Since I've been back from France, I've been furiously deciding which restaurants to try and when. Lucky for me, Talal seems to be up for it. We had Caracol last week and I wasn't all that impressed. I decided to go all out and try Oxheart - one of the best in the city. Not just the best, but one of the pricier ones, too.
I called on a Tuesday to reserve for Friday. Knowing how tiny the restaurant was, I quickly sent an email. WIth no response, I followed up the next day. Finally Thursday rolls around and I get a hold of them. It turns out that they were closed. Thursday I confirmed a table for 2 with Diana. She kindly promised to move me to the counter if the space turned up.
Talal and I met up and drove together to a sketchy part of town for what we hoped would be an amazing meal. We walked in and were seated almost immediately by Diana. She told me that the counter wouldn't be available, but she selected the most central table for me to peak inside the open kitchen.
We looked at the menus. I wasn't surprised, because of my intense research before we came. Talal, on the other hand, started laughing. There were 2 choices, Garden & Autumn tasting menus. It reminded him of "My Cousin VInny". Everyone was drinking in wine glasses, but we discovered that it was actually cider. We grabbed a bottle and selected one of each menu, "to share". Since France, I noticed that I am far more intrigued by vegetables than I am by meats. I know I made a good choice - even though I was starving for protein.
As expected with "gourmet" cuisine, the portions were small. Luckily we ordered a 6-course meal. The most notable and most delicious of the courses... I feel like a mother trying to pick her favorite child.. I know they each have their strengths, but work so well together.
The crepe with potato skins and mustard greens tasted very famliar.
The roasted carrots were so beautifully presented and extremely unique.
The dessert demonstrated the many techniques possible with a simple apple.
The bean stew was my favorite of all. I'm sure it was Talal's favorite, too. It made my mouth water. The broth was hot, but also had a bit of heat. The shishito peppers on top gave a bell pepper bitterness. This dish was bitter and salty. The broth was so complex, but seemed so simple in appearance.
The rest were very yummy, but these were the BEST of the meal.
Because I liked the food, I asked Diana if the Chef allowed people to observe the kitchen. She said that she has never seen that, but people have gone in and gotten their hands dirty. I mentioned my love for cooking and she grabbed the chef for me. I thanked him for a wonderful meal and got his card to follow up. if I could work there on the weekends, I'm sure I could one day realize my dreams of opening a restaurant.
Note: If you ever go to Oxheart - the drawer on the side of the table is your silverware.. Don't awkwardly try to drink your soup.
At Oxheart
With Talal