3 Michelin Stars Archives - Major Foodie https://major-foodie.com/category/3-michelin-stars/ Fine Dining Honestly Reviewed Tue, 16 Jul 2024 12:34:38 +0000 en-GB hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.7.1 /wp-content/uploads/sites/16/2020/01/cropped-mf_green_jpeg-32x32.jpg 3 Michelin Stars Archives - Major Foodie https://major-foodie.com/category/3-michelin-stars/ 32 32 L’Assiette Champenoise (Reims) https://major-foodie.com/lassiette-champenoise-reims/ https://major-foodie.com/lassiette-champenoise-reims/#respond Thu, 22 Jun 2023 20:54:25 +0000 https://major-foodie.com/?p=23969 Three Michelin starred restaurant, nestled within a Relaix Chateaux Hotel L’Assiette Champenoise is the only 3 Michelin starred restaurant in the region of Champagne and is set within the suburbs of Reims.  As a restaurant within a hotel, it has a unique offering to deliver dishes from the 3 Michelin starred restaurant to your hotel […]

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Three Michelin starred restaurant, nestled within a Relaix Chateaux Hotel

L’Assiette Champenoise is the only 3 Michelin starred restaurant in the region of Champagne and is set within the suburbs of Reims.  As a restaurant within a hotel, it has a unique offering to deliver dishes from the 3 Michelin starred restaurant to your hotel room if the restaurant is fully booked on your visit or stay at the Hotel as was the case on my impromptu visit.  This was actually something I did not know until there, so I decided to take advantage of it however, it transpired to be one of the poorest experiences I have had at any venue containing a 3 Michelin starred dining experience, let alone a Relais & Châteaux hotel, having visited nearly a third of the world’s 3 Michelin starred restaurants now.  The in-room dining was pleasing as one would expect, but for the price demanded for the one, main dish tried (€145) and hospitality in general, it was an experience and stay I cannot recommend or have any wish to repeat.  As fair warning, this write up is lengthy and includes all aspects of my stay at this hotel.

Following a road trip tour of France through Burgundy, Macon and Lyon, I decided to stay somewhere nice on the way back to the UK as the final stopover, prior to a morning drive to Calais.  A scan of various sources led me to the Relais & Châteaux L’Assiette Champenoise hotel just in Reims.  Whilst it was clear at time of booking that there was no availability in the restaurant (perfectly understandable), a la carte dishes from the main restaurant menu are actually offered for in-room dining to my amazement.  Menus at the restaurant itself start at a very reasonable €155 for lunch on certain days to set menus of €285 and €385 at the fuller end with a la carte dishes being around the same price as a base entry set-lunch menu in full.  For those wishing to gain the best value of the restaurant, it’s clear which one you can opt for if available on chosen day of visit.

On settling in to the room, we were offered to have the electric car put on charge for €25 whether it was on all night or for 5 minutes which is a bit of a strange policy and very much a relative let down when many five star and Relais & Châteaux hotels provide EV charging included for the general premium one is paying to visit, such as Lucknam Park which I have just enjoyed doing so, from my stay there this summer.  A bit of a geeky, techno side bit: I’ve been driving electric cars for 5 years now and the rate is like any, the more Kwh you pull, the greater the charge obviously, so firstly makes no financial sense to put on for an hour or two at this rate of €25, but that rate also resembles an unnecessarily high premium charge for the reasons I can break down: an electric car with a 75 kW battery (like mine) pulling charge at an average of €0.1 per kWh overnight (which is very likely and sometimes cheaper), the actual cost is therefore around 75x 0.1 = €7.50 and that’s 0-100%.  No-one in their right mind will have 0% battery on arrival (unless they want the 8 year warranty for an EV battery voided) and are unlikely to charge to 100% for battery conservation so let’s say 10-90% as the average high demand; therefore, 80% of €7.50 = an actual cost of around €6 to the hotel that charges €25 for even 5 minutes of charge and is basically 500% mark up at the average minimum charge.  I politely declined the offer resulting in our baggage handler to immediately turn around in what appeared to be disapproval at my decision – strange, but ok…

One very nice touch from the hotel was that even though we were not able to gain a table, the canapés for the restaurant were afforded to us whilst enjoying champagne in the garden. These included a tartlet of Comte cheese and nut vinegar, a falafel with lemon gel, a bite of petit tuna, feta cheese in a red pepper shell and foie gras on cereal crackers.  These were enjoyable and intricately made, although I was surprised at the lack of foie gras and tuna flavours presented and generally speaking, these seemed to represent those within the 1 Michelin starred field, certainly not in the same sphere as that experienced at La Vie, Germany (now closed), Alinea, Chicago, Zen, Singapore and Geranium, Copengahen as quick examples.

The main surprise however was that the canapés were served by a waiter who seem to regard questions about the ingredients as annoying and clearly did not wish to engage any longer than necessary and was almost Basil Fawlty-like in having to engage at the ask – not the best of starting impressions, but perhaps they were extremely busy and we were a late arrival, so I’ll reluctantly let that slide I thought.   

We took advantage of the rare dining offer from the hotel  and as mentioned, these are in the region of €150 each so I elected for the one turbot dish and a host of other normal, room service dishes, both menus of which are attached for you to see the difference.  There was only one dining chair in the room (from the one desk), so when the trolley arrived, we asked what the hotel’s arrangement for the other chair was, to which the waiter shrugged shoulders and moved speedily back to the door.  Evidently he didn’t have the highest motivation to help an actual solution and I’m not sure I’ve seen a waiter ‘take cover’ so quickly from a simple question and virtually sprint away.

“Have I done anything?” I was beginning to ask myself on this third, bizarre exchange with hotel staff.  An observation: based on this offer of serving restaurant dishes in the hotel, one would have thought they have done this once or twice before and a seat is a fairly important component of the meal, particularly when an event like this.  So this was now actually a bit of a blow to the experience when about to enjoy a €145 turbot dish from a new, 3 Michelin starred restaurant from a sofa seat that placed the height of the table roughly at the guest’s nose when sat down.

Once both of us were able to reach the table, the room service dishes themselves were generally pleasing: very good smoked salmon in ‘thin’, cuboid-like slices with lemon and a wonderful herbed cream (€28); foie gras fermier, preserved in glass jar was good value (€28), but a little lacking in foie gras depth again; a beef tartare (€29) that was quite finely diced, almost mashed in texture but with very good balance of seasoning with sour dough toast and an array of mini desserts which, again were very pleasant and consisted of vanilla cream, chocolate mousse, caramel cream and tiramisu (€21).  These actually represented very good value for the calibre of room service dishes these were. What was a slight puzzle was to see Heinz tomato ketchup and mayonnaise in little jars provided as well and I was wondering what they would go with best – the salmon, the foie gras, the beef tartare (which had no chips) or the dessert…?  Not only are these surprisingly low-end variants as condiments, they were obviously never going to be compatible or of use for our chosen dishes so the main point, whilst not a huge issue, only served to show a strange lack of judgment or lack of thought in general for such a venue to include.  

What was a huge issue was that when my a la carte choice of the turbot dish (from a medium- reasonably weighted turbot of 6kg) was brought in, the waiter removed the cloche and started to walk away when I had not finished my other dishes and refused to leave it.  I politely asked again as I still had my other dishes including hot toast to enjoy and removing the cloche made no sense as my main would go cold (obviously).  As there was a language barrier, I called down to the reception on the phone to help quickly translate this crucial point to the waiter so there was no confusion, but the answer gained from the reception was that the waiter was not allowed to leave the cloche in the room and the receptionist could not answer why.  Whaat?! Sure as anything, even when I had finished off my other starter as quickly as possible, the turbot had gone cold which ruined the pleasure of the dish which was my only one from the a la carte – a bit of a kick in the groin when this dish is priced at €145 (not exactly a cheap price for one dish of turbot).  It wasn’t in my actual plans to steel the silver cloche if that was in the equation for the policy and I just couldn’t understand why they couldn’t leave that and collect with the rest of the trolley when all done.  In terms of the dish itself, the turbot from Brittany was good quality as one might hope with a wonderful vin jaune frothy sauce (creamed sauce made with dessert wine) and sweet, preserved onion.  However, it was sadly a total disaster based on being at best luke warm, but basically nearly cold at time of eating. 

As this and the other factors above had now combined to destroy my happiness at the dining experience, I did actually decide to give some immediate feedback to the manager after my meal who, in fairness did a very good job of listening and engaging with my points.  This was with the exception of one of the staff blatantly wanting to stand outside and eavesdrop leading me to close the door fully for privacy (which I had requested to not make a scene).

In order to bury the hatchet and allow staff to turn the room over, I headed to the bar with my guest to have final digestives and seemed to be well looked after by the barman which was actually a very welcome change, but sadly short-lived in that on leaving, the staff member that was trying to eavesdrop earlier to my feedback asked out loud if I had enjoyed my evening (knowing that I had not) in what I can only describe as a bizarrely provocative send off.  This was actually the final straw and by this stage, with all instances combined, I was actually internally furious and in active disbelief at all episodes and the general calibre of the majority of the staff.  So much so, that I question just how much training these members have actually received or how much care has gone in to the design, delivery and quality assurance of their actual training (something I am also very familiar with, from over 20 years’ worth of experience of managing and delivering training in numerous fields, separately to reviewing food).

All in, the pre-dinner canapés, in room dining dishes and digestives in the bar came to €567 for the two of us, which, interestingly was actually nearly twice the cost of the stay for the night for two (€295).  In summary, the food ranged from pleasant and elegant, to fair, to under seasoned and unmemorable and from very reasonable and harmless to overpriced and hugely unenjoyable.  As usual, my food grade has nothing to do with the factors of service, cost and decor etc, these are simply things I am obliged to mention, particularly when they are either very good or very bad.  To be clear, the food grade is taken from the canapés and one a la carte dish as will obviously be unfair of me to grade the food of this 3 star restaurant with the in-room dining even if from the same kitchen as they are completely different menus.  So in fairness to the restaurant, the hope is that the level of dishes are a notch up from that which I had a glimpse of and further dishes would give a fuller picture naturally.

Overall, in terms of a hotel stay and experience, the service and all instances outlined above, left a (strong) impression of staff that ranged from glimmers of warmth and good hospitality to general indifference to non-caring and then in some cases cheeky service and very poor hospitality I was not anticipating at this 5* hotel / Relais & Chateaux hotel, working in conjunction with a 3 Michelin starred restaurant. Perhaps, neither would the actual manager and owner of this Maison either, but one can only hope.

