Benu Tasting Menu
September 2, 2010 Like almost everyone else in town, I've been waiting to dine at Benu for a long time. The second I heard the restaurant was taking reservations, I ran to my phone as fast as I could and booked a table. The former French Laundry Chef de Cuisine, Corey Lee, didn't disappoint our expectations.
We were torn between the intensive tasting menu and the lighter a la carte, but in the end succumbed to the more decadent 14-course option. Rather than list out every single dish and tiny detail, here are some of the highlights.
We started with four small unique appetizers, but when the veal sweetbreads came on, we were really hooked. I never really liked sweetbreads, but man...this was fantastic stuff. So smooth and creamy on the inside, crispy on the outside. Why can't every restaurant make it this way? I know, I know, that was a silly question.
The risotto with sea urchin, corn, lovage and black truffle kicked our butts big time. I've never had such firm (extremely al dente) risotto before, yet it's not raw at all. It's just perfectly toothsome. I could eat bowls of this stuff but my skinniest jeans wouldn't fit me anymore.
The silky and sweet monkfish liver torchon with apple relish, turnip, sorrel and mustard blew our minds. I really enjoyed the contrasting accent from the mustard - that really perked up the taste buds. It was also accompanied with buttery house made brioche slices. At this point I got worried that I couldn't finish the next six courses. Obviously I didn't have enough faith in my eating prowess.
This soup looks rather plain but trust me, it almost made the S.O. weep with joy. This "shark fin" style soup was filled with dungeness crab, cabbage, Jinhua ham and.....drum roll......delightfully rich black truffle custard. Make that sinfully rich custard. The soup alone would have been already delicious but the bottom of the bowl contained a thick layer of the custard. It's literally umami to the 10th power.
Who doesn't like succulent pork belly? This juicy piece came with fermented pepper, cucumber and perilla. I devoured it of course, but I'm somewhat relieved that it came in a tinier portion.
The last savory course was thin slivers of beef saucisson with crisped maitake mushrooms, lettuce, scallions and asian pear. It actually wasn't as rich as I'd thought it'd be. I liked the presentation and was inspired to make a humbler version at home. Whew. Dessert awaited us.
We had a refreshing sweet rice sorbet (hints of roasted barley) with pine nut puree as a palate cleanser, then dived right into the lovely strawberries with vanilla soymilk, buckwheat sablé and jasmine pearl tea. This presentation is reminiscent of something I'd see at Coi. I'm so glad we didn't end up with something more rich, like a thick slab of chocolate ganache slathered in caramel. I wouldn't have been able to walk home.
The staff was naturally gracious and our main server was very funny and charming. The vibe was also on the casual side, but most folks were dressed appropriately - we only saw one guy in jeans and T-shirt. The artfully spare garden in front of the entrance is very Zen - an ideal place to meditate upon your sumptuous meal.
Image credit: Giovanni Nakpil
Reader Comments (5)
Sounds lovely. :)
Someone was actually in jeans and a T-shirt? Good grief. If you could see me now, I'm rolling my eyes -- big-time.
What a meal! I've heard raves about that "shark's fin'' dish, too. Can't wait to try it, myself.
Oh yeah. I wanted to roll my eyes too. Had I known what I was eating I'd have skipped my lunch earlier that day! That soup was beyond delicious.
Wow! The tastes were amazing. The service impeccable. But after a "two course " per person meal we left more than a bit hungry. Our waiter was equally concerned when he asked "you only want 2 courses". We imagined that the "main" dishes at $30 per would not be equally small plates but they were like the first courses. Anyway, pretty place, unusual, great service, food interesting, but to leave hungry, I would not return.
Dana - I'm sorry to hear about your experience. What did you order exactly? Their meat dishes tend to be more rich. We did the tasting menu - it has 14 courses and naturally we had a lot more food.