Unique – TheKua Does Food

The Single Item Restaurant Challenge

January 7, 2014 Patrick New York, Restaurants, Unique

When my sister and I travel, I normally sort out places to eat, and she organises the activities. Since we had done all of the activities there are to do in New York, she suggested doing a walking tour of Manhattan but eating our way through the restaurants that focus on a single item. I did the research (there are a lot of them) and we ended up tried spending a whole day eating our way through Manhattan (and definitely adding to our waistline).

Although I suggested we have some guidelines, at the end of the day, we tried the ones that we felt like trying and felt it qualified. We struck places off the list that weren’t particularly unique such as all the cupcake, macaroon or ramen stores. We also tried to strike out those places that served too many other main dishes such as Tommy Lasagne that serves much more than just Lasagne. We struck off food trucks (too many of them) and tried to avoid chains. Here’s where we ended up on a single day.

Treat House (452 Amsterdam Ave – http://www.treathouse.com/)

A place that only sells Rice Crispy treats, we tried a small selection. They aren’t particularly cheap but we figured that we were going to try a small selection and they were beautifully decorated. I think the ones we tried were sugar cookie (blue but nothing particularly special), salted caramel, candy cane (a nice seasonal twist) and gingerbread (which I enjoyed eating the head of the gingerbread man). A sugar rush for the morning that goes well with a black coffee!

Baconery (911 Columbus Avenue – http://www.baconery.com/)

Our next stop wasn’t also technically restaurant but located in the same neighbourhood as the previous. This shop/cafe sold all products that incorporated. They sell everything from chocolate covered bacon, bacon cookies and bacon salt. Basically, you name it they bacon-it. They also had a lot of bacon based merchandise such as this pillow:

We split a bacon “blondie” or basically a white brownie. The sweetness tempered by the salty bacon went quite well.

OatMeals (20 W 3rd St- http://oatmealsny.com/)

You can find most of the other single item restaurants located in the east and west village – I guess it’s a testament to the tastes and the area’s reception to new things. OatMeals focus on being an oatmeal bar. You can go simple with oatmeals and construct one of your choice, or one of the “approved combinations”. I went for the Canadian “cheese, bacon and maple syrup” whilst my sister went for the “Gorgonzola and fig”. I tasted both but preferred the Canadian but even that was a bit hard to stomach. Next time, I’ll just stick to simple berries or honey on mine, I’m not sure I’m ready for oatmeal to have savoury flavours.

Peanut Butter and Co NYC Sandwich Shop (240 Sullivan Street – https://ilovepeanutbutter.com/)

Another stop in the village was a quick peanut butter sandwich. This place basically does a whole heap of dishes with peanut butter and lots of variations of peanut butter sandwiches.

I continued on the bacon theme with the “Mighty Maple” (maple, crispy bacon and peanut butter) which I have to say was definitely a winning combination but I can see why that might have put Elvis in the grave. My sister opted for a daring “The Heat is On” or chilli peanut butter served with chicken and pineapple jam. This ended up being a bit like a chicken satay in a sandwich combo and actually worked pretty well.

S’Mac (345 east 12th Street – http://www.smacnyc.com/)

Our last visit on our day (many of the others were closed for the period and we were just a bit full from eating) was Sarita’s Mac and Cheese (or S’Mac) for short.

Wanting something with a bit more spice, I opted for the CajunParisienne (Creamy Brie, roasted figs, roasted shiitake mushrooms & fresh rosemary) was a bit too much on the sweet side for me but she managed to finish as well.

Easy to do, too much to eat

We didn’t get around to some of the other places we wanted to (mind belly much bigger than actual belly) but out of interest, here are some of the other places we would have liked to have tried:

Melt Shop – A place that just does melted cheese sandwiches. Another one called “Little Muenster” is an alternative
The Meatball Shop – ‘Nuff said
The Nugget Spot – Nuggets made of different meats
Pommes Frites – Belgian Fries with a hundred or so different toppings
Porchetta – Italian pork! Yummo
Empire Biscuit – A 24 hour new place that sells different types of biscuits + gravy
The Protein Bakery – A bakery selling baked goods with high levels of protein

Bea’s Crawfish Boil

October 15, 2013 Patrick American, Restaurants, UK, Unique

Last year I remember reading about the Crawfish Boil that Bea’s of Bloomsbury fame held with an endless feast of Crawfish and other goodies in the arches of their Malby Street location.

