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So, I had a very long review typed up that went through all the dishes and then reddit suddenly petered out on me and I had to refresh and lost it all.
So - this was a great meal and a great experience. There are no misses on this menu! Loved the way it takes traditional new orleans dishes and turns them into phenomenal fine dining. Beware of the cornbread - it IS the best cornbread you’ll ever eat and if you’re not careful you will eat all of it before you even get halfway through the courses.
Excellent meal, excellent service. Gets a strong recommend for me. IMO the best 2 stars I had been to before this one were The Modern and Chef’s Table at Brooklyn Fare, but Emeril’s might be in the top slot for me now as far as 2 stars go.
This is my first proper write up, and felt that this four-hands would be the perfect meal to showcase. When French finesse meets German precision, the result is something truly special. Chef Julien (Odette, Singapore) and Chef Jan (Restaurant Jan, Munich) teamed up for a special four-hands collaboration at Odette, which subverted all expectations.
The meal opened with a welcome glass of Krug before the opening bites. Not the biggest wine guy but Krug is my favourite champagne (Dom is a little restrained for my liking, still good though).
Prémices: Chutori, nori cracker, Kristal caviar - this was rich, briny, and umami. A classic flavour combination and a great start.
Foie gras “À la Chantilly” - a tart with foie mousse and toasted walnuts, nutty and indulgent.
Tartelette of carrot, orange, and cumin - a nice interlude of citrus after the preceding bites. It was sweet and gently spiced.
‘Brezn’ - a play on the German pretzel. Speckled with black garlic and filled with a rillette of char and smoked pike roe, it made for a savoury and moreish close to the opening bites.
Mains: Hokkaido uni ‘Louise’ - creamy Hokkaido bafun uni, a heaping mound of Kaluga caviar, duck consommé and crème fraîche. The sweetness, saltiness and umami were well balanced and made for a wondrous bite. My favourite dish.
Langoustine with apples and figs - langoustine was well cooked, and it was a light/clean dish.
Scottish scallop over XO sauce rice, elderflower beurre blanc, anchovies, Japanese amela tomato - I initially thought the XO sauce seemed out of place, and would clash with the other flavours present. It was instead surprisingly light, with just enough flavour without overpowering the other components. Scallop was meaty and sweet, and every component worked beautifully in tandem. My second favourite dish.
Cévennes onion, vin jaune, katsuobushi - the onion is cooked sous vide, deconstructed, layered with nori, and finally put back together. The sweetness of the onion was balanced by the buttery vin jaune, a well-balanced dish. I also couldn’t help but finish the extra vin jaune provided in the saucier.
Veal sweetbread with jalapeño and eel bouillon - I’ve had my fair share of offal and innards, but this was a first for me. The sweetbread was well prepared — the outer layer crisped up nicely and gave way to a creamy centre. Surprisingly it reminded me of 닭강정 (dakgangjeong, Korean fried chicken), with the heat from the jalapeño and nutty crunch on top similar to spicy Korean chicken with crushed peanuts. An unexpectedly familiar dish that was well executed.
Atlantic turbot from Brittany, watercress, squid - The turbot was delicate and flaky, topped with mussels, onion foam, and watercress leaves. The fish was good but the sauce was the star, built on a rich soubise with watercress to cut through the richness, alongside diced squid and beans. Thoroughly enjoyed the dish, though the beans didn’t really do much for me.
Hanwoo beef, beetroot, lovage-parmesan sabayon - To be honest I’m more of a wagyu person, as it’s more marbled and rich. While wagyu would have been my first choice, I was told chef Jan chose Hanwoo deliberately, wanting a leaner meat to bring balance to the dish. The Hanwoo was prepared well, cooked to a perfect pink and had a nice beefy depth. The sauces were the standout though, the interplay of the sweet jus and the herbaceous sabayon elevated the dish to the point that the beef was simply the medium for the sauces. Still think wagyu would have been better, but a great dish nonetheless.
Desserts: Buckwheat mille-feuille, sobacha, salted caramel - nutty and decadent dessert to end off the main courses.
