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Eating Monopoli – Orto

Feb10

Location: Contrada Tortorella, 520, 70043 Monopoli BA, Italy. +39 080 222 6831

Date: August 4, 2024

Cuisine: Southern Italian

Rating: Lovely

Orto is a “Naturale” restaurant attached to a Trulli hotel. For those not in the know, Trulli are ancient stone beehive buildings constructed without mortar.

“An important element in enriching one’s gastronomic experiences is certainly the knowledge of places: of the water, of the earth, of the air that retain the memory of the character of the territory, giving substance and taste to fruits and animals.
The ability of a cook rests on two pillars: the knowledge of the matter and of the ways of treating it in respect of its nature.
One of the tasks that do honor to the good cook is to spread and increase the gastronomic culture, on the one hand by teaching how to eat well and correctly with the food offered on the table, on the other hand by educating young people and passing the baton to those who deserve it, introducing him to gastronomic Culture, that, when it is real, is a conscious experience, applied research in continuous improvement and adaptation to life.
And finally, memento! Creating is not copying. Without pursuing the new, the “never seen” as a qualifying attribute in itself: we can recognize the novelty both in the known and in the unknown, it is important that it draws on the truth.
Art is the putting into action of truth. “
— Gualtiero Marchesi

Orto is located at a Trulli hotel up in the hills. It’s also Michelin recomended.

Lovely place.

We ate in the garden.

The regular menu.

I had a very slightly “expanded” menu.

Amuses.

Bread.

ORTO CIRCOLARE 2021. couscous of courgettes, almonds, pistachios, herbs and seasonal vegetables. This was actually fabulous. Very herby and refreshing.

AUBERGINES TARTELLET. carob flour tartlet, aubergine mustard, sour aubergines. This “bonus” course was tiny, albiet delicious.

Orecchiette pomodoro.

SPAGHETTO, OLIVE, ALMOND AND LEMON. spaghetti, Cellina olives, almonds and salted lemon. Perhaps the best lemon pasta I have every tried. Really good!

TUBETTI RIGATI. tubetti rigati, red turnip, lemon balm strawberries, karkadè and smoked stracciatella cheese. Bright, slightly sour, and a perfect pairing with the cheese.

EGG COOKED UNDER THE ASH. farm egg, potato cream, olive powder.

FREE RANGE CHICKEN. free-range chicken, aromatic herbs, salad. Tasty.

THE FALDACCHEA. black cherries in pomegranate vinegar, almonds, lemon, almond mousse, meringue, cinnamon.

The cherry almond stuff was under the meringue and the overall tasty was INCREDIBLE. Really good.

Almond paste (and delicious).

Old fashioned.

Biscotti.

Orto had less courses and certainly less options but the atmosphere was amazing and the food was very very fresh and really delicious. We really enjoyed it. Plus they were fast as 1 stars go.

For more Italian dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Tagged as: Eating Monopoli, eating-italy, Italian Cusiine, Mich, Michelin, Orto, pasta

Eating Ostuni – Cielo

Jan02

Restaurant: Cielo Restaurant

Location: Vico Pergola, 9, 72017 Ostuni BR, Italy. +39 0831 305925

Date: July 1, 2024

Cuisine: Southern Italian

Rating: Wonderful and interesting

Cielo was our first dinner in Puglia. It’s located in the lovely town of Ostuni, inside a nice hotel and has a Michelin recomendation.

The 5-star Relais La Sommità will make your stay an enchanted one with stylish menus featuring seasonal offerings in our elegant Cielo restaurant.

It is a perfect balance between new and ancient, in an unreal atmosphere, told as if it were a century-old fairy tale set in the rocks that characterize the building.
The Chef offers sensorial journeys between tradition and experimentation, through dishes that play with shapes and colors, using local excellences and preciousness from all over the world.

We give you the opportunity to order à la carte or choose the 4 or 7 course tasting menu. To complete our dishes, a we choosed Apulian, Italian and international wines.

When you book, please view our menu and inform us of any intolerances or allergies, just to guarantee an experience that meets your needs.

From the restaurant of the Relais La Sommità, on the highest point of Ostuni, you have a suggestive view of the alleys and the dazzling Lime of the city walls which frame pictures of clear skies.
The atmosphere of the restaurant is one of sober elegance, even the background music can become a pleasant moment of personal silence.

During the summer period the scent of the citrus fruits of the Spanish Garden make the aperitifs of Relais La Sommità unforgettable at sunset.
They have a beautiful garden, but it was so hot (95F perhaps) that we ate inside the cellar dining room.

As usual for this trip, I wasn’t “allowed” to get the tasting menu because the “entire table” had to use the same format.

As amuse of fresh tomato pizza. I think this one was a gluten free bread.

This may have been the “real” (non GF) pizza. The red blob on the right was tomato jam.

Spherized puffs.

Leaf tacos.

A kind of cucumber like fruit.

The local bread was very good with an ultra crispy crust.

CABBAGE. in cold sauce, soft egg, lentil miso and yuzu.

COD. marinated and fried, caroselle of fennel in vinegar and parsley.

RABBIT. in porchetta, apple and green peppers.

Spaghetti Pomodoro.

SPAGHETTONE. smoked, garlic, oil and chilli pepper, green beans, strong
ricotta fondue and anchovies. This had a strong smoky flavor that was fabulous.

BRANZINO. marinated and grilled, helichrysum, zucchini and sweet garlic.

BEEF DIAPHRAGM. with padre peppe liquor, spinach, savory and black truffle butter. This sounded scary but was very tender and tasted great.

An amuse, I think plum flavored.

ARAGUANI CHOCOLATE. spicy, osmosis watermelon and liquorice parfait.

PEACH. three wines, liquid celery and lemon soda.

FIG. iced and creamy, crusco pepper compote and herbal cheese.

Petite Four.

Petite Four.

Petite Four (fabulous, actually).

Petite Four.

This was a very nice meal, certainly better than our first two in Venice. Quite elegant.

For more Italian dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Tagged as: Eating Ostuni, eating-italy, Italian cuisine, Michelin, Ostuni, Puglia, Wine

Eating Paris – L’Ambroisie

Jan20

Restaurant: L’Ambroisie

Location: 9 Pl. des Vosges, 75004 Paris, France. +33 1 42 78 51 45

Date: June 29, 2022

Cuisine: 1980s Haute Cuisine French

Rating: Amazing

This was supposed to be my fourth starred restaurant in Paris, but some complexities of the “2022 moment” led to us missing two of them. I also ended up going here by myself instead of with a big group, but c’est la vie.

L’Ambroisie is a traditional French restaurant in Paris, France founded by Bernard Pacaud and now run by his son Mathieu that has maintained three Michelin stars for more than thirty years. The name “L’Ambroisie” (“Ambrosia” in English) comes from Greek mythology and means both “food for gods” and “source of immortality.”

The restaurant’s founder and head chef is Bernard Pacaud. He was abandoned by his parents at age 13 and raised in an orphanage in the mountains of Lyonnais. Pacaud started cooking at age 15, in 1962, as an apprentice at the famed Eugenie (Mére) Brazier’s restaurant Col de la Luère located 20 km from Lyon. Pacaud spent the next three years as commis at the Tante Alice restaurant in Lyon before becoming chef de partie at La Méditerranée in Paris. Pushed by Eugénie Brazier’s encouragements, he applied to work in 1976 with Claude Peyrot, the chef and owner of the Vivarois (a Michelin three star restaurant) on avenue Victor Hugo in Paris. In 1981, he opened his own restaurant quai de la Tournelle (at the crossing with rue de Bièvres) in Paris. In 1986, he opened L’Ambroisie at place des Vosges and obtained three Michelins stars in 1988 which he has kept since then. His refined and classical cooking style makes it one on the most esteemed French restaurants.

The restaurant is in a period house on the southwestern corner of the Place des Vosges in Paris. In the 17th and 18th centuries, Place des Vosges was an upper-class and noble neighborhood.

The interior was very 1980s “le Grande Restaurant.” I didn’t photo much of it because the Madame en Charge was giving me the evil eye and I didn’t want to get boxed out of using my camera. As it was I didn’t dare even put the flash on, I could just tell that wouldn’t fly.

2015 Rapet Père et Fils Corton-Charlemagne. BH 92. This easily possesses the most complex nose in the range with its ripe yet cool array of green apple, citrus, petrol, soft wood and spice hints. There is impressive size, weight and concentration to the muscular big-bodied flavors that coat the mouth on the citrus and mineral-inflected finish. I would make the same observation here that while this could easily be enjoyed young, I would be inclined to give it at least a few years of bottle age first to develop more depth. (Drink starting 2022)

The menu. This is pretty close to the style of menu I generally encountered at nice restaurants in the 1980s. Dishes are vaguely clustered into courses and the intent is that you order one from each. Lighter eaters could skip one.

Special cornbread-like bread.

Amuses. Fennel tart (front). Delicious. Red pepper mousse (back left) on a crisp. Leek with Caviar (back right). I always enjoy the rich and varied tastes of amuses — I could do an entire meal of amuses trivially.

Sour dough bread and Normandy Butter. Sour dough seems a recent thing at high end French places.

The bread itself.

And le beurre.

I started (with the amuses) trying to shoot these dishes with my F1.8 lens and a tiny tripod. About one picture in the eagle eye’d manager honed in on me and made me ditch the tripod. Why me sitting alone at my large table with a 6″ tripod was “distracting to the other guests” is anyone’s guess, but as I had to make due hand holding in dim light with no flash I was basically shooting with a couple mm of depth of field — hence I present several photos (pretty hard to focus stack without a tripod).

Feuillantine de langoustines aux graines de sésame, sauce au curry. Langoustine feuillantine with sesame seeds, curry sauce. Lanougstines (course 1). Very precise. Perfectly cooked and the buttery mildly curry sauce was delicious. This was an excellent dish.

Interlude de homard aux pusses de legumes, nage a l’anis etoile. Lobster interlude with vegetable pusses, star anise broth. Lobster (course 2). Incredibly tender and another great beurre blanc. Basically you could think of it as perfectly cooked lobster in perfect beurre blanc — nothing wrong with that. The broth was so good that it made the vegetables awesome.

2013 Domaine Poisot Pere & Fils Romanée St. Vivant. BH 92. There is a fine sense of freshness to the cool and overtly spicy aromas of various floral, plum and sandalwood hints. I very much like the purity of the energetic, sleek and attractively detailed medium-bodied flavors that possess a highly refined mouth feel thanks to the fine grain of the supporting tannins, all wrapped in a balanced, persistent and beautifully complex finish. This is quite good and should age effortlessly over the next 10 to 15 years. (Drink starting 2025)

They noticed me squinting at the wine list and offered me reading glasses! Very helpful.

Supremes de pigeon laques a la Montmorency, meli-melo de betteraves confites. Supremes of pigeon lacquered with Montmorency. Pigeon (course 3). Good, and perfectly cooked, but touch heavy.

Candied beetroot medley. Beat side dish as part of duck. Kind of lovely.

Centerpiece on the table.

Pre-dessert. Very light.

Blanc-manger meringue aux agrumes, sorbet cerises a la Kriek. Blancmange meringue with citrus fruits, cherry sorbet with Kriek. Super fresh and great cherries and cream thing.

Petite fours.

Mini strawberry tart.

Perfect cannel.

Pastry with Chantilly cream and a caramelized top. It’s sort of related to a Saint-Honoré pastry and includes a slate of elements I love.

An immense amount of cocoa almonds.

Overall, this is a great kitchen and in summary a great way to experience the 1980s/early 90s style of high end French Cusiine, but I’ll break down the elements:

Food. Dated, without the heavy Asian or modernist influence that’s common these days, but extremely precise and and well cooked. This makes the cuisine more “French” than most other 3 stars. It also floats everything along with butter and creme instead of using some of the lighter newer “solvents.” The format also features a more or less 3 savory style which I found less exciting than a newer style with many more, smaller, savory courses. Being by myself, I didn’t get to sample that many things.

Wine. The by-the-glass wine list was surprisingly poor compared to my meal the previous night at Le Grand Restaurant – Jean-François Piège. I had to pick from the kind of “off vintage, off producer, a bit too young” Burgundies I won’t even buy anymore.

Atmosphere. The room is pretty, but formal in the classic way. I’m certainly fine with that. Tables were very spaced out and things were quiet. For me, being along, and in combination with the relatively small number of courses and the slow pacing and my inability to use a tripod or flash (which would occupy me a bit longer with my photography) the whole experience was kind of slightly uncomfortable and a bit dull. I was a little too far from the other diners to easily listen to their conversations. haha. The staff, particularly the manager, seemed more stern and disapproving, if always flawlessly polite, than the friendliness I experienced the previous night.

For more French dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Tagged as: Eating France, Eating Paris, France, French Cuisine, Haute cuisine, L'Ambroisie, Michelin, Michelin 3 Star, Paris, Wine

Eating Rome – Metamorfosi

Jul03

Restaurant: Metamorfosi

Location: Metamorfosi, Via Giovanni Antonelli, 30/32 – 00197 Roma

Date: June 10, 2015

Cuisine: Modernist Italian

Rating: Amazing modernist Italian

I found Metamorfosi simply by googling for “Rome Modernist Cuisine” or some such thing like that. I love experimental and modernist food, what we in the Hedonists group call “teacups” or “morsels” (some of my foodie friends are divided on the modernist issue, but I happen to adore but modernist and traditional cuisine). Anyway, Metamorfosi has one Michelin Star (although I think it should have 2).