This year I was fortunate to find the time to attend one of their feasts with a number of people where we had a lot of crawfish. How much crawfish? Several trays of crawfish like this:

I had no idea what a crawfish was, or how big they were but they do take a bit of work. It’s like tiny little lobster tails and most of the space is inedible either being shells, or the internals you just don’t really want to go near. I don’t know where they source them from, but we commented about how crazy many there must be in the farms that supply them since the event probably catered for hundreds over several weeks. That’s a lot of crawfish.

The crawfish are not just boiled in ordinary water. They are instead cooked in some delicious sauce that has both potatoes, chorizo and sweetcorn. The sweetcorn was probably the thing that absorbed the most flavour and was in hot competition at our table. In addition to the other sides, they served giant garlic bread that was particularly good when you dipped it in to soak up some of the juices.

To finish off the event, they handed out some super sweet raspberry frozen ices (all home made I’m guessing) and small chunks of their brownies.

Pollen Street Social

October 11, 2013 Patrick British, Michelin Starred, Restaurants, UK, Unique, World's 50 Best

Jason Atherton commands respect from people in the food industry. A former Ramsey protege, he used to run the highly acclaimed Maze before opening his open restaurant, Pollen Street Social to much fanfare. Since then, his restaurant has won several awards including a Michelin star in the first year and reaching 84 in San Pelligrino’s Best 50 restaurants in the world (that ironically lists the top 100).

On special request, I took my sister there for her birthday as we like to treat each other to experiences instead of buying something for each other we will never use.

You can find his restaurant tucked around a quiet street around Mayfair. Despite being hidden, his restaurant is definitely popular with pretty much every table taken on a Monday Bank holiday.

The restaurant had food presentation spot on, although I don’t think everything worked. For example, they had recently renovated the dining room and the air conditioning was broken. On a surprisingly warm August Bank holiday I certainly noticed it when I sat down. I noticed it even more whenever I would lean back on the leather sofa back and find myself sticking to it. Hmmm. They did admittedly apologise for it post-dinner, and I can only imagine how crazy sauna like the kitchen would have been. Nevertheless, most of the food was pretty good.

They have a strong food ethic about locally sourced produce and even list the number of miles each of the major components come from. On to the food itself.

We had bread brought by a waiter accompanied by a creamy butter (easily spreadable because of the heat) and an additional cream made out of fish roe. The butter was tasty but I didn’t really enjoy the fish cream because it was a bit too fishy for me. The next “snacks” arrived in a book that opened to reveal three small bites – perfectly crisp pork crackling, a shortbread biscuit with a concentrated tomato topping and another crisp bread with some smoked cream. A great selection of textures, flavours to kick start the appetite.

The next dish was a clever mushroom cappuccino that smelled so earthy and full of rich flavours. Downed in one go but the flavour lasting a long time after.

The next dish was a clever take on a breakfast dish (bacon and eggs) and the presentation here was absolutely extraordinary. We first had the tiny little egg holder placed in front of us with a tiny teaspoon before being presented egg shells nested in hay. The tops were trimmed perfectly, not a crack in sight and each filled with a light eggy custard that reminded me of silken scrambled eggs but much creamier and rich. It had infused a smokiness bacon flavour and the tiny bits on top certainly added that dimension. I could have eaten a few of these ones if they offered.

The first dish on the tasting menu was also one of the weakest. Listed as Orkney sea scallop carpaccio, kohlrabi, frozen pink grapefruit, lemon skin puree, block olive and samphire I think the heat of the restaurant didn’t do anything good for the scallop. Delicate slices of scallops tasted a little bit too fishy and not really in a good way and I was worried I would end up with food poisoning (which I didn’t!)