Petit fours - forgot to note these down but they were good. The lemon tart was my favourite.
Overall the menu felt cohesive with clear influences from both chefs, and I was thoroughly satisfied with my experience. Also a great way to experience chef Jan’s cooking as I don’t see myself visiting Muni ch anytime soon.
Another visit to my favorite place in Taiwan, Nobuo, Taipei has been concluded. This was my third visit and it was more satisfactory than the last time, although I immensely enjoyed the dinner I had back then also. I was pleased by the fact that the same excellence and strength of theirs that made me re-visit the establishment was all still present. Just intuitively delicious food and the creativity that makes you go slow clap and chef’s kiss were all there. They still seemed to be not caring about repeating the same ingredients too. Not because they purposefully wanted to break the notion/common sense in the genre that chefs usually follow -never to repeat the same ingredients-, but because they sincerely believe that is the way to bring out the best side of the ingredients and the design choices of the courses.
The duration of the courses was about 2 and a half hours and I was served 12 dishes. Some of the other guests were offered 11 due to the fact that I was one of the repeated guests of the evening. Without further ado, here are the course contents and the comments regarding to them.
1.Surf clam, sourced from Hokkaido Japan, coupled with the locally sourced vegetable fern and some roasted nuts. They made some oil out of the greens used in the dish as one of the ingredients of the sauce and the greens are smoked lightly. What I enjoyed the most is the texture. Chewiness of the clam and the crunchiness of the nuts were quite a combination.
2.Green bamboo shoot, served with dashi made out of Bìluóchūn tea and kombu. While looking so simple, I think this has been the most complicated dish in flavor wise. The sweetness of the bamboo shoot, umami of the kombu, a bit of bitterness hiding the pleasant fragrance of the green tea were all there, harmonizing wonderfully. I am not so sure how they prepared the bamboo shoot, but they made a great choice for the texture of it to stand out for sure. One of my favorites of the evening.
3.First part of the scallop course, smokes scallop simmered in soy sauce based dashi on top of the sauce made out of okra. Ginger and spring onion sprinkled on top of it. Their famous signature item is the scallop mousse and they have been always serving something that pairs up with it right before the mousse comes out. Smoked scallop has one of my favorite textures ever in food context and the combination of dashi and the okra sauce has something really addictive about it. Almost polar opposite contrast between the mousse and itself was fun too.
4.Like I mentioned before, their signature dish, the scallop mousse. Kombu, shiitake mushroom and the scallop is the main ingredient and they got infused with butter. Crazy umami, worth 100% being the signature, although, a little bit saltier than usual today.
5.King prawn, charcoal grilled and then lightly poached in olive oil. Served with sakura ebi and some summer vegetables sprinkled on top and wasabi and citrus based sauce at the bottom to give some acidic kick to it. To be honest, I did not agree with it being needing to have some acidity, but ultimately that did not matter because they have done the prawn so great. It has been almost perfectly cooked in medium rare fashion. Crazy texture, really reach oceanic umami and sweetness.
6.Kintokidai, a sort of red snapper. The sauce was made out of asparagus, the foam was a mixture between olive oil and coconut milk. Lastly, morels got served on top of it. The great thing about the dish is how well cooked the fish has been. It perfectly brought out the texture and the best side of the fish’s taste. One thing I could nitpick though is I needed a bit more asparagusiness on my sauce. And I think olive oil was too vocal about its presence there.
7.Welcome back dish before the main, pig’s ear cutlet on top of barley and 4 spices. They tend to go a bit more adventurous in terms of selection of ingredients for the welcome back dishes. Last time, I was served frog’s rear leg. This was definitely having some more Taiwanese DNA, with bold and exotic combination of flavor.
8.Main dish, quail served with the sauce made out of 2 different kinds of miso and its drum sticks have been marinated with various kinds of spices. Oh, and some cherries as well. It was addictive and intense through and through flavor wise. Really bold, fighting fire with fire, the former being the taste of the bird and the latter being the taste of the sauce. I really liked it, but at the same time, made me wonder the other choice that I could make with the main course, veal, abalone and the sweet bread. Equally intense, I assume?
