Basel, Switzerland

Walliser Kanne

Raclette with potatoes and onion and pickles. The typical presentation was decadent and warming, but does cool quickly becoming less creamy and is best eaten immediately. I enjoy this with a glass of dry white Swiss made wine while sitting outside and people watching along a busy shopping street. 

Zum Wilde Maa

Lamb tartare 

This was a playful dish as an interpretation of surf and turf as it was lamb tartare with smoked local perch.  Capers, green onions, and fresh shaved horseradish. Although this was packed with flavor and served with house made sourdough, the smokey flavor of the fish became overpowering and a tiresome taste after the initial few tastes. 

Lamb Tongue

The tongue was boiled and presented with cooked celery and thyme. I wanted to try this as it was an unusual dish. It was dressed with a vinegar and oil dressing. The tongue was prepared with a tender texture, but overall the flavors were predictable and simple. 

The city is lovely to walk around in the evening and is worth a visit to experience a typical city rather than being as touristy as some others. 

 

Bern, Switzerland

 

My memories of Bern were of walking the city to all of the cheese shops and chocolate shops while enjoying the historic and beautiful architecture. 

 I did not expect my favorite chocolate shop to be in this little town, but CASA NOBILE was just that. 

Casa Nobile

The chocolate bars were all simply packaged, but packed a punch of nuanced flavors. The maker was awarded the best chocolate and best chocolatier in Switzerland in 2015. They had chocolate bars, truffles, and a variety of other sweets. They also had house made ice cream to offer in some traditional flavors, but also this memorable bergamot with peperoncino. 

Lyon, France

le supreme

amuse bouche of tuna ceviche

A simple, but perfect complexity of lime juice and lime zest for acidity to brighten the herbs and oil accompanying the bite of tuna in the spoon. Lime added a punchy boldness to the single bite that I found made my mouth water to continue eating. 

crab with pumpkin puree

This was light, but with a sensation of richness from the creaminess of the pumpkin. For me, I so enjoyed the creative combination as I never would have put these two flavors together. I thought of it as being a different spin on having crab in mashed potatoes. The watercress added not only color, but spiciness with lovely texture from the perfectly delicate vegetables in the silky puree.

white fish with seafood sauce 

The fish was delicate, moist, and flakey as it was artfully presented in a swirling curve atop black rice. The broth had a light foam and depth of seafood flavor that was rice, but not heavy nor fishy. It was rich and satisfying, yet not overly heavy as a main dish paired with the others. I saw desserts delivered to other diners, but could not bring myself to continue to eat more after the prior dishes already enjoyed. This was one of my favorite experiences in the city with warm and welcoming service and balanced taste profiles across everything I ordered. 

Le Jean moulan Restaurant

leeks, grapefruit, avocado, onion

This was a recommended start by the staff and I found the combination sounded unusual. However, upon tasting it, the leeks were overpowering earthiness beyond the acidity of the grapefruit which I found as a completing rather than complimenting flavor. Also, the texture of the plate was heavily soft and may have bene more enjoyable with more texture variation. 

clams with fish filet an kumquat 

I found my palate also experienced this as a plate of competing rather than complimenting flavors as the kumquat is strongly acidic. The clams were more toothsome than I prefer, although the sauce was a lovely frothy texture with clean and light, but distinctly complex with balanced seafood flavors. 

mushroom ice cream and creme brulee 

Honestly, this was the reason I could not resist making a reservation at this restaurant. I was enticed to experience mushroom ice cream for myself. The restaurant is known to have invention dishes using traditional and local ingredients. 

The creme brûlée was lovely and unique, sweet and balance, with an earthy but sweet cold and creamy mushroom dolloped around the plate. Really creative and enjoyable.

