Similarly, Gordon Ramsay, the London chef with the namesake restaurant, relies on the food for its sheer beauty. He might dust monkfish in curry powder before searing it. The fish sits atop mussels with diced carrots, leek, celery and julienne spinach in sauce made with reduced fish stock, vermouth, wine, saffron and curry power and finished with cream. At Charlie Trotter's namesake restaurant in Chicago, not all the components are layered so that they can share the spotlight. The plating allows the diner to sample the flavors separately or together for a varied sensory experience.
Oversized plates are still very popular.
One of the rules we strive for is to leave surface space so we can create depth and dimension to the food. It doesn't mean we put less food on the plate. It means you can have layering. White is the preferred plate color because it allows colors and presentation to stand out. But increasingly, plates are arriving at tables in different shapes.