Hidden Kitchen
Three weeks ago I read in Chocolate & Zucchini about an underground restaurant right here in Paris. Hidden Kitchen serves a multi-course dinner with matching wine for 60 euros per person on Sundays. 12 seats, one seating. Reservations are obtained by email and the location in a private apartment is disclosed a few days before the appointment date.
Such underground restaurants exists in other countries but not France, well until now of course. We have one in Singapore and in Hong Kong there are more than a handful but I have never been to any of them, thus when I heard about Hidden Kitchen I really wanted to have a go. Surprisingly it was easy to get a booking for the two of us though I doubt it will remain so for long as word spread at the usual lightning speed along the internet highway.
When I told Sui Mai about our upcoming adventure she made me promise to take lots of pictures and to blog about it. Sure I will. But things do not always turn out as planned. In the morning I charged the camera battery. Later in the afternoon I came out of the shower and saw husband in the study reading his trade magazines. Where is V? I thought she was with you playing with your hair curlers and sucking in the wet air (the humidifier conked out). No, I thought I asked you to take care of her. But I asked you to keep an eye for her. You did? So where is she? Can't see her anywhere. Hmm, let's check her room once more. Ah... there she is sitting on the other side of the bed, next to the bag containing the pink Mentos and well on her way to finishing the tube. I had to capture her guilty expression to show to GG when she came home from her day off. In the midst of all these excitement I forgot to put the camera back into the handbag, realising the fact too late, i.e. after we reached the restaurant.
When we arrived at the building, two young ladies were ahead of us. They pressed the lift button for the floor and the lift doors closed. It was for level X, ah, fellow diners. We said "hi" awkwardly, giggly even, feeling like we were taking part in something clandestine.
11 of us sat down to a 10 course meal. Amuse of bite-sized BLT sandwich with strained gazpacho liquid. Roasted corn soup with black bean salsa. Zucchini lasagne with roasted red pepper basil sauce. Chilled crab cake with avocado. Malibu fish tacos. Sorbet. Balsamic marinated steak with cayenne dusted peaches. Heirloom tomato and mozarella puree. Strawberry shortcake. Petit fours include raspberry jelly, peanut butter cookie and pecan maple brittle. Tiny tasting portions that left us satisfied but not uncomfortably full.
The young chefs had made everything themselves. Flavours were clear and clean. No foams or verrines, rather, a generally safe menu. Every dish was elegantly presented along with appropriate garnishes, it really was too bad I didn't have my camera handy. All 10 courses were good to excellent, not even in the best of Chinese restaurants do we get such perfect scores. My favourites were the roasted corn soup and Malibu fish tacos, the soup fresh and natural tasting, the fish tacos fun to eat. The steak was my least favourite, a drop of balsamic on grilled beef is good but marinating with it imparted more tang to the meat than it should.
While the food was generally delicious, the wines were not so great, the whites I felt were not chilled enough while the red was too tannic and thin. It was also very hot in the dining room even though the windows were open. More details that they'll have to work out, but for the moment, they are doing great, and I would definitely want to return to see how their style and concept would evolve with time.
