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Eleven Madison Park is serving foie gras again, but if New York City’s long-delayed ban is finally enacted, it could cut short the dish’s controversial comeback.
In September, the formerly plant-based restaurant Eleven Madison Park (EMP) shared a photo of a new menu item: Black Truffle & Foie Gras Stuffed Chicken.
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EMP, which began as a meat-focused fine dining experience, announced a fully plant-based menu in 2021. The restaurant successfully retained its three Michelin stars in 2022, but ultimately re-added animal products to the menu last year.
Speaking at the time, head chef Daniel Humm said that the decision to serve meat again came after a year of financial strain, and was an attempt to draw in more diners. He said that the menu would remain primarily plant-based, but would also include lobsters, oysters, and ducks. (It’s worth noting here that EMP’s “secret” dining room menu allegedly served meat, fish, and even foie gras after its vegan announcement.)
Humm has spoken out against foie gras specifically, and in 2024, he told Food & Wine that luxury foods like Kobe beef, caviar, and foie gras are “from a different time.”
In addition to the foie gras at EMP, he now serves caviar at his new restaurant, HUMM.
Foie gras as an object of desire
The decision to once again serve foie gras at EMP was criticized by many, including Alexis Gauthier, the Michelin-starred chef behind Gauthier Soho and 123 Vegan.
In a blog post on his Substack, Gauthier wrote that he “could hardly believe” what he was seeing. He added, “There is an enormous difference between returning animal products to a menu and actively promoting foie gras as an object of desire.”
The French chef has previously written about feeling “haunted” after seeing images of foie gras production. He said, “with influence comes responsibility,” and added, “There is something profoundly contradictory about a profession that celebrates innovation while remaining so attached to ingredients inherited from another era.”
Foie gras is made from the liver of a goose or duck. Traditionally, birds are confined and force-fed up to three times per day, which causes their livers to become swollen.
In the US, 89 percent of people support a national ban on force feeding, while 81 percent support a foie gras ban. Sixty-one percent said that they would be more likely to dine at a restaurant that had stopped selling foie gras for ethical reasons.
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Is foie gras banned in New York City?
EMP’s decision to bring back foie gras may turn out to be poorly timed.
New York City (NYC), which is home to both EMP and Humm himself, voted to ban foie gras in 2019. Years of industry lobbying and appeals mean the ban has yet to be enacted, but earlier this year, the New York Appellate Division upheld the city’s foie gras ban and denied a request to reconsider the decision, or to allow further appeals.
For the moment, foie gras remains available while the legal process continues. But if the ban takes effect, EMP and all NYC restaurants could be prohibited from selling it.
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