The interior is appropriately… modern.

2009 Bellavista Franciacorta Gran Cuvée Satèn. VM 90. We began with this nice Italian bubbly.

There are tasting menus (at least 2) and ala carte. We, of course, went with the big tasting.

Various yummy bread options.

An amuse of some kind of whipped vegetable (like celery) with squid ink. Very light and lovely with a bit of brine flavor.
1996 Casal Pilozzo Malvasia Bianca. 90 points. Then on to this interesting old Malvasia. I haven’t had that much old Malvasia, so I don’t have much of a reference point, but it was an excellent food wine.

Raw tuna and herbs wrapped in chard leaves. A Modernist Italian tuna/lettuce wrap!

More breads, this is Italy after all!

Mozzarella and Spinach.

The Spinach clearly is the powdered green. The wrapper (ravioli?) over the top was actually made from Mozzarella, and had an interesting texture not unlike something skimmed off the top of milk, but it all worked quite well.

Charcoal roasted artichoke.

A crispy bit of puffed rice.

Foie gras, carrots and hazelnuts.

The simulated carrot, made of carrot, is actually stuffed with foie gras! Quiet delicious too.

The brioche for the foie.

Mackerel, green vegetables, meat glaze, smoked cream. An excellent “crudo” type dish.

Tortellini perfumes of the sea. Dill. These were rather amazing. Very nice and al dente pasta, and then filled with bursts of flavor like a white bouillabaisse. Extremely pure “seafood” taste too.
1998 Querciabella Batàr. 93 points. A blend of Chardonnay (50%) and Pinot Blanc (50%), grapes lovingly handpicked, 12 months in new French oak and quite a few years in the bottle result in liquid heaven. Honey-butter, creamy-vanilla and oak all come together in perfect harmony. The balance is truly quite stunning.

Encased risotto, mushrooms and hazelnut.

A peculiar dish made like a drum, with a sauce spread on top.

Then you poke through like a pot pie and the risotto is inside. The top had a texture like fruit leather, but the risotto was stunningly good. Really tasty.

Cod fish and “Black” friggitelli. Moist and perfect fish. I think the green was pea flavored.

Red mullet. Caponata.

“Pluma” of iberico pork, prune and chipotle chutney. Some nice chunks of meat and very tasty potatoes with a kind of salsa verde (parsley, olive oil, etc).

Gorgonzola lollipop with white chocolate and balsamic sauce. Awesome!

White chocolate with caramelized bananas and Armagnac. Extremely light and fluffy with only a subtle banana flavor (a good thing by me).

Cherries, laurel ice cream and Sangiovese. Very seasonal.

Chocolate, pear, and sage.

Various bon bons. Ice cream lollipops, jellies, and meringues.

And this one slightly different.

Overall, Metamorfosi was less formal than the previous night’s 3 star Michelin (La Pergola), with less carts and stuff — but the food was extremely inventive and tasty. Sometimes these highly modernist dishes fail, sometimes even quiet often. That was not the case here. There were perhaps 1-2 dishes that weren’t amazing, but for the most part the food was really spot on. And it was half the price too without the 3 star markup.

Now it was a LONG meal, 8-12 plus an unanticipated 45-60 minutes it took us to get a taxi, and with a 6 year-old! But really fabulous and if I was the Michelin reviewer I’d definitely knock Metamorfosi up to 2 stars. Inventive wine suggestions too. I appreciate the Ovid reference and a great way to wrap up the Rome section of our trip!

Click here to see more Eating Italy posts.

By: agavin
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Tagged as: eating-italy, Metamorfosi, Michelin, Modern Cuisine, Modern Italian, Molecular Gastronomy

Eating Rome – La Pergola

Jul02

Restaurant: La Pergola

Location: Via Alberto Cadlolo, 101, Roma

Date: June 9, 2015

Cuisine: Italian

Rating: Carts, carts, and more carts!

And on to our first “fancy” dinner, Rome’s sole 3 star Michelin Restaurant, La Pergola. Even our six year old got to enjoy this one, earning himself more than 8 Michelin stars during the trip.

La Pergola is located high above the city in the Cavalieri hotel. This is a very elegant property but with a uniquely Italian blend of 60s, modern, and antique elements.

The view is spectacular. St Peter’s can be seen in the background.

The lovely main dining hall.
What would a 3 star be without various carts and trays. In this case the pepper tray, in case you really have a preference as to pepper.

Or the fancy salts tray (or trays).

And this giant block of crystallized salt.

Or balsamic. I think there was an olive oil one too.

Or sugars.

We chose some bubbly from the champagne bucket.

Then the bread carver set to work on the extensive basket.

A first flight of breads.

Tonight’s menu.

An amuse of smoked duck. Lovely smoky flavor.

Tuna Carpaccio with wasabi cream, cumin seed gelatine, and red beets. The rectangular slab was the tuna. The pink things had a light, almost Meringue-like texture.

2011 Villa Diamante Fiano di Avellino Vigna della Congregazione. The waiter recommended this lovely Southern Italian White, and it turns out I actually have 4 bottles of this exact wine in my cellar!

Frisella with croutons and red shrimps. Basically a dehydrated panzanella salad. The “bread” was probably freeze dried and had a light airy texture. The raw shrimps were lovely too.

I belive artichoke hearts.

S-campo. A bit of fresh shrimp with dehydrated ingredients, including seaweed.

Then rehydrated with consommé. It wasn’t so much of a looker afterward, but tasted good.

Fagottelli “La Pergola.” These amazing little tortellini were filled with liquid parmesan and exploded in the mouth. Plus there was some pancetta! Amazing.

White asparagus, topinambur puree, balsamic vinegar and strawberries.

Cod with chili pepper sauce and marinated anchovies. This salty sauce reminded me of certain Chinese sweet and sour fish sauces, but it was saltier. Rather delicious and the fish was perfectly moist.

1982 Poderi Aldo Conterno Barolo Vigna Cicala. 93 points. Light red, fading into the browns. Lots of caramel and cedar, but still very nice fruit, tons of tannin, and drinking well. Probably a bit past its prime, but still a very nice wine.

Braised veal cheek with curly endive, burrata and spiced popped rice. A super tender chunk of meat.

Seabass and peppers.

The cheese cart. I do love a proper cheese cart.

Cheese. I went for the smelly strong ones.

And bread for the cheese, including an almost panforte like slab of fruit and nuts.

Candles.

And the special napkin plate.

Next up is the ultimate little dessert tower. Twelve little confections, each with one per person. They were amazing.

Iced sphere of red fruit on tea cream with crystalized raspberries.

The sphere was like a sphere of sorbet. This was basically like a chocolate and berries desert, with interesting texture and temperature. Rather delicious. The potency of berry flavor came from the raspberries.

Alex had his own “tasting menu” of penne pomodoro, a “parmesan” course (I forgot to photo).

And chocolate gelato (with accompaniments).

Then there were more bon bons, little delicate home made chocolates.

Certainly an amazing meal. A tad on the long side with a six year-old, as we started when they opened and finished at midnight when everyone else did. In fact, it seemed that no matter when you started, they rapidly had you on basically the same schedule. But everything was humming at 3 star level. The setting was fabulous, the service impeccable, the food inventive and delicious. Every dish worked, although perhaps not every dish was amazing. Some were, like the cheese filled pasta. Great stuff!

Click here to see more Eating Italy posts.

By: agavin
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Tagged as: eating-italy, Italian cuisine, La Pergola, Michelin, Rome

Valentino – 2006 White Burgundy

Mar08

Restaurant: Valentino Santa Monica [1, 2, 3]

Location: 3115 Pico Blvd Santa Monica, CA 90405. (310) 829-4313

Date: March 6, 2014

Cuisine: Italian

Rating: Fabulous!

Last year I went to an epic three night 2005 White Burgundy Dinner series (Part 1 can be found here), hosted by Burg-meister Don Cornwell. This year, he’s mixing it up a bit and we did a 2004 Red Burgundy dinner and tonight’s 2006 White Burgundy tasting.

2006 was a vintage that initially was a bit heavy and overly tropical, but let’s see how it turns out tonight.

This particular dinner is at Valentino, which has been a mainstay of the LA fine dining scene for decades. I first started coming here in about 1995 and it was a mind blowing change from the usual trattoria and red-sauce style Italians. Valentino is much closer to Michelin 2 star restaurant in Italy, although not as modernist as some of those are in recent years. If food in Italy turns you on, check out my Eating Italy segment.

Our private room. Notice the large table with a lot of space. This is important when you have 29 glasses a person!

Notice the awesome array of glasses in the background. Only about a third of them are visible. Few restaurants can handle this sort of thing, as they need over 400 stems of the same type and a dedicated Sommelier with sufficient experience and skill. Ours tonight was Julian Zaragoza, wine director, who has been at Valentino for around twenty years! He handled the whole wine service himself with extreme professionalism and personality.

Usually these dinners are done single blind, but tonight every glass was individually labeled with the wine name.

Tonight’s special menu.

Flight 0: Champagne

2000 Vilmart & Cie Champagne Coeur de Cuvée. Burghound 94. A moderately yeasty yet elegant nose that is fresh, complex and carries touches of both pain grillé and citrus blossom while leading to intense, pure and gorgeously deep flavors that possess first class breadth and genuinely excellent length. While still on the way up, after 30 to 45 minutes it began to display notably deeper and broader flavors that are at once powerful yet refined. A terrific effort that is absolutely worth your attention.

agavin: A lovely young champagne with a nice freshness to it.

Arancinette of Seafood. Basically a fried seafood risotto ball. Delicious!

Diamonds of Mushroom Polenta.

Oysters with Lemon Gelato. The bright and cool lemon flavors braced the briny oysters perfectly.

Flight 1: Batard Montrachet

The first flight includes two mystery wines.

From my cellar: 2006 Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey Bâtard-Montrachet. Burghound 92. A light touch of unabsorbed SO2 does not really diminish the considerable attractiveness of the wonderfully dense and layered aromas featuring mostly white flower and spiced pear notes that are also picked up by the big, rich and tautly muscled flavors that are naturally sweet and strikingly intense on the mouth coating and gorgeously persistent finish. This is a relatively understated Bâtard and while it’s certainly not retiring, it will likely require a few years of bottle age before fully blossoming.

agavin: Lovely, with a little petrol (minerality or SO2?) and a nice long acid finish.

2006 Henri Boillot Bâtard-Montrachet. Burghound 96. This too is relatively restrained with a pretty but reluctant white flower and spice box nose that slides gracefully into fresh, super intense and tautly muscled full-bodied flavors brimming with dry extract that confers a distinctly textured quality onto the powerful and chewy finish. This is a big Bâtard yet for all its size and weight, everything is harnessed and focused as the length just goes on and on with no sense of top heaviness. One of the more impressive examples of Bâtard that I have ever seen because it rarely ascends to territory normally reserved for the likes of Montrachet and Chevalier or the occasional Charlemagne.

agavin: One of my favorites. More advanced than the others but drinking fabulously. Honey and brulee and lots of acid.

Mystery Wine #1: 2006 J. Rochioli Chardonnay Rachael’s Vineyard. IWC 92+. Bright, greenish gold. Smoky, mineral-dominated aromas of Meyer lemon, tangerine zest, anise and talc. Juicy citrus flavors are impressively vibrant, with subtle power and slow-building herbal character. Sharply focused and fresh if a bit withdrawn on the palate right now. Finishes with excellent sappy cling and an echo of licorice. This one will need some time but the material is clearly outstanding.

agavin: I knew this was a new world. Lots of white flowers, honeysuckle, and a richer more malo style.

Mystery wine #2: 2006 Ramey Chardonnay Hyde Vineyard. IWC 93. Yellow-gold. Powerful aromas of orange peel, pear, truffle and floral honey, with slow-building minerality adding verve. Deep, spicy, impressively pure orchard fruit and citrus flavors pick up a bitter quinine quality on the back end. Brighter and more vivacious than the Hudson today, with excellent finishing clarity and mineral snap.

agavin: Not as much to my taste as the first myster. There might have been a bit of cork or taint.

2006 Domaine Ramonet Bâtard-Montrachet. Burghound 94. As beautifully as the Bienvenues showed, I was surprised that the Bâtard could actually one-up its stable mate in terms of aromatic complexity and elegance but it certainly does, at least at this early stage. The expressive nose offers up notes of white flower, citrus, pain grillé, spice hints and notes of green fruit that continue onto the bold, rich, intense and impressively detailed medium-full flavors that possess real drive, focus and finishing power. This is much more classic in terms of the traditional Ramonet style than what we saw in 2004 and 2005.

agavin: Another fabulous wine. Tight but with a long vanilla finish.