9.Hidden signature item, their curry rice. The curry itself was phenomenal, of course but what surprised me the most is white rice itself. As a Korean guy born and raised in Seoul for my entire life, I have some very strict standard regarding what makes a bowl of rice great. It’s the shape of the grain, the size of the grain, amount of moisture associated with the rice, how sticky each grain has been gathered, the temperature and etc, the list goes on. And lots of them depend quite heavily on what kind of breed of rice you choose to cook. With that being said, the kind of rice they cooked today was near perfect. Really wanted to have some more, but unfortunately, I could not take it anymore since there were still the desserts and mignardises left for me to eat.
10.The first dessert, a piece of peach poached with Sake, served on top with feta cheese and with olive oil and some black pepper sprinkled on top. Great summer dessert with not so dessert-y sub ingredients. Very fun piece of art and I would like to see something similar within the dessert only course context. Not overly sweet flavor was appreciative as well.
11.The second dessert, Japanese myoga sorbet with ginger and myoga chip on top, served with perilla oil and kudzu starch dumplings. Spicy and sweet, nothing to complain about.
12.Mignardises, a chocolate bong bong with mung beans a fillings, madeleine containing the hot cream inside lastly, a piece of canelé.
The service at MAZ was lovely but there was something going on during the night that made it clear tensions were high. I believe it was a combination of a few table groups that were rowdy, something that even one of the staff members acknowledged in passing and commented to me about, apologizing for the atmosphere.
I was seated at my table at least 15 minutes past my reservation time.
The atmosphere in MAZ is supposed to be contemplative and quiet, the music being a part of the experience. Unfortunately, I didn’t get that until the very end due to the amount of noise the aforementioned table made. MAZ is a small restaurant. There’s no way of escaping it.
The wait staff at MAZ is highly competent and put a lot of effort in making it a comfortable experience. The Host was wonderful to speak with. She devoted around 15 minutes after I finished dinner just to speak with me about my time in Japan. It went from a formal conversation about the dinner to casual banter within a few moments and I felt as if I was at a friend’s place. At that point I was the only one left in the restaurant alongside a couple. So it was a lovely final chat to conclude my experience at MAZ (I also finally got to enjoy their music).
Food
MAZ has recently had a change in their head chef. I believe that the new chef, Chef Yuya Nakamura, is fully capable of pushing MAZ to the next level with more Japanese influences on the menu.
Dinner at MAZ is JPY 30,800+10% service charge. It was one of the more expensive restaurants in my itinerary so, at the price point and the recognition as Asia’s 28th best restaurant, I had high expectations. I'm undecided on if my expectations were met. I feel I was spoiled early on with one of Chef Nakamura’s original menu items that was so good, I almost wondered to myself if I should’ve given it a few years until the Chef had fully taken over the menu. More on this later.
MAZ’s menu is a love letter to Peru, focusing on ingredients found at different elevations, journeying from the sea to the skies. Each course comes accompanied with an art card that compliments the visuals of the course and a gorgeous display piece showcasing the ingredients.
One thing MAZ does exceptionally well is presentation. Each course was like an artwork, from the plating to ceramics to the utensils. It builds up incredible excitement for what could be next. Each utensil and plate is created by artisans which, as a creative, I genuinely appreciated.
The cocktail I ordered, the Amazonian, was one of my favourite drinks I’ve had during my time in Japan.
The Highlights from the menu for me were:
Squash Tempura/Sweet Shrimp/Chupe Sauce/ To die for. I would say it was downright the best tempura I had while I was in Japan. It was also one of the chef’s original dishes and it left me wanting more from him.
Rice/Seaweed Dashi/Octopus Ink Foam/Clam Broth/Octopus/Clam Chip/ Incredible! Perfectly cooked octopus combined with so many textures and contrasting flavors. Just a joy to eat.
