It's only wafer-thin

While it's interesting to know that two-dimensional, paper sushi is possible, I'm not sure, well, why. And in Chicago, of all places. This Moto restaurant appears to be going in the total opposite direction of the rest of the city, where food's three-dimensional properties are not just accepted but celebrated. Salads at Fox and Obel are mounds seemingly as tall and and wide as anyone who might eat them. Chicago pizza, or deep-dish, is as far as pizza can get from the thin-crust variety.

Moto's chef, though, feels the same as I do, it seems, on the subject of how any meal could possibly be worth hundreds of dollars, and the paper-food (and other hi-tech items) is the, well, extra dimension he's adding to the dining experience:

Mr. Cantu believes that restaurant-goers, particularly diners who are willing to spend $240 per person for a meal (the cost of a 20-course tasting menu with wine at Moto) are often disappointed by conventional dining experiences. "They're sick and tired of steak and eggs," he said. "They're tired of just going to a restaurant, having food placed on the table, having it cleared, and there's no more mental input into it other than the basic needs of a caveman, just eat and nourish."

I suppose if one looks at the Moto dining experience as part restaurant trip, part science fair, and part art exhibit, paying more than one would for a typical meal out starts to sound reasonable.