CincSentits

[orangeblossom]

I was at Cinc Sentis earlier this week and had promised to report back. What can i say? It was very good, made even more so by the friendliness and excellent service. We had the omakase menu, with accompanying wines. The menu was as follows:

Snacks - CS´s signature maple syrup sabayon, a bite-sized cube of foie gras torchon on a carquinyoli cookie and a touch of violet marmalade, and a rock fish broth with a brioche crouton. I liked the foie best - the richness of the foie set off by the delicate marmalade, given some texture by the crisp base.

The first course was a butternut squash velouté with seared quail breast with black trumpets. This was very good, one of my favourites for the evening.

Next came a soft-poached egg with white truffles set on creamy potato puree - elegant simplicity at its best. My favourite.

The third course was a slow braised pork belly, which, while delicious, I was not too keen on because I tend to scrape off the fat, which obviously misses the point here! Hubby however, loved this.

The wine I had with this, a rioja (viña ijalba solferino), was my favourite for the evening.

The fourth course was a pan-roasted rack of lamb, encrusted with porcini, set on a leek puree. I loved how the earthiness of the porcini permeated, but did not overpower, the meat.

The cheese course was cabrales with white truffle-infused orange blossom honey.

Hubby, who´s not quite fond of cheese, found this a little too strong. I liked how the honey cut through the creamy saltiness.

Hubby´s favourite course of the night was the granny smith apple sorbet. I loved the maria-lluisa infusion in the sauternes gelée. I´ve never tasted this herb before and I love it

Dessert was a maple caramel cheesecake which was very nice. I also loved the maria cookie crust, which I understand is a sort of an Oreo counterpart in Spain. Will have to look for some to buy and bring home :)

The restaurant was completely full, but as we went early, it was nice to be able to chat a little with Amelie who took very good care of us that night.

a very enjoyable experience

btw, i had made the above comments prior to reading the last few entries on Jordi´s latest experiment with striving for the "umami" and playing with sweet-savoury combinations. Overall, I enjoyed his pairings, which was especially evident i thought in the cheese course.