Amuse Bouche: some kind of oyster on the half shell, with a truffle foam
Awww … geez! Right off the bat, the bravery begins. Oysters have always really grossed me out, and I have to say my opinion still remains mostly the same. As I slurped that slimy little sucker into my mouth years upon years of bad connotations brought me to involuntarily gag a little bit … but I was determined to like this schit! … so I chewed away. I was actually surprised to find myself liking the flavor of the oyster, although the slimy/chewy texture still creeped me out a bit. First course, success.
Salmon-Caviar: Thinly Pounded Smoked Salmon Carpaccio; Toasted Brioche and Caviar. paired with: Krug, Grand Cuvee
The second course kept the pedal to the metal as I subjected my virgin palate to caviar and smoked salmon carpaccio. The presentation was gorgeous, and the salmon was delectable. While I didn’t really like the fishy flavor of the caviar, I did appreciate the brininess that it brought to the dish. I actually liked this dish … before I tried it with the Krug. A quick aside: I’ve also never had Krug before, so this was another moment I was rather excited about. Sure, this was not a vintage Krug, only their Grand Cuvee, but my god! – easily the best Champer that’s ever passed over my tongue!! I constructed the “perfect bite,” cutting a moderate slice of salmon, then topping it with a bit of the brioche and a few fish eggs. I placed the bite in my mouth, gently chewed a couple times, then, before swallowing, introduced a measure of champagne to the party — holy frickin’ smokes!!! This may very well have been the best wine-food pairing my life has ever seen. At that moment, I realized the champagne was an integral ingredient to this dish as a whole. The wine gained intensity as the salmon highlited its gentle fruit notes and also depth as the saltiness of the caviar tugged at its bottom. Likewise, the champagne brought a vivacity to the salmon that wasn’t there without it. At this point, the smile cannot be wiped off my face as I start to truly realize what an incredible treat I have just sat down to. BTW, if anyone ever wants to open some Krug around me, please don’t hesitate!
Langoustine: Seared Langoustine, Mache, Wild Mushroom Salad, Shaved Foie Gras; White Balsamic Vinaigrette. paired with: Riesling Estate feinherb, Karthauserhof, Mosel, Germany, 2008.
This was Ashley’s favorite dish of the evening, whereas it fell somewhere in the middle of the pack for me. Once again, by constructing the “perfect bite” I could discern the impeccable balance achieved in this dish. Although well-balanced, this dish seemed to lack the “pop” of some others. Ashley remarked that the foie gras here was the best she’s ever had, and I’d have to agree, despite not being a big fan of the stuff. This foie gras was not reconstituted then formed, as I’ve seen elsewhere … this was straight-up duck liver, and it had a surprisingly delicate flavor. The white balsamic vinaigrette drizzled around the plate was lick-your-plate awesome! I did enjoy the feinherb Riesling that this was paired with, but I didn’t think the pairing was really all that great … it didn’t clash, but it didn’t seem to harmonize with the food as much as I hoped for – I think a wine with a lusher mouthfeel would have worked better.
Scallop: Ultra Rare Scorched Scallop; Garlic Chive - Goat’s Milk Butter Emulsion. paired with: Kasumi Tsuru, Yamahai Ginjo, Hyogo
Now I should have been excited about this dish because I absolutely adore scallops, but the prospect of the goat’s milk butter emulsion had me a bit worried because I simply cannot stand goat’s milk cheese. Our plates came out, and as soon as our waiter began spooning the sauce on my scallops I knew the sauce was not going to be to my liking. Nonetheless, I tried it … and … I was right. The goat’s milk in this dish totally ruined it for me. The scallops were perfectly cooked (although one was a touch sandy) … at this time I was pining for more of that white balsamic vinaigrette from the previous dish. This dish was paired with a Sake, which was also unfortunate because I hate sake. Nonetheless, I tried the sake, both with and without the food, and my mind was not changed. Whereas I still ate all of my scallops, I didn’t take more than 3 sips of my sake – I should have asked if a dry white wine could have been substituted. Oh well. The next dish would set me back on course.
