I was just finishing off some work when it occurred to me that “The French Gastronomy Week” is about to end, quickly and without any thoughts I picked up the phone and checked the availability at Marriott Hotel Amman. I booked a table and got ready to take my taste buds on a mini journey to the gourmet cuisine of France.
I arrived there around 7 the place was relatively empty, I was ushered to my table and the waiter noticed I am quite annoyed with the side lamp direct light in my face so he immediately manage to move it over to somewhere else (as a designer myself I suggest lights that are pointed upwards or hidden ones instead as I noticed a few clients had the same comment). All settled he brings me the menu to explore my options, first things first I chose a “Cheval Noir Saint Emilion” wine to accompany my meal (it is French Cuisine so it is a must).
The menu had a mixture of beef and fish for starters but I certainly was drawn to the “Minced Lobster & Caviar with crushed tomatoes, eggplant, fennel and virgin olive oil”. I must say I chose it because I never pictured eggplants and tomatoes making a beautiful base for lobster, but oh my was I mistaken, this dish whisks you off to a seaside restaurant with a view of the crashing waves and somehow gives you that mediterranean tone that makes keeps you taking one bite after another looking for that taste. The Chef insisted I also try the “Tartar of Veal Fillet with Oysters, Smoked Herring Roe and Watercress Cream”, which was an absolute marvel in the mixing of taste between veal and sea ingredients.
After that I had planned to have a dish to follow through with the lobster theme, I picked “Grenadine of veal fillet and lobster, minute spinach and potato cake”, I believe I could not have chosen and better main. The meat was soft and grilled to perfection, the lobster was cooked just as well, as for the crispy potato cake and spinach, they really just added the right texture that completed the flavorful plate. The sauce on that dish is out of this world (yes I am trying to find the recipe) I could not think of anything for a moment but the explosion of flavors in my mouth.
At this point of the meal I thought I could not eat a bite further, but I was wrong as the Chef popped announcing that he will be mixing both kinds of the dessert on the menu for me to try and as soon as that dish arrived I knew I was in love. A crispy dark chocolate ball stuffed with spongy vanilla and drizzled with melted hot chocolate on top, a pineapple ravioli stuffed with mascarpone cheese and a side of coconut sorbet. All I can say is the dark chocolate ball was rich and melted in your mouth making you completely silent, while the pineapple ravioli along with the lightness of the sorbet reminded me of the fresh breeze of summer on the seaside.
Chef Eric Lavallee spent some time after the meal explaining how these ingredients came together in his recipes and the reason behind the choice, moreover he was happy to be in Amman for a different experience. All in all this experience was out of this world and I could not have chosen a better place to make my short journey to France a perfect one.
BON APPÉTIT A TOUS
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