To finish the experience for this special holiday occasion, we checked out the next morning after a €8, half-size cup of coffee from a Nespresso pod, to receive the bill for everything had in full, with no smiles or genuine asks of whether we had enjoyed the stay, to then finally slowly drive off with as much energy in motivation to return soon as there was additional electric charge in the car.

Food Grade: 68%



















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El Celler de Can Roca (Girona, Spain) https://major-foodie.com/el-celler-de-can-roca-girona-spain/ https://major-foodie.com/el-celler-de-can-roca-girona-spain/#respond Wed, 08 Mar 2023 15:51:35 +0000 https://major-foodie.com/?p=23456 Long-standing 3 Michelin starred restaurant in Girona, Spain by the Roca Brothers El Celler de Can Roca is practically an institution in Spain having held 3 Michelin stars since 2009, set in the charming and racing-cycle enthusiast town of Girona (also the film location for the fabled steps in Game of Thrones).  As the average […]

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Long-standing 3 Michelin starred restaurant in Girona, Spain by the Roca Brothers

El Celler de Can Roca is practically an institution in Spain having held 3 Michelin stars since 2009, set in the charming and racing-cycle enthusiast town of Girona (also the film location for the fabled steps in Game of Thrones).  As the average wait time to gain a restaurant reservation for this restaurant is one year, I was quite amazed when there was a cancellation on the specific date I booked for in March ’23.  The menu choices were the lesser, 7 course menu at €215 or the higher, ‘Feast’ menu of 15 courses for €270 which, makes the feast menu far better value for money, but just depends on your funds and whether you are happy to have a long, marathon experience. Overall, I was very impressed with the skill level of the dishes at this former, world’s best restaurant, but I was honestly only in love with one dish which was a surprise and in summary as a 3 star restaurant I was hoping for more.

El Celler de Can Roca (the cellar of the Roca family) opened in 1986 in Girona and moved a short distance to its current location in 2007.  The former location is now a casual eatery run by the Roca family mother of the three brothers who govern the now 3 Michelin starred institution today – Jordy Roca leads the pastry section; Juan Roca is the Executive chef and Jessep Roca the sommelier in charge of all wines and drinks.

An impressive array of canapés arrived firstly. A welcome Catalonian soup with vegetable and truffle made with vegetable stock; brioche with liquid truffle centre (veery good); crispy bacon on radish; a meringue with truffle ice cream (which was a little gloopy); ‘Timeline’ was a series of bites on a long stone outlining the milestone dates of the restaurant including parmesan cheese, fish brandade, pigs trotter with sea cucumber and kale.  The breads were beautifully done tomato brioche, plain sourdoughs and wine and rasin sourdoughs. The level of effort that had clearly gone in to all of these canards was not lost on me and was a wonderful start, albeit, none actually making me melt with pleasure as I have done at say, Victors’ Dining.

The first course was Xarel-lo (teardop) steamed peas with pistachio pesto, citrus gel, Montseny wasabi sprouts, pea sprouts, and Montseny wasabi oil.  These were truly delightful peas and very hard to gain and prepare perfectly as they were here.  The delicate steamed peas complemented the tempered taste of the wasabi and pistachio pesto perfectly. It was a wonderful start to the meal.

Next up was the cauliflower dish with lychee, laminated cauliflower, cauliflower puree with ragweed seeds, bergamot and verjuice, cauliflower puree with butter, fried cauliflower puree, cauliflower couscous, fried broccoli flower, lychee sauce and fermented grape. The combination of textures and flavors was very good, although not hugely memorable. The lychee added a sweet and tangy touch to the dish, while the cauliflower puree and couscous brought a nutty and earthy flavor to the plate.

The langoustine with sagebrush, vanilla oil and toasted butter was cooked perfectly. The flavours were subtle, with the vanilla oil adding a gentle sweetness to this very small bite-size dish.  Ultimately the foam did not add too much value but the langoustines were as one would expect, very good quality.

The fish of the day “suquet” with hazelnut foam, semi-dried tomato with capers and black olives, grilled lemon purée with anise liqueur reduction, rosemary, mint and fennel oil and fried bread with freeze-dried garum was a highlight of the meal. The fish was cooked to perfection, and the tomato, capers, and black olives added a tangy flavor, while the lemon purée brought a zesty freshness to the plate. It was a pleasant dish but somehow, not earth-shattering

The poularde (rich chicken fattened by the diet of the chicken) brioche with truffle and fresh herbs sauce was superbly executed. The brioche was utterly soft and buttery, with as absolutely perfect outer shell and the truffle and herbs sauce was rich and savory. The chicken itself was very good quality, but I simply did not gel with the overall flavour of this dish.  Foie gras is always a joy, but the combination of these produced a stodgy dish overall I thought and whilst I appreciated the skill of the cooking completely, it juts simply was not a huge pleasure in density and flavour.

For dessert, the candy apple which was a caramelized apple sphere with calvados, green apple, butter biscuit, caramelized apple foam, and Catalan cream ice cream was a masterpiece. The flavors were perfectly balanced, with the caramelized apple sphere being the pinnacle of dessert cooking skill (akin to the fabled dessert at Schwarzwaldstube) providing a sweet and sticky texture, and the Catalan cream ice cream adding a creamy and refreshing touch to the dish. Superb and enjoyable in every way.

Finally, the milk dessert was very nice. The milk caramel, sheep’s milk ice cream, sheep’s milk curd-cheese foam, sheep’s milk yoghurt, and milk cloud were all perfectly balanced. The flavors were subtle and creamy, with the sheep’s milk ice cream and yoghurt bringing a refreshing and tangy touch to the dish and had the visual and textural fun of the candy floss. An impressive petit fours trolley arrived for selecting whichever ones appealed for coffee in the garden.

There was a bit of a tussle between tables reserving coffee tables in the small garden space outside and not-knowing this, the restaurant kindly produced another table for myself and guests in order to gain some sun.  The sommelier of the three Roca Brothers (Jesse) greeted all tables outside but my impression was that all tables other than ours were local diners (also in large groups) and so FaceTime was perhaps easier with other guests of the same language.  Service throughout inside the restaurant was hospitable, but also sincere to the point of creating a very quiet environment – I felt the staff could afford to take the service a little less seriously and relax a little more as a genuine feeling.

Overall, El Celler de Can Roca is a high end dining establishment, no question. I praise the sheer efforts and skill of the kitchen, noting as above, that less of the dishes actually hit the love valves than expected.  This was hard to grade overall for a final grade, but if I break down the actual criteria of the Michelin guide, I would say that the restaurant’s quality of ingredients were at the 2-3 star level; the mastery of flavour at the 2 star level and and cooking techniques at the 3 star level; personality of the chef in the cuisine at the 2 star level; value for money extremely good and worthy of 3 stars and consistency of food the 2 star level.  Therefore, I believe it sits more in the mid 2-3 star band, with reasonable flavours but it is absolutely a class act to enjoy (if it does not take your whole calendar year to arrange gaining a seat).

Food Grade: 85%



































 

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Zen (Singapore) https://major-foodie.com/zen-singapore/ https://major-foodie.com/zen-singapore/#respond Thu, 04 Aug 2022 11:41:40 +0000 https://major-foodie.com/?p=22469 High end ingredients and superior handling producing a Japanese-Scandanavian fusion menu of excellence Zen is Singapore’s latest 3 Michelin starred restaurant (as at 2022) and the second restaurant from Bjorn Frantzen to have the highest accolade from Michelin, away from his flagship 3 star Frantzen in his native Sweden.  The menu at Zen is not […]

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High end ingredients and superior handling producing a Japanese-Scandanavian fusion menu of excellence

Zen is Singapore’s latest 3 Michelin starred restaurant (as at 2022) and the second restaurant from Bjorn Frantzen to have the highest accolade from Michelin, away from his flagship 3 star Frantzen in his native Sweden.  The menu at Zen is not cheap to warn those new to fine dining and is a set menu at 580 Singapore Dollars (SGD), roughly £356 at time of writing and with a glass of wine and coffee all in, the bill came to 756 SGD equating to around £464 for myself.  But when one considers the very expensive ingredients from Japan used (see all details in the expansion button) and the fact the meal is served on three different levels of a converted Edwardian town house, I don’t believe this represents being overpriced; it appeared to be fair /good value, just as a luxury car is in its respective tier.  In the main I enjoyed the creativity, finesse and skill on top of these fine ingredients very much and a couple of dishes immensely. I would come back for those moments in a heart beat if I could, knowing it is among the best available in the whole region.  A must for diners wishing top level cooking.

