Manresa - Kristin Brownstone

26 | PRESS-BANNER
Man, oh
Manresa
OCTOBER 4, 2006
Chef’s ‘seasonal,
spontaneous’
menu challenges,
delights tastebuds
By Kristin Brownstone
The Restaurant Reviewer
Some people spend their discretionary income on vacations,
some on gadgets and recreational toys and others on entertainment. Few people I know
spend a healthy chunk of their
hard-earned income on a single
dining experience. But in June,
we joined the ranks of these
folks — as well as those who are
fortunate enough to eat in such
fashion regularly — to partake
in an affair of food that can only
be described as extraordinary.
The occasion was the birthday of yours truly, as well as of
the husband of a couple of longtime friends. As diehard foodies
and parents of young children
who don’t get out alone nearly
often enough, we determined
that a double birthday dinner
date, sans offspring, deserved a
copious effort.
Looking for a novel experience, we decided on Manresa in
Los Gatos, which was awarded
four stars by the San Francisco
Chronicle in 2005. And an experience it was. We were charmed,
we were stretched, we were
titillated, we were seduced, we
were challenged and we were
delighted. Birthday cards signed
by the staff even awaited us.
Our meal offered many experiences, from the giddy thrill of
horchata foam on rhubarb jelly
to a wavering resolve to sample
veal sweetbreads. My hat goes
off to the chef, who is daring
and adventuresome and who
challenges guests to redefine
their dining repertoire. Even
if not everyone at our table
was ready for pig feet, we were
dared to try. After all, what is
the point of a dining splurge
— both financial and caloric
— if we can’t stretch ourselves
beyond skirt steak and garlicmashed potatoes?
The painted brick exterior
of Manresa is unassuming.
Tucked into a small side
street, it’s easily missed.
Inside, the décor is contemporary casual with concrete
tile floors and thin Persian
rugs. Unfortunately, the flooring serves to accentuate the
guest chatter in this very full
restaurant on a Saturday
night, which made it difficult
to converse without raising
our voices. When the crowds
died down, around 10:30 or
11 p.m., so did the noise, making it easier to chat. If you go,
request a corner or side table
to minimize distractions.
At a glance
WHAT: Manresa restaurant
WHERE: 320 Village Lane,
in Los Gatos
WHO: Chef-Proprietor David Kinch
WHEN: Dinner seatings from
5:30 p.m. Tuesday through
Saturday; from 5 p.m. Sunday
INFO: 408-354-4330 or
www.manresarestaurant.com
Pricing
Three-course menu, $66;
plus $42 for wine pairings
Four-course menu $80;
plus $52 for wine pairings
Tasting menu, $110;
plus $72 with wine pairings;
must be ordered by entire table
CULINARY
MASTERMIND:
Chef-Proprietor
David Kinch of
Manresa restaurant in Los
Gatos offers up
French-Catalan
cuisine that
combines fresh,
Felton-grown
produce with
wide-ranging
delicacies for
a striking tasting menu that
changes nightly.
$25 per-bottle corking fee,
if you bring your own wine
Manresa’s cuisine is FrenchCatalan, and many of the restaurant’s fresh ingredients come
from a garden right in Felton.
The menu changes nightly
and offers three dining choices
— three- and four-course offerings that can be served with or
without a wine-pairing menu as
well as a “seasonal and spontaneous” tasting menu — which,
to be served properly, must be
ordered by the entire table.
This menu represents the
whim and inspiration of worldrenowned chef-proprietor
David Kinch and is highly recommended as an initiation to
his diverse talents. The tasting
menu includes 15 sample-sized
courses, plus treats at beginning and end that bookend the
meal with striking visual similarity and startling contrast of
taste. All courses are a surprise
until they arrive at your table,
though food allergies are taken
into consideration at the outset.
We chose the tasting menu but
brought our own wines, compliments of our friends’ cellar — a
Schramsberg Cremant to start
and then a limited-edition 1997
Beringer Cabernet Franc.
Taste teasers
Dinner kicked off with a plate
of petit fours — a gorgeous red
pepper gel confection paired
with a black olive madeleine.
The savory black cookie was
loaded with the flavor of kalamata olives and perfectly
complemented the spicy sweetness of the pepper gel. Termed
amuse bouche, these treats are
designed to entertain the palate
and welcome guests.
Next arrived plates of tiny
Courtesy of
Manresa
French breakfast radishes with
a beurre blanc sauce full of chives
and parsley. Radishes are not a
food I have ever liked, but I dug
these babies. Resembling oversized golf tees, these radishes
were less peppery than their
round cousins and were scrumptious dipped in the sea salt-andbutter mixture on the side.
Following the radishes was
a martini glass, with a delightful layering of lime, orange
and grapefruit on the bottom,
a rhubarb gelee in the middle
and horchata foam on top. For
me, this course epitomized a
trend throughout the entire
meal of an intricate yin-yang
balance of ingredients. In this
case, the tart citrus fruits were
offset by the ricey sweetness of
the horchata, encouraging diners to spoon to the bottom of
the glass to get the full effect.
The spring pea-and-lettuce
croquettes that followed were
lightly fried, marble-sized balls
that exploded into hot, liquid
garden greens when we bit
into them. How so much flavor
of greens could be packed into
such a small space was beyond
me, but it was fun.