2006 Etienne Sauzet Bâtard-Montrachet. Burghound 95. In contrast to the expressiveness of the Bienvenues, this is aromatically quite closed and tight with only glimpses of orchard fruit, citrus and floral notes discernable though the big-bodied and obviously well-muscled flavors are rich, pure and balanced if perhaps not quite as concentrated but somewhat curious, are even finer, which is not the usual result when these two wines are compared. The explosive finish is almost painfully intense and every bit as long as that of the Bienvenues. A qualitative choice though the character and personality of the two is notably different.

agavin: Honey with a nice finish, if slightly hot.

Swordfish Carpaccio with blue stone crab, pantelleria’s capers and Sicilian blood orange. A very nice seafood carpaccio with an elegant pairing of flavors.

Flight 2: Corton Charlemagne

The last wine on the far right was a mystery wine and served blind.

2006 Bonneau du Martray Corton-Charlemagne. Burghound 94. The ’06 is more obviously riper than the ’07 with a complex, ripe and elegant mix of green apple, spice and minerality that complements perfectly the round, rich, detailed and stony flavors that possess ample mid-palate fat and superb depth of material, all wrapped in a gorgeously long and drenching finish. A study in harmony and grace that should also age well for years.

agavin: A bit of reduction, lean at first, then opening to a hot acid finish.

2006 Bouchard Père et Fils Corton-Charlemagne. Burghound 96. A reserved, indeed even reluctant nose of fresh and stony green fruit and citrus aromas that offer real depth leads to precise, minerally and exceptionally powerful full-bodied flavors that possess huge amounts of dry extract on the hugely long finish. This is still sorting itself out but the quality of the raw materials is impeccable and it possesses impressive potential, which will require at least a decade to realize. One of the finest examples from this appellation in the 2006 vintage.

agavin: More mineral, also with a huge finish.

2006 Coche-Dury Corton-Charlemagne. Burghound 94. A mildly exotic nose offers up notes of spiced apple, mango, wet stone and rose petal that precedes the impressively concentrated big-bodied flavors that possess very solid acid support on the ever-so-mildly toasty and hugely long finish. Compared to the most classically styled vintages this is not really my cup of white burgundy yet from a sheer quality standpoint this is irreproachable. Moreover there is so much dry extract present that this should have no trouble eventually integrating the residual wood. If I was going to choose a vintage among the more recent examples, this is the one that I would choose even though it will continue to age and improve.

agavin: A stunner, and one of my favorites. Lots of reduction (which I like) and a soft floating finish.

2006 Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey Corton-Charlemagne. Burghound 93. A green fruit nose also has detectable sulfur but again, I’m confident that it will be absorbed given how recent the mise was. The big-bodied flavors are full, intense and minerally that I particularly admire the outstanding precision on the linear, punchy and seriously powerful finish. This is blessed with ample dry extract and I particularly like the balance here.

agavin: A group favorite. Just drinking fabulously.

2006 Domaine de Montille Corton-Charlemagne. Burghound 92-95. Very discreet oak notes highlight the airy green apple and spiced peach aromas that are wonderfully refined and pure before preceding impressively rich, full and powerful flavors that also possess ample amounts of dry extract that confer an almost chewy texture onto the palate staining finish that seems to go on and on. This does a slow but inexorable build from the mid-palate on back to the explosive and almost painfully intense finale. Terrific potential here and there is so much minerality that it’s like rolling liquid rocks around in your mouth.

agavin: Chalky with a bit of tropical skittles. I really liked this a lot as well but others disagreed.

Mystery wine #3: 2006 Ceritas Chardonnay Porter-Bass Vineyard. IWC 92. Light, bright gold. Vibrant, floral-accented citrus and quince aromas are complemented by baking spices and flowers, with a gentle undertone of minerals. The minerality gains power with air and carries onto the palate, adding vibrancy to the gently chewy orchard fruit and anise flavors. The strikingly pure and persistent finish repeats the spiciness and leaves fresh pear and apple notes behind. More open-knit than the 2005 today: I’d opt for drinking this first.

agavin: Funny, with some kind of odd funk and a bit of flowers. Not to my taste.

Speck Wrapped Monkfish with Pappa al Pomodoro and Rock Shrimp Sauce. Good stuff, as this had oodles of favorites (for me). I love shrimp sauce, shrimp, speck AND monkfish.

Flight 3: Meursault

Not one but two Coche’s!

2006 Coche-Dury Meursault 1er Cru Les Perrières. Burghound 92. This sports a mildly curious nose of soft reduction, exotic yellow orchard fruit, wood and a hint of a soap-like scent (no, not from the glass). There is outstanding richness and density to the opulent and overtly powerful flavors that possess an oily texture that strongly resembles that of the ’06 Genevrières. The amount of dry extract is most impressive and it imparts a textured, indeed almost chewy character to the explosively long finish. The acidity is quite marked so despite the outsized weight and concentration there is absolutely no trace of heaviness. This isn’t really my style but other than the slightly curious quality of the nose, this is an excellent wine all the same and one that is still very much on the way up.

agavin: Reduced and closed at first, opened up after a bit.

2006 Coche-Dury Meursault Les Rougeots. IWC 93+. Very closed nose hints at wet stone. Rich and ripe in the mouth, with palate-saturating flavors of crushed stone and orange. As lush and sweet as this is, it avoids crossing over to exotic. Very deep and very young: should age very well for a 2006.

agavin: Many people thought this was weird or partially oxidized. I happened to like it a lot. Perhaps I’m biased as a Coche fan. Lots of acid on the finish.

2006 Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey Meursault 1er Cru Les Perrières. Burghound 93. An even more elegant nose that is ultra high-toned and every bit as pure though here the aromatic profile is more floral and citrusy while introducing gorgeously precise and cuts-like-a-knife flavors that culminates in a long, austere, dry and serious finish. The dryness is exacerbated by a noticeable touch of gas and I would suggest decanting this for 20 minutes or so first but this should one day be a very special wine.

agavin: Reduced. Slight odd notes with a big finish.

2006 Domaine des Comtes Lafon Meursault 1er Cru Les Perrières. Burghound 93. There is a hint of the exotic to the otherwise elegant acacia blossom, citrus peel and softly spiced pear aromas that complement perfectly the pure, detailed, intense and gorgeously delineated medium full flavors that seem almost delicate and then the finish explodes and continues seemingly without end. In the context of the ’06 vintage, this is attractively dry and while not quite fully mature, it’s not far off. While I would advise holding this for another 2 to 3 years there certainly would be no harm in opening a bottle now, especially if you own several and are curious.

agavin: Very nice. Tons of butterscotch. More oxidized, but drinking great.

2006 Domaine Roulot Meursault 1er Cru Charmes. Burghound 92. This is at once ripe yet cool and reserved with a seductive mix of orchard fruit and brioche aromas that are strikingly elegant and refined before introducing equally elegant and pure middle weight flavors blessed with ample dry extract that confers a textured and full-bodied palate impression to the explosive and palate staining finish. As one would expect, this is finer than the Bouchères though perhaps not quite as deep. A choice.

agavin: petrol (reduction?). Rich, nice with a long finish.

2006 Domaine Roulot Meursault 1er Cru Les Perrières. Burghound 93. A high-toned, pure, cool and ultra refined nose of green apple, wet stone and white flower aromas complements to perfection the racy, detailed and chiseled middle weight flavors that seem to be fashioned directly from liquid stone, all wrapped in a punchy, balanced and hugely long finish. This is truly Zen-like in its understated harmony of expression and perfect balance.

agavin: This may have had a little cork. It tasted more malo.

Sardinian Malloreddus with sea urchin. A lovely uni pasta. Just simple al dente “grubs” and uni. There might have also been some safron here.

Flight 4: Chablis

The lineup.

2006 Vincent Dauvissat (René & Vincent) Chablis Grand Cru Les Clos. Burghound 93. A reticent if wonderfully broad, airy and pure nose of primarily subtly spiced dried peach and white flowers nuanced by oyster shell and that seashore character that classic Chablis has, introduces rich, powerful and palate staining flavors that possess superb vibrancy on the linear, focused and pure finish. Somewhat surprisingly, this is perhaps not quite as stylish as the Preuses but it’s every bit as powerful and long. And like the Preuses, this did indeed surprise to the upside.

agavin: Tropical with a long finish.

2006 Domaine William Fèvre Chablis Grand Cru Les Clos. Burghound 95. An airy, expressive and ultra refined and pure nose trimmed in very subtle wood notes offer up aromas of white flower, quinine, saline, minerals and seashore nuances that give way to rich and robust, indeed huge flavors that are perhaps a bit less refined than those of the Valmur or Preuses but there is another dimension here of depth that more than compensates. A great wine with a long future that should develop slowly yet because of all the mid-palate fat, be enjoyable young.

agavin: A little heavier and more cloying, but very good.

2006 François Raveneau Chablis Grand Cru Les Clos. Burghound 95. A white flower, exotically ripe yellow peach and pear suffused nose also reveals wafts of quinine and sea breeze that transition into powerful, full and exceptionally rich flavors that are almost chewy they’re so textured and the finish really soaks the palate with dry extract. This is a big and muscular example yet it’s also elegant and refined as it carries its size effortlessly. One of the wines of the ’06 vintage and as great as it is, I don’t find that extra dimension that I usually do relative to the Valmur. Still, you won’t find two better ’06 Chablis anywhere.

agavin: Flower and exotics, but a LONG finish.

2006 François Raveneau Chablis 1er Cru Montée de Tonnerre. Burghound 93. A gentle touch of wood highlights airy yet slightly riper high-toned and admirably pure aromas of white flower, pear and quinine that gives way to supple, sweet, mouth coating and impressively concentrated flavors that exude a marvelous intensity on the long, powerful and driving finish supported by a solid acid spine. Definitely worth a look if you can find it but unlike most ’06s, be prepared to have at least some patience as this is unusually firm for the vintage.

agavin: A bit of Sulfur.

2006 François Raveneau Chablis Grand Cru Valmur. Burghound 95. This is aromatically fresher, finer and more elegant with a slightly austere and reserved nose of green fruit and oyster shell where the latter component also characterizes the delicious, serious and almost aggressively mineral flavors that culminate in a penetrating and explosive finish. A striking and austere wine with really beautiful acid/fruit/dry extract balance and huge length that doesn’t seem to end. One of the most serious ’06s of the vintage that is simply flat out great.

agavin: Muted at first, then opening up to a long finish.

The infamous (from last year) Lobster and Shrimp Risotto.Valentino has always made a great risotto and this was no exception, particularly being one of my favorite types of risotto. It was so good we had two portions!

Flight 6: Chevalier-Montrachet

The blitzkrieg of Chardonnay is drawing to a close.

2006 Henri Boillot Chevalier-Montrachet. Burghound 97. The most elegant wine in the entire range (which is really saying something in this case) with an ultra pure, even crystalline nose of white rose, anise, white peach, citrus and spiced pear plus subtle hints of stone that dissolve seamlessly into superbly well focused flavors that possess simply unbelievable precision on the harmonious, linear and palate staining finish that goes on and on seemingly without end. A wine of grand class and for me, the most refined wine of the entire tasting and one that is so intense that I had to ask Boillot to stop pouring for a few minutes to recover from the intensity. A genuinely great Chevalier that is more than worthy of the name.

agavin: Darker color, more oxidized with vanilla and a long finish. Quite nice right now.

From my cellar: 2006 Bouchard Père et Fils Chevalier-Montrachet. Burghound 96. Prost was, justifiably, extremely proud of this wine and observed that it may be the best “straight” Chevalier that he’s ever made. Not surprisingly, this is a good deal more elegant than the Bâtard with gorgeously pure floral and white fruit, stone and subtle spice aromas that seamlessly merge into the almost painfully intense and vibrant flavors that, like the Perrières, possess crystalline purity and huge length. This is a knockout Chevy and if you can find it, don’t miss it.

agavin: Vanilla and a buttery rich malo finish.

2006 Domaine Jean-Marc Pillot Chevalier-Montrachet. Burghound 93-95. A discreet touch of wood frames extremely primary aromas that are both reticent and backward though the gorgeously detailed, classy and refined medium plus weight flavors carry borderline painfully intense punch on the palate staining and hugely long finish. This seems to be extracted directly from liquid rock and this has that ‘wow’ factor in spades.

agavin: Butter and vanilla.

2006 Domaine Leflaive Chevalier-Montrachet. Burghound 94. This is notably more elegant, refined and complex with only a trace of exoticism to the mostly white flower and peach aromas that are followed by textured, pure, detailed and delineated flavors that are quite reserved and cool at present while culminating in a focused, crystalline, dry and driving finish. This does a slow build from the mid-palate before exploding onto the knockout finish. A Zen wine. Note that while I am giving a suggested initial drinking window of 2013, this will be capable of aging for years.

agavin: Darker and more oxidized. The most oxidized of the Burgs. Pretty hot after a while too.

2006 Domaine Ramonet Chevalier-Montrachet. Burghound 93. As one might reasonably expect, this is more aromatically reserved than either the Bienvenues or the Bâtard with discreet nose of tropical fruit, citrus and floral hints that are followed by focused and mineral suffused flavors that possess excellent detail and fine if not truly extraordinary length. I quite like the balance and sense of harmony here though there is perhaps a touch less overall depth and breadth than I’m used to seeing. Still, this is lovely, classy and refined.

agavin: My favorite of the Chevies. Very hot and long.