The meal is split between the levels of the refurbished venue which is a first for me and a very nice way of doing things I thought.  It is also a clever move to regulate table turnover and courses for each sitting and table as well as being good variation for the diner (new setting, leg stretch and interest levels etc).  The canapés are served in the ground floor open kitchen area where there is also a presentation of all of the ingredients sourced and used and each table is invited to the counter in turn to have an in depth explanation of each one and where it comes from.  There is significant care and attention in this operation and was lovely to have laid on at the start of this meal.  The mains and savouries including pre-desserts are served on the first floor dining room and the coffees and petit fours are served in the second (or top) floor of the venue that resembled a lovely lounge area laden with fine whiskeys and liqueurs.
Canapés in The Kitchen
Initial canapés included a Choux de Bourgogne – gougere with three cheeses (perfect light outer coating and pleasant cheeses); ‘Ráraka’ Kalix Löjrom which was a potato rosti with crème fraiche, brandaide pickled shallots, chive and vendence roe from Sweden – this was absolutely stunning and with the lightest of crunches.  Croustade crustacean, fennel & artichoke was a delectably light croustade with artichoke purée, lobster, fennel, tarragon leaves and bronze fennel.  This was stunning with warm lobster in the thinnest pastry case ever had and a lovely, complemented by a perfectly gentle kick of wasabi – a knock out and world class canapé.
Truffle scrambled egg, yuba was scrambled egg with maple syrup and butter with truffle from Australia winter truffles, held within a soy bean ‘skin’ or, extremely thin tartlet like case.  This was very light and with deep flavour coming through.  The final canapé was Gunkan foie gras, unagi, sakura – brioche with goose foie gras, apple balls marinated in hibiscus, unagi with sweet wine and oxalis flowers.   great combo
Mains in The Dining Room
When invited upstairs to the dining room, I was escorted to my table overlooking a charming terrace garden.  First to be served was crudo (raw fish dish): Saba, radish oroshi, fermented strawberry & coffee – chutoro from Crudo tuna served with Saba (a form of grape), radish oroshi, fermented strawberry & coffee with chutoro (fattiest kind of tuna from the belly) tartare.  This was simply gorgeous and a brilliant combination of fat and sweetness.
Chawanmushi, engawa , coriander, white asparagus was next.  This was essentially an egg-based custard, engawa (skat of flounder) coriander, white asparagus broth, gin, lemon juice and coriander and citrus leaf oil – a complex combination but with very pleasant umami.  Hirame (flounder from north Japan) came with teardrop peas, wasabi & ginger yoghurt, whey dashi, Thai basil oil and Thai basil flowers.  This for me was absolutely outstanding and the dish of the meal. It was fragrant, aromatic, light and in beautiful harmony with the earthy peas combining with the gentle wasabi and Thai basil.
Onion, toasted almonds & liquorice powder and cream, almond foam made with milk from Haikado (very fatty milk from finest cows on the planet) was next and this came dangerously close to being as good as the previous dish.  Two absolute knock out sensations one after the other is rare and I was forgiving the bill more and more with each mouthful.  Next up was flatfish from Kinki (region in Honshu, the southern island of Japan) was served with an all-time favourite sauce of mine – vin Jaune (creamed sauce made with dessert wine), walnut and Zén Réserve caviar.  This had different levels of salt, and fat in each bite and the combination of textures here was interesting.
A selection box of beautiful knives from Morakniv were displayed and I was given the choice of which one to use for my game.  Guinea fowl, mitsuba (parsley) & mustard emulsion, sudachi kosho (fermented paste of Sudachi type of citrus) was served next.  The guinea fowl was decorated with an emulsion of Japanese parsley and mustard spray of Sakura flowers in vinegar with chanterelles which was a magical combination of everything.  Utterly succulent game with a gentle kick of mustard, again judged to perfection served with Hokkaido asparagus for textural crunch.  Colour, texture, protein, fat and low carbohydrate – it was close to a perfect dish as any.  French toast “Grande Tradition 2008” with Balsamic vinegar, parmesan custard, Manjima West Oz truffles was next in the form of a ‘bite’ and this was absolutely superb.
Finally, a pre-dessert of sorbet made of yuzu, konatsu (citrus fruit), Buntan (family of grapefruit) & saffron, kokuto (Okinawa black sugar) aspic (jelly) and Kinome plant leaves.  This was an incredibly smooth sorbet but quite bitter and had wood-like notes which sadly didn’t work hugely for me as a combination as pretty as it was. Momo (Japanese peaches), from Yamanashi near mainland are the highest grade of peach (Daitaro) which came with pêche, elderflower, peach sorbet, star anise cream, 3 peppers, arctic raspberry, rhubarb root oil and crystallised roses meringue sticks seasoned with three types of pepper (roast, long and black – all from different parts of world in Asia and Africa). These were extraordinary peaches in an extraordinary consommé and the beauty and power of this simple offering was worth the long process of being at that table for that offering.
Coffee and petit fours in the Living Room
The final part was served on the upper most level where the first to be served was Muskmelon & Manzanilla sherry gel, Miyazaki mango with coconut rum and vanilla, Shine muscat grape from Japan and grapes infused in verjus, rose, seasoned with house gin and honey vinegar.  Again, one cannot fault the power of these ingredients and as is customary at the end of a Japanese meal, the finest fruit is seen as a delicacy and privilege.  Coffee was from a Singaporean company called Papa Palheta and served with with Hokaido milk.  Along with this came a ‘Waffle party’: Swedish waffles from woodruff cloudberry jam, tonka and almond cream, sea buckthorn and brunost caramelised brown goats cheese (akin to Norwegian Gjetost which I had much of growing up).  The final Western petit fours were Sicilian pistachio macaron, blood miso and matcha with fleur de sel (French salt flake) – all of which were as well made as they can with the simple pistachio actually being the favourite.
If that was hard to read for the detail, spare a thought for how much goes in to that meal and one can understand more regarding the experience and the usual question I receive which is, “Was it worth it?”.  Emphatically yes is my answer to this experience and I would happily save up and go again.  A genuine 3 Michelin starred experience and somewhere you are going to get sheer quality.
Food Grade: 96%







































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Les Amis (Singapore) https://major-foodie.com/les-amis-singapore/ https://major-foodie.com/les-amis-singapore/#respond Wed, 03 Aug 2022 11:00:27 +0000 https://major-foodie.com/?p=22555 3 Michelin starred French dining in Singapore Les Amis was promoted to three Michelin stars in 2019 under its culinary head, Sébastien Lepinoy (previously of Cepage and 3 Micheiln starred L’Atelier Joel Robuchon in Hong Kong).  Its roots and menus are firmly French cuisine with some impressive private dining rooms in the restaurant.  Ingredient sourcing is […]

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3 Michelin starred French dining in Singapore

Les Amis was promoted to three Michelin stars in 2019 under its culinary head, Sébastien Lepinoy (previously of Cepage and 3 Micheiln starred L’Atelier Joel Robuchon in Hong Kong).  Its roots and menus are firmly French cuisine with some impressive private dining rooms in the restaurant.  Ingredient sourcing is strong and mainly from the best areas of France.  The 3-course lunch (that turned out to be essentially  7 courses if you count the ice cream pre-desserts and coffee and petit fours) came to £218.  Obviously not cheap for a lunch with no wine admittedly but I thought the overall return merited this and it could obviously be a lot worse if you opted for the $495 (Singaporean dollars) Degustation menu with champagne to start and full wines.  Should you wish to enjoy this, I would say you would need to comfortably set aside £1000 for a meal for two.  But, if that was done and you forgot about that, you would have a very pleasurable experience here in good hands.

A quick word on the restaurant itself: the staff were clearly all well drilled and knowedgable and this is a classy set up.  The hospitality was genuine and the staff were extremely attentive to requests.  Water was topped up at just the right moments (only when needed) and the intimate chef’s dining table overlooking the kitchen seemed a wonderful option to have amongst at least three other, larger private dining rooms scattered in the upper levels of the restaurnat.  The cellar was equally impressive with pebbles from France having been flown in especially to adorn the floor of the cellar to prevent breakages of bottles should they fall – a rather lovely touch!

The home made sourdough was wheeled to the table to be sliced fresh from the oven and was worthy of the ceremony as very good sour dough and even more wonderful butter from the Loire Valley. The ‘normal’ breads that were offered as part of a selection included bacon & mustard (gorgeous), fig and rum, raisin and Comte cheese buckwheat baguettes.  This was followed by the first of three amuse bouches which started with their signature cold, thin spaghetti with caviar, crystal flower & sisho.  Next a confit tomato from the Loire Valley was served on a crispy puff pastry with olive oil and parsley.  The absolute star of this was the delectably warm and thin pastry, whilst the succulent tomato was slightly subdued in flavour in comparison.  The third and final amuse bouche was a magnificent lobster jelly with crystal Kaluga caviar, cream of cauliflower, parsley purée.  This was very good.

My starter was a Parisian style egg Mimosa with caviar & savoury coulis. In essence, a French Maren egg sourced from West France had its yolk removed and filled with caviar, and the yolk turned into a mimosa emulsion on top. The dish was served with French dressing, parsley purée, mussel jus and red wine vinegar. It was all perfectly seasoned and a lovely dish, rich and all working very well together.

The main I opted for was the duck. A roasted Challans duck breast from Vendée (North Bordeaux) was accompanied by balsamic vinegar glazed turnips and served with Burlap cherries from Lyon. The duck was utterly tender and melted in the mouth and the reduction jus was served with the fat from the duck, gained via the same canard a la press method was indulgent and complimentary to the duck (sous vide and then pan-fried).  The huge Burlat cherries had much more texture and were a brilliant choice as are far less acidic than normal cherries or any cherry one might find anywhere in the UK and a pleasant change from orange to go with duck.

Pre-desserts of ice cream were proudly showcased (and rightly so as it turned out) and of the options, I chose pineapple sorbet (beautifully refreshing and exotic), pistachio ice cream (wonderfully creamy and nutty) and coffee ice creams that had very strong coffee flavour.  These were not your average icecreams and were at the highest of tiers one can go for a simple ice cream. 

Of the dessert options on the a la carte choices, it was clearly the Rum Baba all the way to go for.  There are several places that do this dessert particularly well, most notably Alain Ducasse at the Dorchester, but I did like the way this came with a choice of rums to select for the important ‘dousing’.  The Baba itself was infused in aged rum, Agricole & citrus, accompanied by a lightly whipped crème Fleurette which was frankly sensational. The glaze on the baba was a triumph in itself and the additional flavours were superb, with these latter factors being why I think this is fractionally superior than that from Ducasse, meaning therefore until I find another that pips this one (unlikely), this is the best Rum Baba in the world.

Petit fours came in several flavours: raspberry tart, canalle, hazelnut chocolate truffle and served with Nespresso coffee which was surprising for a 3 Michelin starred restaurant to be using such a bog standard coffee.  I understand the logic of consistency for service, but if it is to be a household coffee, I would say the bill would merit a superior kind of coffee to offer.

That’s a minor dent in the proceedings though.  The whole meal was expertly executed and a pleasure to have.  I thought the staff were extremely good and I would recommend this restaurant to anyone for a romantic or special occasion accordingly.

Food Grade: 90%



























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Victor’s Dining by Christian Bau (Germany) https://major-foodie.com/victors-dining-by-christian-bau-germany/ https://major-foodie.com/victors-dining-by-christian-bau-germany/#respond Thu, 12 May 2022 19:17:23 +0000 https://major-foodie.com/?p=22615 3 Michelin starred dining at the very heights of gastronomic experiences available in the world today What happens if you combine ingredients from the finest parts of the globe, mix classic French and Japanese cooking recipes and execute with techniques in the precision hands of a German chef who has held 3 Michelin stars since […]

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3 Michelin starred dining at the very heights of gastronomic experiences available in the world today

What happens if you combine ingredients from the finest parts of the globe, mix classic French and Japanese cooking recipes and execute with techniques in the precision hands of a German chef who has held 3 Michelin stars since 2005? The answer is one of the most transcendent food experiences available on this planet which this was without a shadow of doubt.  A top-level wine list, delivered by world-class hospitality staff and a 3 star chef in the kitchen finalising all the dishes off the pass every day, leads me to sadly raise the benchmark so high that one of the notable knock on effects is that many places I now visit, whilst often excellent in themselves, produces the thought of, “It’s just not Christian Bau”.  It will be very difficult for me to re-experience this sort of level again I’m sure and if you are keen on superlative food, I can only recommend that you visit here at least once in your life, for all the reasons in the expansion button below for full details (heads up: this is a long review as is befitting the menu).  In summary, this visit was one of the best had in life.

