Victoria and Albert's - The Chef's Table, Part III
If I haven't already mentioned it, dinner at the Chef's Table is a liesurely affair. There is no rushing from one course to the next - you are supposed to enjoy each culinary offering...admire the presentation, inhale the aroma, savor the taste. Take your time because the entire experience is designed to last upwards of four hours.
You can interact as much or as little with the kitchen staff as you choose. I admit - during the first couple of courses I felt a little shy. For one thing it was obvious that everyone was very busy and Jay and I were hesitant to bother them. Israel Perez told us later that the restaurant was completely booked for the first dinner seating that night and more than half full for the second seating - that's a lot of meals to prepare for a restaurant like V&A.
Another reason that I was hesitant to say much is because I don't know anything about the restaurant world and I wasn't keen to display my glaring ignorance...at least not until I'd had a little more to drink. Then, when I asked someone, "What is that?"
And he responded, "That? It's a pot."
I could nod sagely, "Oh...I've heard of those."
Actually, everyone we spoke with was really nice and very helpful. We talked to one person, whose job description and name we don't know, who was responsible for poaching pears for the cheese course. His station was right in front of us and we could smell all these wonderful aromas...sugar, cinammon, wine, cloves...and the next thing we knew we were standing right there talking to him. By the time we made it to our cheese course he was long gone for the evening, or we would have told him just how delectable his alcohol-soaked poached pears were.
As a word of advice, I'd suggest getting up now and then and wandering around the "back porch" as Lori called it. It's good to get up and move around a bit between courses - it aides the digestive process - and we found that the kitchen staff were friendly and eager to talk.
Two things I should mention before I forget. Ladies... when you feel a need to powder your nose you must inform one of your serving team so that you can be escorted out of the kitchen and through the dining room. This is for your safety as well as that of the staff, but I'm sure it's an annoyance when they have a guest like me at the CT who constantly needs to use the bathroom. Be sure to wave to the dining room patrons as you walk through! The other thing for the menfolk out there (I know there may be one or two reading) you are required to wear a jacket and tie to the restaurant but once you're seated in the kitchen you may remove the jacket. This was a welcome piece of news for Jay, whom I often refer to as The Human Furnace. And even I, The Lizard Queen, will admit that it was pretty warm back there. Of course, what else would you expect in a kitchen?
You wanna see some pictures of the action?
It's the back of Chef Hunnel's head...
Chop, chop!
Does anyone ever grab a long-handled spoon and play the copper pots?
You really wanna seee pictures of food, don't you?
OK. Twist my arm.
Course Three (Brenda)
Long Island Duck with Roasted Chiogga Beets and Turnip Kraut
Wine pairing: Dr. Zenzen Apollo-Falter Spatburgunder, Rheinhessen 2005
Where to start? For one thing...I don't really like duck. I still ate some of this dish, because that was my job for the evening, and it was good, but it just wasn't my kind of good. Surprise of the night: I really liked the beets!
Once again I thought the presentation was lovely, although... I do wish someone had placed a small pair of glasses just across the top portion of the turnip (just under the sprouts) and a miniature moustache under the bottom of the turnip. Then they could have called this dish Duck Incognito.
I know it's just the way that the turnip is positioned, but doesn't it look like a giant white nose is jutting out from the middle of the duck meat?
Jason: The duck was really flavorful and tender, but keep in mind it is a darker meat. If you're like my wife and you don't like darker meats, you ain't gonna like the duck. By the way, I had nothing to do with the turnip nose or duck incognito comments. In case you haven't noticed, my wife is nutz.
Brenda: Nutz? It's part of my undeniably questionable charm.
As for the wine... don't you love the name? Thank goodness they didn't tell me it was Dr. Zenzen when they gave it to me or I would have started singing the Dr. Zaius song from the Simpsons' Planet of the Apes musical. Long story short - this wine was a Reisling; it was fine as Reislings go, but a tad too sweet for my taste. We've recently tried a Reisling from the Alsace region of France that is excellent - a little more dry and not very sweet at all; it's quite refreshing.
Course Three (Jason)
New Zealand Elk with Elephant Garlic Spaetzle and Veal Sweetbreads
Wine pairing: Perez Cruz Reserva Carmenere, Maipo Valley 2004
Jason: This was pretty tasty - not gamey the way you might expect elk to be. The vegetable balls were good - they had a nice crunch to them.
Brenda: Jay's not as chatty as I am. I didn't try this dish, but I can offer some helpful information for what it's worth.
Elephant Garlic is more closely related to the leek than to ordinary garlic. The bulbs are very large and can weigh over a pound. A single clove of elephant garlic can be as large as a whole bulb of ordinary garlic. In terms of flavor, elephant garlic is said to be to garlic what leeks are to onions - much less intense and sweeter.
