Sons and Daughters

General Notes

One Michelin star! Overall, a very nice experience, but I'm not sure whether it was worth the money. A large chunk of the meal was breads, which although were very good is certainly not what I'm looking for at a Michelin star restaurant. I did learn a lot about combining flavors though (e.g. ginger + honey/fruits or grape/snapper/cabbage + lovage), and the final dessert was god-tier.

Positives

> Amazing, friendly service by all of the staff members. The house manager even offered me some complementary sparking rose to start off! (they didn't realize I wasn't 21, I got some rose lemonade instead)
> There were a couple of little extras sprinkled here and there through the experience, which were really nice. I also received a sealed envelope with the menu printed on nice paper.

Negatives

> Very expensive, obviously
> The pace of the courses was somewhat inconsistent. Sometimes two courses came really soon relative to each other, particularly when one of those courses was bread.

Dishes Tasted

• ★★☆☆ Pimenton Toast
• ★★☆☆ Duo of Chocolate Truffles
• ★★☆☆ White Chocolate and Cinnamon Tart
• ★★★★ Roasted Pineapple with Toasted Pound Cake, Juniper and Bay Laurel Ice Cream -- Hands down, the most amazing dessert ever. The pound cake was buttery, well toasted, and divine. The contrast in textures was on point, and the flavors of the dish were super harmonious.
• ★★☆☆ Honey Ginger Granita with Clementine and Buckwheat Shortbread -- The ginger went really well with the other ingredients, but I didn't really like the texture of the shortbread. It was way too dry.
• ★★★☆ Onion-glazed Culotte with Grilled Little Gem Lettuces and Local Seaweeds -- Awesome flavor and texture. The little gem lettuces were served with some tarragon and the seaweeds were fried. There was a bit of a grassy flavor, which went well with the beef, although I don't think I would have liked it by itself.
• ★☆☆☆ Parker House Roll -- Meh, essentially your typical dinner roll
• ★★★☆ Flash-fried Tai Snapper with Charred Cabbage, Grapes, and Lovage -- Not super noteworthy, but the fish is really well cooked. The cabbage was a little over-charred, but the ingredients all paired really well together.
• ★★★☆ Maine Lobster Cannelloni in Coconut Cream with Perigord Black Truffle -- The truffle felt a bit too subtle, but the coconut cream itself was phenomenal.
• ★☆☆☆ Braised Chicories with Fried Boquerones and Smoked Date -- An interesting flavor combination to say the least. The flavors were a bit too strong for me here.
• ★★★★ Roasted Sweet Potato with Everything Bagel Spice, Buttermilk Emulsion and Dill Oil -- Incredible. Lightly crispy exterior with a soft, fluffy interior, and the sauce really balanced out the flavor. Honestly, this was probably one of my favorite dishes of the night, despite the simple/cheap ingredients. It's easy to make something delicious with lobster or steak, but it's really something else to turn a simple ingredient into these divine flavors.
• ★☆☆☆ Tartare of Winter Root Vegetables with Smoked Egg and Chanterelle Mushrooms -- Meh. The flavors were there, but they felt a bit too strong or out of balance, particularly with the flavor of the cracker. I can't say I'm a fan of the texture of raw root vegetables
• ★★★★ Multigrain Sourdough with Cultured Butter
• ★☆☆☆ Warm Cauliflower Tart -- The cauliflower tart was a bit dry and didn't have much flavor.