So yesterday we went to Cavalli for our anniversary and I must say it was absolutely spectacular.
From the venue itself to the scenery to the service and of course the food it was completely worth it.
And before "those people" complain about how they would have to stop at the McDonalds on the way home this food was so much that I had two pieces of toast only at 22:00 last night.
The size of the plate especially of the mains makes it looks much less than it is. We opted to forego the rosemary potato sides and have dessert instead. Even so I was overfull.
Breads : Bread itself was much of a muchness but the accompanying Mustard and Blueberry butter make it amazing. They also give you pineapple salt which is great to try with and without for two completely different tastes.
Such a basic thing that I will definitely make for snacks in the future.
Starter : Barn-raised duck breast, mango purée, sweet corn salsa, nam prik, coconut reduction.
The shocker here was that the corn and other things were cold while the duck breast was warm which catches you by surprise but makes for a very interesting fusion of taste.
I loved the corn salsa combined with the reduction. Duck breast was equally tasty but best had alone and not mixed with the rest.
Mains : Pasture raised flat-iron steak and short rib, shiitake mushrooms, yellow mustard, estate carrots, star anise jus.
My first bite was actually very mixed as the piece of short rib with the fat just didn't blend with the almost vinegar like jus. So I had the rest of it with the mushrooms of which there weren't many and it was very pleasant.
I'm far from vegetarian but the carrots were ****ing amazing.
The main steak section worked perfectly with the jus and while it looked like so little it was incredibly filling. Perfectly cooked.
Dessert : I forgot to take a picture of this menu so it's hard to tell you what it is. I like strong robust flavours when dining out and generally also very experimental when it's a reputable restaurant. So this was some kind of peppercorn mouse thing but it was ultimately very flat in flavour and not at all what I expected. The peaches were great and so was the sorbet, but definitely my least favourite part of the meal.
*edit : found the menu online. It's pink peppercorn nectarine, rooibos & yoghurt mousse, lemon curd, almost biscuit, white peach sorbet.
