Sometimes you cannot understand what you have not tried yourself. A dumb girl at once told me she doesn't believe that offering smaller portions and raising the prices is a way to eat in a restaurant.
One who is of lower income means cannot assume that what is out of reach does not mean it is not worth reaching for. Maybe if some people did not go out clubbing on weekends spending $100+ on drinks they could learn to appreciate fine dining. Fine dining should not be a show of class but a form of appreciation for the culinary trade, to celebrate those who have achieved great skill in preparing intensely focused food and exceptional service of which the synergy creates perfect dining experience.
But enough of my social commentary on most of Beer Belly America, this was the time for my own foray into Michelin star dining. The restaurant of subject would be none other than the amazing Providence, helmed by Michael Cimarusti. Unfortunately the lighting was very dim inside so I was shooting at 1600 ISO (without flash) at f/1.8 which meant focusing in the dark was a pain. As you will notice the focus may be off in some pictures but as usual click them to view the larger version of them.
Originally we had plans for the 5 course tasting menu which I had mistakenly thought was priced at $65 (that was the anniversary price) but was actually $95. In comparison the full 9 course tasting was $120 so we opted to go all out. We begin with an amuse bouche of 4 items.
From left to right: Frozen mojito (like an adult icee), gel spherification of a tequila sunrise, a micro gruyere roll, shot glass of parsley soup with a parmesan foam and port wine reduction at the bottom.
It was a good start to the meal, I especially enjoyed the port wine reduction at the bottom of the shot glass which lit up my taste buds.
1st course to arrive was a kanpachi sashimi with rice crackers over creme fraiche. The addition of lime leaves added a nice citrus element to the dish. Rice crackers provided a good contrast in texture while the kanpachi and creme fraiche went well together resulting in a creamy mix. I wouldn't have though of ever using creme fraiche with raw fish.
2nd Course: Santa Barbara sea urchin with champagne butter and egg topped with micro croutons. I have to say the presentation and plating was really something for this. Being that its served in an eggshell which rest on a metal nests on top of a real cross section of a tree. I thoroughly enjoyed this dish as a fan of uni this had to be one of the best preparations of uni that I have ever had. The server recommend we mix it around a bit while it was still hot to keep that creamy egg yolk from setting and becoming firm. The micro croutons added a nice crunch to the very creamy texture of this course. I wish I had an entire bowl of this dish to scoop up with some nice crusty bread.
3rd Course: Nancy's Scallops with dashi, buckwheat, and napa cabbage - I don't know who Nancy is but these scallops were of great quality. Unlike the nasty STP treated ones you get at most supermarkets this scallop was firm and not overly moist and unusually very meaty in texture. A great sear on the outside and cooked just barely under medium the other components help to bring this dish all together with a nice floral element to it.
4th Course: Wild striped bass with nori, cannellini beans, and lemon brown butter sauce - One of the weaker savory courses of the night, it wasn't bad just wasn't very impressed by the rustic nature of it. Seemed more like a home cooked kind of dish but nonetheless it was tasty. I did not really get any nori at all and the brown butter sauce was a bit too strong. I like butter and all but the fish should have been the star. The inclusion of fresh thinly sliced scallion strips on top provided a nice freshness to the otherwise butter heavy dish.
5th Course: Tasman Sea Trout with fennel, beets, blood orange - A strange dish in components I was pleasantly surprised by how it all went together. The beets were mild in flavor and very tender yet not mushy. The inclusion of a blood orange added some acidity. The sea trout was cooked perfectly with that nice balance of firmness and oiliness to it. The fennel I believe was found in the fresh dill sprigs and in the foam. Finally the dehydrated trout skin added a nice crunch to this course as it desperately needed some texture other than tenderness.
6th Course: veal tenderloin with braised daikon disc, chanterelle mushrooms, radishes, black truffle fondue, and veal jus - main components but it all worked together well. I enjoyed eating the chanterelles with the radish and a little bit of the tenderloin. I liked the tenderness and perfectly cooked tenderloin but veal tends to be a very mildly flavored meat and tenderloin is the least flavorful cut. I felt this course was designed for those who must have some meat, I would have preferred another fish course or at different cut of meat altogether. The black truffle was a little lost to me and the daikon disc turned out to be a tad too salty.
Cheese course: A wide variety of cheese, none of us at the table were experts so we let the fromager choose for us. I must say he gave us a nice variety to try and there were definitely some highlights.
Candied apples, apricots, walnuts, and figs were provided along with some slices of some sort of wheat nut bread. In the middle was an American goat cheese and it was super creamy and my favorite of the night.
1st Dessert Course: Lemon tarragon sorbet over a yogurt foam - A nice palate cleanser but overall it was an underwhelming desert. The sorbet was too tart but I appreciated that the tarragon was subtle. The yogurt foam underneath was good but it was out of place with the lemon sorbet in my opinion.
2nd Dessert Course: Banana bread pudding, barley ice cream - This was a real dessert now, the bread pudding was everything I want in banana bread but without the carbs, this was more like a mousse/foam of banana bread. The barely ice cream was very subtle in flavor but the toasted nuts underneath really helped that while adding texture.
Alternate Dessert Course: My dining companions opted out of the barley ice cream because they feared it to be too much barely flavor for them. Honestly I don't know why as this alternative I found to be a little strange. I don't quite remember exactly what it was but it was some sort of ice cream with tapioca pudding, a fruity gelee of some sort, and some sort of crumble. I like to think I chose right.
We end the night with some mignardises, small confections to be eaten after dinner. I wasn't too found of the chocolate marshmallow nor the fruit jelly but at least the micro macaron was a nice way to end the night.
In the end I think my case for fine dining stands. This is not something I would eat everyday even if I had the money. The meal alone took 3 hours but even in this economy as we see many mid casual restaurants pop up (many of which I am grateful for), fine dining has it place in our culinary world. It is not something that can nor should be phased out because it is a place we cooks should strive to go for excellence. That is not to say excellence cannot be achieved in a 50's style diner but in all honesty where else can we find customers who are open minded and willing to pay a lot of money for food from cooks who are willing to use the best ingredients and cook to the best of their abilities.
I make the minimum wage but even a lowly cook like me knows how to save his money. The case I make for fine dining can be formed into a sports analogy for those who need it. The rich can afford court side season tickets and experience greatness everyday and most of us have to save money to watch one game and probably in a much worse seat, but it is for the experience so that we can go watch athletes perform their best in the best environment. You can go watch a street court game for free but are you going to find players who have honed their skills for years and to play with the best? Providence is a perfect example of excellence in this city and I know I will be back for more of this experience in the future.
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