Fast Food & Fine Dining,the gastronomical wedding trip November 2014 ***complete***

[gjdjud]

Really enjoying so far. 4rivers looks amazing. Was it difficult to get to? Also you said it was lots of locals who used it. Did you stick out?!

[Milner]

Great report Amanda look forward to more.

[WileyCoyote]

Originally Posted by KarenG

So hungry... so hungry...

Can't wait to hear about V&A's - one of the most memorable things I've ever done

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Thanks Karen x I'm trying to write up V&A... It's taking blooming ages

Originally Posted by mossyflossy

OMG Amanda, aka Mrs A, how fast are you with this mountain of deliciousness? I can't see all the pictures, not sure why, but am salivating anyway...I too have been beaten by the nacho mountain at Millers before now, and yes, portions at HHAGG are ridiculous! Oh, am loving the tales of rebellious behaviour too

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Hi Ruth, sorry about the pics, hope you can see them now? We really struggled with portion sizes I really don't know why I did a plan for meals, it all went a bit wonky

Originally Posted by gjdjud

Really enjoying so far. 4rivers looks amazing. Was it difficult to get to? Also you said it was lots of locals who used it. Did you stick out?!

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Winter Park is a bit of a trek but worth it we felt. It's not hard to find if you are looking on the right side of the road ( we both were looking on one side and sailed straight past it on the other side ) everyone was really friendly and we didn't feel out of place at all. I just didn't feel I could be quite as snap happy at the counter as I would be at say a Disney buffet

Originally Posted by Milner

Great report Amanda look forward to more.

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Thanks Carole x

[KarenG]

If it's taking you ages to write up, it will be all the better when it's posted

[Lisa29]

The food at Millers looked huge! Shame about the dessert as it looks so good.

Looking forward to hearing about V & A's.

[WileyCoyote]

Sunday 16 November

OK - I have skipped lunch and will add that after as lets face it, its the main event we are all interested in ...


Getting here had been quite stressful – but that will be in the trippy as well as all the pre amble gubbins about how we eventually booked this

So happily for you gastronomes, you get to skip all the babble and cut straight to the feast - well the first 4 courses anyway

A few pics by way of intro though




We did scrub up for the occasion



Our reservation was 6.15. we pitched up at 6pm and were directed behind these doors


But were told we would be seated pretty much on the dot so we took a wander around the floor





and took some snaps of the Gingerbread house - the aroma filled the lobby



More of that in the trippy though.

As we made our way back, a CM walked past us and said “ dressed like that you must be going to the same place as me, let me show you in” – it was Jack, one half of the husband and wife serving duo in the QV room

A couple of days before , the restaurant had emailed asking if we had any particular dislikes, allergies or any celebrations. We told them we really don’t like offal ( of any description) and about the upcoming wedding.

The place setting and personal service was lovely. They don’t really like flash photography so the pics are a bit hit and miss .

The room takes 4 tables of 2, it was laid out as 2 x 2 at the back and 1 x 4 across the front. We were last to be seated so did mean we heard about the courses as they got served elsewhere .

The place setting was very impressive with the heavy cutlery and fine china







Andy was very keen for the food to start arriving



But first we got to review the personalised menus, in the big leather folios ( but then you get the insert to take away)




Slightly closer so you can read



We then met Sherry, Jack’s wife. They were very entertaining as a couple and very attentive . Sherry talked us through the wine pairing – we had decided before hand to share one – there is no way I could have managed one on my own so we agreed I would have the whites and Andy would have the reds. So that meant in reality I got half of the whites and none of the reds as Andy was keen to “ have a sip” of the whites as they came along ( read, big glugful)

So onto the food then

We started with a glass of bubbly to accompany the Maine Lobster jar topped with Siberian Caviar .

Now I am not a big ( or small for that matter) seafood fan so I think Andy was hopeful that I would be passing some of these early courses his way. However I was determined to give everything a go and this was quite delicious. I polished the lot off, much to his disappointment.



It was so delicately presented in the silver topped jar and with the mother of pearl spoon . Not being a major seafoodie I was surprised it didn’t really taste “ fishy” – It was very subtle and very nice. No leftovers from round 1.

