linda 15 December 2008 European, French 14 Comments  Print This Post  Email This Post

I take my hat off to Sojourn

Having launched our blog earlier this year, we were excited and surprised that it is still running by the end of the year. To celebrate the unexpected longevity of our food blog we decided to hold a Christmas dinner for the contributors to eatshow&tell and their partners at Restaurant Sojourn. What started out as an online food diary with no intention of sharing with the masses for Howard and myself, detailing the meals we experienced internationally and domestically, has now flourished to a fully fledged readable food blog thanks to the addition of Teresa, Squishies, Minh and Helena. Without each of these people, the blog would not be where it is today. Howard and I would like to thank each of you for being a part of the EST team, but more importantly for having a huge appetite =D

Sojourn is a relatively new restaurant, established in February 2006 and managed by Paul and Kim Camilleri. Despite their recent appearance on the gastronomical scene, Paul and Kim have successfully attained a chef’s hat in 2007 and maintained it through to 2008, which is by no means an easy feat. Excited by the prospect of a modern European meal with a touch of French whipped up by passionate chefs, we put the disappointing service of a particular rude waiter behind us and were more than ready for our $95 per person degustation. Mind you, the subsequent waiter who served us throughout the night was fantastic.

Freshly Shucked Oyster with cucumber and Champagne Jelly

Once everyone was settled, a waiter brought us our first course, oyster and champagne jelly. The oyster was undoubtedly fresh, bathed in its own sweet natural brine. As I’m not a big fan of champagne, I found its addition to the oyster distracted me from enjoying the course. Although I’m sure champagne lovers will no doubt love this combination.

Swordfish Loin with Sauteed Cuttlefish, Serrano Ham and Warm Tomato Consomme

Shortly after the remains of the previous course were cleared from the table, the next course arrived. Using the soup spoon provided to us, I attempted to taste the tomato consomme on its own. However the limitation in the quantity of the consomme combined with the large sized spoon made it quite difficult to do so. Looking around the table, I realised that everyone was tilting the plate at an angle, collecting the consomme at the bottom. The consomme had a clean crisp flavour, pure tomato juice with a small hint of chilli. Combined with the fresh thinly sliced swordfish and tender cuttlefish, I couldn’t help but be reminded of a sexed up Thai Tom Yum soup. I was so engrossed in the tango on my palette that I failed to notice the existence of the serrano ham and radish.

Carpaccio of Black Angus Beef with Cauliflower Cream, Brioche Soldiers, Soft Poached Quail Egg and Truffle Vinaigrette

Unlike many of my companions for the night, the sight of the next dish scared the bejeesus out of me. One of very few things that I cannot stomach, raw beef was presented to the table. Despite the beautiful garnishing, I steered clear of the carpaccio. I was told by Squishies that the soft and moist thinly sliced Angus beef was slightly cured, resulting in a pleasing salty taste with texture closely resembling prosciutto. Missing out on the star ingredient meant that I had to lap up on whatever was left on the plate. The deliciously crispy and buttery brioche soldiers dipped into the the too cute for word softly poached quail egg was simple yet outstanding. I guess the saying big things come in small packages holds true in this case.

Alternate Beef Dish: Crab something

For the two trouble makers of the night, you know who you are =p, one who for personal reasons does not eat beef, and the other, a “Vegequarian”, an alternate dish was provided. When their dish arrived, the presence of the foam immediately reminded me of Ferran Adrià’s experimental lab, El Bulli. Aside from visually entertaining, I was told veering from expectations, the foam itself was actually quite bitter. Personally for me that would be a no no. The Ravioli on the other hand was cooked to al dente, closely guarding a small package packed with sweet fresh crab flesh. The ravioli was complimented by the smooth cauliflower cream.

Twice Baked Olive and Chive Souffle with Soft Goats Curd, Tomato Sorbet and Parmesan Wafers

If I could eat cotton balls, I would imagine it’s texture to be like this souffle. Pillowy, spongy, fluffy, this is an anything and everything dish. If the chefs could substitute chives and olive with any ingredients, I’d bet the result would be just as good. This is everything that I would imagine a savoury soufflé to be, not too heavy, not too light, just perfect. Nevermind the refreshing tomato sorbet, the “too sour for my tastebud” soft goat’s curd, or the salty diced olives, just give me the soufflé. Each bite just makes me feel like kicking my chair back and joining this guy.

Pan Fried Barramundi with Celeriac Puree, Crisp Chicken Wings, Pancetta, Sauteed Oyster Mushrooms and Jus Gras

The next dish reminds me of a classy version of surf and turf. Salt, pepper and a fresh piece of fish grilled to perfection served with deboned crispy chicken wings. Unfortunately despite the fact that each individual ingredient was prepared well, I found that as a whole this course was quite bland. There was nothing to jolt my tastebuds. The flavours were quite predictable, just a “shelf filler”.