Institute Paul Bocuse

I looked forward to enjoying the high quality preparations from the students learning from the Institute Paul Bocuse, providing contemporary interpretations in each dish. 

lamb sweetbreads with celery remoulade and black garlic

This was an interesting combination of perfectly cooked tender sweet bread nuggets that were accented by the earthy richness of black garlic and an airy remoulade, achieving acidity on the plate with the seeming contradiction of being fluffy in texture rather than a heavy cream. 

foie gras in red wine and spices with grape and fig marmalade 

The foie gras was a thick piece that would have benefited from more accompaniments on the plate to make the richness less intense. However, the grape marmalade maintained acidity despite the sweetness it afforded and the slightly underripe fig had a more firm texture to nicely contrast the other components on the plate. 

perfect egg cooked 45 minutes with caviar, watercress coulis, and haddock 

I found the smokiness of the haddock to be the main flavor overpowering the other tastes of the plate. However, the egg certainly was perfectly cooked and given texture and flavor contrast by the scoop of caviar that crowned the presentation. 

cheesecake with whipped mascarpone cream, biscuit sable, lemon caviar marmalade, grapefruit sorbet, and timut pepper

The cheesecake was a heavy, but perfectly smooth, silky texture on a crumbly biscuit that broke apart into large indelicate chunks. The mascarpone cream may have been even more enjoyable had it had a light flavor rather than being a simple, albeit perfect, whipped cream. The lemon marmalade and fruit sorbet had more direct and intense acidity than expected rather than being a sweetened version as it was a dessert. 

There were so many sweet treats to enjoy in Lyon! Here were a few memorable experiences! 

Aux Merveilleux

I took time to taste the popular meringue treat, which was similarly firm to the texture of a firm mousse, but light a souffle. It was soft and sweet and covered in shavings of chocolate! 

Chez Grégoire Artisan Pâtissier 

This is a gluten free shop with the award of Maison Artisanal designation. Not only were the pasties as gorgeous as any of the display windows in other shops in the city, but the texture achieved in the gluten free pasteries was really memorable as they were not overly dry and crumbly nor gooey, both things I had experienced with prior gluten free treats. They had pastries with multiple flavors that melded together to make an interesting bite, such as peanut butter with cassis or orange with basil.

Reynon

quenelle lyonnaises

So the quenelle is not sweet, but rather a pike fish and mashed potato combination that is shaped and warmed. It was very popular as a regional dish, but I found it underwhelming, but was so glad to find a place that sold it by the piece rather than having to buy it in a restaurant as an entree since I did want to taste it. 

I stopped into innumerable cheese shops during my stay, but found these two to be my favorite for both service and selection of more uncommon cheeses on offer. 

Didier Galland 

Les Trois Jean Artisan Fromager

Within the Hall of Paul Bocuse is found a land of artisanal and region products. I wandered through and found this as my favorite discovery and purchase. Such unusual flavors for the famous French Macaron!

Seve

foie gras, gorgonzola and sesame, mushroom, tomato macarons

Le Pan Boulanger Votre Artisan

Although I tasted several highly recommended croissants in the city, this was my favorite by far. At this bakery, the gentleman behind the counter makes a few select daily baked goods, including breads and pastries, from a hole in the wall shop. I tasted the almond croissant and it was the best one I had in the city. It was sweet and crispy and buttery without any gooey softness to impact the integrity of the crispy dough when it was fresh! If I am ever in the city again, I will absolutely make a stop here and not hesitate to purchase anything that it on the counter! 

This picture does not begin to showcase the large and perfectly created meringue. It has become the comparison in my mind for all others that I taste as it had a thin crispy outside, but the interior was tender and soft with a simple vanilla sweetness.

Copains 

Bugnes Lyonnaise

This treat was a thin fried crispy dough dusted in powdered sugar and flavored with orange water. It was mildly sweet.

Ame Soeur 

egg, black truffle, haddock, hazelnut

The dish sounded creative an playful to my experience, I found that the truffle was too mild compared to the other more intense flavors of the hazelnuts and haddock. However, the flavors did complement each other, although the texture of the creamy sauce felt heavy for me as a start to my meal since the entrees were also heavily sauced and rich.

pigeon 

cream sauces, dark and light. 

I found this to be the most overly rich dish during my trip. The little pieces of pigeon were nicely cooked without being dry but without a distinctive flavor aside from a mild game like flavor for me. The asparagus was crispy, appearing as a simple blanched preparation, a stark contrast to the softer textures and richer flavors otherwise presented. The dark sauce had a fantastic rich flavor that I enjoyed but would have enjoyed more than the little pools strewn around the plate.