First off, the journey.  If you are flying from London, the very best way to get to Schloss Berg is from London City Airport, a very small and under-utilised airport in East London, easily accessible by the Docklands Light Railway (DLR).  A direct flight to Luxembourg is the answer at 50 mins, followed by a 30 min taxi or hour+ bus journey to the border of Luxembourg and Germany where, literally 1 mile over that border in Germany is this restaurant, contained within the same grounds of a hotel (separate buildings and businesses).  As all public transport in Luxembourg is free (yes, genuinely) and time was not an issue, the public transport option was taken advantage of (requires one change) and then in to a taxi from the border for the last mile into Germany. If you are immediately turned off by the sound of the journey, for perspective, it was actually quicker getting to this venue in Germany from the UK than it is driving from London to Bristol.

Victor’s Fine Dining itself is names after the backers and owners of the group who spotted Christian Bau’s talent a long time ago. The fine dining concept works very well for Christian as his level of cooking attracts people from many countries across the globe and therefore required a place for people to stay nearby which the hotel complex (Schloss Berg) does perfectly adequately.  I forgot that in many German hotels, guests checking in are served a glass of something as a welcome and is such a simple and lovely touch that costs the hotel hardly anything but has a huge impact on the guest to have whilst waiting for check in – it always makes me wonder why so many hotels do not do this lovely, simple fix.

So, on to the evening meal which began with champagne and as Krug was sold by the glass (a lovely touch that many restaurants do not / cannot do).  The first canapes were a carrot soup with coriander and green apple and the other being a tartare of langoustine with a madras curry sorbet with yoghurt foam.  The carrot soup had pure and refreshing flavours, but the curry sorbet, foam and langoustine canapé was one of the greatest I have ever had as an opener. Immediately, one is hit by the surprising flavour of the sorbet being curried and offset perfectly by the yoghurt foam and the cold canapé itself working in utterly perfect harmony.

This was followed by a small pastry case of beef tartare with fish emulsion and smoked horseradish and caviar.  An absolutely brilliant level of smoke in the horseradish which produced a superb play with the Ox tartare canapé.  The accompanying canapé was Hamachi (yellow tail tuna) on rice wrapped around with kimbap (a South Korean version of nori seaweed) served with sesame and daikon (Japanese radish), the Hamachi being mild and buttery at the same time.  The quality of the kimpab alone being one of the great pleasures (this is crispy and fragrant excellence akin to nothing like your average and totally inadequate rubbery, cold, seaweed elastic band found in many a sushi chain in the UK for example).

Next came a tartlet of toro (fatty tuna belly), caviar and myogo (Japanese ginger) which was perfectly judged with the heat from the ginger, followed by a sublime lobster tartlet decorated with printemps (seasonal Springtime flowers/garnishes). Finally for the canapés was a Japanese pastry waffle topped with Saba (blue mackerel), caviar, and yuzu-koshu (a Japanese chilli paste with strong, floral, yuzu fruit notes).  The sweet citrus complimented and offset the oily fish superbly, joined by the salt from the caviar and textural crunch from the pastry.  These were just the canapés and already were easily better than a great many main courses at other 2 and 3 Michelin starred restaurants experienced.

Next came the fish courses.  Crab from Brittany was first, served with dashi-soaked melons (dashi is a Japanese stock very often using bonito / dried tuna flakes), Yuba (dried tofu skin) and shoyu, a form of wheat-based Japanese soy sauce.  You would think the above might be a little too much for the light white meat from the crab but this was absolutely not the case – the combination was just right and came together brilliantly.  Following this were oysters served in the half shell with red shiso pearls (iced droplets made with red shiso leaf), ponzu and sea herbs.  Whilst I wished to avoid the oysters, the technique and skill here as well as supporting ingredients were among the freshest one can have to compliment the fish-based components including the stock.

Next came what was to be a gastro life-moment: Spanish tuna (from Malaga), topped with a foie gras sorbet, thin pastry disc and frozen foie gras shavings, dressed with a ponzu and elderflower dressing.  I have to pause here as I write.  I have no idea where or how Christian Bau conceived the idea of the flavour combinations for this dish, but I think perhaps dark magic of some kind… You know, the instant something has been experienced when it is a world first, and this was immediate bliss of total flavour harmony with absolute technical genius in being able to make something so rich and heavy as foie gras, somehow to be so light and surprisingly wonderful in its sorbet state.  I believe Mr Bau should be in line for a medal of recognition for this dish alone and dishes of this calibre are rare to come by. This was a euphoric food moment to have had, accompanied by a glass of the powerhouse 2009 Egon Müller Reisling.  I need a break from writing to recess, just thinking of this part of the meal.

The following course was green asparagus from Province topped with sumak gel (made from Japanese berries) and served with a miso hollandaise sauce and yuzu.  The miso twist on hollandaise made for an umami bomb of wonderful, foamy hollandaise and the asparagus themselves were impressive in their own right.  This was the best asparagus dish I have ever had and I simply cannot think how it is possible to make a dish of asparagus better, period.  Another fish course followed with langoustine (sourced from Guilvinec in North West France), served with koji and caviar which was pleasant and delicately presented.

A wonderful piece of Brittany turbot (from a large 8kg turbot) came next, served with white asparagus, morel mushrooms, vin jaunt sauce (creamed made with dessert wine) and peas.  This was a return to something classic and as such an iconic dish, I was glad that there was no, notable fusion with Japanese ingredients in homage to the iconic dish it is. Succulent turbot was complimented superbly by the well-judged classic components.

A special knife selection was offered to choose from to devour the main event of meat which was Miyazaki beef, which is widely regarded as very best in wagyu, frequently voted better than Kobe beef or even Matsuzaka.  The Miyazaki prefecture is in the very south of Japan on the most southern of its four main islands (Kyushu) where the prized cattle are reared much longer than the average length of time for beef and served on diets that would make most humans in some parts of the world envious, hence the sheer quality of this meat. The dish was served with trevisiano (a form of red chicory), black garlic, truffle, tiny disc of foie gras and micro potato waffles.  Everything was frankly delicious and with that line up of ingredients, the dish was never going to be in danger of rejection, and thankfully was small in size as very rich in content. I can’t be sure if I would have been equally happy with literally just the slice of beef when the produce of a something of such value is that superb, but it was wonderful to have.

Continuing the richness and savoury trend, the next course was a celebration of goose liver.  Goose liver foie gras from Landes, was served in an amazing way by being served as frozen droplet spheres (essentially little foie gras ice cream balls), served with coffee, hazelnut from Piemonte and sour cherry and with a side of goose liver parfait sorbet and toasted brioche drum.  The foie gras was technically faultless, delicious and the supporting sorbet another wonder moment.  Although by this stage I was reaching maximum capacity in stomach real estate, this was another masterclass of goose liver and the brioche was another showcase, as was the very best brioche experienced anywhere.  Its utterly delicate texture beat several 3 Michelin starred restaurants in France for the execution and presentation of the brioche.

Finally, the desserts started with a genuine firework bang on the opening dessert: wild strawberries, in a strawberry and sake consommé, served with sorrel sorbet, goats yoghurt and pastry disc for texture. The depth of strawberry flavour was off the scale, boosted by the mixed sake consommé and balanced beautifully by the fresh, herbal sorrel sorbet and cooling goats yogurt.  An absolute knock out dessert.  Following this and in tribute to the executive chef’s homeland, a play on black forest gateaux was served with ingredients taken from none other than the famous Black Forest of Southwest Germany (state of Baden-Württemberg) including aerated chocolate, hazelnut ice cream, iced cherry droplets and cherry gel, topped with a pastry in the shape of the cherry blossom tree.  A this stage, heads were simply shaking at just how good this meal had been.

A final selection of superb petit fours were presented. There were too many to take note of sadly and by this stage I could only sample a few, but the ones that were enjoyed could frankly outdo dessert courses in quite a few restaurants of note.  The bill came to £492 per person including Krug champagne and glasses from two, premium Rieslings and all bottled water (which can add up at €11 each and knock on to service charge), tax and overall service charge for this ‘Paris to Tokyo’ menu carte blanche (additional dishes selected by the executive chef).  It’s worth noting that it is possible to have a menu here for €249 (£210) without various ingredients including asparagus and miso etc.  The latter would frankly be a steal, but either way, for the quality of ingredients and sheer brilliance of execution, both these represent extremely good value for money in my opinion when examining the return and noting how you could comfortably spend either price tags on menus at lower grade restaurants that boast their prices at far too high a level for actual offering.

This was one of the highest-level food experiences on record with moments of undeniable perfection. Although I have recommended to go once in your life, it is a place I could comfortably revisit numerous times, now that I know what stratospheric level the team are operating on and just how cherished the experience will be.

Food Grade: 99%




































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Hélène Darroze at the Connaught (Mayfair) https://major-foodie.com/helene-darroze-at-the-connaught/ https://major-foodie.com/helene-darroze-at-the-connaught/#respond Wed, 10 Jun 2020 11:46:14 +0000 http://major-foodie.com/?p=7521 3 Michelin starred restaurant (as of 2021 Michelin Guide) within the iconic Connaught Hotel in Mayfair with beautiful supporting bars, all held together by world-class service Location

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3 Michelin starred restaurant (as of 2021 Michelin Guide) within the iconic Connaught Hotel in Mayfair with beautiful supporting bars, all held together by world-class service

Hélène Darroze at the Connaught gained its third Michelin star for the 2021 guide along with CORE by Clare Smyth as the two main culinary headlines for 2021, both awarded on 25th Jan 2021.  As this is the holy grail of accolades anyone can earn, it stands to reason that it is among the best dining in the world however, I have seen and experienced where this is not always the case.  With an open mind I revisited this now flagship restaurant of Mayfair and London, but sadly, whilst it revealed a good meal and a definite increase in gear, there were aspects that still in my mind make this a very generous accolade to have. Without allowing this following point to interfere with the food-grade itself, there is also the issue of value for money and I’m afraid there are aspects of this meal that represented the very worst value for money that is available out there. Click the below button if you would like more details as to how this all panned out.

There are two menu choices at Hélène Darroze at the Connaught: a full tasting menu of 7 courses starting at £165 prior to any supplements and a shorter 3 course menu for £65 prior to any extra supplements.  It was a special occasion and probably not going to be done very often to this level, so in the end, all agreed to go for the larger tasting menu. The meal began with an amuse bouche of cucumber, lemon verbena and tarragon oil which was refreshing but a little underwhelming as a starting impression.  Canapés were next and there were three: bluefish with cured sardines and cantaloupe melon which was nicely balanced; a mackerel taco with cucumber and roses which was not my favourite and a stunning anchovy parfait with dill and chive.  Homemade sourdough came with two artistically presented butters – plain and unsalted from Oxfordshire and espelette pepper which comes Armagnac.  Not that surprising as Helene Darroze herself comes from Armagnac, so this region is showcased as much as possible within this restaurant and menu.

