The bread from a local bakery were served with marinated olives, homemade butter, and homemade hummus. I enjoyed the hummus most with its grainy texture and garlic flavor.
Sardine w/ green pepper, tomato, and cucumber sauces; it’s a bit salty and the sauces helped; great buttery texture. Salted Codfish cake had a crispy exterior with tender and flaky interior. It was small enough to eat in one bite, which I don't recommend because it was salty when consumed whole. The capicola was less salty compared to the other two items. The fat was chewy, which I didn't prefer.
Ourico e Caviar: Hokkaido sea urchin, sturgeon caviar, potato foam, dehydrated lemon, and micro mustard leaf. The potato foam was light, delicate, and buttery. Sea urchin was sweet and creamy. The caviar provided bursts of saltiness. Each component tasted great individually; the combo of the sea urchin, caviar, and potato foam was divine. The saltiness of the caviar balanced out the creaminess of the sea urchin and the potato; I loved the salty and sweet flavors contrast; Perfect dish!
Couve-Flor: Roasted cauliflower soup, almond liqueur foam, drunken pear, roasted almond, and microgreen. The server poured the soup; it had a nice savory roasted flavor and the foam enhanced the soup with its nutty flavor and airy texture. The drunken pear added a fruity note and crunch to the dish. Few pieces of almond were over roasted and gave a bitter taste, disrupting the taste of the dish.
Pato: roasted duck with duck demi-glace, duck confit on rapini, and carrot chips. The roasted duck was perfectly cooked and tender; I could eat it without the demi-glace, but the demi-glace enhanced its flavor. The duck confit on rapini was good, but fell short in comparison to the roasted duck. The confit was a bit of dry. The rapini didn't give a distinctive flavor, nor did it improve the confit. The carrot chips were good and lightly seasoned with salt. The roasted duck with demi-glace was perfect.
Bacalhau: Salted codfish in phyllo sheet on top of tomato rice with edible flowers. I love the fish broth used for the rice. There were few undercooked grains of rice. The salted codfish was aromatic; the phyllo sheet was light, flakey, and crispy and seal in the aroma of the codfish (a great concept). I ate the codfish and the rice separately, which was a mistake because I found the rice to be under seasoned. I should've paired them in every bite.
Caldeirada: Rolled salted fish topped with lobster bits, with seaweed on the bottom, broth from lobster and clams, 3 clams, garlic purée, tomato purée, and roasted bell pepper purée, and micro green. The server poured broth (made from clams and lobster) onto the dish. I liked the texture of the salted fish. The salty flavor built up with each bite; I recommend taking small bites. The purées were good individually, but they didn't enhance the salted fish as I was expecting. Make sure to let the seaweed soak up the broth, if not, the dried seaweed would have a plastic texture. The lobster bits and three tiny clams were ok. Interestingly, micro green provided the best contrast to the dish with its flavor profile. Since the broth dissolved the three purées together at the end, I was expecting a synergetic flavor, but that didn't happen. Looking at each ingredient on this dish, I was expecting a good amount of umami flavor, but somehow it didn't live up to the expectation.
Borrego: Lamb with cumin crust and demi-glace, kale roll, dried roasted garbanzo bean, and garbanzo bean purée. I liked the texture of the dried roasted garbanzo bean and the purée. The kale roll had garbanzo beans and chorizo, flavorful and good textures. I loved the lamb, cooked perfectly, with the cumin crust and a hint of mint on top. I liked the creativity of having the seasoning in the crust, which also added a new texture to the tender lamb. The demi-glace provided depth in flavor. Perfect dish.
Serra da Estrela cheese with honey marmalade was a wonderful treat, sweet, savory, and funky; a great combo of flavors.
To be continued in Yelp!
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