Oh Glass, it has been a while hasn’t it? So much has happened since last we tangoed, but you are still as lovely as ever and you haven’t aged a bit.
A perennial favourite, I went for a lovely dinner at Glass last night, seeing as my mid-week luncheon plans at Flying Fish fell mercy to scraping rotors and failing brakes.
The Pan-fried potato gnocchi, corn, asparagus, zucchini, Parmesan, lemon thyme was a stunning way to start the evening. Little parcels of heaven, with a beautiful golden crust on one side and a soft, pillowy mouth-feel.
Since climbing on board the meat train last year after a decade’s absence, hell, who am I kidding? – I drive the damn meat train – it has been a long time since I have enjoyed fish at a fine restaurant. I felt fishy last night and the tantalising combination of Roasted Jewfish with eggplant tortellini, goat’s curd, king mushroom, charred onion and citrus was indeed a beautiful dish. The fish was succulent and flavoursome and was offset delightfully by the jewel-toned chunks of pink grapefruit. The tortellini was creamy and rich and worked well with the fresh flavours of the seafood and citrus.
My friend had a steak and fries. I seldom get steak out, as I consider myself the master of steak. It was enjoyed none the less.
Dessert: this is where I wanted to tear my hair out. There was a gorgeous sounding Pear and Cinnamon Bombe Alaska, Liquorice Parfait, Soufflé… What to choose?!
I stuck by my rule: if there’s soufflé, get it. I chose right. The Toffee Soufflé with Pecan Butter Ice-cream was amazing. The rich notes of toffee pervaded the airy texture of the soufflé and created a decadent experience for one’s tastebuds.
The Chestnut Fondant, white chocolate ice-cream, Granny Smith apple and candied nuts was visually stunning. I loved the brilliant pop-art green of the moat surrounding the fortress of hazelnutty goodness. The flavours and textures were perfectly balanced. I have never had any flavour fondant other than chocolate, and it was novel to see the mouse-brown centre ooze out into the sea of green. A terrific dish. The desserts were made even more delicious by our accompanying them with a syrupy glass of Muscat. This deep amber liquid hid many fine secrets and winked at us as it was brought up to our lips. Devilishly good.
As always, the service was wonderful without being too stiff. We walked out totally satisfied.