Brown and spider crabs from Dowrick, Cornwall was the first course presented in the open, half shell.  The crab itself sat beneath a layer of  pomelo and crab espuma (the largest of citrus fruits), lampong pepper (black pepper from Southern Sumatra, Indonesia), “txangurro” (shredded spider crab in Basque) with wild garlic flowers. This was extremely light and pleasant as an introduction.  Celtuce, a large citrus was the next course with Scots pine sprinkled on, a Bellota ham consomme and timut pepper.  Different and refined, but ultimately not anything to stop traffic over – the main enjoyment was the unusual texture of the celtuce and that was the highlight.  The paired non-alcoholic drink was  cucumber with fennel – the fennel providing a flinty minerality and the cucumber for texture.

An interlude of foie gras from Landes with a sake sauce with cherry, almond, lemon verbena and elderflower was lovely and soft as a little course to have. I have had more mind-blowing foie gras but it went very with the sauce. This was paired with a non-alcoholic drink of melon and  strawberry which had a base of acidity and vibrancy with the star anise.  Lobster from Phil Trebilcock in Cornwall was served with lobster mousseline, tandoori spices, coriander oil, carrot mousse, citrus, spring onion, buerre noisette.  There was no doubt in anyone’s mind at the table that this was a significant dish.  The utterly succulent lobster was perfectly matched with a sensational balance of silky smooth and sweet carrot with flawlessly balanced spices to accompany and a touch of decadence from the buerre noisette.  This was an utterly beautiful dish in every way and well worthy of the 3 stars. 

Next was John Dory from Bonnie Grace in Cornwall came with a stunningly sweet and smooth buerre Blanc, girolle mushrooms and broad beans.  Nothing really not to like with this dish.   For the meat, there was a choice of pigeon as part of the £165 menu, or the Wagyu for an additional £95 supplement. My logic of opting for the latter was I would probably not be doing this every week and you cannot opt for this on the £65 set lunch menu, so if I was to come back again just to try it, it woud cost another £165 just to try it, so I thought it may as well be done now…

Highland ‘Wagyu’, was displayed on the menu and was served with oyster mushrooms, tarragon & parsley cream, capers and a beef jus made with fermented pepper and a bone marrow accompaniment.  One point on non-Japanese wagyu which is a bit of a contradiction because the literal translation of ‘wa-gyu’ is ‘Japanese cow’ and if you speak to any chef in Japan they will laugh at you if you say you had wagyu from reared cattle outside of Japan.  On asking the staff, it was confirmed that the herd this had come from was indeed from black, Japanese cows but I couldn’t get an answer on which bloodline these were to authenticate:  Tajima, Kedaka or Shimane.  I also couldn’t gain the supplier name so my suspicion is that this wagyu was from a herd of Scottish Highland cows that had been mated by a Japanese bull in order to be legally compliant in order to be called ‘Wagyu’.  Why do I babble on about this? Because it actually makes a huge difference of not only the rearing process of the cow but also the ultimate flavour of the beef and I can say 100% that unfortunately, whilst basically passable in flavour, this was no-where near the same levels of wagyu experienced in Chateaux Joel Robuchon, Tokyo or Mizai in Kyoto – not one bit.  The fact that it was an additional £95 supplement on top of a £165 menu made this frankly a kick in the teeth and ultimately a huge letdown. I’m afraid for the asking price, I simply would not recommend this.  Still, on the side there was a beef tartare taco which was light and nicely done to enjoy. 

On to the sweets, first was Garigette strawberries (from SW France and prized for their sweetness), were served with Chantilly cream, white balsamic vinegar, bay leaf and craquelin choux pastry crackers.  This was a sensational dish with the sweet beauty of the strawberry sorbet and strawberries themselves and the genius of the pastry. Knock out. 

A beignet or small doughnut was then prepared at the table after with cream and a raspberry jam filling.  Finally a signature Baba (an additional £18) made with Armagnac was served with raspberries with raspberry gel inside them as a lovely touch.  The baba itself had a gorgeous texture and was made with long pepper (complex) and expensive Sarawak pepper (from Kerala, SW India) and lovely whipped Chantilly cream, all laced with Armagnac within the sponge.  About as good as one can make this and probably pipping Alain Ducasse at The Dorchester‘s version to the post by a nat’s hair. 

The Petit Fours were equally pleasant in their simplicity and I was pleased with these. First were marshmallows with tarragon olive oil which, whilst weren’t everybody’s favourite at the table, I actually enjoyed the light and fatty combination.  Next were beetroot and red pepper gels which sound odd but were sweetened and balanced with sugar well enough to be ok with ultimately and then very good, simple ganaches with Talisker whiskey which was the winning petit four – a lovely, subtle flavour of Talisker and a combination not really exploited enough.

In the end and to my huge surprise, the bill was actually taken care of by my unspeakably generous dining companions so out of courtesy I will not be seeking the total however, you can get a feel from the aspects I have raised which will be corroborated by the open-source prices on their website.  The one thing that I was also amazed about to learn afterwards is that the paired non-alcoholic drinks menu to accompany the tasting menu is an unbelievable £130 extra. The glasses that I had were in a mixed show of some very refreshing to a couple of average tasting juices to one that was actually undrinkable.  Unless the fruits had come from the of depths of the Sembikiya fruit parlour in Nihonbashi, Tokyo and were bought retail, I cannot see in a million years how 7 half glasses of fruit and vegetable juice can marked up as £130.  I’m afraid this is another option I cannot recommend. The only matching drink that was extremely good was the coeur de boeuf tomato, celery, Worcestershire sauce with Tazmanian pepper that went with the pigeon course and I can imagine took a longer time to prepare. That said, you would be far better off and far healthier drinking a matching tea menu of finest-grade tea from companies such as Lalani and Co bringing the sheer health benefits (in comparison to the sugar content of the suggested mocktails) and far more unique experience.  If you do not drink, I would actually recommend you try this instead as I believe the restaurant does stock this tea.

This was a refined meal no question and there was much to enjoy with a couple of absolute top-class moments in the lobster and strawberry dishes.  Sadly, other than those two dishes, you have to question the expense of what you are gaining here and whilst a pleasant meal, the ultimate food truth is that based on this meal, I would genuinely rush back quicker to the likes of SOLA or The Ritz well before my next meal here at the delightful Connaught.

Food Grade: 81%


























Editor’s note – restaurant promoted to 3 Michelin stars in 2021

Another visit to this Mayfair hotel which I have very fond memories of as a child and was one of my earliest, grand dining experiences, at which I think aged 9 I asked for chips that were thin, like the ones you get at McDonald’s at the time Michel Bourdin was in charge and with 2 Michelin stars – thankfully, he obliged a rather resolute, young diner.  Years later, I find myself taking advantage of a value for money set menu lunch at £55, again whilst the restaurant has 2 Michelin stars, this time under Helene Darroze.  The lunch included three courses, interludes, two glasses of wine, bottle of water, tea or coffee and petit fours which, is actually a very good deal considering where one is.  The key question is how was it all……? Click on the expansion button for full detail.

Snacks included seaweed crackers with mackerel tartare which were light and decent.  Foie gras and the smoked eel was warm and pleasant and the churros cep and potato and with parmesan was light and pleasant enough.   

The bread included a homemade campaillou (rye & wheat flour) and unsalted & Espelette pepper – both good, however, the pepper being a little distracting from butter.  The butter itself from Brittany takes 3 days to make the butter from Jean Paul, making it with wooden paddles to relax the butter.   

Lobster from St Ives in Cornwall (another place I visited as a child) was my chosen starter was beautifully fresh and came with vibrant lemongrass which was beautifully judged.  The pasta was actually the highlight and wonderfully fresh all round and the supporting parts of wild garlic, broad beans and white asparagus were very nice seasonal add ons.

Duck was my choice for main, served with beetroot and blood orange which was ok, but the spiced crust was more the star as was the softened beetroot, more than the quality of the actual duck itself.  

A pre-dessert of pineapple & mint sorbet was creamy and refreshing – no issues with this.  The rhubarb with lemongrass foam was delightful with meringue – albeit with a subtle rhubarb; at least it wasn’t radioactively acidic as they often can be.  The rhubarb ice cream was the genuine hero of the dish however.  A bonus chocolate dessert was a combination with sherry and was fine and I could see that the sour of the Greek yoghurt cancelled out the sweetness of the chocolate nicely.  Having the sherry served at the table from the barrel and poured through the air was a nice bit of theatre as well.  

Petit fours included yuzu chocolate, pineapple gel, apple tart and vanilla (with the latter being wow levels!), raspberry marshmallow and a lovely salted caramel truffle.  All in all, this basically meant an eight-course meal with three glasses of wine for £61 all in which, for London, let alone a 5-star hotel in Mayfair is superb value.  That will just about get you a starter in some Parisian 2 and 3 Michelin starred restaurants and is another example of where you really can get some exceptional deals in London.  

The only catch being that as fun and lovely as this was, especially with the marble board menu at the beginning, it wasn’t blow your socks off food.  If anything this appeared to be possibly poking into a 2-star meal, but was nevertheless a very pleasant experience and in excellent service hands.  Another tasting menu beckons for the next visit to pump up the wattage a tad I feel. 

Food Grade: 80%
























A very nice post-Christmas lunch with my folks enabling the experience of the a’la carte menu.  Entirely smooth and delightful foie gras as one of the starters and the presentation was without fault.  I was lucky enough to have the sweetbread main which was essentially an entire pancreas with white truffle shavings making it an entirely decadent and luxurious option.  A silk experience of a dish and lovely to have done.  The set menu which was also had at the table showed real style in terms of design – the price tag here for some of the dishes would certainly testify.

Food Grade: 82%













The Connaught has been a special place in my family’s past from parents visiting many times when they were my age along with childhood glimpses for me at Birthday and special occasions and now as an adult I am very glad to see that its signature strength of entirely warm service but remaining unpretentious at the same time is still holding true.  A very nice meal all round though and this venue would work with any special celebration of parents in the close-to-retirement bracket as a very safe bet but it certainly would not be a lost occasion for the younger sophisticate who wanted to stretch the Michelin experiences.

The food was extremely well balanced on this tasting menu occasion and stylishly created yet my only negative is that I cannot remember too many of the dishes which is not a good sign in terms of the genuine impact they had in the mouth.  The custard foie gras starter was without a doubt lovely and the creativity of all the remaining dishes was pleasing which was the overall impression gained.  The wine menu was impressive and the options were carefully selected by the sommelier and were enjoyably original.

