Eleven Madison Park

My first Michelin Star Experience at Eleven Madison Park (3 Michelin Stars)

Before this night, I have not had an experience with a Michelin starred establishment and soon realized how much I was missing out! I had a friend visiting from Chicago and suggested to try Eleven Madison Park, or EMP as people in the know call it and I was glad I agreed to it. Never have I felt so pampered in a restaurant before. Time flew by so fast that our 4 hour dinner seemed like minutes and another 4 hours would have passed by just as fast. EMP has really captured the true luxury in the dining experience from the excellent service to the precision cooking, all set within an old bank. Imagine large windows looking out onto Madison Square Garden, extremely high ceilings, crisp white linen covered tables and numerous floral arrangements. They had white roses all over the place during my visit. I've even seen a young lady iron the sheets of the tables in between reservations. I also heard that EMP has made table setting into an art form, training people to lay out table cloths as swift as possible so as not to distract clients from their meals.

The restaurant is ran by Daniel Humm in the kitchen, and Will Guardia for front of the house. This duo has turned a once dying bistro into one of the world's greatest restaurant, ranked 10th by The World's 50 Best Restaurants in 2012.

Here is the Tasting Menu we had that night, Dec. 27, 2011, and since it was the Winter season, the menu was filled with truffles. I don't think I've had this much truffles in a single seating, from freshly shaved to white truffle flavored truffle chocolates.


Chicken
- Veloute with Parsley Oil, Liver Mousse and Black truffle

Hamachi and Fennel
-Pickled Ginger and Lemon; Ceviche with Tangerine

Yogurt and Chick Peas
-Lollipops with Curry; Panisse with Yogurt

Apple
-Gelee with Sea Urchin, Caviar and Foie Gras

Truffled Egg (A slow cooked egg covered with a lot of freshly shaved truffles)

Puntarella
-Salad with Tardivo, Anchovies and Garlic

Foie Gras
-Smoked Terrine with Black Truffle, Potato and Rye

Cauliflower
Roasted with Raisins, Brown Butter and Madras Curry

Lobster
-Poached with Autumn Mushrooms and Spinach

Squab
-Roasted with Quince and Brussels Sprouts

Triple Cream
-With Pumpkin, Apple and Rye Crisps

Egg Cream
-Orange, Cocoa Nibs and Seltzer

Cheesecake
-Goat Cheese, Cranberry and Lime

Chocolate
-Mousse with Malt Sorbet, Olive Oil and Meyer Lemon

Mignardise

Yes, that was a lot of food! But sadly, the venue had really dim lights and a no flash policy so I gave up on trying to take photos of the food. I was also intoxicated at the time with alcohol and didn't bother with pictures and decided to enjoy the night. I have the EMP cookbook for that.

The making of the Molecular Cocktail.

But one of the highlights of the night was when we were asked to enter the kitchen for a small show and a short tour. I think this was only given to PPX or VIP clients, a friend of ours who works on the line got us the reservation. The kitchen had an atmosphere of a military camp, everyone in their own station and no one talking except for the chef in charge that night. And when ever the chef would shout an order or fire a ticket, all the cooks would answer "Oui Chef" in a loud chorus then back to cooking or plating. It was like watching a silent movie. The entire kitchen was immaculate and spotless clean, and in the middle of dinner service! Definitely not like other kitchens I've worked in or seen where people are always talking, screaming to the other guy at the end of the line or running to the back to get more ingredients. And while the chef was talking to us and pointing out the different stations, there was this girl with a small "station" set in front of us. There, she made us an apple brandy cocktail using liquid nitrogen and froze it to slush. It was really good. Only liquid nitrogen is cold enough to freeze alcohol. Imagine taking a shot of brandy but frozen with fresh apples and a shot of liquid brandy.