Onto round 2 then and another seafood dish, looking at the menu, I was a bit more dubious about this one but it was a very pretty dish. Alaskan King crab with a cucumber gelee



This was a tricky devil to eat in a refined way as the gelee meant it was stuck to the plate and the cucumber wrapped round it was pretty firm so the risk was sticking your fork in and having the horror of it shooting off the plate – definitely best turned on its side. Inside was lovely crab meat – again I was pleasantly surprised and ate the lot much to Andy’s disappointment. The flower was edible too, but I left that .

The wine was a crisp sauvignon which was just perfect with it.

At this point, I think we had the first of 3 bread selections – I seem to have pics of only one of them , very remiss.

For completeness …. This is what we had , a small warmed roll with salted butter, but this is a library pic from Google ( looks like its chefs table at V&A)



Fish courses dispensed with , or so i thought, ( no leftovers on either one, nom nom), it was onto a meat course. We were curious that this was to be served with a Riesling as we would normally have a red wine with lamb. Sherry explained that as the lamb was with a fruit based curry accompaniment , the white was a better partner.

Truthfully, the wine was ok but heathens that we are, we likened it somewhat to having a bottle of Blue Nun – just that little bit too sweet for our liking

The lamb is described as a feast for all the sense as you are encouraged to take in the aroma before you eat



So here it is , Hot smoked ranch Lamb with apple and curry dressing



Quite unusual taste , very tender , had a smoky aftertaste , quite sweet , definitely could have eaten more. The chef came out later and said that this is usually the dish most guests declare as their favourite.

Delicious.

Ah but what next , another seafood course sneaking in. Fennel Crusted Diver Scallop



This was served on a warm bowl of salt, really beautifully presented . The scallop was cooked to perfection ( again much to Andy’s disappointment that I didn’t leave any for him) – it had the most delicate sauce accompanying it – every mouthful was superb. And nicely finished off with another crisp white of chenin blanc.

Half way through the main menu …………… uploading now so I dont lose it , off to finish writing up part 2.

[WileyCoyote]

Another round of bread now as I have this picture of the black pepper butter which had been sculpted into a chef’s hat





The next course was described by Jack and Sherry as “ breakfast at dinner time” and was to be my favourite – carnivore that I am , I loved the meat courses, but this was just so different and such a feat of cooking skill that I was in awe of it

Poached Chicken Egg with corn foam

May not sound much but my goodness it was perfection.

An egg lightly poached and then encased in a warm ravioli ( which continues to cook the egg inside) and served on a bed of corn with bacon bits. The chef was telling us how hard this is to get right – both the pasta and egg have to be absolutely perfect to make sure neither one is overcooked.



And yes , we did use the bread to mop up the eggy goodness. It looked so simple but the taste was amazing and such an unusual dish in the middle of the menu.

Loved it .

It came with a pinot noir- I am informed it was very nice, as I don’t drink red very often, who am I to disagree ?

And now the main event – definitely for Andy, the arrival of more red wine and meat

Next up was Veal

It came with the tiniest vegetables I have ever seen and a small dish of chanterelle mushrooms



This was cooked to pinkness and I did leave some for Andy as the size was deceptive and by now I was starting to feel full – it didn’t seem possible with so many tiny courses but with the wine, water and bread, we both suddenly started to wish we had put on the expanding elasticated pants – well not me, I had the sense to wear a loose dress, cant speak for my dinner companion …. He may have needed to loosen a button or two …

I should say this course would have come with sweetbreads as well but as we don’t like offal, we didn’t get any.

This was a divine dish – the vegetables were sweet and tender and the meat was very flavoursome without being over gamey. I am assured the wine accompanying this was also very good. I think the glasses may have been stacking up by now.

