Chrysoula ([info]chrysoula) wrote,
@ 2002-11-12 20:29:00
Previous Entry  Add to memories!  Tell a Friend  Next Entry
Food
I am looking for really luscious, extravagant foods you might have eaten or seen, for inspiration in writing a feast scene for my novel. I know some of you out there can identify complex spice mixtures by taste, and others of you cook interesting things, and most people out there like to eat. So... tell me what the most interesting, extravagant, luxurious foods you've ever eaten or heard of have been?

Thank you!

(9 comments) - (Post a new comment)


[info]tavella
2002-11-12 10:22 pm UTC (link)
For sheer decadent flavor: bone marrow. Especially pork marrow that's been roasted in the bone. Osso bucco, too (roasted lamb shank.) Smear it on some bread and oh my god the *essence* of flavor.

(Reply to this)


[info]genitiggie
2002-11-13 01:27 am UTC (link)
Candied rose petals. Wild boar!

(Reply to this)

Hmm
[info]lilisonna
2002-11-13 05:32 am UTC (link)
Alligator and sausage in a thick cream and brandy sauce, flambeed and served over fried corncakes. (Warning: allow brandy to cook down before lighting on fire.)

Salmon salad with dill, heavy cream and a touch of mustard served on sourdough toast.

Chocolate Ruffle Torte

Lamb chops in a port sauce.

Stopping now before I get too hungry.





(Reply to this)

Something...non-western
[info]spenceraloysius
2002-11-13 07:52 am UTC (link)
Lion's head soup which is really light yet filling.

Pork combined with ginger, cornstarch and chinese white cabbage into balls...larger than a softball. Boiled in chicken broth with whole pieces of chinese white cabbage. The lion heads end up being very light, melt in your mouth when done right.

(Reply to this)

Dreams of Paradise...
[info]eilonwey
2002-11-13 09:32 am UTC (link)
I happen to have my souvenir menu from La Mer with me, the five-star restaurant that we ate at in Waikiki. I think that it has some pretty extravagent dishes on it, some of which we even got to sample. I'll try to pick out the most extravagent:

Truffles from the Region of Vaucluse with Guerande Salt, Arranged on Potatoes with Shallots and Parma Ham

Sauteed Foie Gras Garnished with Fresh Vegetables

Scampi Souffle in Risotto with Baby Vegetables

Mussel Soup with Saffron (This was my very favorite thing on the menu - it was served in this tiny white ceramic tureen that had maybe a dozen spoonfuls of soup in it but oh-my-god was it delicious.)

Roasted Squab Supreme, Salsify au Jus and Golden Gnocchi

Lobster Nectar

Lobster and Fresh Hearts of Palm Salad

Medallions of Maine Lobster with a Tabbouleh of Crisp Vegetables and Dried Fruits Accented with a Fresh Menthe Vinaigrette

Beluga Caviar

Napoleon of Spiny "Tristan" Lobster, Leeks and Golden Macaroni Finished with Bercy Sauce

Three Fresh Island Fish in a Rosemary Salt Crust Presented Tableside

Barbary Duck Breast Roasted with Lavender Honey Thigh Confit, Thyme and Garlic, Braised Belgian Endives

And let's not forget a couple of desserts:

Dreams of Chocolate: Cherry Brandy Chocolate Mousse, White and Dark Chocolate Tear Drop, and Gianduja Ice Cream in a Chocolate Cup

Pistachio Ice Cream "Mikado": Pistachio Bonbons Dipped in Dark Chocolate with Almond Ginger Chiboust in a Butterfly Chocolate Vase

Okay, now I'm drooling. Yum. Yum. Yum. Hungry.

(Reply to this) (Thread)
Re: Dreams of Paradise...
[info]chrysoula
2002-11-13 09:39 am UTC (link)
Wow, Stacy. Just... Wow.

(Reply to this) (Parent)
my favorite dessert
[info]princessmei
2002-11-13 09:55 am UTC (link)


When I was last in the city, Azmeer took me to Lulu's Cafe and beyond the fact that all the food was amazingly good
(Fried mussels, roast pork with a honey glaze and and lamb medallions with a targon mint sauce and gnocchi with pepper sauce) we had Panna cotta for dessert and ever since I've been thinking of it.

It's a cream custard of sorts, like amazingly good ice cream that's smooth and not quite as cold, it made ice cream seem over-flavoured. Instead it was simple, and made of the sweetest double cream. We dipped spoons into it, and scooped up the fresh fruit on the side and eating it made me feel catlike, I'd take a bite and then want to curl up in a ball and just think on that bite for a moment.