And as for the rest of my experience at EMP, the service definitely out shown the food. Not that the food wasn't great, but that the service was far beyond excellent. Everyone eating at the restaurant was very well taken cared off (at least we were), and I would estimate at least 2 people watching over each table without being any bit intrusive. There would not have been a point that our white linen table covers would have any crumb on it. I got a Mint Julep cocktail that came with crushed ice filled to the brim that made it impossible to drink without dropping a few ice on the table, and whenever that would happen a server would come up and sweep the ice away with a bread crumber before it's had time to melt and mark the table cloth. Same thing when we got the bread, which was one of the best I've had. It's made in-house and is a cross between a croissant and a parker house roll.

Amber and me during the kitchen tour.

EMP is definitely a restaurant worth eating at. But good luck on getting reservations. Like Per Se, tables go fast and most of the time one can only hope on being wait listed so plan in advanced!

Also, their cookbook would be the perfect coffee table book, or as a reference for great recipes.

Restaurant Week: The Good Part 2

Apart from Ai Fiori and Dovetail, there was this other restaurant I've tried during restaurant week that satisfied my hungry stomach (and soul)

The name is Gotham Bar and Grill. A restaurant on 12th street ran by Chef Alfred Portale. It also has a with a very well deserved Michelin Star. The restaurant itself is a lot bigger than what you would have expected from the entrance with a long bar and a very lively atmosphere. Very well lit and it seemed like the perfect venue for power lunches.We got there around 2pm and there was a line to get a table even with reservations! It's been a while that I've walked into a restaurant that late into lunch service and see it jam packed.

Now onto the food.

For the first course, I had their smoked trout with fennel salad. This for me was one of the best appetizers I've had by far. Cold, salty, sweet and satisfying! The cured trout tasted almost like smoked salmon but without a powerful smokey and fishy taste. The crunchy salad paired perfectly and balanced off the rich softness of cured fish. The garlic chips added a nice crunch and the small dollops of creme fraiche added a nice tang.

I also added another course to the meal and got their Quail and Foie Gras Terrine served with a Beet Salad and boy did they nail the dish. The terrine itself looked weird, not knowing which layers were what but everything just melted in your mouth. The quail was cooked so perfect that it was almost as soft and moist as the creamy foie gras. And the beet salad added a nice fresh and sweet taste to the dish. This was also served with toasted brioche that was to flaky that it was impossible to eat without making a huge mess. It was almost as sweet and buttery as a croissant but with more "bread" to it. This was definitely one of the best foie gras terrines I've had. I still dream about this dish.

For my main course, I decided to get the fish to contrast the sinful terrine. Some white fish served with a warm potato salad and mustard vinaigrette. And again, this dish was good. The sweet and meaty flavor of the fish went really well with the tart mustard and potatoes. Not too heavy on the stomach too!

And for dessert, I got their signature Gotham Chocolate Cake and let me tell you that words cannot begin to describe how decadent this cake was. It was heaven in my mouth. A simple, super moist chocolate cake with cocoa ice cream. The texture of the cake was almost like a dark chocolate mousse with a hint of flour to give it that light "cakey" body. If I would guess, I think this is a cross between a light chocolate mousse and an almost flourless chocolate cake. The only complaint I have is that the serving was too small. A bigger slice would have made me gone to heaven and back a happy and full man.

Gotham Bar and Grill was definitely home to one of the best meals I've had in NY. A very well deserved Michelin Star for food, ambiance and service. But there was just this one detail that annoyed me the entire time I was in the restaurant. The servers all wore a tie bar but had worn it too low, somewhere around the lower 3rd of the necktie. It looked very unprofessional and sloppy. A minor detail that bugs me even until today.

Restaurant Week: The Good

Now onto more exciting food! As I mentioned in my older post here about NY Restaurant Week 2012, I've had the chance to try out several restaurants and try their special 2 course menu.

This post will talk about the ones I liked the most, and coincidentally, they are all Michelin Rated!

