Mr. Joy and I pulled the trigger on making a reser...

Mr. Joy and I pulled the trigger on making a reservation at Alinea, and anticipated an amazing meal for nearly two months. We arrived at the rather unassuming, nondescript grey building, and walked through the double doors, were greeted by the friendly hosts, and led upstairs to our Salon seats.
The dinner immediately began with some mentally stimulating theatrics. We sat down in front of an inconspicuous fruit bowl, which then was set off with dried ice, and released a misty fog on the table.
We were also given a crossword puzzle with words that revealed hints about the menu.

White | asparagus, jamon, basil:
Excellent! I would never even be able to fathom that white asparagus could become the texture of fluffy sponge cake and something akin to sorbet. The jamon and basil powder acted as a savory seasoning.

Kaeng | scallop, mustard, chili:
Great! Thai curry scallop noodles were topped with more crunchy, skinny noodles.

Glow | lemongrass:
Excellent! Two glowing test tubes containing fruity tea shooters with micro flowers and jellies capping both ends of the tubes. This was a perfectly refreshing accompaniment to the spicy, creamy noodles.

Ink | octopus, scallion, black lime:
Good! Chewy black octopus tentacles with crunchy ends was presented on a smooth black rock.

Stem | morel, oxalis, goat butter:
Good! Spongey cube of morel mushroom with a smattering of oxalis leaves next to a pool of goat butter.

Tail | pork, trumpet royale, huckleberry:
Good! Chewy slices of trumpet mushrooms, huckleberry jelly, and minced pork

Branch | maitake, acorn:
Ok! Meaty maitake mushrroms atop puffed acorn chips

Tea | matsutake, lemon, thyme:
As if this trio of mushrooms doesn't satisfy a mushroom craving, it comes full circle with mushroom tea.

At this point they led a group of us into the kitchen for a brief tour accompanied with snacks and drinks.

charred tortilla with chicken tinga, Oaxaca cheese, avocado, mole:
Good! Crunchy little taco pocket with tiny dollops of avocado and mole and micro flowers

spicy margarita - red bell pepper shaved ice
Good! Refreshing with a mild bite. They also prepared a virgin mocktail for one of the pregnant ladies of the group.

Rossini | wagyu, frites, foie gras:
Great! Throughout the meal, there was a tiny crockpot cooking up some beef over a flame. Perhaps this part of the meal was a nod to Rossini, to signify the apex of the meal, or it is to refer to the food being cooked in a Rossini pan.
When we returned to our seats, they finished off the beef in a pan of rosemary, garlic cloves, and olive oil. The juicy tender bite of wagyu was plated next to veal reduction and accompaniment of seasonings. I appreciated the flavoring options, but there was probably too many options for the bite size piece of wagyu.
Ear | wood ear, truffle:
Great! Also accompanied with crunchy wood ear mushrooms, black truffle puree, and pomme frite puree

Transition | yam delice, apricot:
Great! Even more surprising, there was a yam cooking beneath the flaming crockpot, hidden throughout the entire meal. Our server plated the creamy sweet potato with whipped goat cream and nuts.

Wood | hoja santa, tamarind, chocolate:
Ok! The smoky wood on the table was meant to give off herbal aromatics. The crisp hoja santa leaf atop more creamy, nutty dessert.

Corn | popped, caramel, liquid:
Ok! A whimsical, sweet and salty near-end

Balloon | helium, green apple:
Great! What a delightful way to eat green apple candy in the form of a toy. The helium sure changed Mr. Joy's voice into a comically high one, but it didn't make much difference for my voice.

The meal sure impressed straight out the gate with the asparagus dish that tasted more like a dessert, and the curry scallop noodles, which I never would have guessed was made from an animal byproduct. Some dishes were interesting to try, but weren't very exciting. My favorites would have to be the melt in your mouth wagyu beef, and the spicy margarita, and the balloon, because how could I not enjoy that?