Halibut: Poached Halibut; Braised Daikon, Baby Radish and Turnips; Seasame Court Bouillon. paired with: Traminer, Domaine Andre Tissot, Arbois, Jura, 2006.
Holy krap!! A couple times earlier in the evening, before this dish was served to us, I remarked that “something smells freakin’ delicious in here!” As my plate of halibut was placed before me, I instantly recognized it as the delicious-smelling dish whose aromatics had wafted into my nostrils a bit earlier. I’ve tried halibut on a few occasions, and this was by far the best of the bunch. The sesame court bouillon was a perfect match with the fish. The Traminer that was paired with this was my first Traminer, and I quite liked it – it had incredible richness, and added to the dish without running it over. This was maybe my favorite course of the evening.
Striped Bass: Baked Wild Striped Bass; Corn “Cnnelloni”; Light Perigord Sauce. paired with: Sauvignon Blanc, Klausen, Neumeister, Styria, Austria, 2007.
If the halibut wasn’t my favorite of the evening, it was the wild striped bass. My god!, the sauce on this dish was out-of-this-world amazing!! (I can’t remember what the sauce was — I want to say sherry and browned butter, but I can’t remember for sure … I’ll be doing some research to see if I can get to the bottom of it because I could have stuck my face in a five gallon bucket of that stuff!). If it wouldn’t have been entirely inappropriate for me to lick my plate clean, I would have. I also really enjoyed the Sauvignon Blanc that was paired with this dish - I’ve never had an Austrian Sauv. Blanc before – I definitely prefer it over Austrian Riesling, and I think I might even like it more than Gruner.
Surf & Turf: Escolar and Seared Kobe Beef; Sea Bean Salad and Eggplant Fries; Mr. Kaufman’s Pesto and Anchovy Sauce. paired with: Chateau Haut-Bages Averous, Paulliac, Bordeaux, 2001.
Next up, beef! The kobe was literally melt-in-your-mouth amazing, and when paired with the Bdx., I felt like I would melt into my seat. The escolar was probably my least favorite fish of the evening, as it had a discernable “fishiness” to it. (btw, if you’ve never looked at a picture of an escolar, do a google search – that is one ugly creature, boy!).
Cheese course: “La Faisselle”: Artisan Fromage Blanc (produced exclusively for Le Bernardin by the Vermont Butter and Cheese Company), with Toasted Almonds adn Honey. paired with: Chateau La Rame, Reserve, Sainte-Croix-du-Mont, France, 1998.
The highlite of this course, for me, was the wine. It tasted very much like a lighter-styled Sauternes, and was quite engaging. The cheese wasn’t bad, but I didn’t really like the pronounced tanginess that it had – kind of a sour cream kind of tanginess, which I enjoy in sour cream, but not in my cheese apparently.
Dessert I: Choclate-Chicory: Chocoalte Cremeux, Pain de Genes, Orange “Meringue”, Chicory Ice Cream. paired with: Museum Muscat, Reserve NV, Yalumba, Rutherglen/Australia.
Again, I preferred the wine over the food here, but not because I didn’t like the dessert. The food was very good, but the wine was gorgeous. I don’t have much of a sweet tooth, so take that into consideration.
Dessert II: (A fluffy light-colored cake atop a crunchy crust, with a tropical sorbet of some sort)
This was a “bonus” dessert for my birthday. I actually preferred it to the chocolate-heavy dessert that preceded it.
4 bite-sized pastries accompanied a conclusory coffee, as I sat back and basked in the glow of the best meal I’ve ever had. I’ve gone on enough, so I’ll leave it at that; words just don’t do this meal justice
![[rofl.gif]](/uploads/db3686/original/2X/a/a7452fcd8e675af869f8da01174474a545b03944.gif "rofl"){kind=small}