Ai Fiori (1 Michelin)

Located at the mezzanine level of the Setai Hotel on 5th Avenue, this restaurant has all the elements of a Michelin Rated Restaurant, nice sleek design, an army of friendly waitstaff, a good bar and good food!
I began my meal at the bar and got their signature cocktail. I hadn't noticed but the drink I ordered seemed to have a ritual onto how it's made. The bartender was too far into the process of making the cocktail that I didn't get a chance to notice or take photos. All I remember is that the cocktail was mixed in a chilled fishbowl before it was transferred to a rock glass for me to drink from. And the drink was perfect. You can really taste the alcohol (whiskey I think) with hints of whatever they used to flavor the drink (some bitters). I am one who will pay for good cocktails and this one is definitely one of the best I've had in NY.

I chose the Halibut for my entree and it came with black rice, white bean puree, mushrooms and some sauteed veggies. This was good! The fish perfectly cooked and went really well with the bean puree and mushroom.

Halibut

 

Chocolate Tar

As for desssert, I chose the chocolate tart. It was a very thick chocolate mousse/ganache layer with chocolate cake, and a chocolate crust served with some vanilla ice cream and gold leaves. I tend to order non-chocolate dessert items when dining out but i was glad I made this choice. It was the perfect dessert to cap off a perfect meal.


Dovetail (1 Michelin)

Seared Foie Gras with Fennel

Salmon with Almonds, Brussel Sprouts and Grapefruit

Dovetail is a fairly new restaurant the opened on the Upper West Side and has been attracting a lot of attention. And with good reason! The food that comes out of that kitchen is amazing. I ordered the seared foie gras in addition to the set lunch menu only because I havn't had foie for such a long time and I had a sudden craving for it. And foie gras, albeit very simple to cook, is hard to do properly. If the pan is too cold the foie will melt before getting a nice seared crust, too hot and the foie will burn before the inside turns a rosy pink. I was glad I got this dish and Dovetail did an amazing job. It was served with a sweet compote (Cherry if i remember correctly) that paired perfectly with the salty and creamy foie.

Then for my main course, I got the salmon. The flavors were great but I was surprised that they didn't ask for my cooking preference and the fish came out medium well, a bit overcooked for my preference but that's just me being a brat. I'm very particular as to how my food is cooked which is why I wait to go to the finer establishments to order my favorites.

Passion Fruit Mousse, Coconut and Green Apple Sorbet

As for the dessert, it was heaven in my mouth, again! The passion fruit mousse was extremely light and airy. It makes me wonder how they make it. I think it has some gelatin in it to hold it's form then it is pumped out using those whip its canisters and shaped and plated with a coconut meringe-cake like base. The green apple sorbet was a hit too and everything went well together. Fruity, light and not so sweet. One of the best composed desserts I've had by far!

And I also got a half bottle of white wine to pair with my meal.

Dovetail surely deserves all the attention they've been getting and the Michelin star!

Restaurant Week: The Bad

Ok, so 3 years after I decide to check back on my blog and do some writing. Paris is all behind me now and I am living in New York. And unlike my stay in Paris where good produce is almost always a stone throw's away from just about anywhere which kept me busy in my own kitchen, New York has all the restaurants that will make you hungry for more.

Every year, New York celebrates Restaurant Week, a 3 week bi-annual event where most high end restaurants (Michellin Rated Included) offer a special menu at a discounted rate. Think of it as a sneak peek of what the restaurant has to offer.  The promo for Restaurant Week Winter/Spring 2012 was $24.07 for a 2 course lunch or a $35 for a 3 course dinner. And I went crazy thinking this was the only chance I'll get at trying out all the fancy restaurants in New York without having to sell my soul for extra cash.

 Here is the list of the places I've been to for restaurant week.
Morimoto
Ai Fiori (1 Michelin)
A Voce (1 Michelin)
Fishtail by David Burke
Boulud Sud by Daniel Boulud
Megu
Ca Va by Todd English
Dovetail (1 Michelin)
Gotham Bar and Grill (1 Michelin)
La Perigord
Millesime at the Carlton