Spaetzle are similar to noodles - see those green worm-shaped things in Jay's bowl? Those are the spaetzles.
Sweetbreads - don't let the name fool you. There is nothing remotely sweet or breaded about this! It is the name of a dish made from the thymus gland or pancreas of an animal younger than one year; in this case dairy calves (veal). Sweetbreads feel spongy in the mouth, and are very fatty with a gamey flavor.
The wine is from a winery that only produces reds and is located in Chile's Maipo Alto Valley. Carmenere is a type of grape and this wine is dark in color with a very distinct flavor - lots of blueberry, of all things! Jay really liked this, but he does prefer a darker red, so that's no real surprise.
Course Four (Brenda)
Kurobuta Pork Tenderloin and Belly with Risotto and Cherry Jus
Wine pairing: Lambert Bridge Zinfandel, Dry Creek Valley 2003
As you will no doubt notice, Jay and I basically had the same thing with one difference - I received risotto (woo hoo!) while he was corned. I'm not crazy about corn to begin with, but with the Crohns it's just better to avoid "kernel-ey" food items in the first place.
I thought the presentation was a little lacking with this dish - I'm not sure if everything just ended up on the plate this way or if I'm just getting difficult to please. As for the taste...it was good. Pork isn't often my meat of choice but this tenderloin was like no pork I've ever tasted before. Turns out Kurobuta pork is the most highly prized pork in Japan and it comes from an ancient Oriental breed of pig known as Black Berkshire. The meat from the pure oriental strains of Black Berkshire is regarded as the highest quality pork in the world.
We sure were dining high on the hog, weren't we?
The risotto was tasty but would have been a lot better in my opinion if it hadn't been plopped down on top of some of that pork belly gravy - I don't like gravy, either.
Can I talk about the wine for a moment? I can't stand Zinfandel...at least not the kind that typically shows up at Christmas parties and wedding receptions. Blech! Why not just hand someone a glass full of pink vinegar and tell them to pucker up?
BUT...this Zinfandel showed me what I've been missing. This was a nice dry wine with hints of strawberry and, tea... or... coffee? Israel must have seen the flash of dislike when he first said "zinfandel" but he told me right away that this was not what I would expect. And he was absolutely right - this was a great wine that really complimented the pork and brought out the cherry flavoring in the jus.
BTW - I didn't like the belly... too much like eating fat.
Course Four (Jason)
Kurobuta Pork Tenderloin and Belly with Florida Corn and Cherry Jus
Wine pairing: Lambert Bridge Zinfandel, Dry Creek Valley 2003
Jason here: My plate was definitely more aesthetically pleasing, wasn't it? This dish was full of porkie goodness and I liked it. Even the belly was good but it had more of a fatty flavor to it...because it's belly! There was actually a small corn-cake here with more corn sprinkled across the top - very good!
The wife is really better at this "review thing" than I am, but I feel compelled to make a comment about the hog joke.
She's a freak and now you all know what I have to deal with on a daily basis...it never ends.
Course Five (Brenda and Jason)
Pan Roasted Foie Gras and Fuji Apple Tart with Mostarda di Cremona
Wine pairing: Royal Tokaji Azsu 5 Puttonyos, Mad Tokaj-Hegyalja 2000
Brenda: I've said it before and I'll say it again...I never thought I'd like foie gras until I tried it here last year. This stuff is incredible - lightly seared on the outside and buttery soft on the inside; every forkful literally melts in your mouth. The apple tart pairs really well, so that the richness of the foie gras is offset by the tartness of the apple. And mostarda really has nothing to do with that cheap, bright yellow stuff I like to put on my hot dogs, french fries, and fried fish. Italian mostarda is actually fruit preserved in syrup that gains quite a kick from a healthy jolt of powdered mustard seed. So mixed all together in each bite there is a really wonderful burst of rich foie gras with tart apple and a hint of mustard with other fruit flavors, unnamed but definitely there, popping in to surprise you.
And the wine...oh my, the wine. This is from a Hungarian winery and just blew us right off our seats. The color is the first thing you'll notice about it - straw colored with hints of gold. In the picture we took it almost looks like a cognac. The aroma is definitely fruity - apricot and orange are the scents I remember the most - and the initial taste is sweet and fruity with a hint of spice and honey at the end. Its texture is velvety smooth - overall a really well balanced wine that just made the entire dish go "POW!"
Jason: Yeah, what she said.
We have got to get us some of this!
That's all for now - More to come soon and thanks for reading!!
, meat tasting like the Great Plains. I know there is more but I don't know how to your quotes into a reply. Kind of OT but can anyone help me that one? Looking forward to more at Vicki's and Al's.
Sweetbreads...not so much. 
