“Just pop by for a dinner with some friends and some champs,” those words were all that’s needed for me to take up the offer for another night at Ando. Not just another night actually, or not just “some champs”, but with Chef Agustin preparing a special menu to pair with a few fine bottles of Krug.
I was eating at the restaurant
only a month ago but they still managed to come up with an entirely different menu. This time the caviar canape trio feature Murasaki Uni, Beef Tartare and Peas with Smoked Snapper paired with 3 different kinds of caviar, with my favorite being the spring peas mixed with diced smoked snapper and topped with Nomad ossetra caviar in a small glass. The minerality and umami flavor just matched perfectly well with the Krug Grand Cuvee Brut poured to our glasses minutes ago.
That creamy, umami, mineral flavor profile carried on to our first course with raw ama ebi (pink shrimp) and diced Hokkaido scallops served with zucchini, fennels, rice crackers with a light cream dressing. I loved the marigold petal garnish which added to the colorful presentation, and shiokombu and grated lemon zest for the added contrast in flavor. We then kicked up a notch in richness with the next course of Brittany lobster done two ways, with the tail poached then finished on the pan and the rest turned into mousseline and served as a “dumpling” stuffed inside a cougette flower. The sauce prepared with tomatoes and dashi brought everything together. I could live with the lobster tail slightly less cooked on the outside but overall it was delicious with the well-balanced acidity.
The Fideua dish was my favorite of the night. The noodle itself was perfectly done with rich seafood stock and the nice crunchy bits like the socarrat in paella, and then there’s the Hokkaido kinki (scorpion fish) with the skin seared crisp and the delicate and fatty meat underneath cooked just right. The diced jabugo ham was nice, giving the dish a good chewy bite. I could go without the aioli sauce served on the side, but I do like that extra garlicky, creamy flavor with that added in.
After the bread course we moved on to yet another seafood dish, but this one an interesting one. The seasonal salmonetes (red mullet) was pan-seared skin down and served with Ganba mushrooms and lily bulbs and finished with a salsa verde sauce infused with chives and Jura yellow wine. The wild Ganba mushroom (乾巴菌) can only be found in China's Yunnan Province and known for its pungent, earthy flavor, and I was amazed to see it paired in a western dish with the delicate lily bulb, also from Southwestern China. Afterwards it’s the signature caldoso, this time served with espardenyes (baby sea cucumbers) and scallops. Love that bouncy texture from the Spanish espardenyes and of course, the soupy caldoso was good as always.
Listed as “Japanese pancake”, our dessert turned out it’s the fluffy souffle pancake served with corn espuma and coconut sorbet. The sweet corn and tropical coconut flavor did make great summer dessert and for something different. Then at last was the impressive display of mignardises.
Carlito and Julian made us play a game of blind tasting with only little hints provided as the bottles were poured. The first one was the easiest, with the current release of Krug Grande Cuvee (170th Edition) showing the typical Krug finesse. Full-bodied, golden color, white flower aroma, citrus and yeasty note. “Luminous Freshness” was the hint for the second bottle, and it turned out to be the 2004 vintage. I think the freshness bit turned to more a rich elegance with extra years of aging, with more roundness, toasty notes and secondary flavor like almond, marzipan and dried citrus came out. On the other hand, “Classic Beauty”, or the 2008 vintage, was the refreshing one with nice perfume-like aroma, bright candied citrus notes with hint of tropical flavor. The 2004 was fine on its own, but when paired with food, I say 2008 would be my choice.
The 2006 Clos du Mesnil was the special one, rich, golden with fine bubbles and rounded texture. White flower aroma, notes of lemon and kumquats on the palate and also some caramel and toasted almonds – worked perfectly well with the fatty fish. Last one came from Chef’s birth year of 1988. A rare find no doubt, and this aged so well still with plenty of youthfulness and acidity, dried flower aroma with notes of lemon, honey, nectar and wheat on the palate. What a special evening.
When? August 18 2022
Where? Ando, 1/F, Somptueux Central, 52 Wellington St, Central
Menu Highlights? Line-caught Kinki, Fideua
Drinks?
Champagne Krug Grande Cuvee 170eme Edition Brut MV (ID: 221030)
2004 Champagne Krug Vintage Brut (ID: 218024)
2008 Champagne Krug Vintage Brut (ID: 120005)
2006 Champagne Krug "Clos du Mesnil" Blanc de Blancs Brut (ID: 319030)
1988 Champagne Krug Collection Brut (Bottle No 954)
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