2012: My Ten Dishes of the Year

Another year draws to a close and yet again I'm left wondering where all the time has gone (probably spent in restaurants judging by this post I'm sure you're thinking). Anyway, I thought I'd continue my tradition of looking back at the most memorable restaurant dishes I had over the year. I've been really lucky enough to have indulged in some epic meals this year, the highlights of which have undoubtedly been experiencing the truly magical Fäviken for the first time, a return to Noma and The Ledbury, and of course Oslo's sublime Maaemo.

So, in reverse order here is a list of the ten best things I ate in a restaurant in 2012:

Le Louis XV, Monte-Carlo – Restaurant Review

I was recently in Monaco to indulge in one of my favourite things, namely watching insanely fast cars drive round a track. And when the Formula 1 circus comes to town, there's no better place to watch it than in Monte-Carlo, where the absurd speed and noise of these machines is in stark contrast to the perilously narrow and usually genteel streets of the Principality.

I'd taken an early morning flight from Oslo and was due to meet up with some friends travelling from London on a later flight. So, I landed at Nice airport at noon without a clue as to what I'd do to pass the five hours until the rest of the gang arrived. Of course, with my other passion being food I found myself in the baggage hall hesitantly telephoning the three Michelin-starred Le Louis XV restaurant in Monte-Carlo's Hôtel de Paris to enquire if they possibly, maybe, pretty please had a table for one available for lunch in an hour. The answer, to my amazement, was yes.

2010: My Ten Dishes of the Year

I sit writing this from a bitterly cold Oslo. Sunshine and warmth seem like a long-distant memory. Walking outside is a somewhat surreal experience as shadowy figures dressed in thick duvet-like jackets shuffle along the half-lit icy pavements. But it's not that bleak really. The winter solstice has just passed, and with it we can slowly expect the daylight hours to get longer and our depleted vitamin D supplies to be replenished. Christmas is just around the corner, and of course we have a fresh new year with all its challenges and delights to look forward to.

Now, what good would an end-of-year article be without some sort of look back at the year gone by? Yes folks, it's time for a clichéd top-ten list! Without further ado, I bring you my ten best restaurant dishes of 2010. Drum roll please.

In reverse order, these are:

10. Caviar with Crab and Shellfish Jelly – Joël Robuchon, Monte-Carlo

What a way to start a meal! A little trompe l'oeil that looks like a whole tin of sevruga caviar is, instead, caviar atop layers of shellfish jelly and sweet crab meat. A perfect blend of flavours – rich, luxurious and a blast to eat, making you feel like a billionaire oligarch. Mwah-ha-haa!

9. Yose Tofu – Yashin, London

This was perhaps the finest tofu I have ever tasted. Served still warm, and barely set, it came with freshly grated wasabi and diced tosazu jelly, whose tart acidity was a perfect complement to the clean and fresh flavour of the tofu. Within seconds, we had scraped the bowl clean, and promptly called the waiter over to order another one. Heavenly!

8. Tartaleta de Chocolate con Cajeta – Topolobampo, Chicago

Second best dessert of the year is from newly Michelin-starred chef Rick Bayless. This titan of Mexican cuisine is a favourite of President Obama and I can see why. This tart consisted of luxurious, silky-smooth, dark Mexican chocolate sat atop a thin layer of soft, gooey cajeta (goats' milk caramel). This ensemble was lightly sprinkled with flakes of salt and encased in crumbly pastry. Accompanying this was a scoop of goats' cheese ice cream, toasted marshmallows, and graham cracker 'gravel'. Who knew chocolate and goats' cheese would go so well together!

7. Mascarpone Cream, Sponge Pudding, Almond Foam, White Truffle from Alba – Hélène Darroze, London

The undisputed best dessert of the year was this innocent looking number from Hélène Darroze at the Connaught. The cool, sweetened mascarpone was offset by a warm, eggy, vanilla sponge pudding. The residual warmth of the rich sponge was just enough to bring out the flavour of the abundant Alba truffle shavings, so that those wonderful aromas enveloped everything. The almonds and oh-so-light almond foam added a touch of perfumed nuttiness and a variation in texture. When combined, the flavours were nothing short of breathtaking – think of it as 'trifle of the gods.'

