Next Restaurant's series of dinner is probably one of the most innovative, yet, traditional culinary innovation by Grant Achatz. The series' inspiration comes from all randomness: from Achatz' childhood to different restaurants to different locations in the world. This time around, it's Kyoto.
After a trip in Kyoto, Achatz has orchestrated this dinner using the most traditional flavor from Kyoto, bringing Kyoto's spirit with him and allowing diners to have a flavor of it.
Corn Husk
Its name might be very simple, however, the flavor of this broth carries heavy sweetness of the corn.
Chestnut, apple, white miso, hay aroma
Japanese Maple forest (Shrimp, Roe with custard and compressed fish eggs)
Sashimi (Madai, Salmon and Kanpachi), Shiso, Tamari
Abalone, cucumber, red sea grapes
The
abalone has a nice chewy texture and carries the freshness of the mollusk. The
red sea grapes provide the citrus and sweetness, which makes it a nice
compliment to the abalone.
Anago, maple dashi, shimeji mushroom
This
is probably one of the best Eel soup I've had so far. The broth is light but carry a bit
of a dashi saltiness. The eel is lightly flavored and the mushroom provides a
nice chewiness to go with the soup.
Matsutake Chawanmushi, pine
I
am known to be a chawanmushi snob and this chawanmushi is surprisingly
delicious. The egg is extremely light and airy, while it carries a bit of
saltiness. The mushroom is a bit of an after thought though, however.
Ayu, wasabi leaf, cured yolk
This fish is probably one of the
best preparation I've tasted. The fish is cooked to perfection. It is grilled
nicely: the meat is firm but moist while its skin has the perfect crunch. The
fish carries a nice flavor from the grill and combined with perfect
seasoning, creates this nicely orchestrated fish.
We get to eat the bones as well,
it's fried to crisp. Seriously, eating the fish's bone is like eating chips.
Chrysanthemum, eggplant, shiso leaf
The
tempura is extremely light and airy. I'm surprised by the lightness of it.
However, I guess I was still overwhelmed by the fish from the earlier course,
so I think this is an after-thought course. But it provides a nice
intermission.
Australian Kobe, carrots, vegetable with soup, rice and pickles
The beef is perfectly cooked with nice flavoring to complement with the rice, vegetable and miso soup. This is a heart warming dish. A very traditional, yet, delicious course.
Roasted Fig, Yuba, Emperor II
Warabi Mochi, toasted soy
The mochi is light, chewy but not sticky. I can simply eat another dozen of these.
The kyoto dinner course definitely brings in all the traditional kyoto flavor, with a little bit of Grant Achatz's spin on it. The food and flavor are simple, but it carries the comfort that highlights Japanese food. It took a few days for me to truly appreciate the essence of this dinner. I would have to say that Grant has wrapped this one up nicely and I'm looking forward to future series.
