Course One
Rice paper, finger lime and salmon roe
The rice paper had the texture of a prawn cracker. Light and refreshing, it was a perfect opener.
Rainbow trout, coffee, black treacle, chicken crisp
Sticky and sweet rainbow trout, delicious. The winner on this plate, however, was the chicken crisp. It looks deceptively ‘plain’ but just one bite of this feels like you’ve just put an entire roast chicken dinner in your mouth. At this point, S just began laughing maniacally.
Course Two
Tomato and prawn, thai basil, daikon ice
The tomato and prawn had an intense flavour which was cut through beautifully by the daikon ice. It always makes me happy when I can say ‘I’ve never had anything like this before!’
Course Three
Pancetta and spanner crab, rye cream, candied radish
So much flavour packed into such a small serving. I’m a big fan of contrasting textures on a plate so I loved the soft, salty pancetta against the smooth rye cream. Throw in the crunch of the candied radish and I’m pretty happy right about now.
Course Four
Egg yolk and new potatoes, salt cod, fish crackling
Breaking the yoke on this and watching the velvety yoke run through the potatoes and cod was so comforting. Those tiny, wee little potatoes were cooked to perfection. Oh, and FISH CRACKLING!
Course Five
Hapuku and chestnut, toasted nori and chicory
I’m usually unimpressed with white fish so I wasn’t expecting much with this course. This course made me realise how awesome it can be. I’ve never had hapuku before but I want it again! The fish was buttery and flaky, and the single chicory leaf gave it just a slight bitterness that was spot on.
Course Six
Eel and bone marrow, eggplant, pickled vegetables
Oh god. OH GOD. The closest I’ve ever come to having a religious experience was this course.
Course Seven
Pigeon, salsify and medlar, cabbage braised in pecorino
This was the only course that didn’t entirely work for me, however, not through any fault of the chef. The pecorino was insanely intense and had very ‘blue-cheese’ qualities to it. Not being a fan of blue cheese, it was a bit too much for me, but S (who adores blue cheese) scoffed this down.
Course Eight
Fallen fruit: apple, almond, caramel, chamomile
Sort of like a deconstructed strudle. How could something so ugly taste so damn good?
Course Nine
Quince and coffee, pumpkin, plum, aniseed
Pumpkin ice-cream? Totally works! Getouttahere!
Course Ten
Pistachio, hazelnut, honeycomb, chocolate
Chocolate is always a crowd-pleaser, however it’s the pistachio that was the star on this plate. Paired with a milk chocolate ice-cream and exactly the right amount of honeycomb pieces. There’s a kind of genius behind this dish.
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Tags: Menu, Omnivore