Life, On The Line: Revisiting Alinea

I used to read a lot as a kid. My preference had generally been for non-fiction, although my favorite type was the fictional ones that had chunks of reality, intricately interwoven in them. As I grew up I abandoned reading books as a hobby so you can imagine what it must have been like carrying a hardcover book with me everyday after so many years. It was a birthday gift, nevertheless - and a poignant one that brings back memories of those magical moments some time ago.

Life, On The Line. A Chef's Story of Chasing Greatness, Facing Death and Redefining the Way We Eat.

The first time I read about Alinea on a Chicago forum I was practically smitten. The concept of the restaurant, and its subtleties that convey the ambition and drive of the chef wowed me. And then it happened. A dinner at Alinea that was filled with surprises of the wonderful kind. I had read quite a bit about the restaurant before, but words simply didn't do justice to it - the food, the environment, the service, the wine pairing, the entire experience. The occasion was my birthday, but that's hardly what the three of us remember it for anymore. In its entirety it was quite simply the best meal of our lives.

Two years later I receive a gift at my doorstep - the story of Alinea's head chef and owner Grant Achatz. The book begins as an autobiography by Achatz himself, vaguely detailing his earliest memories of his childhood and the little events and occasions that shaped his path to becoming one of the world's greatest chefs. Early on it becomes apparent that Achatz' drive has always been his ambition, and this characteristic of his is emphasized quite repetitively over the course of the autobiography.

It is interesting to note how he started off working under other famous chefs - namely Charlie Trotter (Charlie Trotters' of Chicago) and Thomas Keller (The French Laundry of Napa Valley) - and his opinion of working with them. He also mentions a few other chefs he gets acquainted with along the way; some who need no introduction in today's world such as Ferran Adria, Anthony Bourdain and Richard Blais. Once he becomes head chef and establishes Trio as one of America's top restaurants, the book's substance begins to run dry for a few pages - before Nick Kokonas walks into the scene. All of a sudden, there is a change in font - indicating Kokonas' point of view. The new perspective certainly adds a breath of freshness at this point, and soon enough the building blocks of Alinea begin to fall in to place. The idea of using two different fonts to differentiate Achatz' and Kokonas' recollections and switching back and forth between them was definitely a risky one - but in this case it worked quite well. I simply saw it as an extension of the risky yet inventive creativity that has made Alinea what it is today.

As I sat reading through the decisions made on Alinea's interior design, I couldn't help but reminisce further on my own experience at the restaurant. From the deceptive fuschia-lit entrance hallway; to the spiral glass staircase and bare-topped wooden tables, I marveled at the genius of the intention and how well it had worked for me. With Alinea's success apparent and Achatz finally meeting the love of his life, the story rather abruptly turns sour with Achatz being diagnosed with Stage IV tongue cancer. During the period of Achatz' aggressive treatment at University of Chicago, Kokonas aptly takes a bigger role in the recollection of events. The depth of their friendship - despite being only a couple of years old and not to mention being forged over a business partnership - begins to surface quite beautifully at this stage.

All in all - the book is well-written without any over-the-top language, although I must confess I found Achatz' recollections at times lacking a personal side to it. In looking to thoroughly drive home how his ambitious nature and never-give-up attitude got him to where he is today, I do get the feeling that there are certain things and possibly even some people he has overlooked through it all. On a more personal note it was nice to once again hold a hardcover book before me and simply escape the surrounding world as it moves by. Perhaps I'll get into the habit of reading again.