Alinea

The color red makes you hungry.

Place setting on a pillow.

First centerpiece of the night.

Looks like sushi -- STEELHEAD ROE - watermelon, kaffir lime, oxalis. Sweet and salty. Watermelon mousse under the roe; watermelon wrapped around the whole thing. That green bit is a delicious baby cucumber, and the liquid is watermelon consomme.

STEELHEAD ROE - watermelon, kaffir lime, oxalis. The roe was definitely not fishy, and the salty crunch of the roe contrasted perfectly with the soft watermelon mousse.

Base for the next course.

Fried dumpling -- HAMACHI - west indies spices, banana, ginger. It's impossible to describe how this tasted. The ginger and banana went perfectly together, and the fish added a nice savory counterpoint. The vanilla bean very gently flavored the air around the dish, and thus, the dish.

OYSTER LEAF - mignonette. Tasted like oyster (unfortunately!).

Hidden scallop -- SCALLOP - hitachino weizen, old bay. Not a favorite; slimy and chewy all at once, flavored imperceptibly. Only fishy scallop.

RAZOR CLAM - carrot, soy, daikon.

RAZOR CLAM - carrot, soy, daikon. Spicy! Razor clam is toothsome and chewy, and the only other texture present was soft and liquid. The spice was really excellent.

Breadstick? -- YUBA - shrimp, miso, togarashi. One of the stand-out dishes. Toasted yuba (milk skin) with a miso dipping sauce. Utterly perfect, circled with shrimp, pickled onion and sesame seeds.

Pea dish #1 -- ENGLISH PEA - olive oil, chamomile, green apple. This dish was simply pea puree, with skinned peas and pea shoots dressed with lemon. The essence of peas. Absolutely killer.

Pea dish #1 -- ENGLISH PEA - olive oil, chamomile, green apple. And Sam finished his.

Pea dish #2 -- ENGLISH PEA - olive oil, chamomile, green apple. Freeze dried peas, pea meringue, grape jelly, olive oil jelly. This was a sweet/savory play on peas. Hard to eat, as evidenced by the fact that I dropped my grape jelly on the table. Whoops.

Pea dish #3 -- ENGLISH PEA - olive oil, chamomile, green apple. Parmesan cream and apple sorbet, plus cold cold pea soup. Again, simply peas, with a very odd sweet/salty kick.

ENGLISH PEA - olive oil, chamomile, green apple

Gazpacho? -- GARDEN SALAD - tomato, goat cheese, red bell pepper. Waiter introduced this as an early summer gazpacho. And salad dressing, all in one.

Yep. We used the scissors to cut our salad from the centerpiece. I can't express how fun this was. Greens included: lettuce, basil, radish greens, fennel, among others.

GARDEN SALAD - tomato, goat cheese, red bell pepper.

GARDEN SALAD - tomato, goat cheese, red bell pepper.

New centerpieces, taking the place of our (eaten) salads.

No hands! -- MACKEREL - mango, jicama, juniper. The juniper REALLY overwhelmed on this dish. Some liked it, some didn't. Okay, I didn't like it. Too heavy. Too much like licorice. Made my tongue tickle. Definitely tempered the oily mackerel, however.

Forest floor -- WILD MUSHROOMS - pine, sumac, ramp. A split decision for the table on this dish. Only dish Sam didn't finish, though he did try it.

WILD MUSHROOMS - pine, sumac, ramp. The mushrooms were earthy and full of umami. The pickled ramp was cool and piquant in contrast. And the red wine glaze was simply a delicious addition.

Soup shooter -- HOT POTATO - cold potato, black truffle, butter. A very strong truffle flavor. The potato was really beautifully cooked. Soft and delicious.

Classical dish -- AGNEAU - sauce choron, pomme de terre noisette. Lamb on toasts with artichoke heart and asparagus. Sauce choron is bernaise with tomato added, and it's good. Really good. The little balls on the plate are potatoes.

Raviolo -- BLACK TRUFFLE - explosion, romaine, parmesan. This is the dish I keep coming back to, over and over again. The raviolo just burst with a little bit of pressure, and savory, wonderful truffle liquid spilled into the mouth. Divine. Inspired.

SHORT RIB - olive, fermented garlic, blackberry. The dish as it arrives at our table: a glass tray on top of a wooden tray, with a metal piece in the middle.

SHORT RIB - olive, fermented garlic, blackberry. After we take the glass tray off (and we do this, not the waiters), we all build this metal piece in the center of the wooden tray.

SHORT RIB - olive, fermented garlic, blackberry. Pasta! The waiter drapes our "centerpiece" over our metal stands. Tomato and fermented black garlic pasta, ready to cradle the meat of the dish.

SHORT RIB - olive, fermented garlic, blackberry. Short rib is transferred from little individual pots and onto our pasta. Covered in sauce and gleaming.

SHORT RIB - olive, fermented garlic, blackberry. Top row - smoked salt, blackberry, roasted pearl onion, black garlic, turnip, nicoise olive and cherry. Bottom row - tomato seed vinaigrette, salsify with parsley and tobacco gel.

Erector set -- SHORT RIB - olive, fermented garlic, blackberry. Building this dish was messy, eating this dish was messy, and it was some of the most fun we had at dinner. Between this and the salad, Alinea is an interactive experience. In a good way.

OCTOPUS - eggplant, coriander, red wine. The octopus, like the razor clam, was really toothsome. It was a very hardy contrast to the eggplant puree. The bowl had an onion/wasabi shooter.

Modern snow cone -- SNOW - yuzu. This was so tart, and so refreshing. Signified our move into the dessert portion of the evening.

SNOW - yuzu. Yuzu, according to our waiter, is a citrus fruit from Asia that's a combination of mandarin and lime. Tasted just like that, too.

SNOW - yuzu. Rear view.

Modern jello course -- STRAWBERRY - jasmine, basil, balsamic. What a jumble! These were fun to eat in combination.

STRAWBERRY - jasmine, basil, balsamic. Red = strawberries, black = balsamic vinegar, white with leaves = cream and basil, green = basil, crumbly cube = almond cake, white exploding blob = ricotta, off-white slick in center = lavender tea sauce.

Invisible stopper -- LEMONGRASS - dragonfruit, cilantro, cucumber. Completely overwhelming. Suck the lime flavored gelatin plug out of the tube, and the juices and items pop into your mouth in a rush.

CHOCOLATE - blueberry, honey, peanut. Last but not least. Frozen chocolate mousse with blueberry sauce, pickled blueberries, chunks of peanut butter and a honey creme brulee.

CHOCOLATE - blueberry, honey, peanut