Roasted Veal au jus with petite vegetables. Very petite 🙂 A nice bit of spiced veal.

Flight 7: Dessert

2001 Chateau de Fargues. Parker 94-96. Still in barrel, this Chateau d’Yquem look-alike exhibits powerful creme brulee characteristics along with some volatile acidity, huge, full-bodied, unctuously textured flavors, ample intensity as well as purity, and caramelized tropical fruits. This brawny heavyweight requires 5-6 years of bottle age, and should evolve for three decades.

Psych. We didn’t open this, instead moving up to…

1998 Dönnhoff Oberhäuser Brücke Riesling Eiswein. IWC: Harvested November 22. Smells as though chili peppers and vanilla icing have been layered over the honey and red jam of the gold capsule Auslese. This exhibits such an enveloping vanilla cream character it easy to forget the acidity. Superbly concentrated if at present a tad less spectacularly expressive than the two Auslesen.

agavin: An awesome dessert wine.

Berry Macedonia with 70 year old Balsamico and fior di latte. A very interesting take on the berries and cream as the sauce (a fruit reduction) had quite a bit of the Balsamico in it, lending it a crisp acidity — which happened to pair excellently with the Donnhoff.

This was a LOT OF CHARDONNAY!

There is a lot to say about this tasting. First of all, Valentino did a great job as usual. The wine service was impeccable, and this is a difficult task (pouring lots of big blind flights). The food was good, better even than last week’s red tasting, and by the end I was plenty full (no need to run for ramen again). It maybe could have been a little faster.

I was expecting more of a mixed bag. Last year we had tons of oxidized or corked wines. And even the red tasting had a bunch of duds. But the 2006 whites were in fine shape. Nothing was seriously corked (1-2 had minor taint) and nothing was heavily oxidized (a few were either reduced or showed a little oxidation). Nearly everything was drinking great. This wasn’t just a LOT OF CHARDONNAY it was a LOT OF GREAT CHARDONNAY!

I think I’ll be picking up some more 2006s!

Other big tasting dinners from this group:

2004 Red Burgundy

2005 White Burgundy part 1

2005 White Burgundy part 2

2005 White Burgundy part 3

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: 2006 White Burgundy, Allen Meadows, Bâtard-Montrachet, Italian cuisine, Italy, Julian Zaragoza, Michelin, Santa Monica California, Valentino, White Burgundy

Eating England – The Square

Sep06

Restaurant: The Square

Location: 6-10 Bruton Street. Mayfair, London, W1J 6PU. +44 (0) 20 7495 7100

Date: July 15, 2013

Cuisine: Modern French/Italian

Rating: Thoroughly Enjoyable

While in London I failed to secure any reservations at the city’s three 3 Michelin star restaurants (sadly, the Fat Duck wait list didn’t pan out), but I did hit up “The Square” which has 2 stars and was a recommendation (and a great one at that) of my wine friend Martin Buchanan who arranged the evening and brought a couple of lovely bottles. I had met Martin earlier this year at a blow out Melisse dinner and this proved to be another great evening — if slightly less damaging to the liver (at Melisse 5 of us drank 9 bottles!).

The square is located on a side street in fashionable (and expensive) Mayfair.

Tonight’s tasting.

And a modified pescatarian version.

We begin with the amuses. Classic french cheese puffs.

Fois gras cone.

A tomato mushroom “toast.”

Squid ink “chips.”

And a non inky version.

2005 Domaine Leflaive Meursault 1er Cru Sous le Dos d’Âne. IWC 90. Light yellow color. Sweet aromas of soft citrus fruits and nutty, vanillin oak. Ripe and harmonious, with sweet fruit flavors of orange and peach. Offers an attractive sugar/acid balance. My only early question mark concerns the wine’s slightly hard edge on the finish, and a hint of alcoholic warmth. But there’s also some minerality from the rocky soil here.

This had a very “oxidized” style, which at the moment was drinking nicely, like a much older wine — 10 or 15 years older! — although I have no idea how it will hold up in the long run.

Tartare of English Rose Veal with Violet Artichokes, Black Radish and Summer Truffle.

Bocconcini Mozzarella with Olive, Capers, Romero Peppers, and White Balsamic.

Sauté of Scottish Langoustine Tails with Parmesan Gnocchi and an Emulsion of Potato and Truffle. Very tasty!

Heirloom Tomatoes with Sheep’s Curd, Olive Oil, and Pea Shoots.

Lasagne of Dorset Crab with a Cappuccino of Shellfish and Champagne Foam.

Warm Salad of Potato with Truffle and Summer Beetroots.

1995 Bernard Faurie Hermitage Blanc. Martin brought this wine. It’s so rare and unusual that it’s not even listed on Cellartracker. It was drinking very nicely, showing the caramel complexity of a mature age-worthy white.

Roast Foe Gras with New Season Cherries and Pistachio Granola.

Hand Rolled Macaroni with Artichoke, New Seasons Girolles and Runner Beans.

Roast Monkfish with Girolles, Tomato, Basil Gnocchetti and Garlic.

Roast Fillet of Sea Bass with Girolles, Tomato, Basil Gnocchetti and Garlic.

2000 Domaine Ghislaine Barthod / Barthod-Noëllat Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru Les Fuées. Burghound 88. Another gift from Martin. Finesse to burn here with outstanding elegance and purity. Very Chambolle in character with a pronounced minerality and the tannins have an almost chalky quality to them. The length here is excellent and this displays a certain vibrancy if not the same degree of richness as the Beaux Bruns.

Loin of Lamb with White Auergine Puree, Olives, Artichokes and Balsamic.

Croustillant of Girolles with Bay Milk Puree and Fresh Almond.

Tasting of Thymtamarre.

The associated bread.

1989 Forster Jesuitengarten Riesling Trockenbeerenauslese. Another wine from Martin. A lovely sticky. Like apricot nectar.

Brillat-Savarin Cheesecake with English Gooseberries and Elderflower Sorbet.

Apricot Souffle with Camomile Ice Cream.

And the added sauce.

Echoing the amuses are the Petit Fours. These are like super chocolate truffle rice crispy balls.

And a neat little “arrangement” of bon bons!

This was another great meal. The Square isn’t doing anything too radical, but it is delivering really excellent haut cuisine. There is a deft marriage here of both French and Italian techniques, which combined with a use of fresh English ingredients serves up a unique take on modern gastronomic cuisine. Every dish was approachable and well executed without any “failed experiments.” Service was also first rate. The wine list was good but pricey (no surprise for a London 2 star).

For more English dining reviews click here.

The glasses (filled with red Burgundy) each made a cool reflection pattern on the table

By: agavin
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Tagged as: England, Food, London, Mayfair, Michelin, Restaurant Review, The Square, Wine

Eating England – Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons

Jul22

Restaurant: Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons

Location: Church Road, Great Milton, Oxford, OX44 7PD, England. +44 (0)1844 278 881

Date: July 10, 2013

Cuisine: French

Rating: Wonderful

No Gavin vacation would be complete without a couple top gastronomic restaurants. As it turned out, this year our summer travels brought us to England, and specifically to a little town just fifteen minutes away from Raymond Blanc’s gastronomic temple, Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons. This lovely (and pricey) country hotel is a Relais and Chateaux (absolutely stellar hotel group) and the restaurant has two Michelin stars. Several English friends recommended it as being perhaps the best restaurant in England!

Certainly a lovely spot! They sat us in the bar before dinner for aperitifs.

These included some fabulous olives in these cute boats (notice the spout like hole for tucking away the pits).

Marcona almonds.

There are two different tasting menus. I’m sure they vary seasonally.

Kir Royale. French.

Pimms Cup. English.

Gin and Tonic. English.

The first of two different arrangements of amuses. I don’t remember the exact ingredients. We have salmon on radish. Fritters. I think an eggplant mouse on crisps. A think much like a caprese.

This second plate has a few more meaty versions.

Then we moved into the restaurant itself, and I couldn’t help but photo these cool custom plates.

1988 Bouchard Père et Fils Chevalier-Montrachet. While this wine wasn’t perfect, and was quite restrained, it was in great shape, not oxidized in the least. It had that wonderful quality that mature white Burgundies get, even if it was a little alcoholic on the finish at first (this blew off).

Fantastic bread.

Terrine of baby beetroot, horseradish sorbet. A wonderful light take on the “beet and goat cheese salad.” The slab was cubed and the horseradish provided a very bright flavor contrast.

Confit of Salmon, elderflower, garden radish, yuzu cream. This salmon was perfectly cooked, tender, and full of soft flavor. There was an interesting and exotic tone set by the other ingredients, particularly the elderflower. Really excellent.

Ricotta agnolotti, artichoke and tomato vierge. Tasty summery pasta.

2005 Domaine de L’Arlot Nuits St. Georges 1er Cru Clos de l’Arlot. Burghound 92. Mild reduction detracts from the otherwise ripe aromas of plum and red pinot fruit where there is also a trace of vegetal that gives way to rich, full and sweet flavors that remain pure and refined on the sappy, dusty and obviously mineral-infused, firm and beautifully balanced finish. This is quite linear at present and will need time to flesh out and I would strongly suggest decanting this first if you’re going to try one young to dissipate the reduction.

Chick peas done “all ways.” I’m not sure it’s exactly every way possible, but it is more than a few!

Devonshire crab, garden courgette flower, lemongrass. Another exotic take. At some level at stuffed zucchini flower, this had a Thai crab bisque vibe.

Mango sorbet. Intense!

Risotto of summer vegetables, chervil cream.

Roasted loin of rose veal, watercress puree, madeira jus.

Assiette of Cornish lamb, jersey royals, artichoke and gooseberry puree.

With the jus. This was some really fine lamb.

Mothais sur feuille goat’s cheese and goat’s curd, honey, sorrel and hazelnuts, kalamata olive. This unusual cheese course was very intense and flavorful. Lots of goat (in a good way).

2010 Donnafugata Passito di Pantelleria Ben Ryé. 93 points. Like liquid apricot. Unctuous and sweet panoply of marmalade, citrus, mixed exotic fruit; a whiff of smoke; reasonable acidity manages to keep up with the sweetness.

You can see how dark and thick this is — and it’s brand new!

Raspberry soup with fresh mint and basil.

Apricot Almondine, caramel croustillant. Really nice and intense. It also paired fantastically with the dessert wine.

Chocolate dumbo! This was some intense chocolate and a bit of candied hazelnut – plus the various textures and the ice cream. Really lovely.

Textures of coconut and Chana chocolate Grand cru. A wonderful coconut/chocolate combo. Like the flavors from a Nutella and coconut crepe — but so much better!

Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons didn’t disappoint. This isn’t radically modernist as top gastronomic places go, but the execution and presentation was superb — plus what was really interesting was the subtle complexity of each dish. There were a lot of floral and herbal notes going on, and they blended seamlessly, adding to the dishes rather than distracting. Clearly a very fine chef hitting on all cylinders.

For more English dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Tagged as: Burgundy, Cheese, Dessert, England, Le Manoir aux Quat'Saisons, Michelin, Oxfordshire, Raymond Blanc

Burghounds at Melisse

Apr05

Restaurant: Melisse [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6]

Location: 1104 Wilshire Blvd.Santa Monica, CA 90401. (310) 395-0881

Date: March 21, 2013

Cuisine: California French

Rating: Awesome in all ways

Melisse is a real standout in LA for many reasons. It’s almost the last of the European style haut cuisine restaurants and it maintains an ever evolving cuisine at the highest level. Food, presentation, and service here are all top notch. Tonight, I returned (for what must be the 20th time) with a bunch of Burgundy loving friends. Melisse provided the food and we provided the wines. Joining us were two reps from London wine merchant Justerini & Brooks and they brought along a number of excellent bottles.

We settled on the “10” a good sized tasting menu, but not quite as crazy as the carte blanche (my usual favorite).

The first amuse is a Melisse staple. Grapes two ways. Out of the spoon are half grapes coated in goat cheese and pistachio. On the spoon sphereized grapes dusted with pistachio. The first has a nice contrast of the sharp cheese and the fruit, the second is an explosion of grapeness.

And the bread arrives. I went for a piece of bacon, and a basil brioche.

Domaine Bachelet-Monnot Puligny-Montrachet “Les Refèrts” 1er 1er Cru White.

Burghound 88. Very mild reduction that didn’t blow off even after 24 hours does not completely hide the otherwise fresh and pretty citrus and floral aromas that give way to precise, racy and intense middle weight flavors that possess a very firm, indeed one could safely call this assertive, acid framework on the dry, persistent and solidly complex finish. Like the Folatières, some will find this to be overly austere as the finish is bone dry.

IWC 91+. Bright yellow. Exotic aromas of apricot and grilled nuts. Quite powerful and concentrated, with sweet fruit countered by strong acidity. In a rather muscular style for this cuvee Alexandre told me these vines were picked very slowly and that the 13.4% natural alcohol was high for 2008. The yield here, he says, was just 30 hectoliters per hectare.