Slow Roasted Spatchcock with Sweet Corn, Braised Silverbeet, Boudin Noir and Red Wine Jus

Recently I’ve noticed that alot of restaurants have incorporated mini chickens into their menu, notably in the form of quails and spatchcocks. Following this trend, we were next served tender slow roasted spatchcock. Paired with relatively sweet soft braised silverbeet, I found that these two complimented each other in terms of taste and texture. Prior to this, I’ve never had boudin noir before, thus the thought of eating something as archaic as blood sausages was nerve wracking. Upon first bite, with a consistency somewhat similar to mud cake, however drier and grainier, the piece crumbled. I can’t recall whether it’s sweet, sour,soft or bitter, only that it was an interesting experience, though not one that I would like to relive. In contrast to the Boudin Noir, the sweet corn puree was just sublime, velvety, sweet and fragrant. If only there was more to indulge in.

Roasted Milk Fed Veal with Parsley Puree, Bone Marrow Fritters, Confit New Garlic and Veal Sweetbreads

WOW! This dish deserves a standing ovation. I started off with the bone marrow fritters. Crispy golden exterior with a creamy rich centre, the bone marrow fritters are almost too rich to handle if it were any larger. Going back to my dislike of offal, I was once again faced with another challenge. Confit of garlic and veal thymus gland. Doesn’t sound too appetising does it ? However defying expectations and joining the ranks of my favourite foods, the sweetbreads was slightly sweet yet very rich. Immersed in a caramelly gravy, a match made in food heaven. Not to be outdone by the accompaniments, the milk fed veal is just sublime. The piece of steak was lightly pan fried to seal in all the juice, thus with each bite, the morsel just melts in the mouth yet violently ruptures with intense flavour. Paired with the airy herbacious puree, Waiter, Encore please.

Coulommiers with Lentils Golden Beetroot, Walnut and Honey and Thyme Tuile

Looking at the plate presented before us, the first thing that sprung to my mind was a ladder (haha weird I know). It seems like the chef wants to take you on a textural journey, starting from soft and gooey, ending in hard and dry.

Coulommier cheese

When the production of something is so heavily regulated and limited, you know that it is exclusive. Coulommier is an AOC certified cheese originating from France. To be AOC certified, a product must meet a set of strict standards, ensuring the maintenance in quality and limiting diversion from the original. With this in mind, I let each piece linger on my tongue, taking full advantage of the bold flavours of the cheese, nutty and deliciously creamy.

Lentils with Golden Beetroot

Continually climbing up the rung of the textural ladder, we reach the centre, a balance between soft and hard. The mild lentils with golden beetroot had a little more bite to it, not too soft that it will melt, though not too hard that it is brittle.

Thyme Tuile

The top of the ladder stood the mighty tuile. The tuile was light and crispy, fragile to the slightest touch, it could only be consummed by picking it up with your fingers and eating it all in one go. Void of any rich buttery after taste, the tuile was a good contrast to the soft cheese and lentils, although dissapointingly lacked the afore mentioned thyme.

Lemon Sorbet with Rhubarb and Blueberry Compote

Ou palate cleanser for the night was the lemon sorbet with rhubarb and blueberry compote. The icy tangy sorbet did it’s designated job well, a great way to erase the memory of past indentations. So good was the sorbet with the rhubarb and blueberry compote that I thought it was unnecessary to add the biscuit.

Vacherin of Mango and Passionfruit with Coconut, candied Lime, Fresh Raspberries and Vanilla Ice Cream

The Pièce de résistance of the night arrived on a large square plate. Initially looking as if everything had been haphazardly placed on the plate, it soon became clear that this was actually the chef’s strategy. With various shades of the orange spectrum placed on the plate, each accompanied by snow white delights, stunning. From left to right : Firstly, clear young coconut jelly bursting with natural sweetness sided a piece of fresh sweet and sour Kensington mango. Towards the centre of the plate sits the lone radiant raspberry swimming in the sea of passionfruit pulp. On the right is another piece of mango, this time served with two pieces of fragrant creamy young coconut flesh. Towards the far right is the voluptuous vanilla bean ice cream. Aromatic is probably an understatement for this ice cream. With each bite, it feels like you’ve been wacked over the head by a handful of vanilla pods, not only that but once you’re down, the black vanilla pulp is smeared all over your face. A bit extreme, but I would voluntarily go through it again and again.

Patiently waiting in the background is the gigantic vacherin, muscling itself up for the final onslaught. The unforgiving extremely sweet and airy meringue is ready to put your teeth into decay if you dare finish it, while the rich and creamy mango and passionfruit ice cream will just knock you out cold. I’m embarassed to admit that a sugarholic like myself could not handle the beating. I would be in awe of anyone who is able to finish the entire Vacherin on their own, try it, I dare you.

Sitting down with a great group of friends with one common interest, it is not hard to have an enjoyable evening. Add great food into the formula and you’re assured a fantastic night. Four hours of chatter, laughter and dish after dish of artistic and unique flavours, I sense this will be the beginning of an annual tradition. Despite our frosty start to the evening, with the night progressing, the hole in the wall restaurant Sojourn with its hush hush atmosphere has subdued me.

Update

For the two non meat eaters in the crew , these were their alternative dishes.

Alternate Beef Dish: Crab something

Alternate Veal Dish: Snapper

Restaurant Soujourn

79 Darling St
Balmain East NSW 2041
Phone (02) 9555 9764
Web : http://www.restaurantsojourn.com.au

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