It was yummy, and smooth and fresh and sweet but simple, and if I hadn't been brought up by my mother I might have considered licking the plate.

(Reply to this)

food!
[info]wildpaletz
2002-11-13 09:59 am UTC (link)
Coincidentally, I was emailing my family some online links/menus of places we could eat in May when they come into town for graduation.

Here they are for you:

Cafe de la Paz - south American and Venezualan tapas

Tibetan. I like the word, "momos". It's basically dumplings.

Vietnamese, particularly crab dripping with butter, pan-fried catfish. They don't mention, but one of their best dishes are these light eggy crepes that have sprouts, chicken, shrimp, and mushrooms in them. Crispy perfection.

Asian Fusion food. Interesting combinations...lavender creme brulee. Grilled things.

The Stinking Rose. All garlic, all the time. I think 40-clove garlic chicken sounds like a feast thing.

Restaurant Lulu's - French/Californian cuisine.

Menara, of course.

Chez Panisse, of course, as well. Check out both the set manu (which changes every day) and the cafe menu (which, well, also changes).

There's also a Burmese place called Nan Yang in Oakland, though their menu isn't on line. They have garlic & mango noodles, where the noodles are light and tender, as well as some really interesting salads. For example: ginger salad, which has marinated ginger, peanuts, coconut, dried shrimp, a couple chili peppers, lentils, dried garlic. There's some other ingredients but I can't remember. It's crunchy and sweet and bitter and a really extraordinary combination of flavors. (I recommend it to people visiting the East Bay, as well. It's not hard to get to.)

For my dad's remarriage, we had a - I think it was - Malaysian wedding feast, which had a whole bunch of courses. Unfortunately, I can't remember the details now. :(. I wish I had written them down. The food just KEPT COMING and it was all superb. Fruit and meat together.

(Reply to this)

Wow.
[info]zogathon
2002-11-13 07:27 pm UTC (link)
It's hard to pick.... but since I'm really a dessert person, that's mostly what you're going to see. :)

I'd have to rate both NOLA (Emeril Lagasse) and Blue Ginger (Ming Tsai) as the pinnacles of my dining experience thus far. The most luscious foods I had were, from NOLA: white chocolate cheesecake with cashew praline and peach compote (oh. my. god.), lightly seared tuna on jasmine rice with a rock shrimp / baby vegetable / lemongrass ginger reduction, and a really amazing take on a deep-fried apple pie. From Blue Ginger, the most extravagant thing I remember seeing (though I did not partake) was a truffled fois gras shumai, and my favorite thing to eat was a sake-miso marinated butterfish, and their vanilla creme brulee. I must have had creme brulee a billion times, but this was beyond silky, with the thinnest possible perfect caramel crust and a completely heady vanilla scent, that it was a nearly religious experience.

Two things Jon had when we went to Farallon were exquisitely memorable: the salmon tartare (with some kind of creme fraiche sauce, if I recall correctly), and the strawberry shortcake--the shortcake was sweet and had some cornmeal in it, the whipped cream was fresh, and there was a balsamic reduction served with it as well.

Other yummy things...

Probably the most luscious thing I've ever made was a raspberry champagne sabayon cake. Vanilla genoise, sprinkled with some raspberry liquer, layered with fresh raspberries and a champagne sabayon; covered with whipped cream, and mounded with more fresh raspberries. Eating it was like consuming sweet clouds.

And, for further inspiration, if you get a chance to see the show "A Cook's Tour" when he visits the French Laundry.... my gosh. The most memorable thing was a tobacco-scented custard of some kind, created so that the consumer would not have to actually smoke a cigarette during the meal and hence ruin his palate. The French Laundry is the number one restaurant in the world I'd go to if I had the cash.

If you're looking for less traditional western food, I have tons of yummy and (to me) exotic ethnic food memories, but I don't think they're necessarily luxurious or extravagant. Just enticingly exotic to my mac n' cheese-bred tastebuds. :)

Ooh! Ooh! And one more thing. We once served a white chocolate ice cream that we *scented* with coffee. Place the coffee beans in a sealed airtight container with the white chocolate for a few days, then make the ice cream with the white chocolate. Result: a totally surprising and wonderful taste, given that the ice cream is still perfectly white. It was really spiffy.

(Reply to this)

(9 comments) - (Post a new comment)

Create an Account
Forgot your login or password?
Login w/ OpenID
English • Español • Deutsch • Русский…