Food Grade: 82%











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Le Cinq at Four Seasons Hotel George V (Paris) https://major-foodie.com/le-cinq-at-four-seasons-hotel-george-v-paris/ https://major-foodie.com/le-cinq-at-four-seasons-hotel-george-v-paris/#respond Tue, 05 Nov 2019 12:02:13 +0000 https://major-foodie.com/?p=20639 3 Michelin starred food in one of the most attractive dining rooms in the world Le Cinq (The Fifth) is the flagship 3 Michelin starred restaurant set within the absolutely stunning Four Seasons Hotel, a short walk off the Champs-Élysées in Paris.  The head chef is Christian Le Squer who has graced the restaurant with […]

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3 Michelin starred food in one of the most attractive dining rooms in the world

Le Cinq (The Fifth) is the flagship 3 Michelin starred restaurant set within the absolutely stunning Four Seasons Hotel, a short walk off the Champs-Élysées in Paris.  The head chef is Christian Le Squer who has graced the restaurant with the ultimate accolade since he arrived in 2014 as was clearly the mandate that the luxury hotel banked on when gaining him.   The meal was utter refinement with some stunningly designed signature dishes, charming service and on a misc note, the purist, bottled water I have ever had.  The €315 price tag for lunch and wine is actually getting away with things lightly for a Parisian 3-star restaurant, but I can’t help thinking that if you were to take someone special here for dinner, you may as well put a thousand aside.  One thing’s for sure, you will have a very good meal and serious browny points if you ever did this as one of the most romantic and prettiest locations you could possibly have dinner.

The meal began with canapés of a thin parmesan waffle which was extraordinarily light and cheesy, an aloe vera mousse with edible sweet wrapper which was not my favourite flavour, a mini pizza stick with mozzarella, mushroom, thyme which was absolutely loaded with mushroom flavour and tartlet of Artichokes.  The latter had cottage cheese and olive which was an acquired taste, but with a gorgeously done pastry.

The bread was made in house and among the choices were brown baguette and cereal brioche with Brittany butter – both were of a pedigree standard of baking and churned Brittany butter which is coincidentally the broth place of the head chef.  The amuse bouche was a cep jelly and cuttlefish mix which had absolutely stunning smokiness and a pure jelly vinegar balance – a lovely and light start. 

My chosen starter was a play on onion.  A royal juice truffle sauce and onion reduction had gratinated Parmesan and baguette and formed in to ‘bulbs’ of onion.  Each of these had little onion membrane with onion purée inside. Baguette croutons had the perfect crunch and the sauce gave the more salty bite it needed. Green dots of thyme made for a simple and pleasant combination and the technical skill of the dish was clear to see. The onion flavour itself was intense and this was a cracking starter.  

The main is a signature of the chef and I was aware of this dish prior to arrival and equally keen to try as a staple dish.  It is a rectangular tube of pasta, comprised of spaghetti strands all joined together to form the shell, inside which is a cheese, ham and mushroom mix with a truffled sauce costing €135 for one serving.  The pasta is beautifully done and aside its obviously impressive design, the quality of the ham, mushroom and cheese blend with stunning truffled sauce, really did make this as good as it looked and was a superlative dish – very pleased to have made sure I have had this as one for the life ticks to ensure.

Predessert was a green apple quince and yoghurt from Brittany which had a slightly slimy texture, but the apple was so powerful.  Miniardise (tiny bites) were offered prior to the dessert and included cherry with cherry juice inside (incredibly good), chocolate and a cracker with lemon sorbet and lemon balm.  The latter was so fresh and the caramel and pecan nuts was soft and wonderful. 

The finale was another signature dish which I was informed from more than one source was the grapefruit dessert.  This is served as a Mille Feuille, with orange candy and dill on top.  Grapefruit is not normally my favourite fruit owing to how sharp it can be, but this was done beautifully with enough sweet to offset this in the candy and the grapefruit sorbet layer as well, having a carefully balanced level of sweet.  A gel base with slices forming perfect rectangles, a sorbet and crystallised grapefruit candy layers meant that if you do not like grapefruit, this version had everything to make you happy with it.  Only world-class chefs have the ability and control to do this.

Coffee was joined by a display of the temptation trolley for a huge number of petit fours, all finished off with a serving of light, butter and sugar buns which show off the clear pastry skills of the kitchen.  I should also mention that a quality meal should not be without good wine and after a long chat with the sommelier, I was much more happy to have just one glass of something fabulous rather than a half bottle of something average and boy did he produce this in the glass of 2012 Morey-Saint-Denis at €38 for the glass.  Such a beautifully smooth Burgandy to accompany food of the highest quality was 100% worth every euro.

I loved this meal and this place.  It had the ability to make me enjoy something I usually do not enjoy, had fabulous dishes and service all round and was set in one of the most beautiful interiors known to the dining world.  The hotel has two other restaurants either side of the courtyard, both Michelin starred, but Le Cinq is the temple and deservedly so.  Even if you can’t make this, the Four Seasons here is also famed for its display of different flowers throughout the year in the lobby and restaurant areas and getting dressed up to simply coming in for a drink in any of the communal areas will be worth it for your time.

Le Cinq: an exquisite restaurant.

Food Grade: 94%



























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Hajime (Osaka) https://major-foodie.com/hajime-osaka/ https://major-foodie.com/hajime-osaka/#respond Tue, 22 Oct 2019 19:36:20 +0000 https://major-foodie.com/?p=20440 Japanese and French fusion dining in Osaka at spectacular level Hajime (named after the owner Hajime Yoneda) is an innovative restaurant that uses a style of French cuisine using Japanese and surrounding territory’s produce.  It has held 3 Michelin stars for three years and the head chef, Mr Yoneda, has been at the helm since […]

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Japanese and French fusion dining in Osaka at spectacular level

Hajime (named after the owner Hajime Yoneda) is an innovative restaurant that uses a style of French cuisine using Japanese and surrounding territory’s produce.  It has held 3 Michelin stars for three years and the head chef, Mr Yoneda, has been at the helm since 2008.  In short, these were some of the most impressively cooked and well-designed dishes I have had anywhere in the world and I would say this restaurant is definitely worth flying to as a special journey, totally in keeping with is well deserved 3 Michelin stars.  An outstandingly conceived and executed meal.

The ethos of the menu at Hajime follows a set, seasonal pattern.  As it was Autumn, my meal was broken down into the ‘Mori’ (from the forest),  the ‘Seimei’ (life), ‘Kawa’ (from the river), ‘Umi’ (from the sea), ‘Hakai to Douka’ (destruction and assimilation), ‘Kibou’ (hope) consisting of ‘dew’, ‘mother earth’ and ‘wildflower’ components, finishing off with ‘Ai’ (love) displayed in the red colours of the dessert.

Therefore the meal began with something from the forest and this appetiser was a show stopper right up front which essentially ‘soup within soup’.  A perfectly clear consommé of matsutake mushroom held what looked like a button mushroom head at the bottom.  Floral notes came out of the glass on sipping and after sipping this fragrant mushroom ‘tea’, I let the mushroom head plump into the mouth to reveal that this was actually a sphere of creamed mushroom soup, held together with a thin gelatine (perhaps aga-agar although I could not establish this for certain) – this film had just enough strength to hold it together, rather like an egg yolk and on closing the mouth it gently burst open to mix the creamed matsutake with its surrounding consomme.  The glass incidentally was decorated with alone, Autumnal leaf taken from treas that surrounded where the mushrooms had come from.  Very, very clever and genuinely perfect as a mushroom soup opener in powerhouse house simplicity. Rarely do you get such a superb opener of wonder at restaurants like this.    

The ‘Seimei’ (life) dish was brown spotted grouper with herring roe, eel and watercress in a very appetising doughnut were follow up snacks to be had before the meal which were very good as was the intensely delicate rice paper with hata (Japanese white fish), black olive shavings and herb oil.  The fish itself was unbelievably sweet and another lovely, new ingredient to try.  

Salmon from Naggan (north Japan) was the choice for the dish emanating from the river (Kawa) and came with salmon roe, hatcho miso (100% soya beans and no wheat or grain used creating a lovely richness), tomato and sorrel, miso (green blobs) and including a clever candy in shape of salmon on top.  This was very light and pleasing, although the salmon itself was fairly neutral in flavour surprisingly.  It was mainly exceedingly soft with beautiful decoration that worked quite well together as flavours and an impressive design of all elements of the dish looking like running water and waves.

Freshwater prawn was next, served against a hot stone on the plate with uncured ham, quail’s egg, mantis shrimp and the ‘Umi’ (from the sea) was suppon, an extravagant delicacy of Chinese softshell turtle inside a ravioli with mushroom sauce. Another expertly crafted dish but a little hard to know where to start. The real moments on the dish were the ravioli with suppon which had the strongest sense of umami I think I have ever had and the utter sweetness of the prawn.  Another, new life moment in food.  The dish also came with foie gras, Asian hazel, pumpkin, black pepper and thin layer of candy on top. Lovely biscuit but foie gras could have had a touch more seasoning as was a little too subtle. 

A very cleansing interlude of pine sorbet representing the ‘dew’ was served prior to the main event and this was another first – pine in sorbet – and this worked very well I thought.  The main course itself was Taoshita beef, served with offerings from from ‘mother earth’ such as squash, beetroot, parsnip, fresh cheese, olive oil, apricot, chrysanthemum, turnip and fig all on a matcha sauce.  Phhew, quite a few things to note on that one(!).  Homemade bread also came on the side in a break from the norma to help mop up the exquisite sauces and jus, but it was the matcha that was probably most surprising and lovely addition.  I was a little worried about this at the beginning as I suspected this would be a bridge too far, but it really gave a lovely tang to the beef and was a refreshing combination and lovely alternative way to having beef.  Relief and pleasure in one(!).  

Nitro cheese was then served in a way that made you breath out nitrogen vapour (as does when having virtually anything ‘cooked’ in liquid nitrogen) and this was served with crisp filo pastry, olive oil, biscuit sabre and chrysanthemum syrup from ‘wildflowers’ as a final and gorgeously sweet component.  This was an utterly outstanding dish of intense cheese flavour complimentary sweetness with cold and crisp for additional sensations.  

To finish, a ‘love’ (Ai) dessert of strawberries and raspberries, strawberry ice cream and sablé biscuit had a hot couli poured into the ice cream shell.  This was very well done and not too sweet at the same time however it was the petit fours that I thought took the crown for sweets in an unusual twist.  Among the offerings were candy floss, chestnut cherry, apple tart, popcorn panna cotta, (salted popcorn was genius on top), mascarpone tart, deconstructed chocolate macaron and an incredible apple sphere.  Although I have not had the fabled apple dessert at 2 Michelin starred Bord’Eau in Amsterdam, this was in some ways even more impressive as a miniature replica version (I do not know who designed it first).  This is one of the most impressively done sweets. let alone petit fours collections I have had full stop and this, combined with how light the sugar sphere was and the beautifully prepared apple was almost heart-stopping.

