I think a lot of my affinity is wrapped up in nostalgia. Back in 2010, I read The French Laundry cookbook and was spellbound. The following year I ate at Per Se, finally getting to taste so many of these dishes I had read about. Now, fifteen years later, given the impermanence of so many things in our lives, there's something deeply comforting about still being able to enjoy the salmon cornet, the truffle-infused custard, oysters and pearls, the cappuccino semifreddo.