Sashimi display at Morimoto covered in plastic

 I kicked off restaurant week by going to Morimoto by Chelsea Market. The setting was modern and clean, and even the entrance to the restaurant looked amazing. I even got a seat by the sushi bar and got to see some of the cooks in action. I was so excited to finally try Morimoto but sadly, the food didn't match up with the design. I got the "Wagyu bento meal" they had on offer for restaurant week and all I can remember is getting a very thin slice of overcooked Wagyu. Very disappointing. The best part of the meal was the miniscule and overpriced serving of Uni ($9) and they didn't have to do anything to it! Determined to try something that tasted something like what Morimoto would come up in Battle Kitchen Stadium, I browsed through the menu and decided to order one of their expensive sushi rolls, the soft shell crab tempura. But again, it was a disappointment. The sushi had absolutely no taste of soft shell crab, or any crab at all. Also, the barely there sashimi on display was all wrapped in cling film. I'm very sure this has something to do with the New York health inspection code but still, why display fresh fish if your only going to wrap it up?

Megu was also a disappointment. Very much like Morimoto, the design of the restaurant was reallly nice to look at but the food was mediocre. Below is a photo of their 5 kinds of Sashimi. I was expecting to get more than just 1 slice per fish based on the price (almost $30 if i recall correctly). I also got their beef which came in a really nice presentation on a hot stone where it continued to cook. But again, the beef was was thinly sliced and it looked a lot better that it tasted.

 

Sashimi

These 2 restaurants are probably among the worst I've been to. Passing off good decor to lure in gullible foodies like myself. Never again will I judge a book by it's cover. On the other hand, I tried Yuba, a small well lit Japanese restaurant in downtown with a very simple design but served the best sushi I've had to this date. I think only a trip to the Tsukiji market will top this restaurant but that's due for another post.

Salmon Tartare with Fruit Salsa

Once a week, certain streets in residential Paris transforms into a farmer's market with the best produce coming from all over France. Luckily,I live in a part of Paris (Rue Saint Michel, 15eme) where the markets come twice a week on Tuesday and Friday. But more talk and photos about the Market some other time.

Ever since I tried salmon tartare near the Pompidou I just couldn't stop thinking about it. It was made very simple, just raw salmon diced up and served with mangoes, balsamic vinaigrette and olive oil. So i decided to come up with my own version. All fresh ingredients I used came form the Farmer's Market.



Salmon Tartare

1. Mango and Percimon Salsa
1 Slice Mango
1/2 Percimon
1/3 Medium White Onion
1/4 cup Sweet White Wine (for this recipe, i used a Muscat Beaumes de Venise, 2007)
2 tbsp butter
Japanese Chili Powder
Salt

2. Salmon
1 Salmon Belly, with skin on (optional)
1 tbsp Lime juice
Corriander/Cilantro

3. Reduced Balsamic Vinegar
1/2 cup Balsamic Vinegar

Since we have to serve the salmon tartare chilled, let us begin with the Mango and Percimon Salsa to give time for it to cool down. Begin by finely chopping some onions and sautee them in butter until soft, no color! When the onions have started to soften, add the sweet white wine and let cook until almost all the liquid had evaporated, about 7 minutes then add in the finely diced fruit. Try to look for a consistency that will hold its shape. Add in the Japanese Chili Powder and transfer onto plate and cover with cling film to cool in the refrigerator.

For the balsamic reduction, put some balsamic vinegar into a pot over medium low heat or just enough for it to lightly simmer. Keep on the same heat until the vinegar is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon and tastes sweet without any hint of vinegar, about 7-10 minutes depending on the heat and size of pan. Do not overcook. The reduction turns into burnt syrup really fast so keep a close watch. Just a word of advise, do this in a well ventilated area or with the exhaust fan turned on as fumes from the vinegar can irritate your throat.

As for the Salmon Tartare itself, always make sure to only use fresh sashimi grade Salmon. If you cannot find a good quality salmon, just make sure that it has been properly handled. Frozen Salmon can do the job just as good but thaw properly in the refrigerator over night. I like to rinse my fish under cold running water just to make sure there are no dirt or bacteria. Begin by scaling the fish with a fish scaler or with the back of your knife, then separate the skin from the meat of the fish carefully with a flexible fillet knife trying to have as little meat on the skin as possible. Again, search this up on youtube if your not sure on how to do this step. Trim the salmon off any darkened meat from the blood and debone. Cutting across the grain of the fish, make sashimi like slices, then into strips, then into cubes. This is called a brunoise.