I hope this expands on why this restaurant gets such a high grade from me and anything less than 97% is unbefitting for the quality of this meal.













 

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Mizai (Kyoto) https://major-foodie.com/mizai-kyoto/ https://major-foodie.com/mizai-kyoto/#respond Thu, 17 Oct 2019 19:05:49 +0000 https://major-foodie.com/?p=20438 Pinnacle of Japanese dining experiences This was a very rare treat to have and be able to write about.  To give you an idea why, when I last visited Kyoto in the Spring of 2018, I enquired about making a reservation for this visit in late 2019 and the answer from the head concierge at […]

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Pinnacle of Japanese dining experiences

This was a very rare treat to have and be able to write about.  To give you an idea why, when I last visited Kyoto in the Spring of 2018, I enquired about making a reservation for this visit in late 2019 and the answer from the head concierge at The Ritz Carlton, Kyoto was on par with Sir Humphrey Appleby shaking his head at the Prime Minister simply smiling and saying, “…that, could be tricky…” (i.e. impossible, even with a year and half’s notice).  As it happened, the category 9 typhoon that occurred on this second visit caused cancellations to flights into Japan and to our amazement, the Okura hotel, Kyoto (where we were staying) sent a message the day after our arrival to say that we had gained a place at Mizai (with three exclamation marks).  This turned out to be nothing short of a blessing – I had heard the hype of this restaurant but reserved judgement, based on previous anti-climaxes, but when all was said and done, I can confirm that this was essentially the meal to end all meals for the reasons at the expansion button.  Cash only, no pictures of the meal allowed and a rather hefty £420 per head, but I will cherish this meal memory forever.  Allow me to explain…

Mizai is located on the edge of the historic Maruyama Park, which is a beautifully preserved public park near the Yasaka Shrine in the Higashiyama District.  Aside from the iconic temples scattered all around, all with lanterns at night, the park holds distinct cherry blossom trees, one of which is a famed shidarezakura, a rare and tall, weeping cherry blossom that people queue to see in the Hanami (cherry blossom season in late April / early May) which I have been lucky enough to see at this time.  Incidentally, if you visit for this, you will not be alone as the visitor numbers can be insane at this period, with many Japanese families travelling to Kyoto (above the hoard of tourists) dressing up in full, traditional Kimono dress to have family photos with the iconic trees in the background.  But please trust me when I say this is an annual, spectacle of the earth and life tick to have if you can squeeze in.

Our taxi pulled up as close to the restaurant as it could, there at the top of an ancient stone staircase, a restaurant representative stood waiting to escort us to the restaurant from where we were dropped off.  With the walkway and trees lit up at night, this genuinely felt on a par with what entering Nania for the first time must be like as we made our way down the steps to what was still a mystery at this stage.

After our names were taken outside the venue at the front of the restaurant, we were invited to have a seat outside whilst the staff finished preparing the restaurant and given a welcome drink of lightly salted water and puffed rice – a simple and welcome combination, similar to that had at Kitcho, another 3 Michelin starred Kaiseki restaurant only that afternoon (a pretty marvellous day overall).  Once finished, we were invited to the main dining room which, in keeping with the setting of this restaurant is beautifully designed, with a deliberate view of a manicured garden in the background, displaying a simple plaque above the restaurant window, baring the name of Mizai in Kanji.

The main restaurant seats 14 at the main counter and a further 6 in the private dining area behind the main counter and towards the back of the restaurant (this enclosure has a window looking to the counter but is discreet enough for privacy as well).  Other lovely, minimalist enclaves of the restaurant had simple scrolls of Kanji, one loosely translating to “My heart is devoted to the Autumn” and another, outlining words to the effect of, “Magnificent chrysanthemum flowers of Autumn”.  Seasonal produce is obviously at the heart of this restaurant and the beautifully written scrolls not only decorating the restaurant simply and perfectly but also outlining the philosophy of the team behind it so appropriately.  These poetic scrolls change according to the season.

On to the meal and my apologies for not being able to expand as much as I would like to, but the staff only spoke so much English and there was an obvious air of being bad etiquette to strike up too much of a conversation over the food.  For the privilege it was and the fact that I and my dining companion were the only non-Japanese speakers at this service, we did not feel like holding up the show for the others asking too many questions – tactically placed questions, of course.  A miscellaneous point is that based on the body language of the staff alone, this was altogether a different service feel than at Jiro, had days before (a good thing).  Early on in the meal the head chef, Hitoshi Ishihara, looked at us in a frown as his watchful eye saw that we did not have any sake causing him to turn to one of his assistants and asked why this was the case.  I can answer this one – the main reason being that there are no prices on the wine list for any of the drinks.  As this almost felt like asking how much a diamond necklace in Graff is (if you have to ask, you don’t belong there), we were a little hesitant as the restaurant is cash only and did not want to risk having a bottle of sake costing another £400 – thankfully a reasonable option at around a tenth of this at £40 was available which we just found out through the friendly help of a Malaysian couple to our left, so this was opted for(!).

The meal began with ‘five shades of mushroom’ sliced and intertwined together to make a spaghetti-like ball of mushroom, held together by a paste of the mushrooms used.  A dashi with carrot and carrot side was also served with this dish and was a delightful start.  I took a photo of this opening dish and a gentleman diner next to me looked at me in horror and shook both hands to signal ‘don’t do it’.  A bit of a shame, but the police enforcement of no photos seemingly done more so by regulars than the actual staff.  This explains the lack of photos in this review.

Next up was the sashimi which included a sumptuous sea bream liver, delicately fried bream skin, yellowtail, otoro (full fat tuna) and squid, all served with gorgeous ponzu, saltwater and sesame sauces.  If this was not enough, the offering included vinegared, soy jelly cubes which were without a doubt the greatest play and version of soy sauce I have ever come across – genuinely a breathtaking version of soy sauce with the perfect play of sweet and salty at the same time and with magnificent texture to compliment the sashimi perfectly.  I don’t blame you for thinking “it’s just soy…” but you simply had to have this to appreciate.

Next came tail fish and tuna paste in a bowl of matsutake mushroom broth which had a perfume of mushroom leaping out through the steam from the bowl, hitting your nostrils prior to any leaning in.  The slices of yuzu in this also gave this a lovely punch of citrus to balance and this was superbly balanced.  Next came superb A4 wagyu beef with blobs of apple and miso on top as an absolute knock out combination (who thinks of this?!) and a green chilli salad made with a red wine, honey and vinegar dressing.   Words fail me at how stunning this dish was in every way – the quality of the beef, the combination of the original gel on top, the faint heat from the chilli as well as the crunch from the salad and the delightfully sweet and acidic overtones from the dressing – I’m almost welling up as I write this knowing, the scale of what I had here in this dish hitting home again.  As ever, my associate Mr Bainbridge concurred with this sea shift moment of a dish and we both wished time to simply slow down.

Eel in dashi (a broth of kelp and bonito flakes, fundamental to Japanese and Kyoto cuisine) was a salty and pleasing boiled follow up dish.  This was effectively a palette wash prior to the main event which was a simply stunning platter holding an assortment of sculpted and carved fried tempura and raw vegetables and fish in presentation.  Tempura Ayu, or sweetfish (a relative of the smelt family) from Nakaumi (south Japan) was served with chestnuts, yam, matsutake mushrooms, duck pieces and herring amongst the array served with an outrageously good mustard (for the duck) and salmon roe within a mini, ceramic, mollusc shell.  The platter was decorated with seasonal leaves that had been locally picked by the staff earlier that day and not only visually fit for Royalty, but it also held at least two powerhouse moments of flavour.   

This nakazara or main dish was followed by the boiled (nimono) dish of abalone, yuzu and turnip which was not the height of the meal, but well-matched at the same time, followed by horsehair crab and grilled barracuda in two separate and ornately designed ceramic bowls.  The quality of both the crab and the fish were simply at the top of the tree.  Finally, the traditional rice and pickles were served in a different way with the rice having slightly burnt rice on the top layer, above the fluffier and normal version, giving the rice a completely different texture and smokey quality – a brilliant touch.  The pickled vegetables displayed the five primary colours of Kaiseki cuisine – white (from the tofu), red (radish shavings), yellow (sweet potato), green (komatsuna – mustard spinach) and dark brown/black (seaweed with soy) – to finish the savoury dishes off, virtually in the same manner of an artist finishing on this poignant note.

Then came one of the nicest touches of the dining experience, perhaps of any dining experience.  The lights were dimmed and the matcha tea was prepared personally by the head chef, making each one in turn for each guest.  Before any of this, the head chef inspected each matcha pot and briefly examined all his diners and paired the matcha pots to each guest according to how he saw the best fit.  Each serving of matcha was made in keeping with the traditional tea ceremony of Kyoto, using a bamboo brush with quick, circular movements of the hand and a bow of a head at the end of making each in turn, in honour of the gods for the creation of the drink and the guest to whom it was being presented to.  Each one was carefully made, unrushed and served calmly and meaningfully by the head chef to all guests prior to the lights gently coming back on for the sweets and final part of the meal.  This was a magical part of the meal and done with a level of sincerity I have not encountered at any other restaurant in the world.

A chestnut pudding was then served prior to a showcase of fruit which was an impressive pyramid of carefully constructed fruit pieces, using no less than 49 different kinds of Japanese fruit.  These were held together with a fruit gel from the fruits used which included fig, grape, peach, melon, baby kiwi and a whole assortment of further, unpronounceable fruits.  On the side was a small cup of what looked like and had the consistency of custard but was, in fact, a delicious mango puree with its inherent sweetness somehow toned down.  This concluded the marathon of Kaiseki dishes which was mercifully paced at just under 3.5 hours, so no rush at all and wonderfully calm the whole way through.

It is hard to think of any negative thoughts to this meal, but if there is one, it is the fact that I and my trusted associate were nearing a bloated capacity towards the end.  In fact, one diner a couple of spaces down from me, could not even take any more just before the final dish and had to refuse the fruit mix – not an option for myself as this had to be tried, but I confess I did not finish this as I did not want to leave too uncomfortable.

