachy

Dude, you need to learn how to read satirical elements in literature…

It is remarkably ostensible from the review that Gold thinks the place is brilliant. He literally concludes that it is the most unique fine dining destination in the entire world…

The fact that you are in Kahn’s target demographic is just something he is lightheartedly making fun of, knowing that many of his readers, who are not Uber Foodies, or Dyed-in-the-Beard Hipsters will find at least the veneer of the place super pretentious.

He spends the “negative” part of the review sort of lampoon that segment of his audience; there is absolutely no question in my mind that that is how your average person would feel about Destroyer.

Of course, all of the Uber Foodies and Gourmand Geeks like ourselves are in love with the place, we are the people that adore spun pottery and knew the chipboard was a sculpture, etc…

The fact that anyone finds the review negative makes me wonder if anyone actually read it, or whether it might not be worthwhile to pick up some classic literature and become reacquainted with literary techniques in between burritos and fine-dining eaten with plastic knives.

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Yep… He’s just having a little fun. You’ve got to admit Destroyer is an easy target. They probably know it too.

…or maybe we’re all just luddites.

This review is irritating you @Bookwich. I can understand. It’s a good example of why I got irritated with that article you posted a while back. I need to apologize again btw. But it’s this thing some critics or journalist do. They try to enlighten you by insulting your choices. Which just makes people mad.

I’m going to shut up now and read the review.

[quote=“PorkyBelly, post:64, topic:4311”]
So this place sounds like where my food would go to eat dinner.
[/quote]Love it.

Professional reviewers typically wait a minimum of two or three months or so after a place opens before reviewing it.

I know satire, @Aesthete, and I know jaded, mean-spiritedness, and J. Gold is exhibiting the latter.

And Destroyer is definitely not the world’s most unique fine-dining experience, of that I’m sure. I’m glad J. likes the food, but even then, he’s dismissive of the chef and the experience. I think he is way off here. Either that, or he’s trying to maintain his street cred.

This thread is becoming like the infamous Luv2Eat thread.

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J_L is almost always tongue-in-cheek. He’s very obvious about this so he’s very likeable. Others can be much harder to discern as to the attitude or tone in which they respond. So if I misinterpret their approach or point, my bad, I guess.

It’s not on you to interpret. If a person’s words read with an unintended “attitude or tone,” then the onus is on them to polish their writing skills.

You’re right again…

Okay I read the review. I have affection for anyone who references Twilight Zone in the first paragraph. But the food: The food seems gloriously eccentric, ridiculously fussy and wonderfully pretentious. People are going to flock to this place now. But only if they go on a weekday afternoon, bring cash and don’t want alcohol. These guys know exactly what they’re creating and the consequence of it. They’ve been through it before. Lighten up.

P.S. J.Gold was being generous, considering the chef and his staff humiliated his predecessor. Do you remember that?

[quote=“Bookwich, post:70, topic:4311”]
J. Gold, you can go back to snuffling out the best Szechuan pig snout soup in SGV strip malls.
[/quote]:grinning: You’re being mean. But I agree. Street, peasant and low-country food are really his passion. They are the source of his most incredible reviews. I and other Angelenos thank or should thank him for it.

P.S. You said snuffling. It’s my new favorite word.

Gold didn’t use the word “unique.” He said, “unless your idea of luxury includes picnic tables, plastic forks and pomegranate soda, Destroyer disrupts the idea of fine dining like nowhere else on Earth.”

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I didn’t find it mean-spirited. To me Gold was just setting expectations about the eccentric aspects of the place before raving about the food. He convinced me that it’s worth putting up with the monkey business, which previously seemed too much for me to be involved with.

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Again… was a joke.

I guess we need some kind of [joke] [/joke] tag to mark jokes now?

Either that or I seriously missed J_L ultra-serious tone about how absolutely imperative it is that members of this forum be awarded badges for scooping professional restaurant critics.

But for my part, I was just having a laugh.

This is the same J Gold that keeps Providence as his de facto #1 restaurant in LA because he believe so strongly that it is such an underrated fine-dining destination right?

I think he’s pretty evenly split; my favorite thing about him is that he holds these places on equal footing, not that he places one above the other.

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I am stunned that people are reading it any other way.

Heck, I am in the monkey business demographic that he is talking about of and I still had a good laugh about it!

This is almost completely false… language is an interpretive exercise. Anyone that believes language is somehow objective, eternal, and set in stone ought to take an intro to linguistics course at a local college, or in a MOOC. They are in for quite an enlightening couple of weeks.

This requires no interpretation - or does it? My first thought was, “Lighten up, ‘dude.’” No?

Not if they’re funny.

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