When you get voted amongst the best restaurants in the world you have to be doing something right, and if you are wanting to visit one of the restaurants it is probably best to book well in advance, with Quay we had our booking 4 months prior to our visit to make sure we would be able to enjoy not only the spectacular view, but also some world class cuisine. Planning sometimes pays off in an awesome way.
An amuse-bouche of creamy goats curd custard and venison consommé was presented to us upon arrival, the collagen rich consommé went well with the smooth curd. A selection of sourdough breads with butter was brought out before the first course arrived, which was a pared down version of the iconic sea pearl dish. Smoked eel covered in egg white pearls and horseradish flowers, soon followed by a variety of young vegetables, turnips, Chinese artichokes and radishes, some pickled, others were just cooked. The first two courses showed restraint and a lightness of flavours that at the time of eating had me a little worried (due to their lightness), but by the end of the night it was clear that it was a build up, a way of allowing the diner to enjoy the experience from start to finish with out over whelming.
The third course was my least favourite of the evening, I’m not a fish eater by any stretch of the imagination and I think this is ultimately what prevented me from fully appreciating this course. The next four courses though, my god, they rocked my socks off. The incredibly soft quail breast with a sweet chestnut puree, fresh truffle and other flavours were rich, well combined and yet not over powering. The Wagyu eye fillet that followed was also a great course, the horseradish butter that topped it was perfect, not too spicy, it’s what regular compound butters want to be when they grow up.
Pork is one of my favourite meats, the only jowl I have ever eaten in the past however has been in the form of Guanciale, about time I commit a portion of my culinary endeavours to rich succulent cheeks (a already love beef cheek). Maltose cracking enrobed the richest, most succulent piece of pork that I have ever eaten. Prunes and cauliflower puree accompanied it with magnificent success. Quay is easily worth visiting if only for this dish. Damn it.
Desserts were the famous snow egg (currently in Guava format) simple in presentation, but stunning with its combination of textures, contrasts in temperature and layering. The guava cream underneath the shaved ice combined to provide the effect that I find so appealing in combining a good granita with whipped cream. I am not sure if the maltose coating around the meringue is the same formula covering the Pork, but even if it is I didn’t suffer any palate fatigue from having it repeated, it was perfectly suited in both instances.
If the food wasn’t good enough alone, the service was a match worthy of the other aspects that makes Quay one of the best. The sommelier recommended a fantastic match for the Pork dish, and provided some insight to the wines history. Our waiter was attentive, friendly, helpful and, like the sommelier, very knowledgeable. The whole experience was polished from top to bottom, the price was the highest of the three restaurants we visited, but I could see where it was spent, and I appreciated every single little bit of it.
I’d love to say that I’ll be back to visit Quay soon, but given the distance of travel it looks like this is more likely to be a one off. An experience. A wonderful experience.
