Daniel Humm Reflection

In writing my presentation about Daniel Humm, I have done some reflection and worked through many of Barthes' principles almost like a sort of excersize for my brain to recognise the intention of an artist putting creative work into the world. Daniel Humm is the head chef (Chef de Cuisine) of the highest acheiving Michelline recognised restaurant in the United States called Eleven Madison Park. Humm took a serious risk when he decided to risk the restaurant's status as #1 restaurant in the world they earned in 2017 by moving to a completely plant based menu through the pandemic. A fully plant based micheline 3 starred restaurant may seem like a normal thing today but to risk a total overhaul of the existing menu that late into the career of the restaurant was a serious risk that had never been made till his time. While his courses mostly highlight seasonal vegetable ingredients in their own right, some of his courses playfully reference existing dishes which usually rely on meat like his plant seed "caviar" and many others highlighted in my presentation. If you asked Barthes what Humm was doing with his choices for the meals he creates, he would tell you that Humm is using pluaral meanings for the dishes he produces, they go beyond sustinence alone and are shaped by the high class context around the guest, the menu's meticulous text, and the cullinary motifs of existing dishes which Humm plays on to change how the guest experiences the food they are eating. To learn more about Humm I highly suggest you read some of the articles from right when the controversy of his plant based decision came to light attatched below.