Jacques Reymond Cuisine du Temps - Jacques for Jack

Hello Readers,

It was recently my boyfriend, Jack's birthday and so to celebrate the occasion I made a booking at Jacques Reymond's eponymous restaurant. A little Jacques for Jack.

The gorgeous restaurant is located in Prahran, an 1880's mansion with a beautifully lush garden. We rang their doorbell and were warmly welcomed by the staff. We sat in the cellar room, a simple yet modern room with a vast collection of wines and champagne next to our humble little table.

After ordering myself a glass of champagne and having a glance at the menu, we of course decided on the 9 course degustation menu. I unfortunately forgot to take a picture of our first course but it was a flavorsome mushroom broth. A great start to the night that left my taste buds ready for more.

Our second course was yellow fin tuna, smoked salmon mousse, togarashi and lemon caviar. Described as one of the highlights of the evening, this was easily my favourite course of the night. The tuna was heavenly and melted in your mouth but it was the spiced nougatine on top that made this dish a revelation. The delicate snap and the sweetness of the nougatine paired with the tenderness of the tuna was an unusual but genius combination. 

Next was King George Whiting with an acidities of pickles and yuzu. A perfect example of Jacques Reymond's affinity for french technique with asian flavours, a prevalent theme in most of his dishes.

The fourth course was cuttlefish, pork shoulder and crispy chicken skin. A bold dish with an unmistakable Thai influence of tangy, sweet and sour flavours.

Our palate cleanser was the most interesting dish of the night. Parmesan custard, green peas, macerated grapes, wasabi and apple granita. A daring combination to say the least but one that surprisingly works well. The granita was my favourite component, such great and refreshing flavours.

Next was a salad of Flinders Island lamb, smoked eucalyptus scallop, scampi and masterstock jelly. An elegant surf and turf with unbelievably tasty lamb. There was so much flavour packed into that single slice of lamb, and with the addition of scampi and scallop, you simply can't go wrong.

Our next meat course was Sher Wagyu a la plancha, burnt onion and coffee. The beef was of course cooked to perfection and the sauces were a great accompaniment. The mushrooms and every other element of the dish served to enhance the flavour of the beef.

Our adorable little pre-dessert was Carmague organic red rice, apricot and sencha sorbet and champagne foam. The dehydrated raspberries gave the rice pudding a nice bit of bite but I adored the sencha sorbet. As a self proclaimed tea lover, I really enjoyed the it. The sorbet was sweet but still kept the delicate flavour of sencha tea.

Our dessert was Chocolate and chestnut mont blanc, bayleaf and cassis, bourbon chantilly and some spiced figs. What really made this dessert special was a little parcel that arrived with it, pictures above. It was warm and gave off a beautiful aroma that complimented the components of our dessert. It's those sort of little things that really impress me and give the whole dining experience an added....je ne sais quoi.

.

We ended our evening with tea and some petit fours. It was very sweet of the staff to write Happy Birthday in chocolate for Jack as well. It was a lovely evening, which I hope he enjoyed as much as I did.

********************************************************

After dining at Jacques Reymond's my boyfriend and I have officially eaten at all the three hatted restaurants in Melbourne. I feel like I've won some sort of culinary bingo hahaha.

Jacques Reymond has been an iconic Melbourne chef for well over 20 years but unfortunately he will a be retiring in December so I recommend you get in quickly before then. The restaurant will then be left to his two long time deputy chefs Thomas Woods and Hayden McFarland, appropriately renaming the restaurant to The Woodland House. I also hope to try as much of Jacques Reymond's food as possible before he retires so I've secured a booking at the Legends Dinner at Brooks in October, which he is a part of. I'll definitely write a blog about that dinner too.

Thank you for reading.

Attica

For my 21st birthday, I was lucky enough to have a surprise reservation at the well renowned Attica. A restaurant that has been highly recommended to me and has had a long standing place on my 'Places to go' list. My boyfriend being the attentive, sneaky but adorable boyfriend he is had made a tentative booking since January. I could not be more grateful for having him in my life.

I adored the simplicity of all the dishes at Attica. We naturally went for the 8 course degustation. We found everything was quite minimalist but the complexities and depth of flavours astonish you. 

Our first amuse bouche embodied that very concept. It was a simple dish of Sorrel leaves from their very own garden and housemade creme fraiche. At first it felt strange just eating a single leaf, but the taste took me by surprise. My palate was ready for more!