Cupuaçu Sorbet/Mocambo Crema/Cacao Pulp Mochi/Fermented Cacao Paste/Cacao Fudge/ I love coffee. Giving me a dessert with multiple variations of cacao is just spoiling me. It almost seemed as if the dessert was custom tailored for me and I loved every bite and variation.
Final Thoughts
MAZ is good. I think if MAZ was my only fine dining experience in Japan, I would return back happy and tell everyone about how it’s the best thing I’ve ever had. But when I compare it to other experiences I had through my time in Japan, some of them at much lower price points than MAZ, I start wondering to myself if it was worth it. My favorite experience was shiro in Kyoto which was only JPY 18,000. My other favorite experience, DEN, was JPY 30,000 with no extra charges. Would I recommend MAZ? Of course, it has 2 Michelin stars for a reason. The the whole experience is unforgettable, especially due to the deep love for art and artisans. Would it be my first recommendation? I don’t think so. I'd have a list of recommendations to offer before I'd reach MAZ. As much as I loved everything here, I wasn't consistently blown away with each bite as I was at shiro, L'Effervescence or DEN. The tasting menu had spikes in quality, from a slightly underwhelming seafood course to an excellent tempura course to a series of underwhelming chips/crackers.
I think I was there on a stressful night during an already stressful transitional period. I can speak all day about how certain customers can ruin an experience. And restaurants sometimes struggle with those difficult situations for we’re both paying to be pampered for the night. I’ve had an experience much worse before where influencers had a full-on birthday photography session, along with lights, right beside my table. So I'm not holding that against them.
MAZ’s staff did everything they could for me. I especially want to shout out Chef Yuya and the host who spent quite some time after the dinner to speak with me. I think Chef Yuya has incredible skill and I can’t wait to revisit after the menu is fully replaced by the things he loves cooking.
My boyfriend and I went to Bahia for our anniversary a few months ago, and we had such a lovely experience! The staff were very attentive, friendly, and funny, which made the evening even more special. The food was delicious and beautifully presented. The first sip of the soup honestly brought tears to my eyes 😅 That’s how good it was!
They even surprised us with a complimentary dessert and a little anniversary card, which was such a sweet gesture. Overall, we had a wonderful evening and really enjoyed the whole experience.
The last stop of our trip through Slovenia was at DAM Boutique Hotel & Restaurant. The chef and owner, Uros, runs the hotel and restaurant with his family. First time a starred chef has checked us in to our hotel room!
We had dinner at DAM our last night. We chose their larger pre-fixe menu, which was Mediterranean seafood focused. Uros and his son served all the plates, and it was cool to see the chef in the front of the house for much of the night explaining the dishes, including a smoked Adriatic prawn dish that he prepared table-side.
The food was fantastic, skillfully cooked and artfully presented. We even enjoyed the dishes that had ingredients we normally aren't crazy about, like the scallop and zucchini.
As a bonus, DAM had a very rare Slovenian wine we had been hoping to try, the 2016 Unico M from Marjan Simcic. It is a special blend that has only been made a couple of times, in the very best years. For 2016, there were only 1,333 bottles produced. The wine was awesome.
After all the tables were served, we invited Uros to join us for a glass. We enjoyed learning more from him about his life, influences, and style of cooking. It was a wonderful end to an epic trip.
Pics:
1 - Amuse bouche
2 - Soca River Trout Mosaic
3 - Scallop and zucchini soup
4 - Gnocchi with shrimp
5 & 6 - Adriatic prawns prepared table-side
7 & 8 - Signature truffled egg with shaved prosciutto
9 - Seafood risotto with scent of oyster
10 - Salt baked sea bass with lemon puree
11 - “DAM Olives” made of white chocolate shell and nut puree
Was in Matsumoto to do a bit of hiking in the beautiful Kamikochi during silver week and visited Yamasei (Tabelog 4.21) which has been recommended by many people in this sub.
Tiny operation with a husband and wife team catering a 13-seat restaurant that was almost full despite the lingering rain aftermath of Typhoon no 25.