6. O-toro nigiri – Sushi Dai, Tokyo

I thought I knew sushi until I ate sushi in Japan, and then I realised everything I knew about it was wrong. The main culprit was this simple piece of o-toro nigiri served to me at Sushi Dai in Tokyo's Tsukiji Fish Market. Pristine tuna (bought a few hours before) had a beautiful spider's web of rich marbling. Eating it was such a sensual experience; the cool flesh of the tuna juxtaposed by the perfectly al dente and lukewarm rice. I hardly needed to chew, the buttery tuna just melted on my tongue. Epic.

5. White Truffle Risotto – Launceston Place, London

Without doubt, the finest risotto I have ever had – rich and creamy with an oh-so-perfect consistency, full of that intoxicating white truffle aroma – I shall be having warm fuzzy dreams about this dish for a long time to come.

4. Guinea Fowl – Oscarsgate, Oslo

At this tiny Oslo restaurant, Swedish chef Björn Svensson is performing little miracles with food. Meltingly tender guinea fowl was served with apple purée, beetroot, and potato. Scandinavia on a plate.

3. Flame Grilled Mackerel with Cucumber, Celtic Mustard and Shiso – The Ledbury, London

A classic by The Ledbury's Brett Graham. This is the dish most people rave about. Mackerel can be a tricky fish to tame – its oily fishiness is always in danger of overwhelming the taste buds. Here the fish was cooked to perfection; the core of it was soft, almost sashimi like, while the skin magically retained a smokey crispness. Accompanying this was a little parcel of smoked eel wrapped in a translucent film of cucumber jelly. A lightly pickled cucumber and delicate leaves of shiso and coriander cress added the needed acidity. I was lost for words at how good this dish was – one of the real highlights of the meal. Magnificent!

2. Langoustine with Oyster, Parsley and Seawater Emulsion, and Rye Crumbs – Noma, Copenhagen

In July, I ate at Noma, and the "world's best restaurant" lived up to the hype and more. This dish brought the house down for me. The most perfect langoustine, barely cooked, was placed on a warm basalt stone that was dotted with small pearls of oyster, parsley and seawater emulsion. A purple powder of seaweed was sprinkled over the stone. This was a dish you eat with your hands and we were encouraged to "make art" as we dipped the langoustine in the emulsion. I closed my eyes and felt transported to a beach on a hot summer's day. Simply amazing.

And the winner of the Nordic Nibbler best restaurant dish of 2010 award is ... *opens envelope* ....

1. Black Truffle Explosion, Romaine, Parmesan – Alinea, Chicago

Alinea totally and utterly took my breath away. The level that head chef Grant Achatz is cooking at now is just astounding. Alinea is on another planet altogether. The Michelin gods saw fit to deign this restaurant with three stars in their inaugural guide to Chicago. Every dish of the meal I had there was stunning, but the standout dish for me was a one-bite symphony of flavour called 'Black Truffle Explosion.' A wafer thin ravioli was filled with the most intense warm black truffle broth. It was eaten in one bite, releasing a cascade of unworldly truffle flavours.


This exercise was actually a lot harder than I imagined. The highlight of the year for me was undoubtedly my meal at Alinea, and at least half of the list could easily have been dishes from the newly crowned three-Michelin star Chicago restaurant. But there were lots of other incredible highlights, and looking back I feel very lucky to have been able to sample such wonderful food. I'll be honest, part of me can't wait to see the back of 2010, it's been that sort of year, but looking back at some of the happy memories, maybe it hasn't been so bad after all?

So, what have been the standout dishes of the year for you? What is your top-ten food list of 2010?