Kumanto Oyster, avocado. I don’t remember all the details of this amuse, but it was lovely.

No trip to Melisse would be complete without the classic, “Egg Caviar, Lemon Creme Fraiche, American Osetra Caviar.” It’s a classic for a reason. The Creme Fraiche is so good, and there is raw egg yolk at the bottom. Amazing combo, particularly with the little toast stick.

The aftermath.

2009 Pierre Boisson Meursault

Almond, caramel, Nice long finish. True and excellent meursault.

Poisson Cru. Crysanthemum, Pistachio, Breakfast Radish and Black Mustard.

Very much fusing Japanese influences with the french, this was a nice sashimi meets pesto dish.

Sweet Pea Soup. English Peas and Whipped Porcini.

With the soup itself poured in. A typical lovely vegetable creme soup Melisse style.

1999 Domaine d’Auvenay (Lalou Bize-Leroy) Meursault Les Chaumes des Perrières

Nice mature white burg with plenty of fruit and firm, racy acidity. A very enjoyable wine, and paired excellently (as suggested by master Sommelier Brian Kalliel) with:

White Asparagus Cocotte. Morel Mushrooms, Savagnin Sauce.

It’s white asparagus season, and these were done up to perfection with my favorite mushroom and a nice oxidized butter reduction. All sauce was mopped up afterward.

1978 Robert Ampeau & Fils Blagny 1er Cru La Pièce-sous-le-Bois

From my cellar. Dark red with a brown hue. Scents of prunes and raisins with strong cherry scents underneath. Medium bodied with nice intensity and mouth feel. Interesting, but delicious, taste of brown sugar with a nice consistent aftertaste.

This was slightly cloudy, not bitter at all, but not quite as good as the 1978 Ampeau Volnay I opened a couple weeks before.

Truffle Pasta. Fresh Tagliatelle, Perigord Truffle.

Have a little truffle. Always too small a portion (of the pasta)!

Domaine Henri Jayer Echézeaux Grand Cru Red

Burghound 93. Knock out aromas of kirsch, blackberry extract and ripe earth lead to big, robust, quite structured, deep and sappy flavors of incredible depth and complexity and as grand as those characteristics are, it is the simply mindbending length that really sets this apart from the average Jayer Ech. A wine that should last for 25 years if well stored.

The 1990 Henri Jayer Echezeaux had a lot going on in its nose. It was heavy and thick, beefy, brothy and foresty, with that citrus pitch and spice. It was like a forest sledgehammer, so thick and sweet, displaying that purple signature style. The palate was rich with endless acidity that was still somehow reined in. The palate was so rich, so saucy, so concentrated, so spectacular. It also had that cedary, foresty edge to its flavors. If the 1991 was a girlfriend, the 1990 was a bodyguard.

1990 Louis Jadot Musigny

Parker 93. The Musigny (75 cases produced) is a textbook example of this vineyard. The color is deep ruby. The nose consists primarily of sweet black-cherries and new oak. In the mouth, there is a soft, velvety texture, medium to full body, low acidity, and gentle tannins in the long finish.

My favorite wine of the night.

Dry Aged Sonoma Duck. Forono Beets, Mustard, Orange Scented Duck Jus.

This duck was aged for 28 days (I think) and had a wonderful “aged” complexity.

1988 Domaine Maume Charmes-Chambertin

From my cellar. John Gilman 91 points.

This was drinking nicely, but wasn’t quite as bright and balanced as the other three grand cru reds. If I’d had it without such stellar competition, I’d have thought better of it :-).

Windrose Farms Lamb. Violet Artichoke, Young Garlic, Camelina Seeds.

Aged for 5-6 weeks! Delightfully gamey.

1988 Emmanuel Rouget Echezeaux

Burghound 94. Intense and penetrating nose of spices and high-toned pinot fruit with remarkably youthful, rich flavors that completely buffer the still substantial tannins. The extract is sweet and seamless and renders the tannins almost invisible. This is extremely impressive Echézeaux.

Another knockout.

Fourme d’Ambert. Pear Tart, Wild Watercress, Peppered Honey.

I’m always good with blue.

1995 Weingut Robert Weil Kiedricher Gräfenberg Riesling Auslese

Wine Spectator 89. One of the sweeter auslese of ’95, its melon, peach and botrytis flavors are wrapped around a core of racy acidity. Concentrated and long. Drink now through 2000. 350 cases made.

Golden color, honeyed fruits with a touch of petrol. great body that expands on the finish. Loads of honey and mango.

Molten Chocolate Tart, peppermint Sorbet.

Not your average “molten chocolate cake”!

Sangria. Moro Blood Orange, Pineapple and Mugwort.

Light and refreshing.

Macarons, cookies, and canelles.

Orange slices and pate de fruits.

The full lineup.

Melisse has two Michelin stars, and it deserves every ounce of them. The service is amazing too. The setting is not as fully formal as some French three-stars, or the service quite so orchestrated (that level is more amusement than actually pleasant), and there are no zany carts for teas and sugars, but the food and creativity demonstrate Melisse’s deserved position as one of America’s top kitchens. I ‘ve gone several times a year for a decade and it keeps getting better and better!

For another Melisse meal, click here.

Or for other Foodie Club meals, click here.

Small table, lots of glasses!

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Allen Meadows, Burgundy, Chef Josiah Citrin, Justerini & Brooks, Los Angeles, Melisse, Michelin, Puligny-Montrachet

Las Vegas – Guy Savoy

May08

Restaurant: Guy Savoy

Location: Cesar’s Palace, Las Vegas

Date: April 14, 2012

Cuisine: French

Rating: Spectacular

A good friend’s bachelor party brought me back to Las Vegas and that meant: extreme food. On my last trip I sampled é by José Andrés and Twist by Pierre Gagnaire so this time it was time for Guy Savoy. Guy himself is one of the few and proud Parisian Michelin 3-star chefs (even if he’s originally from Burgundy). The Vegas outpost is overseen by the older chef’s son. It’s tucked away in a quiet section of the main Cesar’s Palace, near the wedding chapels.

True to its Michelin form, the place has a lot of carts. First to greet us is the champagne and aperitif cart. I’m not really that big a champagne fan, and done off the cart for the table often results in some serious financial hike. But, as you’ll see, you don’t come to Guy Savoy to keep the budget under control!

This first pre-amuse is fois gras and brioche on a stick. Can’t complain about that!

Then I crack open the wine tome. Even though I have recently become an “Italian Wine Specialist” there was very little vino from the boot, so I had to go French.

Jadot is usually very reliable and I have a soft spot for Clos Vougeot. “Charred meat, black currant, and wet stone characterize the bouquet of Jadot’s Clos Vougeot. Savory, salty, brightly-fruited and invigoratingly juicy on the palate, this displays more energy and acidity than I would have expected from the appellation. For all of the clarity and juiciness of this wine’s fruit, grilled meat and stony earthiness combined with the emergence of formidable tannins and subtle but persistent cyanic and iodine notes to turn its formidably long finish somewhat austere.”

Then another amuse, this cheesy “parmesan waffle.”

And the menu. Check out the prices. Because we must, we took out a mortgage, and ordered up the Inspiration Menu.

The amuse was this artichoke soup with black truffle and toasted mushroom bread. A nice start.

Then the bread cart comes around. Just a few varieties. When we failed to remember the 14-16 different types we could choose from on the first recitation the bread boy (who was just a tad creepy) offered to create a “bread tasting” for us, pairing various breads to each food course. How could we refuse?

A few samplings include on the right, bacon brioche!

“Concasse of oysters, seaweed, lemon granite.”

The granite itself is added later. Truthfully, this dish was a revelation. The flavors were pure and intense. Briny oyster and this potent cold lemon thing.

One of our party doesn’t like oysters, so he got this avocado and chickpea variant.

“Santa Barbara Spot Prawn caught in sweet and sour fishnet.” Mostly this just tasted like a very good shrimp with some interesting vegetable texture stuff going on. It was pleasant, but not one of the best dishes.

The shellfish hater got this pea and egg salad. Twice peeled English peas, pea gelee, pea puree, dressed in chive oil. It was then topped with greens some bread and a quail egg.

On my way to visit the elegant little boys room I photoed the “smaller” of the two private dining rooms.

It’s white asparagus season! “White Asparagus and Caviar, Smoked Sabayon.” The sabayon was in the egg. You pour it over the dish.

Voila. A “simple” but spectacular dish. The asparagus and sabayon is similar to the classic Dutch version, but the caviar took it up a notch.

This was a long meal and so we quickly exhausted the Burgundy. This Barolo by old school producer Giacomo Conterno was a bit “underpriced” (if anything in the tome could be called that). Parker 94+ “1999 Barolo Cascina Francia—Medium red. A classic in the making, the 1999 Cascina Francia offers a quintessentially pure expression of Nebbiolo in it aromas of roses, licorice and tar. It is powerful and potent on the palate, where endless layers of sweet fruit blossom with exceptional length. Though I expect it to be relatively accessible within a few years, it will also reward cellaring for several decades, and may ultimately be deserving of a higher score. A great effort. 94+/drink after 2009.”

“Marinated-Grilled Hamachi Aged Sherry Vinegar, Radish Gelee, Eggplant Puree.” The fish was nice but the really interesting bit was the jelly. It was made of radish (hence the color) and tasted somehow so Japanese. It was a very bright and intense flavor and I really liked it.

Next up, “Salmon Iceberg.” Scottish salmon.

“Cooked” on dry ice.

Then dressed with grapefruit bits, bockchoy, and little jelly cubes of something.

Then finished off with a consommé. Spectacular actually. Hot and cold in the same dish and expressed the flavor of the fish wonderfully.

This is the large private room, with a Krug theme. After you win $100,000 in the casino, you can blow it here.

“Seared Dices of Foie Gras with Horseradish, Braised-Grilled Celery Stalk Sepentines, Potato Chips Bouillon.”

Here with the Bouillon added. This was a very nice foie dish, extremely savory, but not overly heavy.

“Lobster Bordelaise, Raw and Cooked Hearts of Palm.” Wow, was this good. The lobster was great lobster, but it was that sauce in the middle. It was as complex as a fine wine!

“Wagyu, Cannellini Bean Puree, Saffron and Marjoram Crust, Sponge Cake.” A very nice beef dish.

Then one of my favorite parts of any serious French meal, Les Fromages.

Some closeups.

And more for good measure.

This is our humble selection. I can’t remember them all but it included Brillat-savarin, one of my favorites.

A relatively lightweight Sauternes. The 1999 Raymond-Lafon. “Aromas of honeyed pineapple/tropical fruit and toasty new oak, as well as an exotic, flashy perfume. The wine possesses an opulent, full-bodied, exotic, lavishly rich personality, and moderate sweetness.”

In the glass. You can tell from the color this isn’t a crazy sticky Sauternes.

This “sunny side up” isn’t actually an egg, but mango and cream! It was pretty great too.

Then this “exotic” tapioca, avocado, with lime sorbet. Really quite incredible.

Here it is with the sorbet.

Then the chocolate. This was just a simple scoop of incredibly intense and wonderful chocolate gelato.

And a bit of earl grey ice cream, which, even as a non-tea fan, was a subtle and lovely ice cream flavor.

I thought the cheese cart was heaven, but then this came. There are just oodles of little desserts here. When our waiter (a seven foot tall Gaul we nick named “French Lurch”) asked us what we’d like, we said, “yes.”

A different view. There are pots of creme, rice pudding, citrus shooters, homemade marshmellows, pate des fruits, frozen grapes, and all sorts of other yummys.

The pots were among my favorites, particularly the rice pudding.

Strawberry pate, coconut macarons, chocolate things.

Those spongy things on the spoon had a bit of passionfruit to them.

In case the heart wasn’t about to quit, the conac cart!

And finally, a triple expresso. I was worried about falling asleep when we went out clubbing (after this 6pm – midnight meal!) but this puppy kept me up straight to 9am. Given that I was trying to sleep from 5am on, that, perhaps, wasn’t ideal.

Overall, this was a spectacular meal. Much more substantive than é by José Andrés and much more focused and palatable than Twist by Pierre Gagnaire. It was classic “fancy french” updated with spectacular ingredients and very fine flavors. I’ve had a lot of opulent meals and I generally judge them by “consistency” and “impact.” This was highly consistent in that every dish worked. Perhaps the shrimp was the weakest, but it certainly worked. And more importantly, a number of dishes, such as the lobster, oyster, and salmon were mind-blowing and highly memorable. Bravo!

For more Vegas dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Barolo, Bread, Caesars Palace, Clos Vougeot, Foie gras, Foodie Club, Guy Savoy, Las Vegas, Las Vegas Nevada, Lobster, Michelin, Nevada, Salmon

Vegas with a Twist

Sep26

Restaurant: Twist by Pierre Gagnaire

Location: 3752 Las Vegas Blvd S, Las Vegas, NV 89109. 888.881.9367

Date: September 23, 2011

Cuisine: Avant Garde French

Rating: Brilliant, Confusing, Tasty, Orthogonal

Pierre Gagnaire is one of the elite crew of three-star Michelin chefs of a generation with Alain Ducasse and Joël Robuchon. And he’s the latest to venture forth into Las Vegas with an oddball new high end venture. Twist is mostly avant garde haute cuisine restaurant, with a little bit of a bent toward steakhouse? Maybe. Or at least he has a page of steaks and sides on the menu. I have to assume this is just Vegas pandering. We ignored it and went for a mega tasting.