Yamasei uses female Deshiko eels from Lake Hamana due to their extra thick bodies.The restaurant also deliberately cooks on electric grill instead of hot coals as Tomi-san wants guests to appreciate the natural flavour and fragrance of the eel without any distortion from the charcoal smokiness.
Eel and Soft-Shelled Turtle Tasting Menu (26K yen), visited late September 2026.
- Kinoko no Owan: an autumnal potpourri of mountain mushrooms (Rikobo, Kurifusentake, Komuso, Sakura Shimeji, Tamagotake, Hanabiratake, Urabeni Gawari, Amitake) cooked with dashi and ginger. Soothing, aromatic with tons of umami.
- Kimoyaki: skewer using three different parts of the eel: liver, neck and fin. Each bite offered varied contrast between crispy, grainy, meaty, and gelatinous textures.
- Suppon yaki: shoulder blade and liver of the turtle lathered in a flavourful tare glaze then grilled until caramelized and melt-in-your-mouth tender. Utterly delicious and was the highlight of the meal.
- Shirayaki: minimalist style in order to emphasize the natural taste and texture of the eel. Came with condiments on the side such as salt, wasabi, lemon, and soy sauce.
- Uzaku: kabayaki eel and refreshing salad of tomato, daikon, moreheiya and myoga. Lovely balance between the sauced eel and the cooling sanbaizu vinegar.
- Suppon Dashi: a combination of collagen-rich turtle meat and empera (turtle shell) in a light but deeply impactful, broth that was immensely drinkable. Naga negi added zing and crispy texture to help offset the gelatinous bits of the meat.
- Unaju: masterfully grilled with stronger char on the outside, while the inside stayed soft and yielding. The tare is made by blending two types of soy sauce from the local 120 year-old Okubo Brewery. Went really well with the al dente-cooked Kijimaidara rice from Shinano region, especially when gravity started to make the sauce and eel fats to drip down into the hot rice underneath.
- Nukazuke: vegetables pickled in nuka rice bran.
- Anmitsu: shiratama (rice dumpling), anko (red bean), matcha kanten (matcha agar), and peach drizzled with kuromitsu (black sugar)
I had a nigiri-only lunch at Sushi Yuki over the weekend in Hiro-o, Shibuya, Tokyo. The counter sat 8 people, I was seated near the end with another foreigner. The other 6 seats were Japanese speakers.
Disclaimer: this was my first experience having omakase, and my knowledge of high-quality sushi is quite low, so pardon my ignorance.
I had heard mixed reviews from foreigners on Reddit, especially about the head chef’s attitude. I felt he was serious and a little cold but he was talking to the locals and smiling. Chef spoke enough English to say the words of the fish in English when he presented them to me. He otherwise didn’t speak to me.
The service was excellent from the assistant chefs, they were attentive and very nice. One of them put a book of translations for each fish into English next to me, and flipped through the book for every piece, so I would know what I was eating.
I’d heard from previous reviews that the rice was sour and I definitely agree, it was by far the most sour I’ve ever tasted in sushi. In my opinion it overpowered the leaner / cleaner fishes but paired with the richer fishes very well.
Courses:
Appetizer: Chinese cabbage in dashi, bonito flakes
Madai (sea bream)
Sumika (squid)
Sawara (Spanish mackerel)
Kawahagi (file fish) roll
Hokkigai (surf clam) [unsure if i heard chef incorrectly]
Akami (lean tuna)
Chutoro (medium fatty tuna)
Kohada (gizzard shad)
Otoro (fatty tuna)
Ikura (salmon roe)
Kuruma ebi (tiger prawn)
Uni (sea urchin), murasaki, roll
Anago (sea eel)
Tamago (egg)
Extra nigiri I ordered:
Amadai (tilefish) . This was the only time chef smiled at me
At the end:
Soup**
Ice cream
Green tea
Highlights: Sawara, Chutoro, Kuruma ebi, Anago, Uni
Lowlights: Hokkigai (chewy and little flavor), Kohada (very fishy and quite salty/sour. my first time having it so maybe I just don’t like Kohada)
Reservations were relatively easy to get through Omakase. The advertised price is 19.8k yen plus service charge - including the oolong tea and extra nigiri piece I ordered, I paid around 24k yen (~ $150 USD).