Finally, here's wishing you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Quai des Artistes, Monte-Carlo - Restaurant Review

I came across these pictures from my Monaco trip the other day lurking on my camera's SD card and I thought it would be worth posting something about them. Following on from the battering our wallets had taken at Restaurant Joël Robuchon the night before, we decided to go for something a little more low key for our dinner that night.

Eating out in Monaco can be a bit of challenge at times. Decent restaurants tend to be phenomenally expensive while the cheaper ones seem to serve mediocre fayre catered to tourists. Quai des Artistes strikes a middle ground. Although still fairly pricey, it falls into the mid-price range bracket of Monaco restaurants. The restaurant is modelled on a Parisian brasserie and is nicely located on the harbour just next to the raucous Stars'N'Bars restaurant. The interior is very pleasant, although it borders on the pastiche and is a touch clichéd; you sort of imagine that if Disney made a French brasserie that this is how it would look; leather banquettes, a large central chandelier and even an old Paris metro sign dominate the room. But the restaurant just about manages to carry off the look.

The extensive menu serves a wide variety of hearty brasserie food. Starters include, among other things, classics such as escargot, moules marinière, terrines and soups. Mains are dominated by grilled fish and meat. Everything on the menu here sounds good and it was genuinely a tough choice to decide.

To start with I had gratinated queen scallops which came served in the shell. The scallops were perfectly cooked in a cream and wine sauce, while the breadcrumb crust was satisfyingly crispy and cheesy. 

Gratinated Scallops

The main course was a fantastic piece of entrecôte steak cooked medium-rare with bernaise sauce. Accompanying this were pommes dauphinoise and a green salad. The steak was really good, perfectly cooked and well-rested, and nicely charred on the outside with a juicy, grassy taste. The creamy dauphinoise potatoes had a nice garlicy aroma to them and the green salad was, well, just salad, but perfect for mopping up the juices. This has to be one of my favourite food combinations of all time; very simple, but amazing when done well, and here it was done very well indeed.

Entrecôte steak with pommes dauphinoise and green salad

For dessert I had a strawberry mille-feuille, which although good was nothing special. The mille-feuille was a little on the chewy side but the strawberries were perfectly ripe and the coulis was not overly sweet.

Strawberry mille-feuille

The bill per person came to around €140 per person, including coffee and some rather decent red wine. This was probably more than I was expecting to pay for this sort of food, but as I've mentioned before there aren't really any decent 'cheap' restaurants in Monaco, so in this context Quai des Artistes seems reasonably priced for such an agreeable meal. I was also impressed with the quality of service given that it was the middle of the Grand Prix weekend. All in all, Quai des Artistes is a thoroughly decent place to while away the evening over some good French comfort food and some decent wine.

Food:        7 / 10
Service:     7 / 10
Ambiance: 8 / 10

Quai des Artistes
4 quai Antoine 1er
Monte-Carlo 98 000
Monaco
Tel: +377 97 97 97 77

Joël Robuchon, Monte-Carlo - Restaurant Review

A few weeks back I was lucky enough to be in Monaco to indulge in two of my passions; food and Formula 1. It was a glorious spring weekend on the Côte d'Azur and the buzz surrounding this usually staid place was palpable. In such surroundings and company I could have eaten at KFC and been happy (in fact I can generally eat at KFC and be happy). As it was I had made a reservation at Joël Robuchon, a two-Michelin star restaurant located in the fantastically grand Hotel Metropole. The reservation process itself was a bit of a palaver requiring photocopies of passport and credit cards having to be faxed over, but in the end a table at 9:00pm was secured.

The entry to the restaurant is very grand with a long candle-lit driveway leading to the covered entrance. This being Monaco the driveway was lined with the most luxurious cars you could imagine. We were a little early so we decided to have pre-dinner drinks in the wonderfully decadent lobby, which was dominated by a huge central skylight. Just off the lobby was a large bar area with wall-to-wall books, the door to the toilets being hidden behind one such bookshelf, very James Bond. The overall feel was one of timeless luxury; elegant without being gaudy.

