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Orient Express dining from EatOut.co.za (11-Dec-07)
As if the challenge of creating world-class cuisine on a moving train weren’t sufficient to contend with, Christian Bodiguel, executive chef on the Venice-Simplon Orient Express endeavours never to repeat a menu. Once the chocolate-box scenery pales and the thrill of travelling on the train of trains passes, it is the cuisine that has the lasting impact.
Breakfast and tea is served in the compartment while lunch, dinner and brunch on the final day after arriving in Paris is served in three exquisite dining cars. Car 4141 is the perfect art deco symbol for the journey from Venice to London. Decorated by Rene Lalique in 1929 in the Cote d’Azure style, it has crystal panels of women holding grapes. Like everything on board, formal table settings - white damask, silverware, vertical cut crystal and trademark Orient Express gilded table lamps - are the props for the mutual congratulatory smiles and nods that signify shared fortune. Either having sufficient to pay the hefty sum or, as in our case, the good fortune to receive a kind invitation.
A la carte items range from smoked salmon with avo (R360) to caviar with blinis (R3600) while the table d’hote menu is included in the fare.
We started with the duck foie gras with asparagus, cranberries and pistachio dressing topped with a pickled parsnip chip. Pink-roasted lamb (best end) was served with veal sweetbreads braised in cardamom-infused Soya milk, dressed with a rosemary jus. This was accompanied by cold cauliflower and broccoli tartars which we didn’t enjoy. Moroccan Argan and Coriander oils provided intense flavours, and starch was bouillon-baked potato.
While the cheese course was very special and a rare opportunity to indulge in French cheeses, it was dessert that elevated the meal to the top wrung. A chocolate sphere was served to the table. With a flourish, the waiter poured over the hot chocolate sauce melting the sphere and revealing a mango rose with Sichuan pepper ice-cream inside. Beautiful to see and delicious to eat. • Permalink • Comments [0]
From my Next 48 Hours column (09-Dec-07)
People go to great lengths to be noticed. They purchase smart cars and overtly tattoo themselves. One way to get noticed, for a fraction of what it costs for a car and without even a smidgen of pain, is to order the seafood platter for two at Azure, The 12 Apostles Hotel’s seafront restaurant. This is a deluxe experience (the seafood platter alone will set you back R895) but the service, setting and venue represents excellent value.
The Mozambican Langoustines arrive on a skewer Espetada-style which clues us into exec chef Roberto de Carvalho’s Portuguese roots. I’m transfixed by the excess. While the waiter pulls them from their stake I am enticed by the pot of mussels in a rich Pernod cream sauce that offer themselves to me like a willing lover.
Demand 500g West Coast Crayfish, 350g Mozambican Prawns, two pieces of 110g Line Fish, 300g grilled baby Calamari tubes 150g West Coast
Mussels and Potato Wedges, Rice, green salad and home-made Piri-Piri sauce which is outstanding (a searing flavour but not as hot as many sauces where you just taste chilli), garlic saffron sauce and lemon Beurre Blanc.
What a feast.
We were invited to sample their newly launched seafood addition to the Sunday lunch buffet which, at R155 is outstanding. I salute their decision to offer a supplementary menu rather than hike the price of the buffet. This way, if you’re feeling flush, you can have the buffet and order a la carte. Bookings for Azure are understandably essential. 021-437-9000.
Another way to be noticed is to travel with your dog. Aside from being a honey-pot for admirers, travelling with pets can be challenging. The 12 Apostles is a pet friendly hotel. Their sister hotel in London is equally so. Your pooch (I imagine they may have second thoughts about you checking in with Beulah, your Baboon Spider) will be extremely happy.
At “41” in London’s swanky Kensington (overlooking The Queen’s stables) and across the road from Buckingham Palace, they even have a pet concierge (seriously) who will take your dog for walks, arrange its meals and baths etc. A special doggie bed with Do Not Disturb signs is included. Although I travelled with a human companion, their extreme pet care is just an iota of what we enjoyed. Although the rooms were small, they were luxuriously appointed. The real value of this hotel lies in its location and exclusivity. The lounge area is modelled on a gentlemen’s club with almost floor to ceiling timber panelling and library shelves. Unlike many luxury hotels that have public spaces in which wannabees can loiter, “41” is reserved only for resident guests. www.41hotel.com.
Some diners even risk being shouted at to be noticed at Hook, Line & Sinker in Pringle Bay. Enjoying the best seafood this end of the continent in a no-nonsense home-cooked environment is risky businesses if you don’t follow these instructions: Don’t arrive without a reservation. Don’t ask if the fish is fresh. Don’t ask if the delicious rolls are home-baked and don’t, on pain of death, ask for anything not listed on the chalkboard menu. There will be two or three starters – prawn bisque is my favourite; a selection of fish and prawns and calamari when available, (I usually order tuna with Stefan’s old man mustard and Jack Daniels sauce) and either crème brulee or chocolate pot (with or without a caramelized sugar topping to end.) 028 27 386 88. • Permalink • Comments [1]
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