Both the $7 million dollar build out (in the Mandarin Oriental) and the food itself is playful, intellectual, odd, and beautiful. Executive chef is of course, Pierre Gagnaire, with the onsite Chef de Cuisine being Pascal Sanchez.

In any case, the Foodie Club hit it with aplomb.

The distance cella of this culinary temple as seen from the approach.

The globes hanging above remind me of a non-magical Hogwarts cafeteria.

The bar. Notice the cracked egg wall decoration.

Echoed in the cover plates.

Tonights menu. We of course opted for the tasting. Seeing as six courses didn’t sound like enough (little did we know that most of the courses were in fact 3 or 4!) we threw in a foie gras supplement.

The wine list had some good offerings, but at the typical painful Vegas markups. We opted for a split of both the “classic” and “grand” wine pairings (depending on the person). One of our diners had a mostly vegetarian and fish menu, which the sommelier customized the classic pairing to.

So we open with a glass of classic champagne.

A series of amuses. Crispy lollipops filled with date purée and aged balsamic.

Chinese rice buns with carmelized onions, a bit of eel, and caviar.

Poquito pepper sauce. You just extract the little bread sticks and eat. Not so far off from a Spanish Romesco.

Gorgonzola and fig lollipops. Yum!

These were really good. Goat cheese and something. Sorry again!

Then to clear the palette, gelled anise. Like liqourish jello!

Overall, the amuses were very successful.

The bread was fantastic. From the crispy baguette (front left) to the amazing walnut raison bread in the back. The front right is a multigrain. Butter (not shown) was imported from Normandy.

A rose to go with the this first course.

These next three dishes together form the “twisted bouillabaisse.” This one is “Veloute of Cauliflower, ice cream of artichoke and olive oil.”

“Fish and saffron cocktail.” Red mullet, snapper, and sea bream rest in a gel of bouillabaisse! Had curious similarities to the bouillabaisse milkshake at Ludobites 7.0.

“Marmalade of red pepper, fennel confit and candied garlic.” This stands in for the traditional garlic toast.

Parker 90-91. “If Pascal Cotat’s 2009 Mont Damnes is not the place to look for sheer refreshment, that caution applies in spades to his 2009 Sancerre La Grande Cote, which pushes 15% alcohol and displays virtually inevitable finishing warmth as well as opulence. Musk melon, Persian melon, and passion fruit are wreathed in elder flower and narcissus. A sense of chalky underpinnings emerges on the wine’s silken, lushly-fruited palate. I would plan on enjoying this over the next 2-3 years and if I held any for longer would be vigilant.”

“Scallop & langoustine. scallops cerviche, mimosa langoustines, jerusalem artichokes gelée, celeriac & horseradish cream.” Like many of Twist’s dishes, very intellectual. The bottom is an artichoke gelée. The scallops like sashimi, but the real winner was the langoustine potato salad like stuff on top.

Yet another while to pair with this next dish.

“Kombawa Cod cake.”

“Bloody Mary Sorbet, ratatouille bavaroise.”

“Vegetable Gnocchi.”

With a spinach sauce.

Another rose.

This series forms the “surf ‘n turf” motif. This is “fanny bay oyster, scented with coconut milk and seasoned ginger, sapporo foam.”

“Nabrasaka Prime Beef Carpaccio, florida clam salad, shaved foie gras.”

“Chestnut soup, razor clams, sauteed mushrooms, caramelized hazelnuts.”

The soup being added.

And in its final form. This was the most successful of the trio.

A very fine medium sweet 2009 Riesling.

“Tomato and fig tart.” Lovely buttery pastry.

This being a “californian duck foie gras trio.” “foie gras terrine, rum glazed, served on summer fruits chutney with banana tartlet.” Certainly an excellent expression of solid strait up foe.

“Shaved foie gras, black currant sorbet, mustard seasoning.”

“Foe Gras Parfait, toasted sesame, red port syrup and diced duck breast.” By far the best of the trio, this was pretty amazing.

Parker 91. This highly unusual Italian white tasted like cloves! “The 2007 Cervaro della Sala (Chardonnay, Grechetto) is an especially fat, juicy version of this wine, with generous ripe fruit and a soft-textured personality. The oak is still rather prominent and the wine needs at least another year of bottle age, although it will always remain a very ripe, opulent, yet beautifully balanced Cervaro. Anticipated maturity: 2009-2015.”

Alaskan halibut. Shown table-side before plating.

“Alaska Halibut. Grilled halibut, smoked in the cast-iron cocotte, chicory fondue, fennel and Orange.”

With a beure blanc sauce.

And finished. A nice dish. A slight charcoal smokey flavor to the fish and the interesting fennel, orange, butter pairings.

The sommelier/wine director (Julie Lin) preps a bottle.

The next wine.

The Intermezzo. “Sorbet of red wine-pear, onion cream with roquefort, grated yukon turnip scented with walnut oil.” This wasn’t an entirely successful pairing. I like roquefort but it came on very heavy handed against the refreshing red wine sorbet.

Working the crazy decanter.

A chardonnay for the loup de mer.

“Brittany Loup de mer. Slices of loup de mer a la meuniere with green pepper. Shiso leaves & oyster plant, sauce champs-elysee.” No small amount of fish here!

“Carmelized shallot agnolotti with grapefruit juice.”

Two reds. Sant’Antimo Summus is a French-oak aged blend of Sangiovese, Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah. It is a rich, weighty wine with a soft-textured expression of fruit, excellent length and fine tannins.

A blend of 25% Garnacha, 25% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Merlot, 15% Carinena, and 10% Syrah and aged for 12 months in seasoned French and American oak. Dark ruby-colored, it has an attractive perfume of cedar, red and black currants, black cherry, spice box, and mineral. In a relatively lean style for Priorat, this medium to full-bodied wine has some elegance as well as good depth and length.

Don’t stab me with the decanter!

“Wisconsin veal crepinette. Tenderloin Crepinette, pumpkin & shallot Gratin and Osso-Bucco Jus.”

“Fritto-Miso of Zucchini & Eggplant, San Daniele Ham.”

A trio of sticky yummy dessert wines.

In the glass. The right most like a medium sherry. The middle slightly carbonated and sweet, the leftmost botrytis (moldy grapes).

“Plums, Caramelized Plums, red currant gelée, Brandy Ice cream.” Like brandied cherries and cream.

“Amelie, green tea opaline, lemongrass ganache, glace royale citron.” Fantastic!

“Apple Royale, Cinnamon Gala Apples, Green apple-lime Granite, Cinnamon syrup.” Tasted like apples and cinnamon. Refreshing.

“Biscuit Chocolate Rue Balzac, chocolate glaze, banana-lime coulis, mojito sorbet.”

“Roma, parmesan sable, ginger confit, mascarpone cream, fresh figs, pisachios.” Vaguely sicilian in vibe.

Petite fours. A fruit thing front. A little macaron middle, and a chocolate square with pistachio cream in the back (my favorite).

Whacky stylings.

Butterfly bizarre.

The shofar decanter.

I have to agree with my colleague Kevin (his review of twist here) when he says that this cuisine is “unconventional, surprising, jarring even, with some truly unique combinations of tastes, textures, temperatures, and ingredients.” There were some “out there” dishes here, and I was a bit at a loss as to how the entire meal, and even individual dishes, or pairings or trios of dishes, fit together. But many tasted great, and even the ones that were confusing were highly interesting. Not everything work perfectly, but yet at the same time didn’t seem to suffer from an inferior palette. This is highly intellectual food, best perhaps compared to avant garde art that you enjoy, but don’t quite understand.

Service and presentation was top top top notch here. Everyone was very accommodating and skilled. It’s rare in the states to get this level of service. The wine pairings were superlative and interesting.

For more Food Club extravaganzas.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Alain Ducasse, Avant Garde, Dessert, Foodie Club, Gorgonzola, Joël Robuchon, Las Vegas, Las Vegas Nevada, Michelin, Nevada, Pierre Gagnaire, Restaurant, Restaurant Review, Twist, Twist by Pierre Gagnaire, Vegas, vegetarian

Eating Colle di Val d’Elsa – Arnolfo

Jul09

Restaurant: Arnolfo Ristorante

Location: Colle di Val d’Elsa , Italy

Date: June 16 & 23, 2011

Cuisine: Tuscan

Rating: Awesome, but hard to find

ANY CHARACTER HERE

Just fifteen minutes from our villa and Siena lies the city of Colle di Val d’Elsa and its two star rated Michelin restaurant, Arnolfo. So we went twice! This is an amazing restaurant in a gorgeous location atop the old city. The rub, however, is getting there. The first time the GPS insisted we drive into a masonry wall (closed road). We gave up with that, parked, and ended up walking over a mile, including taking the elevator up to the old city. The walk back wasn’t no fun either and the staff told us that to actually drive here you have to go 6km out of your way to the next town and then come back by one particular approach — but then there is no parking in the old city.

So the next time, feeling all smart, I tried to park in the “close” (only 500m) lot below the old city. But the first entrance I tried was so narrow that I almost got stuck and had to back up my 9 seater van down 200m of alley and around a 90 degree turn — only took 30 minutes and soaked through my suit in the 88 degree humid weather. Then we had to hike up the half mile.

But it was worth it.

They have a gorgeous patio which far from “being in the middle of a city” looks out on the Tuscan hillside.

Even the non-view direction is lovely.

Grissini, first of several bread courses.

The menu on June 16 (the last of the “spring menu”).

And the new “summer” menu on June 23, as we luckily straddled the change.

Compari and soda.

Stating with a little prosecco to cool off.

In the glass.

Then comes a tray of amuses. From left to right. Green pea mouse, tomato stuffed with mozzarella, apple disc with prawn, veal croquet, and gorgonzola and fig jam sandwich. These were all good, but the last was incredible.

Like most great restaurants Arnolfo caters to every restriction. This is a variant amuse plate for vegetarians.

For example this beet and goat cheese mini.

Bread course number two, tomato bread and with lardo (sliver of pig fat).

And for those not so into the pig, the one on the right is onion.

Nor are the gluten free left out. Various potato and rice triscuits!

I’ve come to like Vernaccia, which is a D.O.C. white from San Gimignano. Very light, but with more flavor than a Pinot Grigio.

“Scampi, Goose Liver Escalope, Strawberries.”

“Sea Bass, Strawberries.” A variant for the shellfish impaired.

My notes failed me a little here, but I think it’s some kind of fish (possibly a pork belly though) in a pea soup.

Heads up, bread course three!

“Red mullets, Peas, Silver skin Onions.”

“Asparagus, Ricotta Cheese, Eggs.” Now this was an interesting dish. The white asparagus were grilled and wrapped in pancetta (bacon). The white and yellow stuff is deconstructed egg (yolk and white as powder). The ricotta is in the upper right and was delicious. The powder wasn’t as successful as the bonus egg, shown below.

This is more or less a coddled egg. I dipped the asparagus for extra umph.

This was a small production local Chianti Classico that the sommeler recommended. Good too, and like 30E. Try to find a decent wine at that price at a French 2 star!

“Guinea-Fowl, Chick-peas, I.G.P. Tuscan Ham.” Good stuff.

“Spinach soup with sea bass, tomato.”

“Perlina Aubergines, Tomato, Watermelon, Buffalo Mozzarella I.G.P.”

“Prawns, Peaches, Yellow Pepper.” Yummy. The pairing of the delicate shellfish was delicious with both the fruit and the peppers.

Arnolfo has very nice presentation, which I couldn’t photo every aspect of.

“Goose Liver, Red Onions, Spices, Cherries.” Oh wow yum. And that is some kind of cheese foam/ice cream on top. This was really good stuff.

And two extra goose liver preps for good measure. A sort of Napoleon and a little pistachio coated truffle, solid fois inside.

“Rabbit, Bloack Olives, Ratatouille.” Not your everyday Ratatouille. Notice the white asparagus too.

“Turbot with mozzerella.”

“Tortelli with chicken from Val d’Orcia, with asparagus and red pepper soup.” These are serious homemade pastas.

“Tortelli, Red Onions from Certaldo, White Beans from Sorana.”

“Mezzelune pasta, Courgettes flowers, Wedge shells.”

“Tagliolini, Rabbit, Black Olives.” In the front, out of focus, are discs of rabbit meat to go with the chunks of bunny in the pasta.

“Ravioli, Aubergines, Ewe’s Ricotta, Red Pepper.”

Gluten free pasta too!

“The 2006 Badia a Passignano Chianti Classico Riserva is a pretty, juicy red laced with cherries, dried flowers, tobacco and underbrush. The tannins dry out a touch on the finish, which is the only thing that keeps the score from going higher. Still, this forward, fruit-driven Chianti should drink nicely over the next few years. Anticipated maturity: 2010-2016. “

“Cod, with onions.” And some other stuff.