Fortunately the next dish made up for the first, roasted Dorset monkfish, cauliflower, dehydrated grapes, apple & curry and spiced caramel. Soft moist fleshy fish complemented by an array of sweet, spiced flavours that disappeared very quickly.

We both opted for the lamb which was a strange choice because my sister doesn’t like but only because the other alternative was a pheasant which we both didn’t want. She was very surprised when it turned out to be a very tasty dish. Lake District rack of lamb, braised shoulder, fregula in basil, olive powder, artichoke and smoked tomato chutney. Strong flavours but not overpoweringly so, and perfectly pink lamb that melted away in your mouth.

A cute interlude with a tiny coronet filled with ice cream and topped with chocolate. A great palette cleanser and an introduction to our dessert course.

It was served with sweet corn cream covered in chocolate and some caramel popcorn

Our dessert was called “Nuances in Red” made up of yoghurt ice cream, pear in hibiscus, picked roses and hibiscus granite. Being an ice based dessert, this dish suffered a lot in the heat. The granite pretty much turned into liquid by the time we took our first spoonful despite being served from a liquid-nitrogen based bowl at the table. At the same time, the yoghurt ice cream was quickly turning back into its liquid form. Nice elements that I think I would have enjoyed more if I didn’t feel like I had to eat it so fast.

We ordered some tea and was offered some madelines as well as unnecessary but still delicious macaroons.

A wonderful evening and the quality of the food was definitely up to standard and the service impeccable. My sister even caught Jason Atherton on our way out and he was kind enough to pose for a photo. Seemed like a nice guy and deserves his reputation as a cool headed chef and restauranteur.

Name: Pollen Street Social
Found at: 8-10 Pollen St, London, W1S 1NQ
Website: http://www.pollenstreetsocial.com/

Afternoon tea with a view at Paramount, London

September 1, 2013 Patrick British, Restaurants, UK, Unique

I was recently reading about different afternoon teas around London and with the recent summer “heatwave” our beautiful city experienced, one that caught my attention was the “iced afternoon tea” at the Paramount located high above the Centrepoint tower in the middle of the city.

Paramount has obvious advantages of beautiful views of the surrounding area and has a bar and a restaurant combination that makes it a popular destination at nighttime. Paramount serve afternoon tea only from 3pm-5pm and it is worth making a booking in advance as they only a small number of tables that are located right next to those gorgeous views.

The “iced afternoon tea” turned out to be a pretty decent afternoon tea, although I think the “iced” part of it disappointed slightly with only two of the small items being desserts (a tiny coronet cone filled with melting gelato and a cold mango mousse slice) The food was actually pretty well executed with a good selection of sandwiches, cakes and, of course, scones with clotted cream and jam. A good, hearty selection that is not bottomless although you can ask for refills of the tea.

The deal is pretty reasonable although note that you’ll obviously pay a premium for the drinks given the location of the bar/restaurant.

Name: Paramount
Found at: Paramount, Centre Point, 101-103 New Oxford Street, London, WC1A 1DD
Website: http://www.paramount.uk.net/

Le Pre Catalan, Rio De Janeiro

June 28, 2013 Patrick Brazil, Restaurants, Rio de Janeiro, Unique

I wanted a really memorable meal in Rio de Janeiro and ended up experiencing the Amazonian-ingredients centric tasting menu at Le Pre Catalan namely because it was really close to my hotel (two blocks) and I could easily get a reservation, although this was really not necessary for the time of year being mostly off-peak. In fact, there was only two other French people that were already seated when I arrived for an 8pm booking. Perhaps there were more people later, as Brazilians are well known for their late dining times. When I made the reservation at the front desk, the conversation sort went like:

Receptionist: What time would like your booking?
Me: What time do you open?
Receptionist: 7pm
Me: Then 7:30 please
Receptionist: (raises eyebrows)
Me: Ok, make it 8pm please
Receptionist: OK (although still appearing rather non-plussed)

You enter the restaurant the easiest by catching the outside elevator just outside the Sofitel’s foyer up one floor where you are greeted and seated. The dining room is luxurious, though I noted it seemed a little bit faded – maybe that was just me. Tall ceilings and tall windows look out onto the esplanade where, at lunch, you probably get a reasonable view of the ocean. Upon seating, I’m immediately brought some garlic, herbed crisp bread as well as a pot of olive oil and butter for the bread to go later.