The foie gras layer on the
bottom of the Foie Gras Royale
with Turnip Brioche was silky
smooth and salty, with barely
a hint of liver taste. The turnip
in the broth was evident, but
not overpowering.
The next course, a highlight
for our entire table, is a signature item that appears often
on Manresa’s tasting menu.
Termed “Arpege egg,” it is a perfectly poached egg beautifully
housed in its shell with the top
expertly removed. Surrounding
the egg is a tart sherry vinaigrette cream and a sweet
surprise of maple syrup on the
bottom, giving a nod to that yinyang balance. It was difficult to
slow ourselves enough to fully
appreciate the egg, as each bite
was so unique and exciting.
Theater directors often say
it’s better to close a show with a
sellout, leaving people wanting
more, rather than waiting until
audiences have petered out and
are no longer interested. The
strategy is clearly similar in
crafting miniature-sized portions that whet the taste buds
of diners and compel them to
return for a second hit.
Entrees
The heartier courses began
with our next plate, which
offered a twice-cooked foie
gras with smoked sea salt
from Wales and seared mesquite strawberries with Pedro
Ximenez vinegar. This time,
the balance was salty-sweet,
with a hint of something bitter
that we couldn’t define.
This was followed up by a
refreshing, cold Persian melon
soup with silken tofu and a
splash of almond oil.
A plate of seared bluefin tuna
— perfectly smooth, tender and
very fresh — was served with
a sofrigit (saute of onions and
peppers) and fresh cardoons
(an artichoke and celery cross).
The sofrigit was a tangy complement to the mild tuna.
Our next dish, also from
the sea, was a grilled white
Mediterranean sea bass with
a puree of vegetables from the
restaurant’s garden in Felton.
The fish was smooth and
pleasantly salty, blending well
with the pureed vegetables,
which were heavy on squash.
REVIEWER, CONTINUED ON NEXT PAGE
OCTOBER 4, 2006
PRESS-BANNER | 27
REVIEWER CONTINUED FROM PAGE 26
Sweet finish
Our next two items truly
stretched our palates: First,
Monterey abalone piled on a skin of
skim milk covering the pig trotters.
The smoky abalone was very nice
paired with a smooth cream of pure
avocado. I’ll admit it, though — I
was scared of the pig’s feet. While
the flavor was pungent and gamey,
my mind got in the way, and all I
could think of was whether they’d
gotten all the toenails off.
This was followed by roasted whole
veal sweetbreads served with morel
mushrooms and wild asparagus. I
loved the delicate, crunchy freshness
of the asparagus. The spongy sweetbreads had a nice flavor, but the fatty
texture was a challenge. I couldn’t
make mind over matter work enough
to thoroughly enjoy this one, but this
is no criticism to the chef — just my
inability to get my mind around it.
Our last entrée course was curried kid goat with fresh green chickpeas and a puree of raisins and citrus. The goat was moist and tender,
absorbing the juices from the fruit
puree. The taste resembled lamb,
but milder. A chickpea frite, tasting
like crispy hummus, graced the top.
That sweet-savory yin-yang balance
rang loud and clear once again.
The sweets arrived next, beginning with four sorbet cones. We had
delicately passed the white peach,
rhubarb, strawberry and raspberry
cones around the table, trying hard
not to crumble the homemade
pastry made of what seemed like
nothing but crispy butter. All were
amazing, but I particularly took to
the white peach.
The hot, chunky rice pudding
that followed was heaven with cool,
smooth Chantilly cream and fresh
local berries — probably ollalieberries and blueberries — and lemon
verbena. The lemony tartness
perfectly offset the sweet fruits. I
couldn’t help but whimper when this
course disappeared too quickly and
found my spoon poised to commit
robbery against my dining mates the
moment they looked away.
Our final course was a chocolate
soufflé with cocoa nib ice cream
and a black cherry. Mind you, it was
after midnight at this point, and our
bellies were beyond full, but we still
managed to down this last treat. The
tiny portion of ice cream was bursting with flavor and balanced the
very hot, sinful center of the soufflé.
When our bill arrived — I recommend closing your eyes and putting the credit card down in bliss-
ful ignorance — we were treated
to confections, just as at the beginning of the meal. This time, the
madeleine was dark chocolate, and
the gel candy pure strawberry.
There was something poignant
about the sentiment and closure
these brought— a way for Kinch to
bow to his guests after a magnificent performance, to say thank you
for coming, for appreciating.
Someone asked me whether I
had a favorite among our evening’s
menu of choices. Like members
of a family, I find I can’t choose
one dish over another because of
the distinct strengths and subtle
nuances each one offers.
Do I need to eat sweetbreads
again? Not likely in the near future
— but I won’t rule it out. And I’d eat
that egg number again for breakfast,
lunch or dinner. But overall, each
course was so richly infused with the
character of the individual ingredients and the inspiration of the chef
on that day and time that to compare them or draw conclusions as to
how they would be tomorrow would
deny art its right to be what it is.
Kristin Brownstone is a freelance writer
and marketing consultant who lives in
Scotts Valley with her husband and two
sons. Food has been her lifelong passion.
Please send your ideas, comments and
suggestions to [email protected].
Courtesy of Manresa
CONTEMPORARY LOOK: The dining room at Manresa in Los
Gatos is open for dinner Tuesdays through Sundays. Visitors
can try the chef’s three- and four-course meals or splurge for
a full, 10-course tasting menu, with or without wine pairings.
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