Store in refrigerator until ready to use. If using the salmon skin, lightly salt the skin and pan fry in olive oil over high heat until crispy. Trim and set aside.

Assembly

Mix the chopped up salmon with cilantro, and only add the lime juice when you are about to plate and serve. Remember that the lime juice will cook the meat liek a ceviche.

On a food mold, fill up 1/4 with the cooled down mango and percimon salsa and top with the Salmon Tartare mix. You can always add more or less of either ingredient depending on your taste. You can be creative and put a slice of fruit on top of the tartare or simply drizzle some of the reduced balsamic vinaigrette on top and serve the trimmed crispy skin on the side. Be creative and serve with thinly sliced fruits.

I like this dish because the sweetness of all the fruits, wine and reduced balsamic go very well together with the freshness of the salmon mixed with the acidity of the lime, complimented by the crisp and salty skin.

Beef Tartare

As surprisingly as this may sound, finely chopped up raw beef mixed with minced onions, capers, parsley, hot sauce, Worcestershire sauce, Dijon Mustard, Ketchup, Olive oil and 1 Egg Yolk can make an amazing meal. Best served with a side of fries and salad, this dish has become a staple in cafe's, brasseries and restaurants all over Paris.

I made this dish with a slice of Fillet Mignon bought from a butcher a few meters from my apartment. And if you are planning to make this yourself, be sure to use meat from a butcher you can trust. If you don't have a butcher, I suggest you buy meat from a source that is reputable and clean.


To prepare the beef, slice it into thin strips then into small cubes and chop up roughly. I have tried fancier restaurants where they serve beef tartare in small cubes and this does look more appetizing. The french counterparts serve their tartare ground up like a raw burger patty. It may not look as appetizing but is sure tastes just as good. And remember that chopped up meat spoils the fastest since more surface area is exposed to air and bacteria. Always work in a bowl over ice and keep your meat cold!

And for the other ingredients, the quantities all depend on how you want your tartare to taste. I added more Tabasco sauce since i like mine a bit spicier. I also added some mayonnaise to make it creamier and richer in texture. However you want it, be sure to enjoy while doing it and remember that good hygiene while preparing this dish is very important!

Life In Paris

The City of Lights, as most of you may know it, is a city filled with endless surprises. From historic bridges to magnificent palaces, to high fashion and gastronomic indulgences, this city has something for everyone.But what exactly makes this city so special from any other city?

A few Reasons why I love Paris



First, Paris as the City of Lights. Unlike other highly populated, first world consumerist countries such as New York and Japan, Paris by night is lit not by glaring billboards, neon lights and LCD screens but rather by old lamp posts and spot lights that give detail and attention to the art found all over the city. Ever seen the Louvre at night? And this is what i love most about Paris. There are lights coming from just about anywhere and everything in the city. The revolving lights at the Eiffel guiding you home, the Christmas lights along Champs-Elysees, the lamp posts lighting your cobbled pathway home, and that orange hue that gives Paris it's picturesque scene.



Second, Paris as the Food Capital of the World. Although I know that good food can be found at just about anywhere in the world, no one can deny the influence of classical french techniques. Almost every culture has adopted the French was one way or another. Foie Gras anyone? In fact, the term french cuisine is often seen as something that is complicated, expensive and extremely satisfying. And why wouldn't it be? French Chefs really do go the extra mile and often times ridiculously overboard in serving up the perfect dish. French has turned food into a form of art.

The picture above is beef bourguignon which took over a day to make, 24 hours in marinade and 2 1/2 hours in the oven. We also had to clean, chop, sear and strain the beef and aromatic garnish. And at the end of it all, we threw away all the vegetables that went into the oven since they were too soft to be served. We had to prepare separately mushrooms, pork lardons, glazed onions, turned potatoes and pan fried bread to be served with the beef bourguignon. Compare this with the American one pot cook and serve counterpart!