I’m also offered an impressive selection of bread. Bread with hazelnut. Whole-grained bread. Sultana. French bread. One that, I’m sure lost in translation, apparently liver bread but tasted a bit more light a sourdough. The butter was fantastic – soft, creamy, more importantly tasty and the oils were infused with some sort of herbs. Yum.

I was offered two menus. The seasonal menu was a playful one from the chef. Closed, you have a menu that reads like a meal backwards starting from coffee, dessert, mains, and appetisers. When opened, the menu expands into an interesting, playful menu. You can also order a la carte, or have the Amazonian menu which is what I was here to have. They reset the cutlery, and I have never seen so many pieces of silverware on the table at one time.

The first dishes were Tucunare fish brandade on coconut milk, Biju roll made of tapioca and stuffed with baby lobster and fresh Palm Cabbage and pepper jelly. The jelly was strangely sweet, and the palm cabbage much sweeter than what I was expecting. The fish was amazingly light, and almost tasted like the fresh ocean.

The next course was the Crab pastry with Bacuri chutney, tapioca Sagu pearls marinated with Caipirinha and açaí vinagrette. The crab had a very strong flavour, and the salad dressing surprisingly tart – maybe that was from the “caipirinha” soaking. The topica was expectedly chewy, much like you might expect in bubble tea.

The next course was a fish course, Pirarucu Fish in Caju crost and Tucupi and Jambu consomé. This was probably one of the best dishes. The fish had a very meaty texture, light, firm but also flavoursome. They poured a broth in and it was very salt and the caju fruit nestled in there. I’m not really sure what the fruit flesh really looks like but it reminded me of spinach in there.

And after they poured the broth in table-side.

They brought out a “Murici” sorbet, where the Amazonian fruit tastes a lot like cheese. Imagine a light sorbet that tastes a bit like parmesan and it was pretty bang on. Refreshing, but strange at the same time. One weird point here was they served the sorbet while I was still nowhere near finishing my fish. The only sore point of service for the entire night.

The next course was Moqueca Blinis and grilled shrimps with Brazillian nut cream. A rather large prawn, beautifully cooked and still super sweet that sat on top of a tart tomato compote that balanced the dish very well. Tapioca powder, some sort of cream and a grilled cake finished off the other textures.

Next, another fish dish Tambaqui Cutlet with smoked baroa potato mousse, with a herb sauce. The fish was meaty, and must have been very large with some of the bones in the fillet being quite massive. The potato mousse, on the other hand, reminded me of a cheese-and-bacon-ball type flavour. Super creamy. Super smoky to the point where it almost, but not quite, overpowered the fish element. This was definitely a flavour sensation and one that I wanted to linger for much of the evening.

And another view.

After the fish dish, they served another palette cleanser, a Caju granité. Sweet, and light, it tasted almost to me like a different lychee.

The next dish, Ox cutlet confit, crumbed with manioc flour, Jabuticaba sauce, banane marmelade with vegetables and bacon was full of strong flavours. The manioc flour, though very Amazonian, didn’t really do much for the croquette since it didn’t seem to be crispy enough. The oxtail, flavoursome and rich wasn’t as soft as I was hoping and I found myself needing to chew this a lot more. Probably a good candidate for some sous vede before the crumbing and frying part. A clever dish, but let down a little in execution. Still amazingly tasty.

From the side angle.