“Fish soup, Crustaceans, Mollucs, Vegetables.”

“John Dory, Asparagus, Datterini Tomatoes, Capers from Pantelleria.”

“Dentex, Gazpacho, Aubergines.”

“Swordfish, Roasted Peppers, Candied Tomatoes.” You can see that each dish is quite complex.

A brunello recommended by the sommelier.

“I.G.P. Chianina Veal Steak and cheek.”

“I.G.P. Chianina Veal Tartar and vegetables.”

I didn’t used to be into tartar, but it’s really been growing on me over the last several years. Quail egg on top.

“I.G.P. Chiania Veal Steak, Potatoes.”

“Cinta Senese Suckling Pig, Porchetta, Leg, Loin, Leaf Cabbage, Beetroots.”

This town evidently produces 14% of the world’s crystal. Italian shopping hours being what they are, despite three visits, we never saw one open.

Ah the suffering involved in dining in one of the world’s great wine regions. 93 points from Parker. “Consulting oenologist Carlo Ferrini has turned out a beautiful wine at this historic estate, a property which he speaks of in effusive terms. Talenti’s sublime 2001 Brunello Pian di Conte exhibits a deep, translucent ruby color. It opens with captivating, vibrant aromatics, with notes of freshly cut roses, raspberries and licorice. Gorgeously expressive yet delicate on the palate, it offers layers of dark fruit, earthiness and sweet oak supported by a refined, classic structure, with exceptional length and fine, silky tannins on the fresh finish. It is a superb effort. Anticipated maturity: 2008-2021.”

We are assaulted by a battery of pre-desserts. Vanilla ice cream with cherry rhubarb “soup.”

“Almond Mascarpone, pistachio ice cream.”

“Ricotta Cheese, Orange, Honey.” Tart and sweet.

“Selection of Tuscan Sheep’s-milk and Goat’s-milk Cheeses.”

And some nice condiments.

I can’t even remember what this one was.

“Zuccotto, Star Anis, Coffee, Fennel Ice Cream.”

“Grand Dessert Assortment.” Because one isn’t enough. Chocolate cake, Passionfruit sauce. Coffee something. Strawberry flan. A bit of the above Zuccotto, and something else.

“Zuccotto, Pinenuts, Alkermes, Chocolate Sorbet, Fleur del Sel.” The central thing was basically a meringue.

“Fruit and custard mille fueile.”

“Apricots, Almonds, Lavender Ice Cream.”

Worth a bit of zoom.

And this too.

We also had a birthday (mine more or less), so there was this bonus cake!

And just a few petite fours. Lemon jelly in the center. A little fruit tart on the right.

More, on the second night. Berry tart. Ricotta vanilla dome. Pistachio burger. Blackberry mouse. Almond marzipan.

Our second meal here was slightly better than the first for some reason, but both were top notch. Service was spectacular all around. Highly recommended as a very updated medium modernist take on Tuscan cuisine. The quality of local ingredients was impeccable, and they know how to modernize playfully without letting the techniques get out of control.

Click here to see more Eating Italy posts.

By: agavin
Comments (4)

Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Arnolfo, beef, Bread, Breadstick, Chianti, Colle di Val d'Elsa, Colle di Val d’Elsa, Cooking, Dessert, eating-italy, fish, Gluten-free diet, GPS, Italian cuisine, Italy, Michelin, Michelin Guide, pasta, pigeon, pork, Shellfish, Tomato, Tuscany, veal

Eating Siena – Trattoria Pepei

Jun26

Restaurant: Trattoria Pepei

Location: Siena, Italy

Date: June 12 & 19, 2011

Cuisine: Tuscan

Rating: Delicious & Fun!

ANY CHARACTER HERE

Our first full day in tuscany and we went into Siena. We selected a restaurant the night before using Michelin, picking a centrally located one that earned a bib gourmet.

Trattoria Papei which is located in the piazza Mercato right behind the Campos.

They have an extensive terrace area under a network of awnings and umbrellas.

The menu.

We ordered this local, inexpensive, and very pleasant chianti classico reserva. Parker gives it 90 points. “The 2007 Chianti Classico Riserva Il Grigio (Sangiovese) comes across as soft and pliant, very much in the style of the vintage. A warm, open bouquet leads to succulent ripe cherries, flowers and spices, all of which flow through nicely to the enveloping finish. Today the juiciness of the fruit makes Il Grigio very attractive, but readers who prefer more tertiary complexity will want to wait for a few years. Anticipated maturity: 2010-2017. “

A typical (you’ll here this word a lot here) Tuscan anti-pasta: mixed bruschetta. Here are tomato and marinated mushrooms, both delicious.

Melon with Prosciutto di Toscana.

More cured meats and bruschetta. The brown mud like stuff is chicken liver. The round salami is Finnochiona, a typical (again) local salami with a bit of fennel and pepper inside.

A truly excellent Zuppe Minestrone. The vegetables maintained their shape, but were cooked wuch that they melt in the mouth.

Tuscan bread and vegetable (mostly tomato) soup.

The kitchen is run my mama, literally.

Spaghetti pomodoro.

Pappardelle al Ragu Di Cinghiale! Wild boar strikes again.

Tagliatelle with ragu Toscana (mixed meat ragu probably).

Tagliatelle with duck ragu. This was deep and meaty. There must have been some duck liver in the sauce too.

Penne pomodoro.

Cheese ravioli with marinated mushroom sauce.

Pici (homemade local pasta) with cheese and pepper. This is a very simple dish, but when done right, as it was here, it’s amazing! The bright black papper flavor stands out. They have this now at Sotto, a new rustic Italian in LA.

Gnocchi pomodoro. The gnocchi here were soft and delicious, although not quite as good as the ones the first night in Modena.

Gnocchi with butter and sage.

Mixed salad (again).

Another salad, arugala or rocket with tomatos.

Pounded veal in lemon sauce. I’m not a big veal fan but this was good.

BBQ Ribs, Tuscan style. These were not unlike spare ribs at a chinese restaurant. They were a bit chewier than I was used too as the flavorful Tuscan pigs are leaner and free range, and the Italians don’t nuke the meat.

Delicious potatoes in a tomato sauce.

Pounded veal in a mushroom sauce — also excellent.

Chicken Cacciatore.

And at the end some free grappa. Ouch! taste-buds still stinging.

Cafe expresso.

This is a fun and delicious place. It’s located in the lovely square above. They may cater to tourists, but they serve amazing traditional Tuscan food prepared with very fresh ingredients. And the service is extremely friendly.

Click here to see more Eating Italy posts.

By: agavin
Comments (2)

Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Chianti, Cooking, eating-italy, Florence, Italy, Meat, Michelin, pasta, Piazza del Campo, Prosciutto, Restaurant, Restaurant Review, Rome, Sangiovese, Siena, Toscana, Trattoria Pepei, Tuscany

Eating Cervia – Locanda dei Salinari

Jun18

Restaurant: Locanda dei Salinari

Location: Cervia, Italy

Date: June 8, 2011

Cuisine: Adriatic Seafood

Rating: Great seafood

ANY CHARACTER HERE

After three days in the Modena/Parma/Bologna area we relocated west to the Adriactic coastal town of cervia/Milano Maritima. While technically still in Emilia-Romagna this is a beach-side community with a much greater emphasis on seafood.

Our first night we check out this Michelin bib-gourmet restaurant.

The menu.

Starting with a nice white.

Note the cool antique interior.

A sub selection of the wine list.

Great breads are an Italian staple.

Carpegna ham and fresh ricotta.

Scallops with grilled tomatos and spring mushrooms.

Local fish crudo. This was super tasty, basically sashimi with a slightly Italian twist.

Some kind of snapper, local giant shrimp.

Some other crustacean (scampi?), and I think a halibut.

Special toast to go with the crudo.

Insalta misto.

Swordfish skewers, with parmesan.

We moved on to a Masi Amarone. I love Amarone, and Masi is one of my favorite vineyards. This was surprisingly cheap too. “The entry-level 2005 Amarone Classico della Valpolicella Costasera is made in a fairly straightforward, fresh style, with perfumed bright red fruit supported by silky tannins. This harmonious red offers excellent depth and lovely balance. Anticipated maturity: 2008-2015.”

A kind of local pasta with fish.

Passatelli with scampi and asparagus. This is a local style of thick worm-like pasta.

Rissotto with peas and raw red shrimps. There was an interesting red sauce in the center that might have been made from their shells or roe.

Rissotto with pheasant.

A zoom-in so that you can all can revel in the rissotto-ness of it all.

Turbot with ricotta and aubergines on potato cake with truffle sauce.

Frito mixto: fried mixed vegetables and fish. These were really lightly friend and delicious, although there was a lot of bone action.

The dessert menu.

Semifreddo of fig ice cream with orange sauce. This was super yummy too, as I particularly love the cool soft texture of semifreddo.

They have a few grappas and the like.

Overall this was a wonderful transition to the more seafood oriented cuisine of the coast. This was a great place.

Click here to see more Eating Italy posts.

By: agavin
Comments (2)

Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Cervia, Cooking, Dessert, eating-italy, Emilia Romagna, Emilia–Romagna, fish, Italian cuisine, Italy, Locanda dei Salinari, Michelin, pasta, Sashimi, side dishes, vegetarian

Melisse – How much would a Woodcock…

Dec16

Restaurant: Melisse [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6]

Location: 1104 Wilshire Blvd.Santa Monica, CA 90401. (310) 395-0881

Date: December 15, 2010

Cuisine: California French

Rating: Awesome. Top of its game!

My foodie friend EP wanted to do a final Foodie Club night before he left for year end vacation so we hastily (24 hours) gathered a few like-minded gluttons. It took a bit of calling to find someplace that had space and was willing to allow the mega tasting menu on short notice. This same group had gone to Melisse last March, and we arranged to return. Chef Josiah Citrin promised to mix it up, and do something extreme. We were game! (hint hint) The result is this modified Carte Blanche Menu ++ special edition.

The first amuse is a Melisse staple. Grapes two ways. Out of the spoon are half grapes coated in goat cheese and pistachio. On the spoon sphereized grapes dusted with pistachio. The first has a nice contrast of the sharp cheese and the fruit, the second is an explosion of grapeness.

There were four of us, and I had brought 3 bottles of red, but the Sommelier wisely suggested I pick a white off the list to start. Knowing the chef I opted for this Chablis. I love good Chablis. Parker gives this one a 93. “The Dauvissats’ 2006 Chablis La Forest (a.k.a. “La Foret” a.k.a. “La Forets”) smells effusively of peony, citrus, and peach. It is strikingly bitter-sweet in its alternation of peach and citrus with peach kernel-like cyanic bitterness; displays deep chalkiness; and finishes with amazing grip and length. Past the nose, this is one of the least generous of 2006 Chablis, being remarkably tight and for a young 2006, but very impressively concentrated. The 2005 rendition was almost severe in its concentration, yet also very impressive. It should merit following for 10-12 years, and is probably best rested for a year or two. The 1999 tastes glorious, and youthful today; the still almost sharply-citric 1996, like liquid chalk and white truffle.
Vincent Dauvissat’s 2006s were finished with both alcoholic fermentation and malolactic transformation by January. Overall – and particularly in the Grand Cru range – Dauvissat’s 2005s are marginally less exciting than his 2006s, and in certain instances, surprisingly, more opulent and exotically ripe. In both recent vintages, Dauvissat’s wines (even the generics) are pushing 14% alcohol, although in tasting the 2006s in particular, you’d never guess this.”

And there is perhaps nothing better in the world to pair Chablis with than a bit of oyster. This “Carsbad Del Sol Oyster, Finger Limes and Chives” was as Chef Citrin called it, “essence of oyster.” Dominated by a pleasant brininess, like early morning at the sea side. This is not for everyone, but if you are a seafood lover like me. Oh boy. And the mineral tones of the Chablis just sang with it.

Next up is this “Hokkaido Scallop, Santa Barbara uni, Cauliflower, Lemon.” Pretty isn’t it? The scallop was luscious, but the uni was to die for. Not even a hint of fishy, it had a rich nutty tone. I was temped to lick the dish.

Because this is such a delightfully elaborate (aka EPIC) meal, I’m going to show the sequential presentation of many dishes. This “Artichoke soup, Parmesan Fritters, white truffle” begins with the solid ingredients. There is a bit of relish underneath the fritter.

Then the soup is added. The soup itself was the perfect infusion of cream and artichoke. Every spoonful counjured up the vegetable. The fritter was a little cheese explosion. Bravo!

No trip to Melisse would be complete without the classic, “Egg Caviar, Lemon Creme Fraiche, American Osetra Caviar.” It’s a classic for a reason. The Creme Fraiche is so good, and there is raw egg yolk at the bottom. Amazing combo, particularly with the little toast stick.

