Requiescat Marigold

[TarteTatin]

Marigold Friday night was good. Not amazing, but pretty good.

It was a $45 3 course or the 5 course tasting menu ($60?). The four of us chose the 3 courses.

The amuse was a rather tame tabouli salad on the requisite spoon.

Bread was good, and the oil they served with it came with different olives in the dish; which I thought was a very good idea.

Two had a nice beet salad with argan oil with cheese on the top for apps. There was a Barramundi app and I had the Fava Bean soup. All were nicely executed and good.

Three of us had slices of leg of lamb with lentils, cooked medium rare (no options), which was fine with all of us. Another had crawfish and Black Walnut-Stuffed Chicken Breast with Fava and Sorrel.

Desserts were the hit of the evening. I had a pineapple Semolina Cake with Pineapple Sorbet.There was a lemon Tart with Lemon Curd and Lemon Merengue Sorbet, a Halvah Semifreddo with Chocolate-Sesame Crisp and Cranberry and a Konafi with Chocolate, Pistachio and Kumquat.

We brought a nice Poniatowski Vouvray to start, and then a nice red Languedoc from Abbaye Silva Plana 2003, followed by a very good Pinot from Oregon.

[Capaneus]

Recent visit to MK, which continues to greatly please.

Our selections were unfortunately identical, since they were out of the lamb Ms. Tatin enjoyed: we started with the seetbreads with crispy chicken skin and tahina, which were delicious, the chicken skin adding a crisp, rich crackle to the luscious, creamy morsels.

No mushrooms to confuse the unwary.

For entrees, we both got the Crawfish and Black Walnut-Stuffed Chicken Breast with Fava and Sorrel (end quote). The chicken was quite good, surprisingly earthy given the crawfish, but delicious. The side was actually what seemed like Israeli couscous, flavored with sorrel and studded with bright-green beans. This, I felt, seemed the one mistep in our meal: the couscous and fava beans were slightly overcooked, which is death with favas, and with sorrel not having the sort of flavor that would liven them up, the whole became an indistinct starch stew. This did not work well with the chicken, which also had an earthy flavor profile that would have played much better off a contrasting side dish.

If I may be permitted an overgeneralization, I felt this particular problem highlighted something I've felt about Chef Solomonov's cooking: he seems to prefer complementary flavors to sharp contrast. In the appetizer, this worked to perfection, the richness of the chicken skin blending with the sweetbreads, with the contrasting textures adding a further dimension. Even then, the dish did have the earthy, nutty tehina to ground it, which I thought was an important element. In our entree, however, I thought the chicken would have benefitted from some highlighting contrast, either from a more clearly vegetal side, or from some acidic element. Eliminating the couscous and serving the favas alone might have accomplished that. As it was, the dish appeared muddled to the palate, lacking definition, as the several components blended to no great gain.

Still, any minor letdown was soon dispelled, as Chef sent out a complimentary cheese plate that was easily the best I've had in a long time. Allow me to linger:

Tavor, an Israeli sheep's milk; with honeyed halvah;

Testun, goat Italian; with argan oil;

Nevat, Spanish goat; with a date-walnut spread;

Laguiole, cow's milk, French; with apple butter;

Carls Roquefort, a French sheep's blue; with sour cherry compote.

The fact that it was an unexpected treat may have played into our enjoyment, as might the wine, though we were drinking in moderation. But neither quite accounts for how much we did enjoy the cheeses, as each pairing sparkled, and the thoughtful progression highlighted each selection as it built on its predecessor. A truly outstanding course. Really. Tempers frayed and cutlery was brandished as selections dwindled, with some close tine-and-blade misses. At some point I, was told that the remaining Roquefort was spoken for, and no complaints would be entertained.

Fortunately, we were soon delightfully soothed: desserts, as Tarte Tatin pointed out, were superb as well (which has, in my experience, become a hallmark of the restaurant). We had the lemon tart and the halvah semifreddo. Being partial to fruit desserts, I felt the sharp, fresh bite of the lemon custard was hard to beat, but feelings across the table were just as strong for the semifreddo, so you'll just have to check for yourself.

A thoroughly outstanding meal, from a deliciously assured kitchen.

[CMN]

Thinking about going this weekend. Anyone been recently? Any news on the new chef?

Thanks in advance!

[David McDuff]

Thinking about going this weekend.  Anyone been recently?  Any news on the new chef?

Thanks in advance!

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I visited on ex-chef Michael Solomonov's penultimate night at the helm. I'd hazard an educated guess that the new chef, Erin O'Shea, was largely responsible for the meal, which certainly bodes well for the future of Marigold under her direction.

For full details and pics, check out Solomonov's Last Stand at Marigold Kitchen.