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I've noticed while watching the Iron Chef programs how popular this method of cooking has become. Sous-vide is French for under vacuum, utilizing vacuum bags to package the food to be immersed in water at a constant temperature for a set time.

The machines will set you back several hundred dollars but I've been reading of a few different alternatives such as slow-cookers and even ice-chests.
Does anyone have any experience with this and if so can you elaborate? Also, with this relatively fail-safe method of cooking, do you know of any restaurants in the area that utilize this?

Here's the article about using a beer cooler in lieu of an actual sous-vide machine. beer cooler sous-vide

Here's another article (same author as above) on cooking hamburgers the sous-vide method link

Lastly, an article (again, same author) on sous-vide steak

Stella! uses it for their beef tenderloin entree (and perhaps for other things). The reason is simple economics. The filet accounts for 50-60% of their entree sales. Grill cook would be slammed and someone sending back an over or under cooked steak, causes chaos and loss profit. They sear the steak, drop it in liquid nitrogen to stop cooking, cryovac it, then place it one of four water baths (rare, med rare, etc...).

Then right before service, take it out of water bath, deep fry it just to crisp edges, and there you go.

While there are some home applications for sous vide cooking, it can be a dangerous process or at least there is the potential. As low oxygen and warm temps are ideal for bacteria. But they also say red meat is bad for you. So in the well-headed words of Miley Cyrus, "What Evs"

flyinbayou wrote: The machines will set you back several hundred dollars but I've been reading of a few different alternatives such as slow-cookers and even ice-chests. Does anyone have any experience with this and if so can you elaborate? Also, with this relatively fail-safe method of cooking, do you know of any restaurants in the area that utilize this?

Here's the article about using a beer cooler in lieu of an actual sous-vide machine. beer cooler sous-vide

I haven't seen the beer cooler method, but I have done stove-top sous vide (complete pain the arse), and I've heard you can sous vide in a pan of water in an oven set to 145* or an electric skillet. The only techie equipment you need is a vacuum-sealer and a good instant-read thermometer, and you have to make sure the sealed food is completely submerged--not floatin' to the top.

If you're serious about experimenting, read Thomas Keller's "Under Pressure" to get the fundamentals down.

I also have a friend who found an immersion circulator on eBay for cheap. Might want to keep an eye out for one of those.