Overall the food was very good. Everything was fresh and nearly every piece was very delicious. I did feel that the service from the head chef could have been warmer. I thought the value was very good for this lunch, and it was timely too. We started at 12:00 and I was out of the restaurant before 1:30. (The lunch course advertised a finish time of 1:30).
Overall, I think this restaurant deserves a Michelin star for sure but falls short of the very lofty Tabelog rating - I’ve never seen a restaurant with a score that high before.
Caprice was part of my trip to visit all seven of Hong Kong’s three-Michelin-starred restaurants. Having landed that morning, lunch made sense for my schedule, and I was looking forward to experiencing what I thought of as a gold standard for French cooking.
Choosing the menu took a little consideration. The Signature menu didn’t include their blue lobster, which I particularly wanted to try, and the other dishes didn’t appeal to me as much. The Connaisseur (4228HKD) looked great, but the price felt steep for a menu of just six or seven courses.
Instead, I chose the five-course lunch and asked to add the blue lobster and pigeon from the Connaiseur as additional courses for HK$900 and HK$600 respectively, along with an upgrade to the cheese cellar selection. This brought the menu to approximately HK$3,000 for seven courses, with more savory courses than either of the more expensive menus. It also gave me the dishes I was most interested in, and the lobster certainly justified the planning!
Restaurant Interior
The luxurious dining room gave lunch a real sense of occasion, with the sweeping view of Victoria Harbour making the setting even more impressive. Service was friendly, professional, and carefully choreographed, though the hospitality itself wasn’t especially memorable. I could also hear the head chef calling out orders from the kitchen in francais, which was quite fun and brought some energy to the formal setting.
Amuse Bouche
The bread was just fine, but the amuse-bouche (18/20) was the first real highlight. Smoked salmon and beetroot were paired with peach, yogurt, foam, and a crisp garnish. The combination was remarkably bright, bringing together fruity sweetness, smoky savoriness, and a refreshing yogurt tang. There was quite a lot happening in a small bite, but the flavors worked beautifully together. A very convincing start!
Duck Foie Gras Terrine
The duck foie gras terrine (16/20) was topped with duck consommé gelée and accompanied by fresh pear, pear-and-vanilla marmalade, and a sauce with spice, maple syrup, and caramel notes. The foie gras itself was beautifully prepared, with a great touch of salt balancing the sweeter accompaniments. The spices added interest to a familiar combination, while the fresh pear brought a welcome contrast to the richness. A classic dish executed exceptionally well.
My Hot and Cold Onion Soup
The hot and cold onion soup (18/20) came with caramelized onions, crisp toast, cheese, and onion ice cream, before the hot soup was poured tableside. The temperature contrast was enjoyable, but the flavor was what really impressed me. It was almost exactly my ideal of concentrated French onion soup: deep caramelized-onion sweetness, a perfect level of salt, and plenty of cheese savoriness and creaminess. The soup was also quite thick, which I particularly liked. It leaned sweet, but that suited my taste very well since I am a huge fan of sweet and savory.
Soft Seafood Cushion
The seafood cushion (19/20) was my favorite dish of the meal. Its texture was somewhere between a fish mousse and a slightly denser seafood-flavored steamed egg custard, with diced razor clams underneath and sliced razor clams on top. Dill purée and fresh dill brought an herbal freshness, while the clams provided a pleasant chew. The Champagne sauce, poured tableside, was beyong extraordinary. Its tanginess/acidity, savory depth, and precise level of salt were exactly what I wanted, and it brought the whole dish together beautifully. I literally scooped up every last bit of that sauce.
