2012 - Graham Elliot

For Mark's birthday we decided to splurge and head downtown to our second Michelin star restaurant Graham Elliot. Really good food and really amazing service. Here's our food pics with comment

Trio of Amuse Bouche: Sparklers

Smoked Oyster Mousse - amazing smokey and oyster flavor

Foie Gras lollipop with watermelon pop rocks - the contrast of mouthfeel in this dish was amazing.

Frozen orange with sake and ginger - a little too cold for me, but not bad tasting

Served with NV Jansz traditional method premium cuvee, Tanzmania

Second Course: Pea

Chilled pea soup with jamon, lavender gelee, goat cheese and pickled onions. This dish was a little difficult to eat, but when you were able to get all the components in one bite, it was very tasty. The pickled onion was a surprising contrast in flavors.

Before pouring the pea soup into the bowl - so beautiful

Served with 2010 Txakoli Gurrutxaga, Hondarriibi Zuri, Spain

Third Course: Egg

Mustard seeds, mustard greens, mustard gelee, soft boiled egg, asparagus. Beautiful plate of food. And quite tasty and the pairing was excellent.

Served with 2009 G.D. Vajra "Petracine" Riesling, Piemonte

Fourth Course: Crab

Butter poached leg with coconut foam. Crab sausage, meyer lemon gelee, house made curry powder

Very moist and tender crab leg. Sausage was also very tasty.

Fifth Course: Risotto

Parmesan and artichoke puree, thai & blue basil leaves, black truffle & black garlic. Intensely flavorful. Creamy, salty and delicious. Another really nice pairing. The wine had a hint earthiness that was great with the truffles and saltiness of the parmesan.

Served with 2011 Chateau Revelette, Rose, Mourvedre, Provence

Sixth Course: Foie

Sechuan cherry glaze, seared foie gras with scallions and trumpet mushrooms. The sauce was wonderfully flavorful and the foie gras extremely tender and rich.

Intermezzo:

Fennel with yuzu gelee and powdered walnuts. Quite tart, but our least favorite of all the food presented.

Seventh Course: Redfish

Grilled ramps, oven roasted tomatoes, baby turnips, potato puree. Wow! The fish was excellently cooked, the potato puree was velvety and the best of all was the charred ramps with the wine! Amazing pairing. This was our favorite course of the night.

2009 Paulo de Marchi, "Isole e Olena", Chicati Classico, Toscana

Eighth Course:Jidori

Japanese for "Chicken of the Earth", sous vide chicken breast with an aspic of thigh and leg meat, with blueberry, vidalia onion and green garlic puree. Pretty, tasty, but nothing wow about it.

Served with 2010 Domaine de Marcoux, Cotes du Rhone, Rhone Valley

Ninth Course: Cheese

Buttermilk ice cream with blue cheese, cherry and nut crumble. Interesting course, the buttermilk ice cream when eaten with the blue cheese was a nice bite.

Tenth Course: E.V.O.O.

Extra Virgin olive oil ice cream with poppy seed cake and olive oil gelee. This was our favorite dessert course. Delicious. I would definitely order this again.

Served with 2009 Paul Jaboulet "Le Chant des Griolles" Muscat de Beaumes de Venise

Eleventh Course: Milk

Graham Elliot's rif on Oreo Cookies. Creamy ice cream with chocolate "dirt".

Served with 2007 Bodegas Toro Abala, "Don PX" Pedro-Ximenez, Sherry

Twelfth Course: Doughnut

Graham Elliot's rif on coffee and doughnuts. This was a unique and interactive. First the Espresso gelee with chocolate crystals:

Part two: Warm Cream

Part 3 - Interactive part

Tasted like a liquid doughnut. A little too coffee for us, but still tasty.

It was a great experience, although a bit more expensive than it was probably worth. Service was phenomenal. Would go back, but not do the repertoire menu.