I have had a fascination with the duck press for a number of years. It symbolizes a style of dining rarely witnessed today. The press is used to extract the rich juices within a roast duck in order to make a table-side sauce, rich with the flavors of game and a perfume of the wild. Today we have more show in the dining room, from cooking in boxes to table-side liquid nitrogen presentations. These seem to be the evolutionary steps of the duck press. But the duck press is more than just show. It acts and represents a means for extraction, essence, and emotion. That is what we are striving to achieve. We need to extract flavors. Our goals revolve around the essence of food, dining, and the experience. These goals, in turn, are shaped by guests’ emotions. In working like the duck press, we are able to combine old and new ideas to extract flavors, techniques, concepts, and ideals previously locked within the world of food and wine.
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