restaurant details: websiteinstagram
The secret hideout by Nuno Mendes and his right hand man, Edoardo Pellicano, who you will know from Portland’s beginning days with Merlin. It opened last year, and I visited in Oct 2018, although I spend more time on IG than I do here, so have only got round to it now. Nevertheless, for these long meals, I think there is value to some of you in assembling the pictures, and I have compiled some notes to go with the dishes we had on the night.
In summary, it was a fantastic (emphasis on) experience as it’s the first time I’ve seen any place allow diners to “free roam” as the meal progresses. In fact they encourage you to go into the kitchen, being thats where they start the canapes off anyway. And this also produced the highlight moment of the meal – when I found myself in the kitchen during the prep of the native lobster tail course. I stayed to watch the row of bright orange native tails slowly come to temperature on the binchotan. A dream! Needless to say, it tasted superb.
As for the rest of the meal, there were a couple of dishes that leaned very Asian in an exercise of layering of alternative textures and flavours (dried skins, yuba), for me reminded a little too much of dried Taiwanese snacks (tofu especially). So while interesting, they did feel a bit filler courses. The wine list is interesting, and the wine ‘space’ is very nice. I’ve spoken almost nothing about the ambiance, and I think its best to see this for yourself when you get there. The mood of the place is really nicely done. If you have date night coming up, this is worth considering. We drank a pink Tschida – Himmel Auf Erden – amongst other things on the night.
I skipped the canapes in this post, so some surprises left when you visit. Scroll down for the menu:
1. Set meadowsweet infused milk, lobster miso, aubergine hearts and caviar. Silkened steamed chawanmushi was incredibly satisfying.
2. Lobster claw in a toasted rice with citrus, sorrel.
3. Maitake, smoked eel wrapped in milk yuba, pine nut, and it sure was a nice take on tofu skin.
4. Silver bream aged for 1 week, fennel, orange, saffron on sourdough soaked in shortrib stock which is roasted in butter. Analogous to nigiri I suppose, plenty of umami, I really could have had at least a couple more, this was really delicious.
5. Charred celtuce, beetroot leaves, mustard leaves, from Calixta’s farm, smoked vinegar and chicken stock.
6. Animal and vegetable skins, braised and dried
7. Onion and onion, to me it was like rebooted french onion soup, deep sweetness.
8. The Native Lobster course. With celeriac, macadamia nut purée and whey.
Grilled over binchotan by Warren Smith to a perfect mi cuit and smartly paired up with the creamy quality of macadamia. Dish of the night.
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9. Grilled hogget, nips, fermented turnips juice, sea purslane, pork fat.
Best end, aged for five and a half weeks, and slowly grilled over the course of the meal to edge to edge pink, and zero juice leak on the cutting board. Check out the rendered fat cap underneath the golden crispy skin. Beautiful cuisson.
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Puddings came by way of two ice creams. Interesting flavours… not much else to say if I am to be honest. But tour de force savouries, and a long menu, getting on midnight, so I can understand why the puds putter out at the end.
10. Douglas fir ice cream, wet walnuts and yuba
11. Roasted cherry stone ice cream and blackberries
restaurant details: website instagram
The secret hideout by Nuno Mendes and his right hand man, Edoardo Pellicano, who you will know from Portland’s beginning days with Merlin. It opened last year, and I visited in Oct 2018, although I spend more time on IG than I do here, so have only got round to it now. Nevertheless, for these long meals, I think there is value to some of you in assembling the pictures, and I have compiled some notes to go with the dishes we had on the night.
In summary, it was a fantastic (emphasis on) experience as it’s the first time I’ve seen any place allow diners to “free roam” as the meal progresses. In fact they encourage you to go into the kitchen, being thats where they start the canapes off anyway. And this also produced the highlight moment of the meal – when I found myself in the kitchen during the prep of the native lobster tail course. I stayed to watch the row of bright orange native tails slowly come to temperature on the binchotan. A dream! Needless to say, it tasted superb.
As for the rest of the meal, there were a couple of dishes that leaned very Asian in an exercise of layering of alternative textures and flavours (dried skins, yuba), for me reminded a little too much of dried Taiwanese snacks (tofu especially). So while interesting, they did feel a bit filler courses. The wine list is interesting, and the wine ‘space’ is very nice. I’ve spoken almost nothing about the ambiance, and I think its best to see this for yourself when you get there. The mood of the place is really nicely done. If you have date night coming up, this is worth considering. We drank a pink Tschida – Himmel Auf Erden – amongst other things on the night.
I skipped the canapes in this post, so some surprises left when you visit. Scroll down for the menu:
1. Set meadowsweet infused milk, lobster miso, aubergine hearts and caviar. Silkened steamed chawanmushi was incredibly satisfying.
2. Lobster claw in a toasted rice with citrus, sorrel.
3. Maitake, smoked eel wrapped in milk yuba, pine nut, and it sure was a nice take on tofu skin.
4. Silver bream aged for 1 week, fennel, orange, saffron on sourdough soaked in shortrib stock which is roasted in butter. Analogous to nigiri I suppose, plenty of umami, I really could have had at least a couple more, this was really delicious.
5. Charred celtuce, beetroot leaves, mustard leaves, from Calixta’s farm, smoked vinegar and chicken stock.
6. Animal and vegetable skins, braised and dried
7. Onion and onion, to me it was like rebooted french onion soup, deep sweetness.
8. The Native Lobster course. With celeriac, macadamia nut purée and whey.
Grilled over binchotan by Warren Smith to a perfect mi cuit and smartly paired up with the creamy quality of macadamia. Dish of the night.
9. Grilled hogget, nips, fermented turnips juice, sea purslane, pork fat.
Best end, aged for five and a half weeks, and slowly grilled over the course of the meal to edge to edge pink, and zero juice leak on the cutting board. Check out the rendered fat cap underneath the golden crispy skin. Beautiful cuisson.
—
Puddings came by way of two ice creams. Interesting flavours… not much else to say if I am to be honest. But tour de force savouries, and a long menu, getting on midnight, so I can understand why the puds putter out at the end.
10. Douglas fir ice cream, wet walnuts and yuba
11. Roasted cherry stone ice cream and blackberries
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