Just Spectacular

8:00 - rain pouring - we arrived at Alex Urena's - Pamplona - expecting to experience his take on - "casual" - Spanish cuisine - heading back uptown around 10:00 - he had other plans for us - keeping us going until "Round Midnight" - 

From the first Sopa de Castanas (cheese fritter) of the Chef's Tasting Menu through the last Buñuelos de Chocolate (chocolate fritter) - with each of the nine courses - plus a perfect Priorat - everything was - Just Spectacular -

Evening's dining partners started with Jack Daniels - Belvedere - Kettle One - I went the wine route -

Toyed with several Tempranillo based bottles - even a 100% Cabernet Sauvignon from Valencia - but the tasting note for Prior De Fic - Priorat - Spain - 2005  - seductively read - plum, caramel, powerful - quick "ask" to the Matre'd - his query- "do you like big ?? - done - Prior De Fic was absolutely on the money -

Physically cool - did not get the caramel - plum was light - found lots of fresh cherry - very clean construction - couldn't wait to refill my glass -

It went perfectly with the wide range of food - flavors- brought forth through the evening - warming up to room temp - a second layer of nuanced characteristics came to the surface -

The wine worked to compliment - not as an entity unto itself - although at a stand alone tasting - it could definitely have held its own -

My dining partners keep with their hard spirits until the very end - only taking small tastes at the very end of the diner - definitely my gain -

So what did we eat -

Arriving on a long elliptical plate - specifically placed - from which we were instructed to eat - from the right to the left - starting with Sopa de Castanas (cheese fritter) - the general consensus was that a massive plate of the cheese fritters would have in and of themselves been a memorable meal - then Chestnut soup w/ candied chestnuts - served in a shot glass topped with foam was extraordinary - the tiny piece of chestnut at the bottom of the glass being a killer - finally - Montato - chick pea flour cake topped with a red pepper sauce -  the weakest of the three if one wanted to spell out weak -

Lobster salad, spicy aioli, avocado, salmon roe -just spectacular"

Huevo de Corral Escafaldo y Trufa - Truffle oil poached egg - white asparagus salad - fresh chorize - pimiento del piquillo sauce - not for me - I hate poached eggs - nibbled at the fresh chorize - the rest of the table devoured the entire dish - interesting that no one picked up on the truffle oil - have to get a re-read on that

Lasna de Txanguro - Crabmeat and salsa verde - I saw this on the regular menu and specifically asked Chef to include it in the tasting - just as we asked him to exclude all the rabbit items - lets just say it was magic - a light rectangular piece of pasta topped by finely chopped crabmeat combined in a delicate salsa verde topped by another rectangular piece of pasta - when the wait staff served it - i heard ravioli - and as I ate - I could not stop myself from commenting on this creative interpretation - i.e. - in a large portion - a wondrous entree unto itself -

Salmon - Pan seared Salmon, salsify, shitake mushrooms, morcilla, Mussels saffron sauce - delicate salmon fillet in a deep dish - accented by paper thin slivers of mushroom - giving textured contrast - a perfect dish -

Paella Negra - bomba rice - crayfish - cuttlefish - fresh choriz - mussels - dark - small morsels of the fish mixed throughout the black rice - each spoonful of the mixture to ones plate bring surprises in taste - whether you ate is "as is" - or - carefully hunted for the fish in the misplaced belief that you'd pass on the rice saving room for the rest of the meal - i.e. - everyone ate the whole thing -

Chocolate Soup - warm chocolate soup topped with expresso foam drizzled with truffle oil - served in tall shot glass - OMG !!! - a personal favorite of my wife - I completely understand -

Cosillas - Short Ribs, farro, tempranillo sauce - served after an intermezzo of homemade lemon sorbet - the last course before the dessert - perhaps the most spectacular dish of the tasting - fork tender - caramelized - sweet in its sauce - could have passed as candy -

Everyone took a deep breath before they brought out dessert -

My side of the table got - Membrillo y Almendras - Quince upside down cake with almond financier, vanilla-bourbon ice cream - wife's side - Buñuelos de Chocolate y Sorbeta de Yogurt - if ever there was a time to share -

Skip forward a week - our dining partners are coming back into town - "where shall we go - what would you like to eat" - the question posed - "anyplace - as long as it's at least as good as last week" - the response given - its a challenge I'm going to have to work very hard to acheive -

Enjoy -

HBH

Comments

[Moncler Jackets]

Go for someone who makes you smile because it takes only a smile to make a dark day seem bright.