This is the only reason this restaurant is not getting 99% or 100% as this was the only negative to the frankly superb levels the food had, beyond the utter charm of the occasion.  The produce was utterly fresh, the dishes innovative, the design visually stunning and the meal with spectacular flavour combinations throughout.  Sprinkle on top of this, the venue being set in one of the most enchanting locations imaginable and the sheer control of the staff and head chef generating a feeling of simply being in the hands of the best in the world, you have a recipe for a meal that transcends all others in terms of the whole dining experience.  As a result, the £420 price tag did not even cross the mind and there is actually an argument for me not wishing to return to this restaurant, in order to preserve it in its current state in my mind.

If you are lucky enough to get even close to a reservation at this restaurant and I were in your shoes, I would obviously cancel and rearrange flights in or out of the country as required to accommodate this opportunity.  If this is not on the cards however, I do hope you have been able to live this meal vicariously through myself and this review – it is genuinely a magical, one of a kind and a lifetime experience to have had.

Food Grade: 98%



















 

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Kitcho (Kyoto) https://major-foodie.com/kitcho-kyoto/ https://major-foodie.com/kitcho-kyoto/#comments Wed, 16 Oct 2019 23:16:00 +0000 https://major-foodie.com/?p=20436 The ultimate in Ryokan, Kaiseki cuisine within Kyoto Kitcho is a nationally and internationally respected brand within Japan for its branch of 5 restaurants in Kyoto.  The flagship restaurant is located in Arashiyama, a historic site of scenic beauty located near the Ōi River and backdrop of mountain ranges on the peripheries of Kyoto.  This […]

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The ultimate in Ryokan, Kaiseki cuisine within Kyoto

Kitcho is a nationally and internationally respected brand within Japan for its branch of 5 restaurants in Kyoto.  The flagship restaurant is located in Arashiyama, a historic site of scenic beauty located near the Ōi River and backdrop of mountain ranges on the peripheries of Kyoto.  This 3 Michelin starred restaurant is a Ryokan, the most traditional of Japanese buildings with its squeaky, wooden floorboards, minimalist interiors and sliding doors of paper etc.  Each diner is privileged to have a huge dining room all to themselves and personal garden view which will account for some of the hefty price tag of £504 per head.  This was the pinnacle of traditional Japanese dining experiences, my only regret being it may be a long time before I have such an experience at this level again.

The Kitcho brand was founded 90 years ago in 2020 by Yuki Teiichi, the grandfather of the current Executive chef, Kunio Tokuoka (who was taught by his grandfather).  Kunio’s credentials are seriously impressive and worth a mention here: he catered the social dinner for the G8 Summit in Toyako, Hokkaido in 2008; he is involved in the search for solutions to various issues relating to regional vitalisation and the primary industries of agriculture, forestry and fisheries in Japan; he is a visiting professor at Tokyo University of Agriculture and honorary director of the Society of Industry, Culture, and Science.  It’s fair to say this chap is a beacon of culinary knowledge for all, including the fortunate diners of his 3 Michelin starred restaurant.

On arrival, we were met and greeted by a welcoming front of house representative (stood in the garden as opposed to a lectern inside to make sure people were escorted).  Inside our waitress, dressed in the finest traditional kimono uniform greeted us and after prompting us to remove shoes and put on restaurant slippers from Kitcho, we were escorted to our table situated in a room larger than most 1 bedroom apartments with a view of private gardens 180 degrees around from where we dined.  You can choose to dine at a table which will be more comfortable for some, but as this experience is not everyday, I and my associate Mr Bainbridge were very happy to sit cross-legged on the floor. NB: you will need to open legs or stand every hour or so if you are above 40 years old(!).

As you have an entire dining room to yourselves you have your own coat rack and after these were hung up and we were settled, the first question asked of us by our waitress was: “Is the room temperature ok for you?”.  You know you are in good hands immediately if you are asked something like this anywhere, and I have never been asked this question in any other restaurant in my life.  Asked with such sincerity and a beaming smile, I mention this as I want you to have a sense of how elevated this was as a dining experience compared to bog-standard others (and perhaps, help to expand on the price tag).

As ever with Kaiseki cuisine, our meal began with the Sake-ikken / drink offering and Kitcho use saltwater and puffed rice which may sound odd to have saltwater, but the combination of the two is perfect in its simplicity and the salt content is very low; strangely, this is very cleansing.  The sakizuke (appetiser) was blue crab, vinegar jelly and seasonal vegetables which was frankly a rip-roarer – such delicately judged vinegar jelly and tasty bite altogether, that also had all five of the primary colours in cooking (green, red, yellow, brown/black and white), as is integral to Kaiseki cuisine.  Such a clever and brilliant opening.

Meanwhile, our sake bottle was poured into a decanter and presented on ice and this continued throughout the meal.  Our o-wan (clear soup) was made with matsutake mushroom, grouper fish, Chinese yam and plum gel and was very good; the fish being able to stand up relatively well to the broth.

The Mukōzuke (Sashimi) course comprised of sea bream with ponzu and fried nori seaweed stems which were just brilliant.  Again, they may not sound special, but the seaweed bites were just so simple and superbly done, the skill level to get these as perfectly light and packed with so much flavour was impressive in its own right.  The sea bream itself was high-grade bream and this was followed by a beautiful serving of toro (medium fat tuna) and lobster.  Both sashimi were quality and the presentation itself delightful boosted by the care and attention to detail of all supporting components of wasabi, radish and two different concentrations of soy sauce.

The nakazara or, middle dish was knock out and original.  This was Yuba: a soy milk skin, coating shiitake mushroom underneath in a light mushroom broth.  This was absolutely superb and the texture of the soy milk skin being a treat.  I’m one of these strange people that as a child used to actually enjoy the skin forming on top of the semolina at school and still enjoy the skin that forms on top of warm custard, shunned in virtually every Officers’ Mess or wherever I have happened to opt for this.  One of the few places that I know that also does this are on Michael Wignall’s menus when he was at The Latymer (Penny Hill Park), later at Gidleigh Park and hopefully at his own place at the Angel at Hetton (to be done early this year).

On to the next course which, in Kaiseki cuisine is traditionally the boiled dish (nimono) and this was one of the most visually impressive platter presentations of various dishes in one sitting I have been afforded.  This platter consisted of boiled abalone, baby fish boiled with soy sauce (exquisite), deep-fried maitake mushroom (dancing mushroom in Japanese), tiger prawn with miso, tofu and no platter is complete without a Japanese favourite – cod’s testicles.  Actually, the latter parts are actually a delicacy and as you might expect quite rich.  Probably the less said the better on this, but this was a beautifully presented series of bites and the miso blob on outstanding tiger prawns were excellent, as was the wonderfully fried mushrooms in delicate panko breadcrumbs.

Next, the grilled (yakimono) dish was harvest fish, pinko nuts and beans.  This was followed by an additional course of the five principal colours: Tarro Japanese sweet pepper (green) from Kyoto, orange pumpkin, brown shiitake mushroom, white radish and yellow yuzu – a warming interlude completely.  Next came the rice and pickles and as unadventurous as this might sound if this is the first kaiseki review you’ve read, then allow me to liven it up by reporting that this rice was served with two pieces of perfect Kobe beef with a drop of sweet mustard on top, served with kelp, bonito flakes, pickles from turnip and leaves of turnip.  You know you are in heaven when you want time to slow down when eating and I deliberately took 10 minutes to take my time with these two powerhouse cubes of wagyu. The aroma of beef was still strongly swilling around the mouth for a good few minutes after the first bite and the mouth, coated with beef fat, flavoured the mouthfuls of rice from then on.  The second recharge of beef was even better than the first and I can’t stress enough how good this simple combination for the rice was.

The Kuchi-naoshi (a form of pre-dessert) of custard was a remarkable piece of cooking.  Again, it might not sound like much, but this custard, I’m sorry to have to say overtook to my beloved custard at Ynyshir Restaurant and Rooms, but as it is 3 Michelin starred custard made with duck egg in Kyoto, Japan, this is also a compliment to Ynyshir.  As soon as the first mouthful of this substance was enjoyed, I looked at my dining companion and we both knew we were having something memorable.  It was also orange for Christ’s sake!  Every now and again in these wonderful places, you come across an absolute gem and this was one of those distinct moments – such rich and velvety sweetness, it was unlike any other.  It is quite simply the best custard in the history of cooking and the only sadness is that no other version will ever top the scales ever again for me.  Again, if you truly believe there is one out there that is the undisputed heavyweight champion of custards, do let me know where in the world you think this is, but also please do not do this willy-nilly as it is likely I will actually fly to the venue to try it. 

The custard was meant to be an additive drizzle on top of the wonderful pione grapes, melon, fig and shiso leaf and drizzled it was; I just happened to drink the rest of it from the container after scooping all of it separately afterwards and I have no problem with this.  The fruits themselves were basically perfect and it was actually great that the portion size of these as well was controlled and the servings were not so large (as was the case at Jiro and arguably at Nanachome Kyoboshi as well).

Finally in the offerings was a beautifully mashed and reconstructed chesnut dessert made from the intwined strips of chesnut.  This was rich, smooth and enjoyable but in a small twist, this is the only part that was not done as well here as it was the previous day at Kichisen (just a little dryer here in comparison). However, this is a very small part and it was still pleasant and was followed by matcha and mouth washing roasted tea to conclude the meal.

Settling the bill was the only aspect of the meal that was strange.  The restaurant is perhaps used to people paying more in cash than any other way as we asked whether the restaurant accepted different types of credit card and this seemed to generate a degree of genuine unease as we were eventually asked to accompany the waitress through the kitchen to the back office to pay at the terminal there, much to the virtual shock of the staff we had to pass, washing up and prepping for dinner service.  £500 is quite a large amount of money to be carrying around in cash and is not exactly petty change and the experience at Nanachome Kyoboshi had taught us to check on payment methods (which we did) so I can only hope/presume that this was a temporary fault with the machine.  So it was the only odd thing that such an expensive and world-renowned restaurant was so antiquated in providing.  Perhaps this adds to its historic charm (to have to pay by cash), but this is the only part we thought could be enhanced by a more swept up payment process for modern times.

However, that is micro stuff.  On a macro scale, there were several stratospheric moments in this meal including the baby fish boiled in soy, fried maitake mushroom, Kobe rice and one being a food-life moment of the custard.  It was a very expensive meal at 142,000 JPY for two (£504 per person), but when you are having a meal served in a traditional Ryokan, with dishes of sheer beauty providing life memories, served by a polite and smiling kimono dressed waitress bowing to the table after serving every course, this is what I would describe as an ultimate in dining experiences.   I am so pleased to have had this meal, the organisation of which I have my associate to thank and consider myself lucky to have had this experience.

How do I sum up this place? Answer: if you want to know what it is like to genuinely dine like an Emporer and do not mind paying for it, this is somewhere that will genuinely do this.

Food Grade: 96%


























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