The Chef’s Table

I've been home for three weeks and am finally getting around to writing about our meal at the Chef's Table - the one that we nearly declined!

We met in the main lodge and reception area at 7 p.m. where we were served a glass of special champagne - the really good stuff!  One couple that arrived late had glasses of sparkling wine with them and refused to take the champagne until they were told that it was specially picked to go with the appetizer.

We were then led through the main dining room to a special room that seated only 10 people.  We felt like royalty!  Once in the small dining room, we were met by Chef Tom who explained that we were going to be served 12 courses - each with a special wine.  We had some accoutrements in front of us - a box with drawers containing a vial, wooden tweezers, a small spoon and a knife.  On top of the box was an egg timer and a blow torch.

Each dish was a representation of one of the countries the Eclipse would be visiting.  Nothing was as it seemed.  Here are some of the courses I remember.

A reverse tomato dish:  it appeared to be a skinned tomato with the cut side down in a shallow bowl.  There were some other sauces piped into the bowl along with some micro-greens.  We were instructed to take the knife and cut into the tomato.  As soon as we did that, the tomato turned into liquid - tomato soup!

We were presented with a carrot on a plate as one of the courses.  Both of us thought - this is an unusual dish.  It turned out not to be a carrot at all - it was a mousse and very tasty.

We used the egg-timer to time the curing of the ceviche - also delicious.

A lollypop was presented in a bowl with what looked like cotton candy.  We were instructed to take the vial and squeeze the contents over the pink froth.  It at once melted into the lollypop.  We then picked up the stick and tried the "candy".  It turned out to be fois gras covered by a coating of cherry-like jam.  Delicious.

Another dish was served in a large crystal ashtray and looked like a cigar.  The ashes in the bottom were freeze-dried balsamic vinegar.  The cigar was a burrito.  The taste was wonderful.

We used the blow torch to cook a piece of Wagu beef served over black river stones.  

We drank both white and red wines depending on the course.  Each red wine had been decanted for a different period of time - some for two hours, some for more or less depending on the wine.  So much thought had gone into these pairings.

Chef Tom explained each of the dishes and told us how long each part of the dish took to prepare - some of the sauces took a number of days to complete.  He is young to have such a senior position and is extremely talented and passionate about food.

Dessert was a communal affair.  Three large platters were placed on the table.  A large chocolate sphere was placed on each platter.  Then Chef Tom lifted the spheres one at a time and dropped them onto the platters where they burst open to reveal all kinds of goodies.  A spectacular end to a spectacular meal.  

This is the new cuisine that modern chefs are experimenting with where watercress is turned into a gel and olives into powder.  Chefs use dehydrators and molecular gastronomy to create these fantastic dishes.  We were so lucky to have the chance to try it - we figure the meal would have cost us at least $500 each.