[supra for boy]

Love those! I enjoy following your posts on facebook and rss!

[Generic Viagra]

Great information you got here. I've been reading about this topic for one week now for my papers in school and thank God I found it here in your blog. I had a great time reading this.

[Lioresal]

Zajímalo by mě, jak se máš tak dobře. To je opravdu fascinující blog, spoustu věcí, které jsem se může dostat do. Jedna věc, kterou chci říct je, že váš blog je tak dokonalá!

[Generic Viagra]

I wonder how you got so good. This is really a fascinating blog, lots of stuff that I can get into. One thing I just want to say is that your Blog is so perfect!

[manolo blahnik]

Good stuff as per usual, thanks. I do hope this kind of thing gets more exposure.

[allegra]

Ils offrent aussi des raisons d'affaires à puce pour s'assurer que de telles initiatives ont du succès et continue

[generic viagra]

Ola idea, Niza,
cousas boas, hai moita xente buscando sobre iso, agora van atopar fontes bastante polo seu post.
Estamos ansiosos para obter máis detalles sobre isto

[Generic Drugs Exporter]

Ég held að þú ert rétt þegar þú segir þetta. Límmiðar á maður, hvað Greinar þekkingu sem þú hefur um þetta efni ... vona að sjá meiri vinnu ykkar.

[Generic Viagra]

I think you are right when you say this. Hats off man, what a superlative knowledge you have on this subject…hope to see more work of yours.

[Seo Services India]

Wow, Great post,Nice work, I would like to read your blog every day Thanks

[Networking solutions]

This is really interesting, You're a very skilled blogger. I've joined your feed and look forward to seeking more of your wonderful post. Also, I have shared your site in my social networks!

[Generic Cordarone]

Hola,Ha hecho un trabajo muy bueno. Hay muchas personas en busca de eso ahora van a encontrar suficientes fuentes por tus consejos.espera para obtener más consejos acerca de que

[ズファジラン]

grea post i like it

[Generic Cialis]

Hola,
Ha hecho un trabajo muy bueno. Hay muchas personas en busca de eso ahora van a encontrar suficientes fuentes por tus consejos, Careprost
espera para obtener más consejos acerca de que

[Taobao English site]

i love tuareg lifes and their stories

[taobao shop]

He is a good friend that speaks well of us behind our backs.
*_*

[cheap jordan shoes]

Yes, I agree with my Bible collection, this blog is very rich. I, too, it is checked at least once. For those who are grateful for the various English Bible, you can join Wycliffe Bible Translators'Bibleless people of prayer project. If you sign up, you will get information on a group of people, but not the Bible (not to mention sheep bound!) prayer. My family is their second group. You can Google it.

[chanel 2.55]

"If you're not having fun doing what you're doing, I really think there's no reason to do it. I think there are other things you can do that you'll have a good time doing, so you definitely have to put your mind to it. Have a plan, but definitely have a good time at the same time."

— Lindsey Berg, women's volleyball

[Dating online]

Nice articles ,see my best dating sites http://www.dating-free.w-rus.com

[goyt]

Your article was a real pleasure to read! And all those delicious dishes... :) If I had them in my favorite cookery book ( http://file.sh/huge+collection+of+recipies+torrent.html ), I'd certainly make a gorgeous supper today!Perhaps, I can still find them somewhere in the internet, if it is not a secret, of course ;)