Well, the great British bake off got some flack for their interpretation of a “s’more”. What they were aiming for was much too fancy, and they even downgraded a participant for heating the marshmallow enough that it got gooey! But it would have been a very nice fancy dessert.
I think we are writing past each other. The abstract idea of ‘elevated’ is difficult to argue. I mean, if you wouldn’t say “elevated” but conceptually you think “elevated” is there. I’m not sure what to do with that. I guess I’ll just be happy that you wouldn’t use the specific word ‘elevate’; because that’s kind of my point?
I’m mostly irked by the habit of using ‘elevated’ to refer to European influence on non-European cuisine. If you can imagine other uses, I’m not going to argue further. Hence, the comment about Oriental; the term itself can be used, but the context matters.
I really just don’t understand what you are saying here or why you think “elevate” has any reference to the type of cuisine. Every time I have heard it used it’s been to take a simple common dish and make it fancy and upscale. It doesn’t have any inherent meaning of “European” or “non-European.”
Yeah, I think we probably are talking past each other. I mean, I admitted that I didn’t know “elevate” meant anything “bad” in the food world. If someone were to say to me, “The chef takes a plain noodle dish and elevates it,” I’d take it to mean what Eyebrows_Of_Doom means: The chef made it fancier (maybe higher quality ingredients, but more likely by using ways to justify charging twice as much). I wouldn’t automatically think it meant borderline racist.
Sincere question: How can you tell when it refers to European influence on non-European cuisine? Since it’s been said that the sweet and sour glop is Chinese-American, is it “elevated”? Or is that just dumbed-down for American tastes?
Personally, I’m thinking that “elevated” is nothing more than a pretentious piece of marketing buzzword bullshit. But that’s just my opinion.
I don’t think there’s an issue with referring to a particular dish as being “elevated”, whether it’s a burrito or a cheeseburger. Every culture has dishes which are intended to be simple and easy to make, and there’s nothing wrong with doing a “fancy” version of it. But if you say you’re elevating a cuisine you’re implying that all the dishes in that cuisine are “simple.”
It’s the difference between saying “I’m doing chow mein, but fancy,” and saying “I’m doing Chinese food, but fancy.”
I agree with this. You really have to try to get worked-up over someone using the word in conjunction with food, and I think it’s really a reach to say it’s racist that someone who is white wants to “elevate” an ethnic food. It’s just signaling that it will somehow be fancier than expected, different artistically than expected, or fused (to use the whole “fusion” thing) with some other, unexpected ingredient. I am also not getting the whole European angle on this (but then, I am not trying to be offended).
Does distinguishing between a dish and a cuisine make sense if your restaurant concept doesn’t revolve around a single dish? Does it make sense if consumers are used to paying a particular price range when they go to a [cuisine] restaurant, regardless of what they order?
To take that particular. example, elevated might be something like using organic brown sugar instead of high fructose corn syrup, freshly squeezed pineapple juice instead of canned, homemade ketchup with fresh tomatoes instead of Heinz 57, fresh beet juice instead of artificial coloring, and so on.
Of course it can also mean adding stuff that is more expensive but might not actually make the dish taste any different. The gold monster burger from this menu at Sugar Factory is an example of that. Of course it’s also an example of how “elevating” a dish isn’t restricted to foods of non-European origin.
https://sugarfactory.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/bahamas2021online.pdf
Exactly.
This really irritates me. Why can’t we have a discussion about why people have a problem with describing a chef as “elevating” another culture’s cuisine without accusing people of trying to be offended. It isn’t even a matter of offense, but if it were, why not? Why can’t someone be offended by something without TRYING to be offended by it. Lots of Asian discrimination and stereotyping in the United States goes unchecked, but no we can’t discuss it otherwise we’re trying to be offended.
