Oysters & pearls: Dish of the year at Per Se, New York (and a little rant about Blogger)

The finishing touches. Naturally, I don't have a photo of my dish of the year..

I had written a big, long blog post about my truly wondrous meal at Per Se in New York.

It was, of course, hilariously witty and insightful (there's a first time for everything), intelligently reflective about the year gone by and it waxed philosophical about the differences between London's restaurant scene compared to New York's (there are still 3 light years between them, although London's continues on its way up - bigtime). Then, Blogger wiped it last night. Completely. Aaarghhhh (*furiously whacks computer with big branch, Basil Fawlty style*)

So, TPG having gathered the weeping, raging mess from under the desk and poured gin and tonic into it, I'm back. Gingerly. With Per Se.

I'm not writing it all again. It's New Years Eve and I have a life to live - there's champagne to be drunk and I need to buy saucepans. Suffice to say, at Per Se, I had my most extraordinary, wonderful dish of the year - the oysters & pearls.

This is Thomas Keller's classic dish. It originated at his other 3 Michelin star restaurant, The French Laundry in California, and is bestowed upon every guest at Per Se in New York. It's a seductive, luscious treasure trove of a creamy "sabayon" of pearl tapioca (each grain perfectly firm and distinguishable), briny Island Creek oysters, salty Sterling white sturgeon caviar, egg yolks, cream, black pepper, creme fraiche, vermouth and shallots. It's head rollingly superb.

Like so many of the dishes we ate at Per Se that night, the oysters & pearls is stupendously memorable, and was a moment by moment delight to eat.

Oh yes, there was more. In true special occasion spirit, we gorged ourselves on the 9 course chef's tasting menu (alternatively, there's also a 9 course tasting of vegetables which was the basis for Frank Bruni of the New York Times endowing the place with 4 stars back in 2004 - that's some set of vegetables).

The amazing beef

There was a salad of Greenmarket broccoli with abalone mushrooms, sweet carrots, garden mint and bonito essence (Per Se takes vegetables to another level), there was a grilled fillet of Colombia River Sturgeon and there was a Nova Scotia Lobster poele. There was porchetta with swiss chard, pickled sweet peppers and caper brown butter, there was herb roasted Cavendish Farm's quail with sweet potatoes, cape cod cranberries, frisee and maple syrup. There was cheese and 2 desserts - golden pineapple sorbet and then a tropical tea assortment (which tasted better than it sounds, although desserts were not the highlight for me). But, oysters & pearls devoured, the other dish that I day dream about most is the Snake River Farm's "calotte de boeuf" with slow roasted young beets, Bartlett pears, pistachios and watercress - the meat so rich and succulent that you want to nuzzle up to it on the plate.

Service is faultless - friendly but with an eye to every detail. It is one of the other elements of the evening that affixes to your memory as part of the perfection and enhances the whole experience. The sommelier is fantastic - he listened to us and got it right every time. Even the mignardises at the end (tiny, bite sized chocolates, caramels, doughnuts, macarons) were in the "best ever" category, and we were given a package of truffle popcorn to take away and make at home. (It was delicious.)

All this, you enjoy while overlooking central park among only 16 well spaced, "romantically lit" (ie. check out my rubbish photos) tables.

If you are cynical about expensive fine dining, Per Se might not be for you - what I see as adventurous might irk some and it probably won't have the universal appeal that I think is a strength of Britain's equally expensive The Waterside Inn (review to follow). On the other hand, Per Se is opulent and luxurious but it doesn't suffer from stiff formality (hello Del Posto, if I can be bothered, I'll get to you later. Both these restaurants hold 4 stars, but are in completely different leagues in my book.)

Once you factor in drinks, the tasting menu at Per Se may cost you more than your flight to New York. It's the most expensive meal I've ever paid for (the most expensive meal I've ever not paid for was probably at Alain Ducasse at The Dorchester, and it wasn't perfect). So it might mean I'm putting off that home deposit for yet another year, but Per Se will dazzle you, it will pamper you, and you'll be day dreaming about it long after the cost is forgotten.

