Chef’s Table,
August 30th, 2013
Amuse Bouche
Popcorn Soup, Caramel Foam
Simple soup base. Onion & garlic sweated, deglaze white wine. Redux. Half water/half cream. A few yukon gold potatoes. Pureed fine and popcorn dust added to desired thickness. Reseason. Acidity fixed with lime juice. Heat from tabasco.
1st Course
Oysters & Truffle Glacage, Cabernet Salt
Fresh East Coast oysters, bed of red wine tinted Maldon salt & calendula flower petals. Glacage is a mornay containing egg yolk & black truffle. Broiled until sexy.
2nd Course
Lobster & Carrot Ravioli, Beet, Carrot Butter
Each ravioli contains Korean chili bean paste, carrot puree, a half a lobster, salt, pepper & butter. Carrot butter is redux of carrot juice, white wine & aromatics (fennel seed, peppercorn, lemongrass, saffron, ginger, chili flake, bay leaf & coriander), splash of cream, light thicken with cornstarch & then mounted butter. Acidity from sherry vinegar, heat from tabasco, a few drops of truffle oil. Beets raw & marinated with sherry vinegar and extra virgin olive oil. Chives barely bound together with extra virgin.
3rd Course
Petite Filet of Beef, Sweet Potato, Watercress Hollandaise & Port Wine Jus
Seared 4 oz tied beef filet, rested in duck fat kept at 120*F. Sweet potato gratin is paper thin shaved sweet potato, nutmeg, salt, white pepper, heavy cream and grana padano cheese. 300*F oven, waterbath, pressed down with a fish spatula every 15 minutes as it cooks. Pressed overnight before cutting. Watercress hollandaise is three egg yolks, 1 bunch of watercress in a blender to which hot melted butter is emulsified. Salt, sherry vinegar & tabasco to taste. Star anise & port wine demi contains red wine, port wine, coriander, orange zest, star anise, bay leaf and thyme reduced until sauce ready and then finished with demi, cream, and a touch of sherry vinegar. Strained though a chinnoise. Cauliflower caramelized in clarified butter. Salt, pepper and nutmeg to taste. Watercress lightly dressed. Pate choux garnish. Piped through a #3 round tip onto a silpat, 300*F oven, low fan until designs begin to lift and color.
4th Course
Orange Sorbet
Purple Door ice cream (currently do not own an ice cream machine), blueberries tossed in orange simple syrup, candied orange zest.
5th Course
Artisan Cheeses, Fig & Honey
House made ricotta & black pepper, Californian camembert & Wisconsinite bleu cheese. Honeycomb, fig syrup to finish (not shown on pic.)
Dessert
Key Lime & White Chocolate Cheesecake
Charred citrus salad, white chocolate ganache, lime syrup & candied orange zest, raspberry gelee. Gelee is one cup puree to four sheets of gelatin. Mixed in a quart container with a meat fork after set for "gem-like" presentation. Addition of choux garnish. Crust is gingersnap.