Warning: Digression
I find that even people sympathetic to not being discriminatory tend to miss Asian stereotyping as it happens because Asian stereotyping is so ingrained as to be normal. The Musical Jagged Little Pill ran in Cambridge before going to Broadway. I happened to see this show in Cambridge and the production, for whatever reason, sent a survey to me. Jagged Little Pill is the wokest woke that ever woked (neither good nor bad for this discussion, but relevant). There’s stuff about Black life in a White world. Transgender representation. Me Too stuff is a major plot point. There was also Asian Stereotyping, which was kind of sad given how dedicated the production was to other areas of representation.
So I said that in the survey.
They actually got back to me. Apparently, they noted my feedback, had a discussion with the cast and made changes.
So even “woke” people still have a blind spot to Asian stereotyping, but to their credit they were willing to listen.
People who describe innovative chefs and fancy food speak like that. Do yourself a favor and google news and blogs with the query “‘elevated’ ‘cuisine’”. It’s common enough. For example,
Chef Rene Valenzuela draws on his heritage to cook elevated Mexican cuisine from his Tampa food truck called Rene’s Mexican Kitchen.
A member of Giorgios Hospitality Group led by restaurateur Giorgios Bakatsias, for the past decade, Kipos Greek Taverna has aimed to serve Greek and Mediterranean cuisine with elevated flair.
This city’s diversified and elevated cuisine has plenty to offer […]
~Max
There are those who would describe things like Orange Chicken as ‘dumbed down’ for White Americans, but I’m not one of them. Chinese Immigrants adapted Chinese foods to meet the palate of White Americans (sweeter) in order to have successful restaurants. It certainly is different, and a departure from the traditional Chinese palate and taste, but there also isn’t anything wrong with that. I also find these Chinese-American dishes tasty by their own right. It isn’t traditional, and it doesn’t have to be.
In my mind “European influence” as I have been using the term is stuff like French techniques. For example making a dish, but using French techniques to make it a different way. But it also can be other things. I’m sorry to be so vague, but it is a broad thing and you have every right to be confused. I guess the question to ask yourself when seeing something described as “elevated” is whether or not describing the thing as ‘de-elevated’ is insulting. Because when a chef says their food is elevated Chinese Cuisine, they are also saying that Chinese Cuisine is less than. But if you say elevated Burger, then you are saying burgers are basic, which they kind of are.
Four Seasons is American cuisine. But they describe themselves … to Londoners… as “fine dining with elevated cuisine”,
“We are thrilled that Chef Yannick has chosen Four Seasons to partner on his first opening in London. Together, we are raising the bar even higher, with a concept that reflects the future of fine dining with elevated cuisine and service, with a distinctly warm and welcoming touch.”
ETA: I bet if they released Big Night (1996) today, Chef Primo would be described as offering “elevated Italian cuisine” or similar. But he just made traditional Italian cuisine with excellent skill, his grandmother’s recipes or something. The whole point of the movie is that the other restaurant dumbed real Italian food down for American tastes. Italy is still considered Europe, right?
In fact here is an article about an Italian restaurant, also in Houston, which has “elevated” Italian cuisine, and references Big Night.
Inspired by their Italian-American roots and the success of Cafe Louie’s Red Sauce Sundays, Louie and Angelo now focus on elevated interpretations of the food of Italian immigrants in the United States.
~Max
Last post on this subject, ‘bring elevated French cuisine to dishes’ distinguished from bringing elevated French dishes.
Lechantoux explained that he is aiming to bring elevated French cuisine and expert culinary craftsmanship to dishes that are approachable for New York diners.
~Max
Eh. Only the first reference specifically states elevated Mexican cuisine. And I still find that cringey. I’m not going to pretend to know anything about Mexican cuisine, but are we really talking about Mexican cuisine here or Tex-Mex?
The second states elevated flair, whatever that means. Maybe they are fans of Office Space?
The third is generic and not specific to a particular culture.
I mean what are we doing here? The whole digression on “oriental” was to illustrate that context matters.
Oh, absolutely. For visitors the rugs are described from their country of origin (Turkish, Persian, etc). A good point I neglected to mention.