The restaurant is run by the very capable Head Chef, Christophe Cussac, a Robuchon protege. Cussac was formerly executive chef at the two Michelin Star restaurant La Reserve de Beaulieu, executive chef of two Michelin Star restaurant Hotel L’Abbaye, and Chef de Partie at the three Michelin Star Restaurant Troisgros, so he has bags of experience and talent in running such a high-end restaurant.

The dining room was designed by Jacques Garcia and was elegant and contemporary. The open plan kitchen is at one end with a sushi-style bar around it which I gather, given Robuchon's Japanese influences, serves as the chef's table. The restaurant seemed busy without being hectic, emitting that pleasing hum of of well-oiled Michelin-starred machine. My only gripe was that the dining chairs were a bit too low for me which, combined with the lack of space to stretch your legs under the table due to a huge central column that restricted the floorspace, made for a somewhat uncomfortable seating experience.

We all opted for the 10-course "Discovery" menu which at €210 per head without drinks was probably the most I have ever paid for food in a restaurant. I also suspect prices were somewhat inflated due to the Grand Prix as the tasting menu is usually €180 according to the restaurants website. However, sometimes you just have to splurge, and Monte-Carlo is hardly the place to visit on a shoestring.

We started with an amuse-bouche of foie gras mousse, salted caramel and Parmesan. This was a fantastic combination, the rich an silky foie gras combined perfectly with the sweet caramel and salty cheese. It had a surprisingly light texture given the heavy ingredients involved. I should also mention the bread. What I though was the cheese or dessert trolley turned out to be full of bread. I had never seen something like this before, but it was a fantastic idea. The butter was stored as one gigantic block under a bell jar and the waitress would create perfect quenelles of salted butter to place next to your chosen bread. A very classy touch.

Foie gras mousse, salted caramel and Parmesan

Next was a visually spectacular dish. A small tin bearing the logo of the restaurant was placed before us alongside a mother-of-pearl spoon. The tin was opened to reveal beautiful, perfect spheres of glistening caviar. Underneath (to the disappointment of my good friend who thought it was caviar all the way to the bottom) was a layer of shellfish jelly and beneath that was crab meat. This was one of my favourites of the evening. The flavours worked really well together, the crab was sweet and perfectly cooked, and the shellfish jelly was like a super concentrated essence of langoustine. I love caviar, and scooping up spoonfuls of it seemed like such a naughty thing to do. What a fun dish this was!

 

Caviar with crab and shellfish jelly

Next up was probably the most mediocre dish of the meal. Asparagus with morels and shavings of Parmesan. There was nothing bad about it per se, its just that it seemed a tad boring after the opening fireworks. Asparagus is always a good starter in my book and it combined well with the dense, woody morels and shavings of Parmesan. The asparagus was a touch overcooked for my liking though, but I've often found that asparagus in France and Germany is cooked that way, so maybe it was just me.

Asparagus, Parmesan and morels

This was followed by duck foie gras. The foie gras was cooked so that a wonderful savoury crust had developed which yielded to a meltingly soft interior. Again, salted caramel was used to provide sweetness, echoing the amuse-bouche. This was accompanied by vibrant minted peas, which were semi-mushy and incredibly fresh tasting. The menu stated this dish also came with bacon but I suspect this was a typo as no bacon was to be found. Instead it was Arnad lard from the Aosta valley in northern Italy. A wonderfully fragrant lard flavoured with mountain herbs made from pigs fed only chestnuts and vegetables.

Foie gras, salted caramel, and peas

After this was a dish consisting of a solitary langoustine tail wrapped in a basil leaf and then in filo-type pastry and deep fried. Alongside it was a slick of thick parsley sauce. The star of this dish of course was the langoustine which was stunning. Perfectly cooked, sweet, juicy and a nice contrast to the light and crisp pastry shell. I suppose this was Robuchon's take on tempura with a South of France influence. It worked really well and was gone in a few seconds.

