Ask a waiter at the French Laundry where a vegetable on your plate came from, and he or she will likely say, "Across the street."

The French Laundry was the only restaurant given three stars in the new guide.

The chef came from the French Laundry, I said.

There are 102 styles of plates at the French Laundry.

I cut my teeth cooking at the French Laundry, and when we were using truffles there was always a bottle close by.

"This is the French Laundry, and you have to have certain things," he said.

With these credentials, getting a table at The French Laundry is something of a trial in America.

From the beginning, reservations at the French Laundry have been hard to get.

Which is, of course, the whole point of the French Laundry.

The reservation at the French Laundry had been for just two.