I agree with the New York Times - 4 stars.

Happy New Year, everyone!

Per Se, 10 Colombus Circle, Midtown West, New York, New York 10019

Bentley's Oyster Bar & Grill, Mayfair (London)

Feeling like Charlie on the way to the Chocolate Factory, on Monday evening I had in my clutches a much coveted golden ticket to the fabulous Dine with Dos Hermanos event at Bentley's.

I skipped merrily along the streets of Mayfair, eagerly anticipating a night with other obsessed foodies and the renowned culinary prowess of Richard Corrigan's restaurant. Plus, Simon Majumdar, co-author of the brilliant Dos Hermandos blog with his brother Robin, had mentioned a substantial goody bag.... I have been known to bowl over small children at parties for a goody bag. This was not to be missed.

I joined the buzzing roomful at 7pm, and was welcomed by a glass of oyster stout hearty enough to put hairs on your chest. Beckoning nearby were a steady stream of luscious, freshly shucked native oysters. Enormous trays frolicked around the room, bursting with succulent giant prawns fried in the perfect amount of light, crispy batter. So far, so fabulous.

All in good time, we settled down for some serious feasting. Joining me at the table was a fantastic array of food lovers - the lovely TGS, aka Robin, from Dos Hermanos; food writer, Andrew Webb; Bibendum wine blogger, Dan; Tim Hayward, a gregarious food writer (and recent winner of the 2009 Guild of Food Writers Award for New Media) passionate about many food issues, but evidently none more than a sensational fish pie; Michael from Sydney with superlative taste in worldwide food and coffee haunts; fun loving foodies, Vicky and Pam; and a man of great literary inclinations, Ivan, who actually reads my blog (a rare trait indeed) and will even pretend to recall bits of it when bribed with alcohol.

Throughout the night, I also met many other terrific food obsessives, including Simon who did a first rate job of making sure odd balls like me had someone to talk to, and the faces behind some of my favourite food writing.

But the main event was the outstanding feast the kitchen had in store for us.

Bentley's Oyster Bar and Grill is a London institution which has been in the game since 1916 and was rejuvenated by the appointment of Richard Corrigan as head chef in the early 1990s - Richard now owns the restaurant and the kitchen is headed up by the talented Brendan Fyldes. The style is robust, down to earth, seasonal food.

First course was a platter containing a delicious bounty of smoked seafood (including salmon, tuna, eel and mackerel) as well as potted shrimp and pikelet sized blinis. Oh, how I love blinis. I think I went back for 5ths.

The main meal was the real conqueror. A huge pot, resplendent with tender cheeks of beef cooked in oyster stout, was placed ceremoniously in the centre of each table, with sides of creamy mash and roasted potatoes, parsnip and baby carrots. This alone was enough to feed a gourmet army.

However, the best was yet to come, in the form of two delectable fish pies. The fresh "meaty" chunks of salmon, haddock, prawns and scallops, steamily heart warming, were absolute gullet pamperers. Upon first bite, Tim emitted an involuntary great whoop of delight. I had never eaten fish pie this good.

Pudding was also a lip smacker. We shared 2 immense toffee puddings, rich and moist, with thick cream which I greedily drowned in as much toffee sauce as I could get away with while avoiding eviction.

Each dish was accompanied by a superb wine. I can't for the life of me remember the names (Bibendum Dan will be most displeased, if not surprised) but the Australian muscat style sticky was head rollingly good. [Postscript: I now know the wines were generously supplied by Nepenthe and Wines Unearthed.]

With a guest list that included some astute foodies, the chefs were clearly out to impress. However, the dazzle certainly worked on this simple scoffer. I'm quite desperate to return with The Peanut Gallery to sample more. Until then, I'll have to make do with trying to hide my enormous goody bag.

An outstanding meal and experience all round. It has certainly inspired many adjectives from me this evening, but then I'm trying to make do without food snaps (can't snap, must eat...). Thanks again, Dos Hermanos.

Bentley's Oyster Bar and Grill, 11-15 Swallow Street, Mayfair, London W1B 4DG