Seafood Meal

[Prawncrackers]

I was going to post this in the Dinner thread but then i thought your responses could be interesting. They could say a lot about your tastes.

I haven't had the time really to post let alone cook anything recently because of professional exams coming up. Due to constant study I missed my good friends birthday this week and i'd been promising that i'd cook him a seafood meal for ages. As a gift i sent him the slightly tongue-in-cheek dinner voucher below. It's basically a greatest hits of the "fancy" seafood dishes that i've ever cooked. Before you think, like my wife, that i'm going to cook all of that for him... I've asked him to pick just one menu, no mixing or matching. I'd enjoy cooking all three meals but I know which one will be for me the most difficult. We're planning for around the middle of October so he hasn't made his mind up yet, so it got me thinking which would you choose to a) eat and b) cook?

It's a bit lobster heavy but that is because i'm pretty confident of getting good fresh lobsters at the market. The other fish, especially for the Chinese menu we will have to see on the day. So let me know what you think, of course there's scope for change. My friend knows the chef is temperamental and the menu is likely to change without prior notice!

[Chris Amirault]

I'd eat two and make one. Two and three have a lot of a la minute cooking, don't they? I try to avoid that for special meals like this, since those menus plunk me in front of the stove right up until service.

[PopsicleToze]

I don't know about cooking them, but I would order the crab, chorizo & camembert croquettas and the butter poached lobster and saffron pasta. It sounds divine

What a great friend you are!

Rhonda

[Peter Green]

I'd agree with Chris.

One note, though, how are you planning the seating? Separate dining room, or are the diners close to (or in) the kitchen? A la minute is fun if you're with your guests as you do it.

[Prawncrackers]

It'll just be the three of us so we'll eat in the kitchen. No fear of me ignoring the guest whilst i'm cooking. Chris spotted the a la minute cooking for two and three easily. I would say two has the most but it is the most practised so that balances out eh? One would be a breeze, it's a midweek dinner and i wouldn't even have to leave work early for that one!

[ElsieD]

Can I come?