The next dish was appropriately named 'The Walnut' which came with adorable tiny pickled carrots.

The inside of the walnut is revealed to us by staff and inside is a delicious walnut reduction.

Our final amuse bouche would have to be one of my favourites in terms of presentation. It was a crumbed mussel but the presentation just resonated with me. The simplicity of it, the colours, the contrast, it was all put together so beautifully. The face is painted on a mussel shell and I couldn't help admiring it until our server sadly took the plate away. I'm still wondering whether or not it's Ben Shewry's face....

Our first dish was Western Australian Snow Crab, Shiitake, Eleven Basils and Buckwheat. The delicate crab meat was lovely, which goes well with the strong flavours of the basils and shiitake broth. The added texture of the buckwheat really  brought everything together.

The next dish was Marron and Fermented Corn. A very luxurious dish centred on a succulent piece of Marron. The rich sauce was the perfect accompaniment. 

Our next dish was called  'A simple dish of Potato cooked in the earth it was grown'. There was nothing fancy or complicated about this dish, it just let the flavours and textures speak for itself. The potato tasted amazing and my knife glided through it like butter. I savoured every bite.

This was followed by a dish of Cucumbers, Sauce of Burnet and Dried River Trout. A lovely zesty dish filled with gorgeous shades of green. The dried river trout was not overpowering and went well with the crunchy cucumbers. This dish even impressed my boyfriend who's quite a meat-loving man.

Next was King George Whiting in Paperbark. The fish came to us folded in an envelope of paperbark and we opened it up to release an intoxicating buttery aroma. I ate this dish slowly from left to right, savouring each morsel of fish. 

Our final main waas Flinders Island Wallaby, Scorched Macadamia and Ground Berry. This was my first time eating Wallaby and I enjoyed it alot. It's a very lean meat so it was of course served rare but it was still tender and delicious, not bloody at all. I was pleasantly surprised at how well macadamia and berry went with wallaby. 

Before dessert, we were asked if we'd like a tour of the Attica garden out back, we of course agreed and I excitedly made my way past all the diners, the kitchen and out the back door. 

There we were introduced to one of their chefs and he gave us a fantastic apple tea and a housemade vanilla and coconut marshmallow to roast on a fire. It was so much fun chatting with the chef and admiring the lush greenery of their garden. We discussed skydiving, Thomas Keller and admired their mural on the wall. It was a pleasure to know that all 11 basils from our crab dish was grown in that very spot.

When we sat back at our table our dessert was Fresh Curd Ice Cream and Blueberries covered in beautiful chrysanthemum petals. There were fresh and dehydrated blueberries, which gave the dish some bite. The flavours were so lovely and fresh.

Our next dessert had us wondering since the beginning of the evening. It is simply called 'Plight of the Bees' so we assumed it involved honey but we could have never imagined it would be such an exquisite dessert.

It was a multi-layered sensation using 2 different kinds of honey. I had no idea what each individual layer was but the deeper my spoon went in the more surprises I discovered, like a sorbet and a wafer like layer.

Thus the end of our degustation came around and to our delight I was offered the option of an extra dessert. Of course, I couldn't refuse and what was called Ben's interpretation of an Afghan biscuit appeared before me. It was fantastic, the textures and the chocolate! Oh, the chocolate! I greedily spooned this dessert down completely forgetting how full I was from all the previous courses. 

Dinner for us naturally ends with a lovely cup of Jasmine tea and yet another surprise from Ben. A delightful white chocolate egg filled with salted caramel. The egg is speckled to look like a Pukeko egg, which embodies Ben's philosophy as a chef. All of this is explained on the back of a painting of the Pukeko bird given to you at the end of the evening.

*******************************************************

Eating at Attica wasn't just a dining experience, I felt as  if i was admiring the works of an artist whilst walking through a museum. The interior of the restaurant is mostly black including the walls and the curtains. Coupled with the single spotlight above you, the masterpieces before you are the truly focus of your attention. 

Ben Shewry's appreciation for art is apparent from the mural of his inspiration in the garden and his father's painting of the Pukeko bird that they give you a copy of. Ben might not be a painter but he is a truly inspired chef. Our waiter told us stories of how he dreams up creations during his 3 hour commute home and how everything is perfected on his experimental degustations on Tuesday nights. I could not ask for a more dedicated chef but I only wish that my dreams were so magical as well.