L´Atelier De Joel Robuchon NY at the Four Seasons

L´Atelier de Joel Robuchon for me is like Nobu, a place that must be visited when you are in a city with one, obligatory stop. Hey some people like the comfort of McDonalds... for me it Nobu and L´Atelier and soon Hakkasan in NY as well (opening 2012).  Oh just to make it clear went to Nobu 57 as well when we where in NY. http://www.preview.fourseasons.com/newyork/dining/restaurants/l_atelier_de_joel_robuchon/

For this dinner we decided to make our own tasting menu as a lot of the dishes that were on the tasting menu we had already tired. For those of you who don't know the menu at L´Atelier its great for sharing. It is split into three parts Tasting portions, A la carte and Tasting menu. So we mixed a little of everything. Great way to have more dishes and trust me when you see the menu you will understand....

Classic amuse bouche to start the meal... warm foie gras parfait with port and parmesan

Carpaccio of scallops with sea urchin... as before the rest of the table had it, texture was great and the creaminess of the sea urchin contrasted perfectly with the scallops... or so they told me 

Poached oysters with salt butter... for someone who did the ordering I sure chose a few shellfish dishes....

These are also a classic of Robuchon Crispy Langoustine papillote basil pesto... the leaf of basil delicately wrapped around the langoustine!! 

Sauteed Amadai in yuzu broth with leek... first time I have tasted amadai, nice texture kind of like black sea bass but with a little less flavor.

Foie Gras ravioli with oriental chicken broth... this must be the posh version of dumplings...  so this is what the rich have when they have a cold !!! 

Black cod has now become my go to fish when its on a menu so when I saw it... Caramelized Black cod with daikon and yuzu broth... good very good... like the black cod at nobu... but the best I tasted this trip was the one in Bar Masa... more on that later on

You know how I said that when there is something on the menu that stands out? Like Spaghetti Carbonara you have to order it.. its like putting fried chicken.. WOW... my best memory of carbonara was this restaurant in Rome that had tagliatelle a la carbonara which they mixed fresh in front of us... this version was spectacular... we fought over finishing this dish... even the bread was used to mop up the left over... 

Sweetbread with bay leaf... very good... creamy and flavorsome !!!

Sauteed squid with artichokes... the least favorite dish... but I think by this point we had so many strong robust flavored dishes that the subtlety of this dish was lost... light flavored calamari...

Confit veal cheek... melt in the mouth deep flavor... the tofu was an interesting touch kind of reinforced the velvety texture of the cheek...

Mini burger with foie gras and caramelized peppers... what can I say... beef good... foie good... burger good!!!!

Hanger steak... we have been having steak or red meat in almost every place we have been and this one was up there.... deep flavor, great fat and tender...

So we where stuffed by this time and we asked the waiter to choose a dessert for us and he said sure no problem... so he brought us this lovely pallet cleanser... rum granite, passion fruit and coconut... yummy light and just what we needed....


But

Then

The pastry chef decided to treat us to the desserts....
In honor of having chefs in the restaurants...
Yes by this time the waiter figured out that with all the questions we were asking
and the photos that we were chefs....
....
...
..
SO

Chocolate Tendance... Bitter chocolaté sorbet, chocolate cream  and chocolate cookies... highly recommended for people who love chocolate...

White chocolate sphere filled with raspberry flavors and yuzu ice cream... the little jug on the side is hot chocolate sauce that gets poured over to break the sphere

Mango... how did I know cause its written on the plate... dough!!! Mango mouse and passion fruit sorbet... reminded me of a mango dessert from the Philippines... lovely velvety and smooth !!!

Blown sugar sphere filled with blueberry sorbet, blueberry compote and lemon jam... this was so beautiful to look at that we did not want to break it... but ohhhh it was worth breaking and eating 

Highly recommended for anyone who wants to have an interesting meal... plus the bar seating around the kitchen means that you can go and sit alone in the bar and have a meal and watch the show !!!

ABC Kitchen in NYC

First post of this New Year and new projects on the horizon... guess where I will be headed in the Summer? My time in Marbella is coming to an end and yes you have guessed it I am relocating to NYC !!! First scouting trip to the Big Apple was very interesting and here is one of the restaurants that we enjoyed the most... organic/all natural !!! http://www.abckitchennyc.com

Place setting was great each of us got a different base plate. Reminds me of sitting at my grandmothers table for sunday lunch (or whenever she would break out the fine china!)

Tuna sashimi with ginger and mint!! Great flavor and loved the picant touch of the ginger and the slight soy in the background!!! Plus can never get enough of sushi/sashimi so great bonus!!

Bay Scallops sautéed... slightly spicy and rich in flavor or at least thats what the rest of the table said as I don't eat shellfish... allergy... shame most people tell me... don't know been like that for almost always !!! 

We had to try some of the organic vegetables so we ordered a very interesting pairing of ingredients.... glazed spicy carrots and avocado. This was from their market table part of the menu and changes as the season and availability change. It also had a spicy flavor to the carrots and the micro salad on top worked well to mellow it out. 

Crab meat toast !!! According to the rest of the table it was spectacular, rich and salty crab !!! 

This on the other hand I can personally say was spectacular !!! Roasted pumpkin toast... amazing that it had no meat on it but had a great earthy and almost meaty flavor coming through!! 

The starters... table was a little tight... but that was more because we like to share all the starters and main course thus getting to taste more things!!! You have to if you want to get a great cross section of such an interesting menu!! Great little detail as well of serving extra virgin olive oil from California instead of butter... for those of us who like olive oil instead of butter... though .... 

When on the menu you see something that is called Fried Chicken... well you just have to order it !!! And wow what a fired chicken... worth it!!!

Sautéed Brussels sprouts... its the season and they are sweet and slightly bitter and perfectly cooked!!

Roasted suckling pig with lardon and caramelized onions...

This dish was probably the one we liked the least... not for anything else than coming from Spain the suckling pig we have tasted is just better... 

This pizza was great!!! Mushrooms, cheese and egg... three great ingredients on top of a pizza.... I mean what else can you say???!??? YUMMY 

Clams, mint, parsley and jalapeño chillies... consensus it was good but they were not big fans of so much spice !! But hey I just took the jalapeños and put them on the mushroom pizza... adapt and evolve !!! hahahah  

So all in all a great dinner at ABC kitchen and the interior of the restaurant is spectacular... not to mention the shop and the great open plan kitchen !!!