For the tasting menu, it's seven courses without any inkling of which ingredients will be featured. Mysterious and exciting!
Alan and I had a 5:30pm seating. We arrived a little early and waited for our table at the bar with a glass of Pierre Gimmonet, Belles Annees, Blanc de Blanc. It didn't take long before they came to escort us to our table. It's a beautiful space with incredibly high ceilings, modest decorations and still an intimate ambiance. The floor is tiered with the back seating raised above the middle. It gives the feeling of separate spaces in what's actually one large one. We were taken to our table in the back and delighted to see we were going to be sitting on the long sofa, in a corner with both a wonderful view of the restaurant and the intimacy of being kitty-corner to each other.
We decided to go with the tasting menu and added on the white truffle option. Alan conferred with the sommelier for some time deciding on what bottle of wine we'd be having with the latter half of the meal. They went with a red Burgundy; 2002 Domaine Monthelie-Douhairet Les Chanlins which was promised to have the characteristics to go with a menu skewed towards fish, vegetables and shellfish with just a course of red meat at the end.
Soon we were receiving our first set of courses...the appetizers that they'd be bringing out before the "tasting menu" technically started. Lucky for us, they gave us a copy of our full menu for the evening...since I took no pictures (believing it's inappropriate in a truly high end restaurant).
First up was a course including a cup of mushroom tea served alongside a brioche with truffle. The tea was a light mushroom broth or consomme with a soft but distinct flavor. The brioche was a single bite that didn't look like much but, OH...after that first delicate crunch of the toast and the follow up of truffle was fabulous! We're off to a great start. And the Krug went perfectly with this course, of course.
Next course was a scallop ceviche with tangerine served on the scallop shell and an accompanying dish of seared hamachi with ginger and lemon. I had the ceviche first and was struck by the light but truly citrus zing of tangerine that brought out the freshness of the scallop. The tuna bite was also really good but I think the surprise of the scallop won my heart in that course.
Third round was the first one to raise my eyebrows. They presented us with a lollipop of greek yogurt with curry and caviar. The texture was neat - it had been dipped into liquid nitrogen to get a crunchy outer shell and maintaining the creamy inside. But you know what? I don't really like yogurt. Even if it is Greek and has been frozen and presented as a candy. This was the only bite of the evening that I probably would pass on if done again. I do give them points for creativity though - it was really cool looking! The course mate to the lollipop was a chickpea panisse with yogurt that was very nice with a toasty texture and a smooth taste typical of chickpea.
Then came the course that just knocked my socks off. Served on a square, shallow dish was a gelee of apple - clear and reminding me of Jell-O. But sunk into this nice sized square of gelatinous glee were different bits of happiness in the form of foie gras, apple, sea urchin and caviar. No matter what combination you could scoop up on the wee little spoon they presented us with, you came away with an explosion of fabulous. I knew foie gras went well with apple...but I had no idea how well apple matched with sea urchin. Or sea urchin with foie gras...or caviar with everything and anything. Just perfect.
It was at this point in the evening that the next surprise happened. We were enjoying a brief interlude between the courses when the waiter captain came over and asked us if we'd be interested in a tour of the kitchen. Why, yes we would!! We were escorted into the newly redesigned inner workings - first to the large, enclosed waiters station (often the waiter stations are in the dining room or scattered around the restaurant) to see the operation and flow (and all the James Beard Awards) and then into the kitchen itself. And we were in for a treat there as well...they had a little counter height table set up just long enough for Alan and I to stand behind, tucked into an alcove. And while there they explained the flow of the kitchen, the mission statement, the redesign concepts and such. We also had a bird eye's view of two HUGE white truffles being used for the evening's dishes. And they gave us a sneak peak at the first Eleven Madison Park cookbook that's being released on 11-11-11. Once the "tour" portion ended, our captain introduced one of the kitchen staff that made for us a custom cocktail with apples, apple cider (wow, serious alcohol) and a pomegranate sorbet formed and expanded (and crunchified) in liquid nitrogen. Gorgeous cocktail, nice flavor - fun touch!
Back at our table, the dinner service resumes - and we'll still in appetizers!!
Back to our table, the courses resumed. Next up was other unique, creative and totally rocking-awesome dishes described to us as their take on the New England Clam Bake. There were five dishes in total in this ensemble. In the center of the table was a pretty little mountain of polished rocks on the top of which sat a tea pot looking crock, piping hot. They didn't explain that one right away so we focused on the four other bite size appetizers. Two were clam, served on clam shells; one was unmistakeably a Madelaine and the fourth looked like an oblong tater tot. In detail - one was a clam served with apple and potato; the second was clam served with chorizo; the Madelaine had chorizo in it and the last one was in fact a lobster tater tot. Holy happiness, Batman! These were incredible. And then, they came back and revealed that the pot had clam chowder which they poured into hand crafted bowls that we sipped out of. Just amazing - think of the BEST New England chowder you've ever had - add some more heavy cream to that, ensure it's perfectly smooth and then heat to just past warm and serve. So nice.
Now the actual menu courses started. From the menu they selected for us (in order):
- roasted fennel salad with meyer lemon, bottarga and couscous
- foie gras tourchon with cranberry, pain d'espices and almonds
- endive with roasted truffle, egg yolk and pear
- Lamb roasted, with eggplant, sheep's milk yogurt and sweetbreads
- Blue cheese with pear, chestnut honey and bitter greens
- Egg cream with orange, cocoa nibs and seltzer
- Chocolate with sweet potato and brown butter (with birthday candle)
It's worth a note to say that the blue cheese course was the one that didn't resonate. The flavors didn't mesh for some reason and it was the only course all evening that there was even a morsel felt on a plate. They also poured us glasses of cognac to go with the chocolate course and to take home - a fruit bar, a jar of daily, homemade granola and copies of the menus.
Zagat: 28-28-28
Michelin: 3 Stars
Jenn's Rating: 99
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