 

London, United Kingdom

BiBi Restaurant

Beetroot dahi puri

yogurt, beets, crunchy crispy stuffed shell

This was a very interesting contemporary creation with a hard shell, difficult to capture in the picture, filled with garbanzo beans. The sweet beet was enjoyable with the yogurt absolutely addicting, the highlight of flavor in my opinion. It was creamy and complex, adding flavor, acidity, and texture.

wookey-hole papad

crispy fried cheese to dip into the refreshing and light mango and chutney yogurt 

The yogurt reappeared in this presentation. The fried strips of cheese were salty and crisp, but simply a mode to allow me to experience the complexity of the sweet, spicy, and creamy layered sauce that popped with color from the bowl.

green chili monkfish

I anticipated a powerful spicy sauce as it was made with chili. Instead, it was restrained, perhaps to not overpower the mild flavor of the fish. I did enjoy the sauce, but a drawback was the thin consistency providing a transient and limited coating to the rest of the plated food, with too much sauce remaining in the bowl due to this.

okra salan 

This okra was clean and simple, soft enough, but not mushy. It was presented on a sauce that was the memorable experience from this plate, a theme from my experience overall. It was enjoyable, but not captivatingly memorable and made me wonder if ordering another dish may have better highlighted the finesse of the restaurant overall as I did not order the dishes touted as being their most popular. 

Mauro Colagreco at Raffles London 

This restaurant felt formal and antiquated. The flavor and textures varied across the meal with some as much more memorable than others. 

mushroom and hazelnut tart and green asparagus tart

The mushroom and hazelnut was a lovely combination of richness and earthy, but sweet, depth providing flavor I wanted to savor slowly.

The green asparagus was crunchy and a thin layer atop the tart, reducing this in being the focal flavor. However, the accompanying apple and sphered cheese was excellent. 

apple tart

Again, this tart was offered as a thin layer, limiting the intensity of the flavor, making it almost too transient in the mouth.

"Lettuce"

salad of red oak lettuce, smoked fish, vermouth sauce

This dish was offered as a highlight on the menu, leading me to anticipate a very memorable experience. The sauce tended to fall to the bottom of the plate rather than clinging well to each bite but the smoked fish was delightful. My experience was memorable for the drawback that the lettuce leaves were awkward to navigate as they were too large to consume without cutting, but were challenging to elegantly manage in delivering from plate to mouth. I found this surprising and mildly confusing.

Beets with salt baked caviar and cream in the background and traditional bread from Argentina in the foreground

The beets were exceedingly delicate in thin strips punctuated with a beautiful rich cream and generously covered in caviar.  Despite their delicacy, the beets were more prominent than the caviar, but a very enjoyable dish to eat. 

lobster and carrot with sauce of ginger bearnaise 

The lobster could not be criticized itself and the béarnaise was a classic representation. However, it absolutely masked the entire dish as it was abundantly dolloped. Had it been served as a light coating or in a side dish to be used at will then the dish would have been even better for my preference. The flavors were all complimentary and balanced! 

duck with kumquat and coffee 

The duck was tender. The kumquat was a triumph of acidity to accompany the rich meat. The coffee added a component of bitterness in a subtle manner. This was enjoyable bite after bite. 

cauliflower dessert 

tonka bean ice cream, pine nut crumble, grilled cauliflower sauce

The desserts were actually the highlights of this dining experience for me. I was enthralled by the choice to serve cauliflower as a dessert. The cauliflower was delicately offered on top of slightly savory ice cream with the earthiness of the tonka bean and pine nuts. It was rich and unique and yet not particularly sweet all at the same time. What a special way to prepare a cauliflower. 

sweet potato dessert 

coffee cream, purple potato ice cream, honey espuma

Although the prior dessert was more unusual and thereby highly memorable, I found the most enjoyment eating this one. The ice creams hidden beneath the thin potato paper were the elegant balance of sweet and savory with mild and delicate sweetness from a honey foam.

mignardises 

pistachio, caramel, ginger, apple

Incredibly clean flavors were offered in each of these bites. There was a balance of crunch to each base with creaminess on the interior, and finally textural elements as toppings. Nothing unexpected, but certainly exquisite classic tastes with perfectly executed form in the details.