Langoustine in a crispy parcel with basil

Then a warm salad of poivrade artichokes, squid and chorizo. The artichokes had been thinly sliced and had a nutty, grassy taste with a hint of bitterness, much more flavoursome than their globe artichoke cousins. Squid and chorizo is one of those food matches made in heaven, and here it did not disappoint. Small pieces of tender squid offset by the robustly smokey chorizo. The whole thing was topped off with shredded Jabugo ham. To be honest, each component of this dish in their own right would have been perfect on their own.

Poivrade artichokes, with squid, chorizo and thyme

The main course was next and it was a choice between quail or lamb. I opted for the lamb while my dear (and misguided) friends chose the quail. The lamb cutlets were just glorious. They had been grilled to perfection and almost melted in your mouth. A bit like a dainty meat lollipop. On the side was some pureed garlic and the waiter came round with a bowl of Robuchon's infamous pommes purée that is allegedly made with equal parts of butter and potatoes. This was my first time trying them and they were every bit as good as I had imagined – a dream dish for cardiologists. Our waiter spotted the jealous stares of my friends and a second bowl of mash soon appeared.

Grilled lamb cutlets, pommes purée

Finally on to desserts. Surprisingly, given our location no cheeses were offered, which is just as well as we were getting pretty full by now. Maybe this was the Japanese influence coming in. For our first dessert we were served a "tendance fraise". I've still no idea what a tendance is or if it's just a descriptive phrase used to name the dish, so if any kind readers could fill me in I'd be grateful. What was served was a some yoghurt and lime ice-cream and a sort of cold square of pain perdu atop some semi-set strawberry jelly.  This tasted much nicer than it sounds, with a really intense strawberry taste, but we all agreed that the custardy bread thing was probably redundant.

Tendance Fraise

This was followed by another dessert. This time fresh pineapple and green apples with meringue and a basil and pineapple sorbet. This was easily the better of the two desserts and had such a fresh and clean taste, exactly the sort of thing you'd like to finish a meal with; cool, light and refreshing.

Pineapple, apple, meringue, basil and pineapple sorbet

Finally, along with our coffee a solitary chocolate was served and I'm not sure why this was listed on the menu as a separate course. It seems odd to list something on the menu that usually comes with coffee at most restaurants of this calibre. Portion-wise, to serve one single chocolate for petit-fours seems a bit mean in my book. I know I'm a glutton but where were the macarons, truffles and tuilles? Oh well. The chocolate was delicious though, and was filled with more of the salted caramel (what is with salted caramel at this place? Was there a salted caramel sale going on that I missed?) but alas it was gone all too quickly.

Chocolate with salted caramel

The total bill (including some really decent wine) came to an eye-watering €400 per person. The food was sensational, but at times you felt like the chef was playing it a bit safe with dishes like the asparagus and the lamb. It would have been nice to see more adventurous dishes on the menu but I guess the menu has to cater to its target audience, which in Monaco means a older, super-wealthy person who, dare I say it, prefers a more traditional, conservative dining experience. The cost also seemed a little out of whack, but this is Monaco where nobody asks because everyone can afford it. A place like this certainly wouldn't get away with charging as much in London, Paris or New York.

In summary though, this was a monumentally good meal. The setting was magical, making you feel part spy, part plutocrat and the service was good (if a little stiff). I would definitely come back (after having taken out a second mortgage) and if you're ever in Monaco and feel like splurging then I can highly recommend you pay a visit to Joël Robuchon.

Food:           8 / 10

Service:        7 / 10

Ambiance:    9 / 10 (a point knocked off for the seats being so darn low!)

Restaurant Joël Robuchon

Hôtel Métropole

4 avenue de la Madone

Monte-Carlo 98 000

Monaco

Tel: +377 93 15 15 10