We killed the Chablis during that round of “starters” and it was time to move onto this bad boy. The 1991 Hermitage La Pavillon! 100 points of perfection. “This is a Le Pavilion of mythical proportions. Produced from extremely old vines, some dating from the mid-nineteenth century, with yields averaging under 15 hectoliters per hectare, this is the richest, most concentrated and profound wine made in Hermitage. The 1991 Ermitage Le Pavilion follows the pattern of the 1989 and 1990-it is another perfect wine. The saturated black/purple color is followed by a compelling bouquet of spices, roasted meats, and black and red fruits. Enormously concentrated yet with brilliant focus and delineation to its awesomely endowed personality, this extraordinary wine should age effortlessly for three plus decades. Very powerful and full, yet displaying silky tannin, this is a seamless beauty! Anticipated maturity: 2001-2035.”

And the bread arrives. I went for a piece of bacon, and a basil brioche.

“Seared Foie Gras & Pheasant Consomme, Foie Gras Agnolotti, Chanterelle Mushrooms, Shiso Infused Pheasant Consomme.”

The soup is added. The ingredients themselves were great. But it was the broth that was mind boggling. Combining the rich taste of pheasant, with the bits of fat melted off the fois in the consomme, with the bright tones of the Shiso (a leaf I adore, in the mint family). Oh my. It was incredible. It reminded me of the broth from the Urwasawa meal we had 10 months ago.

And the hits keep on rolling. “Santa Barbara Ridge back Prawn, Pummelo, Shellfish Jus.” The sweet meat of this puppy meshed perfectly with the citrus butter tang of the sauce. I had to use the remains of my bread to mop it all up.

What is an epic French meal during truffle season without some fresh white truffles!

“White Truffle Risotto, Carnaroli Rice, Mascarpone, Shaved White Truffles.” There is a little Risotto under that sea of truffle foam. It had a nice soft cheesiness to offset the delicate Umami flavors of the truffles.

Now we’ve killed half a bottle each and it’s time to go bordeaux. Parker gives this 96 points. “What sumptuous pleasures await those who purchase either the 1996 or 1995 Pichon-Lalande. It is hard to choose a favorite, although the 1995 is a smoother, more immediately sexy and accessible wine. It is an exquisite example of Pichon-Lalande with the Merlot component giving the wine a coffee/chocolatey/cherry component to go along with the Cabernet Sauvignon’s and Cabernet Franc’s complex blackberry/cassis fruit. The wine possesses an opaque black/ruby/purple color, and sexy, flamboyant aromatics of pain grille, black fruits, and cedar. Exquisite on the palate, this full-bodied, layered, multidimensional wine should prove to be one of the vintage’s most extraordinary success stories. Anticipated maturity: 2001-2020. The 1995/1996 vintages are two of the greatest back to back efforts Pichon-Lalande has ever produced, including the 1982/1983 vintages.”

Erick and Simon are starting to show the wear and tear of the evening’s pleasures.

“Eastern Tile Fish ‘Amadai’, Kohlrabi, Black Trumpet Mushrooms, Carrots, Cucumber Infused Consomme.”

As the consomme went down the sensuous summer smell of cucumber wafted back at us. The fish was perfectly done, but it was the consomme that I really found marvelous here.

And now for the main event. Two roasted Scottish Woodcocks!

“Scottish Woodcock, Truffled Brioche, Navet, Sauce Perigourdine.”

After saucing. In the front is a bit of breast on the brioche, at the back half the head and beak, and on the right the thigh and leg (and claw). First of all, the sauce had this rich truffle quality that was just outstanding. Then the breast was a perfect medium rare example of poultry at its finest. Chef Citrin informed us that these puppies had been aging for 3 or 4 weeks! It was wonderfully gamey. Seriously gamey. Intensely gamey. The thigh had a rare almost bloody quality. But oh so good.

Chef Citrin shows us off an example of the bird (he’s the white sleeved arms). Wild caught in Scotland. He personally plucked the feathers on ours.

I have to show off the remains because you can see the bird brain a bit better. That long sticky thing by the knife is the beak, and there the skull with half the brain. We were pressured into sucking on the brain, some of us with more gusto than others (Erick!). It had a rich taste, not unlike bone marrow.

The game goes into overtime with the final savory, “Venison Loin, Juniper-Praline Yam, Chanterelles, Chickory, Poivrade Sauce.”

Sauced. This venison was perfect, incredibly tender and flavorful. The Yam was like a desert, incredible, almost like pecan and pumpkin pie together.

Les Fromages.

Spiced pears and candied cumquats.

One of my favorite cheese in the world, Eppoisses. Strong, gooey, stinky!

Lower left: Pont-l’Eveque

Orange center: 18 month aged Gouda

Lower right: Fourme d’Ambert

Right center: Bourgogne (i think)

Upper right: Epoisses de Bourgogne

Upper left: Selsurcheres (sic, couldn’t spell well enough to find on google), goat cheese

“Vanilla Yoghurt, Strawberry Compote, Strawberry Sorbet.” I’ve had this before, but I didn’t mind. Basically strawberries and cream. Yum!

After warming up with the 1995, we rolled back to the 1989 Lalande. Incredible! “Speaking of superior vintages, Pichon-Lalande’s 1989, although not as profound as the 1995, 1994, 1986, 1983, or 1982, is a beautifully made wine. It exhibits a deep ruby/purple color, and a sweet, roasted nose of rich cassis fruit, herbs, and vanilla. Lush and round, this medium to full-bodied, nicely-textured, layered Pichon-Lalande possesses low acidity, outstanding ripeness, and beautiful purity and balance. It is already drinking surprisingly well, so owners should not hesitate to pull a cork. It should continue to offer rich, seductive drinking for another 15+ years.”

Another dessert repeat — but again we didn’t mind. “Chocolate, Chocolate, Coffee, Chocolate Souffle, Chocolate Peanut Butter Crunch, Coffee and Mascarpone.” The souffle gets its little injection. All are great, but the coffee and the crunch are my faves.

I’ve had passion fruit desserts at Melisse before, but this was a slightly new take. “Passion Fruit Parfait, Lemongrass and Coconut.” There is tapioca in the “soup” beneath. Very interesting complement. Very south east Asian in flavor profile, and refreshing.

The petite fours. I’m not a huge cannelle fan. The fruit with Creme Fraiche was great though. I’d have preferred the classic marshmallows and pate de fruits myself, but this is about my only “complaint” with the entire meal, so I think I’ll survive.

Our special custom menu.

Reuben and I before the meal. I neglected to get a photo of how we looked 4.5 hours later!!

Chef Josiah Citrin pulled out all the stops for this meal, and it showed. Hands down spectacular! The restaurant has two Michelin stars, and it deserves every ounce of them. Personally, I’d put this meal up against any I’ve had in France at a three-star. The service is amazing too. The setting is not as fully formal as some French three-stars, or the service quite so orchestrated (that level is more amusement than actually pleasant), and there are no zany carts for teas and sugars, but the food and creativity demonstrate Melisse’s deserved position as one of America’s top kitchens. Not only were the ingredients worthy of a Roman Consul’s plate, but the masterful command of flavors were in full view.

Bravo!

For another Melisse meal, click here.

Or for other Foodie Club meals, click here.

By: agavin
Comments (8)

Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Bordeaux, Burgundy, Chablis, Cheese, Cooking, Creme Fraiche, Cru (wine), Dessert, Egg, Epoisses, Food, Foodie Club, France, Fromage, Hermitage, Melisse, Michelin, Oyster, poultry, Prawn, Restaurant, reviews, Risotto, scallop, side dishes, Truffles, two-star, Wine, woodcock

Food as Art: Bistro LQ

Nov05

Restaurant: Bistro LQ [1, 2]

Location: 8009 Beverly Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90048. (323) 951-1088

Date: October 12, 2010

Cuisine: Modern French

Rating: Food was very good. Service lagged a bit behind.

This restaurant is a year and a half old, and the chef, Laurent Queniox, is French, having worked at Maxim’s in Paris, and then at the Hôtel Négresco in Nice (My wife and I ate there on our Honeymoon, but it was probably long after his time). He bounced around through various LA joints, including his own Bistro K in Pasadena, before opening this one. The food itself is very much like what modern one and two star Michelin places in France are doing, with a 25% dash of California thrown in.

We went with our usual Foodie friends, and hence only considered the 7 course ($70) versus the 10 course ($90) tasting menus. We settled on the 7 course after the waiter told us the 10 course was A LOT of food. They have a 7 course vegetarian menu too which very much excited the vegetarian member of our party.

The first Amuse, “Sea urchin tapioca pudding with yuzo kocho,” tasted like it sounded. The food was exciting out of the gate, but we did have minor service issues. For example, even though we’d gone over the whole “vegetarian” bit at length with the waiter, out came an Sea urchin Amuse for said party. Bus service brought them, and a request for a vegetarian varient took… awhile.

More goodies from my cellar. If you’ve been reading my posts you will notice I don’t screw around in the Burgundy department. Parker gives this Jadot 1997 Grand Cru Chambertin Clos de Beze 94-96 points, saying “harvested at an unheard of (for Burgundy) 14.2 natural potential alcohol. This black/purple-colored benchmark-setter displays saliva-inducing cookie dough and cherry syrup aromas. Immensely ripe and concentrated, yet pure, fresh, and noble, it conquers the taster with unending layers of jammy compote-like fruit flavors. Awesomely dense, deep, fresh, and refined, this stunner has the potential to ultimately merit a score in the high 90s. It seamlessly combines the New World’s over-ripeness and fruit-forward characteristics with Burgundy’s trademark balance, elegance, and structure. The lucky few that will secure a few bottles of this nectar should note that it should be at its peak of maturity between 2003-2015. Bravo!”

But, again the service had some issues. He triggered one of my pet peaves and took awhile to get the bottle opened. I nearly pulled out the Screwpull I keep in my case and took care of it myself (I have no problem beating waiters to the job). He got the bottle open, but I did have to pour for the table the whole night. I don’t really mind, but with food of this calibre a glass should never go empty, it certainly wouldn’t in France.

“Venison Tartar, Green Chartreuse Gelee, Pomme Frite.” The frites were a tiny bit soggy. But the tartar! Yum!

It deserves a closeup. The little quail egg is dumped on top and eaten with the raw venison. Slimy in a good way, rich, and delicious.

“Haddock, from Scotland, marinated in olive oil, Blinis Pancake, Ricotta Lemon Mousse and American Sevruga Caviar.” Nothing wrong with this dish either — although it wasn’t the tartar.

This was a vegetarian vegetable soup. It tasted of fresh veggie, as it should have.

“Salted Cod, Lentils, Octopus, Smoked Duck Wing, Morcella, Piquillo Pepper.” This was a very tasty combination of… a lot of flavors. The richness surrounding the cod made one able to half think it was lobster.

“Salmon, Cippolini Onions, Braised Carrots, Smoked Salt, Wild Mushrooms.”

“Red beet, and burrata sorbet.” A slightly criminal use of Burrata (which I buy by the tub from Bay Cities Deli and make into my own treats — I’ll post sometime), but excellent nonetheless.

“Artichokes, Goast Cheese Curd, Confit Tomatoes.”

This was a kind of fried sweetbreads (veal or beef I think) in a corn soup/ polenta like meal. It tasted VERY good. Sweetbreads, however, are one of the few dishes that give me a minor case of the willies, so I had to pretend they were something else. I also kept imagining my rising uric acid levels.

This was a vegetarian something I didn’t try, but it looked good.

“Hanger Steak, Served with Glazed Shallots, Sweet Potato Smear.” This didn’t suck either.

The 2008 Flor de Pingus, which I had written about bringing to Bazaar (this actually was first), deep inky, but silky smooth. Parker gives it 96 saying, “The 2008 Flor de Pingus had been in bottle for 2 weeks when I tasted it. It offers up an enticing nose of smoke, Asian spices, incense, espresso, black cherry, and blackberry. On the palate it displays outstanding volume, intensity, and balance. Rich, dense, and succulent, it has enough structure to evolve for 4-5 years and will offer prime drinking from 2015 to 2028.”

The cheese. They had a good cart, including some really nice stinky ones, and Eppoisses.

And the condiments were REALLY good, with a variety of different “sauces” and toppings. Walnut and hazelnut, Roasted Cumin Seeds, Canneberges Chutney with Cloves and Walnuts, Apple Gellee, Huckleberries Gellee, Bell pepper Mustard, Tomatillo and Figues Compote, Pumpkin Ginger Truffle honey, Homemade Green Ketchup.

The honey, cumin, and nuts were on a separate plate.

“Pot De Creme. Espresso and Chocolate, Butterscotch Bread Pudding, Vietnamese Coffee, Hazelnut Ice Cream.” This was REALLY good too.

The Petite Fours were also top notch.

Look at these. The marshmallow had a lovely citrus flavor. There was a nice pate de fruits, macaroons, and even little cupcakes with cream-cheese icing. It was all great.

Food-wise, this was a meal worthy of 2 Michelin stars, I’ve had better or worse at such establishments in France depending on how the wind blows. But Bistro LQ needs to get their service up to snuff with the food if they want to play in those leagues. Although, to tell the truth, it didn’t really bother me. The waiter was very nice, and he left the wine bottle on the table so I could self pour. Certainly there was no attitude, they just didn’t show the flawless professionalism of the kind of staff that this sort of food usually commands. But then again, it doesn’t have the prices either (a Paris 3 star can sometimes be 220 Euros for one dish). All in all, we were very satisfied, and will be back to tackle the 10 course.