Mona Holmes
A giant spotlight is on plant-based dining after Eleven Madison Park chef Daniel Humm made a major announcement earlier this week. When his New York City restaurant reopens on June 10, he’ll introduce a $335 completely vegan tasting menu, and eliminate the unique dishes that made his three-Michelin-starred restaurant a worldwide sensation.
Reactions were mixed: from those who support a chef most well-known for making meat taking a step toward sustainability, to those who questioned its overall impact, and others who wondered aloud about the tastiness of the food. Some felt Humm’s shift isn’t new, as other fine dining chefs made similar leaps into plant-based cooking, including Dominique Crenn, who in 2019 announced she would no longer serve land animals in her restaurants. And while Wolfgang Puck’s menus are not plant-based, the LA-based chef served a mostly vegan menu for the 2020 Oscars with dishes like sweet potato tempura and wild mushroom bolognese.
A couple of years ago, the New York dining institution Eleven Madison Park asked its Instagram followers to vote for their favourite dish. Among the contenders: foie gras seared with apple; lobster
I know, there are more important things to worry about just now. But let me put it this way; how would Norwich City fans react if Daniel Farke announced that next season every player would take to the field with one leg tied up so they have to hop?
Although in the end it’s just 11 men kicking as ball about, there would be uproar.
The announcement from Eleven Madison Park was full of justifications for the vegan move, with Humm saying weasel words such as: “We have always operated with sensitivity to our surroundings, but it has become clear that the current food system is not sustainable.”
The Michelin Guides has awarded Manhattan s famous Eleven Madison Park restaurant another three-star rating
The announcement came just three days after owner Daniel Humm, 45, announced the restaurant will only serve plant-based foods when it reopens
The restaurant was previously famous for its lavender honey-glazed duck, lobster and Hawaiian prawn roulade and duck with daikon and plum dishes
In the announcement, Gwendal Poullenne, the international director of the Michelin Guides, praised Humm s decision to become a vegan restaurant
A new menu is still forthcoming
Eleven Madison Park is ditching meat Here s what could go wrong cnn.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from cnn.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.