This was swiftly followed by the final meat course, the Australian Kobe Beef with a Potato Sphere



More heaven on a plate – yes the potato sphere is kind of a fancy croquette potato but it was crispy crunchy on the outside and so creamy inside. The beef was incredibly tender and cooked to pink – a bit too pink for me so Andy did have some. The reduced jus was very rich and a perfect dipping amount for the meat

Another good red apparently – one of Andys favourites, a St Emilion

I am a bit perplexed where the third bread round came – maybe now – maybe before – but it was a sourdough bread that had come from one of the chef’s grandmothers recipes and had a story attached to it – of course it was totally lush.

Next up was the cheese course – this reminded me of the artisan cheese platters that you can have at the Yachtsman and Narcossees. We don’t really like blue cheese so opted for extra of the others instead

Sorry pic a bit blurred, Sherry was moving the trolley



They had clearly pre cut the right amount of cheese pieces and prepped the accompaniments so as to minimise the waiting time



Very nice mix - if I had paid more attention I could tell you what they were but I didn’t write notes – one was very like cheddar and another like Gouda. Apologies for lack of exactness there .

This was accompanied by a nice Port ( so I am told)

Onto dessert

The first was a pear quark mousse and ginger combination –

initially I was a bit disappointed when I read the menu – it didn’t strike me as being a “ wow” dessert but hey give me a cheesecake and I am easily pleased – which is good as the quark with its base was kind of a posh cheesecake

This was lovely though – the quark mousse was creamy, the ginger and pear worked really well with the sharp berry compote and the spun sugar was teeth breakingly sweet



And then the fun coffee part – with this Cona Coffee maker that so impressed Andy, he immediately had to source one as lets face it, any excuse to have flames at the table is a good one



ooh look, fire



This really is a nifty contraption and the coffee was pretty darn good too.

Andy had a brandy which was warmed in this silver bowl of hot water



The final dessert course of chocolate – a rich timbale of chocolate mouse, a white chocolate gelato with chocolate nibs to dip into and a chocolate swirl



I am ashamed to say this defeated me – it was so rich and I found the timbale to be quite dense and powerful – I couldn’t finish it – the gelato was very refreshing though

We were sad now that the evening was coming to an end. The service had been fantastic, the food was amazing and we had been thoroughly indulged.

The head chef came out to talk to each table and we had a really good conversation with her. She gave us a small insight into how the kitchen worked and I must say, if I was to come again, chefs table would be the way to go- it sounded fascinating

We enjoyed chatting to Sherry and Jack – they have been serving here for 8 years as a couple and Shery was telling us about how she started at the Coral Reef . They were lovely and we loved the way Jack said “ enjoy” as we embarked on each course, he just had the perfect way of delivering the spiel with each course.

All too soon we were picking the choccies from the board – again this is a library picture as maybe by now the white wine had affected the camera operator..



And we were presented with our bag of goodies – the orange and date loaf, the menus, choccy boxes and rose ( which lasted until we left)





We have yet to try the loaf and chocs – we are having them with my parents next weekend

And the bill ? Pic a bit blurry - may have been the wine or the realisation of the $$$$.s



$750 after adding in a tip
Was it worth it ?

As a one off, total dining experience to celebrate our upcoming wedding – absolutely. We feasted like kings and were treated royally – it was an amazing evening.

Would we do it again – for the food, yes of course , but in reality , no, I don’t think we would want to but only because we wouldn’t want to /couldn’t re-create this evening with its magical memories but it gave us a taste for maybe doing the chefs table at some future point ...

[Sandieb]

Thank you so much for a great food report.

We are going to V&As in about six weeks after much "oh, we should cancel, how can we justify spending that kind of money" to " its a once in a lifetime experience, lets just enjoy it".

We will also be taking DS who will be 11.5 year old when we go but he loves good food and wouldn't eat a chicken nugget unless there was nothing else available to him. We are also a big fish lovers so the menu looks fantastic for us.

The pictures look fabulous and the service sounds perfect.

Glad you had a great time.

[mossyflossy]

Oh my word, it looks amazing, despite the eye watering bill at the end

and you look absolutely stunning and slim in your dress

Perhaps it's a man thing because Dh has one of those cona coffee things that goes on the stove top... agree that it does make lovely coffee

[Guest]

Wow V&A looks like an amazing experience, looks as if you both have a lovely time and the pictures are lovely!