Heston Blumenthal

This restaurant has captured the creation of dining as an experience. As a participant, you select the level of information you prefer to be provided, varying from eating and enjoying your meal to exploring the rabbit hole of the intention and ingredients behind each dish. Of course, I opted for the most possible extent of food information as part of my experience, which was optimally given by the person presenting each dish in a clear and entertaining way with each of my inquiries given a very satisfying response.

sourdough bread made with beer instead of yeast

This bread was incredible. It had more complexity in flavor depth while still remaining in the profile of sourdough, but without acidity so much as flavors that illustrated the nuance of dark depth of flavor without a clear singleton flavor rising out as identifiable. Unique. Unusual, Enjoyable. Fantastic. Served with perfect butter. 

hay smoked trout with sorrel, lemon, and gentlemen's relish

The smokiness was mild, but enjoyable. The elevated interpretation of the gentleman's relish spread was addicting in the dollops provided and would have been enjoyed if offered in larger quantity as well. An easy dish to enjoy without much reflection or thought, but clean flavors. 

roast halibut and green sauce with chicory, parsley, pepper, onion, eucalyptus

This green sauce was standout. I wish I would have dared to ask for more. I could have eaten it on nearly anything possible to dip! It was bright like fresh herbs without one flavor overtaking another. The halibut was cooked to perfection, but the sauce was the star of the show. 

tipsy cake basted three times during cooking with spit roasted pineapple

I wanted to enjoy this more than I did, as the description lead me to believe that the cake would be gooey and indulgent. Rather, the pineapple was fairly soft and caramelized, but the cake was fairly dry with a simple sweetness rather than a more dark sugary depth. 

passionfruit 

nicely tart and sweet. perfect texture. fantastically accurate representation true to the fresh fruit

Humo

dried beef

A little something to prepare for the meal! Perfect little bites of beef jerky. Great flavor, but a little dry for my preference, but expected as it was a dried beef presentation. 

brill 6 day aged and cedar smoked with salsify, white sesame, heritage radish and lapsing souchong

This dish highlighted more textural variation than some of the others. The gentle smokiness of the lapsing was detectable with the smoked salsify, delicately in thin slices, only outdone in delicacy by the winding scrolls of brill across the plate, which was primarily a texture rather than flavor for me.

artichoke

black garlic, pecorino, white balsamic 

This may be the most lovely and most memorable artichoke I have ever had. They were tender and deeply flavorful, but pure as a most optimal representation of what artichoke flavor is. However, complimented by the salty pecorino and acidity of balsamic. I was disappointed that the dish did not last longer as it was such a pleasure bite after bite.

scallop 

pear, 20 year aged rum sabayon 

This scallop was absolutely tender like butter. The only complaint was I would have wanted a larger bite! Rather than offered with a creamy butter, the thick accompanying sauce had great depth from the age of the rum custard, which was not overpowering and enhanced by the clean crisp sweetness of pear.  Decadent.

turbot, wild asparagus, carrot, oolong, lemongras, pedro ximenez, shallot ashes

The turbot was perfectly tender, although with a bone found hiding inside. I discovered the carrots to be crunchy and therefore without the sweetness that can come through if more cooked, as well as being a bit difficult to cut without mashing the tender fish. The wild asapargus was a new experience for me to explore, as it was much more nutty and grassy than my association of asparagus flavor. The shallot ash added both texture and flavor, but did not overpower the other tastes. 

passionfruit 

This was another incredibly delightful creation. It was like a custard of the most accurate and soft passionfruit flavor I could imagine without the tart intensity that a passionfruit can deliver, while the experience was elevated by the crunchy brûlée on top. It was not overly sweet, but simply lovely and creamy. My eyes absolutely lit up as I tasted it again and again in tiny spoonfuls lest the treat end too quickly.

chocolate truffle and balsamic caramel filled choux 

This choux was crisp and a perfect mode to deliver a slightly acidic caramel that provided more depth than expected due to the balsamic. Again, balanced in decadence without being cloying. 

The chocolate truffle was perfectly creamy and smooth, but without packing a memorable punch when alongside the other desserts offered. 

grilled chocolate cake

I loved the concept that everything at this restaurant is bouche by fire and hoped for a sense of either roasted, toasted, or smokey flavor. Rather, it tasted like a well made chocolate cake with mildly harder exterior than interior. The server admitted it was "mild", which I would describe as "undetectable" as I would not have any idea that it was cooked over a fire by taste alone. It was cooked on the fire in a pan, which did not impart the essence of grilling to the palate. As with everything at the restaurant, the accompaniments the dish were balanced and enjoyable. 

Me, in my element, tasting cheese with intense focus and delight.