Raw Almond 2016 - Sous Sol

Another weekend brings another food adventure at Raw: Almond. For the third year running, chef and owner of Deer + Almond has created a beautiful pop-up restaurant with promises of delicious and unique cuisine for all food lovers. As previously blogged about, this year's rendition is located on the banks of the Forks peninsula, as opposed to on the ice. Yet it's concept and goals have remained: create a memorable and unique experience that will forever be remembered.

 Any structure located on ice is bound to be impressive, especially when it is a restaurant with a full capacity working kitchen. Although, it is in the middle of winter, once inside you feel as if you are taken away to a place where both time and your everyday worries are suspended. Sitting at a large communal table forces you to seek conversation with those around you. In an instant, you form a community with whom you will intimately spend the next couple of hours dining and enjoy a shared experience that will delight your five senses.

Tonight features Mike Robins, chef at Sydney's at the Forks and also the newer French speak-easy style Sous Sol. I have dined at the former on several occasions, and it has never failed to surprise and satisfy my food cravings, so I was excited to see what Chef Robins was going to bring to the table tonight. Classically French-trained, he promised to combine expertise in traditional French cooking with new and innovative platings.

The night started off with the amuse bouche including Foie Gras, with caviar on a thin brioche. The slightly sweet brioche bun works well to contrast the dense and rich foie gras, as well as the salty caviar. The foie was finely shaved into tiny morsels to avoid its usually overwhelming richness. Despite being such a small piece, each part of the brioche was bursting with different flavours.

One of our favourite parts of the night was definitely the Moorish Butternut Squash Soup. The butternut squash was expertly blended with creme fraiche. This soup brought a pleasantly surprising depth and intensity to our palate and the crunch of hazelnuts brought a cleansing and nutty dimension. To top it off, the traditional cracker that goes with soup was replaced by the delicate and visually appealing spiced cracker.

Heart of Palm is an exotic ingredient that has a bamboo-like consistency. Popular in South and Central American cooking, it is often incorporated into salads. Taken literally from the center of palm trees, it has a nice combination of tenderness and crunchiness. Tonight, it serves as a great backdrop for the unexpected combination of smoked feta, mulled cherries, capers, sorrel, and walnuts. The mulled cherries were the most surprising component of this dish, adding a sweet and sour juiciness to the dish.

I know it is cliche to say it, but really this next dish was almost too pretty to eat. Exquisitely laid out like an abstract painting, Ptitim Risotto is the solid foundation on which the array of seafood is presented. Scallop, crab, and squid are expertly cooked, supremely tender, crisp and fresh. The seafood adds a luxurious aroma and flavour of the ocean. The risotto was perfectly cooked and paired excellently with the tomato confit. Dollops of cuttlefish ink and saffron aioli bring both colour and depths of flavour to the dish.

Rabbit Ballotine & Pave presents rabbit in two ways. One as a sausage-like roll filled with rabbit heart, thigh, and liver, while the other resembles a phyllo. The ballotine has a nutty and almost pate-like interior rolled in rabbit skin that gives it a jelly-like coat. Conversely, the pave was filled with tender morsels of dark meat enveloped in a phyllo-like exterior. The most unique aspect of the dish was the aromatic Parmesan broth: served piping hot in eclectic teapots. It added a saltiness that helped bring out the rich flavours of the various plated components. Lastly, almost as if a play on rabbit, were the pumpernickel carrots and parisian gnocchi that fully rounded out this multi-dimensional dish.

The night was perfectly completed by the amazing Chevre Panna Cotta. A delicate panna cotta topped with oats and two gianduja chocolate truffles, is paired with a rich mascarpone-filled pear. The pear had a caramel-like flavour, which was further enhanced by the creamy and tart mascarpone found inside. All of this was pulled-together by sweet drops of lemon curd and a thin piece of crunchy meringue.

Tonight Chef Robins really brought his best to the table. This 6 course meal did not fail to impress in a variety of aspects: beautiful artistic presentations, rich flavours, and unique ingredients. Ultimately though, it is the experience of Raw Almond that I will take away. There is nowhere else in Winnipeg that creates a sense of camaraderie between fellow food lovers. Whether you are a local resident or just passing by, Raw Almond is a must try!