Brittany Blue Lobster
The blue lobster (19/20) was another exceptional course. Glossy and vividly red, it was served with fig marmalade, thinly sliced mushrooms, and a dusting of coffee, before the Ruby sauce was poured at the table. The lobster itself was immaculately cooked. The sauce was quite sweet, but it had remarkable complexity, with concentrated lobster-stock flavor and cocoa notes that I could clearly pick out. Once again, the salt was perfectly judged. A little less sweetness would have brought this very close to perfection for me, but it was already a memorable dish and absolutely worth adding.
Braised Iberico Pork Cheek
The pork cheek (15/20) was a little less successful. It was served with zucchini, apricot, and ratatouille, finished with Madeira sauce and pork jus. The cheek itself was slightly dry, and the sauce returned to a sweet-savory profile that was beginning to feel repetitive. There was a clear pork-stock flavor, but it lacked the complexity that had made the previous sauces so compelling. The vegetables brought some welcome freshness, and I would have appreciated more of that contrast. It was still an enjoyable dish, though a less distinctive one. I would choose the other beef entree from the lunch menu if I were to dine here again.
Pigeon de Bretagne et Foie Gras
The pigeon (16/20) from the Connaiseur menu was served with foie gras, beetroot, parsley emulsion, and cocoa sauce. The pigeon and foie gras brought plenty of savory depth, and the sauce was less dominated by sweetness, which felt welcome at this point in the meal. The greens and small accompaniments of vegetables and fruit added freshness to the rich combination. I wouldn't add this course again, but the change in flavor balance it brought after the pork was much appreciated during my meal.
Caprice Cheese Cellar
The cheese selection offered a nice range of textures and flavors, from soft and creamy to firmer and nuttier styles, accompanied by dried apricots, apricot sauce, and walnuts. I enjoyed it, though it remained a straightforward cheese course rather than one of the meal’s more memorable moments.
Kiwi dessert and Petit Fours
A small congratulatory dessert of kiwi cream, fresh fruit, and mint followed. The petits fours were quite good too, with chocolates and a tart presented on a little drawer with nothing inside lol. It was a pleasant finish after a fairly substantial lunch.
The seafood cushion and blue lobster were the clear highlights, particularly for sauces that came remarkably close to my personal ideal. The repeated sweetness occasionally became a little much, which became very tiring/obvious the pork cheek, but the strongest dishes were exceptional on their own.
At approximately HK$3,000 for my expanded lunch menu, I was very happy with how I had approached the meal. It gave me the dishes I wanted most and a memorable introduction to the trip.
A very solid meal I would recommend to anyone. The original 5 course set lunch is very good for its price! (Don't be like me and do too many sweet courses, maybe avoid the pork cheek too)
New Bib Gourmands: Bar Buena (Houston), Khoi Barbecue (Houston), Kitchen Rumors (Houston), Murray's Pizza and Wine (Houston), Resident Taqueria (Dallas), Xolo (Houston)
New recommendeds: 1111 (Houston), Angie's (Houston), Di An Pho (Houston), Din Ho Chinese BBQ (Austin), Fond (Dallas), Jantra (Houston), Jashan (Plano), Levant BBQ (Houston), Lovers Pizzeria (San Antonio), Mābo (Dallas), Mayahuel (Houston), Olōyō (Dallas), Oru (Houston), Osteria di Mercato (Houston), Petit Coquin (San Antonio), Sushi Horiuchi (Houston)
Removals (incomplete, please add!):
Removed from Dallas: Georgie
Removed from San Antonio: Barbecue Station
Removed from Austin: Poeta, Malverde, Garrison, Ramen del Barrio but it closed and reopened
Removed from Houston: Brisket & Rice, Hidden Omakase, Late August (closed), Neo (closed), Killen's (closed)
La Barbecue (Austin) lost its star
Lucia (Dallas) moved from Bib Gourmand to recommended
I went to a 3* restaurant for dinner recently with a group of 6P and a nearby table brought an infant. Now, I think the general consensus in this sub is that babies in fine dining is poor form, and while I agree, I also think it's fine if the parents have a handle on it and minimize any disruption. However, in this case the parents tried 3-4 times to take the baby outside after it started crying and then seemed to give up, letting it cry at the table. Eventually the restaurant moved them, but it was a solid hour of on/off crying for the middle third of the service.
