Is Fine Dining dead?
As Il Bistro turned 50 this last week, I found that I’ve been getting out a bit more and seeing old friends in the business and making new ones. In casual conversation with others who are considered to be “lifers“ like myself I’ve gotten a feeling that Seattle restaurant culture is an endangered species.
Some of the doom and gloom could be related to a smidgen of political cynicism. Others factor in a changing demographic as older, more reliable clientele,age at home and their creature comforts. Trust me, older diners, like myself, hate to drive at night. In the winter, 4pm is night, the very hour that places throw open their doors. Drat.
Reports keep surfacing of a declining wine an appreciation among younger people, and that there is a considerable glut of California wines, causing everyone to worry about the future, especially in the restaurant business. When I say “restaurant business “I don’t mean, casual or fast dining, which I don’t consider to be dining. For this discussion, I mean, full on…table cloths, superior service, innovated menus, romantic ambience, old-school, restaurants. $$$.
One of the new friends I hope I’ve made this last week, is another established restaurant owner, who seems as prickly as I am, and that things he thinks and things he says, tend to kick up dust. My kinda guy.
He spoke of the evolution of the fine diner. The maturation process that is a conveyor belt from fast food to fine dining. I couldn’t agree more since he also included a key ingredient to this transformation. Travel. The more people see of the world, the more they experience other cultures, and the food and beverage products, the more appreciated a full dining experience. The more they know, the better choices they make. Of course, upward economic mobility doesn’t hurt.
I’ve always thought of Seattle as a food paradise and in some ways that’s accurate. But in other more substantial ways, we are still as behind the times now as we’ve always been. One would think that with the influx of people from other parts of America, but the world, we would step up and not back. sure, there are bright spots and some creative sparks…but.
These recent conversations have me concerned. Not deeply concerned, but enough to want to go further into this. Have the fine dining icons in Seattle outlived their usefulness? Or, is this yet another perilous, but short-lived phase that long-established restaurateurs have to patiently endure?