chef du jour, du monde

Heston Blumenthal (look for a profile in the Sept issue of Food Arts) of The Fat Duck has been called "the Dali of cuisine and the Dr Frankenstein of food." Oh, and his restaurant has been voted the best in the WORLD by the Michelin gods.

What can you get for £97.50 ($171.58) at the Fat Duck? (uh, yeah, wine sold separately). A sample "Degustation" menu.

No wonder Blumenthal has teamed up with the Royal Society of Chemistry to produce a school textbook which aims to make science fun by explaining the physics and chemistry behind the cooking process.