I was pretty much ready for dessert after all this food. In fact, I was probably ready for some sleep at this point. Nevertheless there was more, and what arrived was a Chocolat and coconut cream surprise, Amazonian fruits ice cream: Açaí, Cupuaçu and Taperebá. The “surprise” was actually a giant-sized macaroon filled with a coconut ice cream. The other ice creams proved lush as well, sweet, tart and creamy all very well balanced. Quite a generous serve as well.

You can see just how big that macaroon was (probably double sized).

Finally I had an espresso, and the petite fours (for two!) arrived. I only had a couple as I was seriously full at this stage.

They had two surprises for me at the end of the evening. One was this beautifully wrapped box of macaroons that I could take home, also being asked to give some customer feedback. The other was a physical copy of the Amazonian banquet menu that I just consumed so that I could write up and remember what I had.

Although this isn’t the sort of meal you have every night, it is one that, I think, is worth venturing for a special occasion or at least save up some of your dining budget for a special night out.

Name: Le Pre Catalan
Found at: Sofitel, Ave Atlantica, 4240, Copacabana, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Website: http://ww2.leprecatelan.com.br/

A Sketch Gallery Experience

February 20, 2013 Patrick American, Asian, Restaurants, UK, Unique

Although I have drunk a number of times at the very ritzy, interesting Sketch bar, I’m yet to eat there. The gallery restaurant sits in between the main foyer and the egg-shaped cocktail room (you need to visit the toilets for an interesting alien-like experience) and this is where we ate. There’s is a good reason I haven’t eaten at Sketch as well – because all of the art-themed decore and beautiful surroundings, the unique and its in-the-heart-of-Mayfair location definitely reflects in the prices you pay for the food and drink.

I believe the Sketch Gallery restaurant is the more casual of the two dining locations. The other being a more upmarket restaurant that holds a Michelin star although I don’t really know if it is more formal or fancy. I’m just guessing.

What’s fascinating about the Gallery restaurant is how everything is totally unique – and it’s the interesting attention to detail to ensure that nothing is repeated. The theme goes right all the way through, and I can appreciate the effort. Cutlery, drinking vessels, tables, chairs, all of them completely different. Even the salt and pepper shakers at each table are different.

You could argue this makes replacing broken or missing items much easier, but each item is still pretty high quality. Anyway, on to the food. Bread and butter doesn’t come for free, but at least it was pretty good quality. It really should at £4.

We started with two different dishes. I tried the Chantilly Lace: black rice, basmati rice, lobster bisque, red pepper, horseradish cream (£13). The allure of a good lobster bisque is something I can’t really resist and it was very well executed as well. I did find the double rice combination a bit strange, and would have preferred more bisque and less rice. Still very good.

The other starter was the Foie gras terrine, girolles in vinegar, cranberry chutney, quince paste and pistachio (£24).

The Poached, roasted and lacquered pork belly, crunchy red cabbage, salad was actually reasonable at £20, although I only had a small taste. The pork belly was tender, not too fatty and still full of flavour.

I had ordered the Roast wild venison saddle, and lemon purée, quince paste, shoulder of venison stew, Jerusalem artichokes (£30) and boy was it good. The venison stew was probably the best part of the entire dish although the venison saddle was cooked extremely well (rare!) and still very tender. I just love anything that is so soft, full of flavour and the stew was the perfect vehicle to carry all the other flavours.

We opted to try a couple of sides as well. The strangely sounding (and just as strangely tasting) gnocchi with green curry sauce (£5) and a stack of onion rings (£4) very well executed. Each ring perfectly crisp and a decent sized onion strip inside.

Although none of the desserts really jumped out at me, I figured I wouldn’t be back for a very long time, so it was worth trying something. Just like the main menu, it took me a while deliberating over the crazy choices. They all sounded so complicated and the result sounded quite confusing. In the end we asked for a couple of recommendations and ordered them. The one that I didn’t order, the Sketch Chocolat – Salted butter caramel, sacher sponge cake, guanaja chocolate mousse, orange ice cream. (£10) was probably the best. The orange ice cream by itself was one of the best parts.

I didn’t really want to order the same although that one appealed the most. Instead, I had the Cheese cake – Elderflower sponge cake, cheesecake cream, ‘bono’ shortbread, candied lemon, pear sorbet (£8.5), a lighter and more delicate dessert that was completely the opposite of what you think of when you are ordering a real cheesecake. It was still a very pleasing dessert, though not the best I’ve ever had.

Sketch Gallery is definitely best reserved for one of those special occasions. The price definitely adds up for the meal and that’s not even including the drinks that would add significantly more if you want to try all their amazing cocktails. Still, it was a great experience and I think that’s what they are all about.

Name: Sketch Gallery Restaurant
Found at: 9 conduit street, London W1S 2XG
Website: http://sketch.uk.com/

Protected post on Ultraviolet

November 23, 2012 Patrick Asian, China, Restaurants, Unique, World's 50 Best

I got a comment on my last post from the Communications Director of Ultraviolet thanking me for writing up my experience, but also asking me to consider rewriting something shorter to allow others to remain surprised. I’ve eaten at lots of great places, and before going, even read a lot on the places that I’ve been going. My personal experience is that reading something is never quite the same as experiencing something, but I do want to respect their wishes.

I’m not going to rewrite the previous post because it took so much time, effort and I personally want to refer to all the details. The other point is that given the very limited seating arrangements, more people would benefit from knowing the details than not because it’s unlikely most people will get the opportunity to dine. Since you are the reader, I’ll let you decide.

I have put a simple password on the previous post, but if you’d like, leave a comment and I’ll email you the password so you can read it.

Protected: Ultraviolet by Paul Pairet

November 17, 2012 Patrick Asian, China, Restaurants, Unique, World's 50 Best

Restaurant Remake

September 17, 2011 Patrick Berlin, Restaurants, Unique

Remake is quite the little find, offering interesting experimental cuisine combining flavours and techniques you’d pay much more in other restaurant in even other parts of Berlin. It’s a shame that whenever I’ve walked past it’s been fairly empty and on the evening we went, it was only us and another table. The food deserves much better than that.

We chose to go with a five course tasting mean, something I’m guessing from the freshly printed paper, changes regularly. This excites me because it means you get to try lots of different things.

Unlike many other places in Berlin, we were actually served a bread basket and this time with a choice of either whipped garlic butter (yum!) or a delicious olive oil both strangely accompanied with a piece of beetroot on a stick. Maybe my pallette wasn’t refined enough but I couldn’t tell if there was something else with it.

Our first dish was based around prawns, and my memory failing me a little bit now was accompanied with some sweet potato, dollops of sour cream constrained by gelatine skin that would burst upon contact with a from and strands of pickled ginger. Firstly, great points for serving three of these giant prawns. They could have easily served a single one and the dish would have been fine and the sweetness of the potato was well contrasted with the slight tang of the pickle and the additional richness and sourness from the sour cream. A great start to the meal.

The second round was a simple dish packed with huge flavour, a yellow capsicum gazpacho with scoop of sour cream ice cream. The dish was wonderfully chilly, not too cold to numb the taste buds and the choice of sweet yellow peppers really shone through the coldness. Instead of a scoop of just cream, they opted for an ice cream, in keeping with the cold theme that I think worked really well as well.

One of the reasons we opted for the five course menu was because the four course wasn’t going to have the pork cheeks and for the most part, they are always, always good things to have. In this adaptation and keeping with the theme of three things, the pork cheeks arrived atop small circular discs of watermelon and based with pureed mint pea. At first, I thought was a strange combination but actually on trying it worked really well. Firstly the watermelon wasn’t as overpoweringly sweet as I’d feared, instead acting as a strange but complementing alternative to the apple one is normally served with pork. The pork itself, not the softest I’ve ever had was still packed with flavour and the green pea puree provided a nice colour and texture contrast to the plate. Well executed and flavoursome I would come back for this dish alone.

Following up on the pork dish was the main star, a stuffed spring chicken served with chantarelles, foam and a clump of minced apricot. Despite being quite a generous portion, I disliked this dish probably the most mainly because the chicken skin was cloyingly fatty and not as crisped up as I’d hoped it been. The chantarelles provided amazing depth to the dish but at these same time seemed wasted with the super sweetness brought about by the apricots.

Fortunately dessert won out without being excessively sweet. We had some poached pears, accompanied by a white chocolate mousse and a scoop of ice cream, all the elements except for the strands of caramel adorning the ice cream nicely balanced and provided a fresher end to the meal instead of a cloyingly sticky alternative I’d feared.

I enjoyed the food in this restaurant and while I feel that I like the idea of a changing menu, they definitely still needed to refine a few elements to their existing dishes. Maybe this is why restaurant are best off to sticking to the normal stuff. We did, however, try quite a different set of flavours and combinations I would never expected and it worked really well.

Name: Remake
Found at: Große Hamburger Straße 32 10115 Berlin
Website: http://www.restaurantremake.de/

Dunkelrestaurant

July 14, 2011 Patrick Berlin, German, Restaurants, Unique

I know of at least one restaurant near me that is like the Dunkelrestaurant (Dark Restaurant) that we ate at a couple of weeks ago. Just like one near me, the Unsicht Bar (Invisible Bar) focuses on serving a meal that really pushes your sensory experiences by forcing you to eat your meal in the dark.

It’s a bit like this:

You first sit down in the bar to choose what sort of meal you would like. They cater extremely well for vegetarians, fish lovers or just down right meat eaters. However not to spoil the fun, you get to choose dishes like a soup, “A greek with many names loves to bathe and be seduced by the Asian beauty whose taste is very fine indeed”, or an appetiser “Tender American girls cuddle up against Italian hunks against a green backdrop” so you really don’t know what you’re eating.

Of course, normally this is where I’d share all the photos of the food but obviously it would ruin the experience. Instead you’ll have to imagine what it’s like.

Firstly, our waiter introduced himself. He was, I think, half blind and got us to follow him to the edge of the dining room. Forming effectively a human congo line, though hands on shoulders rather than hips, he walked us through a winding passage way where the bright room gave way to a black void filled with interesting sounds. We could hear tables talking fairly loudly and only got a sense of what the room was like by where all the sounds of the people came from.

Not able to fully focus on the wall as our waiter moved quickly, we suddenly stopped at our table where he told us to stand still as he guided each of us to our chair and sat us down. He asked us to feel where everything was on the table, and using our hands, delicately pushed things around to rediscovery the feel of what would normally be on the table. A good thing our wine glasses were shorter and smaller than normal ones that we’d be more likely to knock over.

Instructed to alert him (how we have no idea) if we needed something, he dropped off some water and wine before whisking away to serve several other tables. At first, it was mighty awkward. Using fingers to guide the neck of the bottle to the glasses and another inserted to sense the overflow, I was amazed to see how we had to adapt.

Our first dish soon arrived and recommended by our waiter to use our hands, decided to poke around on the plate. Michael and I decided to have the beef menu, whilst another Patrick (Pat D) had the poultry. Michael and I had fun trying to guess what we had, and discovering different things on our plates at different times. It was actually a really great event that really got us focused on the different delights of the food we had to eat. Ours ending up being a slice of roast beef, with anti-pasti and salad. Full of flavour and really well cooked.

Our main was quite entertaining, because we knew we had a bit of beef coming and using a knife and fork to cut it proved difficult for the entire meal. Cutting it wasn’t too bad. What was hard was finding out that the fork you had came back empty, or with a chunk far too big to eat without even realising it. Deliciously made though.

Dessert was perfect as well, a white chocolate mousse of some sort with some berry compote or the like.

An awesome experience and definitely well worth going for. In a way, we were also pretty lucky we didn’t get the fourth course, a soup option that I can imagine simple spilling everywhere.

Name: Unsicht Bar Berlin
Website: http://unsicht-bar-berlin.de
Found at: Gormannstraße 14