Saturday, June 10, 2006
Dinner at Raza – “nouveau latino” cuisine
For an elegant, inventive meal in Montreal, we recommend a trip to Raza. The chef there does a wonderful job of mixing Latin American ingredients with Nouvelle Cuisine techniques.
In choosing to eat there this Friday, we wanted to see if the food remained as inventive and delicious as we remembered it. We also wanted to see if the restaurant had finally managed to attract more customers. On our two previous visits, we shared the space with no more than two or three other tables.
We chose the chef’s “menu degustation” of five courses, assuming that the seven courses would be too much. Adventurous people with any real degree of appetite should take all seven, given the tiny size of each plate.
To begin with, we were served an espresso-sized “amuse bouche” of a corn bisque, sprinkled with crumbled of fresh cheese. The flavor was delicate, while retaining some complexities.
As a first course, we had a few slices of a seared, marinated duck. They were served cold, topped with a warm sauce of slivered red pepper and chili. The dish was accompanied by a yam puree. The tangy, tender meat greatly benefited from the slight bite of the sauce, without being overwhelmed by the spicy effect. The tiny bit of yam added a pleasant hint of sweetness, making the dish far more complex.
Served along side was a Chilean Fumée Blanc, from the Errazuriz winery. It had a surprisingly sweet nose, with apparent lychee notes.
Our second course was a fish cake rolled in “masa” corn flour. It was presented on a purée of parsnip, and accompanied by a Mojito reduction (mint, rum, lime).
That was served with another wonderful, heavy Chilean white with a mix of 3 cepages, the name of which we forgot!
Third came a baked breast of Guinea fowl. It was rolled up in its skin, which had been lightly coated with a sweet guava-barbeque sauce. The meat was served on a bed of quinoa and green onions.
The wine that accompanied the dish was almost too full for the delicate meat. It was a Californian Merlot, from the house of Beringer. It was loaded up with dried fruit and leather notes, as far as we could tell.
The fourth course was a few slices of a gilled beef on a bed of ricotta gnocchi in basil and Parmesan pesto. Diced beets provided a hint of sweet to the dish.
If memory serves us, the wine that accompanied the dish was an Errazuriz Cabernet-Sauvignon from Chile.
The final dish was desert made up of four components. The base was a thin slice of ultra-moist, dark chocolate and banana cake. Set on top was a crispy, chocolate ravioli, filled with a melted chocolate ganache. Next to it was a tiny swirl of chocolate mousse. The final element, also sitting on the cake, was a tiny ball of coconut ice cream. There was enough chocolate flavor in the dish to overpower the taste buds, however, the quantity and the ice cream both ensured that the desert remained well balanced.
Served alongside was a desert liquor from Uruguay, made from the Tannat grape. Though most like a port wine, it had some definite herbal notes that played well off the chocolate.
For the originality and quality of the meal the price was appropriate ($60/person before wine and tax). If you want to save a bit of money, don’t casually order a bottle of mineral water. Our 500ml bottle cost $7! ¶ 11:54 a.m.
In choosing to eat there this Friday, we wanted to see if the food remained as inventive and delicious as we remembered it. We also wanted to see if the restaurant had finally managed to attract more customers. On our two previous visits, we shared the space with no more than two or three other tables.
We chose the chef’s “menu degustation” of five courses, assuming that the seven courses would be too much. Adventurous people with any real degree of appetite should take all seven, given the tiny size of each plate.
To begin with, we were served an espresso-sized “amuse bouche” of a corn bisque, sprinkled with crumbled of fresh cheese. The flavor was delicate, while retaining some complexities.
As a first course, we had a few slices of a seared, marinated duck. They were served cold, topped with a warm sauce of slivered red pepper and chili. The dish was accompanied by a yam puree. The tangy, tender meat greatly benefited from the slight bite of the sauce, without being overwhelmed by the spicy effect. The tiny bit of yam added a pleasant hint of sweetness, making the dish far more complex.
Served along side was a Chilean Fumée Blanc, from the Errazuriz winery. It had a surprisingly sweet nose, with apparent lychee notes.
Our second course was a fish cake rolled in “masa” corn flour. It was presented on a purée of parsnip, and accompanied by a Mojito reduction (mint, rum, lime).
That was served with another wonderful, heavy Chilean white with a mix of 3 cepages, the name of which we forgot!
Third came a baked breast of Guinea fowl. It was rolled up in its skin, which had been lightly coated with a sweet guava-barbeque sauce. The meat was served on a bed of quinoa and green onions.
The wine that accompanied the dish was almost too full for the delicate meat. It was a Californian Merlot, from the house of Beringer. It was loaded up with dried fruit and leather notes, as far as we could tell.
The fourth course was a few slices of a gilled beef on a bed of ricotta gnocchi in basil and Parmesan pesto. Diced beets provided a hint of sweet to the dish.
If memory serves us, the wine that accompanied the dish was an Errazuriz Cabernet-Sauvignon from Chile.
The final dish was desert made up of four components. The base was a thin slice of ultra-moist, dark chocolate and banana cake. Set on top was a crispy, chocolate ravioli, filled with a melted chocolate ganache. Next to it was a tiny swirl of chocolate mousse. The final element, also sitting on the cake, was a tiny ball of coconut ice cream. There was enough chocolate flavor in the dish to overpower the taste buds, however, the quantity and the ice cream both ensured that the desert remained well balanced.
Served alongside was a desert liquor from Uruguay, made from the Tannat grape. Though most like a port wine, it had some definite herbal notes that played well off the chocolate.
For the originality and quality of the meal the price was appropriate ($60/person before wine and tax). If you want to save a bit of money, don’t casually order a bottle of mineral water. Our 500ml bottle cost $7! ¶ 11:54 a.m.