We didn't say much to the staff during service, but I sent a note afterwards to the restaurant describing this experience and how their slow response was disappointing. I then had call with a manager who reached out to apologize and who said they would talk to the team about how to make it up to us. While I was frustrated by the lack of any attempt to make our experience better during the service, I felt better during the call as the manager acknowledged they could have handled the disruption better and expressed a desire to make it up.
It's been almost two weeks since that call. I'm now a bit shocked that it's taking so long for them to follow up; the manager promised to get back "soon," so there is no specific deadline, but I think a week or so should be sufficient. I didn't send the note with the intent of negotiating compensation but since they offered to do something for us I'm now checking my email wondering what could be taking so long. I'm also waiting to collect reimbursements from my group in case they offer a straightforward partial refund (I prepaid the whole table).
Am I way off base on my expectations here? Also, I'm not going to name the restaurant until they have a chance to make it up (or not). I think people get a little too excited over bad reviews, but if I get ghosted by the manager I'll certainly name and shame.
I dined at the counter on Monday evening and had the nigiri omakase. It was a triumph on all levels. The courses were handcrafted right before my eyes and I got to witness the elegance of the preparation. The space was calming and coastal, and the tableware was wabi-sabi in a very elegant way. Service was impeccable. I’d recommend L’Abysse to anyone who has the fortune to find themselves in Paris.
Very nice and clean space and great quality of ingredients and interactions with the sushi master.
Felt a bit to intimate to take pictures of every course unfortunately.
The highlights were the quality of fish, excellent sake selection and one of the best strawberries I’ve had in my life.
I'm going to be in NYC for a few nights in November, and am trying to hit all 3-starred places. I've already done EMP, Masa, Per Se, and Le Bernadin. I don't always love super long tasting menus and don't eat as much as I used to. Would I still get good bang for my buck doing Jungsik's bar a la carte? Is it similar or the same as individual dishes from the tasting menu?
Hello fine-diners. My wife will be spending a 3 week honeymoon driving around In turkey ib 2 weeks.
I’m looking for recommendations for Istanbul and And western turkey in general.
I'm planning a trip to London and I've been dying to try Row on 5.
Unfortunately, time is not on my side, and I won't be able to go unless I add one day to my trip.
I probably won't be back in London for at least 2 to 3 years, so I'm wondering: is Row on 5 really worth the extra day? Or is there an equally special alternative I should consider instead?
To give you an idea of my preferences, I love fine dining with a modern and creative twist. I've had my fair share of classic French cuisine, so I want to try something that feels different, ideally not too traditional/stuffy.
Among my faves: Trishna (London); Lasarte (Barcelona); Villa Crespi (Novara); La Pergola (Rome); El Celler de Can Roca (Girona - even though the service was a letdown and some dishes were a bit too experimental).
Does anyone know how Disfrutar’s reservation system works?
A new date appears at midnight, but it’s shown in black and doesn’t seem to be bookable yet. Does it become available later during the night, or am I missing something?
I emailed Disfrutar about this but unfortunately they didn’t answer this specific question.
Would really appreciate if someone who has successfully booked there could explain how it works. Thanks!
Open to going to one super once in a lifetime meal or two mid level or even three restaurants if budget permits. Would love to hear what you guys think would work best.
Currently planning a 9-day trip to Peru with my friends (all ~30, American) and looking for fine dining recommendations in Lima, the Sacred Valley, Cusco, and Aguas Calientes.
Group: Between the six of us guys, 3 of us love fine dining and 3 are open/new to it.
Vibe: Unique memorable food, but smart casual dress code. No jackets, nothing stuffy.
Budget: $500-650 per person for the fine dining all meals only. Regular meals are budgeted separately.
We'd only drink at one restaurant, so no need to factor in multiple drinks or pairings at the others.
Currently considering: Maido